Monday, March 17, 2008
Jip-esen FlightStar
by Texas Cross Country Flyer from Central Texas 
Pros: From a long- established company
Cons: You need to be a super-geek to use this complex product
Review: I purchased this more than a year ago and have found the learning curve excessive in regard to excessive features I really need. One of my biggest complaints is trying to get an online update. It isn't an easy process and I threw in the towel. When I plan a long cross country flight, I would like to make adjustments to the plan that FlightStar computes. This is nearly impossible to divert to another airport from the plan FlightStar renders. In addition, I own a Cessna 150-160. My tiny bird has a gass guzzeling 160 horespower Lycoming engine, not the whoosie 100 pony Continental. Since I have the standard tanks, I really can't plan going more than an hour and a half before needing to land and refuel. The software has many default airplanes in it's database, but I find it difficult to adjust the fuel planning for my needs, since my hybrid-Cessna isn't in their mix of airplanes. At the bottom of the screen (after you have plugged in your departure airport and destination airport) is a graphical representation of the altitude you will fly at (the software does ask you what altitude you want to fly at) but the graphic is difficult to understand, especially when you zoom out, zoom in or go North or South or East or West of the map representation. I also wish this software did a better job of showing highways and roads. I spent a lot of time flying with my father in "big-iron" flying IFR and these days I simply like to fly low, and this software simply looks more like what a jet-jocky would be happy with, not some lowly guy like me flying a Cessna. I won't be buying their update. I will be buying someone else's product in the next several days.

Thursday, March 13, 2008
I wouldn't buy it again
by andrew from manassas park VA USA 
Pros: maps are nice in color
Cons: see above, to many features I don't like. It seems the program was developed by very literate programmers and not designed for pilots who have no real desire, or time to mess with the program
Review: The program is very user UNFRIENDLY. There are features which are only available in the IFR or another version. You can't save the maps to a disk and then print out on another computer that doesn't have the software loaded. To delete a leg of a route is difficult to figure out, in most cases it's easiest to delete the entire route and start over. I would definitely not buy it again. unfortuneatly, I bought the IFR version also (you can't load the IFR version on top of the VFR) oh yes, requires obtaining a "key" to open the program obtained on-line. Altogether to much messing about.

Saturday, May 05, 2007
unfriendly software
by Brian Forsyth from Thunder Bay, ON 
Pros: some good features and map detail, the potential is there
Cons: unnecessarily difficult to use, scrolling will make you crazy, etc
Review: cumbersome, not intuitive, needs bigtime fix. The old 'Mentor' original was a much more useable package. Back to the drawing board, boys.

Wednesday, January 10, 2007
by Louis-M. Carriere from Saint-Hubert, Quebec 
Review: Loved: Meteo , Maps, details of information, horizontal view, lot of usefull and useless functions. Hated: Not made for ultra-light, difficulties with the altitude setting of segments of route, only 1 month of upgrade (I don't mean airport data, I mean the software itself), when you create a new route and ask that the route should avoid certain areas, most of the time it says a route can't be traced, navigation log hard to read, cost 200$, no french version. In 2 months I programmed a better program for ultra-light flights including google maps satelite view, meteo, in french and english, etc... cost me 0$... ;) learn to program and be free -- DTA Combo 503 owner

Friday, August 13, 2004
by A Customer from Woodstock MD 
Review: I think this product is still a but buggy and lacks some features, but it is a good start. I.e. When I changed all default units to gallons, the weight/balance calculations were still in liters. Also the VFR version does not include air intersections, which we use as references when exiting the Washington ADIZ. Limited number of aircfraft included, and you need a separate paid subscription to incorporate weather. No way to change the default fuel, and if you add a passenger to weight, he doesn't show up in your FAA flight plan report. I definitely would not have paid for the VFR or corporate version until it gets more mature.