Microsoft's Flight Simulator 2000 [FS2K] never appealed to action gamers. Flying around without understanding all the plane's commands, can be boring. The interesting bits aren't obvious: they will only be noticeable after some dedication, when you finally discover the importance of pre-defined routes, the impact of weather and the need to take care of fuel consumption, which are things you simply don't feel, when playing for just 5 or 15 minutes...

One year ago, you almost had not civil aviation simulator, other than Microsoft's, so the fact that some gamers didn't enjoy FS's style, wasn't such an issue, as there was no choice. Then came Flight Unlimited [FU] and it all changed!

FU is so much better looking than all the MS's flight simulators, previous to the FS2K release, that many people got attracted to the genre. Then, Microsoft improved the graphics. But FU had something else that only now Gates is really catching on: the fast challenges.

FU allows you to fly great fast adventures, such as go and save tourists from stormy weather, or go and help a ranger hunt a boat, and so on... These are new ways of living the flight, that really contribute to a much versatile software. After all, there are times when you simply don't want to surf the sky for hours :)

FS2K also has good looking fast adventures. I just discovered how fun they can be!

I accomplished two beginner challenges:

#1) Hairy Carrier - where your Cessna N8827E suddenly has a severe engine failure that will force you to dive on the sea or try a risky landing on a carrier deck, just below you! Great fun! You'll probably don't succeed the 1st time, but it is quite an achievable performance. Just drop the flaps, when you are on straight line with the ship, and that should dot it.

#2) Moscow or Bust - where you decide to go land on China's Red Square!! Beware with missiles (SAMs) if you fly too high or too fast... and good luck with the very tight landing zone, surrounded by walls. It is strange, but I found this challenge easier than the previous.

More challenges, soon.

Today, to spice things up, Microsoft release FS2K update #2. This file mostly adds shadows to the planes and buildings. It should also speed your frame rate up a bit.

Flight Simulator 2000 update #2 [7214 KB]

WARNING: if you are using a CD backup / copy of the original, this patch will require you to play with the original CD inserted, even if you did a 1.2 GB install, as I did... :(

AVP AntiVirus update for TODAY

Today, the best anti-virus I know was updated. If you don't own AVP, go visit their website @ http://www.avp.com

If you already are an AVP user, just download the update file ftp://ftp.avp.com/pub/update32.exe [1865 KB] and execute it.