The preeminent Flight Simulation site was the Internet Flight Simulation File Archive at Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP). Perhaps better know to the flight-sim world as ftp.flight-sim.iup.edu (a VAXServer 4000-500 running OpenVMS, MultiNet TCP/IP, and PMDF) accessible via anonymous ftp or files could be retrieved using the mail-based file server mailserv. A web interface to the archive was also available at http://www.flight-sim.iup.edu. This was a non-graphical, text based system. The man behind the archive Mark Strawcutter was a driving force in the FS community and one of its foremost pioneers.
The Scenery Hall of Fame came into existence in May 1996 specifically to make available a listing of all scenery related files uploaded to IUP on any given day. At the time, a useful service to the flight-sim community, who would now know the file name, file size, FS version, a brief description of the file and of course the author [An example follows].
quebec1.zip
(301k) FSFW95 (FS6) scenery for the Montreal, Canada area. From Henry Garbacz
israel3a.zip
(148k) FSFW95 (FS6) scenery for Israel (ver 3).From Mirko Stefanovic
isl_txt.zip
(538k) Textures needed for Island.zip. From Terblanche Jordon
The last scenery file posting at the Scenery Hall of Fame was October 1999 when IUP’s Mark Strawcutter decided to close down the archive at IUP.
At this point in time Eldon Radda of Compuflight.com offered to continue the IUP archive on his own server. Which become known as the Internet Flight Simulation Archive (IFSA). And so the archive was out of danger for the time being. Thanks to Eldon Radda’s generosity, I was able to avail myself of the relocated archive, by offering a IFSA search function through the SHOF.
This continued through October 2001when after repeated malicious hacking into Compuflight.com and the mounting cost of maintaining the archive, combined to pull the plug, on the IFSA for the very last time.
In a real sense, this negative chain of events proved to
be the positive driving force required to start the long,
sometimes tedious, all absorbing process of designing an
innovative Scenery Hall of Fame. We believe that you’ll be
pleased with the finished product.
Full size image 97.3kb
A bit about me:
It would be easy to say that I’ve always loved anything to do with aviation. That however, would be a lie. My passion for aviation came in my thirties. When I found myself in a position that required some travel via the airlines. Living, as I did in the Southwestern US (Albuquerque, New Mexico) provided the reason to fly to sales meetings and conventions, that otherwise would be just too far to consider driving, and there the spark was lit.
Flight Simulation came next, and as my knowledge grew it lead me first to dial-up bulletin boards, better know as BBS’s where I could search through the various FS related add-on planes, scenery and programs to enhance my enjoyment of Microsoft Flight Simulator FS5.0. Shortly thereafter I graduated to the Internet where a whole new world of add-ons become available through the Flight Simulation Archive at IUP
(See above) who could ask for anything more?
And the rest as they say is history.
And the interest in aircraft carriers? Well I’m
proud to say that I served as a United States Marine during the Vietnam War
period.
ExcBuilder ßeta
