[Jumoschwanz]

KG_26 Alpha pretty much sums up my thinking with his last post on this subject.

I have installed mods and flown them both off and online in the past. The extra features and aircraft and hollywood effects they offered were interesting but I never thought they were worth risking the flight sim and community for.

I tried track IR too, bought one brand new for myself, and it seemed more trouble than it was worth. I don't know how many guys I have flown with that had it go wacky on them during a flight and had to bow out to get their **** back together and working for them.

Very often I always told newcomers to IL2 that all they needed to fly online with anyone toe-to-toe was an up-to-date installation and a twisty-stick with a good hat-switch. It is all I have been using for many years. My Microsoft Precision 2, which I recently bought for $5 at a thrift shop, is installed and used with all default settings.

That is the way to sell the sim to those newly interested in it as far as I am concerned. Then they can just have fun instead of worrying about gadgets and extra software that they certainly do not need at all to have fabulous times with IL2 Sturmovik.
Later on after they get their sea-legs then they will do whatever they want, but Like Alpha said, I have seen dozens of people on Hyperlobby chat struggling for no good reason with mod installations and fancy hardware, and I would not blame them at all for quickly deciding that it is all too much compared to their gaming boxes and simpler distractions out there.

After over a decade I still enjoy flying the official version of IL2 and using the same stick because it does the job and I don't have to think about anything unless I feel like it.

Thank you to all the modelers and coders who have helped Oleg and company and TD work on the sim to keep improving it, and no thank you to those who have put themselves before it. That has always been my point.