Help solve this mystery - camera angle lock

[smokeys_pal]

This is a long post, but I have a mystery I cannot resolve. Here goes…..

I've been playing IL-2 without problems for many months. OS is Vista. Patched to .09 version a month ago - no problems.

As of Jan 5th or so this is happening - IL-2 camera 'locks' in far right-rear position (i.e. numpad #3) . This occurs consistently in each option of play from the Main Menu; that is to say - in Single Missions, Pilot Career, Quick Mission, and even in Play Track with 'Manual View Control' switched 'on'.

It's just AS IF the hat switch is stuck; but, I have tried with HOTAS (joystick) unplugged - the problem persists.

The camera lock begins when a flight loads and I am 'in the cockpit'. I load a flight, and the point of view jumps to full right-rear. I can nudge the view briefly with either the numpad or with the hat button, but it quickly snaps back to right-rear.

This also occurs in external view (F2) of my own plane or of any other plane (SHIFT+F2, CTRL+F2). Just as in the cockpit view, I can only get one angle to view from externally, not the usual 360. I can get the angle to move very briefly with either the numpad or the hat button, but the view snaps right back to full right-rear (I guess it's 135 degrees).

All other features of the game operate fine - throttle, guns, elevator, flaps, etc.

The problem persists even through all these solutions I've tried:

- reset game Control Panel to defaults

- HOTAS unplugged, flying only with keyboard and mouse
- Keyboard unplugged, flying with only mouse
- Mouse unplugged (after I get the flight loaded), flying only with keyboard
- Mouse and keyboard unplugged (after I get the flight loaded), flying only with HOTAS
- checked Scroll Lock, Num Lock keys for possible interference with numpad
- toggled all "F" function keys in many different variations - Chase view and External view appear OK, except, as noted earlier, the angle of view is stuck just as it is in Cockpit view; Flyby view (F3) works normally

- reset HOTAS (2-month old Thrustmaster) settings to default, then recalibrated
- Mouse swapped for a different mouse
- numpad keys checked for sticking

- reboot (several times)
- finally I bit the bullet yesterday --- local file cache deleted and re-downloaded version .08 (from Steam), re-installed - have not yet patched up to .09
- closed down all other programs/hardware that may cause conflicts
- tried HOTAS in Google Earth flight simulator - no problem; hat switch works correctly for view angle, as does numpad

Mouse & keyboard work fine everyplace else in IL-2 - that is to say, in the Main Menu, in Controls, etc. and they work fine in any other program, Windows or otherwise...

No new or unusual programs or hardware had been installed that may have resulted in a conflict.

I have read negative comments about Steam, so OK, maybe someone will suggest I should buy the product again elsewhere. But why all of a sudden after months of flawless operation should this occur, even after a complete re-install? If Steam's files got corrupted I think they are reputable enough to fix them. I really think this is an issue local to my system, but I can't figure out what it might be.

I'm running out of experiments to try. Here is one more clue I want to pursue, and maybe some of you know about this. Occasionally during a flight I hit upon a key sequence that brought up an overlay of computer code for IL-2. It's as if a flight log suddenly overlays the screen, or some kind of config file. I had thought the key sequence was something like SHIFT x2, but I cannot recreate it. I recall this happened the last time I played successfully, and I wonder if I may have changed the programming… is it possible that I inadvertently changed a setting in a config file?

Maybe not - since I have deleted the game and re-installed from scratch maybe that's another dead-end.

(Before you respond - I posted this problem elsewhere and some respondents paid no attention to the factors I've already eliminated. For example, they blamed the HOTAS, or the keyboard, even thought it's pretty clear it is NOT caused by either. Please, before suggesting something - review the theories I've already tested and dismissed. I don't intend to sound grouchy when asking for free advice… but you can see my point, can't you?) Thank you in advance.

[Luffe]

This is just a guess since I have not heard of this problem before.

Find Il2's main directory.
I don't know the excact path but it should be somewhere here: *\steam\steamapps\common\...

In the file 'conf.ini' (backup the file before editing it) locate the line: trackIRUse=1
and replace the 1 with a 0 and save and exit.

This simply disables Il2's ability to use 3rd party view control programs such as TrackIR, Newview, Freetrack...etc.

If this does not fix your problem, at least it eliminates another possible factor.

[smokeys_pal]

WOW

Luffe your 'guess' is precisely the solution! Thank you very, very much.

Now I think I have to eat crow... I admit that at some point in the last week I downloaded Freetrack, though I thought it was after this problem arose because with no ability to fly planes I had started looking for other things to do. Perhaps the Freetrack download initiated this problem.

Thanks again for your help, Luffe. Terrific.

[blobbob22]

how did you get in the cockpit view is it like a spshal button

[blobbob22]

nvm

[Novotny]

Well done Luffe! Love to see someone's issues being solved.

[sEver]

Originally Posted by Luffe

In the file 'conf.ini' (backup the file before editing it) locate the line: trackIRUse=1
and replace the 1 with a 0 and save and exit.

Had exactly the same problem as OP, and I'm grateful for the solution, I as well have been using FreeTrack some months ago.

Have a great flights!

[fireship4]

Thanks for the fix.

You can actually do it without disabling it in the config, just open freetrack and recentre worked for me.