Hi Redroach,
On the ATAG Server you don't get radar reports of enemy a/c, but "sighting reports" from other friendly a/c (human and AI). Instead of vectors, you get the enemy a/c headings at the time of the "sighting" (subject to change), their position, and their altitude. Noting the time of this "sighting" and comparing it to your onboard clock will give you the means of interception when checking the in-game map.
I used to fly at much reduced resolution to get higher frame rates and found that it was easier to spot distant pixels. However, the graphics were IMHO pretty ugly, so with a video card and monitor upgrade I decided to fly at 1920 x 1080. It's freaking difficult at times picking up distant enemy contacts, and it hasn't been helped by the pixel to LOD transition causing the aircraft you're closing on to temporarily disappear at approx 500 meters range. (Don't know if this has been fixed in current beta).
The black flak is very inaccurate, but does indicate the presence of enemy a/c in the area. The little white flak bursts are very accurate and useful for spotting and tracking a fast moving enemy fighter.
Hope this helps.
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