Where to check latest version / update available?

[disco79stu]

Hi,
I seem to always be missing when an update is released, only by accident I take note (when it's discussed elsewhere etc.).

So where/how do I check my current version?
Where can I check the latest available version?
Where will/can I get notified of an available update?

Thanks!

[rogermoore]

In the sticky I believe. Update doesn’t work for me. Just updates over and over again

[mobbe321]

Use the "offline update" instead. Works great!

[disco79stu]

In the sticky? Where exactly, I can't seem to find it.
Yeah, that's what I did until now, just randomly hitting "update" once in a while. But I'd like to make this a bit more conscious...
A version number would help, alongside a proper changelog.

[Ankh]

Seriously, this FSDT Updater is the biggest rubbish ever installed by any addon on my rig regarding sim addons. Totally impossible to keep track of anything, no release notes for most products, downloading stuff over and over again, sometimes downloading stuff only after running it for the second or third time and and and.

Just like now: first, it downloads a load of stuff, I guess related to the SU10 update. Then, to see if my node is up to date, I run the FSDT a second time, this time it only downloads four or five files it did not the first run, something called "D:\Addon Manager\MSFS\fsdreamteam-gsx-pro\SimObjects\GroundVehicles\FSDT_Cargo_Loader\texture.green\FSDT_CARGO_LOADER_ALBEDO.PNG.DDS". Then, when I run the FSDT Updater for the third time, it suddenly downloads again the two layout.json files of my two FSDT sceneries but nothing else, those two files were not downloaded during the first two runs of FSDT Updater.

Seriously...

[virtuali]

Totally impossible to keep track of anything

There's a "Release Notes" button for a reason. If there aren't any news, you have no reasons to run the update.

no release notes for most products

Release notes come only when products are actually updated, and it has been a while since products other than GSX got an update.

downloading stuff over and over again, sometimes downloading stuff only after running it for the second or third time and and and.

The reason why there aren't any release notes, it's because we are still not done uploading all files to the server RIGHT NOW, since we added some operators, and that affects thousands of files to change, so it's taking some time, because updating lots of small files takes time.

And that's why there haven't been any release notes yet, precisely because the update is not completely up yet.

And that's why, during an upload, there will likely be files downloaded several times, because the process is not completed. If it was, we WOULD have posted Release notes.

[virtuali]

In the sticky? Where exactly, I can't seem to find it.

The Sticky is just one place where the latest release notes are posted

https://www.fsdreamteam.com/forum/index.php/topic,26826.0.html

The title says the last update was on September 7th, there hasn't been any updates ever since, so unless you never ran the update after that date, you have no reason to randomly run the updater.

The most obvious place to check for release notes should be the "Release Notes" button in the FSDT Installer, which of course confirms the same information found in the Sticky thread: last update was September 7th.

There will be a new update in the next hours or so, which will of course be indicated in Release notes, in both places.

[disco79stu]

All fair enough, butbwouldn‘t it be possible in the future to have the currently installed version and the available version shown in the updater/installer? Every other product manager I have shows the latest and/or installed version, e.g. FS2Crew, Fanix, Fslabs, Aerosoft, Orbx…... a simple „Available version v1.x.x“ and „Installed version v1.x.x“ or something like this? Would that be possible for GSX? I too keep missing updates…

[virtuali]

All fair enough, butbwouldn‘t it be possible in the future to have the currently installed version and the available version shown in the updater/installer? Every other product manager I have shows the latest and/or installed version, e.g. FS2Crew, Fanix, Fslabs, Aerosoft, Orbx…... a simple „Available version v1.x.x“ and „Installed version v1.x.x“ or something like this? Would that be possible for GSX? I too keep missing updates…

This has been explained so many times: a version number is not really useful, if the program doesn't verify every single local file and ensure your version is exactly like the one we have online, and tries to redownload it if required.

You cited PMDG, which does have a version number, so try this simple experiment:

- go into any airplane folder, and start to intentionally mess up with files, remove files, edit files and fill them with nonsense, etc.

- run the check for updates. It won't do anything, it will still tell you have the correct version, even if your files are all messed up.

Of course, this was just an example you can try but, what if those files ended up missing or corrupted by accident ? You wouldn't even know, because the "version number" told you have the latest version, the updater didn't really check all files, it just stored the version number somewhere to make you happy, but in fact you could be with a corrupted product without even knowing it.

Now, try the same with any FSDT product, run the updater, and it will restore all the files you removed and/or corrupted, so you now have the latest version, intact, making knowing its number not really useful.

However, since too many users seems to be happy to see a version number, we might be "updating" the updater in the future to:

- Show a version number

- Don't show what is downloading, so you won't even know if it's downloading something "over and over"

- Report an updated version number at the end, and everybody will be happy.

Of course, it won't make the program any more or any less reliable than it is now, but at least it will APPEAR to "work like the others".

[Turok144]

Thanks Umberto! 👍 This will save me unnecessary live update executions.  I'm glad I read the thread.  I was running the live update everyday since GSX was released. 😁😋

[tango3000]

yes  or sure a version number will be great...like all other products

[virtuali]

yes  or sure a version number will be great...like all other products

If you read my previous post, you would know displaying a version number just because "other products" have it, it's not a very good reason, since it doesn't give you any assurance you have the proper files of the right version ( see my example ) but of course, if a version number is the only thing you need, a version number will be...

[pilot3033]

yes  or sure a version number will be great...like all other products

If you read my previous post, you would know displaying a version number just because "other products" have it, it's not a very good reason, since it doesn't give you any assurance you have the proper files of the right version ( see my example ) but of course, if a version number is the only thing you need, a version number will be...

I think what most people need is just some sort of indication that FSDT have changed something and the user should run the updater so they are up to date. Something as simple as, "last release on <DATE>."

[disco79stu]

I can understand how FSDT is doing things and if version numbers are useless, okay.
But at least put a "new version available" tag or something somewhere... I really can't "see" during the live update if a new version is being downloaded/installed. It's just two minutes of very quick file transfers every time, I can't keep up with this. And I won't stare at the running filenames every time, trying to figure it out.
So I just run it every day to be sure, which is a very "unconscious" way of keeping software up to date.

[Ankh]

So I just run it every day to be sure, which is a very "unconscious" way of keeping software up to date.

This. I simply do not understand why this seems so difficult to get. Years of requesting a simple update notification either here in the forums or elsewhere were and are constantly ignored due to some strange stubborn ideas.

But FSDT is not alone, it seems one of the most difficult tasks around sim addon devs to properly inform their customers about updates. In my eyes, nothing more easy than that: simply make a thread on top of the forums where you announce updates, like many, many freeware devs do (AIG as an wonderful example). Like this, we could simply quickly check the forums and if the corresponding thread has no new entry, no need to run FSDT Updater.