State of the Site - May 2026

Is it just me, or has the year been flying by?... Numbers rarely lie, and yes, there's been a slight uptick in activity as we see every time schools close for the academic year... And sure enough, I noticed that the warning lights in town are dark for the school zone. Starting in a few days, we'll have a few less trips to pick up grandkids from school (they get out much later than other districts around us).

A few of us pack up and leave for the summer, sometimes to do other jobs,...

I know, I should have posted something yesterday for April Fools, but the reality of Amtrak merging with Greyhound just didn't seem too far off anymore. Nor would telling people I sold the site to SpaceX who was going to now reform this as SpaceSim.com or something with an X in it.

Truth is I've been a bit busy the last eight weeks, mostly with finishing up stuff that needed to be done around our property. After almost a year of planning and construction, we finally moved into our...

A slightly belated Happy New Year... and a happy Snowmaggedon if you happen to be in the current storm Fern's path. The site's servers should be unaffected, so feel free to download as long as you have power & internet...

I was ready to write this up two weeks ago, until the stunning loss in the first round of the NFL playoffs of my beloved Green Bay Packers to the soon to be Gary or Arlington Heights Bears, which had me in a mandatory mourning period.

That period...

I was told today (and confirmed) that FlightSim.com has changed ownership yet again, and the new owners are going to be closing down both their file library as well as their forums "temporarily"....

As someone just said to me an hour ago... Imagine the situation OUR community would be in today had we not obtained our independence three years ago...

It's heartbreaking, and hopefully the forum content isn't lost forever.

If any of you are active in...

’Twas the night before Christmas, and all through the site, Not a member was posting, not even a bot. The File Library waited with downloads all clean, In hopes that a First Class Member soon would be seen.

The users were nestled all snug in their beds, While visions of Open Rails danced in their heads; And Eric in his RV, and I with my mouse, Had just settled down in a quiet, not yet finished house.

When out on the forum there rose such a clatter, I clicked on “Recent...