User manual

1 Introduction
This document is a pilot’s manual for XCSoar, an open source
glide navigation system for Pocket PC devices. The audience is
assumed to have a sound knowledge of the fundamental theory of
flight for gliders, and at least a basic working knowledge of cross-
country soaring.
Updates to the XCSoar software may result in some of this manual
being out of date. You should read the release notes distributed
with the software to keep track of changes. Updates to the manual
and software are available from
http://xcsoar.sourceforge.net
1.1 Organisation of this manual
This manual is broadly organised into the major functions of the
software from a pilot’s perspective. The remainder of this chapter
deals with how to download, install and run the software on var-
ious platforms. Chapter 2 introduces the user interface concepts
and gives an overview of the display.
Chapter 3 describes the moving map part of the display in greater
detail and describes how the software can assist in general navi-
gation. Chapter 4 describes how cross-country tasks are specified
and flown, and presents some of the analysis tools available to pi-
lots to help improve their performance. Chapter 5 goes into further
detail on the glide computer functions as it is important for pilots
to be aware of how the computer performs its calculations.
Chapter 6 describes how the computer can interface to variometers
and other air data sensors, and how it uses these measurements to
provide various models of the atmosphere, in particular on winds
and thermal convection. Chapter 7 describes how XCSoar can as-
sist in managing flight in special use airspace and the FLARM
collision awareness system. Chapter 8 deals with systems inte-
gration and systems diagnostics, the integration of XCSoar with
communications devices and with airframe switches.
The remainder of the manual contains mainly reference material.
Chapter 10 lists the types of information that can be displayed in
the grid of InfoBoxes next to the map display. The configuration
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