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A340GC, libGC and RDDPA340GC, libGC and RDDP were closely connected historical ASK-Solutions projects around glass cockpit simulation, reusable simulator software and open exchange of simulator data. A340GC provided the visible cockpit displays, libGC brought together reusable functionality for graphics, audio and communication, and RDDP provided a protocol for data exchange between simulator components and external interfaces.
The combination made it possible to design software, protocols and interfaces so that components could be studied, adapted and reused beyond a single simulator or installation. This work therefore became an early example of how ASK-Solutions applied free software, documentation and open technical interfaces in practice.
A340GC was an Airbus A340 glass cockpit simulation for educational, scientific and simulator-related use. The project developed a free framework on which glass cockpit displays and related simulator functionality could be built.
The visible A340GC software represented aircraft information through glass-cockpit style displays such as the Primary Flight Display, Navigation Display and ECAM pages. Those displays were part of a larger technical question: how can simulator state, visual output, audio, network communication and physical interface hardware be connected without making the whole result dependent on a single closed simulator product or vendor-specific protocol?
The project was released as free software under the GNU General Public License version 2. That mattered because simulator work is often expensive, specialised and closed. A340GC and libGC were meant to be studied, modified, integrated, extended and reused by others, rather than becoming a black box inside one cockpit project.
libGC, the Glass Cockpit Library, was created for A340GC and became the reusable software layer behind the project. It formed a bridge between OpenGL graphics, audio, network communication and the RDDP protocol. SDL was used to access OpenGL and audio in a more portable way.
This separation was important. A340GC was the visible glass cockpit application, but libGC contained reusable functionality that could support other simulator displays or interface work. Instead of treating a simulator as one large program, the project separated concerns: rendering, sound, communication, protocol handling and integration with external data sources.
RDDP made it possible to exchange simulator data through a shared data pool and protocol-specific modules. This meant A340GC did not have to be tied directly to the protocol of a single flight simulator, and different simulator components and external interfaces could use the same data structure.
This approach fitted ASK-Solutions' wider commitment to free software and shared technical knowledge. An open protocol and reusable code made it possible to add new data, interfaces and integrations from within the simulator work itself, without depending on the capabilities of a single vendor-specific protocol.
RDDP also provided a technical connection to the separate BFX and OpenBus project. BFX and OpenBus provided the physical interface layer through which switches, encoders, displays, digital and analogue signals and other simulator hardware could be connected to a computer.
This allowed the software and protocol projects around A340GC, libGC and RDDP to work with physical cockpit controls and interface cards without incorporating that hardware functionality into the display software itself. The different projects could therefore be developed, documented and reused separately while still connecting technically.
A340GC, libGC and RDDP belong to the early technical history of ASK-Solutions. The projects brought together free software, simulation, graphical display, protocol design, network communication, reuse and shared technical knowledge.
The software was structured so that display, communication, data exchange and external interfaces could be developed and documented separately. For physical input and output, this work connected to the separate BFX and OpenBus project. This allowed software and hardware to be developed in different projects while working together through documented interfaces.
The design choices from this work can also be recognised in later ASK-Solutions projects: make systems understandable, keep components reusable, document what was learned and give others the ability to study, modify and reuse software, protocols and hardware.
A340GC, libGC and RDDP are historical projects. They are no longer part of the current development focus of ASK-Solutions, but remain important as part of the organisation's free software and simulator history.
The original A340GC archive remains available at a340gc.iradis.org, including historical information, downloads, documentation and screenshots. The project pages on this site place the work within the wider history of ASK-Solutions.
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