Hoppie Standalone MCDU

A standalone MCDU for the Hoppie ACARS system.

Introduction

This is a standalone application for interacting with the Hoppie ACARS system as a sim pilot. It does not interface with any flightsim (or at least, not yet); the intended use is with aircraft models that do not offer Hoppie integration out of the box.

There are two frontends: a (rather spartan) terminal UI, and a web interface.

Since the MCDU runs completely independently from the flightsim, it can of course run on a separate computer; the web interface is also accessible from any web browser that can connect to the main MCDU process.

Installation

From Binaries

Grab the latest binaries from github (TODO: package release with binaries)
Unzip/untar to somewhere on your $PATH

From Source

Install prerequisites:
- GHC 9.4 and Cabal 3.0 or later (easiest way is to use ghcup)

Check out the repository:

git clone https://github.com/tdammers/hoppie-standalone ./hoppie-standalone

Build with cabal:

cd hoppie-standalone
cabal build
cabal install

Configuration

The main (or, currently, the only) Configuration file is ~/.config/hoppie-mcdu/config.yaml. An absolute minimum configuration file is:

logon: password123

(Where "password123" is your Hoppie logon code). Additional keys mirror the command-line options, and do the same thing.

Full list of options:

command line	env var	config file	in-app	description
`-lLOGON`, `--logon LOGON`	`HOPPIE_LOGON`	`logon`	read-only	Hoppie logon code
`-cCALLSIGN`, `--callsign CALLSIGN`	`HOPPIE_CALLSIGN`	`callsign`	yes	Your callsign
`-tICAO`, `--aircraft-type ICAO`	n/a	`aircraft-type`	yes	ICAO aircraft type code for your aircraft (A32N, B738, ...)
`-PINTERVAL`, `--fast-polling INTERVAL`	`HOPPIE_FAST_POLLING_INTERVAL`	fast-polling-interval	no	Fast polling interval, in seconds
`-pINTERVAL`, `--slow-polling INTERVAL`	`HOPPIE_SLOW_POLLING_INTERVAL`	slow-polling-interval	no	Slow polling interval, in seconds
`-uURL`, `--hoppie-url URL`, `--url URL`	`HOPPIE_URL`	`hoppie-url`	no	Hoppie ACARS connect URL
`--show-debug-log`, `--show-log`	n/a	`show-log`	yes	Show debug log on screen
`--http-server-hostname HOSTNAME`	`HOPPIE_HTTP_HOST`	`http-server-hostname`	yes	Expose MCDU as an HTTP app on this hostname. Does not change the server itself, but causes a different URL to be shown in the log, and used for QR codes.
`--http-server-port PORT`	`HOPPIE_HTTP_PORT`	`http-server-port`	yes	Expose MCDU as an HTTP app on this port
`-H`, `--headless`	n/a	`headless`	yes	Headless mode (no terminal UI, only HTTP)

Usage

The hoppie-mcdu command, run in a terminal, should show something like this:

This is the terminal UI; you can operate it by using the letters and digits on your keyboard for entering characters, while the function keys (F1 through F12), PgUp/PgDn, and Esc, operate the line-select keys (LSK's) and MCDU function keys, as labelled on screen. The Delete key is mapped to the MCDU's DEL button, and the Backspace key to the MCDU's CLR button (both not shown in the terminal UI).

If a web server is configured, you can navigate your browser to the configured URL, and it should look like this:

Both interfaces control the same simulated MCDU though, so you can use whichever you prefer.

MCDU Module

DLK (Data LinK)

This module, accessible via the DLK option in the main menu, or by pushing the DLK mode key, controls various ACARS functions:

RECVD MSGS shows the uplink history (messages you have received)
SENT MSGS shows the downlink history (messages you have sent)
TELEX opens a TELEX (free text message) editor
ATIS, METAR and TAF open editors for requesting the respective information from the ACARS system (ATIS translates to VATATIS on the Hoppie network; no other ATIS sources are currently supported)
DCL opens a DCL request editor (European style pre-departure clearance; the request is sent as an ACARS TELEX message, but the response will be issued via CPDLC)

ATC (CPDLC, Controller-Pilot-DataLink Communications)

This module, accessible via the ATC option in the main menu, or by pushing the ATC mode key, controls CPDLC functionality:

MSG LOG shows the history of all CPDLC uplinks and downlinks
LOGON opens the CPDLC logon/status page, from where a CPDLC logon can be initiated.
Once comms are established, the ATC will additionally show a range of options for making all sorts of requests.

Configuration module

This module, on page 2 of the main menu under CONFIG, allows you to change some options for the current session; however, these options will not be stored. If you want persistent changes, edit your configuration file. On page 2, you can configure and enable/disable the built-in HTTP web server, and output a QR code in the terminal (useful for accessing the web MCDU from a smartphone or tablet).

Status module

This module, on page 2 of the main menu under STATUS, shows the current configuration and status of the MCDU system.

tdammers / hoppie-standalone