Version history, fixes and notable additions across internal and public builds.
Version 0.5.2-alpha5
Sector Studio follows sector file declarations more closely when deciding which files to load. The File Explorer now shows why a file is active or whether it is unused.
Added
Hover over a file in the File Explorer to see its reference status.
Right-click a file and choose Show references... to see the declarations or automatic loading rules that reference it. Select Open source to jump to the relevant line where available.
Improved
Import discovers controller profiles and letters of agreement referenced by active ATC files within the sector root.
Fixed
External fixes, VORs, NDBs, ATC positions, airports, airways and airspace now follow their section declarations. Files of these types that are only present in an include folder stay inactive.
ATIS and digital ATIS dependencies now come from active ATC files.
Runway metadata comes from active runway files. GEO and fill-colour loading honours declarations and can automatically pick up airport-matched GEO and TFL files. FCL files require a fill-colour declaration.
Declared danger, restricted and prohibited GEO files now contribute geometry. Main airspace declarations accept files with the .airspace extension.
Live preview uses the same file selection rules as loading a saved project.
Known limitations
These loading changes cover external files. Inline fixes, navaids, airports, runways and GEO are outside their scope.
Copy entire include folder can keep unused files in the project for editing. Those files remain visible in the File Explorer and contribute data only if the applicable loading rules select them.
Fixes validation errors when procedures reference FIX, VOR or NDB points defined with decimal coordinates. Available as an Alpha 5 hotfix through the download page and automatic updates.
Fixed
FIX, VOR and NDB definitions accept decimal latitude and longitude pairs, including longitudes with leading zeros.
Procedures resolve references to decimal-defined points instead of reporting misleading "Unknown coordinate reference" errors.
Known limitations
Use a decimal point when writing decimal degrees; decimal commas are not supported.
Latitude and longitude on the same row must use compatible coordinate formats. Mixing DMS and decimal degrees remains a validation error.
An Alpha 5 maintenance update with more consistent coordinate validation, decimal support for airport and runway positions, and corrected colouring of FIX records.
Fixed
Airport positions and runway endpoints now accept decimal latitude/longitude pairs. Decimal support for FIX, VOR and NDB definitions is retained, including longitudes with leading zeros.
Coordinate validation consistently checks full dotted and compact DMS formats, decimal length limits, hemisphere, and geographic ranges. Abbreviated DMS values are rejected instead of being mistaken for navigation references.
Coordinate pairs reject mixed DMS and decimal values while preserving supported combinations with FIX, VOR or NDB references.
Coordinate colouring now leaves FIX identifiers such as AAL, AAL08 and AAL12, and trailing type fields, unchanged when highlighting a decimal position.
Additional readers warn about missing trailing semicolons. Normalised clipboard rows include the terminating semicolon before any inline comment.
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Known limitations
DMS coordinates require the complete 14-character dotted or 11-character compact format. Decimal coordinates allow at most 13 characters, including the sign and decimal point.
The root [INFO] block continues to require dotted DMS. Navigation references remain limited to fields that support them.
Context-aware right-click menus for point, segment and range editing, drawing, comparisons and calculators.
Coordinate clipboard normalization, explicit named-point conversion, and up to six read-only procedure reference pins.
Configurable procedure geometry warnings with precise Problems/source/map navigation.
Fixed
Preserve header-only named points when a generated hold or turn starts there, without a duplicate first segment.
Respect <br> starts of separate SID/STAR paths and blank formatting lines; preserve boundaries through editing, previews, selection and geometry warnings.
Known limitations
Output is coordinate-based display geometry. ARINC leg semantics, atmospheric IAS-to-TAS conversion, wind and flight-dynamics simulation are outside this release.
Chart radial inputs use the entered VOR station alignment; local magnetic variation is separate for other drawing tools.
Airport-area and density warnings are adjustable advisory checks.
After reopening, generated shapes are edited through their source coordinates rather than stored parametric metadata.
Fixes automatic-update failures caused by insufficient permissions when Sector Studio is installed in Program Files or another protected folder.
Updating from an earlier version
If automatic updating fails with an “Access denied” error, close Sector Studio, right-click its shortcut, select Run as administrator, and retry the update.
Alternatively, download and run the 0.4.7.1-alpha4 installer. This installs the corrected updater for future updates.
Added
The updater now checks installation permissions and requests administrator access when required.
Cancelling the administrator prompt keeps Sector Studio open.
Writable portable installations continue updating without an administrator prompt.
Directly launched updater helpers check permissions before applying an update.
Updater failures are logged and handled without an unhandled exception.
Sector Studio 0.4.7-alpha4 adds live map and validation previews while editing, expanded airway and airspace support, easier project file management, and tools for generating sector changelogs and deletion lists. It also improves format compatibility and fixes Explorer appearance in both themes.
Added
Live editing feedback: Problems and map previews update from unsaved changes, including detached editor windows, and refresh after saved external changes.
Airway support: High and low airway parsing, diagnostics, map layers, labels, and track breaks.
Airspace support: ARTCC, high, and low airspace boundary parsing, diagnostics, map rendering, and labels.
Filled polygons: FILLCOLOR parsing and rendering for .tfl and legacy .fcl files, including airport-named files, colours from [DEFINE], and a dynamic-polygon preview control.
ATIS preview: .atis structure parsing and an Explorer preview of referenced templates.
Project file management: Create, copy, move, rename, and recycle files and folders through Explorer context menus, File-menu commands, and drag and drop.
Automatic project refresh: Refresh project files, references, diagnostics, and map data after additions, deletions, and moves.
Include-reference updates: Automatically update confirmed explicit include references when files or folders are moved or renamed inside Sector Studio.
Release snapshots and changelog drafts: Compare saved sector files against a release baseline and review a generated changelog before export.
Deletion lists: Generate delete.upd from removed package paths, including old paths of moved files, with export checks that exclude files replaced by the update.
Improved
Consistent coordinate-pair handling and named FIX/VOR/NDB reference resolution across supported file families.
Unified explicit and implicit file discovery across include resolution, airport attachments, and project import.
Preservation of optional FIX, VOR, NDB, SID, and STAR fields during structured edits, retaining unrelated source text.
Fixed
Map layer controls now display their names alongside object counts.
Corrected Explorer foreground and hover colours in both themes.
Removed Explorer alignment binding warnings during refreshes.
Included the installed-application startup and writable-location logging fixes from 0.4.5.2-Alpha4.
Known limitations
Dynamic FILLCOLOR polygons require Preview dynamic TFL; no live ATC station feed is available.
ATIS previews display template structures and placeholders without substituting live weather or controller values.
Holdings, MVA, VFR, elevation, and symbols remain outside the current semantic/map coverage.
Graphical SID/STAR authoring remains planned for Alpha 5.
Live previews do not save source files. Save changes before exporting.
If separate windows contain different unsaved drafts of the same file, the most recently edited draft supplies the live preview.