This link will lead you to a list of SYMBOLS,
ABBREVIATIONS AND TERMINOLOGY used throughout this plane, the
documentation you are currently reading and of course in the Pilot's Operating Handbook (POH)
from which it was taken. It contains a wealth of explained aviation slang and probably also
that one strange abbreviation you've always wondered about J
This aircraft is provided with a complete set of checklists (closely based
on the POH and intended for reading and adhering to!)
which is contained in the FS2004 Kneeboard which can be accessed and toggled through with the
Kneeboard
simicon in upper left corner of the main panel (in the VC between the VHF Homing Indicator and the Transponder),
by pressing F10 or can be directly selected
in the Aircraft Settings menu. They are organized in the following order:
First come the emergency checklists (as you will want to have them handy
when things get hot...) starting with the most probable troubles:
- START EMERGENCY CHECKLIST (if something goes wrong during engine startup)
- OTHER EMERGENCIES (particularly useful when warning lights in the annunciator panel
light up)
- ENGINE FAILURE DURING TAKEOFF BEFORE VR (rotation speed)
- ENGINE FAILURE DURING TAKEOFF AFTER VR
- MANUAL AIR START CHECKLIST (helpful when you need to start an engine in-flight
at over 120 KIAS)
- STARTER ASSISTED AIR START CHECKLIST (likewise helpful when you need to
start an engine in-flight below 120 KIAS)
Then come the normal checklists in chronological order:
- INTERIOR CHECK (the exterior check I omitted here due to uselessness in
a perfect flightsim world)
- BEFORE STARTING ENGINES (don't take too long for this one, else your battery
will run flat!)
- NORMAL START (LH+RH) (make sure you follow this one
to the dot else doom will strike you!)
- TAXIING CHECKLIST (with important hints as to ground control of this aircraft.
Please also see below for details!)
- ENGINE RUN-UP CHECKLIST (to see that all is in order with the powerplants and props)
- BEFORE TAKEOFF CHECKLIST (when you're sitting on the runway waiting for
takeoff clearance)
- TAKEOFF CHECKLIST (for the exact speeds + values for efficient climbing at the current total weight refer to the Speed Card,
the
-icon of which is directly adjacent to the Kneeboard icon)
- CLIMB CHECKLIST (mostly trivia)
- CRUISE CHECKLIST (helps you settle in and enjoy the ride)
- DESCENT CHECKLIST
- BEFORE LANDING CHECKLIST (with prelanding and final cockpit checks)
- APPROACH AND LANDING IN BETA RANGE CHECKLIST (for short field landings in dive-bomber style)
- LANDING CHECKLIST (with some good tips for successfully landing taildraggers)
- GO-AROUND (when something goes wrong while attempting a return to mother earth this is usually the safer thing to
do!)
- AFTER LANDING + ENGINES SHUTDOWN CHECKLIST
These checklists should cater well for the realism gurus of our hobby, but this plane will give the casual simmers
trouble too if they decide to try this bird on their own terms...
As briefly mentioned in the TAKEOFF CHECKLIST this plane is equipped with a dynamically updated Speed Card which
lists the most important speeds for this bird depending on the current total weight of the aircraft. It's direct access icon
can be found in the close vicinity of the Kneeboard icon both on the 2D panel and in the VC. VY (best rate-of-climb speed) dynamically
changes to cater for both engines operative as well as for single engine operations. If you wish to do the calculating manually using the
speed charts
from the POH a link is provided in the TAKEOFF checklist. In this case you may still want to open the
Speed Card briefly to place your mouse pointer over it to get the current total weight in kg.
Here some notes on ground control
of this taildragger:
Firstly the view out front is generally sky and very little taxiway or runway.
The Do 128-6 however is pretty tame in this respect: Pilots above 1.8 m (5ft 11in.) don't even
have to stretch much to see the way ahead, and for those a little smaller just press SHIFT+RETURN
once or twice to bring up your seat or stretch your head enough.
Be VERY carefull with brake usage particularly at low speeds!!! FS2004 has inherited the digital on/off
brakes of the first FS versions but like FS2000 has added a bad - albeit realistic - habit of increasing brake force at decreasing speeds,
so you will get the aircraft to nose over at slow speeds if you slam on the brakes.
"ABS"-style stutter braking will do the trick: as soon as you notice the nose is beginning to
drop towards the tarmac release the brakes and immediately apply them again etc. By controlling the frequency of your intermittent braking
you get a semi-proportional braking effect and can save yourself and the aircraft some expensive repairs...
Now to the really awkward bit: This plane has no steering, the tail wheel is free to move where
the rump of the plane wishes. If you want to go straight ahead and you have the p-factor slider
in the Aircraft Settings menu even just one increment to the right you should give this plane some right
rudder to keep her straight as the corkscrew- shaped prop wash gives the vertical stabilizer
quite a shove to the left - despite twin engined prop aircraft usually being exempt from this effect.
Yes, rudder pedals are just about a must for such planes in FS2004.
For turns full rudder to the side you wish to turn to may help a little, but getting
a turning reaction from the plane also requires some power from the engines and that will accelerate
you. So you will need differential braking by using the toe brakes, individual brake pedals
mounted at the upper front end of real-life rudder pedals. You thought FS2004 would only do that by
pressing F11 (left brake) or F12 (right brake) or by using a special set of toebrake pedals?
Wrong! This plane has an invisible toebrake
gauge in the lower RH corner of the main panel which will give
proportional differential braking coupled to the rudder pedals even in outside views!
And for those who lack rudder input even the ailerons will suffice to activate
the toebrakes. But be prepared for a slight lag in reaction as it takes a moment or two till
brake pressure is sufficient to do its job, so give her enough rudder for your turn a second
or two BEFORE you plan to initiate the turn. It DOES take a little practice to get this right, but this is no
different from the real "D-IBUF" !
The updated FS2004 Version of my toebrakes now sports exponential toebraking that can be fine-tuned to suit your taste:
Upon first initialization of the gauge (by loading this airplane) it will create a new text file named
do128-6_toebrakes.dat
in the main Flight Simulator 9 folder. After another plane is loaded it will contain an exponent variable that controls the linearity or
progression of rudder/aileron input versus differential braking strength. The default value in there is 0.800000 giving a slightly
progressive response, i.e. fine braking reaction around the center with increased reaction at maximum deflection. An exponent
of 1.00000 will give a completely linear response. Decreasing it will increase the progression, while making it larger than 1 will yield a
degressive response, i.e. much brake reaction at small rudder/aileron input with only slight increase to maximum towards the end.
However, for reasons of good controllability I do not recommend using values larger than 1.
The file can be opened in your favorite text editor for changing the number and saving the change.
In this way you can fine-tune the reaction of the gauge to your input and the plane's reactions.
If you feel you completely messed up the dat file close FS2004 and simply delete this dat file as it will be recreated with the
default exponent value when you next load this plane. You cannot delete the dat file if FS2004 is still running in a session in
which you used this aircraft because Windows assumes it is still being used.
If you are lucky enough to have rudder pedals
combined with toebrakes feel free to delete the last line
gauge51=Do128-6!Do128-6 Toebrakes,788,350
in the section titled "[Window02]" in the panel.cfg file located in the panel subfolder of this aircraft.
A third component (particularly for making turns without rudder in auto-coordination mode)
for successful ground control of twin engine planes is differential
thrust, i.e. pushing the left power lever forward (with the mouse) when initiating a right
turn.
So all three - rudder, differential braking and differential power - together
will allow the pilot to successfully control this aircraft on the ground (given the side
wind component doesn't get in the way too much - a problem with the real bird too, by the way...). However one word
of caution: don't overdo it, you can get this plane to nose over even on a single brake if you get too wild.
And turning one way is easier than turning the other way, again due to corkscrew effect from the props.
However, taking advantage of that can greatly help in navigating in close quarters.
The ideal speed for ground control is between 10 and 20 knots.
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This is a section through a typical PT6A engine. The PT6A-110 installed
in this Dornier 128-6 however only has a single power turbine.
Being a reverse flow design inlet air enters the engine through the light blue colored ducts marked
inlet screen at the rear of the engine. The 180° turn is utilized to provide
for an inertial separator system with doors which can be opened to the rear to allow heavy
objects like stones, dust, hail or heavy precipitation to exit the engine nacelles before ever
entering and potentially damaging the engine itself.
Three stages of axial compressors and a fourth radial (centrifugal) compressor
compress the incoming air with a ratio of 1:7 and deliver this heated air to the combustion
chamber in a 90° and then another 180° turn. There fuel is injected through 14 nozzles
(up to around 30% Ng only 7 nozzles are activated to ensure that the starting procedure does
not overheat the engine) and after an initial ignition stage burns continuously, thus greatly
heating and accelerating the gases through another 180° turn onto the compressor turbine
which drives the gas generator. The gas generator alone already needs around 1/3rd of the power
produced in the combustion chamber, i.e. the so-called thermodynamic estimated SHP is around
600! It also drives the final fuel pump and the starter/generator located for convenient servicing
at the rear behind the accessory gearbox. At 100% Ng indication the gas generator revolves
with 37,000 RPM. Please also note that there is no mechanical connection between the gas generator
and the power turbine. This allows the gas generator to accelerate far more quickly when you
require more power than if it was directly linked to the rest of the engine, thus reducing
reaction lag and greatly improving performance and safety.
The remaining power is dumped on the single power turbine which drives the
propeller via a two-stage planetary reduction gearbox. At 1900 Prop RPM the power turbine speed
is 33,000 RPM.
The exhaust gases are released into the wild after a final 180° turn
through two exhaust ducts, one on each side. In the process a certain amount of thrust is also
generated which can at times actually get the plane to move even with power set to idle.
This engine allows a Maximum Continuous Power (MCP) output of approx.
400 SHP, with emergency power at a maximum torque of 1246 lb-ft being approx. 450 SHP. As these comparatively low values
come about due to the engine's flat-rating it is thermodynamically capable of a far higher power output. However, the flat-rating allows for a
longer TBO (time before overhaul), plus when flying at higher altitudes you can compensate power loss by pushing the levers forward
until maximum continuous torque is once again attained. This way you can have the same 400 SHP up to approx. 20 000 ft !
The high RPMs of the compressor and power turbines pack great power into
this rather small engine, and due to everything simply rotating turboprop engines run almost
vibration free.
Here a section through a real PT6A-110:

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Despite a continual development time of many years and uncountable test flights and
rounds of tweaking some bugs are still hanging around this Do 128-6 aircraft and panel - though this complete GMax-rebuild for
FS2004 got rid of most of the former visual glitches.
Visual external model: As far as I can tell only the bright yellowish color of the unfinished internal model
may bother you when looking from the outside into the cockpit. There is also no pilot present in the cockpit.
The shading of the flaps and elevator look a little unnatural at times - feel free to blame GMax and FS2004 for this. J
Virtual Cockpit: It is unfinished. Only the panel surfaces are textured by calling on panel backgrounds in the
panel.cfg. All other interior surfaces remain untextured.
The upper rim of the glareshield is too low and lacks the integrated annunciator panel.
No 3D levers can be mouse controlled, the GMax model was only compiled into the FS2002 standard. A 2D pop-up panel is available in VC mode to allow
mouse operation of the engine control levers.
The virtual cockpit model is identical to
the external model - which is normally a framrate killer. But as the poly-count of the model has been kept at a modest level this effect
should only be minimal. The very extensive VC instrumentation however will take it's framerate toll, even though there is no fancy super-duper-smooth
GDL+ gauge-programming here, only the usual default jerky movements of your instrument needles. And there is no individual gauge backlighting, only
VC cockpit lights for your night-time flying.
The cockpit side-windows have a semi-transparent effect that will cause the outside scenery to appear in a different light than through the windscreen.
Particularly at night things outside may seem brighter than they should be. You could simply see this bug as a feature:
integrated night vision function J
2D-Panel: The two horizontal lines crossing the window wiper are NOT a bug but represent
the proper view out of the windscreen. These are the wires of an electrical windshield defroster.
The bottom wire has a small downward notch which I use for aiming at the runway
as it is located pretty much in the center of the screen. The windshield and main panel can become
detached in certain monitor formats and resolutions, and sorry, I have no 16:9 format version of the 2D panel.
The future belongs to the VC, I fear...
AIR file: Fuel flow at idle and low power settings is lower than should be, only meeting
the correct fuel consumption values in the upper power region.
NG and PROP RPM idle is a little too high for this plane's version of the PT6A engine.
During engine startup there is a strong torque overshoot that is highly unrealistic. This is a bug carried over from the
default turboprop air file of FS2004 that I have not been able to cure.
Sounds: Internal engine sounds are now completely customized using recordings of the real aircraft. However,
a slight crackling sound can be heard sometimes when the PROP levers are moved with engines
running. I have no clue what causes this as the sound files themselves are completely crackle-free.
The flap sound can get the hiccups upon first actuation and continue to
whine despite the flap motor having reached its designated position. Simply switch it one step further and immediately back again to stop it.
The startup and shutdown sounds (now in excellent quality by Leon "pancreas" Medado) are not as 100% trustworthy as when they were at home in the Ng gauges -
be prepared for some surprises from time to time, particularly during abnormal startup or shutdown procedures. Just default FS2004 bugs...
At least you hear them in external views now J
The clicking sound accompanying the external startup sounds are the igniters that are constantly fired while the engine start switch
is in the ON-position. This is completely realistic! Inside you can only hear the igniters like when you click with your finger nails, which is not really audible.
No bug: When you move the power levers in flight the propeller hum will remain essentially the same when inside the
aircraft, as the constant speed props strive to keep their RPM close to the value predetermined by your PROP lever input. Only the whine of the
Gas Generator will change in pitch. When in outside view however the prop hum WILL change with power lever setting as I simply ported
the FS2002 external sounds to this version due to lack of a better option. My external sound recordings could not be used here due to excessive
background noises.
Despite these glitches (some of them being inherent in FS2004 itself) I do hope that
you will thoroughly enjoy this unusual aircraft to the full after familiarizing yourself with
it! And please
let me know
if you find anything else that might require correction L
or if you are particularly pleased about it J
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Version 2 of D-IBUF of the Technical University of Braunschweig (Sept. 2001):
Textures: The black paint (de-icing boots) of the leading edges of the wings
was too wide in Version 1, is now corrected in the form of updated textures do_128-6.3AF and
do_128-6.3AF . The location of the fixed front slats is now slightly visible particularly from underneath,
and the red and green NAV light bulbs are visible through their covers.
Panel: The fuel panel gauge Do128-6.fuelpanel_real.gau could overstress
simple soundcards with multiple simultaneous switch clicks and thus crash FS98. This updated
version should solve that by ensuring that automatic switching by FS98 will not trigger any
click sounds. The functionality remains untouched.
AIRCRAFT.CFG file: As I do not use a force feedback joystick (now using
the excellent Thrustmaster HOTAS Cougar with Ueber-2-NXT gimbals and Cub Pilot's Hall Sensor kits) I was rather ignorant of that area. The updated
AIRCRAFT.CFG file no longer sports retractable gear force feedback information. However this
does not guarantee trouble free force feedback: One user reported violent elevator activity
during taxi which could not be cured so far. If anybody knows a solution for this phenomenon
I would greatly appreciate some support to this end.
Sound: The external engine sounds are now in sync with the internal ones.
Documentation: The file "DO128-6_D-IBUF_CHECKLISTS_TURBOPROP_BUGS_CREDITS_LEGAL_V1.HTM" had such a long name that some unzip programs may have declined to unzip it and thus possibly other files in the archive "Documentation.ZIP" contained in my original release "do1286V1.zip". Therefore I renamed it "DO128-6_D-IBUF_CHECK_LEGAL_V1.HTM", updated it with this Change History section and also updated the following documentation files: "DO128-6_D-IBUF_Main_Panel_V1.HTM", "DO128-6_D-IBUF_PREREQUISITS_V1.HTM" and the central Document "Do128-6_D-IBUF_of_TU_Braunschweig_V1.htm" to cater for these changes.
And again please
let me know
if you find anything else that might require correction!
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I would like to thank the following people for their services and help
in creating this aircraft and panel. Without them it would not have turned out the way that
it has:
My wife Petra for her practical help in the copying of the POH and her unending
support and encouragement all along - even with sons Philipp and Daniel around!
Helmut Schulz, "D-IBUF"s personal maintenance engineer and co-pilot
who so kindly allowed me to inspect every corner of the plane, answered innumerable questions,
gave access to all the documentation I could dream of this Do 128-6 is one EXTREMELY
fortunate aircraft to have such a capable caretaker! Even after now some 32 years in service
all over the globe (including Antarctica), myriads of modifications and equipment updates to
cater for the aeronautic student's projects she still looks almost better than new! And her
pilot Rudolf Hankers who gave me Helmut's contact number and tested this virtual rendition of
his workplace together with his son!
Antonis "Anthony" Konstantinidis, also known as Tonoi, who, being a fan of the Do28D series like me,
agreed to transform my original AF99-model into the GMax beauty it now is. This includes the modeling itself, painting of the
exterior and updating the panel bitmaps (thanks to his wife Fillio especially for the graphics!), plus various bits and pieces that
got this plane as far as it is now. Our project was severly delayed due to an almost fatal car accident that Anthony suffered.
Eventually being able to work again on this project while recuperating errupted into a few months of great creativity. After
Anthony's first full year back at work, in which he also happened to overwork himself, the family appears to have moved to the Island
of Crete to the olive farm of Anthony's father, also in order to flee the bustle of the Olympic Games in Athens 2004. Apparently the farm does not even
have electricity, so also no computer and telephone. Ever since then I have heard nothing from them. Anthony has the source files,
and without them I cannot complete this bird L
If anyone knows his address there I would be highly obliged to be
informed
so I can attempt to contact him via snail mail at least.
Many thanks also to the friends from "Historic Olympic Airways virtual" (HOAv) who helped me piece together Anthony's course after I
lost contact with him!
Dai Griffiths ("Dragonflight Design") for his magnificent gaugehelp
series an incredible help for anyone trying to fiddle with the panel and gauge region
of Microsoft's Flight Simulator SDKs. And for his quick and efficient answers when (in very
scarce instances) his current gaugehelp document didn't contain the answer I needed! And of
course for allowing me to use his gauges and sounds (recognizable by the "dfd"-prefix).
Thanks Dai!!!
Arne Bartels for introducing me to FS2004 compatible mouse drag code plus invaluable help in making
MS Flight Simulator's conventional dll (gau) - style gauge variables and the newer XML code interchangable and compatible -
and all sorts of other assorted bits of programming advice!
Roman "Spokes" Stoviak for his FS recreation of this aircraft's unique VHF Homing Indicator. He is another one of my
co-workers on this project that has disappeared... L
Glenn Copeland for allowing me to use his Navigation Radar. He is one of those gauge designers
who shows almost unlimited creativity and talent in pushing the limits of FS further than even Microsoft immagined.
Christoph Ruhtenberg for his support in a.) curing the erratic elevator force feedback and b.) in beta-testing
"D-IBUF" in her original roll-out colors (which I could not update to the GMax format...).
Harald Geier,
Helmut Busch
& Co. of HGHB for encouragement and allowing me to use their gauges.
Andreas Jaros & Co.
(FPDA
) have not answered my requests for allowing me to use their sounds. I hope
that they may read this documentation and contact me. In the mean time I assume that they will
not contest my using their work in this freeware package.
Mikko Maliniemi for granting me the usage of his wonderful chrome spinner texture
that normally graces his excellent Maule M-7-260.
Mick Williams (known for his GAF Nomad) for giving me the right hints at
the right time as to mdl file expansion, and for inspiring me to this extensive html document!
Leon "pancreas" Medado, my fellow-PFSG'er
(Philippine Flight Simmers Group)
for allowing me to use his excellent PT6A startup and shutdown sounds, as contained in his
"FS2004 KING AIR SOUND ENHANCEMENT PACKAGE" lm_kasndenhpck_v31.zip.
Christian Anhalt of the DLR (German equivalent of NASA and also based at
the Research Airport Braunschweig) for updating his very realistic and detailed FS98 scenery of
Braunschweig Airport (edveedcb.zip) to FS2002 (edve2002.zip) and to FS2004 (included in Aerosoft's payware package
German Airports 4) where I did most of my flight testing of this virtual Do128-6,
very enjoyable on faster PCs!
Jacky
Brouze for his JABGau98 utility, Chuck Dome for his GAUBMP2 utility, Scott Macmillan for ScaleMaker,
William M. Roth for AirEd, Konstantin Kukushkin for Aircraft Animator, the design team at Abacus
for compilation of the Flight Dynamics Editor, for the update and improvement of Flightshop
- Aircraft Factory 99 - and for the Custom Panel Designer, and Microsoft for updating and improving
(at least every second version of) Flight Simulator, for having opened up major parts of the
source code of Flight Simulator and providing SDKs to enable us to (mostly) enjoy and enhance
this very versatile hobby called flightsimming!
Last and most fundamentally I thank God, my (and of the world we live and
fly in) creator, for having given me health, brains and creativity to be able to put things
together like this virtual aircraft! And a heart and soul to be able to enjoy things like flightsimming
as much as I do.
If I have inadvertently forgotten to mention somebody who feels entitled
to be mentioned in this section please let me know so I can correct this.
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This aircraft, panel (including all gauges and sounds) and every other
file and document included in the zip-file you downloaded are released as freeware (please
refer to the section below this copyrights listing for the details), yet the copyright for
these files remains with the respective authors:
Copyright © Dai Griffiths of Dragonflight Design:
dfd_hsi70.gau; dfd_i_omi.gau; dfd_o_omi.gau; dfd_m_omi.gau; dfd_audiopanel.wav
Copyright © Roman Stoviak:
the complete content of subfolder "ZVG2002" in the panels folder
Copyright © Glenn Copeland:
the complete content of subfolder "F16_AST_Radar80" in the panels folder. I only slightly altered
the navigation radar's background image (with his consent) to make it better suited to the panel.
Copyright © Harald Geier, Helmut Busch & Co. at HGHB (gauges released
with Abacus Custom Panel Designer):
HGHB_HW_ATTITUDE.GAU; HGHB_PC9_STBY_AI.GAU; hghb_bu_brake.gau
HGHB_Click2.wav; HGHB_Click3.wav; HGHB_rsw_cl2.wav
Copyright © Andreas Jaros and Stephan Gerlach (FPDA):
Click.wav
Copyright © Mikko Maliniemi:
the artwork of Spiner_L.bmp and Spiner_t.bmp
Copyright © Aaron Swindle:
Some of the wav files as well as my starting point of the sound.cfg of this aircraft are
the work of "Stretch".
Copyright © Leon Medado:
The fabulous startup and shutdown sounds of the sound package are his work, with help from
Paolo Zacchetti for the lightoff samples featured in the startup sounds. Please also check out their original
"Readme_LM_KASndEnhPck_v31.txt" contained in the sound subfolder of this aircraft.
Copyright © Microsoft:
This panel uses several gauges from default FS2004 aircraft so they are not included in this package.
Numerous sounds are borrowed from the default FS2004 pro beech_king_air_350
as well as from the mooney_bravo.
Any company logos that show up in textures and gauges are and remain the copyright of their respective owners.
This includes, but is not limited to Collins, Garmin, Sperry, Becker, Thommen, BF Goodrich, and the Carolo-Wilhelmina Logo of the Technical University of Braunschweig.
All the rest is copyright ©
Mathias Elsaesser
and Antonis "Anthony" Konstantinidis unless marked otherwise (i.e. photos, move your mouse pointer over a photo to see it's origin).
As Freeware you are permitted to distribute this archive subject to the following conditions:
- The archive must be distributed without modification to the contents of
the archive. Redistributing this archive with any files added, removed or modified is prohibited. If you plan to offer this package for free
download on your website I would appreciate to be
notified.
- The inclusion of any individual file from this archive in another archive
without the prior permission of the authors is prohibited. This means, for example, that you
may not upload an archive that uses our visual or flight model or panel / gauges with your own
aircraft or include it in a package containing a panel or aircraft sounds without first obtaining
the authors' permission. Panel and gauge designers interested in utilizing my gauges for their
panels feel free to
contact me
so we can figure out how to make this possible as a number of gauges communicate with one-another
and thus are combined into one single cluster gauge.
- No charge may be made for this archive other than that to cover the cost
of its distribution over the Internet. If a fee is charged it must be made clear to the purchaser
that the archive is freeware and that the fee is to cover the distributor's costs of providing
the archive. This archive may NOT be included in CDs, DVDs or other digital storage media without
PRIOR written consent by the author.
- The authors' rights and wishes concerning this archive must be respected.
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