Flight planning software?

Yossarian wrote:
I've heard about Jepp's Flitestar and RMS's Flitesoft. Anyone have
experience with these or other flight planning packages?

Truth? I use a low-altitude enroute planning chart,
Airnav, and DUATS at home; low-altitude enroute and
a Palm VIIx with Copilot and a manual E6B for winds
away from home. And it's all free, except for the Palm
VIIx (which is tremendously useful enroute w/ CBAV).
Oh, sectionals also at the planning stage where terrain
is involved.

I've played with a friend's Flightstar and used Aeroplanner,
and maybe I'm just not "up to speed". But I have several
goals when flight planning:
1) choose overall routing judiciously to avoid major
TRACON airspace, restricted areas, MOAs, and where appropriate,
excessively high terrain or overwater legs
2) locate fuel stops and alternates with a balance between
fuel and services (ie not just the cheapest fuel, but also
crew cars/nearby restaurants, motels, and attractions)
3) be able to plot the route efficiently, including
sufficient charting for possible needed weather diversions

Aeroplanner does a terrific, Grade A job on restricted
areas, but if it has a ready mechanism to let one "see and avoid"
Class Bs and terrain while planning a long route, I haven't
found it yet.

Airnav is still the best for fuel planning.

I think Flightstar or Aeroplanner sectional chunks neatly
sleeved and placed into a binder look wonderful, but in
practice I can use a DUATS "direct routing for GPS" output
to draw courselines across 6 sectionals in less time than
it takes to set up the triptick, check it, get it downloading
and printing, and organize it in some sort of holder.

And then I have the charts, and the skills, to replan on
the road and divert when I need to.

My $.02, YMMV and probably will.
Sydney