CURRENT RELEASE 79
Release notes
One-line summaries of the improvements included in each public release.
Release 79Rebranded the site as Self-Taught Pilot, made selftaughtpilot.com canonical, and added tested page-preserving redirects from the existing Sport and Private Pilot domains.
Release 78Restored private four-character administrator report links in result texts and /kohesion while keeping learner-facing result codes hidden and ordinary unpaid report URLs locked.
Release 77Added a free interactive VOR Navigation Trainer with reusable SVG receiver and CDI instruments, realistic damped motion, 30 FAA-grounded scenarios, and randomized setup and interpretation sessions.
Release 76Simplified Instrument Scan to one randomly generated five-question game and removed every public ten-question start and replay option.
Release 75Added short, server-secured text notifications whenever someone starts or completes any METAR, instrument-scan, sectional-symbol, or cloud-identification game.
Release 74Made METAR timeouts teach the next missed item with a large animated answer reveal before offering Try again or Leave choices.
Release 73Fully converted PHAK Chapter 10 to semantic HTML with 15 separate PNG visuals, stable section anchors, preserved legacy URLs, and 212 exact detailed-report links.
Release 72Removed the four-character result code and internal report identifier from every learner-facing payment, sample, and detailed-results screen while retaining internal matching data.
Release 71Added question reporting to every paid detailed-results item, with trusted answer context, duplicate suppression, dashboard counts, and the existing administrator text alert.
Release 70Refocused the Sectional Symbols Challenge on generic chart meanings, broadened it beyond airports to 11 symbol families, added verified shelf/terrain targets, and increased close-up magnification for small marks.
Release 69Expanded /kohesion with an all-activity overview, GA4 visitor and free-game reporting, verified sales and contribution reporting, and a durable paid-sales ledger when test data is deleted.
Release 68Made /kohesion render immediately, load each report asynchronously on demand, cache repeat reads, and download stored dashboard records in parallel.
Release 67Moved written, acronym, oral-practice, and Part 103 scores behind verified report payment while keeping the cloud/weather, METAR, gauge, and sectional training games freely scored.
Release 66Simplified the Sport and Private Pilot written-test choices to one randomly generated 20-question exam for each certificate.
Release 65Added drag-to-reorder and discard/restore workspaces to the METAR game, plus randomized degree-or-compass wind-direction answers with nearby compass distractors.
Release 64Rebuilt the Sectional Symbols Challenge with pointer-free pulsing SVG feature groups, a slow eight-second zoom-and-hold observation, and untimed hidden-map recall.
Release 63Increased the METAR Speed Decoder clock from eight to 12 seconds per unsolved tag while preserving its 10-second orientation allowance.
Release 62Added the beta Cloud Identification Challenge with 16 original horizon-context scenes, simultaneous close-up views, exact-set checkbox scoring, and saved progress.
Release 61Added the beta Sectional Symbols Challenge with 25 real FAA-derived all-SVG areas, 290 timed feature prompts, one-click scoring, saved progress, and raster-to-vector visual audits.
Release 60Randomized each METAR challenge starting point, scaled its clock with a 10-second baseline plus eight seconds per unsolved tag, and replaced fastest time with a persistent average pace per tag.
Release 59Added a balanced, nonrepeating 100-challenge METAR deck, exhaustive solvability checks, and a compact mobile answer layout that keeps every selected tag visible.
Release 58Audited every flagged question for wording, logic, unique answers, FAA support, and diagram clarity; rewrote weak items and rebuilt three training graphics.
Release 57Made administrator texts GSM-safe and single-segment, saved feedback before delivery, recorded Textbelt quota and failures, redacted provider secrets, and added communication status to /kohesion.
Release 56Added a separate 72-question Part 103 ultralight bank and randomized 20-question quiz, seven original aircraft-identification visuals, complete regulation coverage, and optional $2 detailed reports.
Release 55Added production Google Analytics with privacy-conscious page measurement, test and game events, verified purchase and donation conversions, and a browser opt-out control.
Release 54Made the Sport Pilot domain canonical, redirected the Private Pilot domain, and added focused search landing pages, structured breadcrumbs, trust pages, and an expanded sitemap.
Release 53Properly reflowed PHAK Chapter 8 into semantic HTML with 39 separate PNG figures, responsive navigation, and preserved report deep links.
Release 52Slowed the Instrument Scan Challenge into a move-and-pause sweep, removed automatic hints, and added penalized replay/hint aids, point scoring, and saved personal bests.
Release 51Audited the complete PHAK for important acronyms, greatly expanded the acronym quiz, balanced each quiz across subjects, and added realistic fabricated distractors.
Release 50Added a large FAA-grounded oral-practice bank, randomized 10-question Sport and Private oral quizzes, $4 detailed reports, and local PHAK deep links.
Release 49Added reusable high-detail SVG gauge assets, upgraded the Instrument Scan panel, and standardized quiz instrument figures on the shared library.
Release 48Moved Sport and Private Pilot subject lists and preparation guidance to dedicated guide pages so the exam landing pages stay focused.
Release 47Added a searchable, downloadable HTML edition of FAA-H-8083-25C and question-specific PHAK section links in detailed quiz reports.
Release 46Added a Skip question control to Instrument Scan challenges so an unanswered round can be recorded and the quiz can continue immediately.
Release 45Added a two-pass animated Z-pattern instrument sweep, delayed flight context, a three-second final panel view, fade-out, and a portrait-phone landscape reminder.
Release 44Added a GET READY and 3-2-1 countdown before showing each Instrument Scan panel for ten seconds.
Release 43Converted the Instrument Scan Challenge to free 5- and 10-question quizzes with optional paid analysis and removed report prices from landing pages.
Release 42Marked the Instrument Scan Challenge and METAR Speed Decoder as beta features.
Release 41Added a five-second instrument-scan game with animated SVG gauges and 50 multi-problem scenarios.
Release 40Changed the acronym quiz to 10 questions and added question-count-based detailed-report pricing.
Release 39Made selected METAR decoding tags clickable so choices can be returned directly to the word bank.
Release 38Removed the three-step “How the Practice Test Works” block from the home page.
Release 37Compacted the METAR word-bank tags so all choices remain visible without scrolling the bank.
Release 36Added a 20-question acronym-only quiz with percentage scoring and optional $2 detailed review.
Release 35Moved mobile METAR gameplay to the top of the viewport and increased each challenge to two minutes.
Release 34Added a secure choose-your-own-amount PayPal contribution option for the Sonex fund.
Release 33Made the site-wide search, social-sharing, and structured metadata certificate-neutral.
Release 32Changed the detailed question-by-question report price to $2.
Release 31Redesigned the METAR game as a compact above-the-fold desktop workspace with a two-column play area.
Release 30Increased the METAR game clock from 30 seconds to 60 seconds per complete report.
Release 29Added a homepage feedback form that texts submissions to the administrator with rate limiting and spam protection.
Release 28Replaced the words minus and negative in METAR temperature tags with a leading hyphen.
Release 27Shortened every METAR wind-speed choice to compact labels such as 14 kt and 14 mph.
Release 26Changed every METAR time choice to a 12-hour label such as 3:36AM UTC while preserving the coded Zulu group.
Release 25Changed every METAR observation-day choice to a concise ordinal label such as 1st day, 2nd day, or 3rd day.
Release 24Added a blurred METAR timeout screen with options to try a fresh report or quit to the home page.
Release 23Changed the METAR game to one continuous 30-second clock for each complete report.
Release 22Made METAR and the four-letter station identifier prefilled game freebies and removed airport names from the word bank.
Release 21Added an eight-second per-choice METAR countdown with automatic loss tracking, board clearing, and fresh-report loading.
Release 20Added a timed METAR decoding game with realistic randomized reports, close distractors, undo, scoring, and answer breakdowns.
Release 19Separated IFR-only questions into their own category and excluded them from Sport and Private Pilot test generation.
Release 18Added administrator text alerts for newly flagged questions and changed detailed reports to $3.
Release 17Redesigned high-use aviation diagrams using FAA handbook concepts and added full-size diagram viewing.
Release 16Corrected grammar throughout the active question bank and standardized answer-choice punctuation.
Release 15Added dedicated Sport and Private Pilot landing pages and reorganized the homepage test choices.
Release 14Added focused slips, skids, spin recovery, and crosswind-landing coverage while retiring repetitive variants.
Release 13Added randomized Private Pilot tests, dual scoring, expanded loading questions, reference auditing, and reporting refinements.
Release 12Corrected PayPal capture verification for completed report purchases.
Release 11Made PayPal the primary checkout and hid manual payment details when automatic checkout is available.
Release 10Added verified PayPal checkout, automatic paid-report delivery, and webhook support.
Release 9Expanded acronyms, VOR and Victor-airway coverage, Private-only groundwork, and analytics tabs.
Release 8Added question flagging, flag analytics, and deletion of selected completed-test records.
Release 7Added dashboard date/time context and hover previews for question content.
Release 6Improved test completion and detailed-report reliability.
Release 5Added the private /kohesion results and question-analytics dashboard.
Release 4Improved durable Cloud Run storage and deployment behavior.
Release 3Added persistent detailed result reports and private report links.
Release 2Added randomized quick-test and full-exam generation.
Release 1Launched the initial Sport Pilot practice-test site and question bank.