To the guys thinking about switching modes - - If you have one available, I would definitely consider getting some practice time in on a simulator before you go putting the real thing in the air. Even after that, there are going to be times when that critical situation arises in real time when flashbacks are most likely going to put a plane in the ground! Winter is coming over here and it is the perfect time to hone those skills that all of us seem to come up short on. It is a lot simpler to push the reset button than have to dig out the sticks and CA. As Bruce says, fly some 3D, lots of knife edge - - you will learn what a rudder is for! We have been flying the Great Planes Sim. A few of us got together and split the costs for the base package & expansions. Don't know about you, but it works for us. There are also cheaper sim versions out there but I cannot verify the quality or # of planes available. If he hasn't already, maybe Bruce could fish some of these from other suppliers and give us an idea of what is worth buying and what isn't.
I may be wrong, but I believe that most of these sims are for PC, not Mac.
The other plus to flying (shall we say standard mode) is being able to hand your Tx to a buddy to fly or help with trim or other problems you are having. The ability to use a buddy cable for beginners is also a plus. My son and I share radios and planes so it is nice not having to worry about which mode we fly. It is also a plus when teaching someone else to fly as you can tell what he is doing wrong even though the words "gentle on the sticks" don't seem to mean much!
And always remember: AT LEAST 3 MISTAKES HIGH!! For some of us that's a long way up!