Heading issues

My configuration is x. I’m assuming that the heading is supposed to be straight ahead. Currently, in apm planner, my heading being generated by apm planner is 45 degrees to the left.
Can someone clarify whether I should change the orientation setting?

The symbol on APM planner for copter is a ‘+’ symbol so the brighter motor dot is the front. as in your diagram. (it not related to the configuration of your vehicle)
[attachment=0]headingAP2.png[/attachment]

thanks for the post.
As always, the links and 411 you provide prove to be invaluable.

Just to clarify;
the brighter dot indicates heading, but the 4 dots aren’t representative of your quad’s motors as they are setup for your particular configuration. I’m not intentionally trying to make this more complicated than it is. I’m just trying to get my head around how those 4 dots represent my quad as it is oriented relative to north, south, east & west.
It seems logical that a quad with a + configuration would appear on the map the same way it is oriented in reality. With one motor leading the quad. [attachment=2]+ config quad representative.tif[/attachment]

or with an x config. it would appear on the map as the two frontmost motors splitting the heading.
[attachment=1]x config quad represent.tif[/attachment]
But I gather from your comments, that the 4 dots aren’t actually supposed to be a literal representation of your 4 motors as they are oriented relative to the map’s compass.
After giving it a little thought, it actually makes sense. As mission planner/APM doesn’t show you 3 dots for a tri copter setup or 6 for a hex, etc. I suppose the intention and functionality of the 4 dot icon is simply about identifying location and heading of your gps signal, not vehicle/aircraft specific attributes/representations.

That’s right we always use a quad as a generic multi-rotor. In APM Planner its a ‘+’ configuration. In MAVPilot and Mission Planner it’s a ‘X’ configuration.

I should look at making it a ‘X’ since that is much more common that a ‘+’ these days.