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FusTek Station Parts Dev Thread (continuation of fusty's original work)


sumghai

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How is this accomplished? Do I just need to remove the INTERNAL{...} sections from the .CFG of the parts I want to disable IVA on?

Do that, and also delete the Spaces subfolder within the FusTek directory (unless you have fusty's older parts you want to use as well).

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I'm still quite a while away from finishing up my SDHI stuff, but I've decided to compose this tome to clarify things and allay concerns regarding the next major update (R0.04a).

Part Functionality

Command Pod / MechJeb removal

As has been previously mentioned numerous times, I intend to strip Command Pod and MechJeb from the following crewed compartments:


  • [*=1]Karmony Habitation
    [*=1]Karmony Logistics
    [*=1]Karmony Node
    [*=1]Karmony Science
    [*=1]Kupola Observation Module

This is so that the aforementioned modules are bought in line with their intended usage as "specialist" or "themed" Hitchhiker-style crew containers, and as such will be moved from the Command to the Utility tab in the editor scenes (VAB/SPH). Only the Karmony Utilities Modules will continue to have Command Pod and MechJeb capabilities, as those are intended to be the "core" sections of any station/outpost (it helps to analogize of the Utilities Module as the computer, and the Kupola as merely a bunch of touchscreens).

Contrary to popular belief, any performance gains from this change is non-existent.

RemoteTech removal

Given the uncertain future of said add-on, I have opted to remove RemoteTech support from the Karmony Utilities Modules.

Parts Warehouse functionality for OrbitalConstruction dependent on KAS / KASPAR / InfernalRobotics / something

The Parts Warehouses are intended to have toggleable bay doors that open up to reveal a revolver-style rack for holding up to 16 KASPAR racks, as a means to resupply Spacedocks built using the OrbitalConstruction add-on. At the time of writing:


  • [*=1]KospY is apparently working on KAS 0.4, which would come with the multi-bay support required for KASPAR to work
    [*=1]I'll need to speak to sirkut regarding a customized plugin code that allows the internal revolver magazine to rotate in 90 degree increments, but keeping the warehouse as one part.

No changes or improvements to EVA / Crew Transfer

Currently, KSP recognizes only one airlock hatch per crew container, and so in my Karmony Modules, I assigned the forward hatch common to all modules as the airlock, because the idea that crewed compartments in a space station have emergency hatches randomly opening out into space was downright ludicrous. Having the common location at the forward node also takes away the guesswork out of determining which hatch a Kerbal would pop out from.

For reasons as yet unknown to me, airlocks cannot be more than 1m away from its parent part's origin, or the airlock obstruction detection colliders will not work properly (as evidenced by the infamous exploding hatch bug of R0.02a), so I ended up shifting the modules down by 0.675m and offsetting the in-game CoM back up to compensate - it's hacky, but it works.

Of course, folks would first try to dock their station parts together, only to find that the docking ports are situated right over the modules' hatches when they try to EVA between modules. Since SQUAD has yet to implement a proper method of moving Kerbals internally between crew compartments, I recommended players to use my parts in conjunction with the Crew Manifest mod, while also introducing the Improved Androgynous Common Berthing Mechanisms (IACBMs), which besides being docking ports also allows players to rescue trapped Kerbals from rapidly-disintergating space stations.

Unfortunately, certain players assumed that the IACBMs worked like Wayland Corp's faux Port-O-Hatches and got frustrated when they placed them on nodes without airlocks. My examination of the Wayland hatch revealed that it was actually a self-contained Command Pod, which requires the use of Crew Manifest to first unrealistically transfer Kerbals into
before letting them out.

More recently, Gristle wrote to me stating that the newest version of Lack Luster Labs came with place-anywhere hatches that didn't use faux Command Pods/airlocks. Upon closer inspection, it was revealed that it used Kreuzung's Vanguard Technologies Plugin, which sets up an alternate crew container and crew hatch system. Unfortunately, the system was highly unintuitive, had poor integration with stock KSP EVA/airlock functions as well as having abysmal documentation.

Therefore, barring crew transfer improvements by SQUAD or some intrepid plugin author capable of devising an add-on that supports multiple airlocks per container and proper integration with stock KSP EVA/airlock functions, you guys are just going to have to use Crew Manifest for now.

Model / Texture Optimization

Asset reuse

When I first started modding, I did so in a rather haphazard fashion since I wanted to get parts out quickly for people to play with. Now that the key elements of the station parts pack have been realized and, I can sit down properly and start thinking about optimizing this parts pack using some tips I picked up more recently:


  • [*=1]Unlike stock parts, FusTek does not use weathering or worn edges. This therefore makes super-compact UV island sharing in the same manner Artyom (Bac9) did for the Space Centre both feasible and attractive. Many of the tiled panels and such like can be further simplified down to one or two instances repeated as required, leaving room to consolidate other elements such as the tapered ends onto the same texture atlas.
    [*=1]Splitting up my current models into a handful of modular meshes is doable but will require a very very long time, as I have to determine whether combining meshes would cause problems with functionality.
    [*=1]I'm not sure how well asset reuse would work with animations, but if it does then that means I can use multiple copies of the same window emissive throughout all my crewed parts.

fusty's original tricks no longer a secret

Many users fail to understand that in making this parts pack, fusty has NOT sent me any of his original assets - I had to painstakingly recreate nearly everything from scratch. The fact that fusty recently got married and changed jobs means that he has even less time for KSP, and the forums.

Recently I obtained a copy of taniwha's
, and for the first time I was able to extract fusty's original Karmony models. Turns out that my reproductions were pretty close, with the following highlights:


  • [*=1]His colliders for the recessed nodes and tapered ends were just as crazy as mine.
    [*=1]A number of you have complained constantly that parts placed near ladders on my modules cannot be removed; reverse-engineering fusty's originals reveals extremely thin floating ladder colliders on the four sides, which is how he alleviated his issue. I'll definitely be picking that up in my growing bag o' tricks.

Internals

Yes, I still do plan on making internals for all crew-accessible parts for R0.04a. And yes, I know there are now updated tutorials pertaining to Internals.

The reasons I haven't started yet are:

  • Making Internals is a completely different ball game from standard parts, and I'm not even sure if the optimizations I've learnt for the latter are applicable for the former
  • I need to devise a common set of props, labels, UIs to ensure a common theme throughout my modules

ETA

The official release date is When It's Doneâ„¢.

However, as I complete each major milestone of this major update, I'll upload and maintain a DEV version as part of an open not-even-alpha, just like what I'm doing for SDHI. I think this method allows me to get feedback much sooner than if I posted only screenshots.

Edited by sumghai
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Good read sumghai. I have to say your parts became a literal core of all my space stations, and many interplanetary ships - so it is good to hear you have even broader ideas in the works :) Also, i'm very curious what are your plans regarding science in 0.22. Will there be dedicated research module?

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Also, i'm very curious what are your plans regarding science in 0.22. Will there be dedicated research module?

I assume that the Karmony Science Module will contain basic R&D features.

I've got a number of other ideas, but for now I'm adopting a wait-and-see approach.

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I like your plans for the Fustek parts. One minor thing for the EVA bit though: if one of the top port on the modules is a hatch, could you differentiate it with a red texture? Currently, there is no way of knowing visually which end is a hatch and which isn't, when the modules are in space or when you have rotated them in the VAB.

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One minor thing for the EVA bit though: if one of the top port on the modules is a hatch, could you differentiate it with a red texture? Currently, there is no way of knowing visually which end is a hatch and which isn't, when the modules are in space or when you have rotated them in the VAB.

I'd rather folks try not to EVA directly out of Karmony modules on a regular basis (except in emergencies) - rather, a combination of the Crew Manifest mod and the Kuest Airlocks should be used for that purpose. As such, I'd probably not going to differentiate them with red textures.

That said, asset reuse would allow anyone to call multiple copies of the same hatch mesh and apply different textures as they please, so as a compromise:

- The hatches by default will be yellow

- The CFG files will have comments/options to allow players to (easily) manually change the texture of the Karmony "escape" hatches.

e.g. For the revised Karmony Node:

// Top (escape) hatch
// OPTIONAL - Uncomment texture replacement line if you wish to explicitly differentiate this hatch from the other (default) yellow ones

MODEL {
model = FusTek/Parts/KarmonySeries/model_CrewHatch
position = posX, posY, posZ
rotation = angX, angY, angZ
scale = 1, 1, 1
// texture = tex_hatchYellow , FusTek/Parts/KarmonySeries/tex_hatchRed
}

I'm still hoping for improved multiple airlocks per crew compartment, though.

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What is the 1m limit to origin trouble for the airlock (isTrigger boxCollider?) based on? Can it be changed or is it a Unity limitation, is it some arbitrary number set for KSP?

Could we ask Squad for the limit to be relaxed?

I'm not sure about Unity, but I suspect it's probably an oversight in KSP.

I'll try asking one of the mods first to see which subforum I should post it in.

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The one and only complaint I have regarding the future of the pack is the removal of command pod functionality from the kupola. I really enjoyed using that for more than just stations. Hell, it was THE command module on one of my interplanetary ships. I belive it was the one sent to low kerbol orbit, drop probes, and then return. It never did return. I instead tested my first ever ECRV (Emergency Crew Return Vehicle) which was effectively the kupola, hab module, and a small drive stage. The remaining sciency portion of the ship crashed into the sun. The kerbals were recovered later.

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The one and only complaint I have regarding the future of the pack is the removal of command pod functionality from the kupola.

I know how you feel, and ideally I would have kept the Command Pod features as well.

Unfortunately, previous posters have lodged complaints ranging from lag caused by multiple Command Pod/MechJebs to Kerbals stowing away on otherwise empty space station modules at launch.


With regards to the 1m limit to origin airlock issue, I've finally filed a Bug Report after consulting with forum staff. According to Ted, it's an issue they were already aware of a while back, but they hadn't had someone file a report officially until now.

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Since so many people love the Kupola for the command pod of Interplanetary craft would you consider making a version for that purpose?

Flat 2.5m back instead of sloped, retaining the command pod feature and if you do an IVA oriented facing prograde?

And yes, please keep command Kupola - it's a pod with best field of view in game.

At the moment, there are a couple of issues:

- I have a distinct feeling that the prograde view from the FusTek Kupola would be quite awful, even if I replace the current stock Cupola IVA placeholder with a proper FusTek one - two of the longerons making up the frames of the trapezoidal windows just happen to obstruct the view at eye level.

- I'm also trying to think of the best seating arrangement for both the Kupola Observation Modules and the unnamed cockpit variant:

- The Kupola would seat three Kerbals, each looking out radially

- The unnamed cockpit variant would seat two Kerbals side-by-side facing prograde

- Since this is going to be a Command Pod, it's likely someone also wants to use it for a lander. Where would a EVA hatch be sensible?

Hang on, I think I have an idea...

Earlier in this thread, I mentioned that after finishing SDHI / these station parts, I wanted to make a FusTek'd version of NASA's conceptual Space Exploration Vehicle (SEV) platform, with modular components for players to custom-build their own orbital tug / rover. But the important thing to note is the cockpit - it has a much more sensible window arrangement:

MMSEV-Sim1.png

Since I already intend to make the SEV cockpit as a separate part (see upcoming blog entry), I can then make an adapter to go between the SEV cockpit and any 2.5m flat-ended FusTek module, so that interplanetary ships using FusTek parts could have a more believeable cockpit (Interplanetary ships would use the Kuest Airlock, while the SEV will have a separate crew module with its own EVA airlock).

What do you guys reckon?


KospY finally released KAS 0.4 :D Hopefully soon we will be able to have functional logistics modules on our stations.

Wait, it's out already? Imma go check!

KAS / KASPAR would probably only apply to Parts Warehouse logistics and external science experiment racks, though.

Edited by sumghai
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Can you read minds?

I have always loved the SEV tug/rover idea and it seems once again you have proposed exactly what I would have wanted to make if I had the ability to make it myself. Thank you in advance and for all the great work you have put in already.

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What do you guys reckon?

I would love you forever. Err in a totally platonic way.

Been hoping someone would make a SEV

Wait, it's out already? Imma go check!

KAS / KASPAR would probably only apply to Parts Warehouse logistics and external science experiment racks, though.

Speaking of I'm changing the config file for the Warehouse module (since I don't use Orbital Construction) does a capacity of 400 sound about right to you?

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Speaking of I'm changing the config file for the Warehouse module (since I don't use Orbital Construction) does a capacity of 400 sound about right to you?

I suppose it depends on what you're planning to use it for.

Crew provisions shouldn't really be replenished via EVA; instead I'm hoping someone could make a tweakables-style logistics container where:

- People can specify what life support resources to stock the module with in the VAB/SPH or just before launch

- Once launched, the resupply module can be docked with the station and the transferred via Alt-Click

I'm also thinking about making an add-on KASPAR bay to hold KASPAR-rized science experiments; I haven't decided whether to design this bay to be docked onto the end of the Karmony Science Module, or as a surface-attached to the bottom surface of said Module.

ASIDE: In R0.04a, the hardcoded 1600 RocketParts limit will be removed altogether; I'll simply provide resupply KASPAR racks to slot into the warehouses.

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..

I'm also thinking about making an add-on KASPAR bay to hold KASPAR-rized science experiments; I haven't decided whether to design this bay to be docked onto the end of the Karmony Science Module, or as a surface-attached to the bottom surface of said Module....

Both styles?

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I suppose it depends on what you're planning to use it for.

Crew provisions shouldn't really be replenished via EVA; instead I'm hoping someone could make a tweakables-style logistics container where:

- People can specify what life support resources to stock the module with in the VAB/SPH or just before launch

- Once launched, the resupply module can be docked with the station and the transferred via Alt-Click

Oh I completely agree, but I'm not really talking about life support, I've got life support resupply ships, (though I'm looking for a model more appropriate for that purpose. Wish I had your talent.)

I'm referring to spare parts like solar panels and hooks and magnets. Things I'll be using in EVA anyways and storing them in the warehouse module will look better than using the KAS containers.

The Warehouse module does have what looks to be a door so it doesn't strike me as something intended to be unloaded IVA completely

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- Since this is going to be a Command Pod, it's likely someone also wants to use it for a lander. Where would a EVA hatch be sensible?

Hang on, I think I have an idea...

Earlier in this thread, I mentioned that after finishing SDHI / these station parts, I wanted to make a FusTek'd version of NASA's conceptual Space Exploration Vehicle (SEV) platform, with modular components for players to custom-build their own orbital tug / rover. But the important thing to note is the cockpit - it has a much more sensible window arrangement:

Since I already intend to make the SEV cockpit as a separate part (see upcoming blog entry), I can then make an adapter to go between the SEV cockpit and any 2.5m flat-ended FusTek module, so that interplanetary ships using FusTek parts could have a more believeable cockpit (Interplanetary ships would use the Kuest Airlock, while the SEV will have a separate crew module with its own EVA airlock).

What do you guys reckon?


yes yes yes!

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I suppose it depends on what you're planning to use it for.

Crew provisions shouldn't really be replenished via EVA; instead I'm hoping someone could make a tweakables-style logistics container where:

- People can specify what life support resources to stock the module with in the VAB/SPH or just before launch

- Once launched, the resupply module can be docked with the station and the transferred via Alt-Click

I'm also thinking about making an add-on KASPAR bay to hold KASPAR-rized science experiments; I haven't decided whether to design this bay to be docked onto the end of the Karmony Science Module, or as a surface-attached to the bottom surface of said Module.

ASIDE: In R0.04a, the hardcoded 1600 RocketParts limit will be removed altogether; I'll simply provide resupply KASPAR racks to slot into the warehouses.

Modular Fuel Tanks can be used for logistics. Locally I've configured mine to accept Oxygen for IonCross Crew Support.

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My thoughts on the command Kupola would be 2 kerbals facing forward(up). I see no way 3 facing radially could a god view for flying a craft.

Not that you need to have a view, other than for docking and landing, to fly a spacecraft. Other than those two, the crew is watching their instruments because looking out the window doesn't provide any useful information during (say) an injection burn.

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...

I'm also thinking about making an add-on KASPAR bay to hold KASPAR-rized science experiments; I haven't decided whether to design this bay to be docked onto the end of the Karmony Science Module, or as a surface-attached to the bottom surface of said Module...

Both styles?

That's a possibility.

With regards to the surface-attached bay rack, it might end up as a separate unit to be bolted onto the bottom of the Karmony Science Module via KAS while in EVA. Depending on how KASPAR works, I may have to also include an animation of the support frames being unfolded*.

*sumghai's Design Rules #24 - Every station component must be designed to fit inside a standard-sized KW Rocketry payload fairing or equivalent, for realism.

My thoughts on the command Kupola would be 2 kerbals facing forward(up). I see no way 3 facing radially could a god view for flying a craft. That wouldbe a) better as an observation module and B) need to be taller so they can see out the windows, not into a bar.
Not that you need to have a view, other than for docking and landing, to fly a spacecraft. Other than those two, the crew is watching their instruments because looking out the window doesn't provide any useful information during (say) an injection burn.

The station parts pack's Kupola is intended as an observatory and a "crow's nest" for space stations or planetary outposts, hence the three radial-facing seating. The design was originally base on the real ISS Cupola.

The SEV cockpit (with the two seated side-by-side and facing prograde) is more suited for interplanetary vessels. Rest assured that it come with a structural mating adapter to go with the station parts, and also share the same FusTek aesthetics.

I suppose it depends on what you're planning to use it for.

Crew provisions shouldn't really be replenished via EVA; instead I'm hoping someone could make a tweakables-style logistics container where:

- People can specify what life support resources to stock the module with in the VAB/SPH or just before launch

- Once launched, the resupply module can be docked with the station and the transferred via Alt-Click

Oh I completely agree, but I'm not really talking about life support, I've got life support resupply ships, (though I'm looking for a model more appropriate for that purpose. Wish I had your talent.)

I'm referring to spare parts like solar panels and hooks and magnets. Things I'll be using in EVA anyways and storing them in the warehouse module will look better than using the KAS containers.

The Warehouse module does have what looks to be a door so it doesn't strike me as something intended to be unloaded IVA completely

Oh, I see.

What I can probably do is to use MODEL{} node calls and such to make two versions of the Warehouse Bay parts:

- One is strictly limited for OrbitalConstruction only

- The other, possibly dubbed "Karmony External Storage", would accept *any* KASPAR racks.

(I'd like to segregate OrbitalConstruction from general EVA gear, y'see)

Modular Fuel Tanks can be used for logistics. Locally I've configured mine to accept Oxygen for IonCross Crew Support.

Really? I'll go check it out right away!

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