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[WIP] Universal Storage


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I've teamed up with Daishi (NOX Industrial) to produce a set of modular container parts for KSP.

The idea originated after playing with both TAC life support and ECLSS, we wanted to give players and modders a set of universal parts that could be easily adapted for various uses.

Mod is now released, see the release thread for details

http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/threads/75129-Universal-Storage-%280-23-5%29?p=1065781#post1065781

You can also read more about development over at www.kingtiger.co.uk

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Edited by Paul Kingtiger
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I would suggest adding more photos from your blog to the first post in order to attract some attention to this mod as the typical lazy browser who's up late at night might not visit your blog posts ;)

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This is very amazing! I was thinking while back how it would be nice to have an inline system that wont take up so much space like the stackable containers from TACL. Now, if only KAS was able to support nodes, exchange out the tanks while in orbit!

Maybe, in the future, you could do some similar design that can be mounted without nodessurface mounted, maybe a form-fitted core that is radially mounted of some sort. Just an idea. Maybe a flat dome that is aerodynamic.

I look forward to this release, some really great work.

Edited by CraveMode
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Maybe, in the future, you could do some similar design that can be mounted without nodessurface mounted

So you could swap out parts with KAS right? Yeah nice idea, we'll look into it. FLEXRack (which gave me the idea for Universal Containers) was supposed to do just that, but the thread hasn't been updated in a while. One of the problems I see though is getting everything lined up nicely, easy with nodes, a pain with surface attachment (unless they bring in vertical snap).

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Ooo, these are looking super cool. I particularly like that the 2.5m one has a crew access tunnel running through it. It's like TAC and the 6S Service Tubes had a baby that was rendered as beautifully as the KSO.

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So you could swap out parts with KAS right? Yeah nice idea, we'll look into it. FLEXRack (which gave me the idea for Universal Containers) was supposed to do just that, but the thread hasn't been updated in a while. One of the problems I see though is getting everything lined up nicely, easy with nodes, a pain with surface attachment (unless they bring in vertical snap).

Ah nice, yeah looks like it hasn't. What I was thinking though, make a core that is like a flatter dome shape, 4 quadrants with nodes to place the container of choice into, like the 4 way container you have now, just make it domed shaped maybe and make that center core piece surface attachable.

What I had in mind, but I could wait and see if Flex updates his, just hate the hexacans in TACLS.

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can I haz dl?

When it's doneâ„¢ :P Seeing as this is my first attempt at making assets for a game, its taken some time to work out the best way to do things. Both Paul and I have resolved the workflow pretty well now so its just really lots of modelling, .cfg coding, and texturing left to go. There are quite a few different segments, so there's a bit of work left to do.

Ah nice, yeah looks like it hasn't. What I was thinking though, make a core that is like a flatter dome shape, 4 quadrants with nodes to place the container of choice into, like the 4 way container you have now, just make it domed shaped maybe and make that center core piece surface attachable.

What I had in mind, but I could wait and see if Flex updates his, just hate the hexacans in TACLS.

Not too sure what you mean, could you do a sketch? I'm considering making future parts after this project, so it might be on the cards.

And thanks everyone! Hoping to branch into this kind of stuff as a job, so if anything it's all good practice :D

Edited by Daishi
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Sure thing! I would do my own models but I never have time, so I would be happy to help out anyone who takes the time to provide some quality plugins, models, and textures for the community to use. I will do some sketches, got a few ideas for linear and round/dome-ish (aerodynamic) designs. Will have to dust off my ol' tablet.

Is it possible... lets say, you take your small canister you have made and attach it radially to the side of your rocket. Can you make the core itself surface attachable and still have the nodes for the different tanks to go on the core? If so, then this will definitely work.

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CraveMode, something like this (very bare bones) model?

So this is a hub with streamlined side fairings (yellow) with room to plug in 2 storage containers. The hub would be surface mountable and there would be an outside 'lid' (not shown) to the whole thing would look like a bump on the side of the craft. We could probably do something clever with the collision mesh so that it mounted to round tanks without leaving a gap.

Surface-Mount-2-Wedge-Hub.png

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Sorry, I got home, was trying to do a quick sketch but my tablet isn't working on my new built pc. That is perfect, I like the shape of it better than just "round". With a lid would help make it aerodynamic if you can incorporate the design to match the rest of it, very sexy.

You can use surface attaching and nodes right? I think I seen that with a few other parts in other mods but I don't think they had collision, not sure on limitations as I know nothing about programming. If so, you could probably make the lid separate and people could stack these if needed and a lid on top.... even if you couldn't, still much better to manage than a bunch of ... not to knock the other modders designs, but ugly cans :P I am sure they are designed to be modular but I need several different types as I use several mods that add resources.

OH, another idea... :P

Take that hub, cut it in half.. put the fairing side down against the surface... have a vertical rack of containers, like a cd rack.. without changing the size of the container you can use the same size with all the other hubs. Anyway, you are the creator of procedural fairings? :o I am sure you will do magic with those containers forming to rockets, if that was what you were talking about the "gap".

I am downloading sketchup, will just show you what I'm thinking of, if you want to use those ideas.

Ok, quick and dirty, and I mean dirty.. sketchup (first time using it in years). This is not scaled right, shaped, but you might get the idea. yellow is the fairing, I did not add the hub but it may go in the middle, up to you, but this was an idea I had too if you want to avoid the "Lid" option and still provide nice looking surface/radial mounted containers as most of my builds I am always using radial mounted things when I can.

Also want to add, I copied and pasted a bunch to stack, you may want to use 2-4 in each section. The reason I would use this over the inline stackable containers that you have since they are both horizontally stacked, I do a lot of lander type vehicles and I don't like making towers... I rather make it wider than taller. Which is why I love procedural fairings so much :P flying mushrooms! Although, even releasing with your inline large container would be great to use, these are just ideas for the future if you want to provide some kind of radial container with the same design.

design.jpg

Edited by CraveMode
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Sorry, I got home, was trying to do a quick sketch but my tablet isn't working on my new built pc. That is perfect, I like the shape of it better than just "round". With a lid would help make it aerodynamic if you can incorporate the design to match the rest of it, very sexy.

lN6RzDm.jpg

Bam. Done. Next :P Seriously though, sounds like a neat idea. Will have to find time once all this is done.

You can use surface attaching and nodes right? I think I seen that with a few other parts in other mods but I don't think they had collision, not sure on limitations as I know nothing about programming. If so, you could probably make the lid separate and people could stack these if needed and a lid on top.... even if you couldn't, still much better to manage than a bunch of ... not to knock the other modders designs, but ugly cans :P I am sure they are designed to be modular but I need several different types as I use several mods that add resources.

Oh they are modular - there are a fair few variants of segments coming that should be customizable for that kind of thing. We're hoping to have these integrate into TAC and ECLSS directly, if thats what you use. There might be small radial tanks too, but i'll be doing those last (as they're pretty simple and easy to churn out).

OH, another idea... :P

Take that hub, cut it in half.. put the fairing side down against the surface... have a vertical rack of containers, like a cd rack.. without changing the size of the container you can use the same size with all the other hubs. Anyway, you are the creator of procedural fairings? :o I am sure you will do magic with those containers forming to rockets, if that was what you were talking about the "gap".

I am downloading sketchup, will just show you what I'm thinking of, if you want to use those ideas.

Not sure who you mean, but nah, didnt do the fairings. I made a custom texture for mine, that's about it :)

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Bam. Done. Next :P Seriously though, sounds like a neat idea. Will have to find time once all this is done.

Wow nice man! Lol, I could give you a million ideas, every time I look at something you guys do I could come up with something, but really, just need something radial but I even the inline stackable containers you have design will do much better than I use now.

Oh they are modular - there are a fair few variants of segments coming that should be customizable for that kind of thing. We're hoping to have these integrate into TAC and ECLSS directly, if thats what you use. There might be small radial tanks too, but i'll be doing those last (as they're pretty simple and easy to churn out).

What I was talking about being modular as in, the hexicans, which have nodes on them to stack them horizontally or vertically but are still too big and take too much room, and to me are ugly with what I build. So these will be perfect.

I use TACLS, Kethane, Interstellar, and Colonies (the WIP mod can't think of the name off hand) that incorporates both of TACLS and Kethane to produce food, it uses kethane to detect and min ore, and other materials. I have a fix for Interstellar using TACLS water instead of its own. Hopefully someone will use the Universal Storage for the other 2 mods so I have it all taken care of eventually.

Not sure who you mean, but nah, didnt do the fairings. I made a custom texture for mine, that's about it :)

Oh, I saw Paul Kingtiger post and is the author of the Procedural Fairings which I praise to my friends about. Think he showed a fairing base to match a rocket. But, again, just ideas, for the future, what you have is more than enough for now especially if you can just take the small ones and mount to a surface :)

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Wow nice man! Lol, I could give you a million ideas, every time I look at something you guys do I could come up with something, but really, just need something radial. What I was talking about being modular as in, the hexicans, which have nodes on them to stack them horizontally or vertically but are still too big and take too much room, and to me are ugly with what I build. So these will be perfect.

Ah i get you, so stackable radial tanks? I think? The small-sized radial tanks we'll do are probably going to be around this size (the little blue ECLSS tanks underneath the aerial), which will probably hold a few days of resources each. Not sure how we'd get them to stack and snap together though... but we'll get to them soon :)

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Ah i get you, so stackable radial tanks? I think? The small-sized radial tanks we'll do are probably going to be around this size (the little blue ECLSS tanks underneath the aerial), which will probably hold a few days of resources each. Not sure how we'd get them to stack and snap together though... but we'll get to them soon :)

Yeah, stackable radial would be great because I do a lot of landers, alot of interplanetary ship designs that are wider and not so ... tall. There is so much to already add inline on the rocket with all the mods I have... which are a lot lol.

Here is my latest design, using AIES, some radial tanks you see in the middle in a "n" shape, thats some tanks i got for TACLS, Batteries on the corners and radial RCS tanks. I could have used that space for other things but it was a long trip, needed to keep my kerbals alive.

07D632077D65D924C10B28CB074058B071F79AA3

Now, I will be happy to use what you guys have already when it is released. I could hold a lot of things in one thin stack on the rocket, so don't go out of your way to work on something special. I am just excited someone is doing something like this to manage all those tanks and resources in a nice package! I am already reconfiguring some builds to see what is possible.

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I've been thinking about something like this for months now, but on a larger scale. To be able to make proper service modules. With seperate oxidiser, liquid fuel tanks built into a central structure structure part along with life support parts. Then a seperate hull/siding part to wrap it with. I can't stand strapping crap onto the sides of my service modules when I know in reality this is never the case.

Awesome mod. Can't wait until its done. Here's hoping Asmi is making out okay with ECLSSv2.

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