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[0.24.2] GlowStrips v0.4.3

Zarenor

By Zarenor
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Zarenor

Zarenor

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MOD DESCRIPTION:

Tired of the same old space-faring antics? Is your space-craft looking more like space-crap? Want something new, sleek, and adventurous? Well, adventurer, prepare to have your mind blown -- or should I say glown! AnonyCorp, Inc. GlowStrips© are that aesthetic touch you’ve been looking for, with all the flair and glare you’ll ever need to light up that glum, dingy exterior of your craft*. GlowStrips adhere to nearly any surface thanks to AnonyCorp’s patented sticky substance strips (not included). GlowStrip your spaceship! GlowStrip your car! GlowStrip your GRANDMA’S car! (She’ll love it!) With AnonyCorp, Inc. GlowStrips©, it’s just hard to go wrong.“AnonyCorp: You probably use our products.â€Â

*GlowStrips do not illuminate surrounding parts, providing no light other than what they use for self-illumination.

May cause cancer in adults and children aged 0-99. Not recommended for use within inertial or non-inertial reference frames. May cause cancer; can’t say that one enough. Causes cancer.

GlowStrips from version 0.4 onwards is distributed in two versions, one with ModStats, and one without.

It'd be super great if you downloaded the ModStats version - it helps myself and other modders keep track of what mods tend to be used with what other mods, so we can prioritize what big issues people have, and how to fix them.

If you choose to download the one without ModStats, be aware this does not remove ModStats from other mods you may download.

ModStatistics collects data about the plugins (the computer code part of mods) that are loaded by your copy of KSP. It then keeps a list of this, as well as how long is spent in each scene (VAB,SPH, flight, etc.) in the game. It saves this to a temporary file, which is sent to a server when KSP next starts. No data is sent the first run.

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'Emergency' Download without ModStats: GDrive

ACTUAL MOD DESCRIPTION:

Includes four varieties of GlowStrips in different sizes (1m, 2m, 4m, and 6m long), and a new, thin, adaptive-length GlowStrip. GlowStrips use Emissives rather than Lighting and so won’t light up the parts around them. That way, they can give your ships a unique look and visually recognizable signature as they drift through space, without illuminating the entire body of the craft. This keeps your lines sleek with none of KSP’s funny business with surface lighting.

An Invite To Our Fellow Kerbalites:

These parts are still considered to be under testing, so your feedback is super-highly appreciated by us. That said, some of the issues here are 100% known already, and we’re getting on those as quickly as we can (it’s only an odd coincidence that this occurs at the exact same rate as however-fast-we-feel-like). We do have several additional features planned, however, including programmable/sequenceable lights and non-tiling models, so stay tuned for updates. Suggestions, feedback, and criticism are all welcome. Feel free to PM either of us at Zarenor or quantumscrewdriver.

  • Programmable, Sequenceable Lights w/ Patterns
  • Symmetry-Breaking Button
  • Non-Tiling Models
  • Funky Bassline
  • Super-Quiet Humming Sound (SUPER QUIET) at least while they turn on/off.
  • Electricity?
  • New Textures.
  • Not broken (Maybe).

Version 0.4.3

  • Updated KSPAPIExtensions to version 1.7.0 (finally)
  • Included license file somewhere more obvious to comply with KSP forum rules

Version 0.4.2

  • Updated KSP API Extensions to latest version, for 0.24.2 compatibility

Version 0.4.1

  • Updated KSP API Extensions to latest version, for 0.24.1 compatibility

Version 0.4

  • Adjusted masses!
  • GlowStripThin!
    • Adaptive in length! (0.125m to 12.0m)
    • Can be throttle-bound (This is then the only operation mode)
    • Thinner!

Version 0.3

  • Now faster! Or slower! (Can change the time to power up/shut down)
  • Bonus flashing! (Fades in and out on the same timer as on/off)

Version 0.2

  • Now with 200% more action! (Fixed actions, now toggle, start, and stop, are properly labeled and available)

(Sometimes) Includes ModStatistics, by the awesome Majiir in [thread=81764] this[/thread] thread

Includes KSPAPIExtensions, by the fantastic swamp_ig in [thread=81496]this[/thread] thread

GlowStrips is eleased under the GNU GPL v3 available at: The GNU website.

Other, included mods have their own licenses.

Edited by KasperVld
Removed rule violating links
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diomedea

diomedea

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Very nice mod and presentation :).

I have until now used active lights (from Aviation Lights mod) as visible markers (I like to mark docking ports and the like), but sure I prefer markers not to illuminate other parts. So I am interested in using your GlowStrips. However this 0.1 version has a few characteristics I would like to see improved. Below are a few suggestions.

1. Mass. Most data in your parts config seems to be identical to stock illuminators, that include mass = 0.015. Actually, you should scale mass with size, your 6 mt Glowstrip has the same mass as the 1 mt one. But mass also brings to use of physics. I want to note that since version 0.23.5, Squad made a number of parts act as massless to simplify physics (unfortunately that also removes those parts from calculating total mass and CoG with a vessel). If I am correct, that is because of the added line "PhysicsSignificance = 1" with those parts. Stock illuminators are now "massless" due to the above, so you may consider if your strips should also mimic that. Your choice.

2. Scalable size. For use as markers, I need parts less "bulky" than your strips. Probably the largest I would use is 0.50 cm (with similar reduction in width and height). Probably scaling your model is enough for making the trick work for me. But I believe it could be an added benefit if you could make the size a tweakable, others may find that useful.

3. Actionability. Tried to add actions related to your Glowstrips to some Action Group. The only action available for AGs is "start glowing", unless I have already started it and then the only action available is "stop glowing". That means to me there is something to revise in your module. I would expect to have both "start" and "stop glowing" as selectable for AGs, or better I would like a "toggle glowing" action to reverse the state (like many other actionable parts have).

Edited by diomedea
actions revised
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the_bT

the_bT

Posted
Posted

Tried these earlier today and they work very well for navigation lights on large planes. I was using B9 omni lights for that until now and they light in color but stay white themselves which looks odd.

The models are a bit bulky though, they should be almost flat so that they look like they are embedded in whatever you stick them on.

PS: Great, now I'm stuck listening to daft punk for the day...

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wasmic

wasmic

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If the blue was a little paler, it'd be stuck to the sides of all my spaceplanes already. However, unless it's easy to change the strip color for personal use, I probably won't end up using it right now, as my GameData is crying from the mod-load.

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BudgetHedgehog

BudgetHedgehog

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Updated my Recogniser a bit with some TweakScaled GlowStrips to get the thin ones.

EDIT: While I think of it, would it be possible to make some curved ones? Maybe semi-circular 1.25, 2.5 and 3.75m sizes.. or 1/4 circle or something? And corner pieces? I don't want part bloat, but at the same time, I can't think of a way of doing these without making them all extra parts.. :/

Edited by ObsessedWithKSP
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quantumscrewdriver

quantumscrewdriver

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Hello, all.

The original description definitely should have had a simple feature list... we rushed the post somewhat. Yes, the glow's color is tweakable, as with active lights, and can also be dimmed (for romantic space walks and such). The parts' masses aren't something we've pondered a whole lot, but we'll balance them. The Strips are currently "physically significant"; if you wanted, you could launch a ship off of some 4-meter GlowStrip legs, and land on them again quite easily (Note to self; build moon lander that glows). I don't think it's reasonable or necessary to create physical objects which don't behave as such, so they're likely to stay that way, but their impact tolerance may be lowered.

The current fix for Action Groups has already been pushed by Zarenor. Prettier models and better textures are scheduled next. Tweakable dimensions look like they'd be great to have, so we'll update on that soon as well.

Updated my Recogniser a bit with some TweakScaled GlowStrips to get the thin ones.

EDIT: While I think of it, would it be possible to make some curved ones? Maybe semi-circular 1.25, 2.5 and 3.75m sizes.. or 1/4 circle or something? And corner pieces? I don't want part bloat, but at the same time, I can't think of a way of doing these without making them all extra parts.. :/

That is a thing of beauty! Wow. Zarenor and I have talked about curved parts and end pieces, etc, anything that would give a nice finished look. Admittedly, we're hedging on the community to build some awesome ships that show off the mod and build its popularity, so if there's anything at all we can do to help out with that, we'd be down. Part-bloat shouldn't be a problem if the parts are made to be scalable. Round things and nice corners are worth just a couple extra parts anyways, imho. And hey, while I'm thinking of Tron, how about some GlowWheels? But, I digress...

It's great to see a single part from two unknown modders get this much attention in a little over a day. Stay tuned, and we'll return the favor with parts/tweaks/love.

End of line.

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Azimech

Azimech

Posted
Posted (edited)

Very nice mod and presentation .

I have until now used active lights (from Aviation Lights mod) as visible markers (I like to mark docking ports and the like), but sure I prefer markers not to illuminate other parts. So I am interested in using your GlowStrips. However this 0.1 version has a few characteristics I would like to see improved. Below are a few suggestions.

1. Mass. Most data in your parts config seems to be identical to stock illuminators, that include mass = 0.015. Actually, you should scale mass with size, your 6 mt Glowstrip has the same mass as the 1 mt one. But mass also brings to use of physics. I want to note that since version 0.23.5, Squad made a number of parts act as massless to simplify physics (unfortunately that also removes those parts from calculating total mass and CoG with a vessel). If I am correct, that is because of the added line "PhysicsSignificance = 1" with those parts. Stock illuminators are now "massless" due to the above, so you may consider if your strips should also mimic that. Your choice.

2. Scalable size. For use as markers, I need parts less "bulky" than your strips. Probably the largest I would use is 0.50 cm (with similar reduction in width and height). Probably scaling your model is enough for making the trick work for me. But I believe it could be an added benefit if you could make the size a tweakable, others may find that useful.

3. Actionability. Tried to add actions related to your Glowstrips to some Action Group. The only action available for AGs is "start glowing", unless I have already started it and then the only action available is "stop glowing". That means to me there is something to revise in your module. I would expect to have both "start" and "stop glowing" as selectable for AGs, or better I would like a "toggle glowing" action to reverse the state (like many other actionable parts have).

All of the above :-)

And one more thing. The max. visible distance, is that something that can be tweaked with the module? Aviation lights can be seen from kilometers away, the glow lights a few hundred. For my project extended range would be excellent as well, the inside of the warp nacelles of the Enterprise are like 70 meters long, the whole ship is 305 meters. With just a little zooming out the current glow disappears, breaking immersion a bit.

TMP_Enterprise_by_Enterprise_E.jpg

Before anyone reacts: No, this is a CGI Enterprise. Not mine.

Edited by Azimech
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diomedea

diomedea

Posted
Posted
Hello, all.

The original description definitely should have had a simple feature list... we rushed the post somewhat. Yes, the glow's color is tweakable, as with active lights, and can also be dimmed (for romantic space walks and such). The parts' masses aren't something we've pondered a whole lot, but we'll balance them. The Strips are currently "physically significant"; if you wanted, you could launch a ship off of some 4-meter GlowStrip legs, and land on them again quite easily (Note to self; build moon lander that glows). I don't think it's reasonable or necessary to create physical objects which don't behave as such, so they're likely to stay that way, but their impact tolerance may be lowered.

The current fix for Action Groups has already been pushed by Zarenor. Prettier models and better textures are scheduled next. Tweakable dimensions look like they'd be great to have, so we'll update on that soon as well.

Excellent.

Seen how fast version 0.2 with the fix for AGs arrived :). Easily could scale the model, making new config files for parts of different sizes (but tweakable will be the best), and mod the masses (and costs while at it) to go with the sizes :). OK about physicalsignificance; I also like parts to behave as they should, though with high part count some efforts at limiting computing physics should be done. Glad you're considering those suggestions.

Happy also you are about new textures. Glowstrips seem easy to make into nice signs, I'm considering to make a few to customize my ships (e.g. left arrow, "exit", "snacks here"). However, this is where I found a problem: I missed to find a reference to the textures packaged with config files or the sourcecode; so my take is the textures are linked with the MU models. Sure I can make a new texture file and name it the same for an existing one, but that still makes only one texture available in all. Could some trick be used to allow different textures? (A mod allowing to choose different textures at runtime is Fustek Station Parts)

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