What's up with the ridiculous magnet strength on the docking ports?

[BudgetHedgehog]

"It's a real onion of a game, where each successful step forward is hard-earned but reveals a whole new layer of gameplay underneath. The developer's desire to ensure that each new update stand on its own means that at every stage, it feels like a complete and satisfying experience. It's a truly hardcore simulation, but one that is endearingly approachable and eager to get you grappling with the nuts and bolts of space flight."

- Said one guy.

Also, you might like to read this:

Kerbal Space Program is a multi-genre game where the players create their own space program.

In KSP, you must build a space-worthy craft, capable of flying its crew out into space, without killing them. At your disposal is a collection of parts, which must be assembled to create a functional ship. Each part has its own function and will affect the way a ship flies (or doesn't). So strap yourself in, and get ready to try some Rocket Science!

Main Features:

The Vehicle Assembly Building and the Space Plane Hangar allows players to build spacecraft out of any imaginable combination of parts.

Fully-fledged, Physics-based Flight Simulation ensures everything will fly (and crash) as it should.

Take your Kerbal crew out of the ship and do Extra Vehicular Activities

Fly out to Moons and other Planets

Procedural Terrain delivers detailed terrain at a vast scale. The Kerbal Planet is 600km in radius!

Mod-enabled, allows players to create new content and modify the game.

Ship systems. Keep an eye out for engine temperatures and fuel levels, and try not to explode.

Build ships with multiple stages, and jettison parts away as they burn out.

Build Space Stations, and surface bases on other worlds.

Full control over the staging sequence allows for complex ships and advanced functionality.

Research & Development: Advance the scientific knowledge of Kerbalkind as you progress towards conquering space.

Manage your crews.

Planned Features:

A Tycoon-Style Career Mode.

Take on Contracts to attract interest in your Space Program.

Hire astronauts, train them, and make them into heroes.

And a whole lot more!

KSP is still under development, so many things are not yet as they should be. We are working hard to be constantly improving the game however, and it will be regularly updated with bug fixes and new content, so make sure to check back for new versions. We are also always listening to feedback from the players, and we welcome ideas and suggestions.

Currently the game is an open sandbox. There are no objectives yet. You're free to build anything you can think of, and explore the Kerbal Solar System. A tycoon-style Career mode is in the works however.

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Have Fun!

I don't know about you, but the official About page makes no mention of a simulation, Earth or otherwise. Apart from the "Fully-fledged, Physics-based Flight Simulation" which, you'll notice, has literally nothing to do with Earth docking (it means the orbital physics are realistic). Earth docking is done slowly to avoid crashes and allow margin of errors. If you bump into the ISS at 1m/s IRL, things go very badly very quickly. If you bump into your station in KSP at 1m/s, you just rotate it a bit. Literally nothing else happens. Why would you want to dock slower when there's no consequences for slight misalignment?

And I'm still mad and I'm really done this time.

Edited July 6, 2014 by ObsessedWithKSP

[allmhuran]

I for one would like to see a video of OP's mad docking skillz and the problem that is claimed to exist.

[Razorcane]

- Said one guy.

Also, you might like to read this:

I don't know about you, but the official About page makes no mention of a simulation, Earth or otherwise. Apart from the "Fully-fledged, Physics-based Flight Simulation" which, you'll notice, has literally nothing to do with Earth docking (it means the orbital physics are realistic). Earth docking is done slowly to avoid crashes and allow margin of errors. If you bump into the ISS at 1m/s IRL, things go very badly very quickly. If you bump into your station in KSP at 1m/s, you just rotate it a bit. Literally nothing else happens. Why would you want to dock slower when there's no consequences for slight misalignment?

And I'm still mad and I'm really done this time.

I'm also done as well. It's clear that you don't have an unbiased opinion about this game, and it's very clear that you're ignoring the facts simply to create an argument. Magnetics is as much a part of physics as orbits are. You can't ignore one area of physics in a game like this simply to allow it to be easier (only slightly, since getting lined up has nothing to do with the magnet). I want to dock slower because I have a high amount of patience (which is a requirement in the aerospace industry) and obviously because docking faster with two ships that have similar masses have problems doing so at such fast speeds.

Basically every post since the second one is irrelevant though since that pretty much offered the solution to my problem. Have a nice day.

[Razorcane]

I for one would like to see a video of OP's mad docking skillz and the problem that is claimed to exist.

Unfortunately I don't have the time. It's almost 9 PM and I have to get up at 5 AM so that I can go to work. Anyway, the problem is fixed so I'm leaving now. Have fun being angry because there's someone better than you at something.

[Awaras]

That is your opinion. I am of a higher intelligence than most and I think a game that is advertised as a simulator should actually simulate things instead of just winging it. Perhaps it should be called a sandbox game instead of a simulator.

The docking port module inside the part.cfg file of the docking ports used to have parameters you could tweak to change the magnetic force.

You can still use these parameters if you add them manually.

Just open the part.cfg of any docking port and look for these lines:

MODULE

{

name = ModuleDockingNode

referenceAttachNode = top

nodeType = size2

}

What you want is to add parameter lines so it looks like this:

MODULE

{

name = ModuleDockingNode

referenceAttachNode = top

nodeType = size2

undockEjectionForce = 1.0

minDistanceToReEngage = 1.0

acquireForce = 0.1

acquireTorque = 0.1

acquireRange = 0.1

captureRange = 0.1

}

Of course, you need to do this for all docking parts. Or you can use module manager.

I am sure that with your 'higher intelligence' you will have no problems figuring it all out...

Edited July 6, 2014 by Awaras

[BudgetHedgehog]

I want to dock slower because I have a high amount of patience (which is a requirement in the aerospace industry)

Sure, let me know when NASA hires you for being so great at docking.

Have fun being angry because there's someone better than you at something.

Oh wait, never mind.

Edited July 6, 2014 by ObsessedWithKSP

[vexx32]

This thread has devolved into mostly off-topic arguing, so we're going to put a stop to it here before it gets any worse.

Everyone has their opinion, and you all need to learn to respect that opinion. Some people consider KSP a simulator, and will push for additional realism. Others view it as merely a difficult yet rewarding game, and will forego realism at times to make the game more accessible and fun. What everyone here needs to realise is that both of these viewpoints are perfectly valid, and both of them are good for KSP. If some people want realism, and others want fun, in the end the game will likely end up catering to both of those wishes, albeit with certain compromises along the way.

We ask that you respect each others' viewpoints in future, and you do not attempt to argue without good grounds to do so. If you absolutely must argue a point, please do so in a constructive and civil manner, and make an attempt to avoid common fallacies of logic lest you end up confusing the issue, and end up attacking other users for merely holding different opinions than yours.

For now, this thread has run its course and is at an end. Please be more civil in future.