[1.0.4] ESLD Jump Beacons - [Dev 0.6a]

[TMarkos]

Quick question: if you've got FTT, where/how are you harvesting the Karborundum?

Well, the FTT part is currently not active, since FTT hasn't implemented harvesting yet. However, the framework is in place for when that happens.

Did my placeholder check for FTT actually disable the distiller? It wasn't meant to do anything yet.

[RoverDude]

Well, the FTT part is currently not active, since FTT hasn't implemented harvesting yet. However, the framework is in place for when that happens.

Did my placeholder check for FTT actually disable the distiller? It wasn't meant to do anything yet.

There will be an update for that bit very soon

In the interim, Karborundum is purchasable (though expensive) correct? Perhaps only available in very small tanks (like, only a few units). So keep the very strong incentive to mine it but let people get their hands on it for experimentation (I would make the tank price extremely high)

[scottpaladin]

Well, the FTT part is currently not active, since FTT hasn't implemented harvesting yet. However, the framework is in place for when that happens.

Did my placeholder check for FTT actually disable the distiller? It wasn't meant to do anything yet.

Oh I don't know if it is/isn't working; haven't installed the mod yet (busy trying to learn some plugin coding myself). I was just curious because I hadn't seen any harvesting stuff in the pre-release of FTT, but you're just talking about future stuff so that makes sense. Good to know.

[TMarkos]

There will be an update for that bit very soon

In the interim, Karborundum is purchasable (though expensive) correct? Perhaps only available in very small tanks (like, only a few units). So keep the very strong incentive to mine it but let people get their hands on it for experimentation (I would make the tank price extremely high)

I hadn't made the sample tank part yet, its still just a logged issue. I was planning on a 5 liter tank, which is enough to online a short range beacon and execute a few jumps with a small ship, but not to pay for the orbital speed matching in most cases.

I was thinking a price of 75000 for the container, which would mean the empty tank costs 65000.

[TMarkos]

No update today, I think - I'm butting my head up against trying to make new parts, and I'm discovering it doesn't come as easily as it should when you're actually trying to make reasonably-sized texture files. The redone LB-10 fits nicely and looks okay, but I'm still not quite where I want to be. Good news is, the filesize is much better. The original LB10 model with its bloated textures was around 23mb, the new one is under 5mb. I'll keep optimizing the UV maps and twiddling with the textures until it's where it needs to be.

I guess this is where I put out the invitation to any interested modelers. I can texture things well enough, but I'm total crap at meshes. If someone wants to swoop in like Errol Flynn and save me from Blender, I wouldn't exactly object.

[TMarkos]

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Okay, I guess I did end up with a new beacon model. Behold the revamped LB10. I'm not going to do a release just for this, but it's on the Github if you want it.

[Tangle]

I like the new one! Spheres don't fit very well into rockets.

[TMarkos]

I like the new one! Spheres don't fit very well into rockets.

This is true, but my first foray into 3D modeling was pretty much limited to platonic solids and their derivatives. Took a bit of meddling before I could get more creative with mesh geometry.

[Tangle]

That makes sense.

[TMarkos]

Released Dev 0.2c! Beacons now use electricity, both as a large initial requirement and as a constant operational charge. Both amounts are determined by the ratio of the beacon's gravity limit to the current gravity, as well as by the amount of fuel available to the beacon. The GMU now carries a penalty to these charges to compensate for the increased operational range it gives you. The charges are pretty reasonable - you can easily online a fully fueled IB-1 using stock electrical parts - but it requires some forethought and gets much harder to manage if you're using the GMU or are too far out for effective solar use.

Also included in this release is the updated LB10 model I posted previously.

Dropbox

Changelog

2014-08-30 0.2c
  -Beacons now require ElectricCharge to turn on and to operate.
    -A large initial charge is required to activate the beacon.
    -A constant per-second charge is required to keep it operational.
    -Charge amounts are determined based on the current gravity vs the beacon's gravity limit and the amount of fuel in the beacon.
    -Using the Gravitational Mitigator now carries a penalty to required activation and operation charges.
  -Beacons will not start up without at least a small amount of Karborundum aboard.
  -New model for the LB10 beacon.
    -Better inline fit
    -Much lighter filesize - 25% of previous.  

[4nxs]

Nice progress last few days. The new beacon model looks a bit ominous but a definite improvement I think. I finally have some time to play tonight to play with the latest dev version.

[TMarkos]

Nice progress last few days. The new beacon model looks a bit ominous but a definite improvement I think. I finally have some time to play tonight to play with the latest dev version.

Ominous like "Made in Evil Kerbal Empire" or like "And that's why we call him 'Radiation Jeb'"? I wasn't really going for the evil look, but I guess it's a bit more (literally, not figuratively) edgy.

[Angelo Kerman]

This mod looks interesting. Looking forward to trying it.

[4nxs]

Ominous like "Made in Evil Kerbal Empire" or like "And that's why we call him 'Radiation Jeb'"? I wasn't really going for the evil look, but I guess it's a bit more (literally, not figuratively) edgy.

Well I guess ominous like "Made in Evil Kerbal Empire" fits the best of the two. It's the black "interior" of the beacon you see when the sun is angled away and then you turn it on with the pulsing lights. Perhaps I watched to many movies. But I like the new look very much.

Also I ran into a problem with the interface. Was the first time I ran it with a ton of mods so don't know yet if they are to blame. But the interface window is only a few pixel in size and centered on the CoM. I could see it light up when mousing over but it was to small to read anything.

I am gonna try a clean install, if it persists then I will get you a log and images.

Edit 1: No problems with stock, everything worked fine. Maybe I can find the mod...

Edited August 30, 2014 by 4nxs

[TMarkos]

Well I guess ominous like "Made in Evil Kerbal Empire" fits the best of the two. It's the black "interior" of the beacon you see when the sun is angled away and then you turn it on with the pulsing lights. Perhaps I watched to many movies. But I like the new look very much.

Also I ran into a problem with the interface. Was the first time I ran it with a ton of mods so don't know yet if they are to blame. But the interface window is only a few pixel in size and centered on the CoM. I could see it light up when mousing over but it was to small to read anything.

I am gonna try a clean install, if it persists then I will get you a log and images.

Edit 1: No problems with stock, everything worked fine. Maybe I can find the mod...

. That normally means something in the window code is failing. Was it the first interface window or the confirm screen? Let me know if you identify a mod that's clashing with it.

[4nxs]

. That normally means something in the window code is failing. Was it the first interface window or the confirm screen? Let me know if you identify a mod that's clashing with it.

It is the first window. I have not managed to find the mod yet. Would have to run them all individually to find it I guess, but it is a bit to late for that.

I did find the relevant part in the output log. After clicking the button for the interface to pop up I am getting a few hundred calls of these:

ArgumentException: An element with the same key already exists in the dictionary.
  at System.Collections.Generic.Dictionary`2[Part,System.String].Add (.Part key, System.String value) [0x00000] in <filename unknown>:0 
  at ESLDCore.ESLDHailer.getHCUParts (.Vessel craft) [0x00000] in <filename unknown>:0 
  at ESLDCore.ESLDHailer.BeaconInterface (Int32 GuiId) [0x00000] in <filename unknown>:0 
  at UnityEngine.GUILayout+LayoutedWindow.DoWindow (Int32 windowID) [0x00000] in <filename unknown>:0 
  at UnityEngine.GUI.CallWindowDelegate (UnityEngine.WindowFunction func, Int32 id, UnityEngine.GUISkin _skin, Int32 forceRect, Single width, Single height, UnityEngine.GUIStyle style) [0x00000] in <filename unknown>:0 

Will let you know if I happen to find the mod.

[TMarkos]

It is the first window. I have not managed to find the mod yet. Would have to run them all individually to find it I guess, but it is a bit to late for that.

I did find the relevant part in the output log. After clicking the button for the interface to pop up I am getting a few hundred calls of these:

ArgumentException: An element with the same key already exists in the dictionary.
  at System.Collections.Generic.Dictionary`2[Part,System.String].Add (.Part key, System.String value) [0x00000] in <filename unknown>:0 
  at ESLDCore.ESLDHailer.getHCUParts (.Vessel craft) [0x00000] in <filename unknown>:0 
  at ESLDCore.ESLDHailer.BeaconInterface (Int32 GuiId) [0x00000] in <filename unknown>:0 
  at UnityEngine.GUILayout+LayoutedWindow.DoWindow (Int32 windowID) [0x00000] in <filename unknown>:0 
  at UnityEngine.GUI.CallWindowDelegate (UnityEngine.WindowFunction func, Int32 id, UnityEngine.GUISkin _skin, Int32 forceRect, Single width, Single height, UnityEngine.GUIStyle style) [0x00000] in <filename unknown>:0 

Will let you know if I happen to find the mod.

That's likely not a mod conflict, that's just sloppiness on my part. I should be able to fix it relatively easily. I'm not sure how to duplicate the conditions that caused the error, though, so it'll be a speculative fix.

[RoverDude]

Query: How much Karborundum do these use? The reason I am asking is I want to balance the Karborundum drives, as well as tanks (unless you already have some?)

[TMarkos]

Query: How much Karborundum do these use? The reason I am asking is I want to balance the Karborundum drives, as well as tanks (unless you already have some?)

I have placeholder tanks, but nothing fancy. The amount of Karborundum used by the drives is based on tonnage and the distance traveled, as well as the model of drive used. Different drives provide the most efficient transfer depending on how heavy your ship is and how far it's going.

Those are the curves for the small, medium and large beacons. t for tonnage, d for distance, K for the distance from Kerbin to Kerbol, and p is a penalty only applied after 1GM for the small beacon because I couldn't get it to curve right without it. The resulting number from those equations can be divided by tonnage and multiplied by 10000 to get the cost per ton in funds for transport.

So, with that, the base transfer cost for getting a 40 ton ship over one Kerbin AU (13.6GM) using the medium drive (most efficient for that weight and distance) is almost exactly 40 Karborundum for the base cost, or $80,000 in material worth. Additionally, if you have any of the tech modules on board that will increase. Matching speeds over that distance (let's say an exit vector of about 2.5km/s) would incur a cost from the Alignment Matrix equivalent to:

(C*T)/(LOG10(C*T)^2)/200

C for Compensation amount in m/s, T for tonnage. Comes out to an additional 20 units for this example. You actually made me realize just now that I hadn't updated that in the current release, so thanks for that.

Furthermore, if the ship is carrying Karborundum, crew, or any other resources that need to be protected by the Heisenkerb Compensator, it will exact a toll equivalent to 2% of the protected items' weight in Karborundum. If this example ship is carrying 500 units of Karborundum and no crew it will take 10 units. So, for this example we're looking at a total trip cost of 70 units of Karborundum, or 140,000 in funds. Keep in mind all this is paid by the origin-side beacon, not the transferring ship - unless it's a ship with the jumpdrive module, in which case it does pay its own way.

Local jumps with smaller ships are MUCH cheaper, and you can dodge most of that added cost if you time your jump to avoid huge DV changes and aren't carrying a crapton of KBD. Simply tranferring a 10 ton ship to Minmus from Kerbin with AMU and HCU costs would be closer to 7 units.

[RoverDude]

Excellent. So we're in line with small amounts then. I'll be delivering a small radial tank, a 1.25m stack tank, and a 2.5m stack tank (the latter are more for mining ops).

[TMarkos]

Excellent. So we're in line with small amounts then. I'll be delivering a small radial tank, a 1.25m stack tank, and a 2.5m stack tank (the latter are more for mining ops).

Are you also going to make that absurdly expensive sample module we've talked about? I took a stab at coding a tank that self-decrements the majority of its value once any resources are removed from it, to prevent recovery abuse.

[RoverDude]

Are you also going to make that absurdly expensive sample module we've talked about? I took a stab at coding a tank that self-decrements the majority of its value once any resources are removed from it, to prevent recovery abuse.

Yep, on my list.

(Edit) How many units do you want in a sample tank?

[TMarkos]

Yep, on my list.

(Edit) How many units do you want in a sample tank?

I was using 5.

[RoverDude]

I was using 5.

Perfect. One sample tank coming up

[BinaryBad]

I love the thought that has gone into this mod. Would be interesting to see a video if it in action. Just trying to balance it up against the other mods I'm considering to see how it all pieces together. Amazing depth for first mod, though. Bravo.