TiktaalikDreaming

Fairing bases are started, although when they'll end up in game is another matter entirely.

Updated revamp releases on github are restructured. Both Nexus and TDAPS have a gamedata folder and then the mod folder. Github always tags your zips with the version tag, leading to mangled folder names if you assume otherwise. This also means I can add content that isn't expected to be installed as the mod, eg source files, craft files etc. Nexus : https://github.com/TiktaalikDreaming/Nexus/releases/tag/1.9.0824b 2nd Stage Engine : https://github.com/TiktaalikDreaming/TDAPS/releases/tag/0.2.190824 I'll have a look into Comfy landings mod. I remember seeing some of that a while ago, but didn't know it involved retro burn timings.

Yes, and that's something I need to change with the github files. There is no such thing at the moment as at the same level as gamedata. Because I didn't think through things when starting the project.

I can just sneak a MM patch in for that. I already have to do the numbers so I can then adjust them. I'll just fudge the file extension so it doesn't get loaded unless you edit it.

There's guaranteed to be a RSS patch, basically resizing and taking away the Kerbal nerfing. Usually I'd write those with a MM [NEEDS] so it takes effect if and only if RSS is installed, but that's easy enough to adjust. The plan is also an RO patch for those who like their rockets to come with limited restarts and ullage issues. Ullage already dealt with in the current second stage.

Oh, yes, I've recently done some twr Kerbalizing balance on the first stage, which was actually a mess. Twr would have gone down but ISP up. The second stage hasn't really been kerbalized yet, so it's still scaled convair numbers. So suitable for a solar system that isn't squished. Delta v may shrink before the final cut.

I'll take a look at kerbal krash systems. If I use it, I'll add support as a module manager thing that only takes effect if the mod is there. I generally try to make stuff possible even if my mode is the only one. So a [NEEDS].

And crash tolerance ignores whether the part is full of propellant or not. There's a lot of things that aren't exact physics simulations, but using what's available to get something approximating reality is half the challenge. Suffice to say I will be looking at the crash tolerance. Again, like the lack of fairings, it annoys me as well.

What I'd love is a damage but not destroy mechanism. The heat shield was supposed to be a crushable structure. But I do need to tweak the general impact resistance of the craft. Especially the way it seems to explode through the middle and have the side panels flop down, just looks wrong.

The main first stage tank is mostly a giant hydrogen balloon. Convair obviously thought drag concerns were secondary to surface area to mass ratios. The way no one has flown anything like it suggests they were wrong, but maybe it's a scale thing. I normally actually have too much delta v at the end, which is just as bad and a bit more Kerbal. I doubt there's any good solution here except to add the potential for more solid fuel. Then a bit of trial and error can get out right for your game. At first I thought you were going to mention the retro rockets on the interstage, because I was just looking at their total absence. Which is one of those things I need to fix before adding fairings.

Those are planned. Agreed I've finished some tweaks on the interstage parts, in fact. My test craft are not looking very aerodynamic

And this other thing;

While I came here to say "<expletive> <expletive> they actually <expletive> gone and <expletive> done it, holy <expletive> <expletive>!" I couldn't help but notice these lines in the announcements topic; They getting good prices for those eight year old devs? (PS: I know what was meant, please don't @ me)

I made a thing;

Akchuly...because the way restock stops stock assets loading so your game doesn't explode your ram, the mod using stock assets fails, because it tries to load stock assets that have been disabled. So the choices are, reenable the asset even though the stock part has been patched not to use it, or patch the mod part to use restock assets iff they're there. The default suggested fix is remove the assets from the "don't load this stuff" list. For my one affected mod I went the other way because I figure anyone playing with restock would prefer the restock look.

In the paths? I seem to remember this might be why I stuck with spacedock and manual zip files for releases. It also confused me for ages with Taniwha's blender plugin to import mu files. At some stage I'll need to make that saner.

I've updated the release of TDAPS and the Short Gas Core is more complete now. There's a mild discrepancy in the stack nodes on the base of the second stage, but I think that's an issue with the nexus stage, not the rocket. There's a small gap, if you manually close that gap using the move tool, the engine fits (just). I'll be updating the second stage stack nodes when I have time to figure what's gone weird there. https://github.com/TiktaalikDreaming/TDAPS/releases Although, I seem to be missing the specular. But it now comes with bonus emmisive tied to the throttle;

A bit of work this weekend into a shorter Gas Core NTP* rocket. The rocket engine isn't done, but it's doen enough to check it fits between the first and second stages. Mildly important. So I ran a test flight. Album here: https://imgur.com/gallery/cudaFlI * NASA have started using the term NTP (Nuclear Thermal Propulsion) for what has traditionally been called Nuclear Thermal Rocket. Thye might very well have taken the step due to possible confusion between Nuclear Thermal Reactor and Rocket, but I find myself constantly confused as I run several Network Time Protocol servers. I will therefor persist in calling them "Nuke engines", NTRs, "NTP Rockets" or similar, even if the last is effectively a tautology.

It occurs to me after trying a first and second stage with that engine from my Dev tdaps repo that it doesn't fit. So I guess I know what I'm working on next. That said, that engine has two modes, one that requires way more radiator than will fit in the fairing, so I did half know it wouldn't fit. That mode is the high ISP, low thrust, actively cooled version with several football fields of liquid helium radiator. I'll be taking a lot of the above shadow shield things and moving them to neutron embrittlement land. And hoping that's enough without shortening the nozzle. But again, the nozzle is a high efficiency nozzle. Original Going to see if I can just pile things up on top of the shadow shield, drop the (probably unreralistic anyway) gimbal, and see just how much nozzle shortening I still need. aka

If you want the second stage engine, I was toying with the idea of splitting it, and some other nuke engines out as a separate mod, TD Advanced Propulsion Systems, TDAPS. So the partly finished gas core engine is in a pre-release git repo, over here https://github.com/TiktaalikDreaming/TDAPS/releases

OK, derp. I haven't been properly telling github to use the revamp fork when creating 1.9 releases. 1.9.0804 is the first actual revamp WIP release. Consider it a 0.X type release. https://github.com/TiktaalikDreaming/Nexus/releases/tag/1.9.0804

something happened.. contrary to the "watched pot" wisdom

Probably not. It might be close on the A-4, as the part list is the same, but I would need to check scales. Some of the parts of the old version were modelled at half, others at full, the new one should all be rescalefactor=1.0 for RO

Nice. The numbers for masses, thrusts etc should be pretty consistent with the old RO config I did; https://github.com/TiktaalikDreaming/Nexus/blob/master/Parts/RealismConfigs.cfg As for rescale, I've been doing the revamped parts in full realism scale, then using rescaleFactor=0.625 in the config files. So, changing that to 1.0 will set the size to full real scale. Some of my old parts were modelled in all sorts of scale. Also, the old version was 50% scale, rather than 62.5%, which is a more common kerbal scale. The scale changes depending on what you mean by "since it got updated". The released mod versions on spacedock and thus through ckan are the old mod, with some new models, but in the old 50% scale. I wanted to work with just the new parts, and rescale, so I branched on git and this (https://github.com/TiktaalikDreaming/Nexus/tree/Revamp) is where I'm headed with the mod. But due to the rescale in particular, I had to start working without the old parts cluttering things up. (to help non-github initiated people along, I just tagged a new release, so it's easier to download the current state https://github.com/TiktaalikDreaming/Nexus/archive/1.9.0617.zip) The rundown of masses I've been working from for the size-1(as in 1 million pound payload) Nexus is here https://drive.google.com/file/d/1qeqbGQ2tmweqUFORgtV9p9POJRbqYAbU/view?usp=sharing The revamp branch is all just that one size craft so far.

My responsiveness has been rather awful recently, but considering that everyone has times like that, I'm ok to be added in for a bit of admin.