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MaxwellsDemon

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Everything posted by MaxwellsDemon

  1. MaxwellsDemon
    Redesigned my Munar landers for more delta-V... since MechJeb's landing autopilot is currently on the fritz, I need to land manually, and I'm just not as efficient in my landings as MechJeb is! Been seeing a lot of lithobraking...
  2. MaxwellsDemon
    Well, in the meantime, it's got me practicing my manual landings, anyway. But it's a long way from pinpoint accuracy.
  3. MaxwellsDemon
    I've been having multiple problems with the landing module of MechJeb since the 1.3.1 upgrade. I assume we'll need to wait for another dev build when sarbian has time to address it.
  4. MaxwellsDemon
    Having this trouble, too-- I was thinking it was my design that was to blame. Dev Build 751 referenced above should address the problem? ETA I see he's up to build 755, so he's obviously been busy...
  5. MaxwellsDemon
    Yesterday was a frustrating time in Kerbal Mission Control... the first automated landers to the Mun and to Minmus both crashed into the surface. The engineers are scratching their heads.
  6. MaxwellsDemon
    Happening for me, too... 1.3.1. (It worked like a dream in 1.3.0... hoping there's a simple answer.)
  7. MaxwellsDemon
    Real-world? Taking everything into account, I don't think you can beat Old Number Seven, the Korolev-developed Semyorka. In its Sputnik, Molnyia, Vostok, Voskhod, and Soyuz variants and sub-variants, it is truly the workhorse rocket of the Space Age. Plus, it just looks neat (and rather Kerbalesque, meaning that in a good way).
  8. MaxwellsDemon
    Has anyone heard anything about scheduling for Unity's first powered flight?
  9. MaxwellsDemon
    He made it, planted the flag, and it didn't fall over. Mission accomplished.
  10. MaxwellsDemon
    Agreed. But at least there will be something, rather than nothing. Many have said this before... Apollo proved what could be done with enough funding and broad support. Absent either of those, though, it's a rough road.
  11. MaxwellsDemon
    In my 1.3.1 campaign, I have resolved to do all the things and go all the places I never bothered to before... so, for the very first time, I've visited the Island Airfield and planted a flag on top of the control tower (well, it fell down after planting, but at least it's there), Baikerbanur/Inland KSC (and the flag I planted next to the VAB fell over-- what is it with these places? ), and although Jeb landed a bit farther downrange of the pyramids of Tut-Un-Jeb-Ahn than intended, he's hoofing it there to plant a flag... we'll see later today if that one falls over!
  12. MaxwellsDemon
    I don't think I can point to any specific part that I intentionally avoid, but the majority of the aircraft parts get very little use by me simply because I spend the vast majority of my time in the VAB and on the launch pad... never having (yet) mastered aircraft landings. It's on the to-do list, but it's not near the top. In my current campaign, I'm not even researching any of the aircraft-specific techs from 45 points on up till last, and the only reason I've upgraded the runway a level is for aesthetics...
  13. MaxwellsDemon
    I'm trying to answer this myself... having "discovered" custom subcategories for subassemblies, I'm trying to sort my subassemblies into them, but can't figure out how. I tried editing the SubassemblyCategories.cfg in GameData/Squad/Partlist but my edits weren't reflected in-game next time I did a full start-up and went into the VAB. It may not be possible to move a subassembly from the 'root' subassembly folder to a custom subcategory, or from one custom subcategory to another, I guess...
  14. MaxwellsDemon
    Nope. I'm attacking the opinion that seems to be prevalent around here that somehow we shouldn't have to pay for others' work.
  15. MaxwellsDemon
    So... I'm guessing you don't contribute money to the mods makers. "It's free."
  16. MaxwellsDemon
    What are some good websites to keep up with the status of testing? I'm primarily interested in the "Orion" vehicle. I was under the impression that they were going to do an Ascent Abort test this fall but I can't find anything on whether it happened, was canceled, was delayed, etc.; and, confusingly, I see references to an AA-2 second ascent abort test scheduled for next year. What resources have you found useful to follow along?
  17. MaxwellsDemon
    Well, as p1t1o pointed out ^ it's not really an orbit of Yavin. The moment Tarkin or one of his flunkies orders the engines turned off, the Death Star starts flying off in the hyperbolic trajectory that the engines were keeping it from. (Although, as numerous posters have pointed out, it would then be a rather startlingly rare example of real physics in the movie.) No, I didn't intend for the thread to become a rehash of all the physics problems involved in "Star Wars," which are legion; merely that specific line and problem.
  18. MaxwellsDemon
    Hm. Is there a speed record for Kerbin [forced] orbit?
  19. MaxwellsDemon
    I believe I've stipulated several times that "Star Wars" and physics have very little to do with each other.
  20. MaxwellsDemon
    I may have mentioned this before, but I learned something interesting not long ago... that infamous "less than 12 parsecs" line was supposed to be a tip-off to the audience that Han Solo was lying (check Kenobi's expression just after the line). Solo was originally supposed to be a much more slimy and untrustworthy character, but Harrison Ford's portrayal was so heroic that any line the character uttered was taken as read. Oh, definitely. I have more issues with the supposedly-realistic "Gravity" than I do with the obviously-fantastic "Star Wars."
  21. MaxwellsDemon
    So, basically one would be following a hyperbolic trajectory, continuously altering the trajectory to follow a path that looks like an orbit? OK, I can see that. I agree, it couldn't really be called an "orbit."
  22. MaxwellsDemon
    There's a line in the original "Star Wars" where a Death Star flunky reports, "Orbiting the planet at maximum velocity." For a long time, I decided this meant that they were orbiting Yavin at faster-than-orbital velocity, using constant expenditure of energy to avoid moving into a higher orbit. This sounds sensible (in a technobabble sort of way). But is this even possible, even with continuous input of energy? Wouldn't they simply be boosting their apoYavin of the other side of the planet or otherwise changing their trajectory, without increasing their orbital velocity, no matter what? Yeah, I know, trying to apply real physics to "Star Wars" is a pretty useless exercise. But is there in fact *any* possible way to increase orbital velocity while keeping orbital altitude constant?
  23. MaxwellsDemon
    On a different tack... this might have been addressed somewhere, but it's difficult to find in and among all the discussions of whether someone will have to pay for the product. Has it been established that the new/historical parts will be available in the VAB in campaign games outside of the historical scenarios? I'm looking forward to using Vostok- and Soyuz-esque parts in my campaigns but might not necessarily be playing the historical scenarios. (I assume they'll be available in sandbox mode, but I'm more concerned about the campaign games.)
  24. MaxwellsDemon
    I wasn't quite in time for the "Cosmonauts" exhibition but I did make a point of visiting the Science Museum in London this summer to see Tim Peake's Soyuz descent module and ride the "virtual descent."
  25. MaxwellsDemon
    Hm. Yeah, I could see that about Webb. Dryden passed away right in that time span also, so that would tend to leave a bit of a vacuum at the top. NASA almost certainly had a more resilient structure than the more chaotic Soviet arrangement, though, so they may have been able to produce another top manager more easily... who knows? But yes, the significant part that Webb played is often overlooked... management being less inherently interesting than the shiny rockets and stuff. Mishin doesn't fare well in other sources, either. About the best that can be said for him was that he appears to have been a very competent engineer, but he was lacking in the leadership and management roles (and, if Kamanin can be believed, had a weakness for the bottle at some highly inappropriate times). Some of the problems that occurred on Mishin's watch were not actually his fault, but he didn't seem to possess the political/management/leadership instincts to deal with them, perhaps. I feel some sympathy for him in a number of ways... how do you replace a genius (because I think if Korolev was not one, he was close enough to make no practical difference)?
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