Brofessional

A situation that won't end well

Libnoise. While technically it is randomly generated, Squad just took the default example map and mirrored it. Though they have modified it here and there since then. http://libnoise.sourceforge.net/examples/complexplanet/index.html

With Win x64 support coming and lifting the memory limitations, maybe we'll finally at least get some mods that add cities. I know it's more or less impossible to get cities that look good on foot and in the air while still running all the other elements of KSP, but even cities made of low-res blocks would look better than just empty terrain.

Currently KSP on Windows is 32-bit only, meaning it can only use about 3.5GB of RAM. If it tries to use more than that it crashes. Thus your 16GB of RAM is largely useless for KSP. The game uses less RAM in OpenGL than it does in DirectX, allowing you to cram a few more mods in before hitting the limit. However, OpenGL gives much lower framerates than DirectX. Currently, if you want to play in 64-bit, allowing virtually unlimited amounts of RAM, you have to use Linux. Which also means using OpenGL. The good news is that the upcoming update is upgrading the game to Unity 5.2, which subsequently fixes the 64-bit Windows version. So just be patient and soon you'll be able to use that full 16GB of RAM.

I'm reminded of this

The desert is probably my favorite. None of the environments in KSP are particularly pretty on the surface though, especially without mods. With 64-bit on the way, I wish the devs would spend an update or two doing an art pass on all the planets.

I never liked the old one, the canopy was narrower than a kerbal's head.

Yaw is generally for fine control in keeping or changing a heading. Since there's no wind in stock KSP you don't even really need yaw much of the time.

Distant Object Enhancement simulates auto-exposure making the skybox realistically dark when looking at the sun, or orbiting near bodies that are reflecting sunlight.

You don't actually gain all that much over just launching from the ground. Most of the delta-v cost in getting to orbit is spent acquiring horizontal velocity, not vertical. You would get through the thickest part of the atmosphere for "free", but you could do that just as easily with LF drop tanks.

You can enable the aerodynamics by pressing F12 to see drag and lift forces on your craft in-flight.

Pretty sure this is still accurate. It doesn't list data on the moons though.

Occasionally I'll slap a few of them on the first-stage if I my TWR needs a boost.

If you want CoT above CoM, check out the He162.

Unity is 64-bit. There's some incompatibility with Windows 64-bit Unity and KSP that they haven't been able to solve. Linux 64-bit KSP works fine, but the game runs significantly worse on OpenGL. It's imperative that they get Win x64 working in Unity 5. By this point even the stock game is getting close to the memory limit, and it's still missing a lot of features.

Engines inside engines is too much clipping for me. I've used SRB's in SSTO's before, by placing the SRB inside Mk2 cargo bays and clipping an adapter on the end. The lack of throttle makes them quite impractical though.

KSP is multithreaded, it's just that the physics calculations uses a single thread. You don't want a dual core processor in a gaming machine, period.

Vall is really the only choice. Fuel net gains are not as good as Bop/Pol but it's central location and inclination makes it the best for refueling ships.

Since Kethane was new I've always done it by landing a permanent refinery on the surface, then having a really efficient bare-bones unmanned tanker to carry the fuel to orbit, directly to whatever vehicle needs fuel. There's little reason to have a fuel-station at all. It takes the same amount of trips to refill the station as it does to refill the target directly, and you get to skip all the docking and station construction. Plus docking large motherships with high part count to a station can get hairy when the framerates dip.

I build a series of efficient lifters for different payload weights, then design my upper stages to be within those weight limits.

I like to use them on tugs when building stations, or for escape pods. You need monopropellant for docking anyway, so you can make a more compact vehicle by using the same tank for attitude and propulsion. The engines themselves are very compact and convenient too, though I wish there was an in-line version for when 2 is overkill. Occasionally I'll use them on probes, but usually xenon is preferable since most probes don't need RCS at all.

I've had KSP on both SSD and HDD. There's a small increase in the initial loading time, but it's barely noticeable. I highly recommend a ~240GB+ SSD for use as a primary drive for your OS, apps, and a handful of games though.

A relatively compact satellite launcher. Can deliver 2.5 tons to LEO.

Hopefully we'll get a working 64-bit .exe in the next update, as they're upgrading the game to Unity 5.1. In the mean time, you can reduce memory usage by forcing OpenGL, or install a dual-boot Linux and use the Linux version of KSP which is 64-bit.