cm2227

Well, thank you all for this insight. Are you going to tell me I should have sticked (where did that pun come from?) to my two joystick concept instead of installing coordinate switches acting as keyboard keys? Anyway, trying to work with two joysticks (and virtual devices) gave me some troublesome days and personally I wouldn't risk the frustration again. Still, a better input support would be great. But keep in mind what Monkey Squad is and what they aren't, so we shouldn't complain. Regarding the X52 my recommendation is to stiffen the spring by preloading it. If you don't know what I mean: I put some washers between the spring and the handle.

I disbelief that, as a Saturn V cost around 1.2 billion in todays money. But still, it was way more expensive. Adding to the cost was the experience with reusable engines. Before the shuttle, all liquid fuel engines were sometimes fired several times, they were still designed as disposable. Over the years NASA found out how much has to be refurbished and checked in the SSMEs. This was just not compatible with the intended recycle times during flights. Also, the shuttle was not as appealing to commercial satellite launches, even before STS-51L. After the Challenger disaster NASA didn't want commercial operation any more, as the spacecraft was considered too risky and valuable to wager it on a tv satellite.

Does it include seat heating for re-entry simulation?

Thank you very much for your quick and helpful reply. More people on this forum should be like you!

Would anybody be so kind and tell me how to call MechJeb functions, especially the Smart-A.S.S. modes? I work on a control console projects and would like to control mechjeb with my own buttons. Any help is appreciated!

This is my project. The buttons and switches on the left act as a USB keyboard, so no software is required. The two black mini-joysticks also act as keys IKJLHN for translation control. For more details see my project thread. http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/threads/65450-(WIP)-advice-requested-for-custom-control-and-display-console

Until now I only accomplished to run a successfull re-entry simulation in an external C++ program. I failed to make the same algorithm run in my KSP plug-in. I can now predict splahdown coordinates and understand a lot more about orbital mechanics. But my focus on this project has shifted. I need different sort of help than I anticipated. Mass (almost) only affects touchdown time, not the coordinates. So getting the vehicle mass is not really necessary. Also, even for flat trajectories, the actual amount of parachutes or the resulting drag are almost irrelevant, except for precision landings. I am happy with a few hundred meters inaccuracy, and these problems can be postponed. The most influence on touchdown location lies in timing the de-orbit burn, in terms of exact ignition time and duration, i.e. velocity change. As discovered in the sixties (I recommend the book "Digital Apollo" on this issue) no manual control can deliver the necessary precision. I now focus on two questions, for which I encourage the community to contribute: Is anybody willing to port my messy C++ code to a working C# plug-in? I won't publish any code yet, but I would work together with a willing partner. Does anybody know how to make the iterative solver run in its own thread (like MechJeb does) to stop the game from freezing when the new impact point is calculated? Bonus: Is any programming guru willing to solve BOTH at once? Thanks cm2227

You know what would be great? Accessing kOS via remote terminal. I don't mean RemoteTech, I mean having a second PC (over LAN or internet) and logging in to the kOS unit on the craft (like Telemachus). That way you could use for example your laptop as a realistic way to access and display your guidance computer. Then I would grab the oldest-looking laptop, view the kOS Terminal full screen and gain seven nerd points.

Hey Diazo, thanks for the advice. I know of these API calls, but I don't know about injecting more variables into the equation. If I do that simple correction for the angular difference between rotating and non-rotating frame, how can any more variables become part of my (or KSPs) equations? I must admit, I havent't implemented that feature yet. I still battle my iterator calculating bull***** while it worked flawless in C++ code. Edit: I now understand the problem. Once the iterative solver has started, it must not refer to any values from the game that might have changed since starting the iteration. I have to re-check my code for these references and see which errors persist.

KerbalEngineer does the same as my plug-in right now: It reads the longitude from vessel.longitude, which is (while in non-rotating reference frame) not the surface longitude. So this doesn't really help. Next thing is: I don't want to reverse-engineer or copy other mods, I want to broaden my knowledge of orbit mechanics and KSP by writing it myself.

Allright Ladies and Gentlemen, I have an issue regarding surface and world space coordinates. For predicting my touchdown coordinates I need my current orbital position in the same reference frame. If you don't know what I mean, ask KerbalEngineer for your longitude and lattitude while in high orbit. Vessel.longitude gives you the value in the non-rotating reference frame and not the surface position you are currently flying over. Methods like CelestialBody.GetWorldSurfacePosition(System.Double,System.Double,System.Double) usually give the world coordinates for surface coordinates, not the other way round. I may find a way to calculate impact point in world coordinates, but that is more complicated in my view. TL;DR: How do I find out over which ground coordinate I am currently flying in high orbit? Update: I hope you don't mind my thinking loud. What if I monitor the spacecraft's ascent from the surface until FlightGlobals.RefFrameIsRotating becomes false. The last coordinate in rotating frame, the first coordinate in non-rotating frame and the universal time of the transition are stored. Then, knowing Kerbin (or any other body) rotates 360° in 21600 seconds, I can calculate the angular difference between rotating and non-rotating frame for any given universal time, for example just right now. Do you think that might work? Thanks cm2227

First things first, then I can take on new challenges. Programming plug-ins in C# is very much like KSP itself - it has a steep learning curve. Two days ago I found out they're written in C#, today I managed to open a second GUI window by pressing a button. That's one big step for me. I think I know how I can manage the parachute and re-entry weight issues. But another question came up today. Reading the current surface coordinates is no big deal, but to predict the right orbital phase angle for the de-orbit burn, I need the current spacecraft location in surface coordinates. But the read-out in orbit suggests that longitude and lattitude are displayed in fixed frame coordinates, not rotating frame as on the surface. Does anybody know more about this issue? I know the reference frame switches at a certain altitude over each celestial body, but all I need is the actual position over the surface of the body. Compensating the body's rotation is no big deal. Thanks cm2227

I'm not quite sure what your question is. I created a numeric solver for atmospheric re-entry on the stock aerodynamics.

Hello KSP community, I just started into taking orbital mechanics a little bit more serious than just guess my touchdown location or use the mechjeb landing autopilot. No hurt feelings here, I like mechjeb and used it extensively for cargo delivery to the munar surface. But as I actually got my dad (72y/o, professor of materials science) to play KSP with me, we started taking mission planning and orbital mechanics a little bit more serious. I wrote an iterative solution to estimate the touchdown location when returning from a 0° inclination orbit (actually just the longitude) in c++ and it works well. Now I want to include the community in my project, and the project as a plugin to get live values from the running game. Only yesterday did I write my first class in C#, and having started programming 20years ago in BASIC and PASCAL, C# seems counter-intuitive to me. What I have is my iterative loop for determining the the location of touchdown, which would work in any language. Here is my first problem I want to share with you and would highly appreciate any advice, help or useful information. My method takes the orbital parameters from your re-entry orbit, which is an elliptic orbit with apoapsis above maxAtmosphereAltitude and peripasis below maxAtmosphereAltitude. From that, it calculates the angular position of your re-entry interface relative to your periapsis position and from there your entry angle and expected velocity at this altitude. Then the iterative solver finds touchdown coordinates from entry angle and initial velocity. What I need for this calculation is spacecraft mass and parachute count. Parachute release altitude has to be considered, as partially inflated parachutes do affect drag. How do I get the mass of a certain stage? I would give the pilot the possibility do define a re-entry stage from the current vessel, and then use the remaining weight after these stages. I happen to rember that mechjeb does not account for mass changes during descent other than fuel. I cannot take the current spacecraft mass as a de-orbit burn has yet to be performed after using my re-entry calculator, and the results are needed for this burn. How do I count the parachutes on the active vessel? Somehow I have to go to the parts tree and look for parachutes. As I have not yet worked with the parts structure yet, some sort of shortcut would be appreciated. What I am aiming for is a useful helper for any kind of atmospheric landing, with a visual interface like the Apollo Entry Monitoring System: http://nassp.sourceforge.net/wiki/Entry_Monitoring_System TL;DR: How do I get the mass of a certain stage? How do I count parachutes? Edit: If anybody is interested in more detailed information or ready to support my coding in C# (which would be highly appreciated) feel free to contact me. Thank you in advance, cm2227

I'd like to replace the buttons created as java ui with little images looking like the thrust on or direct ullage pushbuttons of the Apollo CSM instrument panel. (See http://history.nasa.gov/ap10fj/pics/thrust-on-p1.png for reference.) How can I do that without taking java programming lessons? And not to forget: Great mod, it allows nerds like me to make their own mission control centers!

Okay somehow it works again, strange. I also use it together with mechjeb, but it's version 1.9.8.

I have a strange issue. After installing I built some structure on a craft with several hinges that actually worked, I built a more complex mechanism. When I launched that one, no part responded to any movement command. Since then, no robotic part moves anymore. I created new crafts, restarted KSP several times, even reinstalled damned robotics. Nothing works, and I don't know why. Does anybody know what to do? Edit: Clean KSP install, reboot, still no movement at all from the robotic parts.