Montieth

FEATURE REQUEST for MJ. For Attitude control, what if we had the ability for selecting which controls MJ used for control? If I have a craft with both RCS AND Reaction wheels and I'm trying to dock the craft, it would be REALLY useful if MJ would just use the reaction wheels to control the attitude and let me use RCS for the translation. Do all control outputs get amalgamated? Also, is there any what that when precision control is enabled for MJ's control inputs to be similarly reduced? Are these doable in the functionality of the game.

I rather figured it would spawn your craft ~50 meters above the surface. ~1000 meters away from the "dock" module (used as a reference point). That was my expected behavior. 200,000 Meters is awfully far away. On Kerbin or Eve that could put you in an ocean too. I had begun to think that one could do a small container of parts that would then be able to be constructed like the lunar rover was for Apollo (though that was more unfolded and assembled but still). Obviously if my unmanned rover is going to spawn far half a planet away, that's not going to work.

Yeah, 200 tons or even 100 ton modules are impossible to land....least with what I've built. I'm having trouble getting the orbital construction thing to work on the Mun too....It's putting my constructed craft 200,000 meters over the surface.

Bit of a problem here. Munar Construction task... 1. "Launch" out of the SPF or VAB. 2. Select the Munar Dock/Parts warehouse. 3. Build at Dock, Land at Dock. Result: my craft is 200,000 meters up and 1/4" of the Mun away. Time acceleration drops you down to ~5000 meters and then you float down at 1.1m/s.....

The Warehouse modules are only loaded with 5 tons are parts eh?

I try to avoid having loads that would come apart at speed too so that constrains what sort of structures I can get into orbit. That's a large constraint. Matched set of Ejection seat panels? What about a set of crab steering legs that have two heights allowing a gondola to be slid under a module, lift it and then move it into position? A curved docking support would work for cradling the modules. Make it remote control/probe type unit. building my Mun Dock right now. 2 loads of spare parts about to be lightered down and then hopefully that's enough to get my crane truck. Then I can build the shed that I'll put things into. I wish there was an easy way to build a forklift or a knuckle boom crane that folds.

I'm loving the station parts and expansions. I especially like that the Karmony Node Cover vie port lights up. Very nice attention to detail! I had started to use the ISS parts pack that BobCat herded into being but decided to go back to these as a matter of course. I like the feel of these better. I have two stations up (A KSS and an orbital fuel tanker) and as I've orbited every single module with it's own rocket, it's taken time and resources away from exploring the rest of the system. KSS is a command station to provide alternate command function for robot probes/ships via the Remote-Tech system. The Fuel Station has been constructed and not yet used for the as yet planned Crew/lander transfer ships. With your addition of the Karmony Parts Warehouse Module, I'm probably going to start doing a Mun Base expansion over a the few Home Modules that are there. Combined with the Kethane pack and robotic landers for drilling, I'll be building the tanker and other mun rover vehicles with the spare parts and orbital construction system rather than trying to fly them. Everything I fly is either streamlined OR goes under a shroud so getting a good large munTanker that landed is just so challenging. At this point, I'd rather fly modules up with spare parts and land them and then build the craft on the ground. Thoughts/ideas: A thought on the Kupola, is it possible to have the seating mode change between two 90° positions? Seems like that would allow one module with two functional modes. Either as a command point looking all around OR as a forward looking glass house cockpit mode. I have no idea if that's possible. Any thoughts on an end bulkhead for the 2.5 meter flat modules that would integrate some landing struts/legs configured fora horizontal landing position? Something that's low enough that there's maybe a .5 clearance under them? I'm looking to make a mun-base with these modules, they're the right size an I'm figuring they'll work well. The rigid peg legs seem to work well, but some folding units that fit integrally would be nifty and make it easier to get them into orbit or down to the Mun. I'm still trying to figure out how to get them down to the Mun at this point. First step was building a crane vehicle BUT that's presenting chicken/egg issues with the orbital construction pack. I can move the modules with a KAS configured crane truck (more or less an 8x8 wrecker with a jib). It's kinda bulky and not terribly precise but I can swing parts into place and dock them without too much effort. Just something to think about.

Bobcat, I have to say, I've looked at historical information pages about the Soviet/Russian space program more in the past few months because of your posts/development here than I did in years past. I can say I hope the Russian People are proud of the accomplishments of the program, even with the various setbacks. It's amazing what your country has done.

They'd even unmount the wheels from the aircraft to have less drag when operating away from land. Less drag and longer range.

If you want the pinnacle of design and function, you want to model a rigid airship (not a blimp) after the USS Akron, ZRS-4. Capable enough to carry it's own compliment of fighter/scout planes.

Well, in this particular case a decoupler shroud base attached to a common berthing port set. I wish there was a way to select and lock a decoupler.

You just have to remember to decouple the docking ports and not decouple the decoupler. ;-) I did this last and then went to dock my next segment and found I had something in the way.

Suggest you name the new Series the DEMV-X or something to avoid confusion with the old series. Otherwise, I'm looking forwards to your other work product. It's always interesting to see and use.

I add those cases to my command pod AND to my 2nd or 3rd stage boosters so I can de orbit them or reuse them for other functions once my orbiter has circularized. In one case I'll take those partially expended boosters and then shift their orbits to dock with my in orbit fuel repository, dump most of the remaining fuel there and then de-orbit the extra bits.

Are you using the Airlock? The regular hatches are just for looks at this point.

If a rocket is pivoting around it's COM while seperatrons are firing and falling away it doesn't matter than they're properly oriented or not. The aft end of the rocket may impact one of the boosters. You can't have TOO much thrust with the seperatrons as you'll blow the structure of the expended booster. A larger heavier vehicle is going to steer slower than a medium sized vehicle that's expended most of the core stage fuel and dropping boosters. Kicking the nose of an expended booster back is useful. Too much lateral force just exposes your core to the efflux from the seperatrons and possible damage.

Possible suggestion for improved staging functionality. When initiating a stating function could MechJeb zero out control inputs for a short delay prior to and after the staging function so as to allow for those spent components to drop free without a pitch or yaw input? Normally on my launches with large parallel boosters I have to stab "T" for a moment to keep the craft from a pitch or yaw moment and prevent a strike between my active stages and the spent stages as they drop away.

Look at a B-52 in level flight.

So, on MacOS I'm seeing this problem with the QuestionMark instead of an Icon BUT I've confirmed the directory structure as above. Any ideas?

I put a set of lights around the axis of docking ports so I can turn two on manually so as to better see what alignment is when moving. The two white lights frame the target port and make it easy to see from 300 plus meters in the dark. I usually put red lights on the aft end of ships and a set of blue ones front of it.

I wanted to drop a quick note and relate how pleased I am by this mod. I have been using Aviation Lights to mark docking ports and ships for better night time docking and it works well with the newer implementation of the control modes well done!

And to note autopilot if it's in landing mode and has time compression on, will keep time compression on if you abort the autoland.

NICE!

Remember, Star Wars craft had repulser lift technology.

We clearly need a STIG Kerman now.