PixelStache

Has anyone seen any news about how save files will work? I've heard we'll have to make a new career mode save to use the new science unlock system, but will our old sandbox saves be compatible at all?

I did launch all six pieces separately! It was a bit of a chore to get the angles right. Strangely enough all of the docking ports are actually attached too. I've noticed the game seems to remember the last stress you put on the ports when you dock, so sometimes they don't lock perfectly aligned. If they're all at identical angles, and you dock them straight enough, you can get them all to attach. Do you have any pictures of your launch vehicle?

Six separate modules launched and docked together. I even recorded if you want to see how it was done! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eZQ4B7h_8Y4

With the new asas systems of .21 it'll be a lot easier to use planes, as there isn't as much jerking around. Like Snooze says, holding alt while pitching up or down will trim your controls to hold a direction constantly, which helps. In general though, I've found that smaller planes are much more predictable, and keeping the CoM and CoL in line with the engines at the center of the fuselage will make things a bit easier on you. When you finally take on the challenge of getting an SSTO plane from the runway to orbit, take a look at harvesters post from a while back. It helped me out tons!

For a while, there was an orbital calculator out that suggested going towards a heading of 180 for inferior planets. I'm not exactly sure why, but everyone just assumed that was the way to do things. Launching towards 90 gives you some extra DV, but it's only about 175m/s iirc, so it wouldn't be the worst thing in the world to launch to 180, but there really isn't any benefit. I've heard of some countries here on earth launching towards the west, but that's only to avoid flying over enemy territory or no-fly zones. The only reason I can remember doing it in game was because I wanted to rendezvous with a target that was already orbiting in that direction. You'll be fine always launching to 90, the only thing that should change from superior to inferior planets is your escape angle. My rule is always to burn at sunset for superior planets like Duna, and sunrise for inferior planets like Eve. It seems to get me close enough.

It would, but only if synchronous orbit around the mun was 5km. Unfortunately it's much higher (it's so high it isn't even possible) and an object orbiting around the moon at 5km would scream past your tower. That being said, I'm not even sure it's possible to build such a large tower in KSP. If you're ever curious about your speed, test it for yourself! You can click on your orbital velocity panel (just above the nav ball) to cycle to surface speed. If you're in a stationary orbit, the speed will be zero, and at low altitude orbits it will be much higher.

I'm in the same boat friend! I've always loved users posts detailing missions and rockets, it's a great place for some inspiration.

Welcome to the forums! I think I started playing just after they added the mun. It's amazing just how much more there is to explore.