Who Invited Rube Goldberg

[GarrisonChisholm]

So, tell me if this is simple madness or being distinctly Kerbal.

First game, day 5; I couldn't get to altitude for a Survey report with either a jet or a rocket-assisted jet, so instead of doing other missions to earn the science to get the parts to build a better jet, I instead built a short-range X-type rocket plane to get to altitude, and then spent about 18 Hours designing testing & re-testing this ungainly, ultimately 11-Jet-engine powered monster "mother ship" to carry the X-Plane half-way across the globe to launch for the science!

Has anyone else found themselves dogged-determined to spend Huge amounts of time to make a bad idea work rather than just start from scratch or wait?

[justidutch]

… Has anyone else found themselves dogged-determined to spend Huge amounts of time to make a bad idea work rather than just start from scratch or wait?

I believe that is called "science"?

[Nich]

guilty it is amazing how quickly we can get stuck on a bad idea.

[mikegarrison]

I believe that is called "science"?

Only in the Girl Genius sense of the word.

[Laie]

Not so much in KSP, but in real life... then sunken cost fallacy is strong in me.

[Captain Vlad]

Only in the Girl Genius sense of the word.

And ya' know what? I can work with that.

[amorymeltzer]

Not exactly the same but I usually over-build a rocket, then spend forever trying to make it smaller/more efficient instead of just building it right the first time. Once I unlock the Mammoth I just can't resist using it...

[mikegarrison]

Not exactly the same but I usually over-build a rocket, then spend forever trying to make it smaller/more efficient instead of just building it right the first time. Once I unlock the Mammoth I just can't resist using it...

Sometimes when I overbuild a rocket, the mission expands. Like a couple days ago, when I started a new career game and sent Val to the Mun for the first Mun landing. The rocket had so much extra d-v that she decided to go to Mimnus too. Mission control was a little surprised, but you know how it is.

After that, that model of rocket was reused several times, always on Mun/Minmus combined landing missions. It pulled in some really big science numbers.

[katateochi]

Has anyone else found themselves dogged-determined to spend Huge amounts of time to make a bad idea work rather than just start from scratch or wait?

I once launched a rocket upside down because having the crew pods at the bottom made it easier for a large crew to board (this was before you could load crew while in the editors). The crew boarded at the bottom, then the rocket launched on a load of small boosters to about 100m up and then flipped over the other way before firing it's main engines, basically a backflip off the launch pad.

[samstarman5]

I will go complex or just plain silly from time to time in order to keep myself from getting too comfortable with a design. I get too comfortable with a design, I lose focus of other potential designs that might just provide better efficiency and such. You really should break your eggs, pan, stove, house, and even the omelette to make the omelette, if you know what I mean.

I once launched a rocket upside down because having the crew pods at the bottom made it easier for a large crew to board (this was before you could load crew while in the editors). The crew boarded at the bottom, then the rocket launched on a load of small boosters to about 100m up and then flipped over the other way before firing it's main engines, basically a backflip off the launch pad.

See, this is the kind of guy NASA needs on their payroll.