[Minimum KSP version - 1.11] Kerbal Attachment System (KAS) v1.12

[Zackaroni]

Hi guys, is anyone having trouble with the kerbal attachment system?
I don’t seem to be able to interact with any of the parts on my test crafts 

I have breaking grounds installed. 

[Tonka Crash]

2 hours ago, Zackaroni said:

Hi guys, is anyone having trouble with the kerbal attachment system?
I don’t seem to be able to interact with any of the parts on my test crafts 

I have breaking grounds installed. 

We need a log to troubleshoot.   It's probably installed in the wrong place or you are missing dependencies. I recommend using CKAN for installing mods

 

[theicon32]

Sorry if I'm being an idiot, but I keep looking and I can't figure out what I'm doing wrong.  I spend hours working on a ship and then rendezvousing, attaching my ship with links to do maintenance on my space station, and when I finally got there someone forgot the screwdriver. I swear I brought it, so i went and checked:  

 

https://streamable.com/sc0xcn

 

The items just vanish from my inventory when I hit the launch pad. If this is a KIS problem, I'm sorry, hope it wasn't too annoying. 

[RealKerbal3x]

3 hours ago, theicon32 said:

Sorry if I'm being an idiot, but I keep looking and I can't figure out what I'm doing wrong.  I spend hours working on a ship and then rendezvousing, attaching my ship with links to do maintenance on my space station, and when I finally got there someone forgot the screwdriver. I swear I brought it, so i went and checked:  

 

https://streamable.com/sc0xcn

 

The items just vanish from my inventory when I hit the launch pad. If this is a KIS problem, I'm sorry, hope it wasn't too annoying. 

That SEQ-3 Cargo Storage Unit you're using there is from Breaking Ground, not KIS. @IgorZ tried to make the Breaking Ground containers compatible with KIS back when that particular DLC released, but found that it was more complex than he realised, so decided to make that a core feature of KISv2. You need to use one of the KIS containers as the BG containers currently can't hold anything other than the BG surface science parts - that's your issue. Look in the Payload tab in the VAB (rather than the Cargo tab) to get a KIS container

[theicon32]

7 hours ago, RealKerbal3x said:

That SEQ-3 Cargo Storage Unit you're using there is from Breaking Ground, not KIS. @IgorZ tried to make the Breaking Ground containers compatible with KIS back when that particular DLC released, but found that it was more complex than he realised, so decided to make that a core feature of KISv2. You need to use one of the KIS containers as the BG containers currently can't hold anything other than the BG surface science parts - that's your issue. Look in the Payload tab in the VAB (rather than the Cargo tab) to get a KIS container

Ahh of course. I forget that every single time I try to put the deployable experiments in one of the KIS containers. There's a popup when you do that saying that you can't do it, but no popup for doing this, so I was relying on my own brain to remember that and well... nothing goes well when people need to rely on my brain. Pretty spacey. Ayo. 

 

Thanks for your help! So many issues could be avoided if I just played stock KSP for a while to know what is stock and what isn't, but I couldn't help it. The mods are too good. 

[Tokamak]

I'm trying to connect to joint sockets, but I cannot for the life of me find or figure out the shortcut keys. I used this mod ages ago, and I remember all of the stuff about needing to equip an electric screwdriver, holding down some shortcut key and clicking on the socket to start the process, but either the process is different or I am being dumb, because as far as I can tell no key on my keyboard does that, and every google result I can find for "kerbal KAS shortcuts" sends me to a dead wiki without that information.

 

If someone could clue me in that would save me some time scrubbing through videos until I find the one bit of information that I need. I'd really appreciate it.

[DStaal]

 

8 minutes ago, Tokamak said:

I'm trying to connect to joint sockets, but I cannot for the life of me find or figure out the shortcut keys. I used this mod ages ago, and I remember all of the stuff about needing to equip an electric screwdriver, holding down some shortcut key and clicking on the socket to start the process, but either the process is different or I am being dumb, because as far as I can tell no key on my keyboard does that, and every google result I can find for "kerbal KAS shortcuts" sends me to a dead wiki without that information.

 

If someone could clue me in that would save me some time scrubbing through videos until I find the one bit of information that I need. I'd really appreciate it.

Process has changed.  You now need a socket and a winch/hose/towbar/etc to connect into the socket.  From winch end, you can take the connector (there are shortcut keys, but it's in the PAW) and then walk over to the connector and attach it.  (Again, using the PAW.)

[Tokamak]

5 minutes ago, DStaal said:

 

Process has changed.  You now need a socket and a winch/hose/towbar/etc to connect into the socket.  From winch end, you can take the connector (there are shortcut keys, but it's in the PAW) and then walk over to the connector and attach it.  (Again, using the PAW.)

I'm not sure I don't fully understand... is a hose an inventory item now? I'm not seeing it a hose in my VAB parts list, as a part or as a KIS item.

I think I'll have to just watch tutorial videos after all. 

[DStaal]

25 minutes ago, Tokamak said:

I'm not sure I don't fully understand... is a hose an inventory item now? I'm not seeing it a hose in my VAB parts list, as a part or as a KIS item.

I think I'll have to just watch tutorial videos after all. 

Not sure if there's tutorials with the latest version.  You'll likely hit ones for the old KAS, mostly.  (Though there are a couple in the OP.)

The hose isn't an inventory item - it's a part.  You have a connector on one vessel, and a winch/hose/towbar/etc on the other, and you can pull the cable/hose/bar from one to the other.

Basically, instead of the connection hose just appearing out of nowhere, you now have a male and a female part for every connection.

[Tonka Crash]

@Tokamak KAS does stand alone.  No screwdriver required to connect KAS parts to other KAS parts.  Even a pilot can handle this. Just right click on the part and grab the connector and drag it close enough to the part you want to attach it to and you should see "Attach Connector" in the PAW menu of the part.

 

[IgorZ]

On 5/31/2020 at 9:32 AM, Tonka Crash said:

As a shot in the dark I braced the payload with struts. And it worked like a charm.  The struts held everything rigid through launch.  As soon as I extended the winch cable a little, the struts disappeared as if they had been staged. If you can, I'd give this a try.  If you need them reusable try the TJ-1 struts in KAS or my extended length ones.

Thanks @Tonka Crash for the perfect analysis! When I first seen the video, I was going to suggest exactly this, but decided to see the logs. @adriangm44, keep in mind that the winches docking joint is a small sized joint. It's absolutely not recommended to try launching anything heavier than couple of hunderts Kg on it. Imagine, that instead of the winch you have a tiny docking port there - the structural durability would be about that strong (or, better say, weak). Reinfirce it with the struts, launch, have the struts removed.

[Tokamak]

8 hours ago, Tonka Crash said:

@Tokamak KAS does stand alone.  No screwdriver required to connect KAS parts to other KAS parts.  Even a pilot can handle this. Just right click on the part and grab the connector and drag it close enough to the part you want to attach it to and you should see "Attach Connector" in the PAW menu of the part.

 

Oh, I get it! Back in the day, at least what I thought I remembered, was that you were meant to just connect a joint socket from one craft onto one on the other. Needing to have the "transfer station" was new to me. I think that's what I was missing. Thanks!

[adriangm44]

5 hours ago, IgorZ said:

Thanks @Tonka Crash for the perfect analysis! When I first seen the video, I was going to suggest exactly this, but decided to see the logs. @adriangm44, keep in mind that the winches docking joint is a small sized joint. It's absolutely not recommended to try launching anything heavier than couple of hunderts Kg on it. Imagine, that instead of the winch you have a tiny docking port there - the structural durability would be about that strong (or, better say, weak). Reinfirce it with the struts, launch, have the struts removed.

I will definitely try that, thank you @Tonka Crash and @IgorZ for the assistance. I will let you know how it went as soon as I test it.

[MoonstreamInSpace]

So I've been setting up a Pathfinder base, and everything was all great until, after setting up a Ponderosa (On a saddle of course) and attaching a Hacienda or a Doc, Suddenly all the attach nodes on my entire base don't show up, and I can't do anything but radially attach stuff. HELP!

[Tonka Crash]

3 hours ago, MoonstreamInSpace said:

So I've been setting up a Pathfinder base, and everything was all great until, after setting up a Ponderosa (On a saddle of course) and attaching a Hacienda or a Doc, Suddenly all the attach nodes on my entire base don't show up, and I can't do anything but radially attach stuff. HELP!

This sounds like a Pathfinder problem?  What makes you think it's related to KAS?  

[theicon32]

I come this forum when I have a problem I can't seem to fix no matter how much I troubleshoot, google, whatever. I have to give props where it's due, though, this mod has *saved* my ass already on two hugely frustrating events. Today, i brain farted and made a solar array attachment with backup supplies and batteries for my mun station that was starting to have power issues. I decided to kill two birds with one stone and have it as a return mission for some of the kerbalnauts that had been on the Munar Station for well over a month (and I needed more scientists back). Not two hours into the departure, they started dying because I built an entire massive solar array with batteries - but forgot to add solar panels and batteries to the return vessel for my 5 returning crew members. I thought I was loveed, remembered I installed this mod and had thrown tools into the resupply just in case, and I was able to detach superfluous solar panels and add them to my return vessel and get everyone home just fine. I would have been *loveed* without this mod. 

And then, there's Dotty. Dotty has had just tremendously bad luck (as I've come here once or twice already with her life hanging in the balance). I built an entire Minmus Lander with my second ever rover and it worked great! But I somehow forgot to save a seat for Rover Commander Dotty on the flight home. I had no choice but to do the mission again. All I did on the second ship was add a Hitchhiker Pod and relaunch. I went back to minmus, landed, saw no nearby rocks, rehopped nearby, detached the rover, and tried to get started. Nope. Two of wheels that I had attached to hinges so I could fit it under my lander were now clipping and wouldn't traverse. Boom! Dotty to the rescue! She detached the hinges and reattached the wheels, and the mission was on.

I'm still new, so every mission like this takes me hours to complete. This loveing mod saved me SOOOOO much time and frustration. I really can't be appreciative enough. The controls are frustrating but I'm sure that's a consequence of necessary workarounds that all decent mods must overcome. If this functionality isn't in KSP2, I'll seriously just wait the game out until someone mods it in. 

So this is just a big fat ass thank you to everyone who worked on this. I can't fully express my appreciation. 

 

edit: though while I'm here, is there anyway to increase the interaction distance for items? 3m is so extremely short

Edited June 6, 2020 by theicon32

[IgorZ]

2 hours ago, theicon32 said:

edit: though while I'm here, is there anyway to increase the interaction distance for items? 3m is so extremely short

It seems you're referring KIS, not KAS. The range and mass limits can be changed via the settings.cfg file. See for "maxDistance" and "grabMaxMass" fields. And people usually adjust these values not directly in the mod's doldert, but via a patch, located in some common place. E.g. for my dev and debug work I have the following patch:

@KISConfig:BEFORE[KIS]
{
    %Global
    {
        %itemDebug = true
    }
    %Debug
    {
        %partAlignToolKey = &K
    }
    %EvaPickup
    {
        %maxDistance = 30
        %grabMaxMass = 100
    }
}

And I'm glad to hear you find this mod useful   

[theicon32]

7 hours ago, IgorZ said:

It seems you're referring KIS, not KAS. The range and mass limits can be changed via the settings.cfg file. See for "maxDistance" and "grabMaxMass" fields. And people usually adjust these values not directly in the mod's doldert, but via a patch, located in some common place. E.g. for my dev and debug work I have the following patch:

@KISConfig:BEFORE[KIS]
{
    %Global
    {
        %itemDebug = true
    }
    %Debug
    {
        %partAlignToolKey = &K
    }
    %EvaPickup
    {
        %maxDistance = 30
        %grabMaxMass = 100
    }
}

And I'm glad to hear you find this mod useful   

Aye perhaps. I installed them at the same time so they combine in my head sometimes. Also I see my post was censored a bit, whoops! I'll keep it more PG from now on. 

[katateochi]

Are there plans to bring the Magnet from the original KAS into this version? That was an insanely useful part, especially for making construction rovers. The ability to pick something up without docking to it (and without having to go EVA and connect cables each time) just has so many applications. 
Or are there any dirty hacks that could enable using the old KAS magnet along side this version?

[bcqJC]

The KLAW is a part that can attach to anything.  That will be the basis of the workaround/hack.  If you want something smaller than stock KLAW, use Tweakscale or WBI/Servos' Micro Klaw.

Then the next thing is to attach it to a Winch.  Use a Winch + JS1 + Klaw combo like so - W<J.  Note that the pointy end of the bracket corresponds to the "dockable" part of the JS1 connector.  Just remember to arm the Klaw before you extend the cable.  Once you extend the cable, the JS1+Klaw combo is no longer part of the ship the winch is attached to.  You'll have to reel it back in and "dock" the JS1 to arm the Klaw.

Which brings us to the next combo...  Winch + JS1 + probecore + Klaw.  This way, you have control of the Klaw when extended. 

For combo 3...  Attach an Ant engine to the core and you now have a "Harpoon" of sorts.  If the probe core you used has SAS, you can extend the cable, aim the JS1+probecore+Ant+Klaw combo independently and launch towards your target.

And lastly, do not detach your microship (the JS1+stuff combo) from the winch.  If you do, you'll have to send out a Kerbal to re-attach the cable to the microship.

[Tonka Crash]

1 hour ago, katateochi said:

Are there plans to bring the Magnet from the original KAS into this version? That was an insanely useful part, especially for making construction rovers. The ability to pick something up without docking to it (and without having to go EVA and connect cables each time) just has so many applications. 
Or are there any dirty hacks that could enable using the old KAS magnet along side this version?

https://github.com/ihsoft/KAS/wiki/Legacy-parts-destiny#plans-on-supporting-absent-parts

[JajajTec]

Hi i love this this mod and i am playing on 1.8.1. But there is a bad bug that makes the towbar unuesable. when i connect the two vehicle they both collide into the ground (threw the runway) and explode! Can you please fix this?

[Tonka Crash]

@JajajTec There are some limitation to the TB-60 that may be tripping you up.  Check this article and verify that you have the parts connected with the correct alignment. If that doesn't work, can  you provide a video and your KSP.log after the problem occurs?  I did some testing a couple weeks ago and didn't have any problems.

[JajajTec]

wow the problem was that the thing wasen't facing up. THANKS I WHOULD NEVER FOUND THAT OUT!!!

 

oh the towbar will dissconnect (but still align sort of) when you quicksave/reload the game

 

[Tonka Crash]

1 hour ago, JajajTec said:

wow the problem was that the thing wasen't facing up. THANKS I WHOULD NEVER FOUND THAT OUT!!!

 

oh the towbar will dissconnect (but still align sort of) when you quicksave/reload the game

 

Glad you got it working. I'm not sure on the save/load disconnect.  I'll check that tonight after work.  I know there are other parts that don't maintain the connection state across a reload and that may just be a limitation of KAS.