[1.4.2] Kerbal Space Transport System

[LuciferNZ]

Theres another issue - Im not sure the extent of support for USI lifesupport, but kerbals sent to deployment do not have their 'LastAtHome' set in the 'LIFE_SUPPORT_SETTINGS' of the LifeSupportScenario scenario.

A minor annoyance atm, as I just quick save, update last home, then done.  There may be other issues regarding this, but thats all Ive found so far.

 

[Cheostian]

There have been some questions raised about KSTS and deployment loads.  Thought I'd chime in with my experience so far.

I have been using SSTO rockets (not space planes) to get my loads up to orbit.  I have also exclusively so far been connecting my "payload" for transport to my "launcher rocket" using a set of docking ports to connect them.

If you are transporting a payload that has resources that can be used by the launcher (such as liquid fuel for instance), you'll want to make sure before you take off that you dissable crossfeed on one of the docking ports to prevent the Payload fuel from being used.  If you use fuel from the payload, your payload delivery will suddenly drop from the 10t or whatever you meant to send up, down to a .05t weight of something of the docking port itself.  You may experience similar issues with decouplers, if the fuel is used.    Once the mission is recorded, you can send up whatever you want at that point.

Secondly, when doing that sort of payload delivery, you'll see two docking ports as options when you first start recording.  You'll obviously want the one that shows the .05t more (which is the payload's docking port).

Thirdly, as mentioned by someone earlier, you need to ensure the "root part" for your rocket mission is on the "launcher" part of the vehicle, and I'd suggest as well it not be either of the docking ports.  Otherwise, your payload's will be all wonky, or the mission will not record payloads at all (as it will think you use resources from your payload, especially if the root part is on the payload itself)

My own final point.  I'd suggest not trying to send up two payloads at the same time.  For example, I launched a payload, went into the VAB, adjusted another payload I wanted to send, went back out and launched it shortly after.  Sped up the clock and waited for the timers to both run out.  Then went to regular speed and saw both messages for the payloads being deployed show at the same time.  I had this sinking feeling in my gut.  went to tracking station and then to the ships only to find them both intertwined and quickly breaking apart.   Basically, what happens from what I can see, is the deployed payload doesn't appear in space until you slow down the clock to normal after the timer runs out.  If you have multiple missions sent (even if you left time between them) if you don't have the clock going faster while they both deploy, then they both end up deployed at the same time and in the same orbit (if you selected the same orbit) when you go back to normal speed.

 

Hope it helps.

 

[-MM-]

I've just uploaded a new version of KSTS (1.3), which you can find in the first post of this page. This new release does the following:

• Selected decouplers are now highlighted during the recording of a deployment mission. This should help people who have multiple decouplers on their ships.
• I've changed the way the construction missions are working: Scientists on the station are now reducing the construction time while you need a certain number of engineers to construct a vessel of a given size. A single engineer can now only construct a vessel in orbit with a dry mass of 10t. Additional engineers will double that size each. This should give the player a good reason to build bigger space stations than before. And it won't make deployment missions redundant too early in the game.
• The staging order of newly created vessels is now preserved.
• I've fixed an issue with transporting multiple kerbals to a vessel, which had parts that could seat two or more crew-members (thanks again to Kielm for the bug-report).
• The orbits of new vessels are now checked against all other vessels in the vicinity and possibly slightly adjusted to avoid collisions. This should make it possible to deploy or construct multiple vessels in the same orbit (see screenshot from my last test):

 

In Addition to these changes I spent the afternoon trying to figure out possible problems concerning USI LifeSupport and ModularFuelTanks. In the case of the former I guess the mod depends on the usual life-cycle of each vessel, which usually starts at "landed at Kerbin" and only afterwards transitions to "orbiting". I don't think it would be wise to change any values in USI's scenario-data, maybe the guys and / or gals at USI can help out by also checking for vessles which simply "appear" in orbit?

And in the case of  "ModularFuelTanks" I was also unable to find any satisfactory solution. A little bit of context:
I am using "ShipConstruction.LoadShip" to load the saved crafts, which gives me a list of parts and modules I can use to construct the new vessel. In the this case a ModularFuelTanks-FuelTank will get constructed by the ShipConstruction-class with its default resources (eg LiquidFuel + Oxidizer) and the FuelTank module will be missing its "TANK" Config-Nodes. I don't know why the module does not correctly load all its sub-nodes, maybe I need to include ModularFuelTanks-DLL in my assembly? I did some experiments with manually copying the missing sub-nodes form the "ShipTemplate" over into the incomplete module Config-Node. This however didn't fix the issue with the additional resources-nodes, which I would have to remove manually as well. This seems just too dirty for my taste, so we will have to live without ModularFuelTanks for the moment, I am sorry about that.
But if someone has any ideas (with code included ) on how to better construct / initialize a vessel-object, let me know.

 

Edited October 29, 2016 by -MM-

[Kielm]

Tell me about it. 

I've been horribly, horribly mutilating a local copy of your mod in a three pronged attack on the USI Issue, learning more about how KSP works and assessing the potential of a plugin I want to make, and I haven't made much headway on the first point. On the plus side I've learnt quite a bit! 

Regarding USI Life Support; If it were me, I'd be reluctant to dive in to someone else's data unless it was for a quick fix until the USI end is fixed. Knowing how incredibly busy RoverDude is, that might take a while. At the end of the day you'd only be updating values when crew are transferred via KSTS, and not at any other time, but it's your decision. Whether or not you decide to have a crack at it, I would be very interested in learning about how to access data / fields from other mods, and even KSP itself, and how (where) the game stores information in memory. I'm particularly interested in the structure of science experiments and how that process works; probably outside the scope of this but worth mentioning all the same. 

 

Regarding Modular Fuel Tanks, my nearest point of reference for this problem would be ExtraPlanetary Launchpads, which uses ShipConstruction.AssembleForLaunch instead of LoadShip. Curious that Modular Fuel Tanks is having problems, I wonder what it does differently compared to other mods?

[-MM-]

I've just uploaded another release (1.4) which now adds the option to define a more complex orbit when launching a new vessel. You can also select an existing vessel and launch your new ship right next to it (don't worry, they shouldn't collide). If you are like me and don't know all the orbital parameters by heart, I suggest you either use the simple orbit function or the latter use-case with a reference vessel, because this won't prevent you from launching vessels on unstable trajectories ...

In any case, this pretty much makes this mod feature complete now.

 

@Kielm: I agree, "AssembleForLaunch" does seem like the much more reasonable choice. I was however unable to get it to work. As far as I can tell it is mainly used to create ships which are landed somewhere and additionally only seems to work if the player is in the "fligh" scene of the game.

[Cheostian]

Hey MM, how soon before this lands on CKan?  My concern is, while using ckan, if I load a mod directly and then use CKAN to load any other mod, that in any fashion affects a similar file, ckan refuses to load the other mods after.

[Cheostian]

I just attempted for the first time to transport a ship with a pilot up into space and once it got there, I noticed the pilot is being listed as a tourist instead, and can now no longer control the craft (my gal valentina kerbin).  Is this normal?  I am on v1.3 of the mod right now, installed with ckan.  Thanks.

Edited October 30, 2016 by Cheostian
Edit: okay, I have now updated to 1.4 and re-tested the same mission, and now the pilots are correctly being tracked, no more tourists! yay.

[-MM-]

6 hours ago, Cheostian said:

Hey MM, how soon before this lands on CKan?  My concern is, while using ckan, if I load a mod directly and then use CKAN to load any other mod, that in any fashion affects a similar file, ckan refuses to load the other mods after.

I'm honestly not sure, a couple of hours I guess. KSTS 1.4 is now available on CKAN in any case.

3 hours ago, Cheostian said:

I just attempted for the first time to transport a ship with a pilot up into space and once it got there, I noticed the pilot is being listed as a tourist instead, and can now no longer control the craft (my gal valentina kerbin).  Is this normal?  I am on v1.3 of the mod right now, installed with ckan.  Thanks.

Are you using additional life-support mods which might have "disabled" your pilot because some resource ran out? If not, this would indeed be wired and I would like to know more about how it happened.

[Cheostian]

right...

so

I went and got groceries and forgot to pause the game

came back an noticed my kerbaunaut is now a tourist again.  That's when the it clicked...N.O.M.S.   I have USI life support installed, they ran outa food.  that's annoying.  Now I need to start adding food for every rocket I send up into space with a kerbal on it.  What's next... I mean before you know it they will be asking for unions and a better than 12% odds of survival per trip.

 

You can never satisfy these guys.

 

Actually, I have another question.

How does the select reference vessel option work?  I have a bunch of vessels in orbit currently, I want to send a ship up beside one so I can then dock it together, but when I click on select reference vessel, no options come up for actually picking a vessel.  Can I only select reference vessels that I have sent up post 1.4 patch (I am working off a save currently)  Or, only vessels I have sent with KSTS up?  how specifically, does it interact.

Edited October 30, 2016 by Cheostian

[-MM-]

13 hours ago, Cheostian said:

How does the select reference vessel option work?  I have a bunch of vessels in orbit currently, I want to send a ship up beside one so I can then dock it together, but when I click on select reference vessel, no options come up for actually picking a vessel.  Can I only select reference vessels that I have sent up post 1.4 patch (I am working off a save currently)  Or, only vessels I have sent with KSTS up?  how specifically, does it interact.

They have to be within range of your selected mission profile (same body and semi major axis below the max altitude of the profile). My best guess would be that all your current vessels are flying too high.

[Locob]

I still get bad detection.

 

Edited October 31, 2016 by Locob

[-MM-]

55 minutes ago, Locob said:

I still get bad detection.

 

Hm, can you check your logs? It looks to me that you are getting a few unexpected exceptions, probably from some other mod you've installed. The text is not supposed to be red...
In case the error can't be traced via the logs, it would help greatly if you could deactivate one mod after another to find out when exactly it occurs.

[-MM-]

I've just uploaded a minor update (KSTS 1.5) which fixes an issue which suddenly appeared in my installation, causing the skin to not load properly. In addition to this fix, I've also implemented a function which now allows us to transport tourists. But be warned, this might not work as easily as first imagined if you want to use KSTS to fulfill your tourism-contracts: Most contracts monitor the state-change of a vessel, so directly deploying to kerbin's orbit won't trigger the "orbit kerbin" requirement of a contract. You would have to leave and then enter a proper orbit. Additionally a tourism contract is only completed when the tourist is recovered from a landed or splashed down flight, not when he is added back to the crew-roster, as it is done with KSTS. You would then have to launch a minimal (real) vessel with the tourists and recover it to finish the contract.

I hope you will enjoy the new function nonetheless.

[Cheostian]

posted this on USI's LS forum.  though you might want to have a look at a response MM,

17 hours ago, Cheostian said:

@RoverDude  Not sure if you have time to look into this issue. But their are conflicts with your mod and a very useful mod named Kerbal Space Transport Systems (KSTS).  Effectively, what's going on, is for some reason when using KSTS to deploy a ship into orbit using a SSTO recorded mission, the Kerbal switches to a tourist.

The owner of the mod -MM- has attempted to look for a solution but the problem seems to be in how the USI life support system wants to track a traditional launch to land mission, and has issue with the deploy directly to space situation.  He doesn't believe he can fix the problem from his end without adjusting your mod's code directly.

Both of your mod's are so good, I would love to continue to use them both.  Any chance you could look into the conflict and see if you can determine a solution?

 

Thanks,

Cheo

I wouldn't hold your breath.  But as @RoverDude has said before he takes Pull requests if the mod author of KSTS wanted to look at the code and figure it out.

[RoverDude]

For this one, best bet will be for the author to provide a pull request that exposes whatever it is they need to sort for this.

[SebastianPahlsson]

I have an Tourist contract i need to finish. I need to get them to the mun and back. I have a Spaceplane that is recorded and a payload with 4 seats and an probe. I can only put astronauts in the seats. No tourists.

[Cheostian]

On 10/28/2016 at 9:39 PM, LuciferNZ said:

Theres another issue - Im not sure the extent of support for USI lifesupport, but kerbals sent to deployment do not have their 'LastAtHome' set in the 'LIFE_SUPPORT_SETTINGS' of the LifeSupportScenario scenario.

A minor annoyance atm, as I just quick save, update last home, then done.  There may be other issues regarding this, but thats all Ive found so far.

 

@LuciferNZ How specifically did you update this "last home" thing, where do you go etc.  I am having the same issue.

[LuciferNZ]

4 hours ago, Cheostian said:

@LuciferNZ How specifically did you update this "last home" thing, where do you go etc.  I am having the same issue.

I edited the save file.

First search for 'LIFE_SUPPORT_SETTINGS', then adjust the numbers within the kerbal in question on the 'LastAtHome' variable to one of the above 'last updated' variables (Just a hack really).

However, I found a 'better' way to fudge it (editing them got very tedious) - I turned up the 'Homeworld Altitude' in the Life support settings to way above kerbin and any orbits I'll deploy to.  This DOES mean that anything in orbit has an unlimited Hab counter though, but its the lesser of two evils at the moment.

All -MM- needs to do, is update the LastAtHome variable above when a kerbal is launched into orbit, if its exposed.

[Cheostian]

@LuciferNZ  I was looking at the save file.  what do you use to edit it?  I am on a pc with windows 7

 

[LuciferNZ]

2 hours ago, Cheostian said:

@LuciferNZ  I was looking at the save file.  what do you use to edit it?  I am on a pc with windows 7

 

Personally, I use Notepad++, but any textfile editor should do the trick.

Note:  Backup your save before doing ANY editing.  I am NOT responsible for you wreckin' yo' save ;p

[Murdabenne]

Notepad++ is an excellent too for these config and save files.

[Crimor]

Does this take the Stagerecovery automated landing of stages in consideration on future flights? like say I'm using two radial boosters on a launch, they get ejected, float down with parachutes and get collected by Stagerecovery when they despawn, and I get X funds from recovering them, does that still happen with the cost of using that flight in the future?

[p4di]

Hey, I might've found a bug that involves docking:

I'm building a little station in mun's orbit. For that purpose I've built a Transfer-Vehicle with a docking port that can get a 20t payload to my station and then return to LKO.

so, I've launched said Transfer-Vehicle and my station part payload of 20 tons to LKO with 2 different launch profiles, did the rendezvous and docking. That's when the bug occurs: I am able to undock and redock the vehicle at this point, but whenever I do a vessel switch or a quicksave load (maybe even warping - I'm not sure on that), undocking isn't possible anymore.

Using Mythos' KML Persistence file editor, the problem becomes pretty obvious:
Imgur Link

for some reason (I assume as the craft gets saved) one docking port gets saved as docked to the other port aswell as docked to the command module which is why undocking after loading becomes impossible.

For like 2 days now, I thought it had something to do with the docking ports I'm using (Rover Dude's Konstruction mod) or the fact that my 2nd part didn't have a command module. I've tried out both those hypotheses and they turned out not to be the problem. 

I did cheat launch the same 2 vessels via alt+F12, and docked them again. Here saving reloading etc. works just fine and docking/undocking always is possible as the vessel data gets saved correctly (Imgur Link).

For now, I therefore believe that this bug could be related to this mod. Has anybody else tried launching parts that then dock and need to undock again? Maybe somebody can try to recreate that bug.

[mostlikely]

@p4di

I'm having the same issues. KSTS would not have been my first guess on the cause. 

I will do some testing this eve to get more info. Maybe it's an uid issue? I recall they were empty for the bugged docking ports along with the dockuid.

Edited November 6, 2016 by mostlikely
Typos

[mostlikely]

I did some basic tests with 2 vessels launched manually vs 2 vessels launched with KSTS. As p4di pointed out the KSTS vessels are unable to undock after you save/load or go to the KSC. 

Looking in the persistence files:

1. all the parts of the KSTS vessels have "uid = 0" whereas manually launched vessel parts all have unique numbers.
2. When docked the dockUId of the docking port and rootUId of DOCKEDVESSEL module are 0 for the KSTS vessels while manually launched vessels have proper values.

I then ran 3 quick tests by modifying the persistence before docking:

1. Fill all the uid of the KSTS parts with an unique number from 1 and up: Undocking worked as normal
2. Fill the uid of the dockingports: Undocking did not work.
3. Fill the uid of the dockingports and the root part of the vessels: Undocking worked as normal.

This makes sense as the core docking functionality looks for a way to identify both dockingport and root part of the vessel.

 

If possible KSTS should assign proper uid's to all parts of the vessels it spawns. These ID's probably do not need to be assigned by the base functionality of KSP but they ideally should be unique uid's in the current game.