To Mech-Jeb or not to Mech-Jeb, that is the question...

[AlternNocturn]

Sometimes I like to alternate. I\'ll fly ships manually for several launches, then when I get bored I\'ll start using MechJeb rockets for several launches, then when I get bored of THAT then I\'ll go back to making and flying ships without it.

There are only two types of missions where I always, always use MechJeb, and that\'s for cargo missions and satellite deployments. I used to use it for rendezvous before I actually performed one manually. MechJeb is a very useful learning tool. Without it, I would never have known how to do that rendezvous manually.

[White Owl]

Haven\'t ever tried the autopilot features, and don\'t intend to, but having the apoapsis and periapsis info displayed at the same time is very very nice. As far as I know, MechJeb is also the only means currently available to launch two vehicles at the same time.

[A Fat Pokemon]

Im a vanilla player, and I usually dislike the use of mods. I don\'t like the mec-Jeb idea either, but it would come into good use with things like rendevousing with massive crafts, but otherwise I rendevous stock. Its all up to how you like to play really.

[_Aramchek_]

I don\'t use it, at this point I like the challenge, but I could see myself using it eventually for various things.

[Clouds]

When I take on a challenge of 'can I do this,' e.g. a crew-swapping EVA, I fly it myself.

When I take on a challenge of 'can a rocket do this,' for example a minimalist Mun lander/return, I use Mechjeb for repeatability, precision, and efficiency. Then, I might or might not try flying it myself, depending on how close to the wire it ended up. =P

[2008dragon]

I like Mech Jeb. I usually use it for launches because my computer is very laggy even with the modified settings. From then on I will most likely only use the retro/prograde features because I\'m so lazy. However I don\'t rely on it, as I have played for a long-ish time and have learned a lot. I can see people disagreeing with it, though, because for a long time I refused to add mods because of how much easier they appeared to make the game (and not just because I didn\'t know how ).

Oh, also, I think that it is ok to use it to land for the first time as long as you use the opportunity to learn how it did it. I found it a lot of fun to land manually though, despite the difficulty of not knowing the wing-decoupler landing gear way back when.

One more thing, I used to use it on rockets to see which had the most delta-v, and that was one of my favorite things to do for a while lol

[maro]

Regarding MechJeb simply YES !

Because most of the steeriung in real world is also computerized.

Especialy in the launch phase there where probably some switches to press, not more.

Manually was docking - until our days where things like ATV can do for herself - landing on moon, corrections and som phases of the shuttle landing. Anything else is done by computers.

Therefore i think mechjeb is the more realistic gameplay.

[flaillomanz]

...Besides, you can just decide to not use the module if you want to pilot using your own skills, as it\'s a physical part. Nobody forces you to use or not use MechJeb. It\'s there for if you need it, although if you\'re already halfway to the Mun it\'s a tad too late to start using it if you forgot the part itself.

[Hikaru]

Hmm. I personally use and love mechjeb, but not for the reasons some might. Personally I know how to fly my ships off the pad into an orbit and land them anywhere myself, as well as do inclination changes/whatnot by hand. However, the human in the equation isn\'t a precise pilot. While I am able to fly a ship into an orbit on manual, I will never fly a ship of the same design into exactly the same orbit every time, so when I\'m designing a ship and tweaking it, it\'s difficult to impossible to figure out the effect my changes are having on fuel consumption. Therefore mechjeb is an invaluable tool when testing a ship design.

This does not mean I use mechjeb for everything, all the time. While I prefer to use it for launches and landings, I have always overengineered my landers to a ridiculous extent - every single design I have made can be landed by me on manual on kerbin. It might be a rough landing, but it\'ll be survivable. So, when mechjeb fails due to collision - or because of some bug in mechjeb\'s programming - I can take over.

Just my two cents.

[Alchemist]

MJ is good in 2 cases:

a) it can\'t be done manually. I just can\'t do powered landing on Kerbin with keyboard, especially when there happens some lag. It\'s also wery difficult to land something large on the Mun without proper RCS. Or you are just experimenting with some ultraminimalistic designs (last time I did something like that was one of the forum campaigns)

you just want to skip some routine

and these autopilots sometimes do some stupid things

BTW, the main principe of safe spaceflight is that most operations can be done both automated and manually. So I prefer building things that can be flown manually. Then I don\'t need MechJeb.

[rkman]

I personally don\'t like Mech-jeb, but that\'s just me. Flying a ship is the majority of the game and when you i use Mech-Jeb it defeats the entire point of playing. You i might as well let the computer do everything. :/

Fixed that for you.

[TheKerbinator]

As far as I know, MechJeb is also the only means currently available to launch two vehicles at the same time.

Wait, is that possible? D: I thought MechJeb would be disengaged when I switch to a different vehicle.

[xanos]

I use Mechjeb for a very simple reason.

This is space travel. You dont \'eyeball it\' in spacetravel. Even Apollo and before didnt do that!

I would like the idea of Mechjeb being in the stock game when it get a campaign, but you dont get all of it at once. Some parts do some things and you earn more and more as you play.

[Bioman222]

I used to use MJ, but, you are right, it does feel like, cheating. I also like using my own rocket designs, not someone else\'s rocket.

[Rascal Nag]

I use Mechjeb for a very simple reason.

This is space travel. You dont \'eyeball it\' in spacetravel. Even Apollo and before didnt do that!

I would like the idea of Mechjeb being in the stock game when it get a campaign, but you dont get all of it at once. Some parts do some things and you earn more and more as you play.

I don\'t eyeball when I\'m flying manually. With the map (and even without them map sometimes), it\'s very easy to know exactly what you\'re doing.

I must disagree in terms of mechjeb being stock. I think that kerbonaut tasks (i.e. telling your kerbonauts to try to make this trans-munar injection themselves) with a chance of failure if you haven\'t trained them well, a set of maneuvers laid out for you beforehand based on the mission you\'re flying (was meant for .15 with the patch conics on the map but didn\'t get out in time), and basic flight computer parts (would behave the same as kerbonaut tasks essentially, would be good for unmanned missions or if your kerbonauts can\'t tell normal from anti-normal) would be more appropriate, since mechjeb does everything for you.

[casey28xxx]

If my own personal experience of being new to the game is anything to go by then most other newbies will have been doing most things manually or at least trying to with varying degrees of success.

I started to use mechjeb sparingly to start with, partly so I could learn as I went along after many many failed attempts at either getting into orbits or trying to land on the mun and partly because I don\'t read manuals for most things I try out so was experimenting with its use!

As a few have mentioned its a great tool for the mission control players, leaves us free to focus on designing, building and planning out missions to undertake and for the learners, they get to see how the computer does it and hey presto its a learning aid!

[simplemunrockets]

I feel more personal achievement if I fly the entire mission myself, but the new large parts have so many problems with them, besides the fact that a large ship is difficult to steer, that I\'ll probably start using it soon for some operations.

BTW, You might want to uncheck the auto-throttle. Mechjeb throttles to 100%, and at that point most ships made of the new parts will collapse.

My 2 cents: MechJeb can be useful for when you want to learn or are just being lazy, but I use it most of the time.

[Scurge]

I find it easier to get a rocket into orbit manually instead of using mechjeb personally. Maybe I\'m not using it right, but I have lost more rockets that I know will attain orbit (done it manually b4 using MJ) trying to use MJ than I care to admit. It seems a bit buggy to me. It will engage the SAS automatically, then fight it for controll. I have to keep turning off SAS to get it to follow the defined flight path. Like I said though, this could be user error.

[FriedMunCake]

Come on, why does this keep popping up? NOW, let me end this by saying:

There are 3 types of Kerbonauts, those who like to fly, those who run Mission Control, and there are those that can read the tide of the velocity vectors.

Essentially, some of us find the achievement in the CONSTRUCTION of the perfect machine, not finding achievement through avoiding pilot error. Others I am sure prefer flying their not-so-perfect machine, but I and others who use Mechjeb personally do not. So please, let\'s not bring this topic up again. All it leads to is nonsensical argument.

END THIS DISCUSSION! Please? Okay... Thank you, I agree with the above, 1000%! whadam! kaboosh! bing! bam! Whatever!

[Shedao]

It\'s the same discussion as with the ability to save and load, but you could also add the spacecraft exchange as there are people (like me) who aren\'t masters in creating VTOLs and stuff. A game is for having fun and especially in a sandbox game such ways of censorship are just wrong.

In campaign mode it\'s different. There you could start with very basic possibilities and bit by bit get more content. The mechjeb in its current form would then be one of the endgame items I think.

[Atimed]

MechJeb is a great tool but completely unnecessary by my apinion...

Before you jump on my throat yes, i did use it.. Back in the days for a testing tool for efichency of my gravity turns.. So i could minimalise the size on my ships..

Iv red somewhere long ago that kerbals with a lot of flight time could fly rockets on their own.. This on my apinion should be used for delivery missions to stations.. After you did it manualy min5 times.

Cheers..

[Tarmenius]

MechJeb is a very good tool. I hold myself to the standard of performing an action a few times on my own before letting someone (or something in this case) do it for me. That being my own preference, I tend to want others to do the same. Some of you have already expressed similar tendencies, but as some others have stated it is very important to keep in mind that different playstyles are prefectly acceptable. It does people a disservice to criticize them for approaching a situation from a different angle. Instead, we should be supportive and encourage them to constantly strive for greater things, whatever that may be.

Besides, according to the efficiency-focused challenges I\'ve participated in, an experienced and skilled pilot can often times out-perform MechJeb. So even those who rely on it early in their development will still have plenty of room to improve and grow in skill. In the end, what\'s important is that as the community grows, those of us who have the experience are willing to help new players get the most from this game\'s incredible potential.

[Rommel]

I made sure I could do all the manoeuvres manually first, and understood them, then switched to MechJeb to make life easier. But honestly if for nothing else, its great to know your rocket is facing a pro-grade direction without having to manually adjust all the time.

[Menelmacar]

Personally, I dislike the idea of a flight autopilot that flies the ship for you. Most of the fun for me is getting to do exactly what you want yourself, without the aid of a machine. For example, getting to a metre-perfect circular orbit by hand is far more rewarding than if a machine had done it for you. The same goes for rendezvous and landings.

I think MechJeb is great for the info it gives you, handy to have the inclination and eccentricity displayed - if I wanted to try some kind of 'full real' I\'d have to learn lots of maths and work these things out myself (which I have done to a certain extent). I tried out the autopilot functions a few times... a)ascents really inefficient compared to my ascents and b)VERY likely to induce unstoppable roll/spin, collision trajectories (usually with the wrong body of mass) and resultant fireballs.

I do think people are missing out if their first (successful) flights are automated but I guess I\'m missing out by not doing full orbital calculations and using MechJeb\'s cheesy info panels too

[Zmapus]

Not my thing. I like to play the game in original flavor. That being said I do like to check out interesting mods. Like has been said a million times, you can\'t cheat in a single player game. If its fun for you, good. Thats kinda the whole point of playing games, is it not?