What are your quirky habits in KSP?

[The Aziz]

4 hours ago, Yaivenov said:

I only hire Kerbonauts with proper names.

Well that depends on what name you consider "proper"

I mean we've all met Scotts, Kurts, Elons etc, and these are cool names I'd very much like to see in my space program.

But I couldn't resist the urge to hire a guy called Enemy Kerman.

[Bariel]

I can't bring myself to build anything that is asymmetrical - except for science experiments.

[kerbiloid]

Leaving no witnesses.

[RizzoTheRat]

I have a few but they're not hard and fast rules

• I don't use manoeuvre nodes.  I'm doing as much as I can via kOS, and prefer to do all the calcs and manoeuvres in my code.  This means no putting in a node and moving it about until I get the intercept I want, and forces me to understand the maths behind it.  Unfortunately every so often something goes wrong and the pilot has to take over, but I'm working on having some additional bits of code to allow various manoeuvres to be done outside of my main programme.  I also try and avoid using PIDs for the same reason but that probably only makes sense to kOS users.
• I try to avoid leaving debris in space, but don't always succeed.  I usually aim for stage burnout just before circularisation, and later in the (career) game I switch to SSTOs to avoid dropping junk.  But sometimes it's unavoidable and I'm not bothered about clearing it up, but it does mean I have a lot less junk in LKO than if I didn't keep an eye on it.
• I don't hire kerbals.  Everyone I have besides the original 4 is a rescue...or as I like to think of indentured servant.  Standard rules of salvage, if you need me to rescue you, your cheeks belongs to me!

 

 

 

On ‎1‎/‎27‎/‎2020 at 7:51 AM, dave1904 said:

I hate the fact that when you Dock in orbit your orbital period glitches out a tiny bit and the ap and pe change by about 100m. Far better that it used to be but it drives me insane. 

Is that a glitch or is it due to the momentum of the docking craft?  Not thought about it before but it'd be interesting to see if docking from different ends has different effects.

[kerbiloid]

Also leaving no debris. Because somebody can pick them up and identify the manufacturer and the craft real purpose.

[razark]

I have strict rules about the number and types of Kerbals I hire at any particular point in my program.  Each member of each Kerbalnaut Group is then specified within those limits by rolling a d12.

Promotions and flight assignments are also made according to a set of rules (and the will of the almighty d12).

[linuxgurugamer]

I can't stop modding....

[dave1904]

4 hours ago, RizzoTheRat said:

Is that a glitch or is it due to the momentum of the docking craft?  Not thought about it before but it'd be interesting to see if docking from different ends has different effects.

It is a glitch because I dock a 10 ton craft doing less than 0.10 m/s to a 200 ton fuel station around the mun and the orbit is ruined. It also never gets worse. Lets say I have an ap of 10020 and pe of 10020. After docking a few times it is something like 10500 and 9500. After that is pretty much stays like that. It doesn't really matter except that I am the kind of person that wants to get a rendezvous that is in the tens of meters and more importantly the approach speed should be no more than 10m/s. 0 eccentricity makes everything faster and easier. Not really faster if you do not launch correctly. I am also the kind of person that will not build a craft were RCS thrusters burn towards my spacecraft. 

[Dirkidirk]

4 hours ago, RizzoTheRat said:

 

• I don't use manoeuvre nodes.  I'm doing as much as I can via kOS, and prefer to do all the calcs and manoeuvres in my code.  This means no putting in a node and moving it about until I get the intercept I want, and forces me to understand the maths behind it.  Unfortunately every so often something goes wrong and the pilot has to take over, but I'm working on having some additional bits of code to allow various manoeuvres to be done outside of my main programme.  I also try and avoid using PIDs for the same reason but that probably only makes sense to kOS users.

wHY?

[scottadges]

Does anyone else keep track of their missions in spreadsheet format? 

I'm definitely not humble-bragging here, honestly, it's a bit over-the-top if you ask me. In my latest career game (spanning too many months), I always hated forgetting what missions I was setting up, what craft were left in orbit where, and then coming back weeks later what the heck they were all doing.  I'm also running Kerbal Construction Time (KCT) so it makes it that much more challenging to keep track of things.

Hence, spreadsheets.

Spoiler

Mission Log - started with the first basic pod launched in Career (KSC-001) 

White = Current, Grey = Complete, Blue = Mission Underway, Green = Long-term Mission (Station)

With so many various craft launched and wanting to re-use craft for different missions, had to come up with a way to keep track of those, too.

 

So my spreadsheet habit has helped me. Although lately when I want to play the game, it's like 'Ok. Time to manage the spreadsheet.'

Kinda makes it less fun to "manage" the game. Maybe I should just build some stuff in Sandbox??

Edited January 29, 2020 by scottadges

[kerbiloid]

3 hours ago, razark said:

Promotions and flight assignments are also made according to a set of rules (and the will of the almighty d12).

Do they have a bar to celebrate?

9 minutes ago, scottadges said:

Does anyone else keep track of their missions in spreadsheet format? 

I was logging them in details in a tree-like note manager.

[razark]

17 minutes ago, scottadges said:

Does anyone else keep track of their missions in spreadsheet format?

Spreadsheet?  I used to, for the reasons you mention.  But then it became annoying to update.

So...

Spoiler

... I got a little crazy with PHP and MySQL.

All running on a Raspberry Pi.  Screenshots are a slightly older version than the current one, and there's a few more pages of details.

Kerbal Space Program: The Paperwork Simulator.

 

8 minutes ago, kerbiloid said:

Do they have a bar to celebrate?

No, the bar is three feet to the right of my desk.

Edited January 29, 2020 by razark

[RizzoTheRat]

59 minutes ago, Dirkidirk said:

wHY?

It means I have to learn how to do it

 

[scottadges]

I have no words... just Cena.

19 minutes ago, razark said:

Spreadsheet?  I used to, for the reasons you mention.  But then it became annoying to update.

So...

  Hide contents

... I got a little crazy with PHP and MySQL.

 

 

Edited January 29, 2020 by scottadges

[Spartan125]

I put probe cores and power generators on almost every separable piece of a spacecraft just in case I need control, even when it is permanently inhabited by Kerbals. I also like to keep all of my experiments within reach of a Kerbal on a ladder or on the surface so I don't have to float them around and risk breaking the solar panels. This is probably necessary for high gravity bodies like Eve or Tylo.

Edited January 29, 2020 by Spartan125

[MOARdV]

Every launch vehicle I build uses Aviation Lights configured as red beacon / double flash for "Warning Lights" on the first stage.  Because I decided Kerbals would not clear the airspace around a launch site, and (somehow) aircraft in the area would notice lights on a launch vehicle *before* they notice the rocket blasting through their flight path.

[Superfluous J]

6 hours ago, scottadges said:

Does anyone else keep track of their missions in spreadsheet format? 

If I can't note it in the name of the ship or on a flag, it's not worth writing down

[Klapaucius]

20 hours ago, Bariel said:

I can't bring myself to build anything that is asymmetrical - except for science experiments.

Have I got the challenge for you!

 

19 hours ago, RizzoTheRat said:

• I don't use manoeuvre nodes.  I'm doing as much as I can via kOS, and prefer to do all the calcs and manoeuvres in my code.  This means no putting in a node and moving it about until I get the intercept I want, and forces me to understand the maths behind it.  

I don't do this but I think this is REALLY cool.

 

As for me:

I refuse to use any type of additional reaction wheels or fly by wire in any aircraft I build (with the occasional exception of spaceplanes, but I am pretty bad at those).  Also, my planes need to be flyable with SAS off--even if it is not as pleasant. I consider it a real victory when I have a plane that flies as well with SAS off as one.  Since I build pretty weird stuff, it makes for good challenges for myself.

Edited January 30, 2020 by Klapaucius

[Mars-Bound Hokie]

21 hours ago, scottadges said:

Does anyone else keep track of their missions in spreadsheet format? 

No. I use Kerbal Alarm Clock to keep track of my missions and contracts - most (if not all) of them ongoing.

• Missions that I've already completed (e.g. tourist run, construction/expansion jobs) are irrelevant UNLESS:
  • Said completed missions are part of an ongoing contract. Even then, I either write it down on a sheet of paper and/or on the alarm clock.
    • EXAMPLE: the S.S. Remembrance returns home from a long tourist run, but some of them have paid for a trip to Eeloo. At the same time, a few more tourists on the S.S. Raven, currently in-transit to Duna from Jool, have also signed up for Eeloo. Rather than waste time, money, and effort sending separate craft, I wait until the Raven returns to put all the Eeloo tourists (and the necessary crew) in a Poseidon SSTO.
      • Besides writing down who's going on a sheet of paper, I double-check my contract list so I know for sure I'm sending the right kerbals.
  • It's part of a Mission Report thread - but even then, all I need to do is access that thread and read what happened.
    • EXAMPLE: for the Neptune Missions, I know who did what jobs in what spacecraft. This is especially important when I decide to get a team photo when the Neptune IV comes back.
• As for future missions, I keep all my contracts on the alarm clock so I know exactly how close I am to their deadlines.
• If I need put off any future missions (e.g. construction contracts), or if I have to wait to get an accurate maneuver node, I set a reminder to go off when necessary on the alarm clock.

 

Man, I wish my alarm clock was empty.

 

Spoiler

21 hours ago, razark said:

21 hours ago, razark said:

... I got a little crazy with PHP and MySQL.

All running on a Raspberry Pi.  Screenshots are a slightly older version than the current one, and there's a few more pages of details.

Kerbal Space Program: The Paperwork Simulator.

 

 

What website is that, @razark? Just curious.

[razark]

3 minutes ago, Mars-Bound Hokie said:

What website is that, @razark? Just curious.

It's one I created, running on a Raspberry Pi.

[Mars-Bound Hokie]

3 minutes ago, razark said:

It's one I created, running on a Raspberry Pi.

Nice. 

 

To answer @Castille7's question, one of my habits is that I use the same action group configuration for all my SSTOs.

1. Solar Panels
2. Antenna
3. Bay doors
4. Drills
5. Rapiers
6. NERV/s
7. Ladder/s
8. TCS
9. Science
10. Surface harvester

[purpleivan]

On 1/29/2020 at 12:26 PM, Bariel said:

I can't bring myself to build anything that is asymmetrical - except for science experiments.

So I guess this would send you into spasms.

[scottadges]

On 1/29/2020 at 5:26 AM, Bariel said:

I can't bring myself to build anything that is asymmetrical

I'm the same way - all my spacecraft are generally symmetrical. But for me, it's less about aesthetics and more about docking / thrust.

Like I said, maybe it's just me... or I probably don't know how to adjust RCS thrusters properly... (I almost exclusively use RCS Build Aid to balance thrust vectors)

With asymmetrical spacecraft design, I find docking is a total PIA when the weight is not distributed evenly and the vectors are off balance. While asymmetrical often looks cooler, personally it's not worth the time fighting the vectors when I need to dock the thing.

Edited January 30, 2020 by scottadges

[adsii1970]

2 hours ago, Mars-Bound Hokie said:

Nice. 

 

To answer @Castille7's question, one of my habits is that I use the same action group configuration for all my SSTOs.

1. Solar Panels
2. Antenna
3. Bay doors
4. Drills
5. Rapiers
6. NERV/s
7. Ladder/s
8. TCS
9. Science
10. Surface harvester

I do this too. Makes life easier. 

[Fierce Wolf]

THOSE SPREADSHEETS, MAN!!!!

 

HOW? WHY? WHEN?

 

 

AGHHHH!!