Which version of KJR is recommended in 2024? Or is it needed at all?

[feral_fenrir]

I had started using Kerbal Joint Reinforcement - Next a couple of years ago as it was being regularly updated and worked well with some other mods. Whereas Kerbal Joint Reinforcement Continued was causing issues and was last updated (back then) in 2020.

Even now I see that the forum thread for "Continued" isn't updated but the GitHub has had a few releases with the latest one being in May 2024. The number of downloads on CKAN for both makes it seem like both are still fairly used -  982k for "Continued" and 682k for "Next".

People who have used and tested both, which is currently the least buggy and preferred right now? I was looking to clean up my modlist and would love your inputs.

[Geonovast]

I was an avid KJR user for many versions, but I haven't used it in quite awhile.  The autostruts aren't as buggy as they used to be, and once you get used to using them, KJR really isn't needed anymore.  Typically I set it to grandparent on every part of the main body of the rocket, with the exceptions being the engines and root part set to heaviest.  Seems to work well.

[feral_fenrir]

Yeah! Thanks for the tips on how to use Autostruts. I was wondering the same - is any version of KJR really needed? But then I haven't build super wonky spaceships yet.

 

Maybe I'll it and return if and when something really gets super wobbly.

[Geonovast]

IMO, not at this point.  Just learn what works well with the autostruts and you should be fine.  Don't forget to throw some regular struts in there too where it makes sense (such as strap-on boosters and the like).

If I'm not mistaken there's a mod somewhere that will let you set the default autostrut setting... although I personally haven't used it.

[Lisias]

2 hours ago, feral_fenrir said:

People who have used and tested both, which is currently the least buggy and preferred right now? I was looking to clean up my modlist and would love your inputs.

Next used to be way less taxing to the CPU than Continued.

It's some time since the last time I bored to check Continued, so I can't say if things had changed.

=== == = EDIT = == ===

I don't remember much details, but I remember that Next had fixed some years ago some of the bugs that Continued just managed to fix recently...

Edited June 23 by Lisias
EDIT

[GuessingEveryDay]

16 hours ago, feral_fenrir said:

Yeah! Thanks for the tips on how to use Autostruts. I was wondering the same - is any version of KJR really needed? But then I haven't build super wonky spaceships yet.

 

Maybe I'll it and return if and when something really gets super wobbly.

If you want an easier way to get autostruts for all the parts, you can get Editor Extensions, amd it'll give you a menu to select which Autostruts you want and applies it to the entire craft.

[DeadJohn]

@feral_fenrirI use KJR - Next. I used to use Continued but found that Next was more reliable with large stations and EVA construction mode. I last compared them over a year ago.

Even with Next, I occasionally have a need for autostruts and regular struts. Large high-thrust boosters on low-thrust central cores sometimes manual struts to avoid the boosters flying off and leaving the main rocket on the pad. Huge stations that haven been assembled by gradually docking more modules can still wobble if using small-ish docking ports. An occasional diagonal strut attached during EVA will stop that wobble.

 

[feral_fenrir]

Thanks for the insight. Yeah, I currently still have KJR - Next in my mod list. I just had the query because I saw KJR - Continued had new updates this year.

[Rudolf Meier]

Just for information: Next has been redesigned a while ago and offers now settings (in the difficulty settingscof the game).

The main idea behind it is to fix the game inaccuracies and to make auto-struts obsolete by replacing them with an automatic fix. In case of problems with some ships, tweaking the settings can help. (But for ships a little bit crazier, it could also help to mix it with autostruts... or real struts, which I think are simply necessary for some constructions.)

Edited July 20 by Rudolf Meier