Translation controls seem backwards

[voidptr]

Or, at least one axis of them is I think, and it keeps frustrating me while trying to dock.

J goes Left, L goes right.

I goes Down, K goes Up.

On a normal qwerty keyboard, this makes horizontal translation match the keyboard, but vertical translation is inverted. To translate towards a target indicator left/right, you press on the target, to translate towards one on the vertical you press away from the target. Why is this?

[Themohawkninja]

Are you sure that your CM isn't flipped 180 degrees?

[Brenok]

Try switching to docking controls on the bottom left. That makes

W-Front / S-Back

A-Left / D-Right

Shift - Up / Ctrl - Down

And I believe it is that way to match the pitch commands. When you press "W", you usually move the ship "down"

[Brotoro]

Aren't we all pilots used to joysticks where "towards us means pitch up"?

[purpletarget]

Probably to maintain consistency with the usual mapping for the pitch axis. (Forward = Nose Down).

If you don't like it that way however, you can always remap the keys in the controls settings.

[voidptr]

Are you sure that your CM isn't flipped 180 degrees?

Yes. I'm going off what the control settings (and wiki) say, and what they do looking at the navball.

Aren't we all pilots used to joysticks where "towards us means pitch up"?

Pitch and translation are different though. It's been a long time since I've been in a simulator with real rotational and translational controllers, but I'm pretty sure the ones I've been in and the NASA human interface guidelines have Y and Z translation in the direction of translation along the axis, which makes Z translation "inverted" from pitch. A joystick in rotation acts as a line along the Z and rotating around the other two, which is why pitch is traditionally the way it is.

[TwoHedWlf]

Aren't we all pilots used to joysticks where "towards us means pitch up"?

I usually swap it around though, the usual for most games with a translate RCS type system is up to go up, down to go down. While pitching is the reverse.

It SOUNDS counterintuitive, but I find it feels more intuitive.