Navball not pointing up on the lauchpad

[lewille]

I've made a lander with the command pod pointing sideways instead of the standard prograde (up).

The problem is that on the pad, the navball is also pointing sideways so I cannot have a clear look at where I'm going.

What can be done so that the navball is correctly pointing prograde? (apart from me rebuilding my ship)

Edited August 21, 2013 by lewille

[Mihara]

The navball always points in the direction a currently active command pod (or a docking port) is oriented. You select which one, if your ship has several, by right clicking on the part that can control navball orientation and selecting 'control from here'. When you're launching your ship, the game will attempt to select a command pod to orient the navball to, sometimes it will choose not what you wanted, sometimes, like in your case, it simply can't choose what you wanted because you've not given it an option.

Place a docking port or an extra probe core onto the ship pointing upwards, and right click on it when you launch. Be aware that switching to an IVA switches the navball to the orientation of the command pod you switched to the IVA of.

P.S. Also be aware that navball orientation is completely independent of the direction of thrust, which is only determined by where the currently enabled engines are pointing and nothing else. Autopilots like MechJeb will attempt to follow the node marker with the currently active command pod/docking port, but will assume the thrust vector is parallel the orientation, which is not necessarily the case.

Edited August 21, 2013 by Mihara

[lewille]

Thanks

I didn't knew it was that easy to fix

[magnemoe]

Note that if an kerbal sits down in an command seat this tend to change the control from here to the seat. if you have the seat on top of an lander it will then be placed sideway. This might not be easy to notice as you control the kerbal then he enter the seat and is then moved to lander control.

Recommend to always click on probe and select control from here then using seats. With mechjeb its very dangerous, however it might be hard to notice in manual also if your are not careful.

[Skorpychan]

Be aware that switching to an IVA switches the navball to the orientation of the command pod you switched to the IVA of.

This is important. It's also how I confirmed that the hitchhiker can of my munar crew exchanger was upside-down, after they started emerging from the hatch upside-down.