Allowing one to predetermine the stage actionable parts will be placed in

[40s]

Allowing one to predetermine the stage actionable parts will be placed in would be of great assistance when assembling complicated rocket stagings. For instance making a craft that drops fuel tanks on opposite sides at this time requires some tedium when designating staging for separators. If one could click the stage they wish for the parts they were placing down before setting them, assembly would be hastened for intricate craft.

Thank you for your continued hard work on a wonderful game.

[sumghai]

This is already achieveable by dragging part icons between stages.

[ravener]

i get what he is saying... if i want 14 tanks to drop but they REALLY want to go in my top stage even though they feed my first stage, i could select the first stage when i put them on the rocket and they would automatically go in that stage instead of going to where "makes sense" for the game.

it isnt a large problem, but i get it.

[40s]

This is already achieveable by dragging part icons between stages.

I am aware that you can drag part icons; I don't think you could make it out of the atmosphere without figuring that one out.

Consider this: You have say 6 stacks to decouple, 24 separation rockets to launch when they do, and maybe some other miscellaneous parts to activate each at different times; say only 2 of the six should activate at this stage the game will lump most everything in one stage because you used symmetry mode to place all six stacks. It be comes VERY tedious to drag and drop every separation rock and decoupler into the proper place for your purpose. And why doesn't the Launch Stability Enhancer always default to the bottom of the staging list?

Edited September 16, 2013 by 40s

[sumghai]

Consider this: You have say 6 stacks to decouple, 24 separation rockets to launch when they do, and maybe some other miscellaneous parts to activate each at different times; say only 2 of the six should activate at this stage the game will lump most everything in one stage because you used symmetry mode to place all six stacks. It be comes VERY tedious to drag and drop every separation rock and decoupler into the proper place for your purpose.

That's because KSP makes the best guess possible for where parts should be staged - if players have non-standard staging sequences, it's up to them to manually reassign stages.

And why doesn't the Launch Stability Enhancer always default to the bottom of the staging list?

Sometimes you don't want to have them at the bottom:

- Some folks want to build static test stands, so they can drag the Launch Stability Enhancers to the top and last stage as to not accidentally drop their setup during testing

- Other folks like myself like to spool up the first stage engines first when launching rockets, and then release the clamps

The current system as-is offers the greatest amount of flexibility for all playtypes.

[40s]

That's because KSP makes the best guess possible for where parts should be staged - if players have non-standard staging sequences, it's up to them to manually reassign stages.

The current system as-is offers the greatest amount of flexibility for all playtypes.

I do not quite see how a system that does not allow predetermination of staging offers "the greatest amount of flexibility for all playtypes." as you say. My suggestion is to add a convenient way to manually reassign stages other than clicking through a long list of stages to see which ones highlight. The game determined staging could act as a default if one does not wish to manually select the preferred staging. Am not pointing out a miss step but rather suggesting a fine point of control which could offer something to the meticulous rocket scientist. If you are opposed I would like to hear why; discussion is thought and thought is a wonderful thing to exercise. Thus far you've simply stated the current state of things which was not a point of confusion to begin with...

Is there something about this proposal you do not understand? Please feel free to query.

[sumghai]

The current system is already sufficient for specifying whatever stage you want your parts to go into - it's not that difficult to scroll through even a significantly-sized staging list to find the part you want to re-stage.

[Diazo]

To try and get this back on track, what I would love is a key to move stages.

IE: I can hover over a part with the mouse to highlight it, then hit a key to move that part up or down a stage.

Would make building asparagus stuff a lot easier.

D.

[sumghai]

To try and get this back on track, what I would love is a key to move stages.

IE: I can hover over a part with the mouse to highlight it, then hit a key to move that part up or down a stage.

The current system consists of:

- Hovering over the part(s) desired

- Clicking once to select it (if grouped, the click expands the individual elements)

- Using shift-click to select a subset of the original selection

- Dragging the selected elements up or down into the desired stage

Quite frankly, the current system is more precise and superior to "hitting a key", especially if you want to split groups for asparagus.

[40s]

http://imgur.com/a/dU48q

As you can see in the above when creating the "asparagus" staging setup you need to separate the staging in a certain order. In the second image you see that the parts are held in limbo when detached. and in the third image you see that when reattached they jumble together.

If instead of jumbling together, the active parts were separated into sections determined by the part on which they are attached you could make rockets of this style with a bit less tedium.

[sumghai]

-snip-

As you can see in the above when creating the "asparagus" staging setup you need to separate the staging in a certain order. In the second image you see that the parts are held in limbo when detached. and in the third image you see that when reattached they jumble together.

If instead of jumbling together, the active parts were separated into sections determined by the part on which they are attached you could make rockets of this style with a bit less tedium.

That's because when detached parts are re-attached, KSP rebuilds the tree structure but only makes a rough guess at where the stages should be.

Since what you're asking for is essentially unnecessary and would require a complete overhaul of how the game treats vessels, just avoid detaching asparagus units from your root part.

[boomerdog2000]

Not sure what you're doing but mine keeps track of the staging set up when I detach my launch vehicle from the main part.

[Diazo]

The current system consists of:

- Hovering over the part(s) desired

- Clicking once to select it (if grouped, the click expands the individual elements)

- Using shift-click to select a subset of the original selection

- Dragging the selected elements up or down into the desired stage

Quite frankly, the current system is more precise and superior to "hitting a key", especially if you want to split groups for asparagus.

Erm, I meant a different key for "Next Stage" and "Previous Stage" so:

-Hover over a part

-Hit the "Next Stage" key to move it up a stage

and you've moved the part to a different stage.

You have (or I do anyway) your hand on the keyboard to rotate parts anyway so it would be straightforward I think.

D.

[sumghai]

Erm, I meant a different key for "Next Stage" and "Previous Stage" so:

-Hover over a part

-Hit the "Next Stage" key to move it up a stage

and you've moved the part to a different stage.

You have (or I do anyway) your hand on the keyboard to rotate parts anyway so it would be straightforward I think.

Simply "hovering" over the desired part can be quite inaccurate, and also fails to support the case where parts placed with symmetry (e.g. boosters) need to be split up into separate stages to support asparagus staging.

The current click / shift-click system allows more precise control over unusual staging, at the (exceptionally minor) cost of a less than a second's tedium. No need to increase tedium / delays with extra key combinations.