S.A.S. Usage

[Ascensiam]

Somehow my SAS modules refuse to work regardless of what i do.

They never activate and when my rocket slowly starts to go off course, they do nothing.

I appear to somehow be utterly oblivious on how to use these, as i can find the necessary information nowhere.

I use normal SAS (not adv SAS) and i\'ve tried several things to make them work, icluding hooking them up with fuel pods, attaching wings, attaching all kinds of different unrelated parts, nothing works.

Since everyone else seems to have a very easy time, and also seem to automatically know how they work, i fear my game may somehow be bugged, if not, my brain is.

I use the free download with no mods. (I plan to buy the game later on when i can get back to my better computer.)

Thanks in advance.

[Kryten]

Are you activating the SAS (using T)?

Could we have some screenshots of your rockets (use F1)?

Have you tried adding fins to the bottom of your rockets? Rockets leading slowly to the side is usually an aerodynamic issue, and fins usually help.

[Ascensiam]

Oh, there we have it, now i feel like an idiot.

Thank you sincerely.

[socket7]

Oh, there we have it, now i feel like an idiot.

Thank you sincerely.

We were all new once ;D

By the way, when you get around to using ASAS modules, you should know that while adding more SAS modules increases their effect, you only ever need one ASAS. Using more then one just weighs down your rocket.

[WX_Echo]

A helpful hint: winglets will only be useful when operating in an atmosphere. Try and incorporate them in stages that will be shed prior to leaving Kerbin\'s atmosphere (~68 km altitude).

The ASAS will take control of either SAS modules and/or winglets, so choose your tools wisely.

[OtherDalfite]

We were all new once ;D

By the way, when you get around to using ASAS modules, you should know that while adding more SAS modules increases their effect, you only ever need one ASAS. Using more then one just weighs down your rocket.

Do keep in mind though that S.A.S modules won\'t tear your ship apart, unlike their more advanced counterparts.

[jgjiscool]

ASAS also takes control of RCS units and engine gimbals.

[Ascensiam]

Actually SAS was the only real problem i ever had, i am not a hotkey inclined person.

Before this was resolved, i had manually balanced a liquid fuel rocket into space and it ended up 13 million KM away after promtly missing the Mun.

I seriously thought this was how the launch part was played.

[jgjiscool]

Yeah the Mun\'s sphere does that. Throws you into kerbol orbit while you\'re in 10000x warp.

[Thumper235]

And a couple of idiots were made by this post. Thanx. :/

[jgjiscool]

Don\'t worry about it! We all make hideously stupid mistakes. Such as when I wanted to land from space and couldn\'t understand WHY THE F*** IT WOULDN\'T GO DOWN!!! Orbit is a pain in the ass.

[Ascensiam]

You know, the greatest annoyance i have with this game is simply the lack of condensation stripes and burn effects.

When your rocket has engines off it is insanely hard to determine it\'s course effectively on the spot.

For eye candy, it would be sweet with condensation stripes, and even sweeter if your ship could actually burn up in the atmosphere and explode.

[Phoxtane]

A helpful hint: winglets will only be useful when operating in an atmosphere. Try and incorporate them in stages that will be shed prior to leaving Kerbin\'s atmosphere (~68 km altitude).

Personally, I\'ve noticed that they stop having a significant effect around 35,000 meters, as the atmosphere gets much thinner around that point.

[Capt'n Skunky]

Every time I see the title of this topic I always read it as Sausage.

Arrr!

Capt\'n Skunky

[samstarman5]

You know, the greatest annoyance i have with this game is simply the lack of condensation stripes and burn effects.

When your rocket has engines off it is insanely hard to determine it\'s course effectively on the spot.

For eye candy, it would be sweet with condensation stripes, and even sweeter if your ship could actually burn up in the atmosphere and explode.

Re-entry heat is coming, which makes me happy as it is going to put all the veterans back to school again. Contrails would be nice but that would be one more thing to add to the weight on the framerate. I\'m hoping that gets tweaked before more new effects get slotted in.

But let\'s stick to the subject at hand. One thing that has me scratching my head is the ASAS package weighs the same mass as the SAS. You\'d think something with more effect on keeping things stable would have more in it, therefore adding to the mass. It seems to defeat part of the point of just using one ASAS and throwing some regular SAS\'s throughout the stages.

Now I am thinking your final stage doesn\'t need uber-attention, so I usually put the ASAS on the orbital or the launch stage, and then add an SAS to the final stage which does the trick. But how much do you really need to maintain control? (If you aren\'t going for something outrageously Kerbal) I seem to do rather well with just one SAS package per stage regardless of how big the stages are.

Thoughts? Revelations?

[Ivan Ivanovich]

ASAS doesn\'t have more effect, actually, it has a different effect.

ASAS steers your craft actively and is, essentially, nothing more than an autopilot trying to use the controls to keep you on course. SAS on the other hand is a passive module much like a gyroscope that keeps you on course by virtue of inertia.

ASAS is superior in most situations, at least as long as steering can actually compensate the unwanted movement of your rocket. As soon as you\'re constantly steering at the maximum and still cannot compensate, a SAS module (or a few of them) might help.

[samstarman5]

Which is why multiple ASAS\'s are a bad idea as they can end up fighting each other and then decide a trial separation is in order regardless of what the kerbals in the car have to say.

Okay, that gives me an excellent perception.