Mod bundler for "Real Solar System" (DEFUNCT)

[usulrasolas]

Here is a list:

FAR

Bobcat Soviet Pack

FASA

Hullcam VDS

KW

K.Alarm Clock

KAS

K.Engineer Redux

KJR

MechJeb

NP

P.Fairings

RLA

RealChutes

Ship Manifest

TAC Life support

Treeloader

OOOOH! Bug find! It tries to download treeloader even if unchecked. Tried to shut down and restart it, and same error. Weird how you find bugs when you try every combo of mod one by one. X-D

I'll test everything else when I get past the treeloader bug. So far I can confirm that:

AIES, Texture Management(both), ECLSS, E.Ignitor, Exsurgent.dll, IR, KSP:I, MCE, RftSpk2, RSS, RF, RealismOverhaul, RP LITE, RT2, StretchySRB, and Toolbar work.

Hope it helps.

[jamis]

Thank-you! I'll see if I can find something in common with those problem mods.

Also, it may not be a bug that TreeLoader is being downloaded, even if unchecked. It is a dependency of RP LITE, so if you check RP LITE, TreeLoader will be downloaded, checked or not. If you find TreeLoader is being downloaded even when RP LITE is unchecked, though, that's probably a bug.

Thanks again!

[usulrasolas]

RP LITE Dependency was correct. Not a bug, and the list of mods that do not download is complete, I tested everything else and can confirm it downloads.

And no problem! Wrappers and bundlers save me time and make modding a more accessible experience for some. RSS may be "advanced stuff" but that doesn't mean real life technical expertise should stop you from playing it. That's not the spirit of Kerbal!

Edited February 11, 2014 by usulrasolas

[jamis]

Well, I found the pattern, I just don't know what it means, yet. The problem mods are all hosted at spaceport... The bundler makes two requests for these -- one to get the actual download URL for the file from spaceport, and another to download the file. Perhaps something is broken in the flow. I'll dig in, but might not be able to really pay attention to it until tonight.

Thanks again for your help!

[sjgold]

What a wonderful application!....

I have a suggestion, custom install locations.

I run multiple KSP directories set in certain configurations of mods. So my default KSP steam directory runs my normal game mods and then I have a RSS directory that runs my RSS loadout.

Just a suggestion, do with it what you wish. I think this is an awesome application.

[jamis]

Thanks for the suggestion, sjgold! The bundler actually just builds a zip file, which you can then unpack to whichever game folder you wish. Eventually, I might make it so the app will just build out to whatever directory you specify, but for now the zip makes it possible to toss the mods wherever.

[jamis]

Huge thanks to usulrasolas for being my guinea pig as I worked to fix an issue with spaceport downloads on 64-bit windows. If you see "IOError" messages when using the bundler to download some mods (like FAR), please grab the latest version of the bundler and try again.

Cheers!

[usulrasolas]

No problem! I have had one hiccup since testing/updating the bundler, but as it isn't reproducible, it didn't happen!

But seriously, kudos, this makes entry level RSS a easy thing to set up for almost anyone. Select the options, and click build, then unzip it to your ksp directory.

I could suggest making the default more clearly marked (just for people who aren't familiar with modding/rss).

I could also suggest about a dozen other small mods that go realllllly well with this install. Enhanced Navball(s), and docking alignment indicator are the "essentials" missed from the list.

Honestly, if you're loading this modlist from a file (or location), could your loading process be used to create really any mod bundler? Just thinking.

[Jwam]

Thank you very much for this AWESOME tool.

[jamis]

@Jwam, thanks!

@usulrasolas, I'd love to see your full list of "essential" mods. It's pretty easy to update the master list, and as long as we can prevent the list from overwhelming new users, I'm all for adding useful utilities. (I'll probably start needing help keeping the list up-to-date, though!)

And if you want to start building entirely different bundles (for the PlanetFactory worlds that are sprouting up everywhere, for instance), the README at https://github.com/jamis/KSP-RealSolarSystem-Bundler talks about how to make that work. I'd be happy to answer any questions about the process, too, if I got to hand-wavey in the README.

[TranceaddicT]

You might want to do something about the multiple ModuleManager copies. I get 1.0, 1.5.5 & 1.5.6 when bundling is complete. If you can't filter it out you might want to add a warning a the end to check for duplicate dll files.

[jamis]

Those multiple ModuleManagers are intentional, but maybe my understanding is wrong. The ModuleManager.dll is named for its version, so that multiple different ModuleManager versions can coexist. Thus, if a module requires ModuleManager 1.5, and another requires 1.6, both get the API they need.

If I'm mistaken, though, and the duplicates are actually undesirable, it's easy enough to tweak the manifest file to eliminate them. I'd be happy to do that, if necessary.

[NathanKell]

....they're undesirable, yeah. You only ever want one ModuleManager, the latest version, in the root GameData folder. They're named differently to ensure that newer ones aren't overwritten by older ones. Sarbian added functionality so if you have more than one version only the latest *should* execute, but it's still best to only have one (and if you have more than one of the latest version...bad).

So happy this is shaping up well. Kudos!

[jamis]

Ah, thanks for the clarification. I'll get that cleaned up tomorrow--should be easy to tweak just by updating the manifest.

[usulrasolas]

Here's my list of recommendations that aren't too crazy and I will try and notate what "category" of mod I suggest it as.

Core - AIES RT2 Fix

Utilities - Tweakable Wheels

Utilities - Tweakable Everything

Parts - ALCOR *Maybe when it's out of WIP, but it supports RO and has great IVA. Also dependent on RasterProp.

Utilities - RCS Build Aid

Utilities - Enhanced Navball

Utilities - NavBall Docking Alignment Indicator

Utilites - Docking Port Alignment

Extras - Atmospheric Sound Enhancement

Parts - Procedural Wings (I know the control surfaces have FAR issues, but the wings can't be beat for tuning SSTO in RSS)

Core/Extras/Interesting/IDon'tKnowWhere - Raster Prop Monitor

Interesting - Kethane (I imagine there are reasons to keep this off the list too... but it's fun.)

And you already added ScanSat.

Those are just my box of ideas, not really anything too crazy, and some of them sure aren't necessary... but I use way more mods and those are "core" for me. If you need details or links to any of these, feel free to PM me, I don't mind.

Edited February 12, 2014 by usulrasolas

[jamis]

Great list, usulrasolas. I've got Kethane in the queue already, but it's requiring a lot of config tweaks to make usable in RSS, and I haven't been able to find anyone that's already done it. I've almost got it mostly done, and then I'd also like to add Extraplanetary Launchpads (which isn't on the list yet for the same reason).

The next version of the bundler will hide all non-default mods, by default, but you can easily change the filter to show all recommended mods, or all available mods. I'm hopeful this will keep the list from overwhelming newcomers to RSS, while still allowing power users to trick out their install however they want. I'll take a look at those mods you're using and see about adding them to the list.

Thanks again!

[Phenom Anon X]

I'm wondering if I'm doing something wrong with this. I run the batch file and nothing seems to happen. It runs and closes and that's it.

Here's what's in the batch file.

@echo offset CLASSPATH=.\jars\zip4j_1.3.2.jar java -Xmx500m -jar .\jars\real-solar-system.jar

It displays as one continuous line in notepad. I added a space after @echo off, removed the java command among other things. I've unsuccessfully edited the command line to avail and I'm still stumped. I've also tried to run the batch from various locations (desktop, and other folders both ind outside of the KSP directory.

Am I doing something wrong?

* Edit: (JRE 7 is installed)

[jamis]

@Phenom, that's really odd. I had that happen once while testing on a Windows machine, and it was because java wasn't installed...but you've confirmed that's not the case for you.

So!

How familiar are you with the Windows command prompt? The best way to test this would be to open a command prompt, change to the directory where you installed the bundler, and then try to run the batch file from there. If something is broken, hopefully it'll show you an error message. My best guess, right now, is that for some reason Windows isn't able to find where java is installed.

Also, you said you "removed the java command among other things" -- you might want to reinstall the bundler before doing anything else, to be safe. Notepad doesn't display the contents of the batch file very well, but I (and others) have tested it on Windows, and it does work, so removing things from that file will only make things worse (unless you know exactly what you're doing).

I don't know what your comfort level is with the command prompt, but if you do need more explicit instructions, let me know and I'll do my best to provide them. Sorry this is such bumpy going!

[Phenom Anon X]

@jamis

I'm at work right now, so I'll try a few things out when I get back home and report back.

The command line I used was this:

C:\Users\***>C:\Users\Admin\Desktop\real-solar-system-20140211-2\real-solar-sy
stem-20140211-2\real-solar-system.bat

As far as editing the batch file, I just tried successive edits to see what the results would have been. After those failed attempts, I did in fact overwrite the edited file with a backup and to be sure, I unpacked the archive to have a clean version, so no worries there.

I suspected that notepad was messing up the view when I opened the file both with the native WinRar file viewer and in notepad++, both of which displayed the command code properly.

As I mentioned, I'm at work right now, so I'll try when I get home or later tonight through VNC.

*edit:

An additional error in the command prompt window:

'java' is not recognized as an internal or external command,
operable program or batch file.

Edited February 13, 2014 by Phenom Anon X
Added error code

[jamis]

Ah, I see. Make sure you're in the real-solar-system-20140211-2 folder itself when you run the batch file, otherwise (I suspect) it won't be able to find the jar files and other utilities it depends on. Let me know how it goes!

[jamis]

Hmm! Yeah, see, the "java is not recognized" error is usually because java isn't installed, or isn't installed correctly. Would you mind trying a (re)install of Java? You can download it here: https://www.java.com/en/download/manual.jsp.

[Phenom Anon X]

Done and done.

It boiled down to where I was running the command from. From what I can see (VNC from work), everything is up and running as intended.

Thanks man, much appreciated!

[Phenom Anon X]

Now that I've seen it in action, I just have to that this tool is just "Phenomenal".

Awesome, awesome, awesome job. I love this :-D

[jamis]

Aw, shucks thanks! Of course, 99% of the credit goes to NathanKell and the authors of the other mods--I just wanted to make it easier for people to experiment with them. Selfishly, I'm hoping that if it gets easier to set up, more people will post mission reports and Youtube videos of RSS-based missions. I love reading/watching that stuff.

[NathanKell]

Tell you what then. Name a mission that could reasonably be done by 50s technology and I'll do my best to work it into RftS.

(Look at KATO for some examples; coming soon are the first satellites, the first Mach 2 aircraft, other early satellites, an X-15 like spaceplane, etc).

(And no, you have no idea how many people have been asking for a bundle or installer, and how much work you're saving me. Thanks are all yours. )