Staging and action groups

[xrayfishx]

What I'm thinking of here is simple: Everything that is in action groups could be placed in staging and vice versa. Actions that a given part adds to the staging list would be a tweakable so that you would not have to have opening solar panels in the staging, but you could have that if you wanted to.

I can't recall any parts that add something in staging that isn't available in action groups, but I know I've seen some (could be mods, though. I apologize for this part if that's the case).

[nohelmet]

Excellent idea, I like it! Perhaps the user interface could be that when we look at the list of action groups in the VAB, we can drag&drop some onto the stage list?

Then when we use spacebar to activate that stage later in flight, it'll be as if we pressed the key for that action group. That'd be cool, then we can use staging to decouple docking ports, toggle lights, or expand solar panels.

[The Destroyer]

Yes! Excelent idea! It would especially help due to the fact that we have *only* 10 action groups

[DoToH]

I don't like it. Staging should stay simple and clear, and only with parts relevant to staging itself. Staging is not the best way to manage solar panels, undocking and any other part not relevant to staging. I even think they should remove chutes from staging (I allways deploy them by action group).

I would prefer a nice overhaul to action groups, like in some mods about them.

You should try them (this or this). I don't know if there are more of them about action groups.

[MKI]

I like the idea, but can't think of an instance where you would need this in the stock game.

Staging controls are good enough to get almost anything into space. Even complicated things such as SSTO's or complicated shuttle systems do fine with just the action groups and staging.

So its a good idea, just it wouldn't have any purpose without more complicated mods, and thus doesn't belong in the stock game.

[Red Iron Crown]

I like the idea, but can't think of an instance where you would need this in the stock game.

I've had a desire for this in stock. I built an Eve lander which consisted of a small asparagus rocket on top of a larger one. As the lower asparagus dropped stages, the engine in the smaller rocket above would ignite to help keep the TWR up. Because those small engines were above the CoM, I had to disable gimballing on them, but it would have been nice for the gimbals to unlock when the last lower stage was dropped. Inconvenient to do by hand, as there were six engines and I didn't want to unbalance the rocket by unlocking them asymmetrically.

Deploying solar panels automatically when the last part of the lifter stages away would be useful, too. It is all to easy to forget to deploy them and run down the batteries.

Not necessarily common cases, but I can see where it could be useful, even in stock.

[prophet_01]

I actually hafe a use for it. I hafe a pretty complicated and big shuttle design hat carrys loads of cargo and fuel (not because i need it, but its a great challenge ). Anyone who tried to build shuttles may experienced the moving com issue as well. I am using an engine cluster of 8 vtol engines (b9 aerospace mod) to compensate this in a decent way.

Anyway i hafe to adjust the angle and deactivate the gimbal during the ascent while staging and maneuvering.

I like to simplify my designs in terms of controlability as much as possible. I am currently using control groups instead of the regular staging (space button). But its not rly my prefered solution to do the staging with control groups. The suggested idea would help

[prophet_01]

Another example from stock are interplanetary transport systems. I use docking ports instead of normal seperatrons to make it reusable or refuel it on the run by replacing abandoned tanks. The thing is i normally use symetrycal fuel tank arangements and i would like to undock them simultaneously while continuing the burn. Would help with that