What was the First thing you did when you got KSP?

[Reactordrone]

After playing with the demo for about a week the first thing I did when I bought the game was look in the spaceplane hangar to see what that was about before rebuilding the Mun rocket I'd made in the demo and started exploring.

[White Owl]

I'd seen a gameplay video of an earlier version, and thought "I'll have to try that out someday." Couple days later, I was reading somewhere I don't even recall anymore, and learned the new update added a moon you could land on, and spaceplanes were possible with a particular modpack. So I downloaded the game then. (Not possible to buy the game at that point because the KSP store was a WIP, so it was a free download. A few weeks later the store was declared open for business, so I spent the absolutely best, most value-filled $20 of my whole life.)

Installed and launched the game to be sure it would run. Put together a pod, fuel tank and engine to be sure I understood how it worked. Closed the game without seriously trying to reach orbit. Downloaded and installed the C7 Flight Pack. Read the instructions about how to make the control surfaces work.

Built a simple spaceplane in the VAB, launched it. Was very pleased that it flew perfectly on the first try! Landed the little plane and noted it tended to balloon along, floating just above the ground much longer than anticipated. Took off again, climbed a little bit, and tried to find the stall speed... was slightly horrified when the plane refused to stall. It slowed way down and then started magically levitating, actually climbing higher and higher without any thrust from the engine. Learned later that this was called "infiniglide."

Made a plan to fly a spaceplane to the Mun and back, hooked up the microphone and started recording.

edit: Hang on, wait... I did make one conventional rocket after that little plane, to learn how to orbit. But I honestly don't remember any details about building or flying it...

I am so very very pleased that the first bug I was aware of in this game will finally be squashed! Infiniglide finally vanquished!

Edited February 15, 2015 by White Owl

[John FX]

Very first thing, tbh I can't remember it was so long ago, but I'm guessing that it was; pressed-space, watched rocket suddenly produce limbs that flailed everywhere before exploding. Leading to the realization that everything had to be strutted to everything else. This was of course way back in the day when it was the "Kerbal Strut Program", so glad part-joints are stronger now!

I sometimes look back at some of my early vids and laugh at just how wrong my approach was. First Mun landing I killed all horizontal velocity while still at an alt of over 100km and then descended vertically!!

Similar for me, it was a while ago and I can't remember the first thing. I remember that I spent a month docking before I discovered the RCS parts. I thought docking was just really hardcore and now I know why it is very very easy.

The main thing I do remember is trying to do things the way it is done in real life (thin aerodynamic rockets that start a turn fairly quickly) and having to unlearn all that and ascend to 7-10km before turning then turning 45 degrees all at once in a flat pancake.

i'd forgotten about how wobbly the rockets used to be.

[cantab]

My first was playing the tutorial in the demo, and putting the fuel tank above the command pod hee hee hee. I late realised that would have actually worked just fine!

One of my first things in the full game was creating a replica of a spaceship from a Roald Dahl book. That's actually my only attempt at a replica to date!

[pandaman]

First thing I did in the demo, after getting something in the air I spotted the island airfield so spent hours trying hit it V2 style. Learned a lot about the VAB and basic rocket design in the process. Got hooked and bought it.

[kookoo_gr]

Built a rocket and sent it straight up waiting to go into orbit. About 5 attempts later i watched a scott manley video and learned the gravity turn

[SpaceHips]

Well, i already had some sense for physics beforehand, so i built a sensible working rocket.

It was supposed to reach the upper atmosphere, but i had no idea that kerbin's atmosphere was apparently made of liquid concrete.

[Mr Tegu]

I blasted 1 kerbal vertically upward and out of sol's influence... The rocket was a beast but had no reaction wheels or control surfaces. once i realized I couldn't steer and I'd massively overestimated what it took to get the Mk1 module into orbit I just let her to go...

[Mighty1]

back in 0.18 - How does this work...hmmm. Tutorials - noooo, I don't need no stinkin tutorials. I know space. New game...SRB, capsule, chute...what is a de-cup-ler? Never mind, we'll find out eventualy. And this icons on the bottom right? Ahh, to *ell with it. 3,2,1, LAUNCH...err... how do I launch...(preses space) WHOOOOO here we...What the..why is the chute...eject engine (maybe I shuold have put that de-cup-ler thingy on my rocket)...BOOOOM...RIP Jeb. Opens up tutorial, doesn't learn anything useful, finds Scott Manley.

[SelectHalfling0]

Tried putting fuel tanks on top of a booster...

[Hary R]

Nothing original, put some part together, put an engine, fly it, hope it will reach spaaaaaace....... and utterly fail. Yeah nothing special.

[Thomassino]

Strapped together some rocket parts, went on lanchpad where I was figuring how to start an engine for about 10 minutes and then... Wohoooo 5000 metres!!! I was so happy

Later in tech tree I was trying to get more science by putting Mobile Processing Lab on orbit. I launched it like 20 times and then, finally on orbit I found out that goddamn thing doesn't produce science and needs 2 kerbals to work!!! :D

Good ol' times...

[RW-1]

All of you are wrong - you all installed it first, demo or otherwise.

Now, if the question had been "what was the first thing you did after launching KSP for the first time?" then ....

Launched a capsule to about 6000M, came back down on chute.

[Gerandar]

All of you are wrong - you all installed it first, demo or otherwise.

Now, if the question had been "what was the first thing you did after launching KSP for the first time?" then ....

Launched a capsule to about 6000M, came back down on chute.

I didn't install KSP my brother bought it and installed it while I was at work for my birthday, so you are wrong. first thing I did was launch a SRB into the VAB.

[Plusk]

Coming from Orbiter, where i flown spaceplanes exclusively (any Ravenstar pilots out here?) i was suprised how easily i can achieve orbit with a rocket. Then i realized i need chutes to get back down...

[jman508]

i did the typical "strap the small srb to the capsule and use the mk 16 chute to come back down"

but dude, i remember my first orbit! it was made by using a type in it was a spaceplane because it had air breathing engines but i would shed them every no and then i at the central stage it was a liquid fuel space engine. only to come back later to see that it had disappeared. my guess is that one point of my orbit was under 69.9 km and that it just slowly started to chew away at it.

[StrandedonEarth]

After all the basic installing and slapping a rocket together....

Mashing every key on the keyboard trying to make the thing launch! An in-game keymap would be exceedingly handy!

[hellblazer]

[Tripzter]

Made a space station.

[DMSP]

After watching a friend for a day, I put a Mk1 with a chute and a decoupled on a Srb. No kidding, but it worked. Then for a week I tried to get into orbit.