What's your view on Built-in Design Calculator?

[GSUI5051]

As the game have a new navigation style and shows delta-v on transfer (I prefer say xfer) window, there's a need for a built-in design calculator and in-flight delta-v calculator (someone have made a mod on that, but it might not accurate).

Delta-v, TWR, burn time. Delta-v is the most important stuff when there's a mission, we need to know the delta-v on spacecraft to make things happen, especially in Hard and Realistic Difficulty in SFS. (There is a delta-v map for SFS and REAL WORLD.) When landing on another planet, TWR is required stuff. (actually there's a built-in TWR calculation in SFS)

Someone think a Built-in Design Calculator is not required on a simple game, but I personally think it's needed when design a rocket and flying a mission. Someone made a design calculator on SFS but it does badly when there's a fairing.

 

[Marmilo]

Modding isn't possible on 1.5 tho
Unless it's different on steam edition

 

[Altaïr]

It would be interesting of course, but that goes against the original spirit of the game that was meant to be simple and accessible for people that don't know anything about rocketry. Honestly I find this is fine as a mod for experienced players, and new players wouldn't get flooded with numbers they don't understand. This could be built-in and toggled off by default for new players though.

However in practice that kind of tools has its limits. It can deal efficiently with casual rockets, but if you do funny things like transferring fuel from the boosters to the main tank or Asparagus staging, it's hard for the tool to guess your intentions.

 

[GSUI5051]

It would be interesting of course, but that goes against the original spirit of the game that was meant to be simple and accessible for people that don't know anything about rocketry. Honestly I find this is fine as a mod for experienced players, and new players wouldn't get flooded with numbers they don't understand. This could be built-in and toggled off by default for new players though.

However in practice that kind of tools has its limits. It can deal efficiently with casual rockets, but if you do funny things like transferring fuel from the boosters to the main tank or Asparagus staging, it's hard for the tool to guess your intentions.

Actually for those professional players, they choose calculate it on their own (by removing and refilling fuel in building). According to my experience in KSP, a calculator plug-in or a built-in calculator are reasonable options. For built-in calculator, keep it simple; for calculator plug-in, it depends.

 

[Marmilo]

Actually for those professional players, they choose calculate it on their own (by removing and refilling fuel in building). According to my experience in KSP, a calculator plug-in or a built-in calculator are reasonable options. For built-in calculator, keep it simple; for calculator plug-in, it depends.

So? We can do it using external tools, but a in-game calculator would be a large QOL upgrade. But, new users could get confused.

 

[Altaïr]

Actually for those professional players, they choose calculate it on their own

I'm quite aware about that

Honestly I would appreciate such a tool myself, but it needs some information to be accurate. The calculator in KSP uses the staging informations to know how the rocket will be used, which is of great help. For example if you have a rocket with a main core and boosters, you can either turn on all engines at lift-off, or only the boosters and then turn on the main engine once the boosters are depleted. A built-in calculator should ideally use the staging informations to be accurate. But that's the programmer in me speaking.

To me the idea is fine to be honest, but when most casual players build rockets with stupidly high TWR and Titan engines on upper stage I understand that it's not Stef's priority. And it's not a problem of lack of informations, the TWR is displayed, the engine characteristics are known, there's even a tooltip telling them when each one should be used. That's the same reason why a delta-V calculator can't be the answer for people that don't understand the physics behind the game.

 

[CST-100]

Unless it's different on steam edition

Steam Edition does support modding to my knowledge. Stef even said they may release snippets of code to help modders.

 

[GSUI5051]

However in practice that kind of tools has its limits. It can deal efficiently with casual rockets, but if you do funny things like transferring fuel from the boosters to the main tank or Asparagus staging

Current fuel xfer mechanism in SFS can't provide asparagus staging like Kerbal X. If someone build a Space Shuttle just like the NASA one, they should think about flight control issue and center of mass/thrust stuff.

To me the idea is fine to be honest, but when most casual players build rockets with stupidly high TWR and Titan engines on upper stage I understand that it's not Stef's priority. And it's not a problem of lack of informations, the TWR is displayed, the engine characteristics are known, there's even a tooltip telling them when each one should be used. That's the same reason why a delta-V calculator can't be the answer for people that don't understand the physics behind the game.

For those people from real world, they might know about why an orbit insertion burn lasts ~13 minutes. But those newcomer may just say: "MOAR BOOSTERS!"

 

[wliu0526]

Pls make that mod

 

[ILovespace3]

Year old necropost

I need that necropost alert gif

 

[Altaïr]

Year old necropost

I need that necropost alert gif

There you have