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  1. kwan3217

    Orbiter Screenshot Thread

    Launch Complex 39 built out fully, pads A-E.
  2. kwan3217

    Putting a face to the name

    I make addons as a hobby. I work on spacecraft for a living. The one behind me is AIM. 197kg of pure SCIENCE!
  3. kwan3217

    Estimating 1 lb?

    Back in high school chemistry, we were handed a kilogram mass for a scale, a black hollow metal cylinder filled with the right amount of lead shot. We each held and hefted it, then passed it along to the next student. I still base my idea of a kilogram on that. For a pound, imagine a coffee cup...
  4. kwan3217

    Dreaming of Pad 39-E

    A launch window for Mars opens once every 26 months, with the next one being in November 2011. While each window has better or worse alignment, all transfers are roughly the same in the most general sense. I don't see any reason to wait longer than 2013 or so. Pretend we have maximum budget...
  5. kwan3217

    General Question Does anyone know of a good .dds converter

    GIMP with its DDS extension. Reads and writes DDS just fine. Just make sure to set it to DXT1/with mipmaps.
  6. kwan3217

    OHM SideMountHLV

    New version, check my blog for details.
  7. kwan3217

    "Ignition Sequence Start"

    New version 0.20 SideMountHLV :cheers:. Done just in time to keep the timestamp on the PDF documentation accurate. Major feature in this one is a programmable autopilot. Eventually I want to have the autopilot programmable from the custom 2D panel. So what's next? I don't know. Howbout you all...
  8. kwan3217

    General Question Controllers on actual spacecraft

    Yup, it does all that. It's a little square knob that you can push left, right, up, down, in, out, and then the ship translates in that direction. Yes, it springs back to center. I've never seen a THC by itself for a computer, but I have heard of a controller (SpaceBall or somesuch) which has a...
  9. kwan3217

    OHM SideMountHLV

    Columbia: There already is a roll program, it's just rolling from 90deg to 93.1deg azimuth. If you edit the scenario so that the vehicle has a heading of 0deg, you will see it. Fixerger: It looks like they are writing about that PDF discussed earlier in the thread. If there is more to this I...
  10. kwan3217

    On SDHLV propulsion

    Probably tonight. Programming the autopilot for now will mean editing the scenario file. The version after that will be programmable from a 2d panel.
  11. kwan3217

    On SDHLV propulsion

    Space Shuttle Main Engines are expensive. They cost something like $50M each, which is justified only by the fact that they are re-used. On a shuttle-derived heavy lifter, three of these are thrown in the ocean. So, I was looking into other hydrogen engines. We want hydrogen because we want...
  12. kwan3217

    Poll Gimp or Photoshop?

    I voted GIMP, but I actually do most of my stuff with Inkscape. When it's time to make a texture, I distort the picture in Inkscape such that it is a power-of-two number of pixels in each direction, then export it as PNG then pull it into gimp to save a GIF copy for Anim8or and a DDS copy for...
  13. kwan3217

    OHM SideMountHLV

    That lifts itself part is with no cargo. A rocket meant for 90 tons carrying zero tons is a hot-rod.
  14. kwan3217

    OHM SideMountHLV

    I guess I forgot that in the instructions. When on the ground, push keyboard 1 (over the q, not numpad 1). Wait 8 minutes, and you will be in orbit. If you don't want the autopilot, push 'p'. This also turns off the sequencer, so you have to jettison the boosters and fairing manually. Steering...
  15. kwan3217

    OHM SideMountHLV

    New update posted, lots of cool features. This is now verging on a useful launch vehicle.
  16. kwan3217

    "Guidance has Converged"

    New version 0.10 of SideMountHLV in the usual place. The documentation on the SDHLV says that it targets a 120x30 nautical mile (220x60km) insertion orbit. This is suspiciously similar to the space shuttle direct ascent orbit, which burns out at 109km altitude. This orbit has its perigee in the...
  17. kwan3217

    Flight Question Good launch trajectory to reach orbit

    For a realistic rocket,try this: Use the surface MFD. Take off vertically of course, then 10 seconds after launch start pitching down slowly.You should get to about 45deg when you pass 15km, and about 30deg when you drop the first stage. From here, also watch apogee on the Orbit MFD. I like to...
  18. kwan3217

    OHM SideMountHLV

    Also, this may be a silly question, but you are using Orbiter 2010, right?
  19. kwan3217

    OHM SideMountHLV

    I'm not sure what to tell you then. The exact symptoms of missing the vc++2008 runtime thingie is that the vessel is invisible, has no engines or propellant, and when you are in the cockpit, it is at ground level looking exactly at the horizons. I may be able to compile it so that it doesn't...
  20. kwan3217

    "Three good engines"

    The next version of SDHLV is out, version 0.03. Run, don't walk, to OrbitHangar. I need to make up the 224 downloads I lost when I posted the update. :lol: I'm having fun with quoting things, as you may have noticed. A lot of projects out there have an unofficial title. For instance, Linux...
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