Other recent shininess you may have missed for 1.77: BGS has been updated with new docking and hyperspace sequences; there's Respray for Griffs to let you recolour the player ship easily (if you're flying a Griff ship, that is) - don't worry about the "test release" bit: it's perfectly stable; and spara has been retexturing and rereleasing a lot of the older station OXPs.
and spara has been retexturing and rereleasing a lot of the older station OXPs.
Not to mention releasing facelifts for Anarchies and Random Hits.
Most games have some sort of paddling-pool-and-water-wings beginning to ease you in: Oolite takes the rather more Darwinian approach of heaving you straight into the ocean, often with a brick or two in your pockets for luck. ~ Disembodied