Oolite Bulletins

got one on my desktop here but it's a bit skanky dark and my work machine only has Paint - no contrast-enhancing options >:-/ grab a couple tonight. also have a 2.5meg vid of it but that might be a bit large to PM!!

my idea was having it poised over the planet, so yeah : the port would be 90 degrees out. dunno if that would be a prob..??
the struts are stationary : under the docking section there are two counter-rotating discs that are supposed to be shops/entertainmanet areas etc, below is the base w/ power units and hanging under are living/apartment blocks (the look gives it the nickname "Medusa"), and below are the docking gantries.

Captain Hesperus wrote:

Killer Wolf wrote:

i always fancied doing an airship aerobatic display team. bit slower than the Red Arrows tho

God help the guy whose turn it is to 'Loop-the-loop'.

Announcer: Ladies and gentlemen, allow me to draw your attention to the far end of the airfield where Don 'I have full Life Insurance' Smith is preparing for his death-defying loop the loop attempt. This has been attempted before with catastrophic results, but Don thinks he can pull it off. And yes, I can see him receiving Last Rites from the Chaplain.......

Captain Hesperus

<30 minutes later> "...and he's just coming up to the top of the loop..."

As far as scale is concerned, I favour scaling most of the ships (and the cargo pods) down by about a factor of three (the whole is-it-metres-or-is-it-feet thing). However, we then get into interfering-with-the-original-experience territory. Of course, if these ships are going to stay as OXPs and not become a new built-in set that’s not a problem.

Another problem with scaling down is all the existing OXP ships that aren’t scaled down… scaling up big ships, and stations, and planets, and suns, and distances would fix that – along with counter-scaling speeds so travel times stay the same – but then we’re back to the interfering thing. :-/

I've always thought the Anaconda used Tardis technology to keep its external size smaller than it's spacious interior.

The easiest solution is scaling down the cargo pods. In actual fact, if you look at my previous post I've put a scale bloke in the shot (2m high) and the Oolite sized Anaconda looks about right, it could be that crafts like the cobra 3 are too big and it's not that the Anaconda is too small.

(Assuming the figures are in metres and not feet that is)

ramon wrote:

In actual fact, if you look at my previous post I've put a scale bloke in the shot (2m high) and the Oolite sized Anaconda looks about right, i could be that crafts like the cobra 3 are too big and it's not that the Anaconda is too small.

Yep.

Problem with scaling down the pods is that they'll be impossible to find.

I vote for scaling down the pods INSIDE the Anna only.
any ejected pods should be normal in-play size.
(You won't notice the inconsistency, as the pods will be coming at you anyhow, thus visually increasing in size too.)

@wolfwood station: a bit offtopic here sonny, make a new thread for it.

Arexack_Heretic wrote:

I vote for scaling down the pods INSIDE the Anna only.
any ejected pods should be normal in-play size.

I tend to agree with this line of thought.

Ahruman wrote:

Of course, if these ships are going to stay as OXPs and not become a new built-in set that’s not a problem.

Ah? I was under the impression these new models would become part of the game by default, not an OXP...

Ahruman wrote:

Another problem with scaling down is all the existing OXP ships that aren’t scaled down… scaling up big ships, and stations, and planets, and suns, and distances would fix that – along with counter-scaling speeds so travel times stay the same – but then we’re back to the interfering thing. :-/

Can we put that to some kind of vote?

I mean, the whole 'keep it close to the original dimensions' seems a bit fundie to me, we're 20 odd years further down the road, screen resolution has changed dramatically, computerspeed has too... How far could we change stuff so it is more realistic and still keep the gameplayability-feel of the original? Or could there be a new environment with rescaled stuff and an original set in 'strict' mode?

Lots of questions, lots of opinions too, I'd guess...

Arexack_Heretic wrote:

Problem with scaling down the pods is that they'll be impossible to find.

would they really be that hard to spot? is it possible to do a test with rescaled 'pods and gauge visibility?

Making most ships 3x smaller would effectively be the same thing as increasing all distances 3x… and making everything move 3x faster. Hitting things – with lasers or scoops – would certainly be harder, but probably doable.

Rescaling the universe by a constant factor for testing probably shouldn’t be too hard (famous last words), but I’m not going to attempt it while I’ve got the scripting system torn to pieces and spread around the workshop.

I don't have an issue with rescaling (but then I'm not coding heh heh) in fact it could be quite beneficial - what are the chances of the 40 mile long space dredgers?

Ahruman wrote:

ramon wrote:

In actual fact, if you look at my previous post I've put a scale bloke in the shot (2m high) and the Oolite sized Anaconda looks about right, i could be that crafts like the cobra 3 are too big and it's not that the Anaconda is too small.

Yep.

Is that 'Yep, there's a scale bloke in shot' or 'Yep, the Oolite Anaconda is the right size and everything else is too big'?

Sorry, I'm terribly slow.

Captain Hesperus

That is a yup, the anaconda in fact trades in 'futures' of actual stock that is yet to arrive in the system.