YouTube playthroughs

[Cholmondely]

I'm curious whether it is an old grumble about something which a_c_ has already fixed (my guess), something irrelevant, something I've not noticed which could be improved (maybe even easily!)...

Which old grumble?


If your looking for newer, ahem youngling players:
-must be new game not old
-must be ubershiny or be blocky miney ( yikes! )
-must be autoaim ( probably wantey a thargoid laser on four sides )
-must be unlimited restarts with benefits.
-must be autogaining resources when offline.

Old/poor graphics.

[szaumix]

That's like prioritizing the font a document is written in over its actual content.

[Cholmondely]

That's like prioritizing the font a document is written in over its actual content.

I agree.

But

Isn't it a matter of the amount of time and effort one has to put in?

Think of the hours you have spent mastering the bits of Oolite which you have. Since you have done this, you can appreciate what is there. But why should a teenager ignorant of Oolite do that?

[Redspear]

At the risk of creating/perpetuating a sweeping oversimplification, the thing about sandbox games is that they can look to the beginner like they're just sand.

Some buckets, spades, scrapers, flags etc. wouldn't go amiss and it can be argued that oolite has them (even without oxps) but the problem is that they're neither obvious nor self-explanatory.

For example, the trading model is very simple but neither is it completely obvious that that's what the commodities are for (as opposed to 'base building' for example) nor is it obvious how they are priced.

Likewise with tech level and government type (although the latter's much more complex these days). And how does the compass work exactly? If those are Zaonce commodity prices then why can't I land on Zaonce itself?

It may take just a quick read of an info sheet but forget just one key element and you're scuppered. And I've haven't even mentioned my (least) favourite gripe with oolite

I do however have an idea that could alleviate some of this: witchpoont buoy coms.

• "Welcome to Tionisle, famous for our excellent shipyards" (high tech system)
• "Dock at Leesti station for cheap industrial goods" (industrial)
• "Head straight to Diso station where you'll get a good price for it industrial produce" (agricultural)
• "Riedquat police advise extreme caution, you have just entered an anarchy system" (anarchy)
• "Welcome traveller! Line up that compass to head to the planet and when the compass changes reading it will guide you to dock at the main station" (almost anywhere)

etc. etc.

And perhaps specific to the Lave station nav buoy...
"Once you've loaded up on agricultural produce (f8), try navigating to an industrial system (f6, f7) before engaging your hyperdrive (h)", just to get the player started.

So things would be spelled out to the player and yet (with the possible exception of Lave) it could all be disguised as flavour text / system colour.

I'm too busy to oxp this right now but it should be simple enough.

Other issues remain of course but oxps can at least alleviate many of those esp. difficulty and masslock (...damn it! I nearly didn't mention it).

[Nite Owl]

Redspear:
Have a look at WELCOME MAT by Thargoid. It does something similar to what you are describing but with not as much specific detail as you want to include. Welcome Mat could also use an update from OXPConfig to Library. It does work in its current state provided you either buy the included equipment or follow the instructions.

[Cholmondely]

Redspear:
Have a look at WELCOME MAT by Thargoid. It does something similar to what you are describing but with not as much specific detail as you want to include. Welcome Mat could also use an update from OXPConfig to Library. It does work in its current state provided you either buy the included equipment or follow the instructions.

I actually prefer OXP config to Library.

OXP config is much more immersive than the appearance of AddOns: Config for AddOns on the F4 screen after Library has been added.

But I do admit that with almost everything now being done via Library, that it is unfair to expect new players to master two different methods of modifying their modifications in-game.

[Nite Owl]

Cholmondely:
The following code can be found in the Lib_Config.js in the Scripts Folder of the Library OXZ at around line 107.

Code: Select all

this.shipDockedWithStation = function(){
	if(!player.ship || !player.ship.isValid || !player.ship.docked) return;
	player.ship.dockedStation.setInterface(this.name,{
		title: "OXZ Configuration", // TWEAK was - title: "Config for AddOns",
		category: "Settings", // TWEAK was - category: "AddOns",
		summary: this.description,
		callback: this._showStart.bind(this)
	});
};

As you can see it has my TWEAKS in the title: and category: lines. You can do something similar by editing those lines to whatever you like in order to keep the ever important F4 screen immersion factor at a premium.

Be advised that editing the category: line will change the position of the Library OXZ on the F4 screen based on the alphabetical sorting order of the first letter of whatever you change it to. A for AddOns will be near the top of the list while S for Settings will be near the bottom of the list or perhaps even on a second or third page depending on the number of listings.

The summary: line refers to this.description which can be found in the same file at around line 7. Recommendation is to TWEAK that line as well to whatever strikes your fancy to keep it in a similar purview with whatever other changes you may deem to make. This can be done by either editing the this.description line or by directly editing the summary: line.

[Redspear]

Redspear:
Have a look at WELCOME MAT by Thargoid. It does something similar to what you are describing but with not as much specific detail as you want to include.

I tried it years ago IIRC. It's related in that it uses the buoy but that's about it.

Crucially, I wouldn't have it require a cost upgrade (I'm trying to help beginners) and further I'd have it offer 'directions' rather than the 'additionals' of thargoid presence or pirate numbers (not that there's anything wrong with that).

Welcome mat gives extra info, my idea is to help the player to read the basic info found via f6/f7 and recognise its value.

Thanks for the reminder however: if I ever oxp it then that will likely be something to look at.

[Cholmondely]

Some notes on your latest.

0) HUDs.
a) "Default" is the one that comes up on top, not the Vanilla game HUD.
b) The ones which were not listed were not HUDSelector compatible (it needs to be written into the javascript for the HUD.oxp).
c) The Dangerous HUDs fight for which one gets shown if you have more than one. They have special noise effects (for ECM, hyperjumps, low energy, & missile warning - the author is a musician), and each comes in 3 flavours - fighter cockpit view, hauler cockpit view and glass only view (you need to prime "Dangerous HUD Mode Selector")
d) Steampunk HUD has a super "docked HUD"
e) HUD Selector allows you to tweak the Scanner - there is a logarithmic setting as well as a different choice of magnifications (1x, 2x, 4x, 8x & 16x).
f) LT = Laser Temperature, CT = Cabin temperature (vital to keep an eye on this one if you are sunskimming or trying to land on a planet).

1) Rock Hermits sell gold/platinum/gems at massive discounts. Ditto for minerals/radioactives. But beware the pirate coves (mostly in anarchies).

2) Buying: You can visit the other Ceesxe stations (Superhub & Nuit) and pick up more luxuries if you like.

3) The ship you saw was a Lynx Bulk Carrier (slow, and can carry up to 3000 TC in its bulk pods)






You might care to do a special on Hyperspace effects at some stage.

There is the Vanilla game and the BGS, both of which you know. But also an older BGS spiderweb, and another special effect for SOTL Exploration (where you need to steer). There is also a superb enhanced misjump effect (cim's OXP - very clever). You would want to display the regular jump and the misjump for each.

See here for some screen shots, here for a newer version of BGS where you can choose the jump in the docked F4 screen's "Config for AddOns" and here for the enhanced misjump.

[arquebus]

0) HUDs.

Oooh I'm gonna do a follow-up in the next video, I think!

[Cholmondely]

0) HUDs.

Oooh I'm gonna do a follow-up in the next video, I think!

1) A Non-"HUDSelector" HUD needs to be the only one in your AddOns/Managed AddOns folders if it is going to replace the Vanilla game HUD (and if it is not going to get trumped by another HUD.oxp sitting there too!). Thanks to Oolite Starter this is now much easier to manage.


2) Some interesting non-OXZ HUDs
Chucacabra HUD (has a special missile identifier for telling you what the missile icon represents!)
Deeper Space HUD
Isis HUD
SniperCameraSystem HUD
Trek HUD (Star Trek)
Venom Cockpit HUD
Z-GrOovY MiLHUD

See HUD Images here for snapshots of all these and links to downloads. I tried to do a comparison page for the wiki but my template creation skills are not up to it.


3) Note on phkb's Xenon HUD
This one is very sophisticated. For me (because I "sun skim" a lot, either for refuelling at systems where I do not have a Diplomancy Visa -I like to get very close to the sun so that the Solar Wind Flux is "2" or better- or for barbecueing bugs) the most important aspect is the glare-shielding for the dials. But phkb has added much more to it.


4) HUD details summary

a) HUD size. There are two important factors - the size of your ship and the size of your computer screen.
Compact huds are automatically chosen by small ships (Adders etc), and are designed to give the psychological feel of being in a small cockpit.
Large/ExtraLarge HUDs are designed for large computer screens.
So you could have a compact extra-large HUD!


b) Generations of HUDs.
I see three generations of HUDs as the VanillaHUD programming has evolved.

i) the original HUDs from 2004-10: these started with Aegidian's example of how to do it with the Mega-Walnut Dashboard HUD (for the Fer-de-Lance). The Trek HUD is probably the most individual of these.

ii) Oolite v.1.74 in 2010 allowed changing the HUD depending on condition: Green Condition, Yellow Condition, Red Alert and being docked. Killer Wolf's Dynamic HUD was the model that others emulated. The SniperCameraSystem HUD is probably the most adventurous of these. But Killer Wolf did some very interesting things too. KW's docked HUDs are my personal favourites - very immersive. That man has a superb imagination (have you tried out his Hathor station? It needs tweaking, but it is truly superb).

iii) Norby started a campaign to improve HUDs in 2013 which resulted in more changes with Oolite v.1.80: the addition of MFDs, primable equipment dials, compass target naming. The most clever of these (to my mind) are Vimana, Xenon, Dangerous HUD, Deeper Space HUD and the Z-GrOovY MiLHUD. If I was more into dogfighting I'd probably appreciate the various Combat/Fighter/MilHUDs more.

Note: Since the MFDs are "defined" (number, colour, size) by the HUD, earlier HUDs don't support MFDs unless they have been updated.


c) Specific ship HUDs. Note that not all HUDs exist as OXPs. Some are designed purely for specific ships and come as part of the ship.oxp (see the oeuvres of Killer Wolf, but also Wolfwood, Coluber and SimonB).

[arquebus]

Hmm, this is going to take more work to do it right! I may have to spend some time crafting a whole video separate from the gameplay playlist.

[Cholmondely]

Hmm, this is going to take more work to do it right!

Your most recent combat. (3.26)

1) You repeatedly fail to buy anything which boosts your pathetic vanilla shields. Every single time you scroll past equipment on the F3 screen which makes a major difference.

-Extra Energy Unit (EEU) costs a measly 1,500₢ and is on sale from TL9. These almost double the speed of your shield recharge (Vanilla game equipment)
-Shield Boosters in effect double your shield strength, and combine usefully with the EEU. 14,750₢ and TL11 (Vanilla game equipment)
-Aft/Fore Shield Capacitors give an instant recharge when the shields are clobbered (if you have not already used up the recharge). (OXP equipment)

For equipment worth more than 1,000₢ buy Repair Bots. Broken equipment costs half its price to repair - so 7,300+₢ for broken Shield Boosters!
The bots cost 10,000₢ for a pack of 5 but only 12,000₢ for a pack of 10. Recharges are much cheaper (100₢ each). Takes up 3TC of hold space, but saves a fortune on expensive repair bills. And the more expensive equipment/more vital equipment can only be fixed at the higher TL systems. Your Vimana HUD shows how many repair bots are left (SRS - Ship Repair System - on the right hand side above the dials).




2) Using your STE. All the time - all the time - it was showing you where the targeted enemy was. The arrow on your sights continually points towards your target - however it moves to evade you - and however you move to avoid it.

See here:



Do you see the little green arrow pointing from the outside of the laser sights towards the targeted ship? And the distance of the ship from yours?

Now go back and look at your fight on your video (linked at top). Do you see the same little green arrow moving around your laser sights as the enemy ship moves - and as you move (always in the wrong direction).

SniperLock only works at distances of greater than 5km (to avoid collision with the target). So you need to keep that distance in order to be able to use it effectively.



AND

3) If you have an aft laser, then you can shoot from that too (needs the 2/F2 aft view: remember - 1/F1 is forwards view, 2/F2 is aft view).

A chasing enemy needs to line up with you from behind to shoot you (no gimbals, remember?). But you can now shoot back too, if you know what you are doing and remember to change your view - and remember to change your view back again, afterwards! And don't forget, as your front laser gets hotter and hotter, your rear laser is nice and cold!

And! Remember that its all back-to-front! Practicing on asteroids will help master the use of your rear laser. Just don't try it in an anarchy or other pirate-infested system! They will see your lasers from afar and come over to give you a warm "hello"!



AND

4) you can buy gimballed lasers. Buyable/sellable Yasen-N turrets OXP. 100,000₢ a pop - and you probably need to buy a bigger ship to mount them! From your nearest TL13 shipyard.




5) Oh! And sneak a peek at Laser Tactics





VISAS
You need them for money-grubbing Corporates and from the various totalitarians (Commies and Dictatorships) who want to control entry. None of the others need them.

You can buy them from any system which is not at war with where you want to go - and which is not an anarchy (they have no government and so no foreign embassies).

The less money you have, the less the fine. Stop selling all that gold/platinum & gems. Just keep your profits locked up that way and you will stop paying 800-1000₢ each time you dock. The fine costs around 50% of your profit each time!



FAST Docking.
Either download and buy ILS (50₢). Or tweak the dockable OXPs to allow fast docking. See NiteOwl's magic formula here. You might wish to consult https://wiki.alioth.net/index.php/How_to_tweak_OXZ%27s
Rock Hermits will be more complex - they come in 3 different flavours and are Vanilla game code, so you need to identify precisely what you are tweaking. Or you could add in the Rock Hermit Beacons OXP (which shows you where the entrance is!).
ASLs (Liners) are much easier to dock with if you tweak the OXP to allow fast docking. Normal docking will be suicidal, the waltzing docking computer will take forever, and ILS will work - but give you a heart attack in the process. They will not show up on your compass - they are ships and so do not have a compass beacon installed.



Compass and Rock Hermits.
The compass "targeting" can go backwards as well as forwards. The Compass targets tend to be in order, with the main planet, witchpoint beacons, station beacon and star at the front of the list. And any rock hermits in range right at the back of the list, after everything else. Moving backwards through the list when you arrive at a new system is always the fastest way to find them.

[phkb]

You repeatedly fail to buy anything which boosts your pathetic vanilla shields. Every single time you scroll past equipment on the F3 screen which makes a major difference.

Well, the videos are titled "Let's play poorly"!

[arquebus]

1) You repeatedly fail

I'm going to sit and think about my life choices during the Oolite hiatus (due to my Touch Portal working only over wifi and my wifi being messed up by my provider at the moment).

I've copied your post to a note file and I'm going to make a list of all the things I should get.