Oolite Bulletins

Post revisited
Good to see you back, anyway.

Hi,

New Commander here. This is my first post on this forum.

I have problems with this mission. I got to Tionisla and accepted the mission and got a Tionisla camera and the mission said I should go to Biorle. I did so and after several dockings at Biorle, I finally got the message about "pulling hard". Fine.

I have now travelled between Biorle and Usle and other nearby planets several times, and tried both pulling and pushing the joystick when the witch jump timer reach 2 seconds, but I think my witch jump thing is just to stable. It just get me to the target planets instead of a miss jump.

I'm totally lost. Has I missed anything?

/ Commander Redec

Hi Redec and welcome.

Commander Redec wrote:

... tried both pulling and pushing the joystick when the witch jump timer reach 2 seconds, but I think my witch jump thing is just to stable.

Try using the keyboard controls (up/down arrows) for that - it doesn't always work with the 'stick (there is a technical reason which I can't recall, atm).

Commander Redec wrote:

I have now travelled between Biorle and Usle and other nearby planets several times, and tried both pulling and pushing the joystick when the witch jump timer reach 2 seconds, but I think my witch jump thing is just to stable. It just get me to the target planets instead of a miss jump.

There should be fall-back code present that forces an automatic miss-jump after a few jumps between the two systems (visiting a third system or restarting from a saved game, will reset the counter).

El Viejo wrote:

Hi Redec and welcome.

Commander Redec wrote:

... tried both pulling and pushing the joystick when the witch jump timer reach 2 seconds, but I think my witch jump thing is just to stable.

Try using the keyboard controls (up/down arrows) for that - it doesn't always work with the 'stick (there is a technical reason which I can't recall, atm).

It's because not all joysticks give you the full 100% range of movement. Something to do with dampening, buffer zones and dead zones in the drivers i think. My joystick stops at 99% for climb and 98% for dive. 100% for roll left or right. I always use the keyboard to force a mis-jump.

Thanks. The keyboard down arrow worked. It took me to Erehwon. After a fight with some Thargoids, I managed to take some fine photos of the station and deliver them to Tionisla. Fine mission.

Now I'll fly to Eninre and deal with the Black Baron. I have already been in combat with some of his spies.

/ Commander Redec

You could also use my Misjump Inducer OXP...if you wish to misjump somewhere.

Switeck wrote:

You could also use my Misjump Inducer OXP...if you wish to misjump somewhere.

That sounds cool. I like dogfights with Thargoids. I'll install the OXP in a couple of days. Thanks for the URL.

By the way... when I have finished a mission, for example Tionisla Reporter, can I then just delete the OXP folder from the AddOns folder without disturbing anything?

/ Commander Redec

SandJ wrote:

Eric Walch wrote:

Capt. Murphy wrote:

....and finally does the station need a Commodities.plist to sell the enterprising reporter some cheap stuff?? There was no stock and zero prices when I visited.

I think that I intentionally set it to no-market because there can't be a market in interstellar space. I just noticed it again in trying to to add such a custom market. So, I think the last glitches are removed and I make it a proper release next weekend.

Bump! Version 1.0.1 still has zero prices and stock.

Commander McLane wrote:

the camera is defeating me. I always get "Useless photo, to far away!"

I know that feeling. After hours of playing time, I am returning to Tionisla with 10 useless photos to see what happens next. Right now I just find this OXP annoying and rather wish I hadn't bothered.

Also, "2.6 LY NW of Biorle" might have been a better clue. I ended up looking on here for the solution for finding it.

And I don't recall ever seeing a message "pull hard up on the stick" either.

Yeah, I kept trying to frame a double-misjump to get 3.0 LY west of Biorle and had to come to the forum here to find the right jump source/destination. And the camera is kicking my butt . I bought a new one in the station but it only gives me one shot before being marked full. And how is this a beginner's mission given how you need to find the planet and what is waiting for you there?

Yeah, I kept trying to frame a double-misjump to get 3.0 LY west of Biorle and had to come to the forum here to find the right jump source/destination. And the camera is kicking my butt . I bought a new one in the station but it only gives me one shot before being marked full. And how is this a beginner's mission given how you need to find the planet and what is waiting for you there?

Well I finally got a good shot with the reminders here that you need to get the station. It would be helpful for these sorts of missions if it were possible to review the full text of all the messages, like a "mission log", to save the need to physically write everything down to keep reviewing while out flying around.

Bogatyr wrote:

It would be helpful for these sorts of missions if it were possible to review the full text of all the messages, like a "mission log", to save the need to physically write everything down to keep reviewing while out flying around.

Some OXPs do have a mission text review function - for those that don't, it can be handy to grab a screenshot of each mission screen.

Bogatyr wrote:

Well I finally got a good shot with the reminders here that you need to get the station. It would be helpful for these sorts of missions if it were possible to review the full text of all the messages, like a "mission log", to save the need to physically write everything down to keep reviewing while out flying around.

Yeah. I appreciate that a lot of people went to a lot of trouble to put mission OXPs together, and since I haven't made any myself I feel I don't have a right to kvetch about it...but...I have to agree. Some of the missions have terrible english. A lot of mission objectives aren't particularly clear, sometimes I wonder if the authors are being deliberately obtuse. A lot of times I'm wondering if I completed the objective or should I fly around a bit longer.

Still, if you're feeling brave you can always dig through the script and your save files and work out what you're supposed to do and whether you've done it or not. If nothing else you'll start your path towards the darkside.

metatheurgist wrote:

Bogatyr wrote:

Well I finally got a good shot with the reminders here that you need to get the station. It would be helpful for these sorts of missions if it were possible to review the full text of all the messages, like a "mission log", to save the need to physically write everything down to keep reviewing while out flying around.

Yeah. I appreciate that a lot of people went to a lot of trouble to put mission OXPs together, and since I haven't made any myself I feel I don't have a right to kvetch about it...but...I have to agree. Some of the missions have terrible english. A lot of mission objectives aren't particularly clear, sometimes I wonder if the authors are being deliberately obtuse. A lot of times I'm wondering if I completed the objective or should I fly around a bit longer.

Still, if you're feeling brave you can always dig through the script and your save files and work out what you're supposed to do and whether you've done it or not. If nothing else you'll start your path towards the darkside.

Well of course we should be very thankful to the OXP authors, and I am! It by the way was a very interesting idea and I liked doing it, it was just frustrating that I couldn't figure out what to do without in essence cheating by coming here to find out how to do it. I had figured that a misjump was required, but the "3.0 LY west" had me trying to get exactly to 3.0LY to the left of Biorle, because that was the hint in the F5F5 screen. It hadn't occurred to me yet the hint was only approximate and that I should experiment with other "leftside" planets.

And I see here that OXP authors are generally appreciative of feedback, because I'm sure they want the experience to be good.

One more bit of concrete feedback, after I took all 10 pictures (all bad) and the camera was full, I purchased a new camera on the hidden planet's station, and the description said "takes 10 pictures" but it only gave me one more picture.

(Oh and another note: be careful about installing Uber - Thargoid OXPs like Thargoid Carrier -- I kept getting Naval battle style invasion armadas (without help from the Navy!) at the misjump most of the time and a Cobra MkIII even when iron-assed is but a fly against such mighty hardware.)

Bogatyr wrote:

One more bit of concrete feedback, after I took all 10 pictures (all bad) and the camera was full, I purchased a new camera on the hidden planet's station, and the description said "takes 10 pictures" but it only gave me one more picture.

That is a bug. Not that you only have 1 picture on the new camera, but that you are able to buy one in the first place. It was intended that you only could obtain a new camara at Tionisla.

Scenario: When arriving back at Tionisla with zero picture count or with a damaged camera, you receive a new mission screen with as option to start a new trip to Biorle with a new camera.

I probably upload a fixed version soon. I already made a version 1.2 using the new mission markers, long before Oolite1.77 was released. Somehow I forgot to upload this one when Oolite 1.77 was released.

Eric Walch wrote:

Bogatyr wrote:

One more bit of concrete feedback, after I took all 10 pictures (all bad) and the camera was full, I purchased a new camera on the hidden planet's station, and the description said "takes 10 pictures" but it only gave me one more picture.

That is a bug. Not that you only have 1 picture on the new camera, but that you are able to buy one in the first place. It was intended that you only could obtain a new camara at Tionisla.

Scenario: When arriving back at Tionisla with zero picture count or with a damaged camera, you receive a new mission screen with as option to start a new trip to Biorle with a new camera.

What about when you return with a full camera and no good picture? Failed mission and no chance to try again (without save file backups)?