[RELEASE]AutoSkim OXP

[Smivs]

I'm not saying it's a bad idea, just not something that would fit with my style of play. For something like hauling contracts I can see it would be quite useful. There has been a fair bit of discussion lately about 'crew' OXPs and as you say it would be a bit like having a helmsman.

[Rese249er]

Glad I could contribute to that. Is there a dedicated thread for that particular discussion?

[Disembodied]

Hi Rese249er – try this thread.

[Rese249er]

Thanks kindly.

[Rese249er]

Observation concerning AutoSkim: The AI doesn't seem to like even being in the planet's mass shadow when you activate it. Suggest that users wait until they can J-speed to activate it.


EDIT: After extensive flight-test, I think I can give a rundown of overall functionality and bugs.

Item 1: On occasion, when in forward view, the player ship will crash into the sun's surface under the control of the Autoskim. Workaround: Hit F6 before you drop out of hyperspeed. I use this particular workaround to set the ship to skim while plotting my next jump. The fuel circle will update realtime, so you can keep an eye on it and hit witchspace as soon as you have the fuel for the jump.

Item 2: It appears that there are a good deal many more glitches which I have not found a cause for, all revolving around the view and speed. Workaround: Make sure the sun is green on your ASC and you should be good to go. That doesn't work, try F6 again or switch it on and off.

All in all, an OXP I use every time I play, and only very rarely will I actually purchase fuel in lieu of utilizing the AutoSkim.

[StathisR]

Hi,

i found your oxp is incompatible with shiled cycler oxz in the trunk. When installed the inflight manual configuration of the shield cycle doesn't work and i get these errors in the log file

11:00:08.107 [script.javaScript.timeLimit]: ***** ERROR: Script "Shield Cycler External Events" ran for 1.44583 seconds and has been terminated.
11:00:08.107 [script.javaScript.stackTrace]: 0 (ShieldCycler.js:453) <anonymous function>
11:00:08.107 [script.javaScript.stackTrace]: this: [Script "Shield Cycler" version 0.30.3]
11:00:08.107 [script.javaScript.stackTrace]: sc_loop: true
11:00:08.107 [script.javaScript.stackTrace]: 1 (ShieldCycler_External_Events.js:27) <anonymous function>
11:00:08.107 [script.javaScript.stackTrace]: this: [Script "Shield Cycler External Events" version 0.30.3]

I didn't know if i should post this here or in the shield cycler thread.

[Norby]

I think this is not related to AutoSkim but if you haven't [wiki]OXPConfig[/wiki] - try install it and your problem should be disappear.

Your error points to the 453. line in ShieldCycler.js in an endless loop if none of the four settings are enabled, which is the default , so the core game terminate it when reach the timeLimit. There is a fixing function which set at least one to true but as I see this is called by OXPConfig only.

For OXP makers I suggest to keep in mind Murphy's law: anything that can go wrong will go wrong. I know many ifs does not look well in the code but can prevent similar amount of problems, so try to use less loop and more condition and the result should be more stable.

[StathisR]

I have OxpConfig installed. The problem is with the Autoskim oxp. When i remove it the Shield Cycler works fine.

[Norby]

Ok, now I found the problem is related to the missing [wiki]Cabal_Common_Library[/wiki] and independent from Autoskim and OXPConfig - I tried all the 8 possible combinations of OXPs in Oolite 1.77.1 and 1.80 also for sure.

[StathisR]

Ok the problem was in the particular saved game i was playing. I started a new commander from scratch and tried some other save files from other commanders and i couldn't reproduce the problem (thankfully). I don't know how i managed to mess things up. Sorry for the false alarm and thank you for your help.

[mike1six]

AutoSkim seems to not be working anymore. It either pilots me away from the sun or rams me straight in after a strange flip I don't think my ship is actually supposed to be capable of.

[phkb]

OK, I've had a go at repairing this. Try this out: AutoSkim.zip
You'll need to unzip the "AutoSkim.oxp" folder inside the zip file into your AddOns folder to use this. And remember to remove the old version, and restart the game holding shift.

I don't think it's perfect (for instance, if you're pointing away from the sun and you engage the auto-skimmer, it doesn't always get you heading in the right direction), but I think it should mostly work now. I've added a couple of things (a regular notification that the auto-skimmer is active, auto-disengage in red alert scenarios) to make life a bit easier.

Let me know how it goes, and if it passes muster I'll add it to the download manager.

[phkb]

OK, a couple of bugs squashed (or at least, given a major thumping with a shoe). Same link as in previous post.