Oolite Bulletins

I've always been a keyboard pilot. Yeah, I know, but I'm old and stuck in my ways. Just want to thank you for the keyboard precision via the Ctrl key. I'm a two handed pilot: left hand fires lasers and pitches up or down while right hand executes roll and yaw maneuvers. I find the pinky on my right hand is perfect for holding down the Cntrl key. Works good so many many thanks.

Good to see fellow Commander who also uses a keyboard!

I do find Ctrl key real handy, but with long fights it is really sore on hands to constantly hold it. There is a keyboardCobra oxp, which alters parameters for roll and yaw, but if you are using an OXP ship you need to edit a Config to add your ship. It has instructions within. Also make sure that keyboardCobra.oxp folder is listed after your ship's OXP or it will not work. Name it something like Z- keyboardCobra.oxp. Looks like parameters are getting set and overwritten in the order of OXPs listed in the folder.

Cheers,
V-SFC

vsfc wrote:

Good to see fellow Commander who also uses a keyboard!

I do find Ctrl key real handy, but with long fights it is really sore on hands to constantly hold it. There is a keyboardCobra oxp, which alters parameters for roll and yaw, but if you are using an OXP ship you need to edit a Config to add your ship. It has instructions within. Also make sure that keyboardCobra.oxp folder is listed after your ship's OXP or it will not work. Name it something like Z- keyboardCobra.oxp. Looks like parameters are getting set and overwritten in the order of OXPs listed in the folder.

Cheers,
V-SFC

Not necessarily. It depends on the host OS.

vsfc wrote:

Also make sure that keyboardCobra.oxp folder is listed after your ship's OXP or it will not work. Name it something like Z- keyboardCobra.oxp. Looks like parameters are getting set and overwritten in the order of OXPs listed in the folder.

As long as keyboardCobra.oxp is using shipdata-overrides.oxp to adjust the turn rates, it should work regardless of loading order for OXP ships.

(Of course, if you're using an OXP ship, you could just edit the turn rates inside that OXP's shipdata.plist)

CaptSolo wrote:

I've always been a keyboard pilot. Yeah, I know, but I'm old and stuck in my ways. Just want to thank you for the keyboard precision via the Ctrl key...

Eh? What? How have I missed this feature for keyboard pilots?

<loads up an in-progress new Jameson game and goes looking for trouble...>

Speaking of keyboards [threadjack alert!]:

I recently replaced old laptop with new laptop. Good thing is that it is heaps more powerful. Bad thing is that the mere act of resting my hands on the front part of the keyboard somehow makes my ship turn. Mainly it rolls right, though sometimes it will be left roll or pitch/dive. Not dramatically, mind you, but enough that it affects any sort of precision manoeuvring.
It's not the mouse pad that does it either; I've turned that off so only the external one is working.

It's been ages since I fiddled around inside Oolite, and I never went particularly deep when I did. Are there some sort of threshold and/or sensitivity settings that could be tinkered with?

vsfc wrote:

There is a keyboardCobra oxp, which alters parameters for roll and yaw...

No thanks, I like the parameters as they are. I don't keep the Ctrl key pressed down long, just long enough to line up with target and get a few hits in. Only problem is the NPC's in my ooniverse don't sit still. They are very good and very dangerous pilots thanks to Cim's excellent [wiki]Skilled NPCs OXP[/wiki].

Solo

CheeseRedux wrote:

I recently replaced old laptop with new laptop. Good thing is that it is heaps more powerful. Bad thing is that the mere act of resting my hands on the front part of the keyboard somehow makes my ship turn. Mainly it rolls right, though sometimes it will be left roll or pitch/dive. Not dramatically, mind you, but enough that it affects any sort of precision manoeuvring.
It's not the mouse pad that does it either; I've turned that off so only the external one is working.

It's been ages since I fiddled around inside Oolite, and I never went particularly deep when I did. Are there some sort of threshold and/or sensitivity settings that could be tinkered with?

That sounds like some kind of hardware fault, to be honest.. key presses are meant to be a strictly "on" or "off" type thing.

Does this behaviour manifest at other times, such as when using a word processor or typing a post in a forum?

Diziet Sma wrote:

That sounds like some kind of hardware fault, to be honest.. key presses are meant to be a strictly "on" or "off" type thing.

Does this behaviour manifest at other times, such as when using a word processor or typing a post in a forum?

Oh, it's definitely hardware. Of the most basic sort. The cost of making these things thinner and lighter is a loss of structural integrity (and a certain plastic-y feel). So the slight pressure of resting appendages gets interpreted as light touches on the arrow keys. I've not noticed the effect elsewhere, no, but I attribute that to the software running a "He didn't mean that, did he?" check when noticing these faint "key presses". Which is why I wondered if there was a threshold setting hidden somewhere in Oolite.

CaptSolo wrote:

I've always been a keyboard pilot. Yeah, I know, but I'm old and stuck in my ways. Just want to thank you for the keyboard precision via the Ctrl key. I'm a two handed pilot: left hand fires lasers and pitches up or down while right hand executes roll and yaw maneuvers. I find the pinky on my right hand is perfect for holding down the Cntrl key. Works good so many many thanks.

Yes, I am a keyboard pilot, too, and the ctrl-precision is just the thing I need.

But I wonder... how do you controll pitch with your left hand?

My right hand controlls pitch roll and yaw at the num-pad, left hand CTRL and A (and the rest of the combat controlls)

I can't speak for CaptSolo, but I pitch with my left hand, using S and X. I roll with my right hand, on < and >. I do not yaw, having always believed it to be at best uncouth, and at worst unnatural.

I do occasionly take my boat out using keyboard only*, and the precision thingy is very handy. I never use the 'yaw' function either.

*Usually when I forget to plug the 'stick in - which leads to problems, as the 'fire' key is disabled on my keyboard.
All I have then is the Railgun (which is why I still carry it at all times).

Gecko wrote:

But I wonder... how do you controll pitch with your left hand?

Stems back to playing Elite on the C64. The keyboard control functions were:
keyboard left
A = Fire
S = Pitch down
X = Pitch up

keyboard right
< = Roll left
> = Roll right

*** ninja'd by Disembondied ***

While flying and fighting I could keep a finger on all these keys.

For Oolite, I have a Config.oxp in my AddOns which contains a Config folder, copied keyconfig.plist into that, and edited the file to match my preference. For yaw I use ; and ' keys , which are near the roll keys so easily done.

I do use yaw to help port and starboard firing.

CaptSolo wrote:

I do use yaw to help port and starboard firing.

I haven't used my side lasers for years - don't even use the aft laser anymore.

CaptSolo wrote:

For Oolite, I have a Config.oxp in my AddOns which contains a Config folder, copied keyconfig.plist into that, and edited the file to match my preference. For yaw I use ; and ' keys , which are near the roll keys so easily done.
I do use yaw to help port and starboard firing.

Ah well, it seems to depend on the key map... I use a german windows standard key map, but I might look into Config.Oxp this way...

And... why not using yaw? Its part of my best "get-away-manoeuvre"

I have a mining laser installed at starboard, but mining is so... dull...