Boat simulation and compatibility

[ilan]

Please post here issues related to boat handling and simulation,
please make sure to include boat name and exact problem.

[Sailorjohn]

Towing. Much improved over earlier versions of VSF for vessel towing, but still awkward. Towline now runs from stern of towing vessel to bow of towed vessel, and limited steering by towing vessel is possible. However, drag on towing vessel doesn't seem to properly reflect mass/body_area of towed vessel (which should be added to that of towing vessel). And don't even think about trying to tow Jahre_Viking! Even with Anglian_Prince, taking up the slack of a 400m towline (set for constant strain) at less than 1 kt resulted in being yanked backwards at 40kts as towline came taut! Repeatedly!!!
I recognize this towing option is primarily for sailplanes/gliders to be towed aloft; as such, it makes perfect sense to remain in the 'towed' vehicle while selecting a 'tow' vehicle from the list in the tab. However, for ship drivers, particularly those of us who've actually performed real-world towing, it would be great to have the option (as in VS) to remain aboard the 'towing' vessel and select an in-game vessel to be towed. The actual maneuvering into position to pass towline, pay out slack, and then begin to put a strain on the towline is fundamental to towing realism...and can only be done from the 'towing', not the 'towed' vessel. Any chance of modifying the Vehicle tab to add provision for selection of an in-game vessel to be towed by user vessel?

[ilan]

Dear Arthur,

Thanks for the good point, i will fix, i have already made a major fix in boat innertia and
floatation center which effects beautifully all boats, this will be available on beta 2.9 which
i hope to release in a few days.

[ilan]

Dear Arthur,

I have made a very important change in beta 3.0, now the boat handling is much more realistic
due to better estimation of innertia and better placement of bouyancy forces.

Please test and tell me what you think.

[Sailorjohn]

I have already posted my frustration with the Vehicle Design mode for editing parameters and elements, all of which are lost upon restart.
I've noticed that with 3.0, small vessels (like Bayliner3058, deadrise_basic, _clam, and _crab) are now TOO stable, and charge straight through choppy seas with virtually no bouncing...acting much heavier than they are. Furthermore, absence of any hydrofoil parameters means they run perfectly level at all speeds and the bowsplash completely covers the boat; blinding the operator! I hope that future versions of VSF will observe laws of hydrodynamic physics, causing any vessel exceeding 1.34 X (sq root of waterline length in ft) in knots to lift the bow, and 'squat' until fully planing at about 2.5 X (sq rt wl), at which point bow drops slightly.

[Sailorjohn]

Although parameters still show hide_water 0 or 1, this seems to have no effect ingame. Despite hide_water=0, in F1 mode boats still levitate above water creating an artificially high viewpoint.

[ilan]

Dear John,

There are three paramters that determine water hiding in VSF:
( see the ranger for example )

// water in cabin

1 [hide_water]
1.0 [deck_alt]

hide_water should be 1
dec_alt is the actual height of water hiding surface above water line , try 1 and see how it works

Then the program creates a file called "deck.dds" as soon as you select this boat for the first time,
this file looks like this:

Image2.jpg (17.82 KiB) Viewed 2814 times

This file is actually a bottom view cross section taken at deck_alt, ( hence the need to delete it if you change the deck_alt )
the file gives great flexibility over the previouse deck.cfg because it allows you to draw inside it and actually specify places
where water is hidden and places where water is visible.

[leggeron]

Good day gentlemen.
I was not sure where exactly to post, so please forgive me if I did it in the least suitable place. I recently purchased Virtual Sailor and have been enjoying it quite a lot, which lead me to poke my nose into what the future holds. My first confusion is weather there will be a Virtual Sailor 8 or the new Vehicle Simulator will replace both Virtual Sailor and Micro Flight. I would appreciate some sort of clarification.
As far as Vehicle Simulator goes, my first impressions are (most are related to boats):
- I am a bit perplexed why a Virtual Sailor key does not work for registration, while a Micro Flight key does, it makes it hard to beta test in 5 minute intervals (this is assuming Vehicle Simulator will in fact replace both previous sims not just Micro Flight);
- It seems geared to be primarily a flight simulator, since flight behaviour seems much more polished than boats and land vehicles;
- I found a tarmac airport with a ridiculously tiny runway on which a Chessna would not be able to land properly, let alone anything bigger or faster;
- The Porsche (being the only land vehicle) really does not perform like a simulation;
- Boats behave stranger than in Virtual Simulator - specifically when running at full speed against medium to large waves, they often leap in the air for extended periods, even larger vessels - while idle in the sea, however, boats behave very very well in almost all types of waves;
- I miss the stability/dampening sliders from Virtual Sailor for boats;
- The overall graphics improvement is fantastic;
- Waves seem improved and settings richer;
- I particularly enjoy the new effect when a boat hits a wave head on - I was hoping to see something similar when waves hit a boat from the side as well;
- Flight seems very well realised compared to premier flight sims;
- Much more polished looks compared to Virtual Sailor;
- All in all though, a delight to play.
Good luck with further development!