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Author Topic: What's Not Done  (Read 30380 times)

Dan Dixon

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What's Not Done
« on: November 14, 2009, 01:46:01 AM »
What's not done yet in the Universe Sandbox v2 beta (build 518)?

- The UI (User Interface) is incomplete (still missing many features, like adding rings to planets, that were in the old interface)
- Chart mode is missing the tree parent-child view and it's missing axis labels and grid lines.
- Adding a new star to an empty scene is confusing and buggy.
- Light from stars feature is buggy. Scene can be too bright, stars don't glow, you can see through planets, no visible dust.
- Menu and help system will be revised and improved (and will use a new behind the scenes system that should be much faster)
- New Tutorial
- I'm already thinking about how to improve the time controls (making the speed-accuracy slider more prominent)
- Adding color and texture options for bodies
- Camera controls not yet hooked up
- Can't change name of planet with new text box
- Ability to prevent dust created from impacts from ever fading out
- New body icons aren't all lit - stars don't look like stars
- New file format (partially complete)
- Improved save (no improvements yet)
- Saturn with huge ring system is wrong - ring not properly oriented (and maybe a little too thick)
- Improved grid that better shows distance, scale, and positions of bodies
- Visible toggle for the move tool to switch between locked on a plane and free move (you can already hold down Ctrl when using the move tool to enter free move mode)
(more to come)


What other features are you hoping to see in the final version of Universe Sandbox v2?

Edit: Crossed off completed features
« Last Edit: April 14, 2010, 04:03:27 PM by Dan Dixon »

Naru523

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Re: What's Not Done
« Reply #1 on: November 14, 2009, 11:28:44 PM »
Asteroid belt without txt. ?

Magnetar

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Re: What's Not Done
« Reply #2 on: November 15, 2009, 03:44:18 AM »
Object creator. Just a small function in the objects tool which allows you to save and create customized objects into a list. So everytime you start US you can access your list of custom objects and immidiately start placing them into other or new systems.

Also a function to customize the background colour wouldn't be that bad.

Light switch: Just a switch in the options of an object which allows it become a light emitter. So stars aren't limited to it.
« Last Edit: November 15, 2009, 04:01:21 AM by Magnetar »

Dan Dixon

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Re: What's Not Done
« Reply #3 on: November 16, 2009, 11:22:09 PM »
Asteroid belt without txt. ?

What do you mean by this?

Object creator...
Customize the background colour...
Light switch...

Awesome. Most probably the 1st and 3rd ones for sure. Why would you want to change the background color? Or rather... What colors would you want to change it to?

monmarfori

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Re: What's Not Done
« Reply #4 on: November 18, 2009, 02:46:05 PM »
Z button (spawns a black hole with a mass of 2 milky ways will suck some particles)

Naru523

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Re: What's Not Done
« Reply #5 on: November 18, 2009, 08:19:51 PM »
What do you mean by this?
http://universesandbox.com/forum/index.php/topic,503.0.html

Currently there's no support for adding multiple asteroid belts to the same object in the XML files. And I can't come up with a decent work around:

You can add a 2nd body at the same location as the 1st and give that a belt. When the simulation is loaded it checks for overlaps and combines any overlapping bodies together. starts the two bodies will combine into one, but the belts will only have been given the correct velocity to orbit the original bodies and won't correctly orbit the single, combined body. You could then select Orbit All to correct this, but it only works satisfactorily for some situations.

In the next version you'll be able to add multiple belts without having to edit XML files.


Magnetar

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Re: What's Not Done
« Reply #6 on: November 19, 2009, 10:31:21 AM »
Why would you want to change the background color? Or rather... What colors would you want to change it to?

The main reason is the following feature you posted into the list:
What's not done yet in the Universe Sandbox v2 beta (build 518)?

- Adding color and texture options for bodies

I just think it would be of advantage if the user would be also allowed to change the background colour
in order to create certain color contrast if you are even planning to allow him to change the color of the objects self.  

Other topic:
A) It might be good if the user would be allowed to quickly change the rotation direction of an object around an attractor in the same time while he creates it. A system providing simple controls for the user would be the following:

As soon as the user dragged the object on the position he wants it, he clicks mouse1, but holds the button. Two arrows tangentially aligned to the object's orbit show up now. The user now continues holding mouse1, however when he drags his cursor he doesn't move the object anymore, but instead just moves around the window with his cursor. What he can do now is dragging the cursor over one of the two arrows. As soon as the cursor is over one arrow the covered one will light up. If the user now releases mouse1 the body will be spawned and will automatically orbit the attractor into the direction of the arrow the user lighted up before by dragging his cursor over it.

To make the use less non-specific but more general I also suggest that if the user doesn't hold mouse1 after setting up the position of a body, he automatically spawns a body orbiting the attractor into the direction he set to a previous body. If there is no previous body the orbit will automatically assign a preset default direction, like it's now in the current state of the beta. I also do have some ideas how to realize a simple interface allowing the quick creation of orbits involving movement in the z-axis, but I might explain it later if there's any interest into it.

Anyways, I attached a sketch of the orbit direction changing function I tried to concept in this post.

B) If you are also planning on adding more complex velocity manipulation tools I also suggest you to add a button which can turn auto-orbiting on or off.

C) I also just got an interesting idea if you are thinking of a velocity vector drawing mode. The idea would be that this mode automatically could be available when auto-orbiting is turned off. When you now perform the same actions as to manipulate the orbital direction as described above you will instead stretch and rotate a velocity vector arrow above the plane. The length would indicate the speed, the direction logically the velocity direction. In order to make such a tool easy and controllable I got the following good two ideas: The colour of the velocity vector arrow could dynamically change, indicating what kind of speed your going to set your object. Green could mean that you are near the ideal orbital speed, red means that you are about to hit or you are above the orbital escape velocity. Besides that the length of a velocity vector could also be displayed as a dynamic counter besides it's point of origin.

The following picture displays idea A) and B):
« Last Edit: November 21, 2009, 03:39:29 AM by Magnetar »

monmarfori

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Re: What's Not Done
« Reply #7 on: November 21, 2009, 06:15:57 AM »
I guess that Number 9 button will give the merger options off/on.

monmarfori

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Re: What's Not Done
« Reply #8 on: November 22, 2009, 03:13:49 PM »
Asteroid belt button.

Naru523

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Re: What's Not Done
« Reply #9 on: November 22, 2009, 07:33:40 PM »
Asteroid belt button.
Already said that

monmarfori

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Re: What's Not Done
« Reply #10 on: November 23, 2009, 01:22:12 AM »
but if no button that will not work.

Dan Dixon

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Re: What's Not Done
« Reply #11 on: November 23, 2009, 02:18:36 PM »
A) It might be good if the user would be allowed to quickly change the rotation direction of an object around an attractor in the same time while he creates it...

B) If you are also planning on adding more complex velocity manipulation tools I also suggest you to add a button which can turn auto-orbiting on or off.

C) I also just got an interesting idea if you are thinking of a velocity vector drawing mode...

Awesome stuff.

A
Click and hold after a release is a good idea... A hidden 'pro' feature perhaps. I like it.

I thinking about making it more clear what plane you're working on, but you can currently hold down the Ctrl key to move along the 'plane' of your current view. What's your idea for the Z manipulation?

B
There will be a few options like this that aren't setup yet.

C
An early version of this exists if you select the move tool and zoom in on a body... It's rough, but in progress.

Thanks so much for the feedback. Great stuff.

Naru523

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Re: What's Not Done
« Reply #12 on: December 23, 2009, 11:37:00 AM »
It'll be convenient if users can change the texture of a body at runtime ;D

Someone suggested that... but yeah, it will be awesome  ;) :D

Dan Dixon

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Re: What's Not Done
« Reply #13 on: December 23, 2009, 09:20:52 PM »
It'll be convenient if users can change the texture of a body at runtime ;D

I've got the ability to change the color working now, this will be in Beta 2 (coming soon). The ability to change the texture will come later.

SuperNova

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Re: What's Not Done
« Reply #14 on: January 04, 2010, 01:03:11 AM »
i'm hoping to see awsome meteor impacts :P
Universe Sandbox is perfect, but the impacts are not to good  :-\


deoxy99

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Re: What's Not Done
« Reply #15 on: March 07, 2010, 12:10:13 PM »
Light bulbs. Just place one and it replaces sunlight.

Dan Dixon

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Re: What's Not Done
« Reply #16 on: April 14, 2010, 03:36:33 PM »
Dan, may you add a 'pause on loaded' option so we can edit the system before it runs ???

Thanks again for the reminder. This feature is now complete and will be in Beta 6.
« Last Edit: April 14, 2010, 04:01:45 PM by Dan Dixon »

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Re: What's Not Done
« Reply #17 on: April 14, 2010, 05:20:28 PM »
i do not like the rotate and it is lagging

Dan Dixon

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Re: What's Not Done
« Reply #18 on: April 14, 2010, 05:52:02 PM »
i do not like the rotate and it is lagging

What rotate? What do you not like about it?

And what is lagging?