I'm surprised I've been working on this for only three months. Seems like forever....
Nevertheless, I'd love to get some feedback on the
Kathryn. Download at
https://github.com/alberto1901/Kathryn.
Being a non-sailor, non-engineer with few specifications and absolutely no performance data, I'd really be interested in hearing others' opinions on performance. Especially if you have sailing experience! There's no engine. Don't even look for one.
I'm aware of:
1) a couple of minor graphics issues
2) she likes to yaw--you have to constantly adjust the rudder (or the sail trim, or the sail deployment) to maintain a straight course. It's a matter of balancing forces!
3) rudder seems inefficient at low speeds and too efficient at higher speeds
4) I still need to implement keel forces and the centerboard which should dampen down the tendency to yaw
5) Seems like reaction to anything other than smooth water (i.e., wave amplitude greater than 0) is very, very, um ... robust
Also, my joystick seems to be in a coma so I've done all the development using keyboard controls: Arrow keys control the rudder; Del/End trim the sails; PgUp/PgDn Furl/Unfurl the sails. Shift-P brings up the panel with the compass and course indicators. Key controls are explained in the help file (press '?').
Many thanks in advance.
--jeff
We were set in our ways. We believed in a good God, a bad Devil and a hot Hell, and more than anything else we believed that the same good God did not intend man should ever fly.
--Bill Tate (Crouch, The Bishop's Boys)