OpenRocket & Rocksim updates?

[isobig]

Has development of OpenRocket stopped? Last release was version 15.03 back in March 2015. Same for Rocksim... they are still on version 9 from 2008 with minor update to 9.5 released in Jan 2016.

Anyone know if newer versions / updates are on the way for either of these?

Thanks!

 

[dhbarr]

OR is still under active development, I anticipate a release probably before Christmas.

 

[rharshberger]

OR is still under active development, I anticipate a release probably before Christmas.

To add to dhbarr's comment, OR is a volunteer group of developers not a business so updates and new features come as those fine gentleman (many if not all are members of TRF) have the spare time. The upcoming build seems be trying to add a number of features that at least for me would appear to be difficult features to add. Props to Kevin and the gang for the time they are able to find to do what they do for us.

RocSim on the other hand is a piece of commercial software and I have heard nothing on any further updates rumored or otherwise.

 

[markkoelsch]

I have heard nothing about any Rocksim updates either. I wonder if investing in them makes sense considering Open Rocket is available free.

There was a thread a while back about features folks would like to see in Rocksim. I need to find and resurrect that. Might compile a list and send to Tim at Apogee.

 

[isobig]

I am aware of OR being volunteer. I totally respect all the work they do to make the program and offer it for free. I had not seen any info of any further progress on it so I thought I would ask. I also wonder about investing in RS as markoelsh mentioned above. I would like to see that thread if it can be found. I am using an old version of RS at this time (version 7) and I would love to use OR but I do not want java on my system with all the security issues. If they could make it work without java I would be using it in a heartbeat.

 

[mpitfield]

I have heard nothing about any Rocksim updates either. I wonder if investing in them makes sense considering Open Rocket is available free.

There was a thread a while back about features folks would like to see in Rocksim. I need to find and resurrect that. Might compile a list and send to Tim at Apogee.

I am not sure if Mark is referring to a thread I started a while back, see link below, or another, as I have seen a few threads started on the broader topic of RS and updates.

https://www.rocketryforum.com/showthread.php?136297-RockSim-wish-list

 

[Woody's Workshop]

Tim at Apogee has advertised for help in different areas lately.
I think he would like more time to put into his software development.
He also sells RocSim Pro, for more advanced rocktry.
His sales of RocSim may also might be a factor of how much time he puts into development.
With several FREE software packages out there, if he isn't selling enough, he might see more development a waste of time for free upgrades to already sold copies.
Freeware is great for the poor people like me, but those that can afford to buy should buy.
The only reason I have it is my brother bought if for me as a Christmas Gift about 6 years ago.
I've tried to install OR, but there seams to be a problem with compatibility with Win 10.
Mine tries to say it's a pdf file, so it won't install. I worked hours on it and finally gave up.

 

[markkoelsch]

Tim at Apogee has advertised for help in different areas lately.
I think he would like more time to put into his software development.
He also sells RocSim Pro, for more advanced rocktry.
His sales of RocSim may also might be a factor of how much time he puts into development.
With several FREE software packages out there, if he isn't selling enough, he might see more development a waste of time for free upgrades to already sold copies.
Freeware is great for the poor people like me, but those that can afford to buy should buy.
The only reason I have it is my brother bought if for me as a Christmas Gift about 6 years ago.
I've tried to install OR, but there seams to be a problem with compatibility with Win 10.
Mine tries to say it's a pdf file, so it won't install. I worked hours on it and finally gave up.

That is interesting. I will try to download it into one of my Win 10 boxes to see if I can get it working.

What version of java do you have installed?

 

[Q-Aero]

.... I've tried to install OR, but there seams to be a problem with compatibility with Win 10.
Mine tries to say it's a pdf file, so it won't install. I worked hours on it and finally gave up.

They are no problem with Window 10. I read your tread about your problem, and it's on your side......You need to install JAVA before install and open Openrocket, so the .jar will be associate with JAVA

I have OpenRocket running on many computers OpenRocket even work fine in French as you can see on my picture.

 

[mpitfield]

His sales of RocSim may also might be a factor of how much time he puts into development.
With several FREE software packages out there, if he isn't selling enough, he might see more development a waste of time for free upgrades to already sold copies

As an entrepreneur I can tell you that it is in fact the opposite of what you're suggesting, that is if you are on the other side of the curve. It is fairly common for a company to invest in developing a product, take it to market, gain popularity and market share, then just ride the wave. If the product is something like software and there is a sustainable market for that product, and if the owners of the product investment in regular development, then all things being equal, it should remain ahead of the freeware offerings.

I have no idea on what Tim's sales are or even what the realities of that market are, but I am an owner of RockSim and I would have actually invested in RockSim Pro at some point had it been an option for a non-US citizen, but it is not. Having said that, if it was an option at this stage I would not invest in it or even the basic version simply due to the obvious lack of development. If the market was there then I believe that if Tim revisited his price point on the Pro version as well as developed another price model such as the SAS model (Software As a Service), and committed regularly in development, then he would increase his bottom line.

But at this stage the volunteer developers of OR have done a darn good job in closing that gap, so now Tim is faced with being reactive. It is like the plane flying analogy where it proportionally takes more effort and resources to take off and climb to 30,000', than to simply cruise at 30,000'.

 

[Buckeye]

Freeware is great for the poor people like me, but those that can afford to buy should buy.

Huh? Sounds like something Karl Marx would say.

 

[dhbarr]

Without ( hopefully ) getting into a beer-or-freedom holy war, "freeware" and "free software" are two entirely different things.

 

[Q-Aero]

Without ( hopefully ) getting into a beer-or-freedom holy war, "freeware" and "free software" are two entirely different things.

OpenRocket is more than a free software; it's an Open Source software

 

[dhbarr]

OpenRocket is more than a free software; it's an Open Source software

RMS has been right more deeply than ESR, sad to say. OR is GPLV3.

 

[plugger]

I am aware of OR being volunteer. I totally respect all the work they do to make the program and offer it for free. I had not seen any info of any further progress on it so I thought I would ask. I also wonder about investing in RS as markoelsh mentioned above. I would like to see that thread if it can be found. I am using an old version of RS at this time (version 7) and I would love to use OR but I do not want java on my system with all the security issues. If they could make it work without java I would be using it in a heartbeat.

If you're really that concerned about Java just run the JRE and OpenRocket in a VM with no networking enabled. Problem solved. If someone can compromise your host OS through a VM running Java without networking enabled you've got bigger problems, right? :lol:

For the record that's how I used to run my licensed copy of RockSim before I finally stopped using it due to license portability issues. I had to rebuild my box so I did a P2V first to ensure I could still use RockSim in a VM.

 

[isobig]

If you're really that concerned about Java just run the JRE and OpenRocket in a VM with no networking enabled. Problem solved. If someone can compromise your host OS through a VM running Java without networking enabled you've got bigger problems, right? :lol:

For the record that's how I used to run my licensed copy of RockSim before I finally stopped using it due to license portability issues. I had to rebuild my box so I did a P2V first to ensure I could still use RockSim in a VM.

A moderate inconvenience wouldn't you say just to run a program?

 

[plugger]

A moderate inconvenience wouldn't you say just to run a program?

Not really? It's not rocket appliances, just a little bit of virtualization. Regardless, you're the one that's decided to eschew Java, not me. I was just trying to highlight that there are options other than continuing to run RockSim 7. I made the assumption that you listing I.T. Professional in you signature would come with a home machine with enough grunt to run a simple linux VM. Of course I could easily be wrong.

 

[mpitfield]

I made the assumption that you listing I.T. Professional in you signature would come with a home machine with enough grunt to run a simple linux VM. Of course I could easily be wrong.

Common mistake made by either techie neophytes or Jr. I.T. people is that because you are in I.T. you know something about everything in I.T. It is no different, actually it is different in that I.T. is a wider subject matter, than saying because you're in science you know about planets or delivering babies or brain surgery. I.T. is a very broad term.

I have been in the industry for over 25 years and the amount of knowledge and expertise I have is minuscule compared to I.T. knowledge as a whole. I have interviewed, trained and mentored many I.T. people as well as consulted for I.T. professionals and I can always tell a seasoned I.T. person vs. a Jr. I.T. person by how much they think they know on the subject matter. A Jr. I.T person, with a bit of experience under their belt and a lot of confidence, will believe wholeheartedly that they know quite a lot, where as the seasoned I.T. person will admittedly say they now very little.

 

[dhbarr]

"I know less & less about more & more."
--me, probably.

 

[plugger]

Common mistake made by either techie neophytes or Jr. I.T. people is that because you are in I.T. you know something about everything in I.T. It is no different, actually it is different in that I.T. is a wider subject matter, than saying because you're in science you know about planets or delivering babies or brain surgery. I.T. is a very broad term.

I have been in the industry for over 25 years and the amount of knowledge and expertise I have is minuscule compared to I.T. knowledge as a whole. I have interviewed, trained and mentored many I.T. people as well as consulted for I.T. professionals and I can always tell a seasoned I.T. person vs. a Jr. I.T. person by how much they think they know on the subject matter. A Jr. I.T person, with a bit of experience under their belt and a lot of confidence, will believe wholeheartedly that they know quite a lot, where as the seasoned I.T. person will admittedly say they now very little.

I'm not sure how to take that Michael, I don't know if you're having a shot at me or not. I guess maybe I'm better at IT than I am at discerning underlying meaning from forum posts? What I can say is that I've been in the industry for 16 years myself, starting at the helpdesk level and working my way up to SSE. I'm perfectly comfortable with admitting that I'm grossly ignorant about many, arguably most things about IT. I'm fully aware of the saying that the more you know the more you know you don't know and I agree with it.

All that said if someone is aware of the security issues that arise from running Java I fully expect them to be aware that sandboxing via virtualization is a legitimate method for mitigating security threats. Most people have no idea about the security issues with Java so I don't think it's unreasonable to expect if someone has that knowledge it's probable that they are across mitigation strategies.

 

[Q-Aero]

VM with no network on a Windows hosted hypervisor , will not necessarily protect you from cross contamination between the host and the VM. just for fun, did you know the Host and the VM share a virtual COM port ? A malicious code can use it. You want more isolation, use a baremetal hypervisor like ESXi or the server Hyper-V, not the Windows 8, 8.1 or 10 one.

 

[plugger]

VM with no network on a Windows hosted hypervisor , will not necessarily protect you from cross contamination between the host and the VM. just for fun, did you know the Host and the VM share a virtual COM port ? A malicious code can use it. You want more isolation, use a baremetal hypervisor like ESXi or the server Hyper-V, not the Windows 8, 8.1 or 10 one.

I wasn't aware of the virtual COM port vector (See Michael! :wink. Has anyone ever hacked Java in a VM browser via serial before though? Removing the networking adapter in the VM will protect you from web based Java exploits which is what I'm assuming OP is trying to mitigate by not running Java on his host.

 

[mpitfield]

I'm not sure how to take that Michael, I don't know if you're having a shot at me or not. I guess maybe I'm better at IT than I am at discerning underlying meaning from forum posts? What I can say is that I've been in the industry for 16 years myself, starting at the helpdesk level and working my way up to SSE. I'm perfectly comfortable with admitting that I'm grossly ignorant about many, arguably most things about IT. I'm fully aware of the saying that the more you know the more you know you don't know and I agree with it.

All that said if someone is aware of the security issues that arise from running Java I fully expect them to be aware that sandboxing via virtualization is a legitimate method for mitigating security threats. Most people have no idea about the security issues with Java so I don't think it's unreasonable to expect if someone has that knowledge it's probable that they are across mitigation strategies.

No need to discern, I simply do not agree with your criticism and assumptions. I agree that Java has a relatively known reputation for exploits, and that most I.T. people would be aware of this, however that is where I would draw the line. Nothing personal and I would prefer to leave it at that.

 

[plugger]

I agree that Java has a relatively known reputation for exploits, and that most I.T. people would be aware of this, however that is where I would draw the line. Nothing personal and I would prefer to leave it at that.

Funny when the shoe's on the other foot as you're the one that's criticizing on incorrect assumptions there as I don't believe most IT people are aware of Java exploit vectors. Nothing personal and I'm more than ok to agree to disagree and leave it be.

 

[Q-Aero]

..... Has anyone ever hacked Java in a VM browser via serial before though? .

oh boy Houston we have a problem, you don't know the difference betwen the Java Runtime Environment, and the Java browser plugin.

If you are using a recent version of Google Chrome you don't have the plug-in ( think it's version 42 or 45 and up from memory ) . You can disable it more or less for IE in the JAVA console.

 

[isobig]

I'm not sure how to take that Michael, I don't know if you're having a shot at me or not. I guess maybe I'm better at IT than I am at discerning underlying meaning from forum posts? What I can say is that I've been in the industry for 16 years myself, starting at the helpdesk level and working my way up to SSE. I'm perfectly comfortable with admitting that I'm grossly ignorant about many, arguably most things about IT. I'm fully aware of the saying that the more you know the more you know you don't know and I agree with it.

All that said if someone is aware of the security issues that arise from running Java I fully expect them to be aware that sandboxing via virtualization is a legitimate method for mitigating security threats. Most people have no idea about the security issues with Java so I don't think it's unreasonable to expect if someone has that knowledge it's probable that they are across mitigation strategies.

Hey guys... my intention was not to start a war of words here. Mike, I also have 25+ years in the field. Plugger - yes I have a system easily capable of running a VM at home. My point was I expect a program to be easy to install, run, and use without requiring additional steps on the part of the user (such as to mitigate security risks). We all have our opinions on how & why to do things. I could just as easily setup a laptop with Linux on it and run OR on it instead of in a VM as an example. Thank you for suggesting the VM option.

 

[plugger]

Hey guys... my intention was not to start a war of words here. Mike, I also have 25+ years in the field. Plugger - yes I have a system easily capable of running a VM at home. My point was I expect a program to be easy to install, run, and use without requiring additional steps on the part of the user (such as to mitigate security risks). We all have our opinions on how & why to do things. I could just as easily setup a laptop with Linux on it and run OR on it instead of in a VM as an example. Thank you for suggesting the VM option.

I appreciate this isobig. I walked away yesterday shaking my head, guess I shouldn't try and be of assistance with all the IT expert keyboard cowboys round here! :eyeroll:

Q-Aero, I'm close to isobig in my opinion on Java. I actually wear my ignorance of Java as a badge of honor. That said I fully understand that Chrome doesn't have a Java browser plugin. I also like how you mock my lack of Java knowledge and yet don't actually answer my question of whether anyone has ever successfully chained exploits to compromise a Java plugin enabled browser via a COM port shared between the a Windows hosted hypervisor and VM. Also, I laugh in your general direction for even bringing up Windows hosted hypervisors! Houston, we have a bigger problem!

 

[Q-Aero]

....My point was I expect a program to be easy to install, run, and use without requiring additional steps on the part of the user.

Here we go, the free stuff don't reach his expectations ... what a rewards for the developers.

 

[Woody's Workshop]

As far as freeware, free software, open source, etc., I'm no geek, not even close. So...it' all the same to me.

As for OR, I may have to it again. I sure would access to K'tesh's files!
JAVA is the latest available, I did that first before downloading OR.

And...who is Karl Marx? One of the Marx brothers? :confused2:

 

[Q-Aero]

And...who is Karl Marx? One of the Marx brothers? :confused2:

a guy very popular on old USSR countries stamps all true he was German I think