RockSim Open Thread

[mtnmanak]

Can't seem to find an open thread for RockSim, so starting one. Hopefully, someone from Apogee will monitor and answer questions.

Primary issue I am having right now - I just upgraded to Version 10.3 and the program will not allow me to edit the "Y" data points in the chart for Custom Fin Sets. I can move the data point on the graphic, but when I try to enter a data point in the chart, it just skips back to the X data point.

Anyone else seeing this issue?

 

[mtnmanak]

Also, after I upgraded to v10.3, the Engine Edit program wouldn't work anymore.

I uninstalled Version 10.3, restarted my computer and did a new full installation of Version 10.3 to check if the upgrade procedure was the issue. Both issues (custom fins and Engine Edit not working) persisted, so I downgraded to Version 10.2 for now. Everything is working again.

 

[Bill S]

Thanks! I've got 10.2, which fixed the issues from 10.1 by and large. Not upgrading to 10.3 unless there is a real need.

 

[cbrarick]

I just want a downgrade to 9. 10 doesn't work for me at all. it's **** at all three upgrades. I emailed them and got radio silence. I"m not getting any more apogee anything until they fix this.

 

[mtnmanak]

Yeah, they put out another update in the past day or so, but it didn't fix a number of issues I was seeing.

There was someone from Apogee monitoring these forums a while back and answering questions, but now there doesn't seem to be anyone answering support / feature request questions.

While I am currently focused on the bugs being fixed, there are a number of features that would be great if they added them (auto-updates of motor files, being able to model a metal tip on a nosecone, etc).

 

[MetricRocketeer]

Hi everyone,

RockSim 10.3 seems to have worked out all the bugs in version 10. I believe that the Apogee Components team have made it all come together.

I don't use the Engine Edit portion of the program, so I cannot comment on that one way or the other. With RockSim itself, however, I am very satisfied.

Stanley

 

[mtnmanak]

Hi everyone,

RockSim 10.3 seems to have worked out all the bugs in version 10. I believe that the Apogee Components team have made it all come together.

I don't use the Engine Edit portion of the program, so I cannot comment on that one way or the other. With RockSim itself, however, I am very satisfied.

Stanley

Considering I just tried out the latest version from this week (10.3.1) and I still can't enter Y values on the Custom Fins Plan Points page, I am going to have to say they have definitively NOT worked out all the bugs in version 10.3. They ADDED some.

Also, on the version I just installed, if I create a new blank design, add a Nosecone and cancel that without hitting okay, the whole program crashes every time.

Reverting to 10.2. Again.

 

[MetricRocketeer]

Also, on the version I just installed, if I create a new blank design, add a Nosecone and cancel that without hitting okay, the whole program crashes every time.

Hi mtnmanak,

I did just try to do that with the nosecone, and indeed the program just shut down. I guess this is a bug.

I did not try to reproduce the issue that you raised about custom fins.

I still like Version 10.3, but apparently a few issues remain to be worked out.

Stanley

 

[mtnmanak]

Hi mtnmanak,

I did just try to do that with the nosecone, and indeed the program just shut down. I guess this is a bug.

I did not try to reproduce the issue that you raised about custom fins.

I still like Version 10.3, but apparently a few issues remain to be worked out.

Stanley

The Custom Fins issue is definitely the biggest problem for me. I use the custom fin function on virtually every file I make. It is very versatile compared to the regular fin component. But, if you can't type in values for the coordinates, it is functionally useless. Trying to get precise using the graphical buttons is like trying to type with mittens on.

 

[MetricRocketeer]

The Custom Fins issue is definitely the biggest problem for me. I use the custom fin function on virtually every file I make. It is very versatile compared to the regular fin component. But, if you can't type in values for the coordinates, it is functionally useless. Trying to get precise using the graphical buttons is like trying to type with mittens on.

Hi mtnmanak,

If I can get to it later, I will see what happens when I try entering data for custom fins.

I will not be able to work on it for a while, however.

Stanley

 

[MetricRocketeer]

Hi mtnmanak,

I don't think that I am having trouble with custom fins. Perhaps I am not reproducing your steps.

But I am able to enter custom points -- both x- and y-values. Sometimes I would get an error message about crossed points -- and there were no crossed points, so I shouldn't get such an error message. But if I persevered and deleted points and then entered new points, I was able to get all the points entered.

Stanley

 

[MetricRocketeer]

Hi mtnmanak and anyone else,

I have now attempted to use the Engine Edit program. Actually, I seldom use this -- perhaps I should use it more often -- but because of @mtnmanak's comments, I proceeded to invoke it. It seems to open up and then immediate close down. But when you try it a second time, you can get it to work.

Stanley

 

[DaHabes]

Can't seem to find an open thread for RockSim, so starting one. Hopefully, someone from Apogee will monitor and answer questions.

Primary issue I am having right now - I just upgraded to Version 10.3 and the program will not allow me to edit the "Y" data points in the chart for Custom Fin Sets. I can move the data point on the graphic, but when I try to enter a data point in the chart, it just skips back to the X data point.

Anyone else seeing this issue?

Apogee does not monitor TRF. I've tried to get them to. No luck. I have gotten decent responses back when I put in issues, many of them from Tim directly. Send them a detailed issue description on their support page.

 

[DaHabes]

Considering I just tried out the latest version from this week (10.3.1) and I still can't enter Y values on the Custom Fins Plan Points page, I am going to have to say they have definitively NOT worked out all the bugs in version 10.3. They ADDED some.

Also, on the version I just installed, if I create a new blank design, add a Nosecone and cancel that without hitting okay, the whole program crashes every time.

Reverting to 10.2. Again.

This has been the history, 2 steps forward, one step back. The code has got to be spaghetti and the programmer is new. It's amazing it works as well as it does given it's age and the long tenure when no updates were made.

 

[DaHabes]

Considering I just tried out the latest version from this week (10.3.1) and I still can't enter Y values on the Custom Fins Plan Points page, I am going to have to say they have definitively NOT worked out all the bugs in version 10.3. They ADDED some.

Also, on the version I just installed, if I create a new blank design, add a Nosecone and cancel that without hitting okay, the whole program crashes every time.

Reverting to 10.2. Again.

Simple, don't do that.

 

[DaHabes]

Hi mtnmanak and anyone else,

I have now attempted to use the Engine Edit program. Actually, I seldom use this -- perhaps I should use it more often -- but because of @mtnmanak's comments, I proceeded to invoke it. It seems to open up and then immediate close down. But when you try it a second time, you can get it to work.

Stanley

I'm still on 10.2. It does it as well, only it didn't originally, but has started to recently. The closest I can figure is that if there is a memory constraint on your machine it dies, but can work on the next attempt if the OS has been working cleaning crap up in the background. It's likely a virtual memory issue, as best I can tell.

 

[mtnmanak]

Simple, don't do that.

I realize that was tongue in cheek, but this bug seems to happen even if you are not in a new design. I have tried it a number of times and any time I cancel a nosecone component, it crashes the program. That would really be frustrating if that happened after you have added other components, but hadn't done a save yet (yeah, I know we are supposed to save our work "frequently:", but I also know I often forget until something bad happens!)

 

[mtnmanak]

Hi mtnmanak and anyone else,

I have now attempted to use the Engine Edit program. Actually, I seldom use this -- perhaps I should use it more often -- but because of @mtnmanak's comments, I proceeded to invoke it. It seems to open up and then immediate close down. But when you try it a second time, you can get it to work.

Stanley

I will try to do a screen capture video to show the behavior I am talking about. I have tried this on three different computers (all Windows 10 computers) and all on clean installs and the same issue happens every time.

 

[ghostfather]

I've contacted Apogee directly with two small issues in 10.3:

• File open seems to take forever (+30s) the first time, after that it seems to be cached.
• When cancelling the "recommend motors" function, the confirmation box is under everything where I can't get focus and click "OK".

I haven't tried editing custom fins, but I've been warned here on the forum.

My points weren't dealbreakers, just something I can work around, and hope they fix in the next iteration. Editing fins would seem to be to be a more serious problem.

 

[RobertH3]

I have had some issues with changing optimum delay values in sims when I change motor delays and rerun. Weird, like the eng file is different for a -8 and a -10 or the code executes differently. Haven't messed with it in a while but hoping it is better. 9 was pretty simple, had some buggage but it was all work-aroundable...

Cheers / Robert

 

[Gramparocket]

I had problem updating RS 10 to 10.2 couldn't get it to work at all. I went back to 10. But had a great deal of difficulty trying to get it to work again.
I'm thinking about trying OR to see how well it works. I've been using RS since v5 it's been a disappointment since v10 came out.
Apogee tried to help but didn't come up with a solution. I'm hesitant to try 10.3 since 10.2 almost shut down my machine

 

[Gramparocket]

Entering custom fin points
I've had that issue with v10

 

[mtnmanak]

Stanley and I had a good conversation about a couple of these issues today and discovered a few things.

The plan points issue in custom fins is not working properly, but there is a workaround. If you double-click the Y points in the data chart, it will allow you to enter custom values. Clearly, this is not the intended behavior, but it will make it work.

As for the crashing when you cancel a nosecone, some further testing indicates this bug can happen when you cancel any component, which is a much more serious issue. I tested it both on new designs and existing designs and was able to replicate the crashes when cancelling a component.

If you are using 10.3, I highly recommend frequent saves or you could lose all your work if you open a component dialogue box and then cancel that operation.

 

[DaHabes]

Time to wait for release 10.4....

 

[MetricRocketeer]

Hi TRF colleagues,

I am still satisfied with RockSim 10.3.

Reasonable people can always disagree on things.

Stanley

 

[Xionone]

I am getting crashes in RS 10.3 not only when cancelling dialogues but occasionally when I try and select a component in the design 'tree'.
Have developed the habit of hitting save before I do anything to my designs.

 

[Bill S]

I am getting crashes in RS 10.3 not only when cancelling dialogues but occasionally when I try and select a component in the design 'tree'.
Have developed the habit of hitting save before I do anything to my designs.

That is a really good idea, saving after adding a part, etc. I've seen enough crashes, particularly when moving pods around (radial angle slider tool), that I expect crashes and save frequently. This is with R.S. 10.2, not "upgrading" after the last "upgrade" experience wherein they introduced alot of bugs that they eventually fixed in 10.2.

 

[mtnmanak]

Agree with this - I am seeing more and more crashes/bugs. Cancelling any operation has about an 80+% chance of crashing the program, so, besides saving very minute or so, I have been trying to get into the habit of not cancelling anything. Better to just hit "Okay" and then delete the part. This bug is pervasive throughout the program and is super frustrating.

I have emailed Apogee a number of times, with no response. I assume they are inundated with bug reports and are just not responding now.

Other things I have emailed them about (mostly feature requests so not as critical):

- When I start the program or load a file, it starts in "Rocket Design Attributes". When I click on any of the other tabs, I can't go back to Rocket Design Attributes. All the other tabs work, but that one won't work until I load a new file or restart the program.
- Model an aluminum tip on a nosecone - this should be part of the nosecone dialogue (like a shoulder is)
- Model fly-away-rail guides for launches. They make a significant difference for rail speed. The kludge I use right now is to add the weight, run the sims on the motors I want to fly to get the proper rail "Velocity at launch guide departure", then remove the weight and run the sims again to get a proper flight profile. Adding FARGs should be an easy thing and I shouldn't have to run all my sims twice then kludge the results together in a spreadsheet.
- Be able to move the location of a transition.. Numerous models I have built require a transition to be in the middle of a tube. The Saturn V is a good example. Even Apogee's own Saturn V kit has two transitions in the middle of tubes. You have to resort to a kludge of having a tube go to the top of the transition and then another tube extending backward from the subsequent part to back it up into the bottom of the transition. This often takes a bit of trial and error to get right and takes a while to think through the modeling. If there was a location slider on the transition dialogue boxed, the issue could be resolved in seconds.
- Ability to model grid fins
- Camera housings and rail buttons should be standard items
- Why can't I put a coupler in a nosecone or transition?
- Stepped bulkheads to fit in a coupler
- Be able to move a mass object radially - this is one of those capabilities that Open Rocket does have, but Rocksim doesn't

Apogee does not seem to monitor this forum (unlike virtually all the other manufacturers/sellers) and I can't find a decent place to post these kinds of things that they do monitor. The only communication tool with them I can find is email and they seem to be ignoring those. I like Open Rocket, but development on that program seems to be dead (despite years of "next version is almost ready!"). The big difference is that we paid Apogee for Rocksim. They need to at least fix the bugs.

 

[DaHabes]

Agree with this - I am seeing more and more crashes/bugs. Cancelling any operation has about an 80+% chance of crashing the program, so, besides saving very minute or so, I have been trying to get into the habit of not cancelling anything. Better to just hit "Okay" and then delete the part. This bug is pervasive throughout the program and is super frustrating.

I have emailed Apogee a number of times, with no response. I assume they are inundated with bug reports and are just not responding now.

Other things I have emailed them about (mostly feature requests so not as critical):

- When I start the program or load a file, it starts in "Rocket Design Attributes". When I click on any of the other tabs, I can't go back to Rocket Design Attributes. All the other tabs work, but that one won't work until I load a new file or restart the program.
- Model an aluminum tip on a nosecone - this should be part of the nosecone dialogue (like a shoulder is)
- Model fly-away-rail guides for launches. They make a significant difference for rail speed. The kludge I use right now is to add the weight, run the sims on the motors I want to fly to get the proper rail "Velocity at launch guide departure", then remove the weight and run the sims again to get a proper flight profile. Adding FARGs should be an easy thing and I shouldn't have to run all my sims twice then kludge the results together in a spreadsheet.
- Be able to move the location of a transition.. Numerous models I have built require a transition to be in the middle of a tube. The Saturn V is a good example. Even Apogee's own Saturn V kit has two transitions in the middle of tubes. You have to resort to a kludge of having a tube go to the top of the transition and then another tube extending backward from the subsequent part to back it up into the bottom of the transition. This often takes a bit of trial and error to get right and takes a while to think through the modeling. If there was a location slider on the transition dialogue boxed, the issue could be resolved in seconds.
- Ability to model grid fins
- Camera housings and rail buttons should be standard items
- Why can't I put a coupler in a nosecone or transition?
- Stepped bulkheads to fit in a coupler
- Be able to move a mass object radially - this is one of those capabilities that Open Rocket does have, but Rocksim doesn't

Apogee does not seem to monitor this forum (unlike virtually all the other manufacturers/sellers) and I can't find a decent place to post these kinds of things that they do monitor. The only communication tool with them I can find is email and they seem to be ignoring those. I like Open Rocket, but development on that program seems to be dead (despite years of "next version is almost ready!"). The big difference is that we paid Apogee for Rocksim. They need to at least fix the bugs.

They do not monitor TRF. I've suggested they should but TVM says there is not time available to do so. I have put in bug notices with suggestions and have gotten responses directly back from Tim. I think it is hit or miss to some extent. If the bug or suggestions is something that is in the hopper you tend to get a response. You won't get a response if you put a laundry basket of feedback into a single support message.

 

[mtnmanak]

FYI - I didn't know this, but if you have to deactivate your computers and don't have the old computer available, Apogee charges you a $1.00 to deactivate Rocksim old computers. Not an exorbitant fee, but people should probably know it is not free to deactivate a computer you no longer have.

Situation was that I replaced my desktop and laptop and forgot to deactivate Rocksim on them before I wiped the hard drives (there are SO many things you have to deactivate when you get rid of a computer these days!). Every single one of the other programs I had that needed to be deactivated (i.e. Adobe Creative Cloud, MS Office, etc) had easy methods online to just deactivate the old installation. Rocksim ranks as the only program I currently own that charges me to deactivate an old install.