0.16.0#

  • Release Date: 2020-12-10

  • Commit: c13b211a

  • Full changelog: link

Download v0.16.0 on the OpenSpace website installation page. The below notes are highlights that will be of most interest to OpenSpace users.

OpenSpace Launcher#

Now you can start up OpenSpace with your scene selection and window configuration without editing the .cfg text file

  • “Choose Profile” takes place of editing Asset (scene)

  • “Window Options” takes place of editing SGCTConfig

  • Hit “Start” to launch

You can also create and edit profiles, what is loaded when you launch OpenSpace

  • Previously, Lua code listed out all of the content

  • Now, a JSON text file is used

Editing profiles#

The profiles that ship with OpenSpace are defaulted as “Read Only” so they are not accidentally adjusted. But you can use these profiles as the basis of your own custom profile. To edit a profile: In the Launcher window, click Edit to choose what will go in the profile. A new window will open, Profile Editor.

Add a Profile Name at the top, and click the Edit button next to each entry to add or remove content and properties (described below)

  • Once the window is open, click the plus inside the square to expand the category list, and the minus to collapse

  • The column on the right “Enabled” shows what will be included (checkmark) or not (empty square)

  • Hit save after making changes

Properties#

Things that you want to be set automatically when you start up your scene, i.e. if you want all trails off or a certain color to start with. This can be thought of as a keybind that happens on startup.

  • You will need the code. To get this, do what you want in OpenSpace, and then copy the variable (property within the parentheses) in the log file.

  • Use Add New:

    • Put the copied code in Property

    • The Value to set is either true or false

  • In the future, hope this might be selectable from a list

Assets#

What content is in OpenSpace when you load it

  • This is based on the asset folder (the hierarchical tree i.e. Solar System > Earth)

  • base and base_blank

    • base: Basic content in the default profile (Digital Universe, Sun, planets and Pluto, Earth’s satellites and ISS, constellation artwork, Orion nebula and Milky Way models, and exoplanets). Not possible to edit this - if you want to remove something from the base, you should use base_blank and then add in content

    • base_blank: Includes system GUI and dashboard, but no content

    • Without base_blank, you will not have the menus

  • You can add in assets with no limit - this means you can add too many things so it will crash OpenSpace based on your computer’s limits, or if the content itself conflicts. In some cases, the log file can be consulted for some errors. If you get a crash and no error message, but think you know what caused the crash, please let us know on Slack or GitHub

Keybindings#

The keyboard shortcuts you want in the profile.

  • In the past, there were multiple steps to set up keybinding: Do what you want to have happen in OpenSpace, go to the script log file (scriptlog.txt in log folder) and copy code, put this code with the key in your keybinding file

  • You still need to do some of these steps: Do what you want the key to do in OpenSpace, copy the code in the log file, then paste using the instructions below

  • Use Add New:

    • Select the Key Modifier (i.e. Shift) and Key

    • Add a Name

    • Select where you want the keybinding to appear with GUI Path, such as /Earth

    • Add a note about what this does in Documentation

    • Paste the code from the log file into Script. You shouldn’t need to edit the quotes in the code, which you sometimes had to do previously. Use a semi-colon in between more than one command.

    • Save this addition, and then the Keybindings window, too

  • For keybindings for Xbox controller, copy your existing script into an asset file instead of this dialogue: OpenSpace/data/assets/util/default_joystick.asset

Meta#

Not currently being used; may be used in the future to share, browse, and download profiles.

Mark Interesting Nodes#

This is what shows up in the Focus menu.

  • To add, you need to know the name of the asset, i.e. “Earth”, “Mars”, “ISS” (hope to change this in the future so you can select from available assets)

Simulation Time Increments#

What time increments are bound to the number keys, Shift + number keys, and Ctrl + number keys, i.e. 1.0 second/sec

  • Each profile can have its own simulation time increment bindings

  • To change, select one, type into the box below Set Simulation Time Increment for key X in seconds, the numbers in bold at right will convert the units

  • You can also add a binding by clicking Add Entry

Set Camera Position#

Where does the camera start?

  • Two options: Navigation State and Geo State (tabs at top)

  • Geo State is more straightforward

    • Anchor is the name of the globe ie Earth or Mars

    • Latitude and Longitude in decimals

    • Altitude is in meters

  • Navigation State also includes angles - the easiest way to do this is to create a text file when in OpenSpace, and copy values into this. Enter command in console: openspace.navigation.savecamerastate + a file path

Time#

What is the starting time?

  • Default is to start one day ago so Earth has its daily mosaic

  • You can also set it to your current time, by selecting Absolute

Modules#

Will not often be used - will be used only if you are building a scene that includes a specific functionality that is not often included in OpenSpace, such as a new module of code that you have written.

Additional Scripts#

There are additional lua scripts for configuration, used for customization.

New features and content#

In addition to the below, there were performance improvements that should generally result in increases to frames per second (FPS).

Asset meta information#

Added meta information (description, author, etc.) that can be accessed in-scene.

  • Access in-scene by clicking question mark in scene menu (to right of the asset name)

    • This will open a window that has two tabs at the bottom: Description and Info

    • Description: Details what this asset is, with resources listed at the end

    • Info: Author(s), version, license, and URL information. Click the scissors to copy this URL to your clipboard

  • Everything can have meta information, but not everything does right now - it’s a work in progress. Most should have something right now, excluding the missions, which still need to be added

  • This information is stored in each asset file under and “asset.meta”

New exoplanets menu#

See Exoplanets for a detailed overview and instructions.

Orion Nebula model#

Added a polygonal Orion Nebula model from Digital Universe Atlas, scaled with World Wide Telescope images.

GlobeBrowsing layers#

Each GlobeBrowsing layer is now its own asset file

  • Previously, there was no easy way to choose what layers are loaded. Now, layers that you don’t use or that are irrelevant can be removed from the menus. There is also meta information for each layer in this file

  • When building your own profile:

    • The base asset will use all the default layers

    • There is also a default_layers option for each object

    • You can select only certain layers by going into the layers in each asset’s hierarchical tree to select which are enabled

  • The asset files for the layers (both color and height) are in a new folder: data -> assets -> scene -> digitaluniverse or milkyway or solarsystem -> object

  • This should not break old files that use a .info file - the software still will look in globebrowsing customization file to see if there are other things to be added to a globe - but we encourage making these into an asset file for more permanent or long-term use

New time menu GUI and shortcut to go backward in time#

  • Arrows in the time menu or the keyboard arrow keys can be used to cycle between time increments i.e. from the first keybind (1 sec/second) to the next (10 sec/second)

  • If using the menu, the current simulation speed will be displayed above the arrows, and the increment if you press the arrows will be written below them

  • Alt/option + keybind # will do that speed in reverse. For example if “Shift+5” is mapped to a delta time of 30, “Alt+Shift+5” will automatically be bound to -30

  • Note: Previously, arrow keys were the default keybind to advance slide deck - now the slide deck forward, back, and toggle are defaulted to use the keypad #6, 4, and 0 See commit #1320.

New radial grid and easier planar grid#

  • The radial grid is new. The included grid is an example so you can customize your own

  • Planar grid previously created with a speck file, example included is for easier customization option

Updated Mars HiRISE map#

Previously, HiRISE Local Set corresponded with available terrain models. New HiRISE layer has wider coverage, but without complete height map coverage.

C-Troll#

Application to launch OpenSpace in immersive environments.

  • C-Troll is a new, separate application to launch OpenSpace in immersive environments like planetariums. Previously, OpenSpace could be launched in planetariums via existing network structure, Windows file sharing, batch scripts, etc. C-Troll is two applications: Tray application runs on rendering nodes, and C-Troll runs on master node.