From: lunatic@netcom.com (Lunatic Johnathan Bruce E'Sex)
Subject: BTECH: Design Tables (Was: Re: New improved Charger (3026))
Organization: Netcom; Renegade User
Date: Thu, 31 Dec 1992 20:10:42 GMT

In article <1992Dec31.030303.9744@vlsi.polymtl.ca> RiTz@babbage (Richard Taillon) writes:
>tfpayn01@ulkyvx.louisville.edu Says:
>>         I have a friend who is currently working for IBM that
>> really helped during ouir 3026 days.  He came up with a table (TAL
>> factors, or Tonnage Allocation Limits) that'll figure maxxed
>> armour, speed, and how much left for weapons (included gyros,
>> etc..), made a factory scenario not unlike Solaris VII (Should've
>> copyrighted the damn thing, could've lived well!), and came up with
>> two 'mechs from hell!
> 
>Quite interesting. I made myself something similar to your Tonnage Allocation
>Limit table. I call it the Mech Engine Performance table (MEP table).
>It shows how much weight remains (in tons) for a desired Cruise Speed.
 
     _
    |_
    |_veryone's got their own version of that table (if you don't, you're
 missing out).  I call my tables simply "Design Aids" and have versions
 for all the various combinations of technology (IS, Star League, Clans),
 with and without max armour.  Plus, I have versions for hovercraft,
 VTOLs, and some old vehicle tables I made when CityTech came out but
 haven't bothered to update for Star League or Clan tech.  I even have
 a chart called "Optimum Vehicles for Weight Remaining" which lets you
 choose a unit weight and speed, and then shows you what kind of unit
 gives you the most remaining weight for weapons, etc.  That one also
 hasn't been updated since before TR 2750 and the Star League tech.  I
 figured it wasn't really worth my time.  It does have a few surprises,
 though, like most of the 8 and 9 MP positions being taken up by units
 powered by ICE.  Wheeled tanks rule most of the low-weight low-speed
 positions (the very lowest ones are taken by tracked tanks), and
 hovercraft rule the low-weight high-speed positions (no surprise).
 I didn't bother to include VTOLs in that chart.
     _
    /-\ friend of mine was using cards instead of charts, before
 TR 2750, with one card per tonnage.  He found out how advantageous
 charts are when I showed him how you could compare different weight
 units and see the optimal weight/speed curves.  Cards are still nice,
 though, since you can fit all of a unit's information on one of them
 (unlike the tiny spaces in a chart).  I think the optimal arrangement
 would be a hypertext system where it shows you one master chart, and
 then you can select different radio buttons to select different
 technologies and equipment, and then double-click on any one space
 to see a full "card" giving all the details that won't fit in the
 spaces.  I thought of using HyperCard to develop such a system, but
 it just doesn't have the resolution.  I'm not about to spend the time
 needed to write a full application to do it on some other system.  It
 just isn't worth it, since my printed-out charts do the job just as
 well, if slightly less conveiniently.

-- 
   _______________________________________________________
  /         -= Lunatic Johnathan Bruce E'Sex     (:      /
 /  lunatic@netcom.com  GEnie: LUNATIC  CI$: 76170,672  /
/______________________________________________________/