I just want to be the captain...

[gap]

Originally Posted by plj

If you add to that "based on where he thinks he is now", that would suffice and be a hell of a lot more realistic over having a navigator that is unable to plot any course whatsoever.

Let's put it like this: we are at waypoint A (last position fix), and we want the navigator to reach the waypoint C following a route which will pass through B (B and C: user inputs on map).

The navigator will calculate a course from A to B. Since A is only an estimation of where we are, we will never join B, but a waypoint more or less close to it, depending on the accuracy of the starting position fix and on the lenght of the first leg. If needed, we can introduce some randomness to the calculated course (simulating human errors and the effect of random ocean drifts), and we can make the navigator to adjust the route based on intermediate position fixes. This way, we would never travel in a straight line. When the navigator believes that we are at B, he can calculate a new position fix (let's call it B'), and plot from there the next leg (from A' to B). Again his plotting will be affected by random errors, and he will calculate several position fixes to compensate them, until we reach B'.

What do you think guys?
This should be feasible and it would be fairly realistic, but until someone codes it, it is just theory. I only wish TDW was here