Real Navigation with SH3

[dertien]

Hello Don,

Could you elaborate a little bit more on how you handle realnav in SH3 , what tools you use etc...

I have been looking all over the forums here, and all the information I found got me there halfway, or not at all.

Could you point us SH3 players to a link, tutorial, how to use this in SH3 ?

[don1reed]

Hey, dertien

The point man on this is, 6SJ7GT, but he hangs out on the SH4 Mods forum and doesn't play SH3, or have it....However....I do

He's created a script using "Python" which interacts with both "Stellarium" and "SH4". I've changed the script to suit my computer's filing structure ( c:\documents and settings\...etc.) so that I now got it to work with both SH4 & SH3.

I say again: Python and Stellarium are FREEWARE.

Here's what it does:

1) While your sim of choice is running (SH3 or 4) do a save of the game but continue to run it.

2) Slip out of the sim leaving it running and run the Python script and input the Date/Time (UTC) and Wind speed & boat speed--exit Python.

3) Enter "Stellarium". Python will have automatically set up Stellarium to where it displays what the real world would look like at the geo coords and date/time that you are experiencing in the game.

4) The clock continues to run in Stellarium; however, you can simulate taking sextant sights (sun/moon/planets/stars) (click on body) as it gives Hs and Az of the heavenly bodies, by pausing Stellarium after each sight.

5) 6SJ7GT has also provided ephemeral data for the war years which will allow you to do a sight reduction for your acquired data.

6) Plot your course on a real paper plotting sheet or plot it on the F5 screen.

This procedure is not meant for the casual player as it is real navigation and is as time consuming as the real thing because it is the real thing.

Beginners should try this if they keep the waypoint tool and the sub/uboat icon on. The more experience and confidence you get with it, one can stop using the icon & waypoint tools.

In order to make it work from the get go I begin my patrols with waypoints to the mouth of the harbor to give Python a point of reference. It goes into the SH3/SH4 file in Documents and looks at the locations of the saved game and converts them into Lat/Long for it's use.

Best place to start is here: http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/show...=116170&page=7

Begin with Post 124

I hope this helped.

all the best,

[don1reed]

There's been a lot of effort into making a realnav mod for SH3 with somewhat disappointing results. The combination of pgms SH3, Python & Stellarium is the most realistic to date. For one thing it will give the neophyte navigator a lesson of what it takes to move vessels around on the surface of the earth.(and below)

It will definitely take the player to a higher state of immersion. From taking sights to sight reduction, with or without weather's influence, a whole new game.

[dertien]

Thank you Don1,

This looks like a thorough tutorial, have saved all pages, and will get studying immediately.

greetings

Dertien

[don1reed]

Roger dodger, dertien

If you need any help setting up your script for SH3 give me a shout.

There is a location in Stellarium that must be changed to read "utc". Let me know when you reach that place in your new adventure.

also, make sure you begin a new career with this just for the sole purpose of ironing out any bugs.

as always, cheers.

That SH4 real nav thread is interesting. I have been using the SH3 real nav mod that's posted around here somewhere, but lacking knowledge on how to shoot stars/sun I have been relying entirely on dead reckoning! However I have successfully completed 2 patrols on dead reckoning alone so it isn't impossible.

I bookmarked the pages that looked promising.

[ichso]

So you're still into the real nav thing don1reed ?

I havn't played SH3 for a while now. I wanted to try your suggestion, but the site stellarium.org doesn't work.

Another thing: what about the stock SH3 bug that the the ranges aren't displayed correctly on the navmap ? When you travel west, lets say to longitude of 50°W then this should be a shorter way if you are further north than (for example) directly at the equator.

Doesn't this bug disturb your calculations or do you just take them into account ?

[don1reed]

Howdy, Ischo

Yep, still hangin' in there.

I have no probs with SH4. Crossed several time zones and results were rock solid.

In the middle of an SH3 patrol now, heading SWxW out of Lorient for BE86 in a typ9. I'll test that anomaly out shortly. Is there any particular Latitude were that shows up in game, or is it a fact all along the meridian 50W?

I really don't believe that it will present a problem as no matter where your boat is in the game, "Phython" looks at the geo coords of where it really is via the SH3 file in the documents section of the computer's files. The player usually has no knowledge of where his boat is in terms of geo coords as the player only sees KM grids. The game, however, is dealing with geo coords.

The name I've saved for my first patrol using this setup is "100". When I follow the directory path in my computer via the "SH3" doorway, the file name "100.map" is the one that Python uses to setup Stellarium to display what the uboat/sub sees on the F4 screen.

I'll let you know what happens.

PS stellarium.org is working now.

Cheers,