A few ways to improve Jester

[StarLiner]

Jester is actually really powerful and very intuitive. There are a few areas though, where it feels like small changes could make him a bit easier to use. Please consider the following modifications:

 

- Small adjustments to Jester wheel locations. STT lock should be a first order option when in AA mode, for example. Change fusing, Ripple settings, and ordinance selection should be a first order selection in AG mode. 

As it stands, when in AG mode, AG settings is a first order option with a lot of blank space. Moving these options would make setting things up a little quicker.

 

- Eliminate or significantly decrease incorrect IFF callouts. I understand Jester is supposed to be human and humans make mistakes, but these happen way too often. Considering how reliant you are on a rio for IFF and how harsh the punishments are on most multiplayer servers for team killing, I think this is something that should be changed. As it stands, Jester really can't be trusted even at close range. 

 

- In addition, please slightly decrease the amount of time Jester takes to IFF

 

- Make default fusing Nose/Tail after takeoff or when entering AG mode. A human Rio would do this I think, and it's one less thing to have to think about with jester, which would be nice, even if it's not strictly by NATOPS.

 

- Add more hotkeys for things like dropping tanks as the pilot, turning the jammer on and off, and, while probably more difficult, confirming IFF. I can't tell you how nice the current shortcut set is for things like TID range, more would be very much welcome.

 

- If possible, add IFF to the STT window and sort them by IFF first, and then range, and then azimuth, instead of just range and azimuth.

[Sideburns]

I would also like to commend the effort that has gone into Jester and it's abilities, but as ever there are areas where Jester is frusrating. I agree with Starliners comments above and would add:

• IFF prioritisation - IFF'ing hostile datalink contacts or contacts that are closer / hotter first would be useful, but appreciate this would take some additional intelligence
• Radar pointing intelligence - once more a prioritisation of pointing the radar where DL or previous unknown hostile contacts are/where would be useful rather than having to manually drive this.
• P-STT / PD-STT locking intelligence - Jester seems to have issues making the right call on which locking mode to use for conditions and weapon types, and locking in general is very unreliable by Jester (similar to if a human RIO presses the a P-STT or PD-STT button to lock a TID track).
• Setting up jettison panel for fuel tank stations by default so acm jettison will function as it usually does for human pilot/rio combinations (i.e. giving the pilot the ability to jettison tanks using ACM jettison button)
• Tacan or DL nav fixing options for Jester

Appreciate these may not all be easy problems to solve.

Edited May 5, 2022 by Sideburns
Added context to locking comment

[Redliner7]

IFF is a big one. I don't fly in multiplayer servers bc the few times that I have, I end up with a team kill. It's very frustrating when I thought it was for sure a bandit.

Sent from my Pixel 4a (5G) using Tapatalk

[Zaphael]

11 hours ago, Redliner7 said:

IFF is a big one. I don't fly in multiplayer servers bc the few times that I have, I end up with a team kill. It's very frustrating when I thought it was for sure a bandit.

Sent from my Pixel 4a (5G) using Tapatalk
 

Check that you are hooked up via datalink to the AWACs. You can usually obtain IFF indication via the Link 4. 

Otherwise, get Jester to set the radar scan range to 50 NMI, so that there is less airspace of contacts for him to interrogate. 

[StarLiner]

1 hour ago, Zaphael said:

Check that you are hooked up via datalink to the AWACs. You can usually obtain IFF indication via the Link 4. 

Otherwise, get Jester to set the radar scan range to 50 NMI, so that there is less airspace of contacts for him to interrogate. 

I think he's referring to STT locks. Jester calls out incorrect STT IFF all the time. He'll say a bandit is a friendly, or a friendly is a bandit. IFF checks are a very easy thing to do as a Rio, and he really shouldn't be getting it wrong as often as he does.

Edited May 6, 2022 by StarLiner

[Callsign JoNay]

I would like a way to have Jester default to the center on aircraft option under Navigation Grid. Having to ask him to do it every time I go from aircraft stabilized to navgrid is annoying. Maybe an indefinite option too so he keeps re-centering every few seconds.

I don't need to be asked to do these things when I play as a human RIO.

[Whiskey Greg]

I know this doesn't really help everyone, but I've found that using the Voice Attack/VAICOM/AIRIO combination is immensely helpful. Rather than messing around with the menus you can just talk to Jester using a mic. It is even structured in a way to help you gradually learn all the commands. 

 

If only I could solve the problem of my wife judging me for the head tracking (with an xbox Kinect!) and now talking to my computer hahaha

[StarLiner]

2 hours ago, Whiskey Greg said:

I know this doesn't really help everyone, but I've found that using the Voice Attack/VAICOM/AIRIO combination is immensely helpful. Rather than messing around with the menus you can just talk to Jester using a mic. It is even structured in a way to help you gradually learn all the commands. 

 

If only I could solve the problem of my wife judging me for the head tracking (with an xbox Kinect!) and now talking to my computer hahaha

Voice attack helps a lot, but it doesn't fix most of the things that are talked about in this post. It doesn't make Jester IFF more accurately, for example.

[dorianR666]

On 5/5/2022 at 4:42 PM, Sideburns said:

Radar pointing intelligence - once more a prioritisation of pointing the radar where DL or previous unknown hostile contacts are/where would be useful rather than having to manually drive this.

+1

[StarLiner]

Bumping in hopes of getting noticed. I think changed to Jester's IFF accuracy, especially when STT'ing, is something most people would really like to see improved.

[OldIronsides]

Anytime I blow a friendly out of the sky, I just type in chat Jester.... Everyone LOL's and says ah understood.. Like its expected.