I have added a new feature for SMs to use in v5.20. There is a checkbox on the Misc tab of the Fleet window called "Select Real Star Destination for Unexplored". If this box has been checked AND you are in SM Mode AND it is a Real Stars game then when a player race explores a jump point, you will get a popup box with a list of all real star systems. This can be sorted alphabetically or by distance from the current system. Each system in the list includes star types and distance from the current system. This is for early game setup when you want an Empire to have access to certain systems such as Alpha Centauri, or you want to pick systems with star types that are more likely to have habitable planets, such as G-class stars, or you want Betelgeuse or Rigel to be an early discovery, etc.. It doesn't allow you to specify the planetary systems as those are only generated when the first race enters the system but it does allow a little more control over how an early Empire will look. Obviously, this can give you advantages over NPRs (or disadvantages if you deliberately pick a lot of red dwarves) so its up to you to decide if you want to use it in a solo game. There are about 1800 Real Star systems in the database to choose from at the moment. To turn this feature off you can just uncheck the checkbox on the Fleet window.
The list doesn't specify if the system has already been generated. If it is a player system you will know anyway and if it is an NPR system you wouldn't want to know. You won't be able to tell if you were the first one to generate the system if it is new.
Also, a small addition to the Research tab of the Economics window. You can choose to display only those scientists that match the currently selected Research Field (such as Biology, Energy Weapons, etc.).
Steve
