Originally posted by daddog
Well I stink at pool, but I love to play. This has answerd a lot of my questions. 
For those who do not see the connection between playing pool and gunnery in AH allow me to illustrate with a couple of examples. As mentioned by another poster, pool is two dimensional if you exclude the jump shot and AH gunnery is theoretically 3 dimensional, although the 3rd dimension is not actual but implied graphically. This is true to a point, but if you make one of the 3 dimensions a constant, depth in this case, it too becomes 2 dimensional for all practical purposes. In fact, we all make it 2 dimensional everytime we shoot in AH without even thinking about it consciously. We do this by always firing at a specific range from the target, for example I always fire when D = 200 on the icon. Therefore, as far as I am concerned, the 3rd dimension or Z co-ordinate (depth) is a constant as it does not change measurably during the brief fraction of a second of my firing envelope and the tiny interval of time it takes for the rounds to travel to the target.
If we agree that both gunnery and pool are in essence two dimensional we can focus on the parallels as they relate to deflection and angles. In pool you have a cue ball and an object ball. The cue ball reacts to spin put on it by your cue tip which is in turn affected by the friction between the ball and the cloth. When you apply english, which is done by hitting the cue ball right or left of center, to varying degrees, you in fact deflect the cue ball. A masse shot is an extreme example of cue ball deflection, the cue ball actually arcs anywhere from a few degrees to a complete 180 degree half circle. Anytime you apply right or left english on the cue ball it deflects, therefore to maintain accuracy you must compensate for this deflection in your aim, the deflection is called squirt and throw. So, already you can see some parallels. We can say the 'spin' of the cue ball is equal to a firing solution for anything but a zero G shot at a stationary target, and the compensation in your aiming for this is equivalent to leading for deflection or in pool compensating for the squirt and throw of the cue ball in your aim.
Another parallel involves cut-shots and the control of the cue ball after making a cut-shot for shape. Say you have a 60 degree cut shot in a corner pocket, you focus upon the point of contact the cue-ball must strike the object ball to send it into the pocket, but where is the cue ball going? Well, there is always a simple way to tell in pool, it's called the tangent line. The tangent line is the line of intersection between the portion of the cue-ball that strikes the object ball at the point of contact. A line drawn through this intersection of points is the line the cue-ball will travel after striking the object ball if hit with no spin at all, dead center in the cue-ball. The cue-ball is essentially deflecting in a predictable way off of the object ball. Put spin, especially top (follow) or bottom (draw), on the cue ball and all bets are now off. Now the cue ball 'deflects' in an arc differently than the tangent line indicates relative to how much spin you apply and with what force you strike the cue-ball. A good pool player can predict the exact path this arc of deflection will take and where the cue-ball will go as a result. So, again a parallel between angles of deflection in pool and angles of deflection in AH gunnery.
I have the unique vantage of looking at both pool and AH gunnery from an experienced perspective. I contend, from my own personal experience, that the same part of the brain is used for both. They both involve the application of spatial geometry and the prediction of arcing paths of intersection based on moving objects (the cue-ball and object balls for carom and combination shots) that deflect variably depending upon the conditions. Both require angular compensation for deflection. If you do not want to take my word for it, go to your local pool hall or favorite tavern, play some pool and think about it as you play. Pay attention to the interaction between the cue ball and the object balls and how you attempt to predict the cue-ball's arcing angle of deflection to set yourself up for your next shot or break-out a cluster of balls. It's fundamentally the exact same process as predicting the point of intersection between your arcing bullet stream and an enemy aircraft.
Zazen
