Thinking of Returning, but Is It Worth It.

Hi Everybody.
In 2006 I step down from full-time employment to take what I thought was going to be the retired life and took up trainz as a hobby mostly developing my route based on the British North Devon rail network prior to the Beeching closures. However, my old employers started requesting me to carry out various jobs for them based within industrial safety which steadily grew and led me to register my own company in 2007. The business has grown an expanded over the last six years and now employs 14 people giving me little time for trainz and my loved hobby.

Although I am in good health with no ailments, at the age of 69 my wife of 46 years now thinks I should start to hand over the daily control of the company to the more senior employees of the business, take a back seat and most of all stop chasing about all over the country. In the foregoing, my first thoughts were “ah I will be able to get back to trainz and once more start work on my once loved route”.

In the last few days I have taken some time off to think about it all and started once again taking an interest in these forums and what’s going on. What I seem to see is a large amount of threads and postings devoted to missing kuids, content that does not work, creators that seem very dissatisfied and even one or two that have deliberately removed or damaged content on the DLS. Is the foregoing generally a true interpretation of the situation or is it just a small minority sounding off on the forums. In other words, what really is the general state of the PC version of trainz

I would also ask if my North Devon route originally started in trainz, 2006 carried on in 2009 and then 2010 would transfer easily to the latest version of trainz or would there be problems. I am not the sort of person who would wish to spend large amounts of time trying to repair content downloaded from the DLS or within my old route. Therefore, with that in mind I would genuinely ask members of this forum if they think trainz 2012 would be for me or if I do really move into full or semi-retirement looking at a different hobby or simulator would be the better option.


With thanks
Bill

wholbr said:

Hi Everybody..................................
With thanks
Bill

Click to expand...

Why not just stick with TS2010?

Mick Berg.

Bill,

It is true there are a number of posts looking for missing KUID's and discussing broken content. But I think Trainz is relatively robust, and would be well worth the return. For one thing, if you are building your own route, there is a very easy option for items which are missing dependencies, or have other faults: just use a different item. This would probably prevent the larger part of the issues you read about.

And for the rest, well sometimes the hunt is part of the fun. Tally ho.

ns

Retire, relax and play trains. Your wife would probably like to enjoy a bit more of your company as well.

Cheerio John

You're asking the denizens of these fora whether they are an unruly lot or if it's just a few that are tarnishing the game and expecting a totally unbiased answer? You have been away for a while.

As for the version issue, TS12 is stricter in what it will accept. Makes for a smoother and more stable game at the cost of rejecting some old favorites from the DLS. The fact that some of those objects should never have been accepted is another topic with plenty of opinions. If it is a new route, I would use TS12. To upgrade an older route, depends of what objects are used and how easy it will be to exchange them. Go with the version that involves the least work and is still fairly modern or you will have to upgrade again as that version gets too old to support. The pros and cons of this is also a topic that is hotly debated.

If you don't like lively forums with plenty of opinions, you'll probably be better served using a game that never changes or one where debate is very strictly moderated. Me, I like the ambiance here. With few exceptions, I have found the members to be generally helpful and understanding. Ignore those that upset you, there will some of those in every crowd.

Bill,

As a past moderator of a forum covering a completely different subject, I've long come to accept that such groups always seem to be dominated by a small but noticeable percentage of individuals with axes to grind who return again and again to the same issues long after the general membership has grown tired of them.

They're a tiny fraction of the whole, but because they tend to be relentless and post vociferously, both they and their issues appear to be far more significant than they really are. Digging deeper, it often turns out that such behaviour stems from problems elsewhere in their lives, and that the virtual environment, saving them the danger of physically facing the community, encourages them to go further than they would in a live social situation. To many of us, they're vexations of the spirit, but you need only to read a few of their posts to identify the particular names likely to raise your personal blood pressure, make a note of them and avoid them thereafter.

As for the work side, you'll have to let go sooner or later, and you deserve more time to yourself. If there's no real need to continue putting yourself under such continual pressure, then don't: let someone else take the strain and step back - if the previous Pope can do it, why shouldn't you? Perish the thought, but were you suddenly to pop your clogs the business would have to learn to cope without you anyway: stepping back now, and lessening the pressure will doubtless make that less likely.

As for your questions concerning TS12, I'd guess that there are far more satisfied users than detractors. True, there are some issues, but a service pack appears to be nearing release, and that will no doubt solve at least some of them. There's relatively little content that can't be made to work in it, and an increasing body of assets that are tailor made. It's not exactly a bank-breaking proposition: if your system can run it, then try it; if it's really problematical for you, then continue building in TS10 - it's perfectly possible to run both on the same computer.

Hope this helps.

Best wishes,

m

Hi everybody.
Many thanks for the replies to my posting. With your encouragement ringing in my ears I decided to boot up trainz 2010 on the computer in my home office this afternoon. I have updated the computer several times in the last couple of years so it is of a high spec (or so I am told by the guy who looks after all our company computers including this one at home) and has ported the Auran files to the various computers along the way.

However, as stated the trainz simulator along with several other simulators have had very little use in the past few years, In fact there are three which I have bought or have received as a gift and have never used. So on booting trainz 2010 this afternoon , I was immediately informed that It needed patching and then when I tried to patch it I was informed that it could not be patched for whatever reason (lol) . Still, I have another day off tomorrow and will try to sort the problem out which takes me back to when I used to sort the problems out building my North Devon route

The above led me to look at what I do have on this home PC, which in the last few years has only been used for work in the main. So here is a list, just for a good laugh.

London Underground simulator (never used)
FSX flight simulator (never used)
Railworks 3 (had a trial on it once or twice)
European truck driving simulator (cannot even think why anyone would wish to buy me that)
Ship simulator (use to really enjoy that one, but that also would not boot this afternoon)
air-traffic control simulator (never used, and have no intention of ever using it)
Gefs flight simulator (comes as a free addon to Google earth, very good)

As stated, most of the above had been ported and upgraded several times across various PC systems by our computer guy who has always maintained my home computers for free provided I gave him all the work on the office computers which has not been a bad deal. That said, I am coming round to taking a back seat in the business and handing over the daily running of the company to the employees who have long deserved it. As stated by someone in this thread, should I suddenly pop my clogs then they would have to manage without me. That did ring a bell and left me thinking that it is only fair that the changeover should be carried out while I am still around to help and advise (so many thanks for that advice).

My wife who also works in the business will also be taking more of a back seat from the office administration and bookkeeping she has always carried out. We both love walking and intend to do much more of that while we both still have our health and strength for all those long walks across Exmoor and Dartmoor that we enjoy so much and which always finish in a pub.

However, I am not one for watching television with the exception of football especially Manchester United. So I will still need a hobby for the evenings and undoubtedly it has been decided that hobby will once again be Trainz. This week has made me realise how lucky I have been in my life without ever knowing unemployment, ill-health and for the last 46 years being married to the worlds best girl. Should it be that on the day I do pop my clogs him up their says well Bill if you wish you can go back down and start all over again i do not think their is much i would want to change.

Many thanks from someone who feels that this coming week will be one of those very big weeks in his life.

Bill

Glad to see that you are back ! I was going to throw my 2 cents in: I am an idiot when it comes to computers, but I am not having much difficulty with Trainz. I download some stuff and once in a while you have to look for a missing dependency or two, but usually everyone on the forums are a TREMENDOUS HELP. I'm not afraid to ask a "stupid question" once in a while about how to fix something or just how to do something, even though the answer may be over my head.
Good luck.

Bill,

Welcome back to Trainz!

I'm sure if you post the details on your difficulties in another thread, one of us will have a look at it and give our 2-cents. I know that Shane Turner and I will surely do that. What we'd need is the specs of your computer the usual video card, and the assorted parts.

Now about retirement. Go for it while you and you're wife are healthy. There's no reason why you shouldn't if you have the means to do so, unless of course you want to still poke in the office once in awhile to see how things are going. I say this from the deepest part of my heart and soul. I was forced into retirement last September due to increased complications due to Parkinson's disease. I started falling at work and had some other issues that made me less productive. I had a choice to either take disability with a drastic cut in pay, or be fired. It boiled down to that. I chose the former so at least I wouldn't be put out of my house and end up under the train bridge uptown.

I understand your turmoil inside because it's different when you're not working. People say they can't wait to stop working, but the reality is when you do stop, what do you do? For me I lost my purpose. I had no intention to stop. I planned to work until I was 90 just like the rest of my family has. They did so to stay busy and have a purpose. As I said work gave me a purpose - a way of contributing to something and make myself worthy. I'd get up every day, some days not feeling up to it, but I'd get up anyway and go to work thinking about what I had to accomplish. I was the local tech-support guy for nearly 700 employees at Oracle's Burlington, MA sales office. I eventually, got help and was building a team, when I had to leave. I did my job as though I owned my own company. I developed a reputation of diligence as I took ownership of problems and saw them to the end. I was given two awards by management for my work. These are nice, but what did they prove? My manager was going to fire me anyway. My reputation is still as strong there today as it was 6 months ago. Even now when I go back to visit my peers for lunch, other coworkers including C-level vice presidents and directors, come up to see me. They always ask when I'm coming back. The answer is I am not, sadly.

This level and pressure I put on myself to do the top job at the A+++ level I always do, and this will happen to you too, comes at a cost. The price is called living outside of work. Oh, I had my vacations which I took, but my long hours at the office to get the job done took its toll on me along with the stress of traveling and everything else that goes with the job. Eventually, things broke, and here I am. I was told I was lucky because I got an 7-years of work after diagnosis instead of the usual 5 years. Lucky? I wouldn't call this luck. I suppose I could have given up sooner, but that's not my nature.

Now having said this, I have realized that for all these years of working hard and doing the every day living thing, we all take too much for granted. We take the people around us for granted; we take the world for granted. This is true when we grow up. When we visited our grandparents, we said hello then ran off to play. We rarely spent the time to visit with them and learn about them. That usually comes much later, and usually when it's too late. Sadly, we do the same to people around us, and sadly we don't realize what we have now until we no longer have it because we're caught up in the grind of everyday living. You have a wife and I'm glad she's healthy too. Spend time with her. Cherish her as though you just met her.

John

NO. Once you come back you're addicted and you'll never leave.. SAVE YOURSELFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF before it's too late

Jamie

It is good for you to be back. As we progress through life and accumulate a wealth of experience in say our work or even in voluntary circles we can if not careful, wonder if those following us will have the same dedication, effort etc. That isn't a criticism by the way! Personally, in a demanding job in my Local Authority and in the public affairs of my city on the bench as a secondary things, I realised eventually that I needed to slow down a bit. When the situation on my health was not going away the direction of an early retirement came up and I after much thought took it and got on with a new direction. Took a period and Trainz had came to me by accident and have never looked back. It gave mea brilliant chance to build 2 routes that have meant a lot to me. Although I have outside life along with time to Ttrainz on the occasions when health interrupts and the house is my fiefdom Trainz is a great boost. Indeed my doctor was fascinated and encourage me!

There will always be those in whatever sphere who will be negatives or self-centred and in Forums that will show. In some non-hobby forums I often see the same complainers who would dominate if we let them so the progressives here must be alert. Help each other where needed and try and balance anything bellicose by our own maturity and common-sense/sense of humour. Such negatives as indicated tend to fade when they get nowhere by and large and will often be dealt with by a mod. You stick in there and if you have to succumb to anything be it like a tar baby stuck to Trainz!

Bobby from Glasgow

Hi everybody and especially RJhowie.
Rj I cannot thank you enough for your two wonderful postings in this thread and how both of us have felt the same feelings of insecurity and possible lack of purpose as you face up to the prospect of retirement. I also have a brother two years older than me who has been forced to retire from the business he created over a period of 12 years because of Parkinson’s disease. It’s been an enormous blow to him having to hand the business over to his two sons which was finally brought about when he could no longer drive his car.

Fortunately for me I am not in the position of having to retire but as I have stated, it’s more a desire by me and Carol (my wife) to do more of the things we so love doing while we both have our full health and strength to be able to do them. Those thoughts and feelings where brought about on seeing the steadily deteriorating condition of my brother who did very well financially throughout the running of his business and yet that comparative wealth seems to mean very little to him as he is unable to do any of the things he would wish to do through his very poor condition.

For me it’s been somewhat different. I initially intended to retire in 2006 when the section of the company I was working in was sold off to one of its competitors. Within a few months I realised I could not stand the attitude and policies of the new company management and so decided to take early retirement at the age of 63.

However, I immediately began to feel a lack of purpose in life and even considered going back to doing a bit of truck driving as I still have my HGV driving licence. Once again fortune smiled at that point when my original employer on hearing of my leaving the company we had been sold too started to offer work to me in industrial safety as they had abolished that Department due to the reduced size of the company. That worked steadily increased and I also started to receive work from other companies which caused me to set up and register my own company and within 18 months had more work than I knew what to do with and so started to employ others specialising in industrial safety all of which are still with me today.

I was supposed to be on a day off today but I heard that rumours were circulating the offices that I was about to sell the business to another company that we have in the past worked alongside of on various projects and cases. So I went down to the offices to reassure everybody that the foregoing was not the case. When I further informed them that I would be merely taking up more of a back seat so I could concentrate on trainz as a hobby everybody thought that was hilarious and perhaps I should get out as I appear to be losing my marbles. Several of them went on to the trainz website while I was there to see what this hobby was all about, I don’t think I will ever live that one down.

Anyway, Carol and me are now working on a plan where we would like to sell the buisness to the original members of staff who joined me not long after I formed the company and make it so they could pay me back over a number of years. That should give me enough money to buy any trainz payware content I wish for as many years as I survive before I pop my clogs.

Not bad hey
Bill

Thanks for that kind comment and that I helped in some small way. Wondered how you were getting on recently as hadn't seen you. Good for you and that you feel a bit more able for new challenges. Now get stuck into Trainz -no prescription needed. Keep in touch should you wish.