Forum Catagory for Session Creation and Debugging Needed.

[Dap]

It seems that if Auran is serious about getting more Sessions created for existing routes, it would be helpful to have a Forum Catagory dedicated to Session Design, Creation and Debugging.

I'd love to be creating sessions, but using strictly built-in components is a bit limiting. A forum where new session ideas can be explored, new rules and other assets can be discussed and session creation problems solved is long overdue.

And I'd like it to begin with a clarification from Auran of the difference between a Session and a Scenerio.

 

[sniper297]

Surveyors, Operators & Engineers
Discussion about using Surveyor, Driver, Driver Sessions and Scenarios

Ain't that what that forum is about?

 

[Dap]

Surveyors, Operators & Engineers
Discussion about using Surveyor, Driver, Driver Sessions and Scenarios

Ain't that what that forum is about?

To me, it seems to be a hodge podge of everything. Most of it has to do with creating a route. Auran is looking for more Sessions for existing routes. Therefore, let's have a Forum that is focused on Sessions.

And I have been using Trainz for over 4 years and can still not tell you the difierence between a session and a scenerio. I used to think that a scenerio was associated with older versions of Trainz, but I get my 2010 up and running and low and behold, there are Scenerios on the right and Saved Sessions on the left.

So, what is the difference between a Session and a Scenerio?

 

[sniper297]

Good question, particularly since you can set up a session with instructions and AI traffic, I'm a newby to Trainz but I've heard it used to be different. Setting up subforums, over at www.trainsim.com we have an MSTS activity forum and an MSTS route building forum - and one thing we discovered there was often they're interrelated, so when we set up the new Railworks forum we combined route building and scenario creation into a single forum.

FAQ: How do I set up AI traffic?
A: It depends on how the signals on the route are set up.
FAQ: Okay, so how do I set up signals?
A: It depends on how you intend to run AI traffic!
:hehe:

Current project is a good example, using UNCOUPLEZ FROM and COUPLE AT TRACKMARK, I have an AI train dropping half a dozen cars on a yard track marker and another AI picking them up 10 minutes later - not working, for some reason the pickup can't seem to find his way to the marker. Tinkering with instructions and navigate via don't do any good, and the AI trains that are supposed to bypass that yard sometimes run thru the yard ladder even when the main is clear. So I have to go back to the route editor, add more trackmarks and directional markers. What I found is that the dropoff train backing into the yard, the last car becomes the "front" of the train during the backing move, so if the marker is near the switch he'll stop and uncouple with most of cutoff cars blocking the yard ladder. So move the marker to the buffer end, now he drops them in the right place. But now the pickup can't find a path to that marker since the cars are in the way, so I need to go back to the route editor and add another marker to the switch end of that yard track, then back to the session editor to tell him to couple at the new marker instead. Same thing with triggers and signals, route editor, session editor, driver to test, back to route editor and make adjustments and additions, back to session editor to make a few changes, back to driver to test again.

I'm not saying we shouldn't have a separate session forum, all I'm saying is that since what you do in the route editor affects the session and what you intend to do in a session affects how the route is designed, they're going to be interdependent anyway.

 

[Dap]

I recognize the interdependance between route and session, but in session design, creation and tweaking, you don't need to do most of what Surveyor covers. I'm just making the case for a more focused Forum.

By the way, if you use the CoupleToVehicleNearSignal,<kuid:131986:1004> driver command, you do not need to have your string of cars directly on a marker. Once AI has determined a route to the signal, the locomotive will travel a considerable distance to couple to a car. I have found this rule to be most reliable. If you place the marker and signal appropriately, you can drop one or twenty cars at the marker and they will be picked up. I use a dwarf signal.

And why is there not a Driver Command catagory in Content Manager so one can look at all the commands available?

Other questions for discussion.

What makes a good session?

What make a bad session?

How long should a session last or should it be structured so it can go on forever??

David

 

[sniper297]

Interesting questions. Way back in the dark ages when I first came up with the open-ended AKA "freestyle" activity for MSTS PO&N, I set up the AI traffic to run for four hours. One PO&N fan is a marathon nut, so later I tried to get a full 24 hour traffic pattern, but found that if the first AI train spawned reaches the destination before the player start time it would crash MSTS. So the only way to get 24 hours of continuous traffic was to set the activity start time at 03:30, since the length of the traffic route took it about 4 hours to run, that worked most of the time.

Trainz is a lot more versatile, even with default portals it will continue spawning AI trains until you quit. Setting up actual tasks is hard to figure, some people want long involved stuff that takes hours, some want short and simple 10 minute stuff. Rather than trying to find a happy medium I just do what appeals to me.

As for the commands, it would help if they came with instructions - I tried "Couple at Trackmark List" which allegedly will couple onto whatever is available from a selection of potentially occupied yard tracks, but can't figure out how to make it work.

 

[Dap]

I have created an infinite session - it could go on forever, but it does repeat every 7 days.

Pguy has some a new QuickDriveV2 that supports multiple days. And his new QuickPortalManager V3 supports a differrent consist each day in the same time slot. So, if Train #301 arives on the route at 6:53 each morning, the consist can vary from day to day. And you don't have to emit a consist every day, so if you want a train coming from a branchline, you can have it run Mondays and Thursdays for example.

And you don't have to run for 24 hrs per day, you can plan an hour or two per day and when all is finished, set the clock to 11:59 and wait for two minutes. Then reset the clock for the beginning of the next day's activities and keep running.

 

[celje]

How long should a session last or should it be structured so it can go on forever??

David

Hello

I think that session must work forever and later you can make the limitation.
But it's very hard, depends on how reliable the route is, how accurate the signalisation is, size of the route is important too, numbers of trains in the route at the same time, which rules we use. This days we have very big routes, you need 5,6 hours to reach the end of the route. The session layer open new possibility, but has the problem with save function.
The best solution is, i think, that session last forever and player make the break by saving when he wish and proceed next time. Of course when Auran will solve the problem with save function.

Dap, one question, are you upload your session with pguy rules?

regards

celje

 

[Dap]

Dap, one question, are you upload your session with pguy rules?

Celje,

Hoboken Shore, Maxwerks' 1-1/2 mile long industrial switching route that processes 90 new cars each day is available. Every car has a destination at all times and variable load/unload times. Email me for the links.

I am also testing the Huron Central, an imaginary division of the CNW. I hope to have it available soon. Testing a route that that has 7 different days is a daunting task.

David