Please Forgive Me If...

[mattm]

I do most humbly beg your pardon if this question has already been answered several times over in numerous places, as i suspect. However, i am somewhat a a technically-challenged person.

I have recently become interested in creating semi-prototypical(?) routes, and from what i have read and understood, digital elevation modeling is the way to go. I have read several tutorials on how to create a dem file and export it into trainz, through the use of HOG. I am able to do this fairly easily. However i seem to be missing a few peices of information when it comes to creating a guide for where to place roads, rails and such on the route.

Apologies if this has been done every day since the dawn of time, but could some wise veteran please tell me what i have missed?

 

[crohakon]

I highly suggest you consider TranzDEM. You have to pay a small amount for it, but if you really want good results it is the clear way to go. The author of this software did an amazing job and he is always willing to help. There is a legend that the man never sleeps, as he always seems to answer quickly (no matter the time.) =)

 

[Dermmy]

However i seem to be missing a few peices of information when it comes to creating a guide for where to place roads, rails and such on the route.

Are you missing the HOG textures, or do you not know which color is which?

If you are missing the textures download textures.zip from this page, unzip to the desktop then import and commit. The colours are teal blue for Rail, red for Roads and dark blue for water.

Hope that helps...

 

[mattm]

Derrmy, yes i have the hog textures installed in trainz. What i suppose i should have said, reading over my original post, is that i understand that nothing like tiger data for the us is available for Australia, or did i read that wrong? What i am after is something similar to that which will overlay the hog textures on my blank map, (and also the DEM file in microdem) so that i can start laying track.

Hope this helps the experts answer my questions.

Thanks once again.

BTW, while on the subject of hog textures, does the width of these textures change to differentiate between single or double tracks, for example?

 

[mattm]

Apologies for seeming impatient or rude, but i would like this question to be answered if possible. To that end i am going to provide information that should probably have been included in my original posting.

So, here goes. I am currently attempting to create a route TRS2006 using DEM. The route is currently planned to run from Hawkesbury River, NSW to Gosford, with possible later expansion North/South to Wyong and/or Hornsby. I have downloaded the appropriate DEM file, and have managed to get the area i need exported into trainz via HOG. However once in surveyor it becomes a little hard to get my bearings to begin laying down the track.

Is there some where i can get data, similar to TIGER data for the US, for the area concerned as a guide to tell me where to begin laying down the rails?

Thank you for any and all assistance received, it is much appreciated.