Spline?

[jrockey]

I'm a beginner, and I'm having some trouble grasping some basic terminology as it relates to Trainz. I'm trying to understand what is meant by a "spline" as that term refers to items of content in Trainz, and would appreciate a little clarification.

As an example, I noticed you can download a scenery item called "Grass", and you can also download a different scenery item which is a "Grass Spline". I don't really understand what makes the "spline" item different from the non-spline one. When would I use a "spline" item as opposed to a non-spline item?

Also, is a "spline" the same as (or similar to) a "mesh"? If they are not the same, what is the difference (and what exactly is a "mesh")?

Perhaps one of you experienced content creators can set me straight on those terms; I would appreciate it.

Thanks!

 

[butter]

I'm a beginner, and I'm having some trouble grasping some basic terminology as it relates to Trainz. I'm trying to understand what is meant by a "spline" as that term refers to items of content in Trainz, and would appreciate a little clarification.

As an example, I noticed you can download a scenery item called "Grass", and you can also download a different scenery item which is a "Grass Spline". I don't really understand what makes the "spline" item different from the non-spline one. When would I use a "spline" item as opposed to a non-spline item?

Also, is a "spline" the same as (or similar to) a "mesh"? If they are not the same, what is the difference (and what exactly is a "mesh")?

Perhaps one of you experienced content creators can set me straight on those terms; I would appreciate it.

Thanks!

+
well basicly a spline is a bendable moveable line such as fence it is in the buidings section secand dot on right top also another example is a road,bridge grass spline...sry for spelling

 

[WileeCoyote]

A spline is a section of an object like a road or track that you laid down, for instance you start a track spline and go about 300 meters, stop, then you start from the end of that spline section and lay another spline of track curving to the right for about 90 meters. Spline points (the spinning circles) can also be inserted or deleted, like you want to make a switch from a certain point? Insert a spline and start laying track. The advantage to having some things as splines like fences or perhaps grass is that they can be laid out much quicker instead of plunking them out.. one... at... a... time... it is also helpfull in that they will be straight too. It is quite simple once you understand it, any other Trainz terminology you need help with?

WileeCoyote

 

[jrockey]

Thanks, fellows!

I believe I understand now what spline means. It seems to be a general term for a Traniz object that you can apply in Surveyor in the same fashion as you install tracks.

How about "mesh"? Can someone explain that term? That seems also to be a general term for some sort of Trainz object - but if so, I'm not sure exactly what kind....

 

[leeferr]

A mesh is a 3d object that is created in a 3d creation program such as Gmax. Textures are applied to the mexh to complete the object. Some might say that a plane is a 2d object which is partially correct. It is a 2d object that is created in a 3d environment. A simple example of a mesh is a box. This box can represent the walls of a building to which a texture is applied such as brick or wood siding. This is the simplest explanation of a mesh that I can give

 

[WileeCoyote]

I also was wondering what mesh was, hmm... planet earth=3d world, my dads car=2d object, 10 gallon can of white house paint=mesh, the look on your dads face when he finds you've just given his car new mesh=priceless.

WileeCoyote

 

[jrockey]

Got it....

Thanks again, everyone!

 

[martinvk]

One other way to look at it, ... a non-spline game asset is a single object that you can place anywhere, move, rotate and possibly change its height. It will have the shape of whatever the creator of the object made it. The texture could be changed after the fact by others. Each object is independent of others.

A spline object is stretchable, like a slinky toy. As it is stretched, the basic unit is repeated to fill the gap between the start and end points (the circles). The start and end points might look different, like some bridges, from the intermediate fill pieces. You can have also have intermediate control points. These allow you to control the general shape of the stretched object. Splines will bend in a specific way if three consecutive control points are not in a straight line, both horizontally and vertically. You can force most splines follow a straight line path between two control points. Both Objects, F3 and Tracks, F4 have splines with some minor differences in their behavior. When placing splines near others of the same type tend to join together unless you prevent this behavior by holding down the shift key.

Hope this helps.

 

[rweber95]

And from the glossary in the Gmax Bible:
Spline - A special type of line that curves according to mathematical principles.
Mesh - An object type that consists of interconnected polygons.

Now, doesn't that make it clearer?

Bob