Tips and Tricks-Surveyor

[freightcar2]

You are right.

Alastair is accident prone

(This is a bit off-thread, but before we continue...)

Why is Alistair always blamed for everything that goes wrong in trainz? That is not right. :n: :n:

 

[escafeld]

If that induces another Alistair reply, I'm finished with this thread.

 

[freightcar2]

Oh, sorry.

 

[0099]

Hmmmm i got a good tip but it would have to be in tutorial form not and a new thread. Would anyone be interested in making perfect valleys/mountains ?

 

[ntesdorf]

""Here's a tip I just learned today (after 4 + years of using trainz :'(). I think it might work in 06 as well!

Did you ever download an object (a bridge, building, even a station) where you couldn't adjust it's height? I did for a few awesome objects and it drove me nuts trying to get it to the height I wanted (I'd try to lower the ground or raise the ground) to match the adjoining scenery or track. But I learned today that you can adjust the height of scenery objects, *some* mo crossings (I'm trying to figure out how to adjust the one's that don't do this at the moment - please see this thread if you know the answer and are willing to share or have the same problem I do http://forums.auran.com/trainz/showthread.php?t=23079) and even some (or all?) stations/interactive track objects by adding the tag:

height-range x, y

into the object in questions' config.txt file.

where x and y are values below 3000 (I think - but it's unlikely you'll need anything over 50 afaik)""

Thanks to Gisa for this valuable suggestion. I applied it to xing's and it stopped the problem of level crossings burrowing their way to the centre of the earth. Tell them a level and they stay there. This works in 04, 06 and TC.

Regards

ntesdorf

 

[ess1]

Hmmmm i got a good tip but it would have to be in tutorial form not and a new thread. Would anyone be interested in making perfect valleys/mountains ?

Yes please

 

[freightcar2]

So...would...I!

So...would...I!

 

[escafeld]

There is a bit about displacement maps and terrain files here: -

http://forums.auran.com/trainz/showthread.php?t=2021&page=1

The upshot is that adding more and more blur to a displacement map decreases the amount of sharpness to the terrain. If you apply a displacement map to four baseboards instead of one, this decreases it even further. NOTE - Unless you do a 'Save' after this one application, you could end up with a program crash!

 

[escafeld]

So...would...I!

Are you sure you would? You were wanting the forum to crash in another thread!

 

[freightcar2]

Are you sure you would? You were wanting the forum to crash in another thread!

Just so my infractions would clear up. I'm not saying I don't like it, though.

 

[Ferrous]

Ladies and gentlmen:

Are you tired of struggling with ballast textures?
Tired of trying to match the texture of the ballast to the ballast on your track?
Tired of slaving away trying to make the ballast blend properly to make it look proto?

Well, I know I am, that's why I invented...the gravel road technique!

Watch closely...
http://img374.imageshack.us/img374/2983/bham8qg2.jpg <--This is the view from a distance

When you get up close, you can see that the gravel road is laid just below the track (by about .5 meters here)
http://img386.imageshack.us/img386/4575/ballasthc7.jpg <--The gravel up close. As you can see, it just comes up to the bottom of the ties.

http://img403.imageshack.us/img403/1619/ballast1ro7.jpg <--Same shot, but it shows the kuid of the track (in case anyone was going to ask)

All you do is lay it next to your track, doing to it exactly what you do to the track (as far as straightening, gradients, etc.), except .5m down!

And, as an added bonus, it helps hide the dreaded FTD (Floating Track Disease).

'Njoy! :wave:

 

[davesnow]

^ That's cool!

 

[escafeld]

Ash and dirt usually gets between the rails at depots, sidings, collieries etc

Set the spline height of the track and then lift the land without covering the track completely. Add textures to match - coal, ash etc.

 

[bl4882]

Thanks escafeld

That's a really neat tip. I know of a spot where it will work perfectly on a route I'm building now.

Bernie

 

[jadebullet]

How do you even get the gradient to work properley?
I only end up with a flat peice of track on either end, no matter what I do.

Example:
First spline:
Level with bow

Second spline:
Desired gradient

Third spline:
Level with bow

OK i think i figured out how to use this tool correctly. when using this, lay the track, then enter the gradient you want, click the set gradient button then, and this is the critical part, click on the part of the spline that you want at the bottom. It seems that what half of the spline you click on determines the direction that the spline will be angled. i hope that this helps.

 

[jadebullet]

This is documented in the manual, but I didn't spot it, and maybe others haven't either. If you hold down either of the square bracket keys while applying textures, the direction indicator revolves continuously, giving random direction to your textures, avoiding the patterned appearance. I wish I'd spotted it two years ago!
By all means put this in the Wiki Tips.
Mick Berg.

wow i wish that i read this sooner.

 

[Smileyman]

Not sure if I've posted this in this thread yet, but here goes anyway:

http://www.smileydesign.co.uk/TrainzLab/tutes.htm

Smiley.

 

[jadebullet]

I like the link. I just have one question. How do you blur a Displacement Map. It looks useful but the tutorial on the site doesnt explain how to do it.

 

[Smileyman]

I like the link. I just have one question. How do you blur a Displacement Map. It looks useful but the tutorial on the site doesnt explain how to do it.

You'll need to know about the file system of Trainz if you want to edit or create displacement maps (search the forums), accessible in the World folder for TRS2004 or earlier, and through CMP for TRS2006 and later.

If you mean the actual blurring of the graphic file, I mention Photoshop in my tutorial (I'm pretty sure I do), but any decent graphics package will do, like PaintShop Pro.

If you don't have any graphics software on your computer, do a search for GIMP on google.
It's a free open-source graphics program, with plenty of features.

The GUI is a bit awful, but it's not bad when you get used to it (separate windows that disappear behind each other, rather than the parent-child window system that most software uses).

They're looking at updating the GUI soon, which is long overdue.

Smiley.

 

[Athox]

i think you can do the same thing without blurring it, but just by streching the displacement map over more than one baseboard...