Don, do you mean "started to write" or "started to read"? If the latter, what factors make a tutorial useful to you? I'm thinking that it might be wise if the WikiBook followed those principles if possible.
John
Trainz Wikibook?
- Thread starter mawilson
- Start date
John
johnwhelan
Well-known member
Good question. I've never investigated doing that until now but these two help articles appear to be relevant:
http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Help:Images_and_other_uploaded_files
http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Help:Uploading_Images
John
http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Help:Images_and_other_uploaded_files
http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Help:Uploading_Images
John
johnwhelan
Well-known member
Ta think I've worked it out.
Now to put together something simple.
Having just lost a page some how I think I need to compose off line then upt it up.
Cheerio John
Now to put together something simple.
Having just lost a page some how I think I need to compose off line then upt it up.
Cheerio John
johnwhelan
Well-known member
I strongly suspect we need to sort out the top level. I have an interest in writing something about reskinning, and the four different software tools that can be used to create content. GMAX is only one of these.
Thoughts?
Cheerio John
Thoughts?
Cheerio John
Go for it! It's a wiki, it's public property.
I just happened to create some first drafts of a few pages to hopefully help the project along a bit (and I must admit, for the fun of learning how to do it!). But I most definitely don't regard any part of it as in any way being my territory.
John
I just happened to create some first drafts of a few pages to hopefully help the project along a bit (and I must admit, for the fun of learning how to do it!). But I most definitely don't regard any part of it as in any way being my territory.
John
Your plan sounds like a godsend to those of us trying to learn the program. I don't have the knowledge to contribute original material yet, but if I may make a suggestion.
It sounds like a paradox, but one of the problems with the book you contemplate is that it will be written by people who know what they are doing. It might be a good idea to interest a half dozen or so newbies in reading proposed additions and mark them up with questions that might not occur to a writer who is really fluent in the material. That is one of the problems I have understanding the manual that came with TRS06.
Anyway, you're developing a great idea.
bl4882
It sounds like a paradox, but one of the problems with the book you contemplate is that it will be written by people who know what they are doing. It might be a good idea to interest a half dozen or so newbies in reading proposed additions and mark them up with questions that might not occur to a writer who is really fluent in the material. That is one of the problems I have understanding the manual that came with TRS06.
Anyway, you're developing a great idea.
bl4882
johnwhelan
Well-known member
Ok, count me in. Let me know what I can do.If anyone wants to contribute in any way:
Register with WikiBooks to get a username and password. It's obvious how to do it and of course it's free.
Each page of the book has an associated "talk page" where suggestions etc can be added. Last time I looked not all the pages have had their talk pages created yet but that's a trivial process. Create a blank line between comments otherwise they will be displayed on the same line. It's good etiquette to sign comments with four tildes ~~~~ but I often have trouble remembering that. Otherwise don't worry about formatting on the talk pages.
If you want to make non-trivial changes to the real pages, it would probably be best to visit the help pages to learn a bit about text formatting. If you want to create a new page please follow the page naming convention (Trainz/Subject/SubSubject).
John
Register with WikiBooks to get a username and password. It's obvious how to do it and of course it's free.
Each page of the book has an associated "talk page" where suggestions etc can be added. Last time I looked not all the pages have had their talk pages created yet but that's a trivial process. Create a blank line between comments otherwise they will be displayed on the same line. It's good etiquette to sign comments with four tildes ~~~~ but I often have trouble remembering that. Otherwise don't worry about formatting on the talk pages.
If you want to make non-trivial changes to the real pages, it would probably be best to visit the help pages to learn a bit about text formatting. If you want to create a new page please follow the page naming convention (Trainz/Subject/SubSubject).
John
John259,
I meant I had read, and attempted to produce objects in Gmax from various tutorials I found scattered around the Trainz community. I found many tutorials and tried to produce an object from them that could be used in Trainz, but alas, no luck.
One or two were succesful and I was proud to see them in my 'Surveyor' layout, but others, (and these were the majority), were a source of frustration and at times downright anger.
One or two of these tutorials were attempted a couple of times mainly because I had an interest in creating something useful, but usually it was more pig headedness that kept me battling, and this I think is where it went wrong, it was a battle. Life is too short for a continual battle, so I gave up Gmax, countless times, only to return to the fray as life was quite dull without Gmax, at the moment we have a truce.
I have also started to write some tutorials and have been trying to adapt the ones I have been successful with to make them idiot proof, (I will have to contact original authors for permission). I usually write in Word and save the Word.txt document and I convert the file to PDF format at the same time. In PDF I can add .jpg's o.k.
take care
Don W
I meant I had read, and attempted to produce objects in Gmax from various tutorials I found scattered around the Trainz community. I found many tutorials and tried to produce an object from them that could be used in Trainz, but alas, no luck.
One or two were succesful and I was proud to see them in my 'Surveyor' layout, but others, (and these were the majority), were a source of frustration and at times downright anger.
One or two of these tutorials were attempted a couple of times mainly because I had an interest in creating something useful, but usually it was more pig headedness that kept me battling, and this I think is where it went wrong, it was a battle. Life is too short for a continual battle, so I gave up Gmax, countless times, only to return to the fray as life was quite dull without Gmax, at the moment we have a truce.
I have also started to write some tutorials and have been trying to adapt the ones I have been successful with to make them idiot proof, (I will have to contact original authors for permission). I usually write in Word and save the Word.txt document and I convert the file to PDF format at the same time. In PDF I can add .jpg's o.k.
take care
Don W
johnwhelan
Well-known member
John259,
I meant I had read, and attempted to produce objects in Gmax from various tutorials I found scattered around the Trainz community. I found many tutorials and tried to produce an object from them that could be used in Trainz, but alas, no luck.
One or two were succesful and I was proud to see them in my 'Surveyor' layout, but others, (and these were the majority), were a source of frustration and at times downright anger.
One or two of these tutorials were attempted a couple of times mainly because I had an interest in creating something useful, but usually it was more pig headedness that kept me battling, and this I think is where it went wrong, it was a battle. Life is too short for a continual battle, so I gave up Gmax, countless times, only to return to the fray as life was quite dull without Gmax, at the moment we have a truce.
I have also started to write some tutorials and have been trying to adapt the ones I have been successful with to make them idiot proof, (I will have to contact original authors for permission). I usually write in Word and save the Word.txt document and I convert the file to PDF format at the same time. In PDF I can add .jpg's o.k.
take care
Don W
We can put them up directly in the Wiki as long as they aren't .pdfs, I'm hoping to do one or two shortly.
Cheerio John
Hot_Box_Detector
Member
Trainz for dummies ? Idiots guide?
I'll second this...it seems to be a common problem with manuals/tutorials in general. The folks who write/edit the manuals are well versed in the coding and or use. They tend to assume and skip over the most rudimentary parts. I can explain how to build a tube type audio amplifier, but if you don't know what a rectifier does, you get nowhere. I see this thread is already getting into Gmax & content creation. To me, that would seem very advanced.
I'm not knocking this idea, but, please bear in mind the "keep it simple" and understandable, principles.
That said, I'm glad to help in any way I can.
I'll second this...it seems to be a common problem with manuals/tutorials in general. The folks who write/edit the manuals are well versed in the coding and or use. They tend to assume and skip over the most rudimentary parts. I can explain how to build a tube type audio amplifier, but if you don't know what a rectifier does, you get nowhere. I see this thread is already getting into Gmax & content creation. To me, that would seem very advanced.
I'm not knocking this idea, but, please bear in mind the "keep it simple" and understandable, principles.
That said, I'm glad to help in any way I can.
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Hi Mark,
I will let you know when I have something for the book.
@Johnwhelan Does this mean the files are better in Word and the pics. in .jpg ?
I had a look at 'Software used for Content Creation' in the Trainz WikiBook and could only see 1 page, how do you 'turn pages' or is each subject written on 1 continous page ? also at the start of this page it says '2 basic parts the mesh or shape' but it doesn't say what the other part is, where can I make this comment in the Trainz WikiBook ?
take care
Don W
I will let you know when I have something for the book.
@Johnwhelan Does this mean the files are better in Word and the pics. in .jpg ?
I had a look at 'Software used for Content Creation' in the Trainz WikiBook and could only see 1 page, how do you 'turn pages' or is each subject written on 1 continous page ? also at the start of this page it says '2 basic parts the mesh or shape' but it doesn't say what the other part is, where can I make this comment in the Trainz WikiBook ?
take care
Don W