My TRS19 Platinum original build 105100 began to crash to the desktop on me a few days ago. At first, I could drive or survey for some time before something or other closed the program without warning. After a few of these crashes, which began to happen sooner & sooner after starting the program, TRS19 began a database rebuild when started. This rebuild never finished but (initially) once more crashed the program to the desktop.
After attempting to start the program perhaps 3 or 4 times, with the auto database rebuild beginning but never finishing because of the crash to the desktop, I began instead to get the Blue Screen of Death when attempting to start Trainz. I was unable to fix it by copying only the recently changed folders from various backups, so was eventually reduced to wiping the whole Trainz installation and re-instating it from a backup.
BSODs are caused by hardware faults in 99% of cases - or so the interweb tells me. So, I checked the Trainz hard disc (a single dedicated SSD, with 35% free space and the rest taken up only by TRS19) with every disk checker I could lay hands on. No fault BUT Windows CHKDSK gave me a message that there was a problem with the file indexing of the disc, which it had corrected. I gave the disc a full format, to be sure it wasn't retaining anything, before re-installing TRS19 from a full backup.
I had four backups (I take two per week of the whole TRS19 folder structure) but the previous three showed the same behaviour as described above - a gradual degradation until the BSOD. Each time, Windows CHKDSK gave the message that the disc had an indexing problem that it had fixed. Each time, I reformatted it anyway (full, not quick).
The oldest backup from a fortnight before, however, seems to be working and has remained stable (so far). No CHKDSK error.
I surmise that something I downloaded from the DLS between that fourth backup and the beginnings of the problem has caused the crashes. I have a suspicion about which downloads they were but I'm reluctant to "go public" as it's an educated guess, not an infallible proof. I suspect that it's scripted assets that are somehow causing a Windows disk management problem - although how, I don't have a clue. It might be an unfortunate permutation of my Windows7 O/S, the hardware I use and the asset's behaviour.
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The lesson I'm learning, probably over years Trainzing now, is that the Trainz program seems to becoming far more complex as it becomes far more versatile. I believe it's reached that stage that many large software installations reach - the chaotic, in which unforeseen consequences of a change can easily arise and are inherently not-predictable. There are too many reports here about a wide variety of glitches, bugs and crashes. How many more Trainz users are there out there who suffer a problem of this sort but give up rather than coming here for help or to have a moan like mine?
Lataxe
