Forgive me dear readers for the extended passage of time between this and my last post; I have been quite busy! You see, Nascar season has begun and no one is in greater need of advice than fans of the the racing car variety! Now then, let us take up the subject of posting to the Trainz forums from where we left off, shall we?
Inevitably you will read a thread and see a screenshot in which you spy a perfect piece of content. This is exciting, but remember that the owner of the thread started it with a different subject in mind. It's not proper nor admired to reply with "Hey, where did you get that fence in that screenshot?" Many do respond in such a fashion, but it's always more courteous, and more topic oriented to comment on the subject matter first, like so: "That's a beautiful route you're making, I really wish I could do as well. You seem to have a fine eye for content, such as the fence in your second screenshot. Could I be so bold as to ask where you found such a gem, and if it's not too much to ask, what is the kuid? I would really like to use such fine content in my own route, as your screenshots have inspired me to become a better route builder!" See how nice that response is? Any poster would be more than happy to provide you with the answer after receiving such fine praise! Of course, don't forget to post your grateful thanks when they do! (Editor's Note: Yeah, that's going to happen! )
Of course, many content creators and route builders are quite pleased when an inquiry concerning their work begins with a simple "I'm curious..." Those two magic words go a long way to opening the hearts of the notoriously stingy and miserly, and are almost guaranteed to provide you access to all sorts of content including, but not limited to custom DEMs, unreleased meshes, and route works in progress. It is a little known secret that many route builders, after toiling for five or more years on their masterpiece are just desperate for someone to come along and finish off their route for them! (Editor's Note: Kill me....kill me now! )
The last advice I will dispense today dear readers is to avoid the practice of quoting screenshots when replying to a thread. This is wholly unnecessary, and can be quite troublesome, especially to those with slower internet speeds. Let's assume I post in the forums like so:
Dear Readers, here is a picture of my rose garden behind my cottage, of which I am quite proud:
I do hope you like it, Sincerely, Miss Manners
Well the last thing we want to see in the forums is this:
Dear Readers, here is a picture of my rose garden behind my cottage, of which I am quite proud:
I do hope you like it, Sincerely, Miss Manners
"Hey babe, whered ya get the howse?"
Dear Readers, here is a picture of my rose garden behind my cottage, of which I am quite proud:
I do hope you like it, Sincerely, Miss Manners
"Nice! Good screenshot! I likes it!"
Dear Readers, here is a picture of my rose garden behind my cottage, of which I am quite proud:
I do hope you like it, Sincerely, Miss Manners
"Anybody know what fence that is?"
And so on. Do take the time to remove the screenshot(s) from your reply. If you just leave a bit of the text from the original post, surely the members will be able to discern the screenshot to which you are referring! If the original picture is posted without text, you can simply remove the picture, type in (picture removed), or a short description of the picture. A more imaginative poster could even post a link to the picture rather than the picture itself.
Gentle Readers it has come time for me to take my leave of you once again, please do join me next time when we discuss the proper use of screenshots and signature banners.
Sincerely, Miss Manners
(Editor's Note: Jeez, I'm glad that's over! I picked a bad day to quit drinking!)
Oh yeah:
Dear Readers, here is a picture of my rose garden behind my cottage, of which I am quite proud:
I do hope you like it, Sincerely, Miss Manners
"I'm coming by tonight with my hedge clippers!"