The Timecheck rule appears to be exactly what I am looking for to time-manage activities on any route. Yes, there are other time managing systems but they involve more of the trains operation than I care to deal with. My objective is to set objective arrival times or departure times, as well as conditions based times. For a passenger train that is an obvious requirement. For freight it is less obvious, but remains necessary.
We already have a comprehensive set of driver commands to manage sets of AI trains. Under the Diver Setup rule we can stack sets of GOTO, LOAD, HORN, DO IF, etc..... commands. What we can't do is time manage them in a simple, but comprehensive manner. Schemes with proprietary command sets are available but are complex. There is a learning curve, and further customer time used to troubleshoot, if there is an error in the construction of the instructions for these processes to work.
A rule I found called TIMECHECK seems to be what I want to time-manage a route I may be using. It is simple and uses existing Driver Commands in a time management structure. You can use any driver command at any specified time. At least that is how it appears to me.
The managing clock is the program's time clock as set by the customer. Set TIMECHECK to execute any set of driver commands at any specified time. You can also stack the TIMECHECK rules so that after a set of driver commands are complete the next TIMECHECK command will execute AT ITS SET TIME. Thus the customer can instruct, beginning at a specified time, a train to drive to a coal mine, sound its horn, load the cars/wagons, BUT do not leave until a TIMECHECK specified time. You might do this because the number of cars in a consist may vary day-to-day depending on customer orders. But another train is set to use the main track everyday at a set time. So your train can never leave before a specified (TIMECHECK) time. There is no reason you could not make this set of rules conditional based upon the day-of-the-week. Or if we ever get real weather it is another possible variable.
The point is - there is only ONE custom command - TIMECHECK. No new command strings to learn and troubleshoot. This message is the result of only a few days experience but it SEEMS to be something I have wanted for a long time use the an old-fsahioned clock!
Problem - It does not work properly! Start train-1 based upon a TIMECHECK rule. Then another TIMECHECK rule starts another train. This STOPS train-1. So, you can run one train under a time based schedule but only one train. A Bug Report has been entered.
We already have a comprehensive set of driver commands to manage sets of AI trains. Under the Diver Setup rule we can stack sets of GOTO, LOAD, HORN, DO IF, etc..... commands. What we can't do is time manage them in a simple, but comprehensive manner. Schemes with proprietary command sets are available but are complex. There is a learning curve, and further customer time used to troubleshoot, if there is an error in the construction of the instructions for these processes to work.
A rule I found called TIMECHECK seems to be what I want to time-manage a route I may be using. It is simple and uses existing Driver Commands in a time management structure. You can use any driver command at any specified time. At least that is how it appears to me.
The managing clock is the program's time clock as set by the customer. Set TIMECHECK to execute any set of driver commands at any specified time. You can also stack the TIMECHECK rules so that after a set of driver commands are complete the next TIMECHECK command will execute AT ITS SET TIME. Thus the customer can instruct, beginning at a specified time, a train to drive to a coal mine, sound its horn, load the cars/wagons, BUT do not leave until a TIMECHECK specified time. You might do this because the number of cars in a consist may vary day-to-day depending on customer orders. But another train is set to use the main track everyday at a set time. So your train can never leave before a specified (TIMECHECK) time. There is no reason you could not make this set of rules conditional based upon the day-of-the-week. Or if we ever get real weather it is another possible variable.
The point is - there is only ONE custom command - TIMECHECK. No new command strings to learn and troubleshoot. This message is the result of only a few days experience but it SEEMS to be something I have wanted for a long time use the an old-fsahioned clock!
Problem - It does not work properly! Start train-1 based upon a TIMECHECK rule. Then another TIMECHECK rule starts another train. This STOPS train-1. So, you can run one train under a time based schedule but only one train. A Bug Report has been entered.
I just happened to be playing with Timecheck recently. That's the only reason I could suggest anything....