Trainz Plus Beta update available - Build#118495

n3v_laurence

Moderator
Trainz Plus Beta update available - Windows, Mac & Steam

Hi folks, Laurence here. I'm in charge of N3V QA and this is my first external release. We have put this build through extensive internal testing and we are happy it is now ready for external testing. As usual, we encourage you to try things out with a fresh install first and then work towards more extensive testing using your unique installed content.

Available Builds:
Trainz Plus PC 117669 to Trainz Plus PC 118495 - Trainz Plus Beta patch stream
Trainz Plus STEAM 117661 to Trainz Plus STEAM 118488 – Trainz Plus [trainzplusbeta]
Trainz Plus MAC 117688 to Trainz Plus MAC 118533 - Trainz Plus Beta patch stream
Trainz Plus MAC STEAM 117706 to Trainz Plus MAC STEAM 118523 -
Trainz Plus [trainzplusbeta]

For Trainz Plus Windows & Trainz Plus Mac, select the Trainz Plus beta update stream.
For Steam (Mac & Windows), go to properties > Betas > Enter beta code “trainzplusbeta1” and click on Check Code. Then select trainzplusbeta from the dropdown listing to update.

This is 9.6GB update

Key Features:

  • Content Package Palette for S20
  • New .tzarc compression to reduce file size on disk and increase performance for slower disk drives
  • MPS fixes and improvements
  • Format update to Trainz Build 5.2

We have the new Content Packages Palette S20 tool ready for Beta testing. This tool allows the route owners to authorise DLC content for use within Routes, including MPS Routes.

To enable this feature for MPS, create a new route, activate the Content Package Palette tool from the Windows Menu in S20. Deselect “All Installed Content” & select “multiplayersurveyor”. Click on Apply and Ok on the subsequent prompts.

Once “multiplayersurveyor” has been activated, use the Share Route feature in the Sharing menu. With the route hosted as an MPS, DLC packages can be activated to use within the route.

The Content Package will display DLC packages installed for the route owner and any activated packages, will require users who want to join the MPS to have installed.

Important:

Some packages require additional packages to use, and the “Automatically Enabled Required Packages” can be used to preselect all required packages in the Content Package Listing. This however isn’t working perfectly just yet. It is recommended users select the core packages by default:
TRS22- Core
TRS22 - Additional Content Packages (1, 2 & 3)
TRS22 - Main Menu Route
TRS22 - KSC 2
TRS22 - MPS Packages
Any additional DLC packages


"List Assets Unsupported by Enabled Packages" will list any assets currently not supported by the current content package listing (even if it hasn’t been applied) to help show the impact of the changes and what assets are not supported.

Placeholder items are used for assets of packages that are not currently active within a route, so turning off packages shouldn't delete assets.

Content Package Palette can be used with previously made routes as well as newly created routes and is useful for identifying specific DLC/Content Packages used within a route, as well as enabling and disabling different content packages used, which will help aid route creation and distribution.

If you want to use the live version and the beta server, you will need to have two builds installed with two different local data folders

Please use this link to report bugs https://n3vgames.typeform.com/to/xRdryu
 
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Known Issues (and workarounds):

  • Some DLC Content has not yet been updated to work with Content Package Palette which will result in error “dependencies were not fulfilled”. The following are known working packages that can be used simc:651, simc:659, simc:822
  • Placeholder trackside objects and industries will cause red desync in MPS
  • During Share Route process, only “multiplayersurveyor” will be applied to the Content Package Palette regardless of what is selected.
  • DLC packages will report a failure to download precache data. clicking retry will ignore the error and proceed to complete installation
  • Automatically Enabled Required Packages tool currently selects multiple packages that will fill the required dependencies for assets used (even if only 1 is required), which in turn can cause other packages required for those in selected packages causing multiple packages to be selected. As a work around, it is recommended that users first select the following "Core" packages as part of their content package selection, attempting manually to resolve any required dependencies. (Workaround: using these as default selection: TRS22- Core, TRS22 - Additional Content Packages (1, 2 & 3), TRS22 - Main Menu Route, TRS - KSC 2 & TRS22 - MPS Packages)
  • Mouse cursor will disappear while holding RMB during a window prompt - Workaround release RMB, press and hold RMB again while moving mouse to return the cursor
  • Content Manager - List Dependencies & List Dependencies Recursively will not correctly display on maximised window

Change Log:

MPS Stability improvements and Fixes

  • Paint under selected & Smooth ground under can now be undone (MPS)
  • Delete, Merge & Move Layer improvements
  • Misc stability fixes
Surveyor 2.0

  • Fix to Sky Assets
  • Addition of Content Package Palette
    • Automatically Enable Required Package feature
    • List Assets Unsupported by Enabled Packages
New tzarc storage has been implemented
  • Upto 50% reduction for on disk storage
  • Improvement for load times for slower drives
Added support for XAudio2 (Windows) which replaces OpenAL on Windows platforms.
  • This should resolve a rare crash in OpenAL on some systems.
  • Please check if any new sound issues occur
Misc under the hood engine updates.
 
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Same here. Build 117669 on Windows 10 set to the "Trainz Plus Beta" stream.

EDIT: After a 10 minute wait, an update was detected and is now downloading.
 
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I have questions, you have provided patches to existing installs but recommend a clean install? I don't have a lot of DLC installed in Trainz + but should they be uninstalled prior to patching? Will I see a drive space reduction in the program folder and the data folder with this patch or will that require a clean install?

Lastly, will a change list be made available at some point? To be honest, I'm thinking of skipping this build as I have very little interest in MPS and it seems less than stable.
 
After patching the "resources\builtin" folder has lost more than 12GB:

968.tzarc is now 636 849 330 (was 1 600 026 504)
969.tzarc is now 3 355 580 468 (was 7 481 323 620)
971.tzarc is now 442 609 923 (was 908 158 732)
972.tzarc is now 2 407 342 949 (was 5 404 538 607)
985.tzarc is now 1 908 366 935 (was 4 109 516 677)
999.tzarc is now 7 333 326 (was 15 763 572)
1004.tzarc is now 1 605 267 498 (was 3 132 321 156)
 
Installation took a while, though the download itself was relatively fast at just under 4 minutes. The patch scripts spends time verifying targets beforehand and then checks the payload after download and installation.
Subsequent initial database rebuild took longer than usual (about 4 or 5 minutes) and then announces successful completion.
I checked to see if my settings preferences and log-in details were retained (they were) and other parameters correctly set before running the TrainzUtil.exe prebuild command on my (fully backed up) UserData folder.
That took several minutes longer than usual, but it precached 37000-odd installed assets in about 7 minutes.
Another quick database repair took less than 20 seconds and a few seconds later I was able to see the Main Menu and my installed routes and sessions.
Those I checked opened quickly and those I ran performed correctly, smoothly and without any apparent issues. So far so good! Looks great. Is responsive and fast to navigate.

wreeder - What I did was to simply copy my TRS22 program folders and Userdata folders to another SSD that had sufficient free space just in case my patch failed, then patched the originals (Build 117669) with the above results.
The backups will remain until I have thoroughly tested the new patched build (118495). Understand your need for caution, and concern about MPS changes made, but my initial testing was on my own routes and sessions and not MPS routes, and they are looking fine.
Not sure when the new .tzarc compression comes into play (perhaps when you save a session or route?) or if that accounts for the extra time it took for the patch and TrainzUtil commands to complete their tasks, but cursory inspection of the size of my new program and userdata folders shows little difference from the backups I copied to another drive.
Cool to note the new reference to DirectX 11 as the Renderer in the Trainz settings dialog as a portent of the expected new capacity for the Trainz game engine to render DirectX 12 codex.

Edit update: HPL: Yes - Comparing the 'resources', 'builtin' folder to my earlier backup, there is a significant reduction in file size. (9.87Gb vs 21.3Gb)
 
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TY Laurence
installed patch in like 25min


-no new faulties (phew)
-not much loading speed gain from the .tzarc(hard to compare)
-mouse movement is still too coarse
press RMB and move mouse sideways, only a slight movement will rotate you 360
try playing TANE or build 100240 then this new TRS22 to see/feel the difference
have not found any setting to make it more subtle


-new S2 interface Content package Palette
seems every new interface gets designed by someone else (fonts buttons etc)
it opens as a stamp that you can drag down to see the full list



-I will try MPS only if ALL content is allowed (promess)


-could not get the wheelslip light to function yet (see bug report by frogpipe)
-none of the interface problems reported in earlier betas were fixed


beta testing continues, greetings GM
 
Though patch downloaded at 35MB/s, updating from Content Store doesn't raise above 3...
 
wreeder - What I did was to simply copy my TRS22 program folders and Userdata folders to another SSD that had sufficient free space just in case my patch failed, then patched the originals (Build 117669) with the above results.
The backups will remain until I have thoroughly tested the new patched build (118495). Understand your need for caution, and concern about MPS changes made, but my initial testing was on my own routes and sessions and not MPS routes, and they are looking fine.
Not sure when the new .tzarc compression comes into play (perhaps when you save a session or route?) or if that accounts for the extra time it took for the patch and TrainzUtil commands to complete their tasks, but cursory inspection of the size of my new program and userdata folders shows little difference from the backups I copied to another drive.
Cool to note the new reference to DirectX 11 as the Renderer in the Trainz settings dialog as a portent of the expected new capacity for the Trainz game engine to render DirectX 12 codex.

Edit update: HPL: Yes - Comparing the 'resources', 'builtin' folder to my earlier backup, there is a significant reduction in file size. (9.87Gb vs 21.3Gb)

Thanks for the heads up. Sounds like it is worth patching to gain some HD space.
 
The Content Store showed an update was available for "West from Denver". Once "updated", version :14 has been deleted and version :12 re-installed, and now CM says: "Packaged, Newer version available, Payware" for this one and: "Not Installed, Payware (not active)" for :14. So the "update" didn't upgrade the route but downgraded it instead! Same issue with "Lafond Regional Railway", "New South Wales Region", "Switch Model Railroad" and "Geneva Sub Division".
 
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Trainz 118495 Update

This Update has improve the loading times much faster on my large Custom Route, noticeable difference.:D

It could be my imagination,
but I am seeming to getting much better FPS and smoothness in my high content areas.
For sure the Surveyor interface loading maps menu is now back to being smooth slider movements as it was in the Trainz Plus 116492.

Thank You N3V for this Update.;)
jjeff1955
 
CM opens as usual, but now when I click "List Dependencies" I get this (and it is not resizeable):

g7h8yq.jpg
 
Filesize reduction works well for locally modified content: e.g. from 0.98GB to 350MB after re-installing an asset!
 
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