Major Tri State Area Project

I just got Transdem everyone so the route will be continued once I know how to use this program. Just to get a start in the right direction, can someone please tell me how I can get a DEM that will cover NYC. Right now I would mainly like Brooklyn, Queens, Manhattan, and the Bronx. I would like a DEM for NYC first before any other area because that is where the Metro North, LIRR, and NJT originate. Later on, after I have NYC I would like to get DEM's for upstate New York and Connecticut, and after that, maybe certain parts of NJ. To be honest, I am clueless about all of this. I am not sure what all the different meanings and terms such as vector data, tigers, hog, etc... All I know is that this program will give me the topogaphy or digital elevations for the area that I want. What are the different colored lines in the DEM for. If anyone can help me, that would be great. Later on when I get the chance, I'll take a look at the Transdem forum for support also. I am so happy I finally got this program.:cool: Now I just need to learn how to use it. One thing I would definitely like to know is, how can I get a detailed google earth image in my DEM. On one of the thread around the forum, I saw someone had a detailed google earth image put on the DEM, similar to the baseboards.
 
Step 1, click here. Scroll down to (in this case) New York. Then click "Countywide Data". Choose your county (Bronx, Queens, New York (=Manhattan), or Kings (=Brooklyn)). Then choose the topmost link, which should be "Digital Elevation Models (DEM) - 24K". You can obtain as many DEMs as you'd like for free. The file names correspond to the center of the DEM; there is inevitably some overlap between counties' DEM files. I would recommend downloading all the DEMs for the Bronx.

You will notice a string of numbers and letters (eg, 40073h8). These encode geographic coordinates; if you can decipher them, they will be useful in arranging your DEMs.
 
I got NYC from the USGS Seamless server in Tranzdem and then I exported it to trainz. In the surveyor, I have all the elevations but no references that would guide me so I know where all the scenery and tracks go. Recently, I have been using DEM's by Fishlipsatwork and I really don't want the blue, red, and light blue lines in my DEM. I would really like to have a nice detailed Google Earth Image on my DEM so I know where everything goes. Would there be a way to import a google earth image over the DEM in Tranzdem.
 
Be careful with that, the maps are (C) Google and may not be redistributed in any format without their express permission. If you forget to remove the Google Maps textures prior to uploading the finished product, worst case scenario is, you could end up getting yourself and Auran/N3V Games in a whole legal mess.
 
I just found the manual. It sure is alot of reading. I'll take a look at it when I get the chance. So far, I have been using my own method for building the route. On top of the DEM, I set the baseboards to wireframe view and from there, I place my basemap from google earth and build off of that. I did not finish with my first basemap yet, but when I finish, I will get another one from google earth. For me, this method should only be temporary until I finish reading the manual and understanding everything. Of course, route building will take alot longer because I don't have the whole DEM as a google earth texture, but as long as these basemaps get the job done, then I guess they are ok for now.
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. The route looks good so far. One thing I definitely enjoy is that the hills and mountains are already made for me. Right now, I am working on the scenery and trackwork around the Spuyten Duyvil section in Riverdale. It looks really good right now. My main goal for this project is to make a good route with some good detail that will treat my laptop good. I want to stay away from a laggy route. Screenshots will be posted once more scenery has been filled in. I am so happy. The route building shall continue.:). There will also be some Subway action in here also. Only the elevated sections of the subway though.Stay tuned everyone.
 
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Would anyone know where I can find the Eastern Spruce forest splines by dmdrake. It seems that they are not available anymore. I knew it was a bad idea to uninstall trainz a couple of weeks ago. :'(. Aah well. I can probably replace it with something else. That would speed up the route building though.
 
They're still showing up in my CMP, but not on the black pages. Are these the assets you are looking for?

Eastern Spruce-Fir,<kuid2:33404:502909:2>
Eastern Spruce-Fir 150m-wide cover spline,<kuid2:33404:500924:2>
Eastern Spruce-Fir 75m-wide cover spline,<kuid2:33404:500923:2>
Eastern Spruce-Fir-Lg,<kuid2:33404:502942:2>
 
I believe those are the ones. I checked in the CMP, and I only have Eastern Spruce-Fir 75m-wide cover spline that came from a NJT route on TCR. I would like the ones that are being used on the Hudson River route. I think the ones that you have listed are the ones that I am looking for. If you can send me those 4 trees you have listed, that would be great. Check your PM box Scottbe8.
 
I am going to see if I can get the hang of this. I went to the site and found the county that I wanted for now which would be the Bronx. When I selected the county, another page opened showing me the 4 things that I could download which was Central Park NY, Flushing NY, Mount Vernon NY and Yonkers NJ. I first downloaded Central Park and then selected 10 meter. When the download finished, one file went to the desktop. The type of file is a DEM.SDTS.TAR. I opened up transdem and I tried to import that file but Transdem wouldn't let me. So I went back and extracted that one file and then I got a bunch of files that DDF files. I went back into Transdem and I checked to see if it could understand the file but it couldn't. Do you know how to properly get these files into Transdem?
 
SDTS-formatted DEMs are a bit complicated to deal with. My recommendation for US routes are always the USGS NED DEMs. You get them from Seamless Server: http://seamless.usgs.gov/website/seamless/viewer.htm

Make sure to change the format to GeoTIFF before downloading. See the TransDEM main manual, page 20. There are also a couple of more detailed instructions/tutorials available, both here and in the TransDEM forum. (Unfortunately, the search function is still not working properly in the new forum here.)
 
Great news Geophil. I followed most of the tutorials for the USGS DEM's closely on your website along with reading some more of the manual and succesfully selected the area that I want from the USGS seamless server. I successfully exported the DEM into trainz:). Here is where I hit the bump. I can't seem to get those Hog textures or the blue and red lines into surveyor. I am not so sure where to get them from. I change my mind about what I said in the last couple of posts. I would rather use those lines because they help me place the roads, tracks, and scenery. The basemaps are also good but it takes a long amount of time just to get through that one basemaps because you have to constantly raise it to match the elevations at which you are placing your scenery, and you have to keep on rotating it once it disappears to get it into the right position. Can you please help me get these blue and red lines into surveyor. If I can get those red and blue lines into surveyor, then I could use google earth along with my track maps for the Metro North Railroad, NJT, and LIRR.

I am sorry for pestering you about this so much Geophil but I really would like to learn this easily. I will continue reading the manual and watching the tutorials. My goal is to configure my DEM generated route in trainz so I can really get a start on working on the Major Tri State Area Project.
 
I just did a little more research. I see that the hog textures (blue and red lines) and basemaps are not really good for placing on the DEM generated route. I now see that I need to use UTM tiles.
 
I just did a little more research. I see that the hog textures (blue and red lines) and basemaps are not really good for placing on the DEM generated route. I now see that I need to use UTM tiles.
As I have mentioned earlier (possibly in a different thread), HOG ground textures and basemaps have a counterpart in TransDEM, but this counterpart is implemented differently and fully integrated into TransDEM.

  • Ground texture: TransDEM has its own set of Trainz ground textures which you will have to install once. The HOG textures are a completely different set. They were made for TIGER data and its representation in MicroDEM. TransDEM does not support TIGER, for one simple reason: Low scale, TIGER is only 1:160,000. TIGER is USA only and for the USA you can get much better map data, in particular the USGS 1:24,000 topo map which combines nicely with the Trainz 5m terrain grid. See the WMS tutorial on the Durango & Silverton in the TransDEM main manual.
  • UTM tiles: While following the same basic idea as basemaps, TransDEM UTM tiles come with full automation, including creation, texturing and placement. You will use UTM tiles for areas, where the ground texture does not deliver enough detail, like yards or stations. The TransDEM ground textures are limited to 1 pixel per 5m (with the 5m terrain grid) which is still good enough for maps 1:24,000, see above. I would always use the topo map first, inspect the result, and then decide where to add UTM tiles.

For more information on the different Trainz export techniques, see the introductory chapter in the TransDEM Trainz manual, pp 11.
 
Attention everyone,:). I now have screenshots of my first DEM based route that I made with the help of Geophil along with some Metro North and Trainz fanatics getting the DEM into trainz. This is the revised Major Tri State Area Project. These screenshots take place in between the Spuyten Duyvil Station and the Riverdale Station. Hope everyone likes it.

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The default switches will be replaced with QR Motor switches like the ones in the first pictures of the Major Tri State Area Project. Would you know how I can merge the old Major Tri State Area Project with this project. I used the Merge option and I tried to merge that route with this route but when I attempt to merge the old route with the new route, the baseboards for the old route are red.
 
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