Setting Up A New Route

[livercup]

I've been fiddling around with the world editor in the NA version of the sim. Easy enough to start a new route, but, do I need the, yet unreleased, dev tools to designate the lat/log of my route? I enter coordinates to jump to my destination and it won't go. I've read what documentation there is, and it says that I can't move there because it is not within the zone set for the route. Do I need dev tools to do this? Looked here and there and couldn't find an answer.
Thanks
Tom

[sniper297]

http://members.optusnet.com.au/virtualtrains/downloads.html

Scroll down to

RS_Tools (The Missing Bits) (http://members.optusnet.com.au/virtualtrains/RS_Tools_3108.zip)

Download and install that. Don't mess with Charlie if you have any female dogs in your house. :rolleyes:

[TrainMan_112]

I've been fiddling around with the world editor in the NA version of the sim. Easy enough to start a new route, but, do I need the, yet unreleased, dev tools to designate the lat/log of my route? I enter coordinates to jump to my destination and it won't go. I've read what documentation there is, and it says that I can't move there because it is not within the zone set for the route. Do I need dev tools to do this? Looked here and there and couldn't find an answer.
Thanks
Tom

According to Sniper's post, then yes, to take advantage of the advanced features. If you just want a simple route then you can do it, but to use markers and DEM files, you need the DEVTOOLS. They are supposed to be released shortly.

[Signalmaster]

According to Sniper's post, then yes, to take advantage of the advanced features. If you just want a simple route then you can do it, but to use markers and DEM files, you need the DEVTOOLS. They are supposed to be released shortly.

Go to the file library and d/l "SRTM_tut.zip," by NoMoreTrains. Until the DevTools, you can familiarize yourself with a method to use the USGS seamless DEM data in RS by converting DEM>BIL>HGT by using MicoDEM and a BIL to HGT converter.

I've done it for areas in the Northeast US and it works like a charm.

Regards,
Hank

[livercup]

Thank You Gentlemen for your help. I couldn't get the missing bits to work so I assumed you needed the dev tools also. I will check out the hgt converter, and practice track laying, in the meantime.

Tom

[landnrailroader]

I have so far not been able to get the Missing Bits to work either, and wonder if the expected patch etc. is required for it as well. I have no problem installing it, and since I routinely use RouteRiter with "that other Sim", I should have Visual Basic etc. on board, and I am using XP-Pro, SP2. However, following the instructions etc. to establish the paths seems to go alright, but when I then attempt to do anything with the "tools", the first action being to create the developer directory, I get a run-time error "76", path not found error.
I have had several correpondences back and forth with Mike on this issue and in my gut, I know we will work it out. However, we must realize that the only package Mike has to work with, is the European version and it just might be that "missing bits" won't work on the US version until the developer tools and an expected patch are forthcoming.

KUJU - Are you perusing these forums?

landnrailroader
Jacksonville, FL

[MikeSimpson]

Hi Jerry,

I sent you an email direct, but please confirm you have got Serz.exe and that you have put it somewhere in the Path, prefer Windows\System32

Serz.exe is required to open any .bin files and comes with the DevTools, but is also included in the extra loco packages from the Rail Simulator site. It was not included on the original European CD.

Mike.

[landnrailroader]

Mike,

Serz is in the Windows\Windows32 directory. This was one of the first things that I noticed. I had downloaded the "Orogrande" extra package which one has access to if one bought the game from GameStop, which I did. Serz is in that package - might be a US version though, for all I know.

I think it is not so good that Kuju has produced a program that is different in different areas of the world and this needs to be addressed by them.

Jerry Sullivan
(landnrailroader)

[landnrailroader]

Colleagues,

It occured to me that my problem might have been that I had not loaded the RS_Tools figuring that it's incompatibility with the US version might be a threat to the integrity of the install, and I pointed this out to Mike Simpson.

Mike suggested that I manually create a "Source" directory on my install, which is created by RS_Tools.

Thus I created C:\Program Files\Rail Simulator\Source

Result then was that I do not get the run time error, and using Mikes program, I was able to create a directory structure for a "proposed" route. I am including a screen capture of the directory tree. This does not show all of the directories since at least one of those seen here, has several sub-directories under it.

Jerry Sullivan
(landnrailroader)

[MikeSimpson]

Thanks for that Jerry,

I already had the DevTools when I added that bit to RS_Tools, so had forgotten the Source folder was missing on the original CD installation.

I will modify the program today so that it checks for Source and adds it if it is missing.

Mike.

[landnrailroader]

Colleagues,

Mike has provided us with some great tools for manipulating marker data, and I have read various suggestions about using Google Earth and Google Maps to create these files. I guess the only gripe I have is the necessity to put the markers in serial form to create the route markers. I am awaiting the RS Dev.Tools for the US route but I am not sure that lines across the landscape is all that great anyway.

I used USAPhotomaps to create my markers for all of my MSTS routes except the first, and in effect, I was using the type of markers that generate place names etc. in RS, and so I intend to try that method. The rub will come if the icons placed in the editor are so large as to obscure the desired route.

Also, I never did my markers in any particular order and even went back several times and added more as required, and I can envision a program that could resort the markers and get them in some kind of order, but considering the bends and curves in a typical route, such a program would be easily confused.

So I am thinking that the named markers which RS has will be my best bet. A major caveat is that to convert a USAPhotomaps file to RS markers, first requires converting it to a MSTS marker file. Easy if, as I do, you have DEMEX which has a routine to do that, but otherwise tricky. I seem to remember some utility in the MSTS library that does this, but have never used it. Another potential problem is the matter of how well RS coordinates align with USAPhotomaps coordinates. MSTS is close, how will RS be?

Jerry Sullivan

[MikeSimpson]

Hi Jerry,

I have been testing this,
1. If you are using Named .csv files, then you only need the one file as this just sticks a flag with the name on top wherever you need it. I have limited this to things like stations, junctions, bridges etc.

The flag markers are not too big, nothing like those stupid markers the other sim had.

2. As for series markers, you can have as many .csv files as you wish. As these draw a line on the map, you can only have one .csv file per line as the simulator draws a line on the map to join up the points. Obviously if you have a single file which draws a Y then it will join up all the points and create a mess.

So what you need is a file with points from A to B and another from B to C etc.

3. Using DEM data downloaded in SRTM format as per the instructions, points drawn from GoogleEarth or preferably http://www.toporoute.com/routePlanner.html appear to coincide exactly with the data.

Mike.