Three Rivers Region

Andreas · March 08, 2009, 02:26:41 PM

It's not really a new one, but mainly a bugfix release.

But Rural Roads and Single Track Rail are entirely new indeed.

dedgren · March 08, 2009, 03:20:52 PM

Sorry about the couple of bugs that have been spotted- it still amazes me with each release that a worldwide effort like this can come together as well as it does.

Here's a patch that will fix the STR/SAM level crossings pathing issue until the NAM upload files can be corrected. Just unzip it into your Network Addon Mod folder- remember to take it out when the official fix is released.

David

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Andreas · March 08, 2009, 03:52:07 PM

I just uploaded the STR installer again - but if you don't want to download it right now, David's fix should do fine.

Pat · March 08, 2009, 09:56:58 PM

Hey David you said you are amazed about the worldwide effert??? Why??? Remember this is a community for the community by the community!!! You have helped that alot in the years to bring it to this level!!! You make everyone feel good and important!! Plus you are one of the first to admit to a screw up and don't fight it!!! Thank you for all your hard work you have done you rock David!!!!

CaptCity · March 08, 2009, 10:14:19 PM

Quote from: dedgren on March 08, 2009, 03:20:52 PM
...it still amazes me with each release that a worldwide effort like this can come together as well as it does...

Yes, sometimes it's hard to believe that there's not some group of people in some dark room lit only by monitor screens, hunched over those same screens, lines of code scattered everywhere and taped to walls, intense looks on faces, and, finally, cheers as some wonderful new game addition is completed and uploaded...

...such as this one.

Well-done!!

Swamper77 · March 08, 2009, 11:08:33 PM

Quote from: CaptCity on March 08, 2009, 10:14:19 PM
Yes, sometimes it's hard to believe that there's not some group of people in some dark room lit only by monitor screens, hunched over those same screens, lines of code scattered everywhere and taped to walls, intense looks on faces, and, finally, cheers as some wonderful new game addition is completed and uploaded...

...such as this one.

Well-done!!

If you replace "lines of code scattered everywhere and taped to walls" with "several copies of Notepad open", then that would describe my setup. Late at night, this LCD monitor is the only light source apart from the blue glow from my computer's UPS (uninterruptible power supply) that sits behind and to the left of my monitor.

-Swamper

dedgren · March 08, 2009, 11:25:32 PM

Holy mackerel, Andreas! That's dedication- folks, I think Andreas may be pulling an all-nighter to get things sorted out. I've never given a karma point from inside 3RR before...

...until now.

Thanks so much, my friend.

* * *

The other day when I made the comment about the Mona Lisa...

...no, not that Mona Lisa- sorry, ma'am!...

...I was referring, of course, to Brian's (c.p./cycledogg) seminal terrain mod: Columbus.

He's done many others since, but Columbus is one of those "first love" things for me. Why, I would no more deign to monkey with it than... than...

...than...

...OK, OK, I admit it. I tried to monkey with it.

Sorry, Brian!

All I managed to do was come away with an appreciation of how magnificent an accomplishment creating a comprehensive terrain mod really is. The exemplars are like something out of a quantum mechanics textbook- that's bad enough, but then there's the textures. They all have to mesh, both in granularity and color, and then they all have to work together. It's almost beyond belief that someone could visualize on a holistic basis, as Brian so apparently did, the result he was seeking to achieve.

What I wanted to do was, as much of 3RR is plains and prairies, use one of Brian's great level ground textures to the best effect possible.

So I thought, at first- hey, no problem. I'll just modify that fenceline texture so that it matches.

That's when gained even more respect for what Brian had done. You see, the game engine changes textures when it displays them. It's almost impossible to predict, based on what stuff looks like in your graphics program, what it will display like "on the ground." Even worse, terrain mod textures, such as those in Columbus, are 256x256 pixels in size. Lot textures, like my poor fenceline above, are 128x128 pixels. The game renders them differently, and so you can do a lot texture that is a pixel-to-pixel match with a terrain mod texture and they don't, in the game, even come close to matching up.

I tried changing lot textures for days trying to match the Columbus textures. All I got was a headache. So then, a couple of days ago, I started changing the Columbus textures...

...hence the Mona Lisa reference...

...I felt like lightning was going to strike me down at any moment.

This, for some reason, proved easier. I was able to first match a kind of blue-green "copper-based life form" color, which I showed you in the post with the ML comment.

Further experimentation gained me something a bit more, er... yellow-green.

Better, but still not a landscaping color I'd write home about.

I was almost ready to post a "load last" set of a few modified Columbus textures and a fenceline set for everyone to play around with when I though, this morning, what the heck? Let's try again to match a lot texture and leave Brian's stuff alone.

Mid-afternoon, I came up with this.

The texture on the left is a 128x128 square swatch of Brian's vintage 0x000004c9, which is my favorite rural texture in the world. I look at it and smell new-mown hay and the air after the thunderstorm passes. The mess on the left is my batch X-31, right after I left mouse-clicked on half a dozen menu choices in Paint Shop Pro I'd never tried before. I dutifully tried it in the game, though...

...what, at that point, did I have to lose?...

...and to my surprise it looked like this

and this

and this.

Does anyone, by the way, know of a nicely scaled guardrail prop? That road crossing the top of the impoundment dam cries out for one.

Anyway, I'm pretty happy. It may not be the final flavor, but I'm getting closer, and in the way in which I wanted to- by leaving Brian's textures be...

...except for the tinkering I plan to do replacing some with others...

...but that will be another story on another day.

These are getting close to going on the 3RREX.

I have a few more pieces I plan to create- I'll keep you posted.

Big week ahead.

David

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Swamper77 · March 08, 2009, 11:40:51 PM

Quote from: dedgren on March 08, 2009, 11:25:32 PM

Does anyone, by the way, know of a nicely scaled guardrail prop? That road crossing the top of the impoundment dam cries out for one.

David,

You might try looking through BSCMegaProps JES Vol01. There are 4 guardrail props, 2 straight sections and 2 end pieces. You'll need to create 3 Lots for that dam, 1 middle Lot and 2 end Lots.

-Jan

thundercrack83 · March 09, 2009, 02:19:29 AM

David,

Here...

...are the guardrails to which I believe Jan is referring.

The ID number is for the Right End piece is 0x50d7b37d. You can find the other pieces all right around there once you get to that one. There's a right end, a left end, an "8x" piece and a "12x" piece.

Whether or not they're scaled according to your needs, that's completely up to you.

Hope that helps, my friend!

As usual, you go from one ridiculously mind-blowing project to another like you're changing a pair of socks!

Take care,

Dustin

JoeST · March 09, 2009, 02:39:23 AM

well... more like

my speachlessness is not receeding...

FrankU · March 09, 2009, 02:42:52 AM

Wow, incredible!

While I was celebrating my daughter's 5th birthday with 5 of her friends all dressed up as princesses, some real SC4 addicts were preparing a new NAM for me (and, of course, the rest of the Universe).

How can I ever thank you for that?

And, if I am correct, the 3RR fences will also be released!

Thanks again!

frdrcklim · March 09, 2009, 04:26:18 AM

Andreas · March 09, 2009, 06:06:08 AM

Quote from: dedgren on March 08, 2009, 11:25:32 PM
Holy mackerel, Andreas! That's dedication- folks, I think Andreas may be pulling an all-nighter to get things sorted out. I've never given a karma point from inside 3RR before...

...until now.

Thanks so much, my friend.

Thanks, David, much appreciated. I was indeed sitting in front of the computer till 3 AM in order to get the NAM stuff out, and invested a couple more hours to fix the bugs and translate everything into German for SimCityKurier - there goes another weekend...

Those rural fence lots look wonderful, and I'm very intrigued by those guard rails - it's great to see all the hidded gems in those prop packs that are out there.

pvarcoe · March 09, 2009, 08:20:06 AM

That texture is excellent David.
The seamless effect is awesome!

Here is a thought (a wish really) about rural roads.
I doubt if it is actually possible, but most rural roads I travel down have a slight ditch beside the road on both sides.
The problem is the ditches are not that wide; and if one was to try to use them in-game on either side of a road,
you would end up with a 3 tile wide road before getting to the fields.
I am just rambling of course, but the ditches have always struck me as a realism feature that is missing.

Excellent work as always David, thanks
Phil

Battlecat · March 09, 2009, 08:46:15 AM

Well your tweaks to the texture certainly had a nice impact on the local blending. I can hardly see the edges now! Can't wait to see what other surprises you have coming up!

FrankU · March 09, 2009, 08:49:23 AM

Yes, narrow ditches!
My country has them all over the place. You can't go really more than 50 meters without falling into or jumping over one of these. Mostly less than one meter wide, in rainy times there is water in them, but often enough they are dry. For realism of The Netherlands we ought to have some....
I guess that they should be part of the rural street or road itself, so within the tile of the street/road. Another SAM texture maybe?
Maybe you feel challenged, David?

bat · March 09, 2009, 09:10:35 AM

Beautiful shots there of your region! It looks so wonderful!!!

Pat · March 09, 2009, 10:10:39 AM

Dang it David what are you trying to do give me a heart attack here!!!

WOW, Ive been a busy bee lately trying to think of some question to ask you for our interview and you keep on doing diffrent things... I am sooo side tracked here I dont know where I am at any more

which now leads to a shameless plug on my end, everyone I am still asking the community for help with some questions that you would love to ask David please let me know here... OK end of my shameless plug lol

deathtopumpkins · March 09, 2009, 12:44:30 PM

Wow, David, genius. Just genius. Those are some of the best SC4 pictures I have ever seen... Can't wait to have those myself. And when you finish up those guardrails, mind uploading them too?

CCFC · March 09, 2009, 01:56:35 PM

I haven't been here in a few days, but I'm planning that 3RR city which will have THREE rivers. More like dams, and I will need those guardrails. Yesterday when the storms were around (I live in SE Michigan) and I searched Three Rivers, MI more like Three Rivers Region and found it actually existed. I'm addicted to the 3RR, and proud. So it brings me to a question.. does anybody here live there? If so, how's it like living there?