Hello all.
I just wanted to create a thread for some public scrutineering of the bridges i have been working on. Any and all comments are welcome, but please keep in mind that this is my first BAT, I'm not very good with textures (yet ::)), and I haven't added any T21's or the like.
So please feel free to leave any comments.
First up is a basic street bridge modeled after the Smartroad Bridge in Virgina, USA. Its just a basic hollow box girder bridge with simple lines and textures.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fsr.jpg&hash=6430ae9934b30568ec59cf06d66f8b66eb4b2c7b)
Thanks for lookin!
In the works is an elevated rail bridge similar to the Edmonton LRT bridge. :-\
First impression is that the textures tile too much and the pathway texture is too large. However, as a first attempt I'd have to say excellent.
I agree with callagrafx about the textures, but those will develop with time and practice. From the looks of things you've done a good job, especially for your first bridge. I'll look forward to seeing more developments.
thank you.....i appreciate the kind words. since giving this stuff a try, i've come to develop a lot more respect for the abilities of this modding community. it is tough to make such good looking material.
callagrafx: im sorry, but im not sure what you mean about "pathing" texture....are you talking about the street texture, or the white block sidewalk?
on another note, i've got another version of this bridge with a road texture, and made it a 5 piece bridge. I haven't much idea which i will try to release (if any), unless i somehow become good with textures.
Smartroad, eh? The smartroad in Virginia that I know of is between Christiansburg and Blacksburg, and most of the bridges are highways over highways... Even if we're talking about two different smartroads, the bridge isn't bad, first try or not!
thanks! :thumbsup:
you got it....over wilsons creek i believe. it was a simple looking bridge to model, but i had to make it street or road since 2-tile network bridges are more challenging to model. that'll be for later. im not very creative as an artist per say...i work better from others ideas...which is kinda why i posted the thread. any ideas are welcome to make my BAT's more friendly for the community.
ive redone the textures and they look better, but i simplified the LODs and now the bridge loooks bad at zoom 2 and 3. there's pixel offsets between the pieces now. i'll post some screenies when i get a chance.
:newbie:
Well, I have finally made enough progress to post an update. I think I have all the major issues with the LODs and modding taken care of. Only have 2 more issues to resolve:
1. I need to make the custom icon, which doesn't seem too bad. I found the tutorial, but I can't install the programs on my work laptop (they removed my administrative rights :thumbsdown:). Once I get home to my PC, I'll get this done. I tried to insert another image just to verify I could do it, but the DIR file does not reflect the new icon file after re-indexing and rebuilding. ()what()
2. More importantly, the streetlights from the T21 dont quite look right. Since I'm new to the modding aspect of bridge building, I'm not quite sure how to properly align the lights. The attachments below will illustrate the problem. If anyone can point me in the right direction, I be be very grateful!
Thanks for lookin and preemptively for any help....
It is a little hard to help with the placement of props without the bridge model. All I can do is make the suggestion that you start with the position of the Maxis street lights.
Here are the Maxis LotConfigPropertyLotObject values. One line is for one side of the street; the other line is for the other side of the street.
0x00000001,0x00000010,0x00000003,0x000D34C9,0x00000000,0x0007B541,0x000C34C9,0x0006B541,0x000E34C9,0x0008B541,0x00000000,0x2AAF3723,0x69AD0000
0x00000001,0x00000010,0x00000001,0x0003984A,0x00000000,0x00077975,0x0002984A,0x00067975,0x0004984A,0x00087975,0x00000000,0x0AAF3713,0x69AD0000
How's the progress on the Edmonton LRT bridge? You mentioned it in one of the other bridge forums.
RL is killing me now. i just purchased a house 2 weeks ago and have been pretty busy moving.
More to point, the model is pretty much done, but I gotta get to texturing. I'm not very good at it so it's been a slow process. :(
Congratulations on the purchase of a house. Take your time, there's no rush around here. I hope you'll post some pics of the bridge when you get some time (and some textures); I am interested to see what you have so far.
Thanks TS....its been alot more work than i ever imagined. finally getting settled down, but i haven't got my computer room set up. holes to drill....wires to run.....fun fun.
Anyway....
I'm not sure if i'm getting better at this or not.... ::) But here's a few renders of some experiments with texturing and such, as well as the rough model for the LRT. The ped bridge below the LRT obviously wouldn't be active, but I figured I'd add it in for aesthetics. It need some details and such, and I need to figure out how to use the alpha to make the railings look nice. Also, I have 2 versions of the smartroad bridge, one 3 piece and one 5 piece. The 5 piece is more true to the actual bridge, but I still have some modding to learn before I can get it to work. Trial and error, but the learning process has been fun.
Any comments are welcome...good or bad. Most folks here have a better eye for texturing than i do, so dont feel bad for ripping my work apart. Criticism will only help in the long run.
Thanks again for looking, and for any comments as well! :thumbsup:
edit: clean up old links
jus wanted to post a couple more pics....definitely not complete, need more details and texture work. nevertheless, slow day at work. ???
i'm headed to japan next week for almost 2 weeks, so I may have some down time in the hotel to get some actual work done.
edit: cleaning up links
Nice work there. The road bridge looks pretty good. Is it the same one as the one I'll be testing or is it a new one? It looks a bit similar, just with different textures. Speaking of textures, I like the way the pylons turned out, but I would suggest taking the gray brick part and making it look a bit dirtier. Right now it looks a bit too clean compared to the rougher looking stone that surrounds it (if that makes any sense).
The rail (El/GLR?) bridge has a neat design. It looks like the bottom part is meant to serve as a passenger walkway or something. That should be a good one when you get some textures on it.
I'll try to look at your bridge over the weekend and get back to you. Enjoy your time in Japan. I've never been, but I'd like to go at some point.
its getting better i hope... ;D
they're all based on the same model, im just kinda experimenting on the textures and # of pieces to get the hang of this. Thought the street bridge would look better with a few extra pieces, so it'll give me a chance to write a RUL. with any luck, i'll be able to start building more models of all the works i have in mind.
finally got this in the game last night....LODs were bad so I couldn't get a screenshot, but meh...
edit: cleaning up links
its real sexy ;).
i do think pedestrians will work, because the problem with Double decker bridges is that the capacity doesnt increase. (difficult for to explain). pedestrians however wont cause congestion. you would need a special puzzle piece to get the pedestrians on the bridge.
regard
Meastro444
if someone knows how to path it for pedestrians, im sure i can learn to make the puzzle pieces. the real LRT bridge has a circular ramp for the peds, which could only be done with puzzle pieces. I'll look into it when it get closer to complete.
i wanted to post up some of the RUL for another bridge in hopes someone could explain a couple things to me.
section s
piece <0x3a010000, 3>:580
piece <0x3a020000, 3>
end
section r
piece <0x3a030000, 3>
end
section p
piece <0x3a040000, 3>
piece <0x3a050000, 3>
piece <0x3a040000, 3>
end
length 11
piece s 2*r p 2*r rev(s)
end
OK, I've reviewed every bridge RUL i could find and i need some clarification to help expedite the process to get this bridge into testing. The items above in red are what i am not sure about.
First example: 3> - I have seen entries in other RULs (0>, 1>, 2>, and 3>) and can only presume that this is the orientation of the piece; N, S, E, W?
Second example: 3>:580 - I have no idea what the colon and number mean (:580). it only appears on some pieces, and only in certain sections.
Any help would be great.... :thumbsup:
Choco,
I've started learning a bit about RULs, and after reading a bit of the Bridge Controller RUL file, I think I may be able to answer some of your questions:
-The 3 is, as you presumed, an indication of the rotation
-The > that follows it, just serves to close off that section
-The :580 is designed to indicate the presence of a support piece and the depth it is at
From the RUL file:
Quote# piece <instance, rotation> Simple piece
# piece <instance, rotation, htdelta, yoffset> Sloped piece with the given height change over the tile and model Y offset
# piece <instance, rotation>:depth Simple piece with support column (: syntax also works for long form)
# piece section-name Reference a section
I'm still learning all this myself, but I hope that helps a bit.
that helps a ton.....think i can get the rest worked out to minimize the amount of tinkering required by the NAM team.
you've been a great help threestooges.....and i greatly appreciate your time helping along the new guy. :thumbsup:
on another note:
- i fixed the LODs and am currently re-rendering the street bridge. might end up trying some new textures....im not really satisfied yet; i dont think the pixel/meter ratio is quite right.
- the el-rail bridge is almost ready for scrutineering, but I have some questions regarding using the ped bridge as well, which would require a puzzle piece or 2. im not sure if its worth the time, since i have no idea what the status of the tsing ma is on the devex.....
- the road bridge model is complete ('cept some details), and i have been writing the RUL for it. still haven't got it into the game....i think im missing simething, but i'll address that later.
already thinking about a couple other projects...
whats everyone think of a OWR bridge with RHW4 textures?
It's my pleasure to help. Especially when it results in some fine work being added to the community. Remember, we all had to start somewhere, and I'm still new at this too (I only just started my BAT thread in January), so it's a good learning experience for both of us.
Good to hear the LODs have been straightened out, and remember, there's no hurry to release these things, keep going on them until you are satisfied with them. I'm not sure about the requirements for the dual-networking required for the el rail ped bridge thing, but I'm sure someone associated with the NAM can offer some advice. I believe that Tsing Ma dual-network development has slowed to a halt (though I'm not sure). Keep me posted on the RUL progress, and I'll take a look at the results when you get there.
Until then, take it easy, and good work.
just wanted to post a couple updates....
made some subtle changes to the model.....textures still aren't satisfactory....colors clash i think.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Froad-1.jpg&hash=f7addc3b28baef906ef9f1a2a89a072fe34d6e44)
and a little teaser for something i cooked up this morning...
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fteaser.jpg&hash=5e280fffc1934390536be96d3538038c21c1e6a1)
edit: back for more.....saw a request in another thread, and thought i'd give it a shot. need to learn how to build a cable bridge anyway..
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fsky.jpg&hash=e53244884e82dc4369a491f3cbfb87f6c1f30a04)
oooooooooo! I'm really looking forward for how the cable bridge comes out, because my rail crossings at rivers always look so stretched out.
If you intend a cable bridge like the Cable Stayed bridge in the game, then you will just need to model the cables and break the model into 16m long segments, give each its own ID and create a RUL explaining how to order the pieces.
If you want a suspension-type bridge, the process is similar, but you will need to add a file in the reader to add the vertical cables like the game adds for other suspension bridges.
Both methods are outside my area of knowledge, so if anyone knows hwo to do it, please post, but I do know those are areas you should look into if that is your goal. I like the model and it looks like it'll be a great GLR/El bridge.
I'd like to see a cable-stayed or suspension rail bridge. Good work on all this!
My opinion on the road bridge above where you say the colors clash I think could be helped by just decreasing the contrast. (The dark shadows within the detail on the side of the support specifically)
cable.... bridges.... for....... rail...roads.... This is a great day! For all Sc4 mod fans! :'(
oh happy day.....after fretting about a windows crash, i was able to recover all my lost data. furthermore, i snaked the admin password on my laptop, and i was able to install the gimp....so now i at least have a tool to edit textures properly (MS paint just doesn't cut it).
TS: i was gonna ask you about the cable bridges as well. i was checking out the garabit bridge, and it looks like to me that it may have been modeled as an overhanging prop. more specifically, half of the arch on both sides of the pillar appears in a single s3d file, so does that mean the arch was modeled with the pillar (which would essentially mean the pillar was greater than 1 tile long)? i wanted to explore this option to save on using so many ID's, but not sure about the viability.
im gonna be testing my first RUL soon, so once I get that ironed out I should be able to get some of these done.
Thanks for all the help and comments! :thumbsup:
edit: fixed.....
edit again: i wanted to post a couple pics and possibly figure out what im doing wrong. any insight would be great!
most importantly, here's my main texturing issue.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Funtitled-3.jpg&hash=4676bd6024aac32c8b1074732e49fbf9348b56b5)
the difference between the El-Rail texture and the bridge texture is very dramatic. is this a limitation of the BAT, or am i just getting my pixel/meter ration wrong? indeed, i have read thru the tutorials, as well as consulted an expert or 2. i still can't seem to get it right...... :'(
anyway....got all but 1 into the game at least...
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Flots-Apr18031220451720.jpg&hash=c529b14d9d9819351f13e893149586a547ab34e2)
Wow, these bridges are very good &apls
Sorry to hear about your computer troubles, but I'm glad to hear nothing was lost. As far as the Garabit bridge goes, I'll need to look at it to figure out how it was set up, but I'll see what I can find out. The texture issue is likely just a result of the texture being applied and not necessarily a limitation of the BAT. One thing that might cause it is the resolution of the texture (stretch it too much and it will blur/pixelate), another might be the texture itself: if it is different from the one used for the model of the regular track then it will (naturally) look different. Also, just in case it's not set yet, make sure you export on the highest detail setting.
Also, I would suggest altering the start piece for that bridge to have the guardrails move toward the tracks (either gradually or at a 90 degree angle) to avoid those gaps that are there now.
I like the supports you've modelled for the monorail bridge, but something looks a bit off about the texture of the track, that may just be a result of the zoom level, but I thought I would mention it just in case.
Great work and I'll look into that Garrabit bridge thing.
Quote from: choco on September 02, 2008, 11:30:36 AM
edit again: i wanted to post a couple pics and possibly figure out what im doing wrong. any insight would be great!
most importantly, here's my main texturing issue.
the difference between the El-Rail texture and the bridge texture is very dramatic. is this a limitation of the BAT, or am i just getting my pixel/meter ration wrong? indeed, i have read thru the tutorials, as well as consulted an expert or 2. i still can't seem to get it right...... :'(
Unfortunately this is a BAT limitation, with the output "resolution" being no higher than some 6 pixels per meter. Sorry threestooges, but there's no BAT bridge (with rails) looking any better. There is some sort of "workaround" for this, though very laborious:
- BAT your bridge without that rail texture (this step can be taken last. after you make sure that everything else works OK).
- Use a special flat model for networks, these are usually 16x16m large and 0.2m tall (NAM's ped mall tiles is an example). In the Reader change these models so that they use the el-rail straight texture (I mean the network texture, not a lot texture). As the network texture is displayed through a model as well, you won't get any differences, and the track on the bridge will look identical to the el-rail track.
- Now you need to display this. There are two ways, either make it a prop (you will need to use type-21 exemplars for all the bridge's pieces) or combine the model files (append the flat model mentioned above to the bridge's model); the 2nd way requires much more work, but technically is more "robust". Unfortunately, it has to be repeated any time you re-export your BAT, so it should be carried-out last, after your are done with BATting, texturing, etc, ie when the BAT models are finally "frozen" and they aren't about to change anymore.
Hope this helps.
thanks for the quick replies!
TS: i will definitely be re-modeling the start piece for the El-Rail bridge....I was kinda experimenting with some ideas since im not quite sure how to end it.....with the ped bridge there and all.
The monorail texture was included in the pack JRJ attached to the tutorial, but it does indeed look very different. Now that im equipped with an image editor, i should be able to fix that. It was a model i tossed together fairly quickly, so it still needs alot of work.
Regarding the Garabit: its no a huge concern, but it would be nice to know. instead of using a unique ID for every piece mid-span, it would allow us to make a single repeat piece and use only one ID. which ever you prefer, with consideration to the availability of ID's. I do thank you for lookin into it though! :thumbsup:
cogeo: i was considering using that method as you suggested in another thread....but im not quite that advanced yet. i filtered thru all your texturing suggestions to others and reviewed what you had already sent me, and found that i had everything pretty well done (i did forget about the blur setting... ::)). so, i am not gonna fret if its the BAT. thank you for your expertise my friend! :satisfied:
Forgot to mention, some of the NAM bridges are actually made this way.
So pick a NAM rail bridge (one with good-looking rails of course), go to the model (S3D) file in question, and try setting the groups' visibility on and off. You will see what I mean (the "track", is actually a different model, appended to the bridge's model).
-cogeo: Thank you for the detailed reply. Would you happen to know of a link to a tutorial explaining the second method you mentioned? It's something that would be very useful to know (and use) for bridges and perhaps other models. Again, thanks for the advice.
Awesome! Now I can have more than one type of elevated rail/GLR bridge! (Not to mention a third type of street bridge and another monorail bridge)
Threestooges, sorry I'm not aware of such a tutorial, but I don't think it's needed either, as the procedure is quite straightforward, and not hard to understand at all. All you need is to combine the two models, ie the bridge model with the track (or road) model:
- Locate those flat models and export them as S3D (or get those in the ped-mall tiles).
- Open the bridge model file, go to the model (S3D) you want and click "Add S3D" (select the flat S3D file here).
- Then go to the "Mats" tab, highlight the last (track/road) texture, right-click and select "Set Texture", and type-in (or paste) the instance ID of the ingame straight el-rail (or road) texture. Then click "Apply" otherwise changes are lost.
- Repeat the above two steps for all zooms/rotations. Instead, zoom levels 0-2 (those exported using LOD3) can be made by using a copy of the gmax file, this time containing the track/road texture (these don't look good anyway), but this requires two exports. I mean, you can choose to take these steps only for the two closest zooms, to reduce the work needed.
That is the whole thing is quite easy, just play with the reader at little and you will figure it out easily.
Tips:
- If you set the texture you will see the model rendered all-white in the preview. Before starting, you can take a copy of the original texture(s) in your model file, then save, close and reload. Now the texture in the preview will look OK, as soon as you set it. These (copied) textures should be deleted after you are done.
- Basically you need two of these flat model files, one for the even-numbered rotations, and one for the odd-numbered ones.
- Save often, as the reader can cause an acceess violation while editing models (in this case you will lose your unsaved work).
The problem with the above procedure is that it's too tedious. The reader's source code is publicly available, so I think it is possible for someone who knows (who indeed?) to write a "Combine Model" operation for the reader.
hi all! back for another update, cause i like pics.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fskybridge.jpg&hash=bd60afc41cc2fd04a221753d2c7fc4ee11326294)
@threestooges: this will help illustrate what i mean with respect to the garabit. if i render a model for each span piece starting with the pylon and work outward, i will need at minimum, 10 ID's, 11 if i use a starter piece. otherwise, if I can get away with rendering the wires with the pylon, i can get it down to 6 IDs. the RUL wouldn't be much different either way, but for loading times and ID availability, i would like to try to render the wires with the pylon.
oooooooooooooooooooooh beautiful!
extremely excellent start on this bridge &apls
Yes, I know what you mean about wanting to render the wires with the pillar piece. As far as I am aware, pieces are constrained to 16m in length. However, if you wouldn't mind doing a bit of testing, try rendering the pillar piece with the wires and all incorporated (make sure to use a somewhat customized LOD to avoid obscuring other pieces) and use the model ID of another bridge that you know works. It'll look funny, but all you would need to test is functionality and pathing.
From what I have seen (and can understand) in the NAM bridge RULs, it looks like it might be an option.
An excerpt from the Cantilevered Truss RUL:
Quote#CANTILEVER TRUSS
bridge 8
section s
piece <0x0c071000, 2>
end
section r
piece <0x0c051000, 2>
end
section mr
piece <0x0c151000, 2>
end
section m1
piece <0x0c101000, 2>
end
section m2
piece <0x0c111000, 2>
end
section m3
piece <0x0c121000, 2>
end
section m4
piece <0x0c121000, 0>
A screenshot of fukuda's Millau Viaduct from the Reader:
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fimg299.imageshack.us%2Fimg299%2F2790%2Fbedmillaureaderpicon3.jpg&hash=6cbc43ee215ac3fae22573fa362f9ebf414aa32c)
The interesting thing is that the RUL for the first bridge seems to show separate models for each piece instead of having the full span (though I guess that could also account for the multiple varieties it creates) but from the looks of it, what you show might be possible with 3 pieces. So please, take a look into it if you don't mind and share your findings.
As far as the model itself goes, it looks great. I think this will make a fine addition to the selection of rail bridges (and perhaps el rail/glr if you're interested). I recommend making those short pillars much longer, similar to the main one. Aside from that, some textures will really add to it, otherwise, great work. Let me know if you have any other thoughts or questions on it. I don't have nearly as much time as I would like to work on this (and it's one of those things I'd really like to research more) but please let me know what you find.
-Matt
choco, just a note (and sorry if you are already aware of this).
Have you checked properties.xml? This is an XML file listing all (?) available properties in the SC4 exemplars. I think it's the most essential "guide to modding". It's used by the reader (to display help); so you can find it in your reader's installation. As far as I know the "last" (?) version of this is not included with the reader, but I remember it was posted on ST (Modds and Downloads). If you can't find it I could send it to you. This XML file comes together with a stylesheet (for formatting) so that you can view it in your browser.
Well, back into the bridges stuff, these cables may not even need to be modelled! Properties.xml (go to the "Bridge" section) contains a whole bunch of cable-stayed related properties, specifying among others the number, texture, and thickness of the cables. As these are listed together with all other bridge properties, the names are quite self-explanatory and there is a short description too, I think it would be quite easy to figure out how this works. Maybe suggesting a different way to make your project doesn't make you happy, but this may be the "correct" way to go.
Still, even if you stick with modelling these cables, why not make the whole cable set a single (overhanging) prop (using a simple LODshell)? This would be used only once, in the network lot (21) of the piece with the pylon.
No offense, just some ideas.
TS: i think i can get it to work this way....this LOD wont work, but the game doesn't seem to have problems with the overhanging model. i need to test if its functional, but i need to redo the LOD first. in any event, i dont see the need to make separate models for each. i'll report more as i learn....
cogeo: i know almost nothing about T21's, but i may give your ideas a try. i was planning on making 4 cable stay bridges, and it may be much simpler in the long run to explore your suggestion. lemme look into it....i cannot get onto the stex until i get home, so i'll have a look at the properties.xml file (of which i was not aware) later.
also, no animosity here with regards to your (or anyone elses) suggestions...in fact, it makes me feel a bit better. i know i have alot to learn, and i cannot progress unless i have someone with experience guiding me through this. i really do appreciate all your help, and the suggestions further help me improve the quality of my work. beware though: i may have to ask for some help whilst learning the prop method. but thats again for chiming in....
on to the pics....
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Funtitled-2.jpg&hash=18866766f1db9fd780ba050e430d221e3bfe825d)
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Funtitled1.jpg&hash=9f9cfe62baad91c7f098b48d4b9f61f9816f638d)
From the looks of things, there shouldn't be any problem doing it the way you're doing ti now. just alter the separation of the pillars in the reader and you'll be set for a 3 piece bridge. If you try the way cogeo mentioned, I would like it if you posted the steps you took. It would make a great tutorial for those interested in getting into bridge making. No pressure to do that though, only if you feel like it. Can't wait to see it finished.
-Matt
Quote from: choco on August 22, 2008, 08:29:39 PM
edit: back for more.....saw a request in another thread, and thought i'd give it a shot. need to learn how to build a cable bridge anyway..
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fsky.jpg&hash=e53244884e82dc4369a491f3cbfb87f6c1f30a04)
Would that be the elevated rail or 'SkyTrain' bridge that crosses the Fraser River in New Westminster BC?
If so.. I would LOVE to see this bridge in game.
choco and TS: You can find some examples of how the properties I mentioned in my previous post are used, in the SC4 dats. In the reader open simcity_1.dat, click the navigator button, and open the "Street, road, highway, rail" category, and then the "Bridge" subcategory. There are several cable-stayed bridges there.
Hope this helps.
so i did some learnin this evening.....
i started playing with different LODs for a bunch of bridges, and noticed their effect on the drawpaths cheat...
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FLODingeffect.jpg&hash=97b27f0376f27fabcd657c08c2090876f0000e32)
otherwise, i didn't think it looked too bad considering the LOD was still pretty sloppy. at closer glance, i caught the tip of the arrow under the canopy here...
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i didn't really like this effect, so i started looking into the T21's and exemplar properties for the cables.
i found these in the maxis avenue bridge...
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Only six properties needed in the bridge exemplar. The CableStayed[Front,Rear,Span]Anchors properties adjust the 'bounding box' of the cables.....im not so good with words so i made a quick picture.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Aug16041221340141.jpg&hash=dd7fb867e10a5b265532e44d1b5f6612a595eee5)
if i got it right:
- the yellow dots are the 2 coordinates in CableStayedFrontAnchors
- white dots are CableStayedRearAnchors
- blue dots are CableStayedSpanAncors (which just get mirrored....)
i need to do some lookin to see if there are any alternative wire models, or if its possible to add props for this use. the other 3 properties are basically for changing the look of the wires, so no doubt another texture or model could be used.
i think this would look much better if i used an RUL to add a couple pieces for an approach span. unfortunately, i wasn't able to get the road bridge from before workin.....i tried to amend the RUL file in the bridges controller unsuccessfully thus far, so i still have some work to do.
edit: a major limitation to the T21s is that we may only be able to use one set of cables. this severely limits the kind of bridges that could be made. hopefully, someone knows a way around this.
and im sure it'll get textures eventually.... :-\
oh now this topic is just AWESOME!!!!!!!!!! I am surprised at myself for not looking in on it before. your bridges are adding alot to this game :)
Joe
I noticed a small difference, the avenue bridge has the third dimension of the span anchors set to 8m, not 0. Let me guess, does this move the wires to the side of the road? Maybe by setting the span anchors to a broader range with both positive and negative values, eg -100 to +100m, and/or by reversing the meaning of front/rear anchors and span anchors it could become possible having wires at the sides of the bridge, instead of the middle?
As for the texture, you don't need to use the ingame one, you can make your own. Before doing so you may try a special texture, like the one below, not because it would look good of course, but in order to check how the texture is applied on the wires - this would be a hint how to make your custom texture.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fimg137.imageshack.us%2Fimg137%2F302%2Fchocotexturesi3.jpg&hash=436e4b3083deb5f55ef41859e0a9b5ab5c97ed9b)
yup, the third dimension is for side to side placement....im still doing some looking in the reader, but it looks like all the stay cable bridges are using a single set of wires. there is no mirroring effect on the front and rear anchors....least that i can find. i can get them to line up nicely one side or the other...but not both. kinda a bummer for this particular bridge, but this is valuable information to me anyway. thanks for the nudge... :thumbsup:
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so now im thinking about making a prop or 2 for some better cables. perhaps do a couple standard designs so other cables bridges can be made down the pipe....
im assuming props are made in the BAT? anything special in terms of modeling to keep in mind?
That bridge is looking good and quite like the original as all it takes is a quarter turn of my head to see the real one out my window.
Though I have never seen the Fraser River looks so blue ;D
Ooooh small world, huh? ;D I haven't seen much of anything on any of the exchanges that I've seen in RL, except the Palacio Real in Madrid - no bridges (there aren't any real great ones around here, except maybe Memorial Bridge over the Roanoke River in Roanoke, VA) and no BATs (I could find a way to get to downtown to get some actual photos if someone wants to BAT something in Roanoke) and although there's a map of Roanoke available to import into SC, I don't know how to import them into the game (even though i followed the tutorial down to the color of the text) so it's good that at least someone lives right nex to a bridge that someone's BATting. :thumbsup:
Well, I live on a river delta so that explains the muddy water and the abdunance of bridges. That elevated rail bridge (I believe its called the Skybridge, as our elevated rail system is called the 'SkyTrain') is only about 17-18 years old. I was actually lucky enough (Since I live close to where my folks live) to watch it being constructed. I am in awe of the men who can comprehend what it takes to build such a thing. Luckily enough they are planning on building a new road bridge beside it in the near future and I will get to watch that one being built as well.
Quote from: wes.janson on September 17, 2008, 06:43:05 PM
That bridge is looking good and quite like the original as all it takes is a quarter turn of my head to see the real one out my window.
:thumbsup: hope i can do it justice, its a beautiful bridge.....nice backyard monument ya got there. wouldnt happen to have any good pics would ya? may help with some texturing actually..... ;D
@cogeo: i took some more of your suggestions about those alternate methods, and i hope i can ask a couple questions. its a bit much, but the more i learn the more questions i have. ::)
based on the screeny above, can you lend a bit about making some props with T21s. i went thru the threads here, and get twisted on some concepts:
- if i modeled the cables in BAT, would they need to be rendered in true 3D?
- a test render on the cables with a simple rectangular LOD weighed in at 264kb....thought that was kinda heavy.
- if nothing else, i thought about changing some pathing to create more room for the cables between the rails.
another bridge i had problems with was a monorail bridge. the suggestion to import a flat model thru the reader sounded like a good solution i was having matching the textures of the maxis monorail. theres 3 different textures that make up the monorail, and its really hard to match well (its a 3D model, and im not sure how to measure dimensions). i found the sc4 file for the repeat peice of the monorail bridge, and exported that file. however, it only gave me one direction in one zoom. that didn't work anyway, but this'll show the what i mean.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fmono.jpg&hash=3565b1e7b58a2f4399634af28286b1f8f5b3f98f)
the track is almost shaped like greek omega. you can really see it on the top track. in the reader, the sc4 file had 6 groups....so i wasn't sure if i should 'set' one texture, or 'set' them all. can i really even use this method since these are not flat models? this procedure is a bit confusing.....
one other thing i noticed in misc. transit bridges....the maxis box in the starter piece. its present in all my light rail bridges, and havent found a property to remove it.
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most other issues have been worked out. im hoping ill be done with this round soon, if i can over come these few issues. your help is always appreciated! :thumbsup:
Hi,
Here are my replies to your questions.
Quote from: choco on September 19, 2008, 08:11:14 PM
- if i modeled the cables in BAT, would they need to be rendered in true 3D?
What do you mean by "true 3D"? BAT renders are not indeed true 3D, the actual 3D object displayed ingame is the LODshell. In addition it makes renders specific to zoom and rotation views. These are "partial" objects, eg for a simple LODshell (box), the "object" for each view has only 3 faces, the upper, the front and the right one, ie those that are visible for the specific zoom/rotation! The models that are really 3D are those that have full geometry, ie all faces visible. Such models are used in SC4 networks, like the monorail model you mentioned. This has only one S3D file, which is displayed for all zooms/rotations, as it has both "front" and "back" faces. If you check the vertices' coordinates you will see what I mean.
Making such a model for the cables is possible, however not in BAT (it exports 20 S3D files), you need another modelling program named "MilkShape". I know only one member using it.
Quote from: choco on September 19, 2008, 08:11:14 PM
- a test render on the cables with a simple rectangular LOD weighed in at 264kb....thought that was kinda heavy.
If you want to make these in BAT, you should better make custom-shaped LODs. I would suggest that you include the wires of one side only, as the prop can be instantiated twice in the T21 exemplar (one will have to be rotated by 180°). This way LODs will be really thin, and the automata running between them will be displayed properly; otherwise (if you make a model containing both the right-side and left-side cables, using a single LOD), the cables at the back will obscure the automata, because they will be projected on the front faces! If you send me the BAT I can make these LODs for you.
Quote from: choco on September 19, 2008, 08:11:14 PM
- if nothing else, i thought about changing some pathing to create more room for the cables between the rails.
I don't get what you mean here, do you mean making a bridge with just one row of wires (in the middle)? Well, this is feasible, but I think its not what you intended for.
As for monorail, the model used in the repeat piece of the Maxis monorail bridge, is actually a copy of the "support" model, with the support structures somehow "disabled" (groups 0,1 and 5 are not displayed). I'm not sure about the quality of this piece of work, and possibly merging this "modded" model might cause problems.
I don't know why this is only visible for one Z/R, did you append the model to all 20 S3D models? Another point, this must be rotated for the other directions, and this is not easy work (X and Y values for all vertices must be interchanged/flipped), practically undoable for this model.
But this can be used as a prop. I have attached a prop file displaying the monorail repeat piece model. You can use it in lots, and as you can see, it's visible for all zooms/rotations. T21 exemplars are just network "lots", so you can use this prop there - use the reader to position (center) the prop accurately. You will need to add T21 exemplars to all (3?) pieces of the bridge. If you still have problems we can try changing the blending parameters, as these may be hidden by your bridge's LODs.
As for the GLR bridge problem, this looks kinda noramal, as your bridge is modded as "elevated rail", so the default texture/model is displayed. Have you tried connecting this to draggable GLR?
Regards
Quote from: cogeo on September 20, 2008, 09:49:15 AM
What do you mean by "true 3D"?
i read in the "Making Model for Transit Networks" thread that network lots needed to be rendered in 3D....i simply thought that since a T21 is a network "lot", then maybe it would have to be done in 3D. there is an alternate BuildingMill.ms script that will allow gmax to render in 3D (Milkshape is OK, Blender is GNU program). moot point at this time though, since i shouldn't need to export in that manner.
QuoteI would suggest that you include the wires of one side only, as the prop can be instantiated twice in the T21 exemplar (one will have to be rotated by 180°).
i think i understand this well. although, is it possible to render 1/4 of the model, then use T21's to mirror it twice? i.e., render the front left, mirror to the front right, then mirror those to the rear of the pylon. just kinda thinkin aloud. :-\
QuoteI don't get what you mean here, do you mean making a bridge with just one row of wires (in the middle)? Well, this is feasible, but I think its not what you intended for.
yup, pretty much. i will probably do a couple cable stayed bridges for the rail lines, but the current rail taxtures have the tracks too close together for the cables to fit between them IMO.....so i made some alternate transite textures and created path files for them. this way, i can use a single pylon between the tracks and it'll look better.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fsplit.jpg&hash=d8ea8aba1231312d40c5e8a8d0c1c4d2f9718376)
Quotebut I think its not what you intended for.
not for this bridge anyway....there will be others... ;D
QuoteI have attached a prop file displaying the monorail repeat piece model.
you are simply fantastic! that was the solution i was looking for...and i learned something else in the process. there is one slight caveat to the prop though. the shading is off is a couple rotations and views, and one piece just doesn't show up.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fmissing.jpg&hash=73fdeebd0e10a0c7a9d540bde1aba9f4bbe07933)
here is the missing piece....also note the drawpaths cheat and the nice matching of the monorail prop.
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the small red square in the upper left corner is the opposite view of the above picture with the missing mono prop. the top is east, and the red square is west. is this what you meant by "blending parameters"?
QuoteHave you tried connecting this to draggable GLR?
absolutely.....im just a bit too lazy sometimes. ::) im not too worried about this 'issue'....either i can change the exemplar type back to 'road' or just use the maxis block as the base of the model. no big deal.....although the former would look much better, the models are considerably larger and wont help already long loading times.
Sorry for so many questions, but I really appreciate all your time and consideration getting me thru some of these challenges. perhaps this thread will answer some questions others as well, cause there's a ton of good info here. gettin close to complete on a couple of these, some maybe some new bridges in the near future.
Thanks a million cogeo!!! :thumbsup:
There's a little confusion here, network lots (T21s) aren't "rendered", only models are rendered! T21s are just like the normal lots (like those you edit with the LE), the basic difference is that they are attached to networks.
It's not possible to mirror models, only textures can be mirrored; props can only be rotated. So you have to model half of the wires, not the 1/4th.
I'm not sure about the drawing/shadowing problems, it may be the LODs and blending parameters, the IsGroundModel property and many others. Can you send me the bridge to take a look?
FInally, connecting to draggable GLR fixes the problem or not? Did you check other GLR bridges?
got a quick first round of textures on the skybridge....its far from done though...
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WOW! You got the way they used concrete blocks to build (A look uniform to the whole system, as they pre-build it in segments and then lift the segments into place), though I must say that your textures look a bit pinkish (for lack of a better term). As soon as I can find the USB cord for my camera I will post some pics I took the other day.
I might be out by the new 'extradosed' skybridge they are building for rapid transit to the airport. The textures on those would be very similar to the ones used on the existing skybridge.
hmmmm.....does look a bit pinkish doesn't it? i wanted to see if i could get the tiling right, so it was just a quick crop of an existing texture......i dont intend to make a pink bridge... :D
the hard pics to find have been the approach span and the approach pillars.....only have seen ones from far away. pics would be cool though... :thumbsup:
On the top of the foundation put a thin lid to get rid of that texture problem.
Or, if the UWV map is cylindrical, check the "Cap" checkbox. You can also assign a different material to the top faces, if you wish, by using an Edit Mesh modifier.
^^^ &idea
was wondering how that was done....
:thumbsup:
edit to remove pic.
hey folks...
finally have a lil something to report. learned how to create props ;D
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thanks cogeo! :thumbsup:
maybe needs some lights... :-\
very nice bridge :thumbsup:
looking great!
Wow great bridge &apls
thanks y'all.....they're coming along OK. still lots of work to be done though.... &cry2
finally got all the ID conflicts/exemplar properties squared away, so each bridge finally shows up in the selection menu. also fixed some T21 problems which were causing random props to appear on the pillars.
otherwise, just waiting for the testers to do their thing. should give me time to learn the RULs.....
enjoy, and thanks for lookin! :thumbsup:
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Good work on those. I'll certainly give these a shot next time I go through a testing period. Good luck running through the RULs.
Nice work :thumbsup:
Oh, very nice bridges! I am fond of cable bridges too.
that's awesome my friend &apls
those are some nices bridges. i like them and you're getting better and better. I'll be coming back to see your progress.
well, this wont be much of an update....but this blasted game does some weird things no doubt. first up, catenaries!
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not quite sure where these came from, but why are they not used in the game? :thumbsdown:
next one is more curious.....
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this is a problem. it only happens on one pylon, only on the end pylon, and only on one side of said pylon. either way, i dont want to end up using props for all the cables.....they dont look quite as nice as the exemplar controlled cables.
still RULing the night away, and getting nowhere fast. ;D maybe time to swallow my pride and ask for directions....
Quote from: choco on October 21, 2008, 08:02:50 AM
well, this wont be much of an update....but this blasted game does some weird things no doubt. first up, catenaries!
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fcatenary.jpg&hash=5afee365fcf50526f4cef21fe35abe8140f24c2d)
not quite sure where these came from, but why are they not used in the game? :thumbsdown:
They appear once in awhile on the elevated rail network. Maxis has one prop that displays it and about 3-4 copies of the prop which display an invisible model. Tweaking the prop exemplars is probably the easiest way to make the show all the time.
-Swamper
This is pretty neat. Do you know if there are also diagonal props available?
@swamper77: funny that they would put them in, yet not use 'em.... ??? maybe i can learn to make a mod to display them.....haven't really looked into anything other than bridges thus far. thanks for the info though!
@andreas: i took a quick look and didn't see any diagonal catenaries, but there was another with some "stop lights" on the cross bar.
so i threw together another bridge is afternoon....basically just a quick mock-up to see how it would look. not too pleased really (dont mind the textures)....
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fhsrp.jpg&hash=232ce3e31a79d3b40a300be088a071eab5dada11)
the major issue as i see it is the dimensions of the hsr tack model. since its a full 16meters wide, the surrounding pillar must be outside the ideal limit in order to make any kind of cable/suspension bridge. the edge of this model is already 11 meters, and if i go any farther out it may start to get visually glitchy. it just kind of makes it difficult to scale correctly.
so this'll be on the back burner till i figure out something that fits better.
You are getting better and better Ryan!
I've got an idea. How about making this bridge (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rio-Antirio_bridge)?
More detailed photos can be found at Google Earth.
its almost eerie that you posted that request....
just put an initial set of textures on this morning....
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one element that i changed was only that i made it a fan style rather than a harp.
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What a surprise?!
Hmmm, and the proportions are a bit skewed I'm afraid. The pillars have to be wider at the base. The upper (vertical) part should also be a little shorter (proportionally) I think.
What's that thing at the top?
And the cables would rather need to be modelled.
There are needed custom streetlights too (I would offer to make them and add a lightcone too if you are bored).
Needs more work I think.
said i was keepin busy.... ;)
i agree about the proportions.....but there is a big limitation with this model. the "pillars" you mention, the 4 rising into the central upper support, are as large as they can be when using a single piece (hence ID) for the pylon. f i split the pylon in half, i could accommodate larger pillars.
the maxis elr track prop is 10 tiles wide, and each pillar is 2 tiles square. 10+2+2 is 14 tiles, leaving 2 (one on each side of the track prop) so the LODs dont obscure prop. i can easily go to 24 tiles wide in x (in BAT), but i can only go 16 tiles in y. since its a square model (to keep that proportion), i used the smallest of the 2. i plan on tweeking it to find the limit of the LOD, as this was only the second export of this bridge.
im not sure the name of the thing at the top; on the fan bridges, there's typically a steel collar that the cables loop over (or thru) to keep them in place. i dont like that either.....but again, just a first export. making it a harp bridge is easy though.....something i notcied about the real bridge: is the deck suspended abouve the pylon surface? the attached pic shows something i haven't seen on any other harp bridges....typically the cables start a few meters from the deck supports, so why would this bridge have cables in this configuartion?
im finding out that cables as props look substantially worse than the maxis cables. particularly in zooms 1-3.....maybe im making the LODs incorrectly? ()what()
streetlights on a light rail bridge? i would like to enable lights on it (the blue and yellow) like paulv did for his bridges, but i haven't even looked into it yet. however, if you have the time to make some cones (as i have no clue how), i would gladly add them in. i hadn't decided if i was going for realism or not, as i can't get textures to look like the real thing.
more experience needed.... :D
as always, i appreciate the feedback. :thumbsup:
I don't understand what you mean about limitations. Where do these limitations come from? Can't any model be as large as needed? I especially don't understand those 10 (?) +2+2 tiles. Or those 24 tiles (?, you mean meters?) along the x axis, and the 16 tiles along the y axis. The LODs should be "hollow" in the interior, for the automata to be displayed correctly, being roughly of the same shape as the pillars (maybe a little simplified).
The bridge doesn't really "sit" on the pylons, it's completely cable-stayed, so as to allow lateral movements, as the area is too earthquake-prone.
I haven't seen that "collar" in any photo.
And most importantly, the bridge is NOT a rail bridge. Look at wikipedia, it says it has two lanes per direction; in reality it connects to the highway system of the area, so I think the most suitable SC4 network type should be highway (unless you are talking about another bridge).
As for the cables, these should be white; autovino has found a solution that allows real antialiasing (though we could experiment with custom solutions too). It requires 3DSMax, but this should be no problem.
As for the streetlights, I didn't say I will make a new lightcone, but I will use one of the existing ones (add it to the new/custom lightpoles), lol!
very nice work
well, ya hit on a couple things i was pondering as well....
to learn the BAT, i grabbed some pics of bridges with varying geometries to give myself a goal....thus forcing myself to explore the various tools to accomplish something. i do realize this is not a rail bridge, and was considering what to do about the model in the end. i have been building on the Amazon region with an extensive rail network, and much to my chagrin, found the selection of light rail bridges, well...non-existant. kinda the inspiration to pick up the BAT, but i think i get your point.
regarding the model, a pic will help. you can overextend the 16x16 rule for pieces in the width of the bridge (x-axis in BAT) by about 4 meters (tiles) without causing graphic problems., but you cannot be larger than 16 meters in length (y). these limits are the red and blue lines respectively. jeronij posted about this a bit more here. (http://sc4devotion.com/forums/index.php?topic=915.100) to keep the proper proportion for the rail, that was as large as i could go. otherwise, to make it accommodate a 2-tile network, it could be cut in the middle and flipped since this bridge has good symmetry. i wrongly thought it'd take another ID.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Frio3.jpg&hash=f985dad637eeb7d695601fda5236df6ee1c7d466)
something else i am facing is the complex LODs....you can see what they do to the props. same happens on the rio model. it makes all the pieces have higher poly counts in the end.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Flodss.jpg&hash=8941eb142cad2ed4d936f81b1fa75fde174ec31d)
i see that autovino made a tutorial for the antialiasing, thats quite a bit of work. one set of cables already weighed in at 132kb....how much more would it add? if someone has Max and wants to have a go, thats great!
how do you add a cone? T21, or in the model?
couple more in preliminary design....
ghsr truss bridge
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fghsr.jpg&hash=e7cc2196daff2b4fa65ab1397505baff0c9ec20d)
hsr truss bridge
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those truss bridges are awesome!
thanks TM!
im starting to get this BAT figured out....when i made my first 4 bridges, i didn't even know what a spline was. multi-materials....modifiers.....mesh's....compounds.....i only used boxes and planes for the first few. thus, unfortunately, i need to go back an revisit all my previous work to get it anywhere close to release. i may hire my gf as a texture artist..... &mmm
not to let the cat outta the bag, but i have 11 bridges functionally working, but all need re-textured and some select re-modeling to correct visual glitches that i was unaware of solutions for. The 4 that have been submitted are full of LODing faults, but im getting there. i think i bit off a bit more than i can chew....
Wonderful Stuff! Are all 11l rail bridges?
Wow! Those are excellent! Good luck fixing the bugs ;)
most, not all, are meant for light rail.
the original intent of this project is nothing more than to add a few options for light rail bridges for a bit of flavor and variety, that is really lacking with these networks. having been following a few other development threads, i realized that there will be other areas to address as well. so i broadened the scope of this project to include some other networks as well. more about that later.....
to date, i have only been working with rail; ELR, GLR, Monorail, HSR, and GHSR (my very first BAT, which was a street bridge, and my latest, which im still modeling). these networks have a fundamental similarity in the modding of the bridge files, so i am keeping the scope of my work to these 5 networks at this time. ultimately, i would like to have 3 unique bridge models per network, arriving at 15 separate bridges. these could then be further modded to work with other networks. there is still one technical challenge that needs to be ironed out, otherwise, 3 models i have created would be useless.
so yeah.....basically, this is all about light rail bridges. trying to create a nice variety of concrete and truss bridges. unfortunately, im only getting very limited feedback from very few folks, so im not quite sure whether or not all the toiling will be worth it.
i do appreciate the kind words! if you have any suggestions, requests, or comments on the work, please feel free. i welcome the criticism. :thumbsup:
Oh, yes, I certainly like more variety in the rail-type networks, because there never seems to be quite the right bridge for a particular spot, especially when flat plains meet a river.
With the GHSR, I think there's too much tiling on the piers; the HSR, I have no idea what our going for, but the textures don't seem compitable i.e. brick with concrete and painted steel...
choco, i think your work is well worth it :thumbsup:
Yes, great work!
Your work is great, I tested your first three Light Rail bridges and I'm very impressed. Keep up the good work, you're improving with each model and I can't wait to see what you come up with next.
Cheers,
Kevin
thanks all!! getting closer....
something i wanted to pose to y'all....
there's a difference during construction preview of the track model with some of these bridges. didn't know if anyone was opposed to leaving them as such, or if there's a way to get T21's to preview. if i am missing something here, i would love to fix all the props before releasing them. thoughts?
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made some progress on the RUL thanks to Tarkus help. complex light rail bridges on the horizon...
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FEW.jpg&hash=57bdc2c02bced2bccb58719d3fec3fc5d4652680)
There isn't a way to show the props placed by a T21 in a preview, as you are asking for. I know of a way to add the monorail tracks to your bridge models. Drop me a PM if you want it done. And, no, it will not require you to re-render your models. ;)
-Swamper
^^^^
YGPM
i have been thinking about how to package these bridges, and would like some input as to the best method. all my rail bridges use the maxis tracks as props. currently, there is a prop exemplar in each bridge for this purpose. it could just as easily be done to consolidate all the prop exemplars into an "essential" file. considering im sitting on about 15 bridges in this project, it may make a difference in the end. dunno.....one benefit is that anyone else that chooses to build a bridge in this method could use the bridge essential file rather than make new prop exemplars. thoughts?
and another thing.....
here's a pic of an old revision of a glr bridge.....i wasn't quite sure about the glass roof, but i just wanted to show it to see what anyone might think.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fglr.jpg&hash=b4e8913e8ab048d70289d128576fb7842267aeac)
A GLR Bridge, this is fantastic.
Might you be able to do an elevated version as well?
This bridge looks awesome and I am so glad that there are a few members making them again.
&apls
Robin :thumbsup:
thanks rooker1!
you do bring up a good point, and it was something i considered when re-writing the scope of this little project. at this point, i am doing a unique bridge for every network....ie, the glr bridge above (which i dont actually have anymore) would only be a glr bridge. however, its very easy to convert bridges of the same network to its ground/elevated counterpart......which, i may do later on if there is a demand. i have no idea (other than threestooges) who else is making bridges, so im trying to leave ample room in the NAM for other peoples works as well.
ill talk it over with the NAM team and see how they feel about it though.....currently, i have 3 bridges complete.....and 10 in various stages of BAting (yup, i started 2 more ;D).
thanks for checking in....more updates in the near future, so stay tuned. im working in Taiwan this week, so i have alot of downtime in the hotel.
$%#Ninj2
Quote from: choco on November 20, 2008, 03:04:32 AM
and another thing.....
here's a pic of an old revision of a glr bridge.....i wasn't quite sure about the glass roof, but i just wanted to show it to see what anyone might think.
I like that a lot, allows for a subway to stay covered while crossing above a body of water.
^^^hmmm....never thought of that. maybe i'll redo that one with a cover.....a bit of variety per say....
thanks for the input.
so after i got done with a scooter tour of Hsinchu City, Taiwan, i had ample time to sit an BAT. my mouse hand is killing me, but im fairly pleased with the results. since i haven't posted it here, i thought i'd post a preview of an STR bridge....
i give you, the untextured Saltash Bridge.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FEW1.jpg&hash=c7f503778f3edf88c836254b31e870ed91811c62)
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNS1.jpg&hash=e96c9b107059a2387e1c3fb36b1e1e929610b3e5)
hope y'all like it.... :thumbsup:
Amazing!
i hope it has the same colorscheme as you have made it now, it looks awesome!
yah, it actually looks really great without any textures! I wonder what it will look like with textures? ;)
@Meastro: not sure if i can get away with that.....but i may try. the real Saltash Bridge is made of wrought iron and stone, so its really plain grey all and all. have to see what some community members think, but i tend to agree with ya.
@ sim-al2: thanks for the kind words.
while searching for more photos of that bridge, i realized i modeled the central pillar incorrectly. i only saw it from N-S, but an E-W picture shows a compound pylon with 4 octagonal members, not 2 :'( so long as i dont have to remodel the truss', i can deal.
edit: got the LOD issue fixed with the GHSR truss bridge. ready to go.....
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fghsrtruss.jpg&hash=bad091cb04a16d7241049837214ee064f3b4793c)
and another.....put together in about an hour.....nothing special, but i was bored......again.....
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fcchsr.jpg&hash=d43157b822086483b6881eff3304fc9ce911ee5d)
way too much time on my hands this weekend... :P
i should clarify...these are simply mockups and may resemble a finished bridge, but they are hardly finished....
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Fantastic work on these bridges. I am so glad to see more bridges in the works again.
Three posts above, I like the over head truss, (is that correct ??? )
and the last bridge, I like the base, especially the part that is going into the water.
Robin ;)
You and your bridges are keeping me busy. I like it. I have a few projects I'm working on today, but I'll get some IDs your way pretty soon here. Your models continue to improve.
-Matt
thanks again robin.....appreciate the feedback. that was a quick model, but its hard to make a nice bridge only using a single piece. may have to expand my modding capabilites to compensate.
@TS:i almost feel bad matt....
i keep taking time away from your stuff.....you should have seen the .xls.....so you realize the scope of what im trying to accomplish. kinda hard to do all the BATing, modding, and packaging. i think i took a dip in the deep end without learning to swim first.... :D
but, this adventure has been fun nonetheless. once i get the 3-piecers outta the way....then the fun(pain) begins....
didn't get much done this weekend....
started retexturing this one......still needs work, but gettin there.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fnew.jpg&hash=d999a5ec482398c590e4372a0688961851fc82b9)
It is a bit funny to see a modern high speed rail line using an old bridge, but nevertheless, it looks very promising so far. :)
I agree with Andreas, maybe you can save that base for something that looks a little more older and try a more modern concrete base for this one.
I really like your work. &apls
Robin :thumbsup:
thinkin about it....i concur. thanks for the feedback.
the good thing, its not hard to change the network....some small model changes on this one....
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fnew2.jpg&hash=5f5056b61fdcfdd9e73489107f361ef61c4656fe)
;D
this bridge is splendid my friend, I like the mix of old with these bricks and modern with the EL-train or HSRP &apls &apls
Hmmm, the old/new mix is a bit odd I have to admit. This bridge would only look OK with common rail tracks, I think.
Btw something that makes rail bridges unrealistic is the rail texture, which does include the gravel part. I can't recall a single example of a rail bridge with ballast. Old rail bridges usually had wooden or metal sleepers, and supports (along the bridge) if no other "track bed" is provided; in many cases you can see the river under the bridge! New bridges tend to have metal or concrete sleepers, or (sleeperless) concrete slabs or blocks. Maxis bridges utilise the latter technique (only I can't remember if it's indeed sleeperless, I don't currently have a SC4 installation, you know ()sad()).
Now that you have made special road/track models for nearly any kind of SC4 network, I think it's bloody time for some more serious work with rail tracks. And I think you understand that this is basically Photoshopping, requiring many repeated and exhaustive tests and reviews for optimisation. But as you are making some sort of "essentials" for these, I think it's absolutely worth. So a minimum set should contain:
- At least one texture/prop per track type ie with wooden sleepers, with metal sleepers, with concrete slabs (preferably two or three types), etc and probably one looking like Maxis. A useful texture/prop could be one with the rails only (the slabs or whatever can be modelled instead, so one would need a rails-only good-looking prop to superimpose on the modelled slabs/trackbed). A problem with the SC4 track textures is that the rails aren't all the same, and while this is OK for draggable networks, it causes problems with bridges, as pieces are rotated (I mean basically the end piece) so it's impossible to have a texture that will look OK at both ends of the bridge &mmm). I think that the best that can be done is... open SC4's rail track texture, pick the most average-looking (neither the brightest/darkest nor the sharpest/blurriest one) track (it will have to be combined with both tracks). Also the alpha mask for these must be carefully-made, I think the rail part should be 100% opaque, and there must be a 1-2 pixels-wide black margin at less opacity. It the margin is 1-pixel wide try setting opacity to 50%, otherwise to 67% for the first pixel and 33% for the second one. This would make the rails clearly visible with any texture (dark, light or mixed) under it.
- Maybe consider making some "transition" textures (for use in the end-piece T21s). The gravel may "enter" a few pixels within the bridge's track and be ended gradually, not abruptly. I'm not sure if this is needed, or it will improve things considerably (if any), but maybe it's worth giving it a try. Also check Maxis bridges carefully and see if it's really good-looking or needs any improvement(s).
- GLR track for bridges should not have ballast either, and please also note that in the last NAM versions it doesn't have ballast at all, except for the rural tracks.
As for the bridge model, there are some issues with the textures:
- The part under the bricks has unrealistically enlarged "details".
- The truss colour changes abruptly from dark to light. What's this? An uneven or non-seamless texture, or a lighting problem?
- The bricks (?) at the narrow part of the support look quite strange.
But as you said, it still needs work.
I think that with the above proposed improvements your bridge will look excellent! :)
PS: I had a HD crash recently, and much of my work on SC4 custom content was lost, incl the rail bridge I had started making. Now that this isn't going to be done, I think it would be appropriate to return the IDs that had been reserved for me to the NAM Team. But as you are one of the few still making bridges, it would best to hand them over directly to you instead of bothering jeronij (he will have to assign them anew), unless for some reason he needs them.
sorry to hear about the HD crash..... :thumbsdown: i know that hurts....i learned from my last scare, and bought a 16GB flash drive to store all my SC4 stuff on. ..... i remember that rail bridge....'twas the one that got me involved in the modding game. as far as the ID's, i'm sure i could find a use for them. ;) i'll let Matt know if you choose to release them to my care.
i'll post the rest of my thoughts once i get home. just checked the clock, and it almost quittin' time!!
i think what you have proposed here may be a worthy idea; unfortunately, ive never used photoshop. this is one reason im having problems with textures.....im basically constrained to only using premade textures, and i have used up most of what i have. from a technical perspective, i understand what you mean, and think it would be a great way to simplify bridge building for others. i was thinking about this for GLR tracks (not so much rail), as the maxis ELR track model doesn't look good with the GLR textures. hence my reluctance to submit the GLR bridge thus far.....
i'll get together some tie props in wood, concrete, metal and composite and add them into the common file.....i can use the bridge above to test them. hopefully, MS paint will be enough..... ::)
wrt the textures above, i tend to use several to see how they look in game, and re-evaluate....most turn out bad like this one.....
thanks for the feedback and suggestions cogeo! :thumbsup:
Making good-looking network textures isn't hard at all, but requires a somewhat more featured image-processing program. It doen't need to be Photoshop (Gimp or PaintShop Pro would also do), but it can't be sth like MS-Paint. For example, you may need to combine the rails (taken from the SC4 dats) with, say, metal sleepers (ties). You may find the the metal texture is too bright or too saturated. Then you have to fix this, but the changes should affect the sleepers part of the texture only (the rails should be left unchanged, so as to match with the network textures). This is not possible in MS-Paint. I think it would be better to ask for help from some community members here. There are many who know how to use the above tools very well - some are professionals. But the best would to leaen some basic image editing; you will have to make many trials, tests and revisions, and this is not easily done via the board or PMs.
retouching some of the above....
GHSR
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2F6.jpg&hash=2e63453a7fe6dee8043afc7b685c1dc999691df5)
HSR
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Funtitled7.jpg&hash=853e6dfec059c460ab7b7fb3fdabc97191cdaf40)
and a first set of textures on the STR bridge....this is just a preview. :thumbsup:
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Funtitled-12.jpg&hash=838c0eb2ec57de9dd9e5c6c88b06550d5d382dc2)
WOW, the bridge looks great!
About the real bridge: I am really curious what exactly the meaning or purpose of this construction is. It is a quite exceptional bridge, with this very large tube. Is there something interesting inside the tube, or is it just for construction?
muchas gracias, FrankU.... :thumbsup:
the real bridge is the Saltash Bridge (Royal Albert, or Brunel Bridge) over the river Tamar. finished in 1859 by Islambard Kingdom Brunel, its basically a lenticular truss bridge that was a pioneer in bridge design. the central arch is a complex truss member encased in wrought iron panels that are riveted together, which is in compression from the force created by the downward pull of the deck below it. thus, the arch resists the inward pull on the towers. you can check the wiki, which has a good write-up on the bridge, to for more info. it really was an engineering marvel in its time, especially considering the arches were built on land, floated on the river, and raised into place. im considering another of Brunel's bridges later, the predecessor to this bridge.
im again re-touching the textures on the GHSR bridge above, and correcting a glitch in the model.
Choco those bridges are simply stunning good job here wow!!! I cant wait to get ahold of them and use them!!!!
thanks Pat! 7 down, 13 to go.... ::) first set should be ready soon......need to talk with Matt to work out the details, so stay tuned.
@cogeo: i BAT'd some ties; 2 wooden sets, 2 metal, 2 concrete, and 2 composite. im going to do some testing to see how they look, and ill post some pics once i get a test bridge built. the rail texture i made looks pretty bad, so unless someone who is photoshop literate wants to lend a hand, the learning curve of texture editing will greatly delay any work for removing ballast from rail bridges.....
i think i'll also BAT some various railing props as well.....
Hey choco,
This bridge is incredilbe looking, I can't wait to play with it.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Funtitled-12.jpg&hash=838c0eb2ec57de9dd9e5c6c88b06550d5d382dc2)
&apls &apls &apls
Robin :thumbsup:
Amazing work here! &apls
I wonder if I can be a tester... :P
-un1
I will say the same like Robin, can't wait to play with it ! &apls &apls
Quote from: choco on December 10, 2008, 05:43:05 AM
@cogeo: i BAT'd some ties; 2 wooden sets, 2 metal, 2 concrete, and 2 composite. im going to do some testing to see how they look, and ill post some pics once i get a test bridge built. the rail texture i made looks pretty bad, so unless someone who is photoshop literate wants to lend a hand, the learning curve of texture editing will greatly delay any work for removing ballast from rail bridges....
I think I didn't say model these, I meant make textures for use with the flat track model (prop). So the development cycle would be Photoshop (or whatever) -> SC4Tool (convert to FSH) -> Test; (assigning the texture to the model needs to be done only once). That is BAT should be avoided (because of its known problems with resolution and its tendency to "lose" texture details), that's the whole point of all this.
got the str bridge workin......kinda..... ;)
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fbridgesandbox-Nov6001229108081.jpg&hash=88bc2c035d734e5f0c9a37102559d7f2d68ae4fd)
time to get RULin.....
wow that bridge looks amazing.
Awesome bridges &apls Choco, is just going to be HSR and EL bridges ,or are you going to have regular rail?
Amazing bridge, choco! Keep up the great work, I look forward to testing this one...
Cheers,
Kevin
@kitsune: thanx.....its gettin there.
@nexis: thanks for the kind words and for stoppin by... :thumbsup: i do have a couple heavy rail bridges planned.....this bridge was made for the STR project in 3RR, and im presently exporting another undertruss bridge for regular rail. im trying to get a light rail bridge pack together first, but i have early models for quite a few bridges that started as experiments. there's a few new overrides that may need some models as well....
kevin: thanks again, sir! i finally got the other 3 pieces modeled, so its at least on the horizon.....the RULs are not cooperating though.... &mmm
here's another shot of the Saltash Bridge.....i found better textures for much of it; just another notch on the to-do list.....
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fbridgesandbox-Nov6001229108099.jpg&hash=49f3afa87c24a078f311e1ed059d9bd07c969872)
pics of some new work comin soon'....
Comments from the tester... :P
Your bridges are very good. Some of the bridges could have better textures, but they aren't the official bridges...
When I zoom out, some of the textures don't show, such as the tracks on the GLR bridges, and EL bridges.
You are off to a good start. :thumbsup:
-un1
thanx un1! a valient first try i guess.... :D
i agree with you assessment as well. most of the texturing was rather quick.....i didn't take alot of time to taylor the textures to the piece. thats something im really going to focus on for the betas, once i get better at running an image editor. im getting confident in the BAT/reader, but that aspect of creation is definitely a weakness.
you identified another part im have to explore further.....the track that dont appear in the outter zooms are T21'd, so i have to tweak the properties there as well. the list of work is becoming quite extensive :P
thanks for havin a looksee :thumbsup: .....should be more on the way really soon....
got the rail version of the new/old hsrp bridge from awhile back started.....
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Frail.jpg&hash=15c7ee2a98dbf18322e22481471fc14b94eecf03)
:-\
Choco,
Your bridges are great!
I'm really eager use them, but can wait.
OMG i'm drooling a river for your excellant bridges to cross :thumbsup: &apls &hlp
@Frank & Nexis: i appreciate your kind words. thank you again... :thumbsup: i'll try not to take too long..... ;)
here's another bridge i just started.....i didn't customize the LODs yet, so you can see what happens when the LOD is a standard box. thru-truss LODs are a pain....
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fglr3.jpg&hash=ba1ac74122c53c16bdc36c659873ecabd1be2fb6)
however, i found an issue that i can't figure out. im hoping its just something i overlooked.....
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fglr2.jpg&hash=825bef0ccff6bbe7be916cba9aad611e3b507d6b)
the pillar piece is intended to be a mirror image of itself......however, i cannot get it to mirror no matter how i modify the bridge exemplar. 1 piece, 2 pieces, multiple and single model exemplars, single and multiple orientations..... ()what()
like above, when i get the piece to mirror correctly, it adds a third piece for some reason. i even browsed all the bridges i have (mostly maxis) and couldn't find an answer.
if anyone can help, i would greatly appreciate it. :thumbsup:
I believe you need to rename this thread from "choco's attempts at BATing bridges", to "choco BATs bridges"., see a much better suggestion by Un1 below.
Great work on all of them :thumbsup:
Especially the STR bridge &apls
Jonathan
You're improving with every new bridge! Great work! :thumbsup:
Quote from: Warrior on December 16, 2008, 01:30:44 PM
I believe you need to rename this thread from "choco's attempts at BATing bridges", to "choco BATs bridges".
I think it really should be renamed "choco's Amazing/Awesome Bridges". :thumbsup:
They new bridges you sent me are really nice too, I will get some images soon. ;)
-un1
Yeah, I know all too well what problems the basic box LOD can cause with bridges like that. Just be careful not to make it too complex. The more polys, the more work for the game to draw and therefore the longer the bridge, the longer to draw. At any rate though, it looks great. As for the mirroring of the pillar piece, I can think of two options offhand. Model the pillar piece to encompass both angles of the frame (comes down in the middle making a V) and have the repeat piece draw the rest of it, or make a custom rul for it ensuring that the second instance of the pillar section has 'rev' in front to reverse it (though I believe you would need to specify the setup for every possible bridge length, not too tough, just takes time). Hope that makes sense, and good luck with this one.
daaaaang Choco that bridge is looking good and I hope you can fix that problem there... I think I got a name that fits well for you what about "Choco's Extreme Bridge Marvels!!!"
wow y'all.....thank you......nice to see business boomin' :thumbsup: never imagined such a response.... :P
@matt: i was trying to avoid doing both those, since it causes the bridge to weigh in even more. i thought if the mirror would work, i could save an ID and about 25% of the file size.....given the sheer number of models i've produced (see below), im trying to cut any corners possible to reduce the overall size of the files. also a reason why i made the common file.....reduce redundancy....
for alphas, they'll do. once i get the set complete, then i'll beta them for release. i may have spoken a bit about my intentions, but i think i finally determined what im going to do.
4 bridge packs:
- concrete pier pack w/ 2 monorail, 1 hsr, 1 ghsr, 1 glr, 1 elr, and 1 street bridge
- truss pack w/ 1 each hsr, ghsr, elr, glr, heavy elevated rail, heavy ground rail
- stayed bridge pack w/ 1 monorail, 1 elr, 1 hsr
- both str bridges (yup.....both) w/ 1 el-str and 1 ground str
if i count right, thats about 18 new bridges. i have 9 alphas done, 6 development bridges, and 3 left to model. insofar as getting these out the door, i will be needing to have a small discussion with some of the gatekeepers here soon to work out how to proceed with upload and release.
maybe a poll to determine which one's to release? :-\
anyway.....here's the early big brother of the GLR truss bridge above.....he's also suffering from a pillar mirroring problem....no textures, cause i was to lazy to finish before rendering.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Felrtruss.jpg&hash=bc4c88a6521e288a83e25069368b1be4538adfa7)
back for more soon.....
&apls...... :'(
They are all so great, it will be very hard to pick which ones should be released. I think you should release them all, will that be one of the choices in the poll? ::) ;)
Robin :thumbsup:
uuh huu I agree with Robin, Choco!!! You should release them all!!!!
we'll see what ID ranges i can get.... :thumbsup:
couple action shot finally....so at least this one works...
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fraft.jpg&hash=4c5766ef249e6fc65a8c540a3aac215f55d76229)
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Ftrain.jpg&hash=fcba3e04876d85091e9e85654faaead6b1987e0f)
Not bad! I'd like to be able to use this for myself... I have a few ideas about where to use it too.
Shouldn't be too hard to get you what you need. Just let me know what you have, what you still need, along with the bridge names, and I'll see what I can come up with.
-Matt
@matt: id like to send ya the alpha pack to play with in any spare time.....least so ya have an idea about whats included.
couple more screens i took today.....
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Funtitled-13.jpg&hash=03a72aed92a385c7a8a32a67deefab95e0276248)
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Funtitled1-1.jpg&hash=629aa1f4314da6e1b14d1d2e41c91959249b8063)
Those action shots are looking real sweet there choco!!! :thumbsup:
i had to play a bit over the holiday..... ;D
also got a bit of work on the BAT.....got all the models generated for the bridge packs sans one. the textures are much the same as the rest....not final by any means, just threw them on for testing. still tryin to work threw the mirroring problem, but i did get a large majority of props done, fixed some LODs, and got the remaining exemplars/icons finished.
a few new pics of the new tests.....
HSRP Undertruss: this one im kinda on the fence over....
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fhsrt.jpg&hash=810ee02c6439a4f757e786cbc04d45f5160aaa82)
El-Rail Undertruss: pillar should be mirrored as well, as only half is shown here.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Felrt.jpg&hash=414ac0f7333cbbed6bf2d648737a1345f1989c11)
GLR Thru-truss: will be a few tiles longer, obviously without the pillar problem.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fglrt.jpg&hash=abbd5a475c89456a87488c733df8db254228140d)
STR Thru-truss: this is a remnant of an old style rail truss used frequently in the late 1800-early 1900s
called a Bollman Truss. I need to work on getting the props aligned as well, but this was thrown together pretty quickly
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fbollman.jpg&hash=1105b85cddfd820a220f644aed4fada62a52fd2d)
besides one other bridge (also a Brunel bridge), thats basically the bridge pack im putting together. including the heavy rail and stuff for STR, it'll be total 18 separate bridges for the rail networks. once i get these approved by NAM, i'll get the pack together for some testing.....should there arise some volunteers to test.... ;)
going forward, i have many plans for additional props, and a complete retexturing of the entire pack. i have tentative plans to extend a couple starter pieces for more realistic approaches, and some other added details to particular models. there's also a bit of work im hoping to farm out, since i dont have 3dsmax......
thanks for all the help, critiques, and replies getting this stuff off the ground everyone! Here's to a good holiday getting better..... :thumbsup:
It looks like you've been busy. If you could, shoot me a pm with the IIDs and exemplars you've used for these so we can make sure everything is set on that end, and to make sure LHD pathing is done. I love the Bollman truss, some of those classics are just good to look at. For whatever reason though, the tracks look odd in that one, they sit up remarcably high. I can send over the tack texture I use (no ballast and it looks pretty good) if you'd like. Nice work on these bridges, and it'll be good to see them in game.
-Matt
i think i have everything recorded, so you should have a PM soon. i just got ahold of the STR pieces so i can make the track props for those bridges.....the bollman as pictured above only has the ties; i wasn't sure what to do about that aspect till i knew how the track prop would fit. next pics should be much better.... ;D
my HSR network has gotten fairly massive as of late, and i needed to get one of the long span bridges relatively done.....so i remodeled one and added some props.
an HSR cable-stayed bridge
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fhsrpillar.jpg&hash=411ec7bcff5e89692bcb27364b8732fb386099da)
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fhsrapp.jpg&hash=ea62c19e90b55db2d43a0f2b5cc86e28dc473f56)
you can see a small issue im having with it though in the second pic......there seems to be some slope adherence or conforming going on rather than all the approach span pieces being parallel in the horizontal. i was also messin with the SFBT catenaries on the first piece, and not really sure if i should put them in. there's other cat's as well.....thoughts anyone?
Kenworth is making new catenary props for the Rail Viaducts and for bridges at the moment, since the current ones look a bit out of place indeed. I'll keep you posted on the process. :)
i'd greatly appreciate that...
thanks Andreas! :thumbsup:
could ya recommend some good railing props? ;)
Wow, Choco! Some of these bridges are amazing! Can't wait for a release.
I read mention of some testing a few posts back... I'd be willing to. ;)
thanks DTP! i'll get back at ya in a few days. :thumbsup:
couple things i would like some input on..... below are 2 elevated heavy rail bridges, interfaced with some of the NAM rail viaducts. im not sure where to begin with the interface. id like to have a plan before i remodel them, and may/maynot need the appropriate textures......any suggestions are encouraged! :) thanks all!
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fedwardap3.jpg&hash=c3462b49869a28e672adba0c7ca47ea639e5889a)
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fsaltashap3.jpg&hash=f628a8b65a16834c593c7e8de6163e652d006eb0)
and the Bollman Truss in STR this time.... :thumbsup:
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fbollman23.jpg&hash=69291695048b3b179dfc8a432dc33c90ecf5552c)
Whoa, did I miss something in here? :o Bridges for heavy rail viaducts? Now how does that work? (I've read the past few pages ;) ) Oh, and I especially like the fact that there are some in STR. It seems like with these we'll have as many STR as double-track rail bridges. :D
/me enables notification of new replies.
daaaaang choco you have been busy little bridge maker here lately wow!!!
Choco,
The Bollman looks good now that the tracks are laid (if perhaps a bit large in scale, unless you meant for it to be that big) but there are other textures out there that eliminate the ballast and such. Let me see if I can get you those here. The Saltash looks great, and the approach with the viaducts was well done. Was the model elevated to accomodate that, or did you raise the bridge in game? Also, as for the slope conforming issues, double check to ensure that the model was centered at x=0 y=0 and that the road bed itself is at z=0. I'm not sure why, but the models can tend to move around a bit when you build them, especially if things start getting put in groups. Nice work.
-Matt
awesome! thanks again matt! :thumbsup: i have it converted to a transit prop, try for some pics soon....
got the pillar problem worked out finally.....
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Felrtruss-1.jpg&hash=5aa18209feb81d38a7f9e6afd6cbbb361d354f6b)
newer revision of an hsr undertruss....
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fhsrtruss.jpg&hash=416ec87e4488068a5546b5ad591680299c8f8e60)
Good to hear you got the pillar thing worked out. Ever figure out what it was? The new HSR undertruss looks pretty good, but the textures seem to clash a bit. The pillar and truss are worn, but the tracks look shiny and new. The scale on the truss part itself looks different from the rest of the bridge (not sure if it seems undersized or the rest of it is oversized), but it looks like it's coming along nicely. Glad to see you are getting these things going.
-Matt
edit for quick response:
@matt: it seems i assumed incorrectly, the manner in which the game interprets/constructs the bridges. this false assumption was regarding a few properties.....
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fids.jpg&hash=9f1deb3ee754b3d8f3e61cba061d6fdff6b3b675)
for the pillar:
NumSupportPieces
SupportPieceExemplars
SupportPieceRotations
i figured it was handled like start pieces.....the number of pieces entered is the number ya get. but its not...here's how it works (for whatever reason)....
NumSupportPieces = 1 -> single support model 16x16
NumSupportPieces = 2 -> 3 support models 16x16, 1 central, 2 outter; overall 48x16
in RUL notation: A B rev(A)
the first exemplar listed is the central pillar, the second is the outter piece to be mirrored.
for rotations, they're defined as the pillar should be constructed....outter (0x02), central (0x00), outter mirrored (0x00)
all the maxis bridges i found with split pillars were controlled with the RULs, so i had to remodel the pillars as 2 pieces so i didn't have to RUL these simple bridges. the downside was that it took an extra ID.....i'll update ya in a bit about that.
i am presently re-exporting the bollman to fix the same issue, but that one didn't use another ID due to symmetry.
also spent some time fixing the skybridge model to more realistic scale......had it 23 meters too short.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fsky-1.jpg&hash=82acc3957505b1f6ade0153a2ccef7d91daed8fd)
now to correct the bridge deck and the start pieces..... :-\
edit2: needs the props aligned, and the decking fixed (as well as others), but thats for another day. :thumbsup:
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fboll.jpg&hash=521ce944534215db261c762bab41d354b73e178d)
This is more of a "sucess" than an "attempt". Nice work! &apls
BTW Are you taking requests? If you are would you consider this high speed rail bridge in Germany?
http://www.allianz-pro-schiene.de/cms/upload/bilder/pool/ICE3_neben_Autobahn.jpg
thanks prince...welcome back! :thumbsup:
i wanted to take a couple requests.....i'll need to get some better shots though. i have 2 more bridges to remodel, then i'll be hoping to release the alpha pack. its at that point i'll be going back and fixing some of the little bugs (LODs, props, and most textures), and thought about adding a couple bridges.
i found a couple others i was thinkin about.....the old black and white rail bridge below (attached) was the one i was trying to get done, but it would need custom pathing and widened transit textures to look right....so it wont likely make the alpha (down to 17...).
so otherwise, i'd love to entertain some ideas from others as to what they would like to see in the game. if i get a few, i'll run a list in the first post for updates.
Quote from: choco on January 04, 2009, 08:25:26 AM
thanks prince...welcome back! :thumbsup:
i wanted to take a couple requests.....i'll need to get some better shots though. i have 2 more bridges to remodel, then i'll be hoping to release the alpha pack. its at that point i'll be going back and fixing some of the little bugs (LODs, props, and most textures), and thought about adding a couple bridges.
i found a couple others i was thinkin about.....the old black and white rail bridge below (attached) was the one i was trying to get done, but it would need custom pathing and widened transit textures to look right....so it wont likely make the alpha (down to 17...).
so otherwise, i'd love to entertain some ideas from others as to what they would like to see in the game. if i get a few, i'll run a list in the first post for updates.
Right, thanks. Can't wait see the alpha pack :)
If you do so have a chance to take request, it would be cool. Even you don't I think we'll be happy with the alpha pack works . I won't push my request, but since you said you needed better shotof the bridge, I found some links to them:
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2305/2078338350_e09aa88619.jpg?v=0
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fe/Main_08_2006_140.jpg
As always, nice work!
gimme a couple hours.....there isn' much to that bridge. :thumbsup:
edit:
quick first version....
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fgerman.jpg&hash=a293fdf2fc1d405425a508639ce833012d7ae48f)
just might persue this one.....thanks for the request!
Quote from: choco on January 04, 2009, 09:35:34 AM
gimme a couple hours.....there isn' much to that bridge. :thumbsup:
edit:
quick first version....
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fgerman.jpg&hash=a293fdf2fc1d405425a508639ce833012d7ae48f)
just might persue this one.....thanks for the request!
OH!! the frame of the bridges near the HSR track is great!!
hope it will be more details on it :thumbsup:
It's nice but I think the fence should be smaller. :thumbsup:
choco I do actualy agree with IO on that one that the guard rail should be brought down a wee bit there... It looks a little to high up, also the color on it maybe a little more rustic... right now it seems to be a little to bright... Overall the bridge looks good!!!
Great Bridges choco, my drool has become a sea , so u need to make bigger road bridges $%Grinno$% ::) &idea
Wonderful work! Are you going to make these bridges capable of being built with any transportation type? It would REALLY be cool!
@gardenwong: thank you!
@io & Pat: think i agree... :thumbsup: will do....
@Nexis: thanks! there's some automotive bridges to be done, i think..... ;D
@mcarch: thank you as well! they have been BATed with no transit textures, so with a little modding, they could be any network really.....
I finally have something good to report....i think. ::)
the slope conforming issue was something i brought on myself trying to trim down the file sizes. i think i have that worked out now, so i put some finishing touches on the HSR bridges....
Please feel free to post any comments of these, as these are kinda release candidates at this point. i do plan on writing the lines for the shadows, so that should be done before these really go out the door. hopefully, i'll have the truss bridges retouched in the next few days....
catenaries are taken from plunderer's rail mod, and the concrete pillar GHSR bridge uses railings from cogeo's fenced GLR pieces.....opinions on using props as dependencies in bridges? :-\
here's the Cable-Stayed HSR bridge, lightly modeled after the Ravenel Bridge (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arthur_Ravenel_Jr._Bridge) in South Carolina. please excuse the rogue wake...
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fsandbox-Feb17001231608452.png&hash=6ee048557a16b2b8b2da4e8434a3ea004deb9832)
others....
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fsandbox-Feb17001231608381.png&hash=35e028d95a82c1d4a71b88228b0d4b443324eded)
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fsandbox-Feb17001231608394.png&hash=3bf19e65932c04b02d27dd7520671ea0c226ffd7)
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fsandbox-Feb17001231608414.png&hash=709644931c9b826c8b718a257a0d0d3f894626d4)
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fsandbox-Feb17001231608427.png&hash=68946c3918522b4f17db2574b3fc8a5e725fc9f1)
i'd like to get these beta soon, since they're the closest to release.
take care everyone, and thanks for lookin! :thumbsup:
Ah, so does this mean I can expect another alpha release soon? :P
Hey, I've been over the Ravenel Bridge before! I visited Charleston a year or two ago and I made my mom drive me over it. :D
Glad you got the slope-conforming issues taken care of, and those are some nice finishing touches... I'm not so sure about the centenaries though, unless someone were to make a mod that added them to the whole HSR network... As for having dependencies, I'm OK with it, though I'd avoid any more than 2 or so.
Choco I cant wait to see the revised version on that bridge... The other bridges daaaang!!! OK I will excuse you this once on the rouge wake lol, but that is it OK!!! hehehe Naw only kidding, that is what trial and error is all about ehh!!! I would love to see that HSR cable Bridge as a regural bridge, now that would be sweet!!
the bridges are very great!! Especially the cable bridge for the HSR, it looks great like in the real world
Now we don't need to use the original bridge of HSR only but use your great bridge :thumbsup: :thumbsup:
also, I can say goodbye to the cross harbour tunnel of the HSR in my city :D
@dtp: nope....you can expect a beta.....very soon.... ;D
@Pat: thanks again sir! its included in the HSRP pack now....
@gwong: its all about variety....even a few choices is better than none. thanks for the comment...
all catenaries have been removed, will be waiting for the new ones.....
fence props fixed....
should finish the packaging today.....keep your ears on folks.... :thumbsup:
Those are some fantastic HSR and monoral bridges, Choco! I like and would use all of them, but I am especially impressed by the cable-stayed HSR. I know you've been working on these and many other bridges for a long while now, but your work has really paid off. I can't wait to get my hands on these! &apls
And I don't have any problems with dependencies for bridges. It sounds like they will be minimal anyway.
thanks scott! its my hope that you'll enjoy this as well.... :thumbsup:
have 38-84 done.....on to 255.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fsandbox-Feb17001231888071.jpg&hash=8147673c626e08757f72be4e94616096079923c9)
Ohh, that looks splendid! Really well done. :thumbsup:
The rail bridges are excellent! I wish I knew how to do that ;) Do/will you also make bridges for the Rural highways?
Hey Choco congrats on becoming a NAM associate!!! That is soo cool and well deserved too!!!
Love that overview of the cable HSR bridge!!!
Ah, you're getting into RUL work I see, excellent. Hope it doesn't take you too long. The results look pretty good though. Also, congratulations on the NAM Assoc. position.
Congrats on your NAM associate's badge and job. &apls &apls One question can the Bridges be for multiple uses like, not just a one tile HSR but a street or Road , or rail? ()what()
@andreas: thank you, much appreciated! :thumbsup:
@LEO: thank you as well....if ya wanna learn.... ;) ive only been at this 7 months, and most of that was studying other bridges. btw, you happen to be a psychic? cause after i finish the rail bridges, i was going to move on the RHW/NWM stuff.....
@Pat: thanks again! i wake up this morning a NAM Assoc.....haven't even finished my first cup o' joe, so im still trying to wrap my head around it.
@matt: thanks! one little number....one little number has to ruin the whole thing. :D but, once this rule is done, that'll be the ball game. so.....whats this NAM Assoc. gig pay nowadays? :D
@Nexis: thank you! i think i mentioned a few pages back that these bridges have been BAT'd with no transit textures, which was a method recommended by cogeo early on in my bridge-making endeavor. with some work in the reader, most of these models could be converted to another network type. this will be much easier on my beta bridges, but after beta, this will not be possible (well, possible, but not easily).
in beta, i apply the network textures/models using a T21. a major problem with this method is that when drawing the bridge (in preview mode), T21 based props do not show in the preview. this is nice, though, when one has a model that may change. here's a pic (from page 5) showing what i mean....
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Funtitled-10.jpg&hash=007a5a4114fd66fde149e09ddbe4f11061f0f048)
however, once the models are finalized (getting close for the HSRP bridges), i'll be adding the transit props directly thru the reader, which eliminates the problem shown above. this is a very laborious task, and one that i hope to only do once per bridge.
thanks for all the kind words everyone! :thumbsup: never imagined this would get to page 10......
decided to play around in the RHW a bit....
not sure if something like this would be useful or not, but this was a first try while taking notes of IID's.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FEl-MIS.jpg&hash=4dbc838eb60ca370aa59ca9b33209eab8763ff10)
edit: not sure about this one either.....works in theory (theory being the operative word). just to quell any doubts, this is not a single bridge.....the floating paths just have the model removed.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FRHW8.jpg&hash=56f436284c2f237dc814e725aafe3789deb107da)
i'll put something together in the next few days..... :-\
Always something interesting going on around here. I haven't had the chance to look at your bridges yet (law school is back in, and that brings with it all of the work). I like what I'm seeing, and I'm curious to know what theory you're testnig with the last picture. I'll let you know what I find out about the SAM thing when I get back around to testing it, but until then, congrats on the NAM Assoc. thing. As a member you get to help design and test new NAM elements, and in return, all you'll need to give up is sleep, sanity, spare time, etc. (only kidding of course... maybe). With the work you've shown here, I'll look forward to seeing what you'll do.
that indeed looks rather interesting...
looking awesome as always :)
Sorry I have'nt reply lately
But anyways the bridges look great, I really like what you did with my request.
Double decker bridges are possible? Are diagonals too, if they're made differently?
And the MIS bridge could be useful maybe for a interchange next to river...
And no, im not a psychic $%Grinno$%
@joe: thanks for stoppin by.... :thumbsup:
@prince: glad ya like it.....thanks for the request! :thumbsup:
@LEO: DD are possible, yes.....practical...well, not so much at this time. diagonals i think were lot based....not much came of that i guess.
@matt: trying to find a work around for bridges wider than rhw6......i dont think its going to work, and puzzle pieces would be needed to connect the paths. i have a feeling that the paths will be invalid since they are not contained in the tiles the "bridge" is constructed on.....
need to figure out how to make puzzle pieces.....is it even possible in BAT? edit: found the script.....
here's a better pic....
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MIS with a bit of modding.....
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Choco no problem and I am glad to see yourself was shocked about the NAM assocaite appointment ;) WOW a MIS Bridge, a wider RWH 6 Bridge, just more bridges wow!!! Gezzs man talk about some wicked stuff and I think they would be usable for sure!!!
:P i was just toyin with some ideas.....there's an EMIS, ground MIS, and ERHW4 in my plugins, but i needed to modify the bridge controller specifically for them. so these may stay on the shelf for a bit...... &mmm
i think i can get a RHW6 bridge going fairly easy.....but there's a couple things i need to check on for viability. i think the paths are contained on one tile....if so, then we're in business.
too many plans....not enough hours. good news is progress on the other bridges is going swimmingly.....sans the stupid RULs.....
because i like posting pics.....
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Well done on the NAM Associate, you definately desevered it :thumbsup:
Your churning out bridges so fast, it's amazing!
That's an interesting experiment with the wider bridge, I looking forard to seeing the final outcome.
Jonathan
Whoa! Those look great! I can't say I like the pillars though... any way you could persuade swamper to make models with longer pillars to be used on the bridges?
@jonathan: thank you! it started off really slow, but the modding aspect has become very easy. i think it was about 20 minutes to configure the first MIS bridge.....and most of that was tracking down the right ID's. i think i need to learn to make puzzle pieces, but doesn't that require RULing (the complicated kind...not bridge RULs)?
@dtp: sorry its takin so long to get ya the next set.....found a couple little things that need worked out. i know what ya mean about the pillars.....if Jan's busy, i can simply BAT some props to cover them. i always hated the maxis pillars anyway.....
general question: i was thinking about trying to make a prop that would act similar to the wake, in the respect that it would be applied at the water surface. in searching, it doesn't look like the wake is a prop...in the conventional sense. how is the wake made, and can we create something to mimmick the water height effect it creates?
eff dir?
Quote from: deathtopumpkins on January 16, 2009, 01:44:01 PM
Whoa! Those look great! I can't say I like the pillars though... any way you could persuade swamper to make models with longer pillars to be used on the bridges?
Quote from: choco on January 16, 2009, 02:12:49 PM
@dtp: sorry its takin so long to get ya the next set.....found a couple little things that need worked out. i know what ya mean about the pillars.....if Jan's busy, i can simply BAT some props to cover them. i always hated the maxis pillars anyway.....
I could see about making some different models that have longer pillars. Keep in mind that these are True3D models that I did for the RHW Project. Hence the lack of shadows on the pillars and such. Of course, we could always BAT the bridge deck without the RHW/MIS textures and add in those textures separately. I'd be willing to provide the source models if Choco wants to go that route.
Quotegeneral question: i was thinking about trying to make a prop that would act similar to the wake, in the respect that it would be applied at the water surface. in searching, it doesn't look like the wake is a prop...in the conventional sense. how is the wake made, and can we create something to mimmick the water height effect it creates?
eff dir?
Choco, the wake/wash at the bridge supports is a prop that references an entry from the game's EffectsDirectory. It always appears at the water level, regardless of how high above the water the bridge is. That said, the reference point of the prop is probably above the water all the time, but the effect appears at the water level.
There isn't a way to make new effects like the wake/wash effect that I am aware of. Those are using a particle system of sorts and you would have to understand how the effect works in the EffectsDirectory in the first place. And the only way to view that information is through a hex editor. &mmm
thanks for weighin in on that, swamper.... :) kinda figured the wake was a unique beast......
insofar as the pillars are concerned, i can take care of extending them. i only have access to BAT and blender though.... &mmm
on another note; looks like the the HSR and light rail bridges are compatible with APTX's shinkansen mod....
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Quote from: choco on January 17, 2009, 10:35:05 AM
thanks for weighin in on that, swamper.... :) kinda figured the wake was a unique beast......
insofar as the pillars are concerned, i can take care of extending them. i only have access to BAT and blender though.... &mmm
I'll package up the files for them and get them out to you as soon as I get home again. I'm at my parents' house and away from my desktop, which has all the files. I modeled them in True3D, meaning there is only one model that is used in the game. BAT will spit out a minimum of 20 models and images for the rendered models. They also will have a lot of blurred details so the details of the side barrier textures will be lost if you render them with BAT.
I'm more than willing to make better supports for the Elevated RHW/MIS bridges. Just send me the designs and textures you want used on the supports. I'll model them and send the finished DAT for you to work with. I have a means to export models out of GMAX without using the BAT ;)
Quoteon another note; looks like the the HSR and light rail bridges are compatible with APTX's shinkansen mod....
That's because APTX's mod replaces the models used by the Monorail network. He made copies of the Elevated Rail track models and changed the ID's of these copies so they will override the Monorail track models. Since your props reference the monorail track model ID, they will pick up the changes from APTX''s mod.
-Swamper
I really happpy of how all the brigde came out, nice job as always.
:thumbsup:Hello choco these are nice bridges :thumbsup: I was wonder since your interested in BATing bridges will you be trying to recreate famous bridges from different cities particularly NYC?
@FP o SC4D: :thumbsup:
@Dethsrow: thank you. nice to see some new faces around! :) i had thought about the manhattan bridge; but honestly, i dont think my BAT skill are quite up to par to pull something like that off. maybe down the road with more experience, sure......
im still learning at this point, and am just starting to delve into 2-tile network bridges, which are a slightly (sometimes greatly) different ballgame.
for example: even studying old exemplars doesn't tell the whole story of how to construct a bridge. i was trying to recreate an effect by another great bridge modder, smoncrie, and failed miserably. this is something that happens on bridges with oneway paths. i know the starter piece gets flipped, so I BAT'd an end piece as well with a different ID. but, I'm still missing something, and was hoping to find a solution. there has to be a solution other than a RUL.....i just can't find it.
this is the end where the drag is initiated....
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and this is the trailing end.....
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the extra end piece has its own ID as well......its off center as a result of the way i BAT this bridge, to accommodate the paths. if the end piece were working, it lines up correctly (its offset same x-direction, only spun 180*).
()what()
Wait a sec, did I just spot some RHW Bridges that are 2 tiles wide? Cool!
yes and no..... ::)
these are technically only 1 tile wide, but im pushing the limits of bridge width here (think this is 22m wide). once i get traffic moving on them, we'll need to see if the graphical problems with ships and planes show up. otherwise, RHW6S is definitely possible.....as is 6C. $%#Ninj2
Whoa... :o Go choco! I have no idea about the problem, but I must say, if you can get a RHW-6 bridge working, you are a genius!
Hi, choco
In the RHW thread you asked if sending me a PM about bridge pathing was OK. My answer is: Yes, no problem!
I thought I should also respond here.
One thing about paths: It has been my experience that if any part of a path is outside the tile, the game will behave as if that tile has no path. The only exception to this that I know of is if the path goes outside of the tile and dead ends.
If you find any other exceptions, I would very much like to know about it.
As you can probably guess, I have also tried to widen a bridge by adding extra paths.
^ygpm....
Thanks to Swamper77 and cogeo, i have been working on adding the tracks to the models directly.....its kinda laborious, but much better in the end i think.
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so i'll be working on getting the HSR Bridge pack ready.....still a bit of work though. thus far, these are not LHD or UDI compatible (although, i have no real knowldge one way or the other). and the shadows need fixed.
some other little playthings.....
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didn't find out till after they were done that they cannot be used. the puzzle pieces are not enabled like the rail viaducts....so this was a wasted venture. ()sad() oh well, still tons more to do....
I believe, IIRC, that the HSRP bridges are UDI compatible. At least I think I drove a train across one... ::)
Too bad about those double-height ones too... those would have been useful.
Hey Choco when did you become a full NAMiet??? WOW That is soo cool!!! wooot!!!! OK anyways the new bridges are looking real good!!! But why does it seem that the last several are off centered?
so sad about the DH-EL RAIL bridge.....
oh.....choco...is there any news on the el-rail and rail bridge?
@dtp: thinkin about it.....they 'should' be UDI compatible. i think threestooges addressed that with me early on with my street bridge. thanks for correcting me! :thumbsup:
@Pat: ()what() i guess last night......i went to bed an assoc. i got a little more involved with this project than i initially thought.... :)
for off-center, im assuming you mean the mis-aligned piece? that was a problem smoncrie graciously explained.....you specify in the exemplar the IID for teh start piece. when you draw a bridge, the game assumes that this piece will be flipped for the other end. however, one-way bridges (particularly RHW) have one way paths. when the end piece gets flipped, so do the paths......
otherwise, they are off-center relative to (0,0) to accommodate the wider transit texture. The 3rd (outside lane) of the 6S paths is around 7m, while the inside path is about 2m. that bridge will be redone.....i normally throw together quick models to test ideas.
thanks for the kind words as well. kinda gettin some regulars around here.... :thumbsup:
@gardenwong: sadly, i'm unfamiliar with most of the modding surrounding the rest of the NAM. i imagine the high mono and el-rail pieces could be made to plop on the network, but i myself do not know how. i wouldn't rule out the possibility, but not likely to be soon.
the other bridges are coming along slowly......
*now understands why jeronij recommended to start out with easy bridges*
i created myself quite a few problems with my initial foray into bridge building. nevertheless, im getting them worked out.
- the HSRP bridges are for the most part, done. Small details to iron out....
- the light rail bridges are very raw, but are functional to a point. models need fixed; mostly the texturing, but after using them for a bit, im unhappy with some things. since these were my earliest bridges, i need to revisit them to fix my mistakes.
- the rail bridges are causing me some problems. they're pretty complex truss bridges, and i want them to look right. LOD creation with these bridges has come down to trial and error.....
once i get this round of modding done, i'll be hitting the BAT again.
Thanks for all the interest and support everyone! :thumbsup:
Which light rail bridge specifically do you not like the textures on? I thought they all looked good...
And congrats on full NAMite status! &apls
^^most of 'em... :P should be getting to 'em soon, actually.....
fixed the shadows and the RUL ;D just need to figure out LHD pathing.....
this is a busy line.....
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the akashi-kaikyo bridge for reference....
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:thumbsup:
Awesome. :) I didn't came around to actually use HSR in my cities, but with such a beautiful bridge, there's hardly an excuse not to use it in the future... ;)
thanks Andreas!
i find it a very useful network..... :)
Hey choco, after looking at those fence props on the bridge, would it be that much trouble to t21 them over the entire network? &idea They look really good...
As do the bridges! They're really coming along. ;D
i think its a good bit of work. either something like plunderer's rail catenary mod, or cogeos fenced GLR puzzles could work.
i found this old pic of the same span before the RUL and props were added. i think the difference is considerable.... :o
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&apls I don't use HSR either , but you definitely are beginning to sway me in that direction! As far as T-21 ing the fence , I also think that would be awesome...but who has the time?
Jayson
Heh, I might actually have time to work on my mods if I were less active on the Internet :P
In which case I might give this a try. But alas, I don't know t21s (anyone know of a good tutorial?) and enjoy my time on the Internet too much. But if I ever am looking for something to do I'll definitely try this.
Quote from: deathtopumpkins on January 24, 2009, 06:24:28 PM
But alas, I don't know t21s (anyone know of a good tutorial?)
The best tutorial I'm aware of is Swamper77's, found
here (http://sc4devotion.com/forums/index.php?topic=70.0).
memo also has some rather great illustrations of how some of the properties affect things further down in the thread.
choco, these bridges are looking fantastic as always! As far as LHD Pathing goes, it's also controlled by the same INI as the Bridges. It basically sets up a range for LHD paths based on your RHD Paths . . . it's been awhile since I've messed with it, so I'm a little rusty on it.
-Alex (Tarkus)
Quote from: Tarkus on January 24, 2009, 07:07:40 PM
As far as LHD Pathing goes, it's also controlled by the same INI as the Bridges.
thanks again... :thumbsup:
i shoulda saw that before, the amount of times i've scrolled by it. looks like it works the same as shadow remapping....
2 = 0x39000000,0xFF00000F,0x3900000F,0x00FFFFF0 ;Additional Monorail Bridges
if i understand correctly (which is a crapshoot), this remaps path files 0x39xxxxx0 to 39xxxxxF to LHD, which would basically include any custom bridges in that range.
guess i should dust off my old desktop and load up UK SC4. ;)
Well I finally got around to building another HSRP bridge, and have confirmed that they are in fact UDI-compatible. I checked out most of them tonight, witnessing vast improvements in the detail department, and am highly impressed.
dtp: cool, thanks for the report! :thumbsup:
im already revamping the elevated and ground light rail bridges, so keep your ears on folks!
i guess i'll double post for this little guy... ::)
still rough, but the RUL's workin..... :)
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Ohh nice!! &apls
We needed a bridge like that for el-rail!
Choco, this bridgeis different. :o &apls
With the JRJ tutoriel "$Deal"$, I thought that bridges consisted of a start piece, a "pylones" piece, and a repeat.
I have several questions:
- Can we have several pieces "pylones "?
- Can we decide on the number of repeat piece between "pylones" piece ?
- All these pieces have to make only one 16x16? Or can we have for example a longer start piece ?
Orange
Quote from: Orange_o_ on January 28, 2009, 02:52:10 PM
- Can we decide on the number of repeat piece between "pylones" piece ?
Yes, you can specify the number of repeat pieces between pylons.
Quote from: Orange_o_ on January 28, 2009, 02:52:10 PM
- All these pieces have to make only one 16x16? Or can we have for example a longer start piece ?
Yes, the start/end part may be made up of more than one tile (and they can be different), or even it can be zero-length, ie having no start/end tile.
Quote from: Orange_o_ on January 28, 2009, 02:52:10 PM
- Can we have several pieces "pylones "?
Don't understand what you mean here, could you clarify it?
Quote from: Orange_o_ on January 28, 2009, 02:52:10 PM
- Can we have several pieces "pylones "?
You know, I'll bet Orange means different styles of pylons. I could be wrong, but that would be my guess.
Is that a GLR bridge, or an el-Rail, choco? It really is something else, whichever one it is. :thumbsup:
Orange_o_ I will answer your question.
In the bridge's exemplar you can specify any number of pieces for the ends, any number of pieces for the pylons, the repeat piece, the spacing between pylon pieces, and the bridge's minimum length. Other properties can also be in the exemplar such as the cable parameters for a suspension bridge, or cable stayed bridge.
If the bridge pattern can not be specified by the exemplar, bridge RULs can be used. There is a separate bridge RUL file for each different type of network (e.g. Monorail).
In the bridge RUL file you can specify the exact pieces to be used on each bridge tile. You can do this separately for several different bridge lengths or for all possible bridge lengths. If a bridge has a length that is in the RUL file, the RUL file will be used. If the length is not in the RUL file, the placement specified in the bridge's exemplar will be used.
It can take time to create the RULs for a complex bridge.
For choco's bridge above, I suspect that he is not using a bridge RULs, but he has added the parameters for a cable stayed bridge to the bridge's exemplar.
[edit] I see he answered you before I did.
wow....busy in here. just got off the red-eye from San Francisco. &dd
@dtp: :thumbsup:
@hello orange! i think cogeo and smoncrie pretty much covered it....i'll add a couple more thoughts....
Quote from: Orange_o_ on January 28, 2009, 02:52:10 PM
- Can we have several pieces "pylones "?
- All these pieces have to make only one 16x16? Or can we have for example a longer start piece ?
- you can have several types of pylons, with a small limitation. if the bridge exemplar controls the bridge, you can only have a multi-piece pylon. using the RUL to control the bridge, really the possibilities are endless. you can even specify different heights to create a sloped bridge, much like the Rio Antirio Bridge (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rio-Antirio_bridge) in Greece. it'll be awhile till i get to it, but i plan to exploit this to its fullest.... ;D
- pieces have to be one 16x16 tile, but you can overhang the model in many cases to create different effects. below is a bridge im working on. the arch under the bridge deck is part of the pylon model. otherwise, you it would require several 16x16 pieces to build the arch (in the below case, the arch spans 3 tiles in each direction).
as smoncrie noted below, the RUL does take considerable time to write. so much as wrong comma, and you'll be doing circles for hours. :D
@metavro: thanks for the compliment! its an El-Rail bridge....im still trying to find a suitable model for a GLR bridge. :-\
@smoncrie: when i first built this bridge, i had little knowledge of the RULs....while much easier, i found one major drawback to using the exemplar. the start piece is always the same length.....i didn't think this lended well to the cable-stayed bridges. i think on the last page i showed the HSR CS bridge before an after applying the RUL.
another problem that crept up was that the maxis scheme for adding cables to the bridge (via the exemplar) only allows for a single set of cables on each side of the pylon. so for the rail cable bridges, i had to BAT the cables.....which i dont like much for other reasons, mainly they look bad at zoom 1 and 2.
more than interested if you have any suggestions.... :)
-------------------------
well, besides the above bridge, i was able to get some work done on this during the down time...
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Quote from: choco on January 29, 2009, 08:00:34 AMi found one major drawback to using the exemplar. the start piece is always the same length
Actually, it is possible to use the exemplar to specify multi-piece start/end pieces (or, at least I've done it before, might've messed something up to get it there, but it worked), but you are right in that RULs are quite powerful, if not time consuming to create. I believe an example of this was PaulvMontfort's Garabit Viaduct. As I recall, the non-arch version was not RUL'ed, but you'll note that it still contains the extended length start/end. Very nice bridge you have this time choco. You've really gotten better, and this one shows it.
hey matt...
Quote from: threestooges on January 29, 2009, 12:01:31 PM
Actually, it is possible to use the exemplar to specify multi-piece start/end pieces
ill try to clarify a bit....
anytime the exemplar controls the bridge, it'll always have X number of start pieces, as specified by the
NumEndPieces property. it'll fill in the rest of the bridge with only repeat and pylon pieces, in whatever manner is specified in the other properties. i chose a different route with the cable-stayed bridges....i fix the number of repeat and pylon pieces and vary the number and pattern of the starter pieces (or approach span).....it actually makes the RUL fairly quick to write. ::)
i posted a couple pics of the difference....
the early pic of the HSR CS bridge before i wrote the RUL.....way too many pylons when it was drawn at large lengths, and seemed disproportionate to the length of the approach imo....
exemplar (http://sc4devotion.com/forums/index.php?topic=4879.msg217438#msg217438)
after the RUL.....the RUL only allows 5 or 6 pylons even at a length of 255. second pic down....
RUL (http://sc4devotion.com/forums/index.php?topic=4879.msg217423#msg217423)
i hope that helps a bit. :) nothing really new....the pics ive posted of the Saltash bridge were generous views...if ya wanna see how bad it looks without a RUL, ill post a pic (would have to wait for some cables to finish rendering though).
it'd be fairly easy make each 'version' available.....i'm interested in the general view if anyone would like to chime in. :-\
Heh, I was wondering if that's what you meant. I know that RULs can dictate the precise specs of a bridge, and I'll look forward to seeing how you use them. I just wanted to clarify that it's not impossible (for any who might be wondering) to have multi-piece start/ends for bridges, just that they aren't as flexible. Again, nice progress.
-Matt
Choco, I agree that cable stays specified in the bridge exemplar are quite limited.
I have also seen that zoom one and two can be a problem in bridge models. There is a way to fix this, but it should only be used if there is no other way, or it will make zooms one and two slower to appear. What you do, for each model, is to replace the rendered BAT S3Ds for zooms one and two (IIDs 0x#####0##, and 0x#####1##) with copies of the S3Ds for zoom three (IIDs 0x#####2##). The FSH (textures) for zooms one and two can then be deleted to save space.
One of the advantages of using BATed cable stays is that you can put lights on the cables, as is often done in RL. I wish you could also do this with suspension bridges, but it would be a lot of work if you want the suspended section to have many different lengths.
By the way, in a PM I suggested at way to add deck textures. You can also use the same technique for two textures, by adding two rectangles; one for each texture.
Sorry for my absence, thanks to all three for your answers, them will be useful for me before some times. :thumbsup:
I would mean speaking to you about it
Orange
hi all,
gettin bogged down at work lately, so i haven't much time anymore to BAT.... &mmm most of my bridges were in an intermediate state, meaning the models are relatively rough and not-so-good looking. so they'll be on the shelf for a while....
if anyone is interested, i'd like to offer a modding service for bridges. all i need is someone to make models with the properly assigned ID's....just shoot me a PM and i'll get ya started.... :thumbsup:
since im now an IT SA, i'll still be around from time to time to say hi.....just dont have the extra time that i once had.
with all that said, i wanted to post one more pic. this'll be what i work on in the extra minutes of my day....the last RUL i need to write ::)
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Choco, it's too bad that you won't have as much time for SimCity4, but I hope your RL job is rewarding.
I have been doing a fair amount of work on your RHW-6S bridge. Adding the RHW-6S deck texture (tedious), fixing LOD problems for zooms 1 and 2 (I wish BAT would handle this better), and fixing the column top for the end pieces in the bridge exemplar (Oops I just noticed my RHW-2 bridge has the same problem!) Here is the result:
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi291.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fll299%2Fsmoncrie%2FRHW-6SBridge.jpg&hash=0ec1f3db4dc53bad87f8b203fa29584cf905210f)
The bridge deck uses the same texture as the RHW-6S starter puzzle piece. When this texture is fixed both the puzzle piece and the bridge deck will be a better match for the ordinary RHW-6S texture. There is also a small texture problem with the RHW where it connects to the bridge, but it will need to be fixed in a new version of the RHW mod.
thanks smoncrie! new job is definitely rewarding, especially from an experience standpoint. computers were merely a hobby, now im acting System Administrator for my company......with no prior IT experience. the old IT guy was fairly upset over his terminiation (rightfully so), leaving me to reverse engineer the entire system. im hoping to have this completed in the next month.....enabling me to resume work in BAT in my downtime.
im definitely going to resume.....just not likely at the rate i was a couple weeks ago.
boy, does that bridge look exponentially better! fantastic job! i didn't BAT the pylons very long, so they will need extended....which wont take long. if you need any help or resources, lemme know.
i presume you mean the outside texture failing to meet the bridge as the "small texture problem"? funny thing though; i was able, in certain circumstances, to complete the texture. i can't really explain it though.....
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fbridgesandbox-Nov6001233191352.png&hash=bab481fcba676342ea0daffc8df5780ff0e98bd2)
Well I have somewhat mixed feelings here. Congratulations on the new job, and good luck getting everything straightened out, but on the other hand... they can't take an excellent bridge designer away from us. You've certainly come a long way in a short time, and I'm glad to hear you'll be doing the modding thing still. Glad to see the Saltash is getting close to completion. One of these coming weekends, I'd like to chat with you about that bridge tutorial thing (modding/ruls/modelling and all that other stuff) I had mentioned earlier. Best of luck with the new job, and I'll see you around.
-Matt
Choco, I hope you continue to enjoy your new job. :thumbsup:
Yes, that is the "small texture problem" I was talking about.
Personally, I think the length of the pylons is fine. Instead of changing the length, why not see if they look better if they are just a little closer together? If you mean how far they go down, I don't think that is a problem, I checked it and it looked fine. If you want to change the pylon, I suggest that you center the pylon under the bridge tile so that it meets the water in the centre of the shadow. I know this is less realistic, but unfortunately the overhanging part of the bridge cannot have shadows.
The bridge should have streetlights; at least it should have streetlights when it (the bridge) has power. What streetlights do you think would be suitable?
smoncrie & Choco I hope the texture issue can be fixed , these are really great looking! I also agree they need lights , just not sure which ones.
Jayson
choco wow congrats on your promotion!!! That is soo cool and well I excited for ya's!!! But you must not forget about us at all!!! OK!!! The bridges are looking ACE wow!!!!
Quote from: sithlrd98 on February 05, 2009, 03:38:26 PM
smoncrie & Choco I hope the texture issue can be fixed , these are really great looking! I also agree they need lights , just not sure which ones.
Jayson
They will probably be given the default Maxis streetlights so they will have lights with a very basic Plugins folder. If someone wants different styled ones, then they can go download a mod that replaces the Maxis ones.
-Jan
There are many considerations for suitable streetlights.
First, the designer of the bridge is the one who usually decides how it will be lighted.
Second, there are no Maxis networks as wide as RHW-6S (More than one tile wide for each direction.) Ordinary streetlights might be OK if they are closer together, or are used in pairs, but a custom streetlight that reaches closer to the centre of the 3 lanes might be better.
Third the RHW textures are very dark, so the light cones of some Maxis street lights will be almost invisible.
Forth, it's a RURAL highway, so unpowered bridges are likely. Streetlights on any kind of bridge will not light up at night if the bridge has no power. I thought that the best way to deal with this is to have streetlights that are invisible unless the bridge has power. The streetlights on the other RHW bridges should probably be like this as well.
@Matt: i have mixed feelings as well....its not all rosy, unfortunately. i'll explain a bit later..... ;)
@Pat: ty :thumbsup:
@jayson: its not a huge problem....plopping a 6S puzzle piece will cover it, but its not the best solution. the pic i showed previously isn't very repeatable, unfortunately. &mmm
@smoncrie: a shorter span would work just fine as well. i admittedly didn't put alot of thought into the bridge parameters. ???
now, i never noticed the shadow was off from the center line of the bridge......hmm. i think i'd like to explore remapping the shadows or even making custom textures for it, cause otherwise it will make the model look odd imo. the model basically has a y-offset of +4m, so centering the pylon back to y=0 would likely make it hang outside the bridge deck.....it looks like ya added the textures directly to the model, so i would wanna create more work for you. :)
for streetlights, i'm struggling between options. i was considering a couple of Interstate80's excellent streetlights (cogeo's light cones...), but really not sure about adding dependencies(catenaries for the rail bridges??). but i do tend to agree about the deficiency of the maxis streetlights. ultimately, i'd rather do what is best for everyone....whether that includes 2 versions (maxis and custom props), so be it.
interested to hear about hiding the lights with no power.....
-ryan
Quote from: choco on February 06, 2009, 06:23:17 AM
interested to hear about hiding the lights with no power.....
It's really simple to do, but requires modifying all the streetlights, both Maxis and custom ones. The property "Requires Power to Appear" needs to be added to the prop exemplars with its value set to "True". Maxis' parked car cluster props have this property, which is why the parking lots look empty when the Lots have no power and the cars suddenly appear when they do have power. Adding this property would also solve the issue of street lights appearing in rural areas when you plop Lots along the roadways. Most of the eye-candy plops that people make for rural areas don't require power.
-Jan
I beg to differ with Swamper77. It is a little more complicated than he says because "Requires Power to Appear" conflicts with "Nighttime State Change" used in streetlights. One has to split the streetlight prop into two co-located props. One prop for the streetlight pole uses "Requires Power to Appear", so it will appear, both day and night, if there is power. The other prop for the streetlight light cone uses "Nighttime State Change", so it will only appear at night, AND if there is power. (No streetlight lights up without power.)
The requirement for two props means it would be a very big job to do this with all Maxis streetlights, and it would probably break lots that use the streetlight props. It is better to regard it (or should I say them?) as a custom streetlight.
As for the RHW-6S bridge shadows, I can not create overhanging shadows, but I can centre the shadows on the pylons. This is what it looks like:
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi291.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fll299%2Fsmoncrie%2FRHW-6SBridgeShadows.jpg&hash=c1126fdb8ab943a87b16eb10ce74721ec2c892d5)
I think the current pylon spacing is fine; there is no real need to change it.
When I said centering the pylon I forgot how the bridge is placed, I should have said centered between 6.7 and -8. And yes it is true that if you change the model I would need to re-do the deck.
I must ask this : Can we make bridges that change in slope something like these?
http://www.undiscoveredscotland.co.uk/queensferry/forthroadbridge/images/newbridge-450.jpg
That looks possible, though difficult to me. We already have bridges that change slope, just look at the raised road bridge. ;)
Choco and smoncrie, that RHW-6C bridge is amazing! Oh, you make any more progress on the el-RHW-4 and MIS ones? I'm really interested in those.
Fresh Prince of SC4D, that bridge has many different slopes so it would need many different BAT models, but it is possible.
Thanks deathtopumpkins!
It is very simple to make bridges for different elevations: Just change one parameter in the bridge exemplar to change the height of the entire bridge, make new paths and new exemplars, and you are done. All the Maxis ground highway bridges are elevated highway bridges with their height changed like this.
I thought about making a MIS bridge several months ago, but I was not sure how useful it would be.
What I would like to have is a RHW-10 bridge. It would need a one-way, two tile wide ground highway bridge. A complete RHW-10 bridge could then be made by building (dragging) two of these bridges; one for each direction. Unfortunately, my BAT skills are not good enough to make such a bridge.
thanks jan! :thumbsup:
dtp: thanks! the bridge controller needed modified beyond the current release for any other RHW (dirt road) bridges to work. i'll see about fixing the pillars, otherwise they should be good to go after an update of the essentials. :)
smoncrie, i think i understand ya....i have a couple files i can look at that might help. i think the shadow looks good. :thumbsup:
i haven't made a 2-tile bridge yet, but i could manage a plain RHW-10 bridge....i may have an extra hour or 2 tomorrow.
great job!!
Is a Rhw-10 bridge possible, bridges have to have at least 1-tile gap between them &mmm
But it seems like expierenced modders can find a way around everything :)
Leo,
A RHW10 bridge will be drawn with a 2-tile network with similar speed and capacity, most likely such a bridge would be drawn with the Ground Highway network with the RHW10 bridge as an option.
-Swamper
LEO, bridges must still have at least one tile between them. The situation is very similar to the current RHW-4 bridges, except that two tile wide bridges would be used instead of one tile wide bridges. (Both Swamper77 and I suggested a ground highway bridge for this) One difference is that for RHW-10, the space between the bridges would also need to be the space on the ground between the two sides of the RHW-10. Currently, RHW-10 is less flexible than RHW-4.
Thank you, choco.
There is a trick you can use to save some work when creating a highway bridge (or any bridge). Since bridges are always flat, you can create larger models that cover several tiles. For example, you can create one model for the pylons and one model for the ends. The (0,0) position of these larger models should be over the centre of one tile, and the exemplar for that tile should specify the larger model. The exemplars for all the other tiles covered by the larger model should specify no model. I recommend that these models do not extend past the end of the bridge.
I have not studied the bridge tutorials because Jeronij and I worked out how to make bridges before the tutorials were written. I hope I am not repeating material that is in them.
[EDIT] I notice that I did not say anything about streetlight dependences. This bridge may need to be released with the RHW mod because it may be awkward to do RHD & LHD in a separate bridge. In that case it would not be desirable to have dependencies for the RHW mod, so it might be best to make a separate copy of the custom streetlight. The author of the streetlight would have to give permission to do this.
In non-RHW bridges, I do not see any problem with a bridge having dependencies.
LEO, even the RHW10 bridges will need a tile between them. ()sad()
smoncrie, thanks for the tip. can't say i fully understand until i try it.... :)
youre not covering previous info from the tuts. i was going to work with Matt to continue from where jeronij's left off....this thread alone is chalk full of great info, it just needs reorganized condensed. its my (our) hope that with some additional info available for any and all, that maybe a few others will dive into bridge construction.
i was going to suggest that the 6S be merged with the RHW mod....so i agree with ya there. you can make any changes you see fit as well (i kinda agree that it maybe should be shortened a tile or 2)....i appreciate the respect for anothers' work, but im not the end-all of decision-making..... :thumbsup: you've been at this alot longer than i have......
what'd you have in mind for a RHW10 bridge?
meh.... (http://www.clasohm.com/photodb/img/3549-md.jpg)
hmmm.... (http://www.prestasi-concrete.com/Current&Past%20projects_files/Bridge.jpg)
edit for question: the HSRP mod uses .s3d models for the track....how can these be added directly to the bridge models? i ask because there is only a N-S orientation of the models in the HSR (GHSR) plugins.....these would need rotated, no?
Quote from: choco on February 09, 2009, 05:42:34 AM
smoncrie, thanks for the tip. can't say i fully understand until i try it.... :)
Take a look at the models in jeronij's Tsing Ma Bridge.
I remember when I posted about my first custom bridge on ST. :) It took several posts to convince people that I had created a custom bridge and I was not using puzzle pieces. At that time everyone thought that making custom bridges was almost impossible.
I am not sure if I created the first custom bridge. I heard that there was a bridge in SimMars, but I never checked.
I have not really thought what a RHW-10 bridge should look like. It should probably be a fairly simple bridge that can be used anywhere. I like your first picture better, but the bridge does not have to look like that.
For adding the HSR model to BAT model you locate the S3D, and use "Right-click/Save decoded file" to create an .S3D file. (Not necessary in this case, see Note 1 below.)
I suggest that you first copy the HSR texture (FSH) 0x0bf6e09b from GHSR_Plugin.dat into your BAT model file. Then close and re-open your BAT model file. This will let you see what you are doing. DON'T FORGET to remove it when you are finished!!!
For all 20 S3Ds, you use the "Add S3D" button and specify the .S3D file to add the HSR model.
For three of the rotations you will need to rotate the HSR model. You can do this using a spreadsheet. First paste the HSR's vertex data into the spread sheet (select the data and use Control-C to copy it to the clip board). Then add the following formulae to rotate the coordinates:
Xrotated = X cos(angle) – Z sin(angle)
Zrotated = X sin(angle) + Z cos(angle)
Specify the rotation angle and paste the calculated vertex values back into all the copies of the HSR model for the given rotation.
For zooms 1 & 2 in some bridge models you may also need to increase the Y value in the spreadsheet. For other bridge models, it may be impossible to use the HSR model in zooms 1&2.
Note 1: The HSR model seems to have inherited a great deal of garbage from the Maxis Monorail models. I have attached a cleaned-up version of the HSR model in an .s3d file.
Note 2: HSR uses only one texture for all zoom levels. Usually it is much better to use a texture for each zoom level, so I tried modding HSR to use different zoom textures. I was surprised to find that the improvement was very small.
i was afraid you were gonna say that.... :P i figured i could do it that way, just didn't sound to appealing. that was the last item on my to-do for the HSRP bridges....
i began a simple model for the RHW10....didn't get very far.....but i was wondering if its worth it to make an 8 as well.....?.....
thanks for all the help, smoncrie. you should be charging me by the keystroke..... ;D
double posting for some thoughts.....about 15 minutes of RHW10 design.....(kinda short on time this week).
thoughts anyone?
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fnewrhw10.jpg&hash=badc1a4334168a16804f1581e2cea50f38625c6e)
Awesome :thumbsup:
awesome i got a somewhat unrelated question tho.
I modified the bridge height mod to increase the count of cables and make them thinner. It works for the most part. But the far end ( ie farthest point from where i started dragging) does not show any difference from the normal Maxis look.
I set the cable count to 25 and the thickness to .75? Did i do something wrong? ()what()
thats for the cable stayed bridge btw
pnf: i think i have a pic of that same problem on another PC.....never figured out why it happens, and i abandoned a couple models because of it. &mmm on the other hand, i learned how to make props as a result. it may be something on a higher level, cause i was editing those same values from the bridge exemplars. it doesn't happen on the Maxis bridges though; not sure why.
threw on some quick textures.....still needs details. have a good weekend everyone! :thumbsup:
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fnewr.jpg&hash=498dafa47f4560548002bc2ce4da59add0354efe)
Whoa, choco! :o That is crazy good! Can't wait to see it with RHW textures and details. :thumbsup:
this bridge looks very promising my friend. &apls can't wait to see the texture. ;)
That looks great. How wide are the arches going to be?
Choco ur works are amazing :o, but are they released or are only projects?
I don't know if u accept request, but i've one:
"can u make an HSR Bridge like this":
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fimg25.imageshack.us%2Fimg25%2F1453%2Fimg001rn8.th.jpg&hash=b12dbded32b7d566b47a48eebbc186250fefb54a) (http://img25.imageshack.us/my.php?image=img001rn8.jpg)
The specs are on this page (http://sc4devotion.com/forums/index.php?topic=2089.460)
Thanx!!
That bridge looks great...can't wait to see it textured... &apls
Jayson
Choco that bridge is looking grand there and btw did you hear the plug I gave you in the Podcast?
Looking great choco...never enough quality bridges in the game.....Keep it up.
Bud
thanks all! i would have had some time today, but i left my laptop at my folks house. hopefully, less than 2 weeks till i get it back. &mmm
Kitsune: roughly 160m....10 tiles between the pillars.
Pat: im sorry, i have not. pretty busy weekend, including a birthday. i searched quickly and couldn't find a link......i'd love to hear what you're doing! :)
nice podcast, Pat! thanks for the plug! great way to catch up if ya miss anything in all the fury that is SC4D... :D
vinlabsc3k: i have one more item to finish for the HSRP bridges, then they will be ready for release. however, the shadows do not work with current NAM bridge controller, so an update is needed.
for your proposal, i think you are asking to add an under-truss model to the current HSR bridge by jeronij? i think it would be possible, but would be considerable work without the source files....which i think were made by 3ddz. if a truss could be made as an .s3d file and added directly to the existing model (moving the HSR track up up as well), the height could then be moved correspondingly down (via bridge exemplar) to account for the change in +Z height. unfortunately, without the source models, this would replace the existing HSR bridges included in the HSR mod.
i use the HSRP extensively in my regions, so i'll likely be making a few more down the road. however, with the limited amount of time i currently have, im focusing on the RHW and STR projects. i will gladly provide any technical info if you would like to modify theHSR bridges yourself. :)
edit: to thank Pat
decided that david's bridge would look better as a dual rail....to really make this look good, i think it will require some advanced BAT skills....looks really bad at zooms 1-3 due to the truss'. maybe would be better to export as .s3d? &Thk/(
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fbridgesandbox-Nov6001233411673.png&hash=9e88a2647ce60522ef5de5f2ecd094113706b41e)
edit: found an old pic of the problem that
pagenotfound was describing towards to bottom of the last page. just thought i'd post it for others to see...
Quotepnf: i think i have a pic of that same problem on another PC.....never figured out why it happens, and i abandoned a couple models because of it. &mmm on the other hand, i learned how to make props as a result. it may be something on a higher level, cause i was editing those same values from the bridge exemplars. it doesn't happen on the Maxis bridges though; not sure why.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fmono-1.jpg&hash=8f00829a0b4696a694910ffbc6e84f4461c7e6ab)
edit: attached at the bottom of this post is the HSR track model rotated 90 degrees. This can be used by any other bridge builders to add the track model directly to any BAT models in the reader.
goin for the triple post..... ::)
thanks again to smoncrie for the formula! :thumbsup:
a much better preview than before....
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Feb27011235088261.png&hash=1987869d960c19738ac7dacea317b4f7179fcfc1)
Ah Excellent - I see a cable stayed bridge, that will be nice for the medium tile gap i'm gonna have to cross with the HSR.
Nice! :thumbsup: Glad to see the preview models are all in one piece now! :P
Hey Choco no problem at all there and you deserve it!!! BTW looking good here with the bridges!!!!
Nice work! But I assumed you not finished with work out bugs, what else you have to do?
Kitusne: there's quite a few pics of cable bridge a few pages back.....glad you'll find a use for it. :)
dtp: i think the extra trouble was worth it... :P
Pat:thanks! :thumbsup:
FPoSC4D: the last pic i showed above was the last task for the HSR bridges...so they're done for the most part. ;) i noticed a few small visual glitches on LOD3 of a couple models, but i still haven't got my laptop back to fix those. its the only computer i have with the BAT installed, so im kinda hamstrung till i get it back.
You make an excellent work. Continuous the search &apls
choco: nice work :) :)
But a question: where could I find transit textures for STR bridges?
thanks Orange_o_! ever get any time to start a model? :)
Flatron: thank you, and Welcome to SC4D! :thumbsup:
i hope you have some interest to model a bridge :) if i can be of any help, please feel free to contact me at any time!
to answer your question, the STR textures you're looking are in possession of the RAM team at this point (which is separate from NAM team). i suspect that once STR mod is released, there will be some textures made available for the public. in the meantime, i have asked permission to link the textures here.
however, if i get my laptop back (should be saturday, EST), i can send you a set of textures i made. i simply modified the dual rail texture i downloaded from the bridge modeling tutorial here (http://sc4devotion.com/forums/index.php?topic=930.msg25066#msg25066).
Thanks a lot
and yes, I try to model a bridge!
Flatron: Great! :thumbsup:
i found these textures from a backup on a usb drive, attached at the bottom of this post. should be enough to get you started.
:)
edit: wrong file....
edit2: fixed....
i'll have the proper STR textures for tomorrow..... ;)
:)Thanks ( if you were a girl i would say that i love you ;))
so i completely blew off work today......but something good came of it.....
the Saltash Bridge RUL is working......probly wont make the next update though.... &mmm
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Mar2001236112426.png&hash=43232a460a84db3bbfa6582f750bfd92841b21e8)
Wow, that's looking great! Excellent work! &apls
But choco, don't you know work still has to take priority over SC4? You have to have money to pay the electric and internet bills you know! :P
work has more priority than SC4? &Thk/(
i dunno man, i sit in meetings daydreaming about my next model..... :P
thanks DTP!
i almost forgot about this.....found it on another computer when searching for .gmax files.....
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fmonosus.png&hash=a086cd168b46f0025b166e8c44772413fc89320a)
Is that another monorail bridge? I'm extremely pleased with the monorail bridges your creating, they've been sorely lacking over the years. Monorail... the oft forgot about network :D
Indeed, monorail was forgotten way too often - even today, there's only a handful of custom stations, which is quite surprising, considering the huge amount of modern BATs.
Choco, that's a real nice bridge. Thank yuou for making it. Do you have any clue about when it could be released?
All right, I know about the When-its-ready-its-ready.... Sorry for asking. ;D
And I know how tempting it is to dream about the imaginary world we are creating on our computers. Especially when you are in meetings that are about the problems of urban planning and architecture in real life.
It's so easy in SC4!
Kitsune: thanks for the kind words! yup...its another one. there is no long-span monorail bridge, so i started this bridge. i switched from a PC to a laptop to BAT when i traveled all last year, and forgot about the model until i stumbled upon it a couple days ago. so, i think i may finish it now... :)
FrankU: thank you as well... :) sorry to say, i haven't even begun modding this new monorail bridge yet. i have yet to experiment with suspension bridges, so this will be new modding territory for me. i'd hate to even guess a date, cause im not even sure how much work is involved to align the cables..... ???
im trying, at this point, to finish projects that are closer to release before starting any new stuff. im about halfway thru fixing the bad models, and the RUL work is done (for now, at least ;)).....
i bit off way more than i could chew at first....but im catching back up....slowly....
thanks for stopin by! :thumbsup:
last of the modding i'll be able to do till next week. but, thought i'd post 'em up. obviously, the wires will be getting some work.....but i need to figure out how adjustable they are. i may have to re-BAT this bridge at z=0 and change the height via exemplar property. dunno, but enjoy for now! :thumbsup:
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Mar4001236190598.png&hash=aaa741e8b10173a439cdd11f8ff0d69b13995389)
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Mar1001236190587.png&hash=cf65ab877a5352c790ce1b0651622e20841e60fb)
Uhh... any particular reason it's floating? ??? I guess it would take a little more modding to add the pillars. ()what()
ummm Choco that bridge is looking good but umm a tad bit wierdness too!!! ???
i was just testing the model.....its a direct copy of the Medium Road suspension bridge, with the pylon height changed. its floating because i hid the pillar base soi could render it in 20 minutes rather than 2 hours.....
you can be sure it wont look like that for long...
but you may have noticed i tend to show more development pics than the final bridgs.....wouldn't wanna ruin the surprise! ;D
:thumbsup:
Chocio, I saw the new NAM wit some of your bridges. Thank you for that!
you're very welcome! :thumbsup: lots more to come in the near future...... $%#Ninj2
so, i'll follow up the bad pic with a little something more appealing to the eye (well, slightly anyway :P). im just finishing up the modding on this mono bridge, and although just short of where i want it to be, its getting close. one other bridge to finish up, and that'll be all i have for monorail-based bridges (including HSRP)....
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Aug11001236629229.png&hash=0f84fd92656a60069bcd4442e53ab78ce331e342)
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Aug15001236629254.png&hash=ed864c4718b43128a56b8662e8e88e67a560f9f1)
- there's 4 bridge properties that are still "unknown", that pertain to suspension bridges. they might contain the answer to my problem.
- gonna need to start making custom shadows..... ;)
Well thats better looking bridge :)
Quote from: choco on March 09, 2009, 01:18:26 PM
one other bridge to finish up, and that'll be all i have for monorail-based bridges (including HSRP)....
What will you work on next? ;)
ah Choco &apls , yet another wonderful Bridge , is there any way you could make or convert your recent or upcoming plans for bridges for not just rails , but for roads as well as streets ()what()
LEO, thanks! im working on a couple different projects right now.....many of which are buried in the depths of this thread; a couple that are not. generally, i would like to finish a pack of light rail bridges for GLR/El-Rail......whilst continuing work on a couple other NAM projects that are planned for the future.
somewhere in there i'd like to put together a few quick tutorials regarding some beginner/intermediate modeling and modding with respect to bridges. essentially, there's just different things to look for to ensure you get the look and functionality.....LOD construction, shadowing, and track/transit textures just to name a few.
Nexis4Jersey, and thank you as well! :thumbsup: i did make a street bridge (my first BAT), pictured in the first post of this thread. other than that, i dont currently have any plans for automotive bridges.....with assisting the RHW development as an exception. at some point, im sure i will make some various road bridges, but the game is in need of some variety in monorail/El-Rail/GLR bridges more so than any automotive network. with the advent of the RAM team, i imagine i'll be busy for a while. :-\
Choco,
If you could make a GLR in Avenue bridge, then you would really make me happy!
Also it would be nice to have some of the bridges available for other networks.
Choco great work on the bridges,
The monorail bridge is looking good :thumbsup:
Frank, we can't have Dual Network Bridges in SC4 sadly &mmm
Jonathan
Quote from: Warrior on March 10, 2009, 09:39:52 AM
Choco great work on the bridges,
The monorail bridge is looking good :thumbsup:
Frank, we can't have Dual Network Bridges in SC4 sadly &mmm
Jonathan
I thought the issue was they become instantly congested? The tsing ma bridge is fully pathed on both decks if you turn on the draw paths cheat...
Yes which is why we can't have them
Jonathan
FrankU, i'd be glad to provide the models if someone was willing to mod them. it'd be a good bit of work to change over a bridge (since only the model is being used)......others won't lend very well to a change of network (ie, conrete HSR/GHSR bridges).
thanks jonathan! gonna have a problem with the cable anchors, as they are not very configurable. may have to contact jeronij to explain some things..... &mmm
kitsune, the Tsing Ma was the 'guinea pig' of sorts. a dual network bridge will carry traffic just fine, but other problems arise with the simulator. i do intend to look at this, as i have the DD Tsing Ma moving traffic in a city of 300,000+ to run some testing. besides bridge testing, i haven't played since february last year..... :'(
edit:
here's what im going on about...
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fexprop.png&hash=7d12e28d3aafb6d735eb503a2f121c38b5d3ce7b)
i have no idea what these 4 unknown properties are...... ()what()
Yeah, dual paths on a conventional game bridge... one of those things that has yet to be cracked. However, the ferry obstruction thing with the Tsing Ma may have been solved. As for those unknown properties, I'm not sure what they are myself, but let me know what you find out choco. Great work.
-Matt
Quote from: choco on March 06, 2009, 04:25:56 AM
i was just testing the model.....its a direct copy of the Medium Road suspension bridge, with the pylon height changed. its floating because i hid the pillar base soi could render it in 20 minutes rather than 2 hours.....
you can be sure it wont look like that for long...
but you may have noticed i tend to show more development pics than the final bridgs.....wouldn't wanna ruin the surprise! ;D
:thumbsup:
LoL Choco I did notice that one!!! Good to see that you really have gotten into the "teasing game" :thumbsup:
BTW looking better there ;)
hey Matt! nice to hear about the Tsing Ma.....sorry it too so many tries... ???
i made dramatic changes to the 'unknown' properties with no visual effect on the bridge, so im a bit more perplexed now. i noticed they're only contained in any 'grand' suspension bridges.....
Pat, welcome back, and thank you! :thumbsup: that'll be the last pic till release.....presently finalizing the model with some fairly significant changes. mainly the pillar base, which isn't going to be a simple rectangle......those are just easy to make for testing (modding anyway....). oh and a new starter piece......probably the repeat piece too.... :D
I heard something about you doing the BATing for th new RHW bridges. If so could you give us a sneak peek of your progress? Otherwise you are doing a super job! &apls &apls &apls &apls :thumbsup: :thumbsup:
hi Driftmaster07!
there are indeed a couple in the works.....there hasn't been much progress since the pics posted on this page (http://sc4devotion.com/forums/index.php?topic=4879.240). there was a small technical issue that took some time to figure out, so I just need some time to finish the BAT. :)
----------------------------------------
to all:
a graphical glitch in the recently-released Concrete GHSR bridge has been brought to my attention. the track model is rotated 90 degrees in zoom 5, rotation 2. this is a single s3d file, and a really small fix. the patch is attached below.
also, ebina has created a LHD drive patch for players using that configuration. you can find it attached to this post (http://sc4devotion.com/forums/index.php?topic=7178.msg230274#msg230274).
Cool. Anyways how do you get the RHW 6 in there? It is 2 tiles wide right? ??? ???
Driftmaster
Maybe it an overhang....... it that even possible ()what()
Quote from: Driftmaster07 on March 14, 2009, 03:01:55 PM
Cool. Anyways how do you get the RHW 6 in there? It is 2 tiles wide right? ??? ???
Yeah but one if the tiles (with the shoulder) of the RHW 6 is "eye candy". So the bridge is 1 tile wide.
Quote from: io_bg on March 15, 2009, 02:38:25 PM
Yeah but one if the tiles (with the shoulder) of the RHW 6 is "eye candy". So the bridge is 1 tile wide.
indeed... :thumbsup:
pic of some upcoming work...NOT
imminent, but not too far off.....
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Mar12011237217954.png&hash=cff9b4b15fc480dd3230772148c7ef8c9e4df60a)
;)
double posting is hopefully worth it.....as i do it alot..... ::)
but there was one missing from above (well, the pillar anyway).....
so here is the debut of a GHSR cable stayed bridge......
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Jul5011237234226.png&hash=2a7a0ddf83606316b9a9d14da35c82d3fce97406)
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Jul8011237234246.png&hash=69073befd2814df4b439fd57bc27d7245d211651)
Oh, wow, choco! I want! :D Very impressive work man.
Choco , once again you stun me with these bridges &apls , but i have one question , are you going to put any nightlights on them , because when constructed next to the other bridges they look odd @ night ???
nightlights would be great, but i dont know how, as of yet. :(
To my knowledge they function the same as night lights on a regular BAT. Just add the prefix nitelite to the name of the lights you add in the BAT. Otherwise, just t21 in some lights (and their corresponding light cones) and it should work.
thanks matt!
know where to get light props? ;D have no clue where to start...... &Thk/(
Well, you could do what I did, and harvest the t21 from an existing bridge (I used colyn's Kwanyoni bridge) and just alter the repetitions. Otherwise, it might involve poking around in the LE or the reader to find the file you're looking for.
Hi there, I was just reading the early parts of this topic. Are you still after a rail texture with no ballast?
I made one a while ago for a custom lot and you're welcome to use it. I'm not certain it'll be what you're after but it pretty much matches Cogeo's description.
Here's the image:
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fvershner.co.uk%2Fss%2Frailclear.png&hash=c0a487ee74fcbfb5ac21d28c18b0830e7fd64a51)
And here's the alpha:
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fvershner.co.uk%2Fss%2Frailclear_a.png&hash=d00743f69d897fe261ba738b27e9a556826dc2ec)
This is a transparent png to show what it looks like combined:
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fvershner.co.uk%2Fss%2Frailclear_demo.png&hash=52f05c264968ca8dbd4aecf3d6f41760d80b1d08)
If that is what you're looking for, let me know if you want any others like end pieces or rails only. They only take a few minutes to make.
ahhhh....sweeeeet!
dont know what possessed ya to go back thru this mess of a thread....but im glad you did! :thumbsup: thanks for the texture; you can bet it will be used. if you could donate some free time, I could really use a GLR texture for some upcoming bridges (which were put on hold)......
lemme know....we can discuss some details, and thanks for popping in! :)
Here you go:
Image & Alpha:
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fvershner.co.uk%2Fss%2Felrailclear.png&hash=ddbf5dfa8f50ae1f4297c958a052a826b8a66076) (https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fvershner.co.uk%2Fss%2Felrailclear_a.png&hash=5db6d45495c94fc7c547b91db64bd0df327234ea)
Combined:
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fvershner.co.uk%2Fss%2Felrailclear_demo.png&hash=b801391b8631999788984fc10e4f5463c283c2b2)
i cant thank you enough! :thumbsup:
Nice work with the dual track and GLR textures vershner. Those will be a fine addition for bridge designers.
Also, choco, congratulations on the new CML (well deserved from looking at that last pic you had with your works in progress).
-Matt
thanks matt!
last of the track models finished.....should be able to get at the ELR/GLR bridges now..... ;D
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Oct2151237570069.png&hash=50fcc30c7f83f6070165559f2da20dfb00ad3894)
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Oct2151237570092.png&hash=b91e626fcc658f3ff19ed2c266b6ea5fb6bf40e3)
Quote from: choco on March 17, 2009, 01:23:19 PM
know where to get light props? ;D have no clue where to start...... &Thk/(
Check my Streetlight Colour Pack on the STEX (currently down, so no link). It contains datfiles that override the default streetlight props. There are different props for roads/streets, avenues (for $, $$ and $$$ wealth) and highways; there is also a special (smaller) streetlight for suspended bridges. You can choose to either use the "default" ones (in this case they would be modded by either Streetlight Colour Pack or maarten's Light Replacement Mod), or make custom ones, eg special lightposts.
Lighting the bridge model is another thing, and I definitely recommend it, as you can get awesome effects. Eg take a look at the ingame NY (Brooklyn?) bridges, they look gorgeous. This can be done by using normal BAT nightlighting techniques.
Glad to hear the el-rail bridges are on their way. I know you've finished the model for the bridge you just showed there, but I do have one suggestion. I think it would help with the fluidity of the bridge (and hide the griddiness of the game) if the railings tapered to a point instead of just cutting in at a right angle. I know that's a completely aesthetic thing, but I think it might add a stylish look to the bridge (not sure what look exactly you're going for on it, I know some el-rail lines are quite utilitarian). Great progress.
-Matt
Congrats on your CML choco! You REALLY deserve it. &apls
That lastest photo of that elevated rail bridge looks fantastic. I might have to forcibly make some more elevated rail bridges when your new ones come out now lol.
Choco wow that ELR/GLR bridge is stunning!!!
Now that is sweeeeeaaaaat!
Interesting support even though as civil engineer I would have made it more ... solid due to statics but that round form sure does look nice!
Question: Is it possible to make that bridge for elevated rail, too?
cogeo: thanks for the info! i'll have a look...... :thumbsup:
Matt: not hard at all.....i think that piece was about 20 minutes to export. i can even make another model so one can choose.... ;)
dtp: thanks again! i appreciate all your kind comments. :)
SimNation: thank you! it took some time, but i finally finished rotating the orthos for the track models. i can attached them if ya like......its kinda what i was showing with the pictures above. if ya can BAT a little, making El-Rail bridges is very easy.
Pat: :thumbsup:
Nardo69: :D , i knew someone would mention that. that is actually a fairly old model. in hindsight, i didn't know how to really BAT at that time......kinda just messing with the modifiers and learning splines. that shape was kind of an accident.....but eerie in the way it worked for the ped bridge below. definitely more nostalgia than structural integrity......which some of my BATs are guilty of. :)
as far as changing networks, its not really any trouble. adding the transit texture/model is the most laborious part, but i've become much more efficient at it. it is in the plans to re-modd some of these bridges to other networks, as some of the models lend themselves well to the task. interfacing with the viaducts takes some thought, but i was planning on revisiting the start piece on that bridge anyway.... ;)
i finished up the models on a couple other El-rail bridges.....thanks to vershner's textures, i can get workin on the GLR....
an undertruss ELR bridge alongside the LRT....
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Oct2151237639975.png&hash=03dffbd77e5a19c5924b12da9352e67f06bb854b)
the approach for the 'grand' span....presently working on the props..... ;)
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Oct2151237640064.png&hash=f07263c4612fee930d48ee710e28e8223ce1a7d7)
Thanks for the offer choco but I am not developing the part of my region that has my elevated system yet so I wouldnt be able to enjoy them yet :). However I do have a question. The elevated rail bridges...even custom ones would work with like lets say Buddy Bud's Elevated rail restyle mod that he has been working on correct? I assume bridges would not be a problem since they are there own seperate attachment to the transit systems themselves. That other bridge looks great to btw.
sure, they'll work.....may not look the best with bud's mod. &mmm
added a couple props....not sure about the fences..... ;)
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Oct2151237738756.png&hash=8f26c2d0cbc5d96d93d3ec2656d61d611d4dca21)
I like the fences - gives the bridge the necessary "weight" without making it too massive. :)
All your bridges are awesome :thumbsup:
thanks LEO, youre too kind. :)
finished up the props for the other long span bridges.....time to move on to other things.... $%#Ninj2
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Oct2151237738525.png&hash=144c927f8424090a299e2196833073e309c4289b)
i'd like to also create a cable-stayed GLR bridge and maybe even an El-rail/GLR suspension bridge. if anyone would like to post some suggestions, please feel free. ideas are getting hard to come by after 15 or so different bridges..... :)
I agree with LE0!
Fabulous work.
Heh, I didn't have time to use a single one of those in my game so far, and you are beginning to run out of ideas after creating fifteen different ones... $%Grinno$%
:D
thats ~15 total....not just HSR. :P
lets see.....
6 HSR
3 mono
1 street
3 El-Rail
.....13 that are either released or ready (well, i still need to fix the bridge controller)....
3 RHW
4 RAM
3 GLR
1 HSR (by request)
....11 in development......hmmmm....didn't think it was that many. ::) i have plenty of pics to BAT....but wasn't sure if there were any other real light rail bridges (long span) out there other than the Vancouver Skybridge. All the models i've found would be road bridges adapted for light rail.
Looks great! :thumbsup: &apls
A cable stay monorail bridge would be nice ..... :)
Fantastic work on these bridges, Choco. I am enjoying all of the goodies you recently released.
I saw that the Concrete Street Bridge was released on the SimCityKurier site. Will it also be available on the LEX?
io_bg: thanks again, Sir!
Kitsune: :D i kinda have to chuckle......i originally was planning on a monorail cable bridge.....but abandoned it (well, changed the network) because the Maxis cables were not working correctly. it was a problem reported by pagenotfound, i believe. monorail bridges are a cinch to make......have anything particular in mind? :)
ScottFTL: thank you.....im glad someone is finding them useful. i realize the HSR isn't a widely used mod, but i use it alot.....
i hadn't realized the street bridge was released..... ??? im still trying to nail down a small problem with one of the T21's. i'll find out what the deal is.....i presume it will be, but im not sure how it'll get uploaded. lots of activity going on, so i'll get an answer as soon as feasibly possible. :)
Quote from: ScottFTL on March 26, 2009, 09:16:07 PM
I saw that the Concrete Street Bridge was released on the SimCityKurier site. Will it also be available on the LEX?
Uhm, oops... Looks like I forgot to upload it to the LEX when I was doing my NAM upload spree. &ops Sorry about that, I'll fix that as soon as I have a chance. :)
Absolutely love your stuff. Can we get some more road and street bridges pretty please!!!???!!!! I'd love to see a stone bridge and/or brick bridge. I'm not sure if its possible but i would like to see something decorative perhaps with statues facing outwards and another with two monuments serving as the anchor points at each end. Perhaps traffic could flow around the momument itself. I know draw or lifting bridges would not be fuctional but perhaps and eye candy one with gate houses. Just some of about 100 thoughts
hi scottott999! always happy to see new faces around..... :)
auto bridges are definitely in the plan for the relatively-near future.....my initial goal was to fill the gaps in monorail and El-rail/GLR where there was only a single style bridge. since then, the scope has grown dramatically. insofar as your suggestions, i would like to see much of those as well. regretfully, my BAT skills are not up to par to create complex decorations or the like.....its my hope that once the Light Rail Bridge Project is complete, i may be better equipped to produce a few higher quality models.
---------------------
was testing out another idea......asymmetric cabling.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Oct2151238524589.png&hash=d47292a6d734fbd2bd5fdd781eb442c221b0d47a)
Interesting idea - but I think that only works if the pylon isn't perfectly vertical, or if the part of the bridge on the right side (on your pic) is very short.
You are right about that Andreas.
The cable could go into an anchor block.
i haven't wrote the RUL yet..... ;) the short span will have pylons underneath, so only the long span is for water traffic.....
but ya gave me another idea, Andreas.... &idea
Quote from: choco on March 31, 2009, 01:07:41 PM
but ya gave me another idea, Andreas.... &idea
And you haven't even asked. :D Could somebody give
me some truckloads of free time, so I can finally finish all those goodies for the LEX? %confuso
Wow, great work lately! Glad to hear there are plans to do some road bridges... ;D I bet you could make some really nice ones.
But I do have a question... What ever happened to your plain RHW bridges, particularly the ones that were just a copy of the el-RHW model? I came into a situation recently where they would have proved really handy.
they're around, but not quite done last i checked. just needs some modeling i believe..... :)
choco, there is a nice example of such a bridge described by Andreas in Croatia near Dubrovnik:
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fupload.wikimedia.org%2Fwikipedia%2Fcommons%2Fthumb%2F7%2F75%2FDubrovnik-F.Tudjman-Bridge.jpg%2F800px-Dubrovnik-F.Tudjman-Bridge.jpg&hash=8c2558821ed90045f6bf7ad307d8f68a0fb29edf)
The Wikipedia entry: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dubrovnik
The pic of the bridge in high resolution: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Dubrovnik-F.Tudjman-Bridge.jpg
I had been there once years ago on holiday in the last phase of its construction.
Before the bridge was built the situation was really funny: you actually saw the outskirts of Dubrovnik not more than 300 or 400m in front of you separated by a small fjyord but the signpost said "Dubrovnik - 21km" - of course our Bus made the 21km at that time ...
an excellent example of a bridge, Nardo69 :) sounds like that bridge was needed....they are definitely interesting from a structural standpoint.
i was working from a similar design implemented on the Rama VIII bridge (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rama_VIII_Bridge) in Bangkok, Thailand.....though scaled down a bit. these types of bridges need RULs, but they are actually straight-forward and quick to write.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Oct2151238846745.png&hash=7c178fd606543e112c957067e14c40814697805c)
i think a 2-tile highway bridge would be nice...... ;) though im not having much luck with the highway bridge RUL..... &mmm
That looks stunning &apls &apls
Absolutely stunning &apls &apls
:satisfied:
TTC
Nice one choco!
I just wonder about the amount of cables on the shorter side of the pylon - IMHO like the bridge at Dubrovnik there should be less cables on the shorter side especially because IRL these cable are (*censored*) expensive not only during construction but also to maintain.
Another question by me: I remember that Jeroni had big problems combining railway and highway on the Tsing Ma Bridge.
Combined road / railway bridges are really rarely to find these days - in Germany I know only one active bridge that is the bridge ove the Mosel at Bulay (http://de.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Datei:Bruecke_bulay.jpg&filetimestamp=20070730213138) where the railway uses the upper and the road the lower floor. Older bridges where railway and road shared one level where usually replaced by a sparate bridge or the railway line went out of service. An exception is the Rhinebridge at Wintersdorf (D) / Roeschwoog (F) that is now a road bridge but the railway line can be acivated within hours by the NATO.
On the other hand Tramways / GLR mostly pass bridges together with road bridges - even on the famous Galata Bridge in Istanbul.
So to avoid Jeroni's problems with the comnined railway / highway bridge I had the idea of an "eyecandy" GLr-in-Avenue-Bridge - just the texture show the GLR, the GLR istself goes underground by two special lots with transit switch GLR->Subway and vice versa.
Would it be very complicated to equip an existing avenue (or road bridge) with the GLR-in-Avenue (resp. GLR-in-road) textures?
Nice progress choco. I haven't had much time to mull through the technical implications of the bridge, but it's looking great. However, I notice that the RL pic Nardo posted has a significant anchor for the cables on the short side while this one seems to go right to the track (which would put a lot of stress). I know this is just a progress pic, but I was wondering if you had thought about making such an anchor for the bridge (and if you had had a chance to tinker with the Saltash RUL yet). Hope all is well.
-Matt
Quote from: Nardo69 on April 04, 2009, 07:41:01 AM
Another question by me: I remember that Jeroni had big problems combining railway and highway on the Tsing Ma Bridge.
Combined road / railway bridges are really rarely to find these days - in Germany I know only one active bridge that is the bridge ove the Mosel
Well, technically, the combined Tsing Ma Bridge actually works fine, but the problem is that the game considers it as congested even if there's virtually no traffic. For some reason (most likely because Maxis simply didn't think of this type of bridge), the traffic simulator can't assign a proper capacity to the bridge, so it's always very low. I guess you are aware of similar problems regarding the road-top mass transit stations (including the new SFBT stations), but at least those allow a high transit switch capacity value, whereas the double-decker bridge doesn't seem to recognize such a setting. I think combined bridges are mainly used at places where a very long span is needed (the bridge between Denmark and Sweden come into my mind), so building more than one bridge would be excessively expensive.
Actually - no.
Neither the combined road / rail bridge over the Mosel at Bullay nor for example the road / tramway bridge between Mainz and Wiesbaden over the river Rhine are "long-span".
If it is necessary to cross bigger rivers like e.G. the Rhine AFAIK tramway allways use bridges together with roads.
Even the Galata Bridge (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galata_Bridge) between Eminönü and Karaköy in Istanbul is not long span. When I had been in Istanbul in 2003 for the first time there was no tramway there and it was a pure road bridge, if I remember correctly it took only 2 years of construction for prolonging the tramway fro Eminönü over the Galata Bridge to Kabatas.
Todays Galatabridge:
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fupload.wikimedia.org%2Fwikipedia%2Fcommons%2Ff%2Fff%2FGalata_bridge_2006_3.JPG&hash=b9add7cfe7d0c9d8d48f5d24dc6ee352ab6a83ad)
It is a nice walk if you cross the bridge. In the lower floor there are dozens of restaurants and pubs ... ;)
Another example would be the Szabadság híd / Freedom Bridge (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberty_Bridge_(Budapest)) in Budaest. I am not sure if it is still a combined tramway / road bridge as I haven't been there since mre than 15 years but during my semester at the Technical University of Budapest I crossed that bridge by tram literally daily!
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fupload.wikimedia.org%2Fwikipedia%2Fcommons%2Fthumb%2F6%2F68%2FBudapest_Indipendence_Bridge.jpg%2F800px-Budapest_Indipendence_Bridge.jpg&hash=95690eb0421598ae8029ef39aa0ee94f3241aeb8)
The Szabadság híd / Freedom Bridge in Budapest
What I mean is a short or medium span river bridge, with a span in IRL of not more than 750-850m, within or close to an urban environment for cars and tramway - preferrably as GLR-in-Avenue.
Such a bridge is really missing in SC4.
I meant that combined Rail (not tram) and Road (or Highway) bridges are probably used only for long spans today, as it would be cheaper to build two separate bridges for rail and road for short spans (i. e. the various road and rail bridges in Frankfurt/Main). For trams, combined bridges are a logical step indeed, as the tram is embedded in the road/avenue anyway. Heavy rail, though, always runs separated from the road network, so combined (double-decker) bridges are only feasible for long spans, where the cost of the bridge is much higher than the one for the approach ramps.
last of the HSRP bridges...... ;D
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Oct2151238964134.png&hash=e61e9a29ffddbcea97fdaedc336696cab7884bd1)
Wow, that's looking awesome! &apls
Quote from: Nardo69 on April 04, 2009, 07:41:01 AM
Combined road / railway bridges are really rarely to find these days - in Germany I know only one active bridge that is the bridge ove the Mosel at Bulay (http://de.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Datei:Bruecke_bulay.jpg&filetimestamp=20070730213138) where the railway uses the upper and the road the lower floor. Older bridges where railway and road shared one level where usually replaced by a sparate bridge or the railway line went out of service. An exception is the Rhinebridge at Wintersdorf (D) / Roeschwoog (F) that is now a road bridge but the railway line can be acivated within hours by the NATO.
Well, there is also the one in Lisbon, 25th April Bridge. Built in 1962, it took 4 years until finish. Upon completion the bridge had the longest suspended span and the longest main span in Continental Europe, the world's longest continuous truss, and the world's deepest bridge foundation. It was the fifth largest suspension bridge in the world, the largest outside the USA. Today it is the 17th largest suspension bridge in the world.
It has 6 lanes, and two train tracks running beneath the road.
Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/25_de_Abril_Bridge)
Sweet :thumbsup:
Excuse me.....is there no LHD path for the HSR/GHSR bridge ?
I tried to use those bridge for my HSR in LHD but there are no path :-[
My knowledge regarding path files is rather limited, but if there are none, I guess they should be included in an LHD plugin. ebina has done the LHD development lately, maybe he has a better answer than me. :)
gardenwong: ebina posted a LHD update here (http://sc4devotion.com/forums/index.php?topic=7178.msg230274#msg230274)....
choco, excellent bridges, :thumbsup: I had to go start up my game last night to check these new ones out... and found a few problems. ;)
Namely...
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi188.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fz194%2Fdeathtopumpkins%2FEastIslandCounty-Jan13001239663978.png&hash=be1debcba6c8be4f76a77a993ea49715fdcedbd8)
hi dtp...looks like a little problem. looks like there are a couple older bridge files in there. there was some shuffling of the model ID's because i inadvertently duplicated some. i believe the problem here is that you have the older (probably beta) versions of my original HSR bridges.....the repeat piece in the pic is actually the start piece of the cable stayed HSR, and the start piece in the pic is the pillar of the concrete HSR bridge.
i would download and install the new updated HSR bridge pack to correct this. I made several improvements to LOD3 on most of the bridges (check the GHSR Truss bridge in zoom 2), so your files may be really outta date.
hope this helps.....
Also,will there any cable bridge for heavy rail :thumbsup:?
its in the plan.....GLR first though. ;)
Ahh but that's from your newest pack uploaded on the LEX. ;) And I believe I removed the beta files after the last NAM came out... oh, wait, nevermind, there's a few. :P They've been removed, though have all the bridges included in those original files you gave me been released? I believe I've built about all of them...
yup, they're all there. you'll probably see the models changing similar to the above issue, but the exemplar ID has not changed so there will be no ill effects on the city tile, other than broken paths. so you may wanna pause the simulator and rebuild any bridges you have already laid.
i have one more monorail bridge that didn't get uploaded.... ()sad()
Quote from: choco on April 14, 2009, 12:43:16 PM
i have one more monorail bridge that didn't get uploaded.... ()sad()
Uhh, did I miss one?! &ops
it was a quick blurb in the update planning thread.....the cable props were on my work PC, and i didn't get them until today. i was about to PM ya and let ya know if testing was ok.
sorry ()sad()
Ah, now I remember. Well, it's not that the bridge cannot be uploaded/updated later. :)
small update.....for big things. ()stsfd()
yup, its floating.....no transit textures.....heck, its even a low quality BAT render. but, there is some significance to this picture.....which im sure will make everyone very happy down the road.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Frhw10.png&hash=49d038663eff19466bcd0c2b4224bbc5498ea12f)
Very nice arch there Choco. Curious to know the method you chose to put it all together (t21s?). At any rate, even for a draft render, it looks like a fine design.
-Matt
similar to the Tsingma.....BAT the entire piece, and use blanks where the other pieces should be. the arch pillar pieces are 32m wide by 112m long.....or 2x7 tiles. ;D
the trick here is that each piece needs to be BAT'ed in a specific orientation over 0,0,0 to ensure the paths get rotated correctly.
im'ma be fixing this BAT, plus a couple others this week....6S needs resized.....yada yada. i get quite a bit done when spending a week in a hotel. ;)
This one has been quite time consuming......but the BAT is almost there. Next time you'll be seeing this, it'll be crossing a river near you! :thumbsup:
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fbridgesandbox-Mar29031240862540.png&hash=38f259d1564f54c482cceee2f5abab2b367f5e8e)
Any luck with the start/end shadows? I think I found out how they're applied, but if I'm right then I'm not sure what would be causing your problem. Let me know what you come up with.
-Matt
not much.....i really need some time to do exhaustive testing. i know some things that are not causing it, but that does little to help. &mmm
the TID and GID for shadows are the always the same, and the IID then defines which piece the shadow is for. shadow remapping is how we can assign shadows without making a shadow for every piece.....which is why this is so puzzling.
to make matters worse; during early testing, i've found the number of missing shadows is random....yet they will appear sometimes depending on which game view orientation....N,S,E,W.
there's some additional "arguments" when remapping shadows, so i need to experiment there for a bit.....but it's not likely i'll get this fixed for the new controller. ()sad()
well, i wasn't going to show this....but it turned out fairly well. extremely tedious, but the results of adding the textures directly to the model are well worth it. furthermore, i figured out a way to use the default RHW10 textures for these bridges....so i dont think we'll need symmetrical textures. this means, that any RHW texture mod will automatically update the bridges as well.....so those worldwide will not have to deal with american textures on your bridges..... ;)
please dont mind the lights......it was a simultaneous test to figure out these T21's......
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Oct23011241466463.png&hash=17864990e37922793fd79ef2e7e7e1e077847cb1)
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Oct20011241466450.png&hash=5b5e7cd9b46719a7b924e476b96f31e0d19f55d3)
Nice choco! :thumbsup: Can't wait to use these wider RHW bridges.
And that's a neat thing you figured out with the textures... it sure will be nice for people with international textures.
So... How will the RHW 10 and the bridge connect if it is a Maxis Highway Bridge (transit not texture ;))?
Maybe with an overhanging lot :-\
Possibly... But then the bridge would not function properly.
Drift
If it has proper paths and if it's modded correctly it will function properly ;)
OMG Choco that is amazing!!! I cant wait to see you complete the pathing on this bridge!!!!
in so far as connecting these bridges, i think there will be an override written. since i can't RUL, this is in the hands of others atm. the NAM contains no lots, so another solution was required; and there's already a good amount of puzzle pieces...... ;)
Pat: well, howdy stranger! i'd love to show a pic of the pathing, but my laptop is hosed. i have to recover the data pronto or risk losing the last months work. USB ports dont work, wireless is down, and DVD writer wont recognize discs.....
basically, the bridge uses a single path file with 3 paths going 1-3 (N-S), and 2 paths from 3-1(S-N). this just means the rotation of the piece is 180 degrees different, allowing ony a small texture replacement for the rotated pieces. i looks very busy with drawpaths on.....
once i get back to the BAT, im going to try my hand with nightlights.....i was planning on starting the nightlight update for all the bridges soon.....provided i dont lose all my source files.... &mmm
Hey any chance you ca create a bridge with a hump in the middle? Like the 7 Mile Bridge in the Florida Keys? Could you create it for a road?
Nice bridge. &apls A wonderful candidate for the bridge type that is on top of my wishing list: a GLR-in-Avenue bridge ... ;)
BTW....
I don't know much about bridge engineering in Sc4 but would it be a big problem to turn the two covered road bridges (ingame + the one from Threestooges) into street bridges? IMHO they are not the best choice as road bridges but both would fit a hole as a street bridge (maybe even with SAM functionality ...)
Take care my friend!
Bernhard :thumbsup:
You ask a very good question with the covered bridges Bernhard. I have a street bridge for my covered one, but I've yet to release it (and I think it needs some editing now anyway) mainly because we have not yet found a way to get SAM textures to automatically conform to bridge textures. If that gap can be bridged (so to speak) there will certainly be some street bridges coming. The main issue right now is that, to have SAM bridges, you would essentially need one for each texture which would overwhelm the menu, though it's not outside the realm of possibility.
As for the Game Covered Bridge, I don't know about changing the road texture on the model (except perhaps with a t21 override, but I can't make head nor tail of those, perhaps choco might know), but it should be possible to get one working as a street bridge. Correct me if I'm wrong choco, but it should just be a matter of copying the bridge model files into a new exemplar, or having the exemplar reference the proper model files.
-Matt
Driftmaster07: i was giving it some thought, and may implement it in a current design......there is some extra syntax in the RUL to figure out, and a amny, many models to create. for the time being, i'm working on RHW....but those bridges can be easily ported to other networks. :)
Nardo69: thanks! perhaps i'll create a little experiment...... ;)
to convert the covered bridges would be relatively easy.....if the existing transit texture doesn't bleed thru the additional flat model i'd have to add, then there shouldn't be any other problems. SAM functionality is an altogether different problem, but it may be possible with some RULing.
threestooges: you about covered it.....
i'll run a test to see if the textures bleed thru....
edit: ok, so the DVD burner will burn CD's.....better than nothing i guess.....
the paths for the RHW10...
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fpathings.png&hash=78d8f70f2806682d7b23ed9313201f2c21841f78)
here's the test i explained above. these's a few glitches, but otherwise there isn't much to it.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fbridgesandbox-Mar29031243214011.png&hash=ac6f9d889109ac16279490cda72fff34400ef718)
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Quote from: threestooges on May 24, 2009, 03:29:30 PM
The main issue right now is that, to have SAM bridges, you would essentially need one for each texture which would overwhelm the menu, though it's not outside the realm of possibility.
Well, you don't need a bridge for every SAM style that is available now - dirt road bridges don't make much sense, and of course we don't need a "parking lot bridge" either. So it's maybe three or four bridges (asphalt, cobblestone, red brick) which are feasible.
LoL Choco I know been a busy bee lately lol...... Looking good and is that the bridge that was on the laptop btw lol ;)
@ Andreas: I'd say a dirt road bridge would actually make sense to some extend;
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.roadsites.org%2Flosthwy%2Fimages%2Fwhiskey_road_bridge_06.jpg&hash=ec8ca0b909968bd342a9b848f4c6d187c5400005)
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.roadsites.org%2Flosthwy%2Fimages%2Fwhiskey_road_bridge_05.jpg&hash=35e99fc8e4e58f2ca964f2635d913499c555f0de)
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2F205.155.126.101%2Fscott%2FSpringValleyRoadBridge01-20-07_018.jpg&hash=797f082c9e3f6cc69b406173b93b7636b756839e)
All pictures courtesy to their respective owners.
Okay, maybe such bridges would look extremely unrealistic with a very long span, but I'd say that using them to cross smaller creeks would certainly be useful.
Your bridge designs are really nice, I've been using many of them in various cities of mine, and I like the outcome of them all. I'm looking forward to the release of many, many more!
@caspervg: Yes, this particular bridge "style" would make sense indeed, but I mainly wanted to point out that a bridge with a dirt road texture on it would look a bit odd. ;)
Pat: unfortunately, they all were. i travel alot, and mostly work on a notebook. it was a good while since i backed up, so i would have been back to the March release files.....no worries now... :)
caspervg: thank you!
Andreas: its not like we're running out of ID's....so i dont see much of a problem either. with Matt's new model, we could have roughly 4 styles, say 4 or 5 SAM texture variations.....giving a nice selection for users to choose from. i tend to use a different SAM texture per region, so it was something i was going to come across sooner or later (if i actually played the game anymore.... :D).....
Oh there's no likelihood of running short on IDs any time soon. I'm just thinking of the practicality of scrolling through 4 bridges for each style. Granted, you'd only need to install the ones you'd want to use, and then there aren't many street bridges out there as it is. I'll just need to get ahold of the textures. I remember there was some way to do that with the SC4Tool I think, but I can't remember how.
-Matt
I'd actually quite like dirt road bridges.
It could work for Peg's dirt roads and trolca's dirt roads if you used a wooden plank texture like the bridges shown in the pics
Quote from: threestooges on May 26, 2009, 01:34:26 AM
Granted, you'd only need to install the ones you'd want to use, and then there aren't many street bridges out there as it is.
hehe.....well, it is my job to clog those menus..... :)
i'll get to the technical bits soon, but im thinking of adding the flat model at +0.3m, then offsetting (via exemplar) the Z height of the models -0.3m, as to remove the graphic glitches. at that point, its just copying the exemplars and changing a couple values.
i'll start with my street bridge and make a set, and we can all pow wow on how we'd like to implement it. :)
Sounds like a plan there choco. I didn't know that offset would remove the glitches, but that'll make a (reasonably) quick fix for things.
Quote from: choco on May 26, 2009, 05:41:39 AM
hehe.....well, it is my job to clog those menus..... :)
That's the spirit, and that right there is why you deserve that little CML thingy.
this one was too easy..... ;)
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Jul21001243464012.png&hash=32f325b9a7de7a1b6be8d7cf7b3285f451da3ef8)
Just pass along the exemplars you used, I'll update the files. Need any help altering any more (or would you mind passing along how it's done)?
-Matt
Will do......only need to reserve exemplar ID's......as I just used the changed the 5th value of the IIDs for the model to make each unique.....hence why i said this one was too easy.
its a fairly simple process.....
in making them usable with each other, i simply made copies of the existing rural bridge and changed the texture value in the reader.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Freader-1.jpg&hash=047d0323b2cd5b802ceff4ce04ff8e2de81ae50d)
here, we would need to change the group 1 texture (above, 0x58450304) to the SAM texture we want, according to:
0x5E54Bx0y, where x = SAM texture # (2 herringbone, 4 gravel, etc.) and y = zoom level (0-4, 4 being 128x128). its very tedious though, as this must be dont for every s3d file, all rotation and all zooms.
the rest of the modding is just changing the IID's for the models, path files, T21's, and exemplar to make them unique, as well as pointing to the correct pieces. here i just changed the 5th digit to make the modding quick and easy....another benefit by using this method is that we only need one set of FSH files for all the bridges since the s3d's are all copied from the same file (thus, the texture ID for Group 0 will always be the same). this means that these bridges are lighter than the original, 145kB to ~750KB respectively, but have the original bridge as a dependency.
i can be more specific about all the steps if ya like..... :)
haven't came up with a solution for the auto-override-texture.....or how ever ya wanna say it. ???
i need to fix the double-stacked flat model, but it otherwise turned out fairly well.....
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Feb2181243644774.png&hash=efbdef0c8dee52193d2979f8f517be14e2b45862)
choco wow simply stunning what more can I say???
Splendid choco. I'll have the lists updated with these soon enough. I'll try to work through the process myself on my covered bridge (seems simple enough, yet grusomely repetitive, heh heh) and if I have any questions I'll shoot them your way. Do you happen to use MSN Messenger?
-Matt
AMAZING!!!!!!!
im going to have to spend some more time with the color correction here.....
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Feb27011243718969.png&hash=d597cda288b04c5c29d423ee25fbcc1ac3389adc)
that is awesome, and the efect is strange, probably due to the terain texture changing, it sems that the road nearer the bridges is darker.....especially on the lighter textures :D
Joe
absolutely stunning
Pretty soon, this game is going to look like nothing compared to the original
QuotePretty soon, this game is going to look like nothing compared to the original
EXACTLY! You know I really wonder what EA thinks about what has happend to this game. Also here are a few pics (examples) of a few bridge requests for the RHW 2 (if you accept requests of course).
7 Mile bridge hump. (For a straight bridge.)
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.castle-european.com%2Fimages%2F7-Mile-bridge-ed-web.jpg&hash=64697d7b433afc448e079c229a3eaad748714ff8)
Old 7 Mile bridge. With way different truss underneath than Maxis one (completely hollow).
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.sun-sentinel.com%2Fmedia%2Fphoto%2F2006-05%2F23344267.jpg&hash=9ad7f6a9aadf149a6c415356d27cc2a4589190e7)
Bahia Honda bridge. Rail truss with top converted for vehicle traffic. Also the truss undernath terminates at embankment. NOTE: Bridge must have a pre-set elevation for correct termination of unused rail lines underneath. I could not find one good image so here are three that demonstrate what the bridge is. Also if you decide to make the bridge, ingnore the gaps! :P
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2F1.bp.blogspot.com%2F_oPe97virjyY%2FRirTGIlw6pI%2FAAAAAAAAAgs%2F2FWpUhN2WKM%2Fs400%2FBahia%2BHonda%2BBride019.JPG&hash=48619344c9cd9f419aab8846f7a96a43e6e5e164)
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.polizzifamily.com%2Ftrips%2Fbridges%2Fpix%2520bahia%2520honda%2F040306%2520keys%2520picnic%2520bahia%2520honda%2520bridge%252001.jpg&hash=dd279172ae5935d2f6327507df9a11aff0b8c254)
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2F2.bp.blogspot.com%2F_gP9GcIrRlbg%2FSBEtEXRFAuI%2FAAAAAAAAAmI%2F3dK9MBx6BWM%2Fs400%2Fbahia%2Bhonda%2Bbridge%2C%2Bsouth%2Bflorida.jpg&hash=8f599f3ce8f4396cd68b46a9dca4a9e3164cb270)
Driftmaster07: i have looked into variable deck heights a bit, and really have only one reservation when constructing one.....
as with the current raised bridges, it takes a large number of models.....RHW2 would be better since the pieces could be rotated, but even then i figure 9 models for that bridge.....and it would look rather boxy unless more pieces were used. &mmm
it may be much easier to write a RUL, though....i haven't yet used the syntax, but there's additional arguments that maybe allow a Z-offset for models, which would reduce the number of models needed. i have another bridge ready to test the theory, so lets see how that goes.
in writing this post though, i might have a much quicker (and simpler) solution.... &idea
Actually the rail underneath was abandoned to build road on top of it after the 35' Hurricane so that would not be so tough of an issue for having two networks on top of each other. Just the bottom half would be sort of eycandy I guess.
a little something new....remodeled from around page 4 or 5, and not even close to done....
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Dec26011243963127.png&hash=e945a6d674931eaa499cd2d436f45359377b47ca)
and the visual difference of an HD bridge piece....just the pillar model here was over 2.5MB.....so its not very practical.... &mmm
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Feb15021243960696.png&hash=cce08b53d94608f06e6ceab19522b1a9b8760f1d)
OMG this is awesome although it's large in size!
Wow! That is awesome! It kinda looks like Sunshine Skyway Bridge. Great work! &apls &apls &apls
here's one for the guru's.....
i know very little about the lighting engine. the problems obvious.....the solution, not so much.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fbridgesandbox-Mar29031243979127.png&hash=fb6e575b02185b14e27efa9995d4021d3d25c29c)
what really bothers me is there is no power supplied to the bridge..... %confuso
Whoa , my eyeballs jumped out and ran over to your Bridge creation on your computer to see if its real , lol :thumbsup: $%Grinno$%
That lighting on ur Smart bridge looks futuristic in a sense :D ;D
I haven't actually experimented with it, but I don't think bridges need power to be lit. Either way, did you add the lights in the BAT or via some other method? If it was in the BAT, mind posting a shot from it showing the light cones and such?
-Matt
no BAT lights in this model, just T21'd maxis streetlights. yet, i think the issue is in the flat model/texture ID, or something along those lines.
i first noticed this....
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Apr4021244051527.png&hash=c2e976e90b8bd534194605cb4b2e92b64d694de2)
the regular street bridge is fine....all the SAM textures exhibit the problem (preview model maybe?).....
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Dec9011244144619.png&hash=9fc02da7fd76c988549101bd929fccc44703117a)
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Dec18011244144640.png&hash=4001047d5460f77a99a2ae3dfe664a21d1c67d95)
the concrete street bridge above uses the same flat models as the rural bridge, only a different texture IID. i have to wonder if this is the result of the way the SAM is implemented. i ultimately have no idea though, and am just speculating.
Huh... this one's out of my league. Never seen that before. Wonder if some other folks might have an idea...
Huh? I wonder... It looks like you have a T intersection for the bridges. Although you didn't put that there.
wow...gotta hate that...i would assume an id conflict also but really have no idea.
i know how to work the issue out....it'll just be time consuming, since i'm horrible at texture editing.
at least this one doesn't suffer rogue texture problems....
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Mar21021244051470.png&hash=0b7c8ec8644e34dc9b8d22bd924cfeafa3c7183b)
that looks great!
It looks great, regardless of texture color!
looking good Choco
Gonna make any more bridges?
it has been quiet here as of late, but i assure you i never really stopped.....
the last month has been some rather boring work manually editing s3d files trying to correct some visual glitches i wasn't able to fix in the BAT. i have one more bridge to finish, then i'll resume BATing for GLR. :thumbsup:
OK. Just makin' sure you aren't done! :P
oh, dont worry.....i have quite a looooong roadmap planned out. ;) just wish i was a better BATer...
this isn't anything really new, but now that i've learned some better modding practices and techniques, i'm finding that much of my old work could use some updating.
for example, i made these quite some time ago...
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fbridgesandbox-Mar29031240595773.png&hash=abe26ed17b4a8eead55fd18dabc236a56ef5197c)
at that time, i had no idea how to edit s3d files......so i just used a BAT prop and added it to the existing model via T21 to extend the pillar (the maxis default pillars look awful).
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Mar20001236098300.png&hash=ac8e730281bcc41df6224d55017e2b7885d3b12f)
so when i revisited those files a few weeks ago, i had a better idea to make them much more appealing. as was shown in the RHW thread....
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Mar17001246574670.png&hash=98bc987bd944838960bab3a14fa05401dec2eac3)
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Mar17001246578681.png&hash=faadaa36ba8bc7ccfb35f1b34e4f2a862df1c63f)
even here, they're still not completely done. the gap in the pillars at the beginning (and end) of the bridge has been fixed.
many of the other bridges already released could benefit from some re-work, but it'll be awhile before i get to it. too many networks are still neglected at this point... ;)
Looks good! :thumbsup:
Looks Impressive , can't wait for it :thumbsup:
When will you release some of the SAM Bridges? Im dying to use them!
when they're ready... ;) actually, i need to finish the documentation......
finally something new, but not pretty. work has begun on the RHW-8 bridge, so the models are very simple at this point. my main objective here was to get the basic models done, and start writing the RUL. the top bridge is how it would look otherwise.... :thumbsdown:
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fbridgesandbox-Mar29031248644595.png&hash=a5ca8e29535062c3fe9f94845a3a313e092cdefd)
once the modding is done, i'll finish the BAT.
:thumbsup:
Good job! :thumbsup: But why are there Maxis Highways connected to it?
^ Because it actually is a maxis highway bridge :P
Why? How are we gonna connect the RHW 8 to a Maxis Highway?
Probably because there isn't other way ;) And because the highway bridges have the biggest capacity.
Driftmaster07: in thinking about it a minute, it'll make sense. the wide RHW networks cannot be made with the RHW tool because 2 bridges cannot be built side by side.....there must be a tile in between. so, we have to use another network that can make 2-tile wide bridges....which leaves Ave, HWY, and GHWY. the GHWY (and HWY, i guess) network has a capacity similar to the wide RHW's (as io_bg described), so that is the network we have decided to use.
this leaves the connection.....but the RHW8 bridge wont be connected to the Maxis highway. it'll be connected to RHW8, as will each respective bridge of each respective RHW. this is in the skillful hands of other NAMites, as I haven't learned to use the any RULs beyond the bridge RULs.
Oh. I see. :-[
Hope to see more cable bridge for heavy rail :thumbsup:
^ i almost forgot i had some rail bridges in the works....may have to speak with some RAM members about that.... ;D
more than a year old:
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fbridgesandbox-Nov6001233411673.png&hash=9e88a2647ce60522ef5de5f2ecd094113706b41e)
GLR:
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fglrt.jpg&hash=abbd5a475c89456a87488c733df8db254228140d)
these may actually work given that i've learned quite a bit since these were modeled. :thumbsup:
El. RHW-4 brigdes? I got a toothache from all the sweetness! :thumbsup:
Absolutely love both the rail bridges. Hope they become available soon.
---Gaston
so, after toiling many extra, needless hours modding on an old laptop.....i finally got an upgarde with a bit of power now. :P export times have vastly improved....
....which allowed me to get this model re-worked.....
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Sep18001249238483.png&hash=a5edfb89a0606ffe5bbd60967558c4cdcdc38774)
Been checking out the new stuff...love them! And this is no exception...can't wait to try it out..of course since I have not been using the RHW until the last few days , I'm still learning!(Yeah , I know how pathetic it sounds , I've been more of a road/ave guy..hence the mods for those.) I have a lot to learn getting used to it!
Jayson
and the rest of my contributions to the RHW project.....work here is done for the most part, with some minor things to correct here and there (actually, a fairly old pic....)
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Mar17001246636690.png&hash=8e0d1d6cce1bc671acf619b872c1b33231830362)
time to get back to GLR and RAM; although, i have a couple other things in mind for RHW as well..... ;)
Do you know something we don't? I see a RHW-3! ()stsfd()
I think your bridges are looking bettter and better every time you do another. These are coming out looking phenomenal!!
&apls
Robin :thumbsup:
Is that a RHW-3 I see!!!!!!!
Quote from: Driftmaster07 on July 28, 2009, 08:49:37 AM
Why? How are we gonna connect the RHW 8 to a Maxis Highway?
solution? just drag the RHW tool into it....no need for puzzle pieces. ;D
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Jun14021250081470.png&hash=c7217a3450932f76513a39fb51e44d74d7f0553a)
Cool,But i'm still confused on how this is going to work ()what()
no problem, i think pics may be easier to see it.....the setup is most important. the starter pieces do not have to be this close to work, as this is simply a demonstration.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2F1.png&hash=c301e7bc1c36268aae08a8d46b443ed932413f2d)
bulldoze the GHWY back till only one tile is left. this tile must be left or the bridge will be destroyed.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2F2.png&hash=cf6120fdcf9ac9d48911e8f4bba82df678349858)
drag from the starter into the GWHY tile.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2F3.png&hash=6990575c798a6ae009c984fd63959c06ddcb61b2)
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2F4.png&hash=8672965acc963649de85393ea3363ab368419efb)
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2F5.png&hash=02cbf45da748df5592661c80b41ee37d65f263ce)
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2F6-1.png&hash=4cfe176ebf202a1428534ba6982e94da2e4606d4)
the override is dependent on the network that intersects the GHWY tile. RHW4, RHW8, and RHW10 bridges will most likely funtion this way.
that is AWESOME! thankyou so much.
That's brilliant! Nice work, choco! (I'm sure the members of the RHW team also deserve some credit - props to them too!)
Quote from: woodb3kmaster on August 14, 2009, 03:36:27 PM
I'm sure the members of the RHW team also deserve some credit - props to them too!
certainly! i just kinda built upon the work of the others.. im still not really sure how it works though.... :)
so while things are winding down a bit, i've found a couple other files that needed the dust blown off.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fbridgesandbox-Oct10011236530033.png&hash=bffe76b5cc1306cce210a5f3dda00a3ddc7c2ba5)
hopefully, i can properly address the needs of these models now. ;D
Your bridges are amazing :) Great work.
Fantastic work you these bridges so far choco....espically the RHW ones since it will obviously add tons more functionality to the RHW across city tiles
Been waiting for that one! ;D ;D ;D
thanks for the kind words, all! i really never dreamed i'd get this far..... :thumbsup:
well, a little bit more to do on this one, so critique as necessary. im thinking the x-truss on the side will be redone with a bit more realism, but otherwise..... :-\
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Sep22051250707538.png&hash=805d0025be25a276c72787061ab8552691c30244)
Only thought I have, and even that's a miniscule one, is that it seems a bit large, If it's designed for a longer stretch I would expect to see a heftier frame like it has, but it's about 2x3 times the height of the rail cars. Most bridges I've seen usually have just enough space for the train to pass to save on materials. Aside from that, looks great.
-Matt
excellent point.....this model is pretty old, before i really knew what i was doing in BAT. shouldn't be too hard to rescale it.
thanks for the input :thumbsup:
Yeah, but it looks good otherwise!
I'm not too fond of the orange wood texture but otherwise it is great keep going :)
Yeah, threestooges has a good point. A rescale on that would really look good on that bridge.
Critiques/constructive criticism:
Maybe darker structural textures (most truss bridges I've seen are black or a dark, rusty red); the decking is also typically black or a very dark brown. I think that bridge would make a good STR bridge if it were rescaled, too. It does look good, though, don't get me wrong. :thumbsup:
Quote from: choco on August 02, 2009, 11:48:57 AM
so, after toiling many extra, needless hours modding on an old laptop.....i finally got an upgarde with a bit of power now. :P export times have vastly improved....
....which allowed me to get this model re-worked.....
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Sep18001249238483.png&hash=a5edfb89a0606ffe5bbd60967558c4cdcdc38774)
"too awesome" :o :thumbsup:
choco, is this already available on the LEX?
No. I think it will be in the next RHW (V4).
actually... can I suggest a more less rusty version of that golden truss bridge? Maybe a splash of other colours could help a little too.
@ allan. Personally i love it as is :thumbsup:, but more choice is even better. ::)
@ Driftmaster. I don't think so, because choco is "indipendent" from RHW Project and he can release his works when he wants.
vinlabsc3k: he is technically independent of RHW and the NAM to some extent, but the nature of bridge design requires some level of integration with the RHW and NAM. At present, I am not sure if the bridges are compatible with the current version of the RHW. If they are, he may release them, if not he will likely have to wait until an updated rellease of the NAM/RHW that incorporates his bridge info. Hope that helps.
got busy in here.... ;D
Quote from: Leodido on August 30, 2009, 11:18:35 PM
I'm not too fond of the orange wood texture but otherwise it is great keep going :)
thanks for the feedback.....nice new wooden planks dont really go with the motif of an old rail bridge, in thinkin about it. :thumbsup:
Quote from: meinhosen on August 31, 2009, 09:41:24 AM
Maybe darker structural textures (most truss bridges I've seen are black or a dark, rusty red); the decking is also typically black or a very dark brown. I think that bridge would make a good STR bridge if it were rescaled, too.
i'll see what i can find.....im still not very good with textures, as im still learning how to use GIMP. insofar as STR, i've got lots of other plans for that as well. im trying not to use the same model twice, until i get the entire collection completed (which includes some RAM bridges, GLR, and EL-Rail). at that point, i may go back and remod some that are requested. thanks for the input... ;)
Quote from: Driftmaster07 on September 03, 2009, 05:11:41 PM
No. I think it will be in the next RHW (V4).
that is indeed the intention....need to get my act together tho, RL is hitting and i need to prepare my home for winter yet... :P
Quote from: allan_kuan1992 on September 03, 2009, 09:20:12 PM
actually... can I suggest a more less rusty version of that golden truss bridge? Maybe a splash of other colours could help a little too.
i think texture mods would be fairly simple with bridges.....so, its a possibility. the rustic nature of this bridge comes from the area in which i live, which has a wide array of old, unkempt rusty bridges since they were all built many decades ago....
Quote from: vinlabsc3k on September 03, 2009, 11:53:04 PM
I don't think so, because choco is "indipendent" from RHW Project and he can release his works when he wants.
i would say i 'work' independently, but threestooges is correct here....i just make the bridges and let the others decide if they want to include them in the NAM. however, im the only dedicated bridge builder at the moment, since others are much more skilled at transit modding than I. the actual uploads are done by the NAM team, as I do not have upload rights to the LEX.
in the case of the RHW bridges, they require some RUL changes to connect the RHW network to the bridges which are based on the Maxis ground highway network, i.e. RHW-8 and RHW-10. so to release them now would be extremely frustrating to everyone since they would effectively be "eye-candy" only.... :)
Quote from: threestooges on September 04, 2009, 01:13:58 AM
the nature of bridge design requires some level of integration with the RHW and NAM.
too true....i think Alex lobbied to add me to the team so i wouldn't keep bothering him every time i needed something.... :D in all seriousness, i am constantly making changes to the network INI file, which is pivotal to adding new bridges and the final finishing touches, like shadows and complex RULs. doing this work would have been very difficult to maintain at this pace without help from the NAM team. :thumbsup:
I mean what threestooges said :'(, but i'm not good in english ()what()
Any chance we will see a release of the bridges you made soon?
soon is a relative term.... ;) but yes, everything displayed here will be released.
RL just kicked me to the curb yesterday, so i may have some more "free" time coming up. im working on quite a few files at the moment, so it's gonna take some time to work out the bugs.
choco, I wouldn't take that....kick RL back.
Your bridges are great and I patiently wait for them.
Robin :thumbsup:
Sorry to hear that choco, but I'm with Robin, kick it back. Hope you're able to get things straightened out soon, but until then, we'll be here if you ever want to chat or if you have a new project in the works.
-Matt
Damn that evil RL :D hope you atleast get something good out of it...and come back whenever you feel like you can
I cant wait for your bridges though :D
thanks for the encouragement! :thumbsup: i knew it was coming, it was just a matter of when. i do have the option to relocate, but i'm not so sure I want to go at this point. it was a messy deal, needless to say. i contemplated a change of industries a few years ago when i first moved to back Pennsylvania, which is again what i am faced with now. With 10 good years working as a Mechanical Engineer in the semiconductor industry, I'm fairly confident I can find my niche elsewhere. I was starting to get burned out from all the travel anyway, so this may be better in the long run. everyone is confronted with choices in life.....how we react to those is what defines us as individuals. :)
im still excited about the future, and may have the free time i need to get thru this collection of models I've amassed. ;) im sorry for such a long wait on these bridges, but I hope the time will be worth it. I started on another RHW bridge, since I may have the time now to finish it.
basically, a second iteration of the model. you can still see a small issue with the LOD if ya look close.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Mar30101254665725.png&hash=eaf6066ce43d19b6b81b3b69e4f4e125d7c9daa7)
much of this year has been exploring different methods to prevent glitches. i'm finding that some geometries create LODs that are far too complex, or cause obstructions to the transit texture s3d added later on (as shown above). hopefully, the final effect will be some good looking bridges....both during day and night. :thumbsup:
Ooh! Looks like the bridge at Alton county (http://files.myopera.com/musickna/albums/648718/alton%20bridge2.jpg). Just a little of course. ;)
I think you ment : Alton county (http://files.myopera.com/musickna/albums/648718/alton%20bridge2.jpg).
---Gaston
Yeah I just fixed it. ;) Waaaaaaaaaaaaay too early in the morning. :D
:D i think i have that model lying around somewhere, but i knew nothing about editing s3d files at the time. may have to go back and have a look..... ;)
Im sure it will be! It looks great already! Also is it possible to create a bridge with a sort of rise like the Sunshine Skyway Bridge? Like the gentle slope instead of the steep Maxis one? Pics:
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.johnweeks.com%2Fcablestay%2Fpics%2Fskyway09.jpg&hash=f783a37828404101d29d3e7ecf84d833b19649a2)
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi47.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Ff194%2Frickasells%2Fskyway.jpg&hash=5b4ea33a4c6527480f650e8639c72a04142c218c)
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.fhwa.dot.gov%2Fbridge%2Fimages%2Fsegbr08.jpg&hash=8374ea251339fe103cdc7a496189a5976053d78c)
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.esf-protrainer.com%2FmyPictures%2FTampa%2FSkyline%2520Bridge.jpg&hash=9b0a6f918e995efb391a0952be15042bdacdc537)
Quote from: Driftmaster07 on October 07, 2009, 06:43:09 PM
Also is it possible to create a bridge with a sort of rise like the Sunshine Skyway Bridge?
sure is.... ;)
the sloped transit models already exist in the form of the ground highway -> elevated highway transition in the NAM. it would take some work to prepare the models though....
the bridge im considering is the Rio Antirio Bridge (http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/77/Rio_Antirio_dsc06218.jpg) in Greece. I first wanted to use the model for the RHW, but later decided to use another. i spent a good deal of time on the model thus far, and dont want to just abandon it. &mmm
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fbridgesandbox-Mar29031248618758.png&hash=7cae8f1bab9cfeb23356662a2e7dde1a70e420a5)
there is some extra syntax in the bridge RUL's that allows for the vertical offset of models, which i believe is the solution for bridges of this type. but alas, that's a frontier i haven't explored quite yet. i've discovered that i made alot of mistakes over the past couple months, and am spending the time to go back and do it right.
Hey! That looks good!
small progress report.....
got the RUL working, except the extra syntax to adjust the Z-height of the models....which would enable bridges like the sunshine skyway to be built. the deck of the Rio Antirio is much the same as well, so i'll try to figure out what im doing wrong.
here's the test pic of the trial bridge.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Sep12001257521861.png&hash=c56b39cd268222159aae95a5ba68aa9877cf4a71)
Oh that is SWEEEEET!!! :o
Thankyou choco :)
Joe
Great Trail pic is this for RHW or Maxis?
What a lovely bridge! I see you're making it for one of the highway networks, although the above posts don't make it all that clear whether you're making it for the RHW or MHW. Would it be too much trouble to make an avenue version?
MHW, elevated.....is the plan..... :)
insofar as avenue, its possible.....not really all that hard to do, but just time consuming reader work. are you set on this model, or are ya just looking for other avenue bridges?
Well, I'm looking to replace a Maxis cable-stayed bridge with your new bridge due to a graphics bug with that particular bridge (see the latest update to my MD [via my signature] if you want to know what this bug looks like) and your model is just so appealing. If it's too much trouble to produce an avenue version, I'd be content to just upgrade that bridge to a MHW.
Drooooool.
Those bridges...must...have...them.
Seriously, choco, this is amazing. I can't wait to get my hands on RHW10 bridges!
zack: i see, perhaps the easiest way would be a mod to replace the Maxis pillar with the Rio Antirio model? that could be done fairly easily....
otherwise, the models for the approach pieces would have to be replaced to completely convert the bridge over to avenue (the pieces shown above are recycled from the Level Highway Bridge). this is not that difficult either, but im not sure which models could be used to replace them.
i'd like to keep the Rio Bridge as MHW for general circulation, as it was one of the first requests i received from a member who took quite a bit of time to help me early on in my modding venture. without cogeo's vast knowledge and willingness to help, i likely wouldn't be where i am now.
another thing i just thought of was work that smoncrie introduced earlier, in his Fixing Maxis Bridges (http://sc4devotion.com/forums/index.php?topic=8301.msg258944#msg258944) thread. this would fix the color issue, but not the asymmetrical number of the cables.
Quote from: choco on November 11, 2009, 09:00:22 AM
zack: i see, perhaps the easiest way would be a mod to replace the Maxis pillar with the Rio Antirio model? that could be done fairly easily....
another thing i just thought of was work that smoncrie introduced earlier, in his Fixing Maxis Bridges (http://sc4devotion.com/forums/index.php?topic=8301.msg258944#msg258944) thread. this would fix the color issue, but not the asymmetrical number of the cables.
That actually sounds like a good idea. It would save me the trouble of rebuilding the bridge, if I understand your reply correctly. I greatly appreciate your willingness to consider doing this for me, seeing as you don't intend to release an avenue version of Rio Antirio to the general public. You need not fulfill my request right away; feel free to finish up the release version of the bridge first, at whatever pace you're comfortable with.
Love that bridge!
looky what i found.....
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Oct7071258746840.png&hash=00640e2be4d85b6029b4d3e519a7fb6b15fbf675)
was perusing the Maxis .dats and found this unused piece.....can't help but wonder why they'd model it and not use it.... &mmm anyway, i was thinking of writing a RUL for this bridge, which would add an approach span and reduce the number of pillars....
however, i'd like to gauge the public interest beforehand....any thoughts or concerns would surely be appreciated. :thumbsup:
that would be awesome, (could you include the RUL's in the NAM? being that all the rest of the stuff is already there)
Joe
thats the caveat....if a RUL is written, it'd be contained in the NAM Bridge Controller, and thus may affect users that prefer the current configuration. i guess i'll write the RUL and post pics for everyone to compare. the other option would be to just create another bridge, allowing both bridges to be built at the same time. :-\
Perhaps you could create the RUL as a cosmetic patch? I.E., when you install the NAM you can choose the new RUL or the Maxis version.
Quote from: dragonshardz on November 20, 2009, 04:20:23 PM
Perhaps you could create the RUL as a cosmetic patch? I.E., when you install the NAM you can choose the new RUL or the Maxis version.
That would require creating and maintaining a separate version of the Bridge Controller file, which isn't a viable solution.
-Alex
Nice! The cables don't look very well, maybe that's why they disabled it - but maybe it can be fixed? I'd say we could try to make it available with new IDs, though. :)
Dragonhartz has a good idea but as Tarkus pointed out, not possible. Well, I say go for modifying it!
Who's Dragonhartz?
Naah, just giving ya a hard time Driftmaster.
Anyhow, since my idea wouldn't work, I say go for modding it.
Driftmaster07: lol. fail
Choco: I sometimes get that too. Mainly with the no-slope for bridges mod.
Quote from: Andreas on November 20, 2009, 04:55:21 PM
Nice! The cables don't look very well, maybe that's why they disabled it - but maybe it can be fixed? I'd say we could try to make it available with new IDs, though. :)
thats basically what i've done....something i didn't expect was that the cables dont show when the bridge is RULed...
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Oct7071258837000.png&hash=b9c05510ecc36c0a95cc418e9f3798a715819760)
so this will likely be another bridge given the cable problem....
Quote from: Monorail Master on November 21, 2009, 10:35:23 AM
Choco: I sometimes get that too. Mainly with the no-slope for bridges mod.
??? not quite sure i follow ya....
double posting.....because, well....why not....
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Oct7071258847088.png&hash=2e2ab3c1887c145b3fcf6722675105a59d5bb0f1)
just a rough draft, but cables aren't a problem. ;)
Nice! :) Two things:
1. Will you be nightlighting most of the model like it's supposed to be in RL.
2. Ever though of using models from this link (http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/cldetails?mid=76f03d55f99e42e48ada2d958e7f6eeb&ct=hpr1&start=36). There are some pretty good ones there.
Quote from: choco on November 21, 2009, 01:04:29 PM
thats basically what i've done....something i didn't expect was that the cables dont show when the bridge is RULed...
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Oct7071258837000.png&hash=b9c05510ecc36c0a95cc418e9f3798a715819760)
so this will likely be another bridge given the cable problem....
??? not quite sure i follow ya....
There is another way to see them. That is:
Look at the bridge pillars in water pipe or Subway view. If your slope at the begging of the bridge is on the water, you can see those hidden supports.
hi everyone!
finally got a PC up and running, so finally back to work after the new year. lots of new stuff on the way, but i wanted to inform the community that we've finally made some headway on dual-networking bridges. :)
the initial test bridge was a highway-based bridge, the TsingMa by jeronij, which was pathed to allow rail traffic as well. the congestion issue that resulted when both types of traffic crossed the bridge caused the bridge to never be released. as with many problems without a solution, we decided to try something else.
that 'something else' lies in single-tile wide bridges; and more specifically, which base network the bridge is designed for. ;)
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Dec27061258153609.png&hash=97f5df6bef66f524bc11c6ec1222f8f91b2e1aea)
here's an example of the original test....the bottom bridge is a simple El-rail over road to match the same NAM plugin. its not pretty, but no congestion issues were ever observed. the key here was to mod the bridge as an elevated rail bridge, NOT a road bridge.
since, we've found that El-rail, GLR, monorail, and heavy rail are able to be dual-networked with car traffic with no congestion issues. bridges based on the 2-tile wide networks all seem to suffer from either congestion (MHW) or lack of rail traffic (Ave). i still have hope for a solution, but lots more testing needs to be done to identify the actual cause.
welcome back friend, awesome to hear of your progress.
choco.... %BUd%
After that post I can say I officially love all you guys that worked on this solution.
Especially the El rail over road, one of my favourite transits to use in my cities.
Thank you!
Robin :thumbsup:
:thumbsup:
thought maybe some viaducts would serve this purpose well.... ;D
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Jan2508126436745.png&hash=1b6a0bc78e6ea4bef63364acba3fe78117d6d7bc)
Wow! That bridge is awesome and will certainly be put in good use when released :thumbsup: $%Grinno$%
I said earlier before because of the raised maxis bridges and I say it now again:
You are my man! :thumbsup: &apls &apls &apls &apls
Awesome work! :thumbsup:
OMG
The work about this dual bridges is awesome &apls &apls &apls
I really enjoy the bridge with tramway :thumbsup:
Welcome back choco and I'm happy to see you've already advanced to dual networks!
are those draggable. im astonished. i dont have any words
this is mind numbingly game-shatteringly awesome.
This brigde is............. :o ............... %wrd .................... &Thk/( ............... :) babuloziwad !
Nothing else to say !
thanks all! :)
had some other files lyin around....thought these would be useful as well.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Jan19011264437194.png&hash=4df7c8cb9bc28cb8518ef32ce696aa098929e98d)
not sure whether the GLR textures should be added.....i would be interested in any opinions.... :thumbsup:
The dual-network breakthrough is truly great work, congratulations! &apls &apls
The under-truss bridge looks really good with the glr--same basic tonality and width, and the transition works well with the low slabs. The truss though looks more like it would be used for an old secondary freight line and it's a very abrupt switch.
We see draggible RHW6+ on the horizon :)
i appreciate the input, gottago!
it happened to triggered a memory about a texture in my older files....so here's what i've come up with.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Sep29011264517285.png&hash=4be23fbe32f41a53afbb3b19393383f42af529bf)
first, i'd like to thank north country dude and vershner, who supplied the textures for the sleepers and track, respectively. :thumbsup: its been a while, but im finally putting them to good use, i hope.
as i said, while i was at it, i thought i'd convert a few existing models over for GLR, as there wasn't much to choose from. so, i have these almost ready.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Sep25011264517246.png&hash=eb69af8ff538bfea2d415ca0c1b4df1dd536ce7e)
PS...maxis models are a royal pain to work with, sometimes....
&apls Awesome, just awesome!
On your last pic (4 bridges), The first (top) and 3rd are the better looking :thumbsup:.
Wow, didn't realize this much had been going on on this thread recently! Dual-networked bridges were one of those things i just never thought i would see. The tram-in-road is especially promising! Have you considered overhanging the sidewalks so they're not so small?
Quote from: noahclem on January 26, 2010, 01:41:54 PM
Wow, didn't realize this much had been going on on this thread recently! Dual-networked bridges were one of those things i just never thought i would see. The tram-in-road is especially promising! Have you considered overhanging the sidewalks so they're not so small?
That's a good idea.
Quote from: noahclem on January 26, 2010, 01:41:54 PM
Have you considered overhanging the sidewalks so they're not so small?
a bit...though i began considering it a bit more... :)
its not pretty at the moment, but this was a rough draft when trying to align the T21's and testing the shadows.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Oct30031264780207.png&hash=f738c8b5d27417d698fcb6775c8b42de050eb37f)
I just have one thing to say, "choco's attempts at BATing bridges" should be changed to "choco's AWESOME Bridges"!!
Great work! &apls
Robin
Choco's success in BATing bridges. &apls
you both are too kind.... :)
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Aug3081265503422.png&hash=dae984ab8b404e64ccc63940292f9d6021fb769b)
i've come to realize that having a lead foot could be an asset when crossing some of my concoctions....if you're out for a sunday drive, well....
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Sep21081265503634.png&hash=14d2e79542adac8906ed9752ee34fab7c4561f50)
Choco, what you've done here is nothing short of amazing. New bridges were one thing, but Dual-Nets?!
thanks kassarc16!
been a bit busy here lately....just not doing what i would like to have been doing.... :D
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FP1010121b.jpg&hash=8f7d2bb74499b9e3c9adf2288668f8e17dac29d3)
got another foot on the way tonight.....so i may be snowed in again. ;D
You guys have a funny life in the N-East !
Happy Birthday! Hope the day's a good one for you, and hopefully you don't have to spend it out plowing the driveway.
-Matt
Hey choco, could VANOC (http://www.theprovince.com/sports/2010wintergames/Trucks+start+moving+snow+Cypress+Mountain+from+Manning+Park/2511711/story.html) borrow some of that snow ;D?
-Jordan :thumbsup:
Quote from: canyonjumper on February 14, 2010, 12:07:49 AM
Hey choco, could VANOC (http://www.theprovince.com/sports/2010wintergames/Trucks+start+moving+snow+Cypress+Mountain+from+Manning+Park/2511711/story.html) borrow some of that snow ;D?
-Jordan :thumbsup:
I think VANOC needs some more security instead. Stupid rioters made me late for work yesterday.
here's a sneak peek at my latest BAT made whilst being snowed in....
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fteasera.png&hash=59fbd017d0f03e35741c59e50f87bedc2ab64511)
dude, these bridges are beyond words. I can't wait for their release!
Can we see a side view! These are awesome! I especially like the newest one. Looks like its from Greece or something. ;D Keep up the spectacular work! :thumbsup:
It makes me think about this one: A roman bridge build round the year 19 BC, the Pont du Gard
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fupload.wikimedia.org%2Fwikipedia%2Fcommons%2F2%2F23%2FPont_du_gard.jpg&hash=2d731d19329e5db22fcc734b7207576d01435aa6)
^^Ditto. This way actually a idea I had but I never asked. I'm surpised choco did it!
I like it being made of bricks instead of the blocks it is made of now ;)
thats a pretty good guess, une_ame! the pont du gard, thats another intriguing one. &idea
i wanted to show an updated pic from a project long ago....that has not been forgotten about. i had lost some gmax files, and i took some time to recover. still a bit more to do yet, but its getting closer....
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Apr3051268842954.png&hash=f5ba50e714f6b63bc3cef66d0fe9654b8a8ac438)
Oh Choco, how awesome you are! :o
Joe
never fails to stun!
Amazing !!! Choco &apls &apls &apls
the Gard bridge is very nice too hope you will have time to BAT it ;)
Awesome work !!!! &apls &apls
took a bit of time to correct a small issue that had been bothering me for a while....heres a before/after. ;)
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fmilleau.png&hash=9e15a94a3a998df06252108e28ef06ac081df1c1)
Finally! Someone fixed that! &apls
Alex
Hi choco, I have been reading this thread ( i read the first 12 pages and the last few) and I seen you made a bridge for the lrt in Edmonton, Well I live in Edmonton myself and would love this and any other edmonton items you have, I searched for a downloads section on the lex for your bridges but did not find anything, thanks for the help and AMAZING work on alot of these bridges.
thanks GOldhell :)
you read to page 12...wow. i was a mess back then. :D when i first searched for a light rail bridge to try to model, the LRT was the first hit.
its in the El-rail bridge pack, found here (http://sc4devotion.com/csxlex/lex_filedesc.php?lotGET=2039). much of the stuff i have been working on since has needed to be reworked several times as i have learned better methods, so i'd like to at some point update those older bridges. i hope you enjoy them in the meantime. :thumbsup:
You are the bridge master Choco. Glade to see these impressive bridges still coming outta your workshop. Btw I am going to have a massive mml pack next month since my recreation folder got swamped FYI ;)
*hyperventilates*
*collapses*
*comes to*
*collapses again*
*comes to again*
These..... are..... so..... awesome!!!!!
I wanna keep updated on this! *subscribes*
so, i hope to get opinions from the community....not sure which way to go with the next project.
here's a rough mock up of the Pont du Gard...
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fpontdugard.png&hash=4afae1382f665b85b2cdcd441e1382e9f4262d10)
before anyone asks, the textures are temporary and the geometry is not quite to scale....which is my main problem, as this is quite a unique bridge to attempt. initially, i wanted to make this for the CAN-AM...however, given the real-life dimensions of the Pont du Gard, it would be necessary to widen the top while making the lower decks more narrow....eliminating the road deck/pedestrian bridge that crosses the bottom set of arches (there would be no way to functionally connect them).
i do have another idea for the CAN-AM, but i wanted to float this out there. while making the true Pont du Gard is not particularly feasible, a viaduct could be made that is very similar. :)
Wow....
I just fell out of my chair....
&apls
Robin :thumbsup:
Not a whole lot of words to describe this ;D I think WOW will have to do &apls
-Jordan :thumbsup:
Incredibly sexy!
Yeap, you kinna nail this one :o!!
Amazing Choco !!! &apls &apls &apls
It's a awesome begining thanks for batting this famous bridge :thumbsup:
thank you for the kinda words all!
another little trial ive been working on, despite having little time to really BAT....this is a rough model of the old Awatere River bridge (http://en.structurae.de/structures/data/index.cfm?id=s0005433) constructed in 1902.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Apr3051270595958.png&hash=7a82d187f2903ff31fcc987e842f7f382f768bf9)
lots more to do, never enough time! :D
that is awesome choco...nice job for a rough job!
Absolutely stunning.
&apls
Robin
Looks great. &apls
Your creations look so great we ()borg() won't assimilate you. We enjoy your individual creative thinking. ;)
Phenomenal bridge!! &apls And you won't even have to worry about the tram automata running over traffic on this one ;)
I know this is a rough draft but I would suggest thinner pylons, more in line with those shown in the link you posted--though it seems that people on this site prefer thicker pylons in general. Can't wait to have a chance to try these!
looking good :thumbsup:
Very nice! Great to see this little slice of New Zealand in bridge form. Well done.
This bridge looks really nice and it is a great idea to do a mixed road/EL bridge like in Chicago. It would be good to sea a Chicago EL bridge into the game.
oooh I have been over this bridge many times! It was always fun driving across when a train thundered overtop! ;D
Sadly it has been closed to road traffic now due to it being a major traffic bottleneck on State Highway 1 (it was a single lane bridge)
Anyway, it's great to see it in SC4, great work! :thumbsup:
y'all are too kind! :)
noahclem, i believe has been lurkin' for a while. thanks for postin up!
Mr. Bauer, if you have any suggestions.....im all ears. ;)
i had a great day today....so i had some extra time to work on some old projects. this one, i assure you, used to be a real bridge....weird looking, i know, but the unique design was just beckoning to be run thru the BAT. like the Awatere Bridge above, this one is no longer in service....
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Apr3051271725871.png&hash=74288953e539673c51cee926cfeb8722f85c84b2)
still a bit of texturing is in order, and the trussing will be added via T21's....
just love these I.K. Brunel bridges.....
Excellent work. &apls
Once again Choco, you do wonderful work.
I don't know if you are taking requests for down the road, or if you run out of ideas, but I have one.
Like your wonderful rendition of the Skybridge, here is another Fraser River crossing. The Alex Fraser Bridge (http://lh5.ggpht.com/_L0YKi8z0lN8/RoCTvsYubdI/AAAAAAAAAc4/IzjlvpshrA4/IMG_3188.JPG), built for Expo '86. It's a 6 lane bridge (I'm thinking RHW here), and probably the only decent bridge any government in this province ever built.
Love that double decker bridge I take it that it will go with the el over road NAM pieces or is it pure candy? :thumbsup:
yup...fully functional for the El-rail over road pieces...
i showed a test bridge a few pages back (http://sc4devotion.com/forums/index.php?topic=4879.msg304076#msg304076) that shows 'em in action. at that point, i was checking for the congestion problem.....so the BATs are not pretty.
@wes.janson: thanks. that one may already be in the pipeline....but i can't find it anywhere. i think blue lightning was working on it, but i may be wrong. :)
Brunel lol. What a champion.
I may have been lurking for a bit ::)
Love the Sydney harbor bridge "recycle" http://sc4devotion.com/forums/index.php?topic=990.msg321294;topicseen#msg321294 (http://sc4devotion.com/forums/index.php?topic=990.msg321294;topicseen#msg321294)
What did you think about my idea of MHW-based bridges for the longest spans? It seems most realistic to have those as single bridges rather than parallel ones but the maxis highways look so bad with (and compared to) RHW. Would it be possible to have a bridge that was RHW-6 visually using a two-tile MHW bridge?
Keep up the great work!
I was thinking about Lake street bridge located in the Loop:
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fupload.wikimedia.org%2Fwikipedia%2Fcommons%2Fthumb%2Ff%2Ffc%2FChicago_River_from_Suntimesd.JPG%2F800px-Chicago_River_from_Suntimesd.JPG&hash=ea86b4992096c9017956b114c89befc5ce355769)
You can see on this photo the EL crossing the river.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fcache3.asset-cache.net%2Fxc%2F57256438.jpg%3Fv%3D1%26amp%3Bc%3DIWSAsset%26amp%3Bk%3D2%26amp%3Bd%3D77BFBA49EF878921F7C3FC3F69D929FDDE086AC90A4AAE87151C61D7504C084D77BDAE24F12E9301F06BF04B24B4128C&hash=359177132024bf674b302fb4ccdd2cee82b9abd8)
I would so happy if you make this bridge into the game
Awesome bridges man!! &apls &apls &apls Might I suggest something more let's say modern if you get to have a bit more spare time and lack the projects to work on. I mean really modern and futuristic. =) A large span, large size, highway or avenue bridge, maybe even for the new NWM =) I'll find an example and post it, to show what I mean.
This for instance =)
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.fa.uni-lj.si%2Fimagelib%2Fpasica_novice%2F1_strani_predmetov%2Fsrecko_vratusa%2Fotm-1.jpg&hash=cda025db340cdeca0ff6fe1dfb7de7d8cda71d79)
Quote from: noahclem on April 20, 2010, 02:37:14 PM
Would it be possible to have a bridge that was RHW-6 visually using a two-tile MHW bridge?
i only have a minute, but wanted to address this directly...
yes it is, but i would like to note that parallel bridges are all based off teh ground Maxis highways anyway. as the RHW is a single tile network and therefore can only make one tile wide bridges. the Maxis models could be widened by editing the vertices in the reader, but this is a mammoth task to accomplish for anything other than, say the level highway bridge (which only consists of 2 pieces).
----------------------------------------
this may be a prudent time to mention that my SC4 days seem to be numbered, as I may be taking a new position very soon that will leave me with no free time anymore. if this indeed happens, i will probably donate the unfinished works i have for anyone who may want to pick up where i have left off. there is still alot of work needed, especially for the NWM, so i would like to see if anyone out there would like to try on bridge BATing. :)
choco, do you use GMAX to make your bridge models???? BTW the Bridges are looking fantastic. :thumbsup: &apls
Quote from: choco on April 30, 2010, 09:09:50 AM
i only have a minute, but wanted to address this directly...
yes it is, but i would like to note that parallel bridges are all based off teh ground Maxis highways anyway. as the RHW is a single tile network and therefore can only make one tile wide bridges. the Maxis models could be widened by editing the vertices in the reader, but this is a mammoth task to accomplish for anything other than, say the level highway bridge (which only consists of 2 pieces).
----------------------------------------
this may be a prudent time to mention that my SC4 days seem to be numbered, as I may be taking a new position very soon that will leave me with no free time anymore. if this indeed happens, i will probably donate the unfinished works i have for anyone who may want to pick up where i have left off. there is still alot of work needed, especially for the NWM, so i would like to see if anyone out there would like to try on bridge BATing. :)
Well firstly a big congratulations on your new job... if it works out for you.
Secondly, it will be a great loss to the community if you leave... it would be great if you could still drop by from time to time!
For example to post some tutorials on your techniques to help other upcoming BAT bridge makers try to follow in your footsteps a little.
Good luck, and thanks for your awesome bridge-making contributions!
A long time ago, in a page of topic far,
far away...Quote from: choco on February 26, 2009, 01:33:55 PM
thanks Orange_o_! ever get any time to start a model? :)
Yes I began a bridge :). I would like that you say to me, if it's good.
A priori it works correctly, but maybe I have to forget something. Have you still time to look at it? May I send you the file?
I have just seen that you are doubtless going to leave us, and it is very it's a pity. &mmm
You can also look on my thread (http://sc4devotion.com/forums/index.php?topic=6442.msg322901#new), there are the other views.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fnsm03.casimages.com%2Fimg%2F2010%2F05%2F01%2F100501092831846485937897.jpg&hash=cae6086677a5c22df5046139a0660fec6a8247f7)
Orange
Aaron Graham: yup, i use GMAX.....3dsMAX was a bit more complicated to take the time to learn well enough.
CSGdesign : thank you for the kind words. i will have time to stop by and help, just wont have the time to run teh BAT anymore. &mmm
Orange_O: that....looks....fantastic! :thumbsup: i would be glad to have a look; should only have to check the IID's to make sure they're correct.
marvelous, wonderful, beautiful :) i need this bridge :)
I understand I had a hard time using it as well. But your models look great in GMAX.
sorry about that.... :thumbsup:
Congrats on the new opportunity choco! You've filled an important and unique niche of this community with incredible talent and innovation. I hope all your bridge efforts come to fruition and that there is someone willing and able to fill the massive shoes you'll leave empty.
And thanks for answering my question too. Good luck!
Choco! fisrt let me start by saying! Congrats on a job well done :D &apls &apls &apls. i have donwnloaded your monorail and elevated rail bridges and i love them! one thin tho. i have installed BTM (bullet train mod) that changes the looks on the whole monorail system. (like the HSRP) and i must say that some minor look things are present.
Here are some pics to ilustrate the isue. Now as you may know there are currentlly 2 styles of Btm im currently using style 2.
On these only the pylons seem to have the diference
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi113.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fn225%2Fpipelad%2FSC4%2FHampsterdam-7-Jun11181274145993.jpg&hash=41cc1092dad91383aa5a7d345656fbfaf353a1d1)
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi113.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fn225%2Fpipelad%2FSC4%2FHampsterdam-7-Jun11181274146035.jpg&hash=0d58cd1fcde4d3ab0fc74b6f04d9aa1c01874dff)
This one on the other hand is a lot diferent.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi113.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fn225%2Fpipelad%2FSC4%2FHampsterdam-7-Jun11181274146080.jpg&hash=9ce75922956178bdc4ebabe29bc6aadcde8ba95a)
(a close-up)
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi113.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fn225%2Fpipelad%2FSC4%2FHampsterdam-7-Jul2181274146154.jpg&hash=bb88bd98af7367f7c28b06b2c6c3286738af1c27)
is it posible to fix this look's issue? i havent been able to create the asimetrical bridge yet so no pics of that one... :)
again congrats on the awsome bridges :thumbsup: (any normal rail bridges coming up?)
I'm not too familiar with the btm mod, but you may have the hsr patch installed, or the loading order is wrong in your plugins folder. The geometry is not optimal for the btm, but they are compatible. Check the btm support thread on simtropolis.
Thx for the answer choco :) but i have to say that you are not correct on this isue, those bridges on page 2 of the btm suport thread are a mod made by plundere fixing those isues, but as he dosnt have permision of the original btm creator he cant release them.. the bridges work! dont get me wrong, monorail is able to pass with out a problem, the only issue is with looks, i have the btm mode loading way after the nam and the aditional bridges so the texture of the btm is overriting correctlly. i am unfamillyar with how bridges mods work, but im guessing this is something like the diference with normal monorail and HSRP and that's why you needed to release a diferent mod for them (not only for the ground hsr?) (i am sure of the instalation because that was the first thing i thought, so i unistalled, testes with out, and reinstaled the btm.)
&mmm ok then.....im not really sure what to say. i sent a message to plunderer to get his opinion, but there's little i can do at this point. those gmax models were lost in a PC transfer 6 months ago....
:'( awwww ok :P i am playing with them either way there awsome :thumbsup: hope plunderer release them
Unfortunately, I had modified the BTM from atpx's model to moonlight's model :P
I got moonlight's permission but not release because I'm lazy :P
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fimg687.imageshack.us%2Fimg687%2F278%2Fz1111111111111111111111w.jpg&hash=a83cc750a297a349953132554f9108c2e210c7d1)
Waaaaaaa :'( :'( com'on plunderer!!! jeje release them ;) pweezzzz
plunderer: i tried that file out and it does appear to be moonlights El-Rail models. i saw a pic you posted on page 2 of the Simtropolis BTM support thread that had the original BTM models from APTX. still have those lying around? :)
are those the one's that do not have permission to upload?
Quote from: choco on May 18, 2010, 02:32:10 PM
plunderer: i tried that file out and it does appear to be moonlights El-Rail models. i saw a pic you posted on page 2 of the Simtropolis BTM support thread that had the original BTM models from APTX. still have those lying around? :)
are those the one's that do not have permission to upload?
OK, I found the first version modified BTM mod, but somewhere still different to APTX's original model
And it just include 3 kinds Bridge_Replacement, maybe you can add some new for patch
I'll sent first version modified BTM to you and you can check it
Actually I think the first version have some missing pieces so didn't upload
I notice theres a cable stayed bridge for the elevated rail... but I cant seem to get it to show up. Has anyone been able to draw this out?
Which bridge are you referring to? Is it showing up in the bridge menu (but the models don't appear when built) or is it not showing up in the bridge menu at all (possibly it has not yet been included in the NAM yet)?
-Matt
I got it to work... but it requires such a huge length to build its useless in urban setting medium tiles.
I downloaded the updated HSR bridges a while ago, but my existing bridges were rendered useless as the paths had disappeared. I play SC4 in LHD if that helps.
so I've seen that I can wish me some bridges here too?
I like the Bietschtalviadukt in switzerland (http://img.fotocommunity.com/photos/10721082.jpg), maybe you could make it please?
Choco has been incommunicado for a while MR.Y. I don't think your request is going to be fufilled.
I hope it's okay to post this here since choco has been active recently and this relates to one of his bridges.
Whenever I use the RHW-10 cable-stayed bridge it ends up growing extra cable systems like this:
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi779.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fyy77%2Fnoahclem%2Fbridgeerror.jpg&hash=7a3c8a278f9ba77704cefbd9da0057304b6122d6)
It grows one for every pylon going down to the water. The bridge works fine at first but the trouble starts after saving. It appears to be totally cosmetic and doesn't affect traffic. Any idea what's going on?
I've also noticed some conflicts between your unreleased wider RHW bridges and Xannepan's Seine bridges.
Thanks :thumbsup:
so it exists in a semi-usable form ;D Of all the bridges I saw in the bridge controller... that one had me most interested. I also remember hearing somewhere that some of the Seine Bridges took iid's from some of the wider RHW bridges...
Yup... they did, as well as some unreleased narrower bridges as well.
An RHW-8S one and a Street one are affected, some more may be as well, I'm not sure.
As for that error... it looks like it's originating the cable effect on the wrong tile... I'm not exactly sure how that works, but the centres certainly are over the supports.
insofar as the IID's, i'll have to get that straightened out soon. not sure why xannepans bridges are using the RHW IID range tho.... ()what()
-------
anyway, the cables are just T21's that points to another BAT. the last revision i have is dated feb 5, 2011. could ya get a screenie of the reader so i can see the exemplars?
Beats me too guys... I requested a range of IDs and these are the ones I got...
The version of the bridge I have seems to be from 23 November 2010. Hope this screenie gives you the information you need:
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi779.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fyy77%2Fnoahclem%2Fchoco_rhw_cablestayedrhw10.jpg&hash=108a48249bb3a1c139973af277fec405bcbfca9a)
Bummer about the ID conflict anyway &mmm
I remember there being multiple versions of various bridges flying around on the private exchange... The version I have doesn't exhibit that.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.majhost.com%2Fgallery%2Fjdenm8%2FRHW%2Fnew_city-13_dec.__051328921418.jpg&hash=06286423c2e9df52b125b52a2d5dc25a07c43557)
The version I have is dated at February 10th, 2011.
I think these are great projects to bridge the wide networks of RHW, but at least for me it has one major flaw is that he made tkaka bridge is only one way. this means that they must be built adjacent to two parallel bridges which for me is not a good idea. Personally, I my solution is to design bridges for C-type networks either 6/8. Thus we will dvizheniv in both directions with the construction of only one bridge that will enhance the efficiency of this bridge. As far as I remember Vince had some similar ideas for a 3 tile bridge
- Ivo
Quote from: ivo_su on February 11, 2012, 02:10:58 AMAs far as I remember Vince had some similar ideas for a 3 tile bridge
Using the Diagonal Bridge Enabler. These are actual in-game draggable bridges, not puzzle drag overrides made to look like Bridges.
Quote from: jdenm8 on February 11, 2012, 02:21:22 AM
Quote from: ivo_su on February 11, 2012, 02:10:58 AMAs far as I remember Vince had some similar ideas for a 3 tile bridge
Using the Diagonal Bridge Enabler. These are actual in-game draggable bridges, not puzzle drag overrides made to look like Bridges.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.majhost.com%2Fgallery%2Fvz1234512%2FBATs%2FNew%2FPreviewRenders%2FRHWBridges%2FPreCast01%2Frhw_bridges-jun._29__001319396509.png&hash=e14d130729a194178d730531759cfaf34ba55806)
I had in mind something similar to this picture. Of course I could be wrong and it is not just a bridge puzzle drag ...
yes I assumed that's draggable too because the bridge controller actually alludes to 6c's bridges.. but doesnt appear to show any of the diagonal bridges.
Vince's bridge pictured there isn't a normal "bridge" but something based on the DBE technology (even though it's not diagonal, obviously). 6C bridges created in the same way as normal bridges have been discussed before but would have used two separate RHW bridges with an empty tile between them and overhanging models, and I believe paths, to fill the center tile. I'm guessing anything in the bridge controller mentioning RHW6C bridges is referring to this. I think the idea has been more or less abandoned because of its lower capacity, in favor of a DBE-type setup.
Real, 3-tile-wide bridges can not be created because there is no 3-tile network and bridges cannot be placed next to each other.
@JD - My problems with that bridge didn't occur until after saving. I did find the updated version though and I'll see if that fixes my problem.
goody goody gumdrops....
looks like ive been able to recover a good portion of my development files.... ;D
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fyay.png&hash=69957853a95bed3b73cc3116964966da89511ff9)
Quote from: choco on February 13, 2012, 12:05:53 PM
looks like ive been able to recover a good portion of my development files.... ;D
that's a good news ;)
Quote from: choco on February 13, 2012, 12:05:53 PM
goody goody gumdrops....
looks like ive been able to recover a good portion of my development files.... ;D
the bollman bridge?
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fen.structurae.de%2Ffiles%2Fphotos%2F2765%2Fbollman_87.jpg&hash=0657f2d5a75d0b0e99c834106f4b84f1fc67f8ca)
wow :)
thats the one.... :)
its been quite tricky getting it to look right....even moreso than the Saltash bridge was. I may have to go to a T21 based approach to actually get something release quality, cause the LODs are causing artifacts.
just an old pic i found while meandering through backups and archived files...the bottom bridge is an early draft (no props) of an old bridge by Isambard Brunel.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Sep2071251536276.png&hash=d9a6d19dd8dedeb3f80fcd4e558f3836eeef2b42)
then there was a couple things i stumbled on that i had completely forgot about....
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Apr3051270595958.png&hash=7a82d187f2903ff31fcc987e842f7f382f768bf9)
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Oct7071259418911.png&hash=019adc3df50274e5d4bb57e29feea61da821f424)
still got work getting organized and such; 2 years removed and i almost feel i have to start learning all over again.... :D
Great to see all these files recovered! I know there's a lot of people with a lot of interest in these.
That Bollman bridge looks really good but it seems like the whole things is overscaled. Look forward to more progress here :thumbsup:
Quote from: choco on February 14, 2012, 04:17:27 AM
its been quite tricky getting it to look right....even moreso than the Saltash bridge was. I may have to go to a T21 based approach to actually get something release quality, cause the LODs are causing artifacts.
Just to let you know, the new SC4 Model Tweaker features a Merge Models command, among other new goodies (and no longer crashes under Win7 :P).
The documentation and installer are not yet ready, so:
- Uninstall the version you are currently using (from Windows Install/Uninstall Programs, or run again the installer you used and select Uninstall).
- Download and install the version on the LEX. DO NOT run the program!!!
- Download the (test) version from the link in the development/support thread, and overwrite the executable.
- Ignore the warning on launch.
Hope you find it useful
hiya cogeo! nice to see ya again!
those do sound like they'll be nice additions to the tweaker. i'll certainly check it out....as even v1.00 (the last i had apparently) was an absolute must when editing the Maxis bridges. cant wait to see all the new toys....
TY for stopping in and letting me know! :thumbsup:
doubling up just to show a pic, getting better but still needs some work.
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fttredward.png&hash=ee27a0880835c58b5b86d94a4bd601119f0de3af)
Looks really good &apls &apls
Is there any chance that one day we see more modern bridge?
Hi Ryan!
Just hopped in here a bit ... (And no, this time no modding request like the bridges for the NAM Viaducts :D)
And I am happy to see some very nice reasons for future river crossings!
Glad that some things haven't changed while I was away ;)
Take care my friend!
Bernhard :thumbsup:
Nice looking old railway bridge, Ryan !
That looks great &apls &apls I've already got the perfect spot for it!
Quote from: Girafe on March 01, 2012, 12:22:00 PM
Is there any chance that one day we see more modern bridge?
sure! if you have anything in mind, i'd love some ideas!
Quote from: Nardo69 on March 01, 2012, 12:50:00 PM
Glad that some things haven't changed while I was away ;)
whoa! nice to see your still around, my friend (i was away for a while as well)! hopefully, another of your ideas will be coming to fruition very soon....
art and noah: tyvm!
Hey choco, I've always been a fan of the bridges you release and some of the ones you've been working on lately look excellent. I can't wait to see these available for download. :thumbsup:
Quote from: choco on February 14, 2012, 04:17:27 AM
its been quite tricky getting it to look right....even moreso than the Saltash bridge was.
Speaking of the Saltash Bridge, are you still working on that one? That's always been a favourite of mine and I'd love to see it in-game. ;D
Quote from: choco on March 01, 2012, 12:09:42 PM
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2Fttredward.png&hash=ee27a0880835c58b5b86d94a4bd601119f0de3af)
This right here...breathtaking! Keep it up my friend! That picture needs to be posted world wide on some kind of web or something :P
Puts the stuff I've been working on to shame. Very nice detail on these models.
-Matt
Quote from: choco on March 01, 2012, 02:01:46 PM
Quote from: Girafe on March 01, 2012, 12:22:00 PM
Is there any chance that one day we see more modern bridge?
sure! if you have anything in mind, i'd love some ideas!
Orange just said me that you were connected for his bridge's problem. I suppose you have already seen it if you are fixing his work.
It's kind of modern bridge I was referring.
Anyway, glad you are here, and you propose new stuff ;)
Quite impressive &apls
I can't wait to download at their release :-\
choco, I'm happy that you still work on your creation. &hlp
I was sad when you leave the forum :'( and I would know if you have completed your wide RHW bridges. ()what()
nitelite testing....my first real go at lighting.... :-\
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Dec5031330882688.png&hash=ce469f26df734c2c542c1d73a35863c940dffe8a)
It's just wonderful to see our bridge makers back in action once again! :) That nightlighting on the most recent bridge is sweet. The TTR bridge you've shown us also looks good.
:thumbsup:
All this work is splendid!
Pity I don't need bridges at the moment....
Quote from: choco on February 14, 2012, 04:17:27 AM
then there was a couple things i stumbled on that i had completely forgot about....
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi141.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr70%2Fchoco_028%2FNewCity-Apr3051270595958.png&hash=7a82d187f2903ff31fcc987e842f7f382f768bf9)
wow, i did not think such a bridge was possible! what are the chances that this gets released? It is amazing work!
I noticed this thread has been quiet for a while, i am wondering if you are still active, you should try your hand at a ddrhw bridge ;)
Top notch! I'd love to see some more OWR bridges though, the game could really use those. In fact, an OWR bridge with RHW-4 textures would fit the bill pretty well.
Hi, I don't know if this is the right place for requests, but anyway I'd like to post these ideas to discuss:
1. "simple" avenue bridge drawn with GLR median, xannepan made a GLR-in-road so this must be possible too (1st pic)
http://s1341.beta.photobucket.com/user/megabalta/media/Simcity%204/glr_bridge_ave4_zps0b393ec4.jpg.html?sort=3&o=4
2. NWM AVE6/TLAVE6 (3 tiles wide) GLR bridge (2nd pic); this could be tricky, basicly the middle road ends before the bridge (3rd pic), then you make two bridges with a space between them (4th pic), the trick is: these bridges have overhanging graphics (5th pic) marked as red area on picture. Both bridges could be transport enabled for cars and trams like xannepans GLR-in-road bridge. Tram-automata probably can't drive trough, but tram-traffic should.
http://s1341.beta.photobucket.com/user/megabalta/media/Simcity%204/glr_bridge_ave6_zps4f45f606.jpg.html?sort=3&o=3
http://s1341.beta.photobucket.com/user/megabalta/media/Simcity%204/glr_bridge_ave6_starter_zpsea2aafc7.jpg.html?sort=3&o=2
http://s1341.beta.photobucket.com/user/megabalta/media/Simcity%204/glr_bridge_ave6_road_zps288b11df.jpg.html?sort=3&o=1
http://s1341.beta.photobucket.com/user/megabalta/media/Simcity%204/glr_bridge_ave6_overhanging_zpsbaa1f4f2.jpg.html?sort=3&o=0
Any thoughts on that?
Quote from: megabalta on January 15, 2013, 03:40:48 AM
Any thoughts on that?
Yeah; It's unfortunately impossible to even make a three-tile bridge, and filling in the area with overhangs wouldn't work because you're cutting down capacity. Additionally, moving the paths for GLR to fit your setup would require a wonky transition.
There are other ways to implement a three-tile bridge, but none of those methods have been experimented with yet.
The "simple" bridge you suggest first has been under consideration. Saying it "must be possible" is a bit dangerous though because Xannepan's bridge worked with el-rail, not avenue or another 2-tile network. The good news is that I was speaking with Choco right before his last disappearance and he thought that his prototype (avenue-based, tradition non-o-slope-based) TIA bridge was functional but that it just appeared in the congestion map as functionless. He asked if I would like to test it to confirm but then left before he had the chance to pass it on. As an aside, the further good news on that is that other dual network, dual tile bridges previously not thought possible should also be then (think dual deck including rail or monorail). But I can't say for sure because I never got it to confirm it worked.
For the wider options I think it would be much better implemented as a 3-tile, 0-slope based setup which should be entirely feasible. That would not only avoid the problem of your automata going for a swim but also make capacities right and make it functional for trams. I've done a decent bit of playing around with what I call TIA-6 and came to the conclusion that basing it off of the existing networks of GLR and OWR3 (or possibly half of a RD-6), along with a set of specialized TIA-6 TuLEPs would be a better way to go than starting a whole new network like that from scratch. But I digress. Such a bridge would certainly be a nice thing to have.
Aren't two or three adjacent tile bridges (from 1 tile wide networks) nearly impossible to make? (Or at least that's what I've read)
Yes, adjacent bridges are impossible to make using conventional methods. Employing the type of trick used for diagonal bridges makes them possible though.
Sounds good to me. Thanks for your thoughts.
I came across this image, it would be nice to have that in game, but as Choco has been MIF for nearly a year, I don't know if anybody else could put this up. :(
(https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fimg593.imageshack.us%2Fimg593%2F1115%2Ftrainvsroadbrigge.jpg&hash=906c07dd2ac3ac006b9da4afd4c692093f7ae81d)
Even better, a road bridge with rails in the road deck. Very common as far as I know.
Cheers
Willy
The bridge is neat, :o but in real life is a road+str one, to use in game it will be better as a tram-in-road bridge.
It's only a suggestion.
excuse me can you make a drawbridge please thank you
First off, choco has been inactive for about three years, and this thread has been dead for over two years. Bumping a thread like this is generally frowned-upon behavior on internet forums.
Additionally, drawbridges are simply not possible in SC4.
Thread locked. If choco ever returns, I'll unlock the thread upon his request.
-Alex