Argentum (Closed--5/15/2007)

[M4346]

I just wanted to flip the page...

Welcome to Page 2!

And comment on the great work you've done here thus far! I love the terrain and the transit system! Good job! 

[guurgkud]

this is quite a tremendous md. love your use of RHW and the interchanges.  very nice

[Tarkus]

I figured it was probably about time for some sort of update to break the silence.  RL and various modding projects (namely, dealing with the RHW v13 Beta release) kind of derailed things, but I'm looking forward to spending more time with Argentum.  Many thanks to everyone for their continued continued interest and comments (and views) during my absence.

This here is Update 0.5--it's a further teaser which will show you some more of what's to come. 


Here is an overhead shot of the Argentum region:


And a slightly larger one for those interested:


The main idea behind Argentum was to create a region in an area not unlike the so-called "High Desert" or "Shrub Steppe" of the inner West Coast of the United States, a semi-arid region which covers most of Central and Eastern Oregon and Washington states, as well as parts of California, Nevada and Idaho.  The region is not assigned to any particular state, though in a somewhat "Simpsonic" way, it's vaguely in Oregon. 

The map was made back in February 2006 in Landscape Designer, in the dark ages before wouanagaine's SC4 Terraformer.  Coincidentally, though, it does actually bear a striking resemblance to Malheur Lake, Oregon, near the Nevada border.  Here it is on Google Maps.

And here it is turned facing east--rather eerie . . .


As you can tell by the scale, though, the Argentum region is much smaller.

Here's a few vital statistics on the Argentum region:

Population: 44,207 (est. as of April 2007)
Land Area: 225 sq. mi (576 km²)  (SC4 equivalent--6 large tiles x 6 large tiles, 36 "quads")
Population Density: 196.48 per sq. mi (76.75 per km²)
Largest City: Argentum (Pop. 24,045)

(this will be updated as this MD continues)

And a couple more teasers:

Here is a pic of the small town of Angstrom, just to the south of Argentum:


And here's another map, which is still in progress.  It's of the actual city of Argentum, the most populous in the region.  Many of the construction pics in the last update are located on here.  Eventually there will be a whole series of maps covering the entire region.  (I had tried to get them all into one image, but it was 12,000 pixels in width and length and crashed my computer. )  If you're curious, this is just west of the previous map.

My main inspiration in terms of the design scheme was from the Thomas Bros. Maps (now a subsidiary of Rand McNally), which are prevalent in the Western US.  Being a map geek, I've studied their various Portland Metro maps and Pacific Northwest Atlas for many hours since I was about 7 or 8 (often even finding some errors ). 



Next time, I'll be back with more maps, and some construction projects in progress.  And of course, the RHWMIS interchanges will also make another appearance.

Now, to reply to some comments:

Serkanner:  Thanks for being the first to comment!  And yes, you did see some RHW pieces that are still in development.  There's probably about 30 different ones appearing in that past update.

wouanagaine: Thanks!  I guess I have a reputation.   Glad you like the Demaxisification as well.  There's still some Maxis stuff in here, but it's gradually getting pushed out in favor of custom content, especially on the transportation end of things.

sebes:  I guess the engineer did have a little too much to drink on that one.   That one will be getting redesigned slightly, though it will still be a little bit unusual.  As far as the map goes, the one in my previous update took about 3 hours--that was actually my first attempt.  The one in this update took about 4-5 hours, namely since the area I was mapping was quite "roady".  I'm still not on the level of David (dedgren) or emilin, but hopefully I'm improving.  Thanks for asking!

emilin:  Thanks for stopping by, and for providing that terrific mapping tutorial.  It really helped in producing these maps.

Kevin (BigSlark) :  My fellow transit geek . . . thanks for dropping by, and I'm glad to hear you like the MIS and the suburbia!

David (dedgren):  Wow . . . I'm really flattered to hear you were anticipating it.  If I could only do half of what you've done with 3RR, I'd be happy.  Thanks!

bat:  Thanks!  Glad to hear you like it.

Dustin (thundercrack83):  Thanks!  It really means a lot to me to hear from a fellow road/transit geek that my NAM/RHW usage was up to par.  There will be plenty more where that came from . . . 

Shadow Assassin:  Thanks for coming by and commenting!  Glad to hear you liked the map (you're quite the master of it yourself), and thanks for the slope mod suggestion.  I've picked up jeronij's Slope Mod, and really like it.  It will figure into a few future updates as well.

Heinz:  Thanks!  Glad to hear you liked the start and hope I didn't overwhelm you too much.

belfastuniguy:  Thanks!  And as far as the 4-lane highway goes, that's the RHW (Rural Highway) mod--I'm one of the developers, so I'm privy to a few unreleased features (the perks of transit modding ).  If you're wondering about the terrain, that's c.p./cycledogg's Painted Desert mod.

spartanB292:  Thanks!  Glad to hear that people were anticipating Argentum.  And if you haven't picked it up already, the most recent version of the RHW (v13 Beta) is on the SC4D BSC LEX.

Ralph:  Thanks for asking.  Actually, that "runway" is a highway--the RHW to be specific.  There will be some actual runways in a later update (the airport geeks should stay tuned) . . .

szarkoz:  Thanks!  Glad to hear you like the new RHW pieces--I'm hoping to make some more available here soon, and I'm also glad to hear you liked the suburbia and the construction sites.

Aaron (pickled_pig):  Another roadgeek--thanks for coming by, and it really means a lot to hear that you liked the interchanges.

HabLeUrG:  Thanks, and I'm sure you've already picked up the new RHW version.   Glad to hear you like the transit networks!

Pat (patfirefghtr):  Thanks!  I hope to have much less space between updates next time.

Jeroni (jeronij):  Thanks for commenting and for creating this fantastic site!  Yes, some of those interchanges are particularly crazy.  They're going to get even crazier in future updates.

Strechnitz: Thanks!  Glad to hear you liked the start, and the NAM usage.  There should be a new version of the NAM out soon . . .

Marius (M4346):  Thanks for pushing Argentum onto page 2, and for the compliments on the terrain and transit system!

guurgkud:  Thanks--glad to hear you like the RHW and interchange usage!

I'll hopefully be back here much sooner with the next update.  Thanks again for your continued support, and hope you enjoy this update!

Edit as of 12:19am PDT, 4/26/2007:  Following some of Shadow Assassin's and pickled_pig's suggestions below, here's an updated version of the Argentum city map.


-Alex

[Shadow Assassin]

It's a good region and a good map.

Don't be afraid to 'embellish' things a little on the map (like, making some exits slightly more curvier than they actually would be in SC4). You'll find that you'll get away with it quite easily.

Here's an example:



Now, there are some tips and tricks that you can use to speed up the tedious process of mapping. It however depends on what program you use. Myself, I use Photoshop. (You can probably do similar things in Inkscape - which is a free vector editing program - search for it on the net - you can use it in conjunction with the GIMP).

[thundercrack83]

Great teaser, Alex! From that one picture, I can tell that Angstrom looks great! But my favorite thing is the map you made, it's amazing! I'd love to know how you made it, seeing as I am HUGE map connoisseur myself. Anyway...great job with everything, and I'll be looking forward to whatever you've got planned for next time!

Dustin

[guurgkud]

that region is amazing! love the map you made

[Pat]

Alex woohooo sweeeeeet i so loved that teaser you stinker great job and i will be looking forward to the full update - pat

[sebes]

Man, this is an awesome map! It took a while to load on my PC but it was worth the wait. The 'drunk engineer' intersection is probably the one on Calderalane/Barnaby, right?

[BigSlark]

Alex,

The region shot is amazing! c.p.'s terrain mod does a good job of representing the "forgotten Northwest," as my grandpa called it.

Looking forward to more.

Cheers,
Kevin

[pickled_pig]

I agree with shadow_assassin, but from experience I know that it's difficult and time consuming enough to actually make a map, let alone perfecting it.  Seriously, your map is a very-high quality work and my only suggestion would be making it a bit easier to distinguish streets from roads (from a distance, the thin and thick black lines look the same).

-aaron

[rooker1]

This is going to be a great MD/teasing showcase.  I can't wait 'till the next update. So far everything looks great, I really like the RHW.

Thanks,

Robin   

[Tarkus]

Back with another update.  Hopefully, I'll be able to get these up quicker now.

Well, as promised, here is the first real update.  In this update, we will examine the most populous city of the region, Argentum, and its neighbor to the south, Angstrom, and as you might expect, plenty of transportation projects under way, and more maps.

Overhead view of Argentum city, looking west


Some of you are probably wondering where Argentum got its name.  The word "argentum" means "silver" in Latin, and one holdover from this is the use of the symbol "Ag" to refer to the element silver on the Periodic Table of Elements.  Given Argentum's desert location, and its proximity to Nevada, the Silver State, known for its mines, this would lead one to believe that Argentum is an old mining town.  Surprisingly, however, there are no mines near Argentum, and the story behind it's naming is much more obscure. 

The city was actually founded in the 1920s by a group of scientists, who came to study an unusual geological feature near Emerson Lake, the Stone Crater.  The Stone Crater is a very small, but deep impact crater, produced by a meteorite crashing into the Emerson Basin some 70,000 years ago, which eventually flooded, forming a miniature caldera, the aptly-named Stone Caldera.

Stone Crater/Caldera Today, looking from the east
http://img96.imageshack.us/img96/2984/argentumstonecalderatv0.jpg

Due to the scientists' fascination with the area, they eventually settled here.  So, while all that's very interesting, how does that relate to the name of the town?  Well, the founders of the city half-jokingly decided to name the city and the locales after somewhat obscure scientific terms and units of measure.  This is also how Cuprum, Aurum, Ferrum, Stannum, Angstrom and Attometer Lake were named. 

Argentum is laid out such that it has a fairly dense central business district, which is somewhat uncharacteristic for a city of its size. 

Argentum CBD, looking south


This CBD is surrounded by primarily lower-density development which was carefully planned around the natural beauty of the area.  As a result, these lower-density areas exist in their own little pockets, and thus, have their own feel.  This also helps to mitigate the feel of "sprawl", not that there would be much, considering the city has a population of about 25,000--taking in to consideration some of its closest neighbors, 35,000.  There are some small pockets of higher density outside of downtown that were developed in the late-1990s, but with mixed results. 

Now that you have some more background on the region, it is time to get into the nitty-gritty of the transportation end of things--the roadgeekery you were all promised.  There are five major highways through the Argentum region that are at least partially built to freeways standards:


As per usual US highway numbering, odd-numbered routes run north-south, while even-numbered routes run east-west.

However, despite some sections being built to state standards for freeways, there are many sections that are not, as they have sections are too narrow and too curvy.  They also have substandard interchanges, some of which are causing severe weaving problems.  However, several ambitious projects, are already underway to address this issue, resulting from cooperation from state and local transportation authorities.

For example, here's a few issues with Highway 61, the Bob Dylan Freeway (often called by locals as "The Dylan").  Near downtown Argentum, the freeway exists as an elevated viaduct.  However, due to the extremely narrow lanes and the overabundance of exit ramps, the speed limit is a mere 40mph along this stretch, which is extremely low for a freeway.  (Tarentum Lane, the major surface street just to the east, has a speed limit of 35mph in comparison.) 

Highway 61 near the Campus Boulevard interchange, looking south


Highway 61 between the Grevano Dr and Argentum CBD exits


A similar problem also exists with Highway 4, the main east-west route through Argentum.

Highway 4 at the Stone Ave overpass


Highway 4 also has an additional complication surrounding it, as it and Highway 204 run perilously close to Argentum Regional Airport (airport code ARX).  This poses a severe safety hazard to motorists because of low-flying planes attempting to land. 

Highway 4 running just west of ARX (that police helicopter appears to be trying to apprehend the unfortunate tiling issue . . .  )


The airport also has extremely short runways, and is also quite close to Emerson Lake, which presents additional hazards to pilots trying to land.  As a result of these circumstances, a new airport has been planned for the Ferrum area, 4 miles Northeast of Downtown Argentum.


Since we mentioned Highway 204, it also still has some issues.  Namely, this substandard interchange with Highway 61:


It also still has an at-grade intersection with Tarentum Lane in south Argentum:


Fortunately, some work has already begun on other problems with these highways.  Namely, the interchange of Highway 61 with Ferrum Road is being converted into a Parclo:


Near the small city of Angstrom, just to the south of Argentum, construction has also started at the Highway 61 interchange with Gaffner Road and Cubit Lane, two of the most important roads in the region without highway designation. 


And as promised, here's another map--this time, the area surrounding Angstrom, which you will see more of in the next update.


And one last thing--you remember that wacky interchange with the NAM Road puzzle pieces?  Well, work has begun on reconfiguring it.  You'll notice that the bridge on one end is now gone . . .


If you're wondering where that pic is from, that is what was the interchange of Caldera Lane and Barnaby Drive in Argentum, shown on this map, which I've relinked here for your convenience:

(Any guesses as to what the reconfiguration will entail?)

I'll be back with the next update much sooner this time.

And onto replies:

Shadow Assassin:  Thanks for the compliments and for the constructive feedback!  I managed to get a hold of Inkscape, and it's greatly sped up my map production.  As far as "embellishing" goes, I've done some, but there's a few interchanges which I particularly wanted to emphasize the awkward layout.

Dustin (thundercrack83):  Thanks!  I'm really happy to hear that you liked the map, and I will finally show more of Angstrom in my next update.  As far as the actual process goes, the more recent ones I've been producing have been producing have been using the open-source vector graphics program Inkscape.  My method is rather similar to what David (dedgren) and Emilin have done in their tutorials, but there's a few things I do a little bit differently that work slightly better for me.  I may have to put my own tutorial up here sometime soon.

guurgkud:  Thanks--I'm glad to hear you like the map and region!

Pat (patfirefghtr):  Glad you enjoyed the "half-update" and I guess I am a little bit of a "stinker" for not updating sooner.   Hopefully, Update 2 will be up later this week.

sebes:  Thanks for the compliments, and I feel quite flattered to hear that my map was worth the wait.  And you were exactly right as to the location of the "drunk engineer" intersection.  Glad to see someone paying attention.

Kevin (BigSlark):  Thanks for the compliments on the region--you'll get to see a lot more of it up close here soon.  And I'd agree with your grandpa about the part of the Northwest east of the Cascades being forgotten.  A lot of people think Oregon or Washington and Portland, Seattle, and trees.  Personally, I think it's kind of a shame since there's some really nice scenery over there--I wouldn't mind settling down over there myself.  It was really nice of c.p. to produce a terrain mod that so accurately replicated that landscape.

aaron (pickled_pig):  Thanks!  I'm happy to hear that my map skills are improving, and if you look at the latest ones from this update, you'll see I tried to incorporate your idea about the darkness of the lines for the local "streets" (some of which are actually Roads, Avenues and RHW-2s in certain instances).  Hope it was a little easier to distinguish them this time.

Robin (rooker1):  Thanks for the kind words, and hopefully this update was to your liking.  And yes, there will be lots of teasing, with various new transit mods I'm working on as I go along. 

Thanks again to everyone who viewed and commented.  Hope you enjoyed this update.

-Alex

[BigSlark]

Alex,

I'm drooling over your transportation projects. What construction lots are you using?

As for the interchange reconstruction, I foresee both draggable RHW bridges and RHW bridge puzzle pieces that allow you construct a continous flow interchange over the lake, much like one I once saw in the Seattle area and like most of Southern Louisiana's freeways.

I'm looking forward to your next update.

Cheers,
Kevin

[rooker1]

Very cool story behind how the city got it's name.  As for the raod geekery, well I learned something.  I never knew about the highway numbering system.

"As per usual US highway numbering, odd-numbered routes run north-south, while even-numbered routes run east-west. the highway numbering system."

Interesting.

Robin   

[NASCAR_Guy]

One thing i don't like is you're bulding on to steep of land in some places other than that its pretty good

2.5 out of 5

[thundercrack83]

Wow! A huge update, Alex! Everything looks fantastic! Of course, the RHW looks superb every time I see it, and I love how you use the construction lots, too. Great job, my friend! Keep up the good work!

[Pat]

 

Alex wow that interchange is just nuts, with all that confussion i so surprized anyone knew where to go at all. lol
this is a defintaly a 5 outta 5 for the challange of building on slopes and not leveling the land but working with it!!!
I really look forward to the next update - pat

[bat]

wonderful region and great pictures of the RHW!

[Tarkus]

Hi everyone-

Thanks for the comments and compliments!  I do have some rather unfortunate news, though--I am closing Argentum..  I haven't been able to really update it reasonably, and I'm just not happy with the region.  It was started before I really knew anything, and I've reached a point where I feel like I need to move on, and start over from scratch on a new region.  When that new region is a little farther along, I'd like to do another roadgeeky MD on it, provided there's interest.  

My apologies for leaving everyone out to dry with Argentum, and thanks for all your support in the 2 pages the MD made it through.

Best Regards,
Alex (Tarkus)

PS:  Kevin, the construction lots I used were from the SFBT Construction Site Set by Deejay [linkie].

[sebes]

Alex, be sure I will follow you're next MD with as much pleasure as I did this one, your maps realy rock! Can't wait for it to be opened