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Buddybuds Expansive Attempts at Anything & Everything.

Started by buddybud, November 12, 2007, 03:22:54 AM

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buddybud

Well i got to a place i hate :P



While fine tuning and scrutinizing all the files and their variations i realized i could no longer "do this in my head" The good part is i already caught and corrected a number of issues i hadn't noticed. Not to mention how valuable this will be for the continuation of the project... It's just so mind numbingly boring. lol. Any ways i finished documenting the largest puzzle piece dat and fixed some entries along the way. And also have a working template to move forward. Still have to compile that station but I might get that done tonight depending.

Moving along  ;)
Bud














rooker1

Quote from: buddybud on February 20, 2012, 08:53:34 PM
Well i got to a place i hate :P
It's just so mind numbingly boring. lol.

Sorry to hear that you are at this place, but I apprciate all the work you are doing.

Robin &apls
Call me Robin, please.

noahclem

Glad to hear things are coming along and thanks for the "mind-numbingly boring" work  :D

I think I know the answer to my request but I hadn't asked it so I thought I would: any chance of you're lovely bridge being done as an independent option instead of a default replacement? For very short spans the original one still may be useful, even though it won't fit perfectly with the textures in the mod.

buddybud

#463
Quote from: noahclem on February 21, 2012, 05:57:31 AM
Any chance of you're lovely bridge being done as an independent option instead of a default replacement? For very short spans the original one still may be useful, even though it won't fit perfectly with the textures in the mod.

Short answer is yes.
I could keep my present solution and offer a second independent bridge with new id's and simply use the default red beam and girder textures. It is simply the road bridge adjusted for the el afterall...



From above i think you can see that for my mod some alteration of the default bridge is necessary! Ive realized since that there's a couple more ways to avoid the above problem..It would still involve changing the original bridge but i can do it and still keep it's style, by adding transitional start and end pieces and simply add default orth rail pieces with new id's so they don't pick up the t21's .... I'll have to think about that but again as an independant bridge download yar!

Quote from: rooker1 on February 21, 2012, 04:45:22 AM
Sorry to hear that you are at this place, but I apprciate all the work you are doing.
Robin &apls

Thanks Robin!

off to work in a bit ....
Bud

Quote
quick edit
already have default maxis texture vs so it's just a matter of id's...


buddybud

Just a heads up...been busy with a new job this week. My days off are mon and tues so i'll try to get something done early next week. My two weeks training turned into two days since they feel i can already do the job. The confidence is nice on their part but it puts alot of pressure on me! Anyways I'll keep ya posted!

Bud  :thumbsup:

noahclem

Look forward to seeing what's coming next  :thumbsup:  Congratulations on the "vote of confidence" at the new job. Good luck!

b22rian

Hey Buddy,

    It is long overdue for me to get involved here i would say.  ;D
I wanted to share some initial thoughts after browsing through your
great and quite innovative thread here.

     I really enjoyed out chat last night and obviously what you are doing
here is amazing. Some of the new modding techniques really blew my mind
last night. And I think they will blow my mind further as I understand them a bit
better  $%Grinno$%

   As we discussed last night, after reading through some of the thread its great how
much help and support is being offered to you in this great project.
And although i have some experience in some areas of the modding you are doing
here, i think my main asset i can share with you is my association through chat +
help desk with hooking you up with some of the best transit modders and batters we
have in the community. People who have the kinda helpful spirits whereas they enjoy
helping others and sharing there knowledge .

   So please never hesitate to drop by help desk if you get hung up with something
or your just seeking modding advice with your project. It may not always happen
Immediately , but usually I can find the help and resources that you seek.

  Meanwhile , i will look through your thread in more detail. It looks to me that you
have more than just a singular goal here . ;)

   Lastly, i want to thank you for all the help and links you shared with me last night
in finding and installing a lot of your quality content you have created in the past.

  All that you have done/ and currently doing is greatly appreciated by myself and
I feel I can assure you many, many others.

Hope to see you in chat/ help desk, when you have the time ,

Kindest regards and thanks, your good friend, Brian

buddybud

#467
Quote from: b22rian on February 28, 2012, 03:47:21 AM

  Meanwhile , i will look through your thread in more detail. It looks to me that you
have more than just a singular goal here . ;)


Yep...bang on there...

Spent the last couple days finalizing a bunch of stuff....here's a breakdown

Vanilla basic Elrail fixes....
Maxis_EL-PuzzlePieces.dat
Maxis_EL-1Way_PP_Fix.dat
Maxis_EL-Ave_PP_Fix.dat
Maxis_EL-HiWay_PP_Fix.dat
Maxis_EL-Rail_PP_Fix.dat
Maxis_EL-Road_PP_Fix.dat
Maxis_EL-Street_PP_Fix.dat

This basic choice simply adds zooms missing to pieces for railings and networks, plus fix artifacts and lines between network tiles.  It uses the standard el network models and other standard network textures...just a basic graphical fix....some but not all have been addressed in the nam, the new fixes have been added in the nam development thread.

Vanilla basic Elrail fixes c/w color shifted network textures....
Maxis_EL-1Way_PP_FixCC.dat
Maxis_EL-Ave_PP_FixCC.dat
Maxis_EL-HiWay_PP_Fix.dat
Maxis_EL-Rail_PP_FixCC.dat
Maxis_EL-Road_PP_FixCC.dat
Maxis_EL-Street_PP_FixCC.dat
Maxis_EL-PuzzlePieces.dat

BB_Nam-1way_ColorCor.dat
BB_Nam-Ave_ColorCor.dat
BB_Nam-Road_ColorCor.dat
BB_Nam-Street_ColorCor.dat
Maxis-Rail_ColorCorBB.dat

Offers same fixes as above but gives the vanilla player the addition of color shifted textures. I used the same id's as nam's color shifted network textures where applicable so to allow easy upgrading for myself and any one who initially uses this.

Dynamic Sidewalks - 2 Flavors

   Standard Maxis Sidewalk Texture Props

Maxis_SW-1Way_PuzzlePieces_BBs3d.dat
Maxis_SW-Ave_PuzzlePieces_BBs3d.dat
Maxis_SW-Road_PuzzlePieces_BBs3d.dat
Maxis_SW-Street_PuzzlePieces_BBs3d.dat

These Sidewalk s3d props allow for zone and wealth dependent sidewalks to appear under network tiles. So far only vanilla rh elrail is implemented. This bunch uses the standard maxis textures.

  Color Shifted Sidewalk Texture Props

BB_SW-1Way_PuzzlePieces_BBs3d.dat
BB_SW-Ave_PuzzlePieces_BBs3d.dat
BB_SW-Road_PuzzlePieces_BBs3d.dat
BB_SW-Street_PuzzlePieces_BBs3d.dat
BB_Rail_PuzzlePieces_BBs3d.dat

BB_Maxis-Sidewalk_ColorCor.dat
BB_Nam-1way_ColorCor.dat
BB_Nam-Ave_ColorCor.dat
BB_Nam-Road_ColorCor.dat
BB_Nam-Street_ColorCor.dat

This version is the same as above but uses color shifted textures for a better visual appearance. Again only implemented for vanilla rh elrail so far.

Vanilla Elrail with sidewalks
Maxis_EL-1Way_PuzzlePieces_BBs3d.dat
Maxis_EL-Ave_PuzzlePieces_BBs3d.dat
Maxis_EL-Rail_PuzzlePieces_BBs3d.dat
Maxis_EL-Road_PuzzlePieces_BBs3d.dat
Maxis_EL-Street_PuzzlePieces_BBs3d.dat
Maxis_EL-HiWay_PP_Fix.dat
Maxis_EL-PuzzlePieces.dat
+ one of the sidewalk choices above

Essentially the same as above but uses either of the two sidewalk choices.

BB Elrail Ny-Chicago Syle Facelift
BB_EL-PuzzlePieces.dat
BB_Bridge_Shadow-Controller.dat
BB_Station.Dat
BB_EL-Skin_Ind01-StructureAssembly_Curve01.dat
BB_EL-Skin_Ind01-StructureAssembly_Curve02.dat
BB_EL-Skin_Ind01-StructureAssembly_Diag01.dat
BB_EL-Skin_Ind01-StructureAssembly_Orth01.dat
BB_EL-Skin_Ind01-StructureAssembly_Props01.dat
BB_EL-Skin_Ind01-StructureAssembly_Stubs01.dat
BB_EL-Skin_Ind01-StructureRailing01.dat

This is the base mod

Choice of Shadows
BB_EL-Shadows.dat
Maxis_Shadows_Patch.dat

Choice of Textures
BB_EL-Textures_HighRes.dat
BB_EL-Textures_LowRes.dat
Maxis_EL-Textures_Patch.dat

BB Elrail with vanilla network intersections

BB_EL-1way_PuzzlePieces_Maxis.dat
BB_EL-Ave_PuzzlePieces_Maxis.dat
BB_EL-Hiway_PuzzlePieces_MaxisBB.dat
BB_EL-Rail_PuzzlePieces_Maxis.dat
BB_EL-Road_PuzzlePieces_Maxis.dat
BB_EL-Street_PuzzlePieces_Maxis.dat

Gives you el netwok intersections with vanilla textured network tiles below

BB Elrail with Color shifted network intersections Still working on this...another day or two
BB_EL-1way_PuzzlePieces_MaxisCC.dat
BB_EL-Ave_PuzzlePieces_MaxisCC.dat
BB_EL-Hiway_PuzzlePieces_MaxisBB.dat
BB_EL-Rail_PuzzlePieces_MaxisCC.dat
BB_EL-Road_PuzzlePieces_MaxisCC.dat
BB_EL-Street_PuzzlePieces_MaxisCC.dat

BB_Nam-1way_ColorCor.dat
BB_Nam-Ave_ColorCor.dat
BB_Nam-Road_ColorCor.dat
BB_Nam-Street_ColorCor.dat

Same as above but with color shifted network tiles.

BB Elrail with Sidewalks Intersections

BB_EL-1Way_PuzzlePieces_BBs3d.dat
BB_EL-Ave_PuzzlePieces_BBs3d.dat
BB_EL-HiWay_PuzzlePieces_BBs3d.dat
BB_EL-Rail_PuzzlePieces_BBs3d.dat
BB_EL-Road_PuzzlePieces_BBs3d.dat
BB_EL-Street_PuzzlePieces_BBs3d.dat
+ one of the sidewalk choices above

and that's about it...lol

essentially i still need to finish the station and the one of the above choices. So in short you have a vanilla fix for elrail with the choice of adding sidewalks and improving textures. Or you have a choice of using my facelift  for the vanilla elrail and adding sidewalks and improving textures.

You might notice rail isn't present in all choices cause i haven't figured out how to implement them correctly. The s3d props do not like gradient alphas. So my only option so far was to paint on the rail texture...which is not what i want to do. Defeats the purpose of using a s3d prop.  &sly

also the bridge and controller will have to change for nam plus i want to offer it as a stand alone...or something...as requested. But i agree there.

The sidewalks have models complete for other networks from the initial beta....so a complete vanilla under network sidewalk overhaul is quite possible.

Furthermore an installer will need to be implemented to make the choices easy for noobs...no offense...it's hard to keep track of all of it myself. :P

The reason i gave so many choices is so that there's a solution for everyone...well except for nam at the moment...Once this goes into beta in the next couple days i will start on that as well as tweak the bridge and station configurations.

That being said the beta will be closed. Until it's checked and double checked and an installer is created i don't want to be bothered by people who will not understand how to choose between files or flood the nam support thread with something that doesn't yet support nam. Pm me if your interested. All nam ram and associates are welcome. If i know you fine. If i don't i will rely on Reputation. Pm me if interested. Also i need to set up a private board and host this stuff some how....I'll figure it out %wrd

Essentially of the two major choices here all the bits are interchangeable...so for instance...you can have color shifted sidewalks for el/road intersections but also have vanilla el/street intersections. The reason for this is compatibility with network texture mods. This works for both the vanilla el and my facelift.

Also i would like people to request texture patches for sidewalks roads streets etc...i'm not overly familiar whats out there but the color shifting is easy and only requires a texture patch since all those components use the same id's and are s3d props.

Well that's about it for tonight/this morning...i'll post again in a day or two..

Bud out...


rooker1

Fantastic news.  Looks like we can see some light at the end of the tunnel. ::) :)
Thank you for all your hard work.

Robin :thumbsup:
Call me Robin, please.

b22rian

This is an incredible amount of work you have done here Buddy since
we last chatted !

Most surprising is the puzzle piece work you have already done.
Incredible man !

Hey, I didn't know you had this kinda work ethic in you ! LOL

But seriously all of this is greatly appreciated here by all of us.
Look forward to bumping into you in chat soon.

regards, Brian

jondor

Quote from: buddybud on February 29, 2012, 02:50:41 AM
You might notice rail isn't present in all choices cause i haven't figured out how to implement them correctly. The s3d props do not like gradient alphas. So my only option so far was to paint on the rail texture...which is not what i want to do. Defeats the purpose of using a s3d prop.  &sly

Gradient alphas can be done, it just takes different MATS settings:

The three most important are to change the Src Blend to Source Alpha and Dest Blend to One Minus Source Alpha, then change the Alpha Threshold to 0.  You may or may not have to click the Framebuffer Blendin(g) checkbox.  Hope this helps.  :thumbsup:
All new animated railroad crossing props for networks of all sizes! (Phase 1 complete)--> http://sc4devotion.com/forums/index.php?topic=13209

Mostly writing pony stories on FimFiction.net, but Cities: Skylines is my new best friend.  Anything and everything I made for SimCity 4 is fair game for use and distribution.

choco

i can help with incorporating the changes to the bridge controller.  i'd like to get into it anyway to clean up some of my junk code and tidy it up a bit.  lemme know when your ready bud!

:thumbsup:

buddybud

#472
rooker1...at the end of a train tunnel! RUN!!!  :P
b22rian...Thanks for the continued support. Ill pop buy help on sunday or monday to help the help help... ;)
jondor...Frikin awesome info, i'll try it out this weekend immediately and bug ya if i get confused :P
choco...Thanks as always brother, Ill keep ya posted and the files should be available in a two or three days.

Back to the grind!
Bud


Quote
jondor

Kudos My Friend...karma for you requested!


Got some flickering as i zoom in and out...but i'm sure i can figure it out...can't say how happy i am...tomorrow i'll try to stack a couple texture groups in the 3ds. Your awesome!  &apls

of course now i got more work to do &mmm  ;D

another edit

seems alpha func and depth func both set to always solved the flickering problem. I was unable to make a single 3ds prop work with a solid base and an alpha overlay however creating two seperate props for each texture worked like a charm! Thanx again!

Now off to bed before i totally screw my work day :P




jondor

I assume both of these props are just simple flat planes?

If so, you should be able to combine them into a single model.  Two planes in two separate groups so they can have different MATS settings.  You'll probably have to raise the overlay slightly (say a 1/100 of a meter).  I used that trick to get shadows under the FlexCurve overpasses when the Network INI couldn't do it right.
All new animated railroad crossing props for networks of all sizes! (Phase 1 complete)--> http://sc4devotion.com/forums/index.php?topic=13209

Mostly writing pony stories on FimFiction.net, but Cities: Skylines is my new best friend.  Anything and everything I made for SimCity 4 is fair game for use and distribution.

buddybud

#474
Thank you Jondor...I've had complete success with your help!



For others, tomorrow I'll write here more extensively what i did to get these props to work properly with the shadows and alphas etc. But its now a truely texture swappable 3ds prop under there and stable! In other words the base, rail and shadow are all separate textures...

shadow needs tweaking, here's a shot with automata



....got to sleep a bit Bud :P

JoeST

Copperminds and Cuddleswarms

buddybud

thanks Joest... but really thank Jondor for sharing the knowledge.

On a side note i finally got the beta up...only took 4 years :-\ hahaha... Lets hope it moves along at a better pace now.

Back to the above pics. Jondor essentially gave me the knowledge to use the alphas. The big difference seems to be the fact that he was modifying 3ds network models and I was modifying 3ds network props. Why they react different i don't know, but I could only group together similar textures in one model. So the rail you see at the bottom has 2 props. One for the dirt zone. And one for both the rail and the shadow texture. The difference being the latter two have alphas. Also the network shadows created masks on my props with alphas no matter what i did, so i had to replace the network shadows with blanks and then reintroduce the shadows as props. Adds a bit of complexity and a additional prop but it works. Also a "no shadow" choice has to now be introduced but works also.

Anyways pm me if you want to get involved in the beta and don't have access.

Over and out
Bud :thumbsup:


buddybud

#477
Well I've been busy the last week and finally finished with the rail textures. Essentially lowres, highres and all zooms now match! I won't even say how much work it was but it took the better part of a week. Glad thats over...lol.

Secondly i started with the station but sidetracked. Ive always hated the default maxis el station for many reasons. 1st it cast a shadow unlike the rest of the rail network...making it look abit weird. Then 2nd, the track looked pixelated  at all zoom levels.

So i fixed it...then made a default to match my own. Essentially i lowered the rail surface slightly then added s3d props with all the proper zoom levels and texture id's. Next i made the station itself into a prop to remove the shadows...then added false s3d prop shadows underneath. Both the shadows and rail are dynamic so they change depending on the choice of textures. Theres also a no shadow option if you don't use shadows. For my version i changed the base abit to match my el skin. I'm also going to add a s3d prop shadow to the surface rail for the platform and roof shadow in the next week.

Anyways heres the default station for the el fix and my bb el. In the bb el station picture you also see the new low res textures that are almost identical to the highres. Below that are the next two zoom levels of track to show how they all now match more or less. (the masking around the shadows under the elrail and around the roof are the result of my crappy video card...just in case your wondering  :thumbsdown:)

Betas going on still with a bit of feedback from Vlasky and Bzzian both of which i thank greatly. If anyone else is interested and doesn't have access just pm me and i'll see what i can do. With that in mind i'll update the beta with the new files tomorrow night. Still tweaking etc....In a good way  ;D  I only got as far as doing textures for the one angle of the first zoom for my el station...bit of a seam there where the textures meet....






So in short all thats left in this vanilla incarnation is finish tweaking these stations plus my own, deal with the el to sub transition ramp and then just some cleaning up and packaging i think.Oh ya...the bridge needs to finalized...I got a couple ideas there still. I also know theres some diagonal models i have to address because of artifacting but thats minor. Also i want to make color adjusted texture patches for the more widely used sidewalks, rails, and other networks out there..but thats really simple. So tackling the various aspects of nam should be just around the corner!

Bud

RickD

I love the new textures. Great work. I will definitely use them in my region.
My name is Raphael.
Visit my MD: Empire Bay (My old MD: Santa Barbara County)

Shadow Assassin

Very nice, buddybud... but I have a question... how will this interact with GLR? What's your plans for that in addition to your El-Rail project?
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