WEST END

[rooker1]

Super work, awesome pics and you must have a lot of patience.  Everything looks very well placed and looks like a great recreation.  Your choice of custom content is very fitting, or at least I think so.  I like your use of the GLR.  I'm still trying to get the hang of it.
Great work and I look forward to your next update.

Robin 

[Pat]

Paul wonderful last 2 updates here and it seems you have a small pollution problem in them waterways lol.... I do hope the council gets together and gets it cleaned up...  But I look forward to see what you got for us next!!!

[thundercrack83]

Wonderful update, my friend!

I love how you used in-game pictures and ones from real life to show the inspiration! I'll definitely be looking forward to seeing what you've got in store for next!

Dustin

[Nardo69]

Great update!: I already said elsewhere that you really caught the atmosphere in Amsterdam!
I especially like that Harlemmergold church on that bridge and the transition between Kanal and sea is solved really elegant (though different than real life)! I must confess that these transition made me worry the most when I use kanals, too.

I just would give it a try to oppie's kanal pieces especially in those areas with the GLR and the pedestrian malls, that SC4 classic is a bit closer to the original that PEG's in urban areas IMHO

Take care (and don't forget to make backups)

Bernhard 

[bokrif]

Nice work Paul!
Yes, those creamy yellow buildings aren't really Dutch, but Hungarian ones

[Jmouse]

Many happy returns,
Joan (Jmouse) and Dave (Tooheys)

[bat]

Also a

HAPPY BIRTHDAY
from me!!

And looking forward to more of West End!

[sebes]

it's an honour to call him a friend

True - so - true! 
Paul - I congratulated you just after midnight - hope you're having a fun day today. 

Cheers! 

[warconstruct]

hello the friend Paul , I wish you a happy birthday and much of happiness in your life private 
We are likely to be on a good interdependent community and divide likes our me joy that is SC4 .


(posts of one films French)



The images of your city are splendid, a great pleasure for my eyes!
The buildings as well as the channels and of course your incredible talent has make a very realistic city . !

Your GLR is very well used I congratulate you 

I am more than impatient to see your next update !

a+ Paul / Warconstruct

[thundercrack83]

Happy birthday, Paul! Hope your day is well, my friend!

Dustin

[paroch]

Hey, just popped in and was very surprised and touched to see you all having a party!

Joan & Dave - BIG BIG thanks for the support and help and your friendship.  Great verses there, you're a poet and don't know it

Bat - thanks for the wishes.

Sebes - I know that today is also your mum's birtday, so happy birthday to mummy sebes!

Paul - thanks, first time I've had a brithday card from France

Dustin - thanks and yes I'm having a nice day with champagne, doughnuts, beer and chinese food.

Today is also my daughter's birthday, so it's a double celebration here.  And tomorrow I have a go-karting event with my friends.  So, normal West End service will resume at the weekend.

Thanks again guys, Paul

[Pat]

Hey Paul Im sorry I missed the Big Day but any ways...............


Happy Birthday and many more to come around that don't make you fall or get hurt but most of may your bones dont hurt lol!!!

[bokrif]

Happy Birthday Paul!
Boldog születésnapot Paul!

[Starmanw402007]

West End is Looking awesome there mayor. Saw all the great photos you displayed. Keep those updates coming.

[tooheys]

You've done it again my friend, another great update.

Dam Square is probably my fave, the monuments look good, but what really caught my eye was the little church over the canal 

You continue to blend your lots together nicely and the canals look grand.

If anything the maxis city hall needs a bit of a facelift (well I had to pick on something  . )

Anyway, well done  , looking forward to the next.

Dave.

[paroch]

REPLIES:

Jmouse:  Joan, I'm pleased that you liked the RL pics mixed in.  Not something I've done much of before, but it just seemed appropriate here.  Thanks for all the positive comments, that update did take some time to put together, so it's nice to know it's appreciated.
As for the next update..... Kingly is having a few problems, so I'm not progressing as quickly as I'd like.

Sebes:  Thanks for the detailed comments and support.  It is feedback like this that makes publishing this MD so enjoyable    thank you.  The locks and spillways seem to be popular.  They can be a bit fiddly to place.
I'm pleased that you are happy with the Dam Square - if an Amsterdammer says it is good, then that's good enough for me!
And the pics were found using google, not mine unfortunately 

Bat:  Thanks for your support too - you're always here to add a friendly comment.

Nedalezz:  Well, when the person who has created Qumma uses the words awesome, magnificent and inspiring, I have to be happy 

Rooker1:  Robin, you mention patience......I think I lost my patience during the current phase, with so many city problems including lack of jobs, terrible pollution and lack of commercial demand.  Placing the canals was easy in comparison!  As for the GLR, stick with it.  A tip for you from my own experiences.  Place the stations last.  For some reason, if you move a GLR puzzle piece over a GLR station I experience a CTD.  So, you either have to be VERY careful, or just leave gaps in the track for the stations and fill them in later.

Pat:  Hehe, yes the is probably the worst pollution I have ever had in SC4  .  I think it has got a bit better - but not much!

Dustin:  Thanks for that my friend - it's nice to have so many positive comments.

Nardo69:  Gee, thanks.  I'm glad you noticed the little church on the bridge.  I thought that it would be an unusual touch.  And thanks for the tip re Oppies canals - I will check them out real soon.

Bokrif:  Yes, Haarlemgold has Hungarian and German buildings as well as his Dutch ones.  So I am glad that Hungary can be represented in Amsterdam 

Starmanw402007:  Welcome to West End, your first visit I believe.  I can guarantee the updates will keep coming.  Maybe only one a week, but they'll be there.

Tooheys:  You're not the only one to spot the little church.  And Dam Square was tricky to do, because there was no Bat that was just right.  Yeah, I need a city hall re-lot, wonder who might be able to help me ?

Birthday Greetings:  Thanks to you all for the birthday greetings, I've replied to those a few posts above.


UPDATE 28:  22nd March 2008

Well, I have to start by saying I was very pleased with the number and content of the comments from the last update - thanks to all who commented and also those of you just viewing as well, but feel free to say hi and say what you like and what you don't like.

Kingly is having a few issues at the moment which has slowed down my development of the city.
The main problem is the lack of jobs.

28.01  City-wide Unemployment:

The yellow arrows show you the houses with no jobs.  It's a bit frustrating, because I've built plenty of industrials at the edge of town and in the Oosterdok.  I've also built industrial zones on two neighbouring quads near to Kingly's borders.  I've even plopped the Joerg Auto Factory which gives 3,000 Industrial jobs, but it will only attract 1,500 workers.
Still, on the positive side, you can see the new city ferry terminal to the north of the Central Station (thanks Sebes for telling me it was there).
This pic also gives you a feel for how the city centre is developing.

28.02  Neighbourhood Unemployment:

And here's a close up of the problem.  It's a shame, because they certainly spoil what could have been a nice picture!  Still, I have a cunning plan that I'm going to try out soon.


The other problem the city is facing at the moment is pollution - serious pollution.  This is mainly as a result of the heavy industry in and around the Oosterdok, let's have a look......

28.03  Oosterdok Pollution:

This is the part of Oosterdok right next to the station and where the pollution is at its worst.  You can see that the area is still in development.  Not normally the quality of picture I'd post in the MD, but I wanted you to see the issues that the city is experiencing.


28.04  Inner Oosterdok:

And here's what the inner Oosterdok looks like at present.  Once this is fully developed and I've got the pollution under control I think this could be the scene of a pretty good picture.
Sebes may notice that I have plopped the Montelbaanstoren in it's proper place (or very close).  I've also got one over next to Dam Square.  What do you all think, can I have two identical towers in the city?  Or should I get rid of the one over at Dam Square (picture 27.14)?  You know I'll go with the majority on this one!
And that GLR station is currently serving 664 people.


28.05  Outer Oosterdok:

Here's a shot of the Outer Oosterdok, which stretches down towards the border with Charing Cross.  The pollution is not so bad here, although there is scope for more development along the docks.
You can see the GLR snakes its way from the city centre out to the docks.  I'm planning on building a park at the end of the GLR.


28.06  Western Industrials and Auto Factory:

And just to prove there is plenty of industry in the city, here is the Western Insdustrial zone.  Joerg's Auto Factory is the large building at the end of the GLR (which has since been extended).  But I just cannot get enough people to work there, even though there are people without jobs !!!!
For those who know the real Amsterdam, the large plaza is Kingly's version of Leidseplein, just waiting for development to take off!  And the park is the Vondelpark.  I think the park probably needs to be bigger - any hints Sebes?


28.07  Charing Cross Industrials:

Charing Cross is a large quad to the east of Kingly.  I've started building up Industrials at the edge of the city, together with good rail and road links to try and supply more jobs for the Kinglish.


28.08  Ferry Terminal:

And just to finish off with the problems!  Here is the ferry terminal to the north of Central Station.  The terminals, along with all others in Kingly have no usage at all, when you click on them, they had zero passengers.  All very frustrating!  I've tried them at different heights but nothing - grrmmmph!
I was quite pleased with the embankment though - first time I've got the split levels to work.


28.09  R-C-I Demand:

And this is what the demand is looking like at the moment.  I-HT is the big demand.  Hopefully the next I zones will generate the right stuff!


OK, enough of Kingly's problems, let's look at the good bits now......

28.10  West End National Flag:

28.11  West End National Flag:

I have to give a MASSIVE thank you to geoffhaw for producing these brilliant animated West End flags.  I can only imagine how long they took to make.  They are fully animated in-game, so the flag is slightly different in each stage of the animation.  Geoff, if you're reading - THANK YOU.  And what makes it even better is that Geoff is also a West Ham fan, so he fully appreciated the Claret and Blue version of St.George's Cross.  You can see a version of the flag on plain grass in 28.08 outside the terminals.
I'm not quite sure what that random object is on the avenue in 28.11!


28.12  Oudebrugsteed

A random shot from the city!  Here is the junction of Damrak and Oudebrugsteed.  It's a different angle from the pic in 27.12.  The city hall doesn't really work - Dave is right.  So any suggestions for a better city hall to fit here are much appreciated.


28.13  Kingly Overview:

OK, I've done a bit of demolition work, weeding out the buildings with no-job-zots.  You can also see I've been working on embankment walls for the sunken rail.  You can also see the two Montelbaanstoren in this pic.
I think you can get the idea of what it's going to look like once it's more developed.  I am doing my best to get it done - but it's not as easy as I thought!


28.14  Kingly at Night:

This one is for Joan!  Shame about the no-job-zots, but I think you can see how the canals and ped-mall tiles really give good results with night lighting.  Just wait until it's fully developed and I sort the unemployment out!  You never know, there may even be a picture comp entry from such a shot!


Well, that's it for today.  It's not quite the update I had in mind, but I wanted to keep you posted and show you that there are some problems to overcome - I guess like we all experience from time to time!

'til next time.........

[Pat]

Paul wonderful Update here and I think by showing off the problems of the city it brings it down to more of a realistc city!!!   I do love your flags and also the parks in the middle, where are those parks at anyways or are they your own custom creation?   What bites is that I cant see the night pic at all 28.14 siiiigh... Anyways wonderful stuff here and I do hope you have a Happy Easter!!!!

[sebes]

Excellent update Paul - toppertje

For the ferry to work - do you have a ferry at the other side of the river too? Your population is in need for high-tech industry, what will not grow in poluted cities. Maybe some I-HT at the other bank will attract the high educated Kingly workers to work there.

Your pic 28.04 - the Oosterdok with barges and the Montelbaantoren on it's RL spots looks great. If you ask me that is HoF material once it's fully developped. I personally don't mind to see the Montelbaantoren on more places -it's a great bat, and I always love how the flag is blowing on it!

Thanks for also showing the overviews in pics 5-6-14. It's nice to see how Kingly has grown. I have seen the "naked" layout of the canals, and it's a pleasure to see how the city got dressed up by you. I especially like the result of the remoddeling of the bended canals (southeast of Leidseplein). They will look awesome with some diagonal building along them.... The central overview made me realize that your Damsquare is mirrored compared with the way how I interpreted your Damsquare picture in the previous update - nice surprise!

Geoff did a good job on the West End / West Ham flags - and you made them look very nice in the game! I also love that view on the Oudebrugsteeg. And that night shot - awesome - especially the effect of the pedmall lampposts 

Take your time to solve the issues in Kinlgy and I am looking forward to your next update!

[Jmouse]

Wow, I really hate to see all that unemployment, Pau!  Thing is, your demand graph seems to be a bit out of kilter. The high demand for I-HT would suggest a well-educated and slightly older population as would the low demand for I-D and I-M. But a high EQ should spawn a need for the C-$$s and $$$s - both kinds I'd think. Seems like there's always a demand for R$ and most of the time for R$$, but once again, the I-HT demand should create a greater demand for R$$$. So somehow, you don't have the right jobs for the right Sims, but I don't know how to fix it. Hope somebody will come along and explain it!

I always tend to doze the polluters as soon as I think I can get away with it,  so maybe try eliminating them and grow or plop some I-HT. Or could it be that the Sims can't get to their jobs or don't like the mass transit you've provided? I just think you've really undertaken a huge challenge here and it will be very enlightening to see how you deal with it.

28.04  Inner Oosterdok looks great, especially that drawbridge, and I can see how you've started to zone the jagged edges of the canal (28.01). I've been curious about that. I like the way you built the ferry terminal in 28.08 -- been taking lessons from somebody we know?!

The flags (28.10) look superb, thanks to geoffhaw, and so do the plazas, but don't be admitting Dave is right about anything!

And it's so sweet of you to add a night shot for me! But you are right, those canals look spectacular after dark. Use the tastyzots cheat if you want to get rid of the job thingys temporarily.

However things work out, I'm really glad you showed us the bad with the good. As a fan, I like to see the ups and downs and how you deal with them. After all, that's the way it is in RL and besides, that's one way we learn from each other!

Until next time...
Joan

[thundercrack83]

Don't let pollution and unemployment get you down, my friend! You'll get it all straightened out, I'm sure. And I can't wait to see how you do it!

Dustin