Commonwealth of Marathon

[thundercrack83]

Earth quake: Thanks again, my friend, for your support!

David (dedgren): Hello, David! Thank you for your kind words, my friend! Though, if I worked for PennDOT, I'd probably just end up staring paving projects, only to stop halfway, as they prone to doing around here. Don't be a stranger, my friend!

Dave (tooheys): Hey, Dave! As for the 45° curves, I must admit that I overlooked them. I'll head back in and play around and we'll see what we come up with! Thanks for stopping by!


Just a quick something before I head out for the afternoon...

Just a quick shot of the area surrounding the Central Marathon Bus Terminal, as well as the current rendition of our terrace lots. There will most likely be more adjustments made in the future!

I'd also like to extend a huge CONGRATULATIONS to Emil (emilin) and Robin (rooker1) for their MDs Blackwater (with Islas Gemas) and Mind Scape being voted into the SC4Devotion MD Hall of Fame for Autumn 2008! Congrats, my very good friends—it is definitely very well deserved!

Part II of our highway escapade shall follow...

Have a great day!

[art128]

awesome mosaic my friend, great work  that city is very realistic 

[Simpson]

Wow, this mosaic is really wonderful my friend. This is so réalistic, I love your city so much
I'm looking forward to the next update 

David

[dsrwhat316]

Nice mosaic shot, Dustin!

Just one small thing irks me; the plaza over the west highway tunnel entrance seems to slope downwards instead of being flush with the top part. Since I know you've been playing with the Lot Editor, I can show you a quick way to remedy that, if no one minds 

If you check out the sloped underpass tutorial by yours truly, you can put into practice this technique to fix that little blemish. Again, sorry for hijacking your thread, just thought I'd give a little friendly advice 

~ Dan

[Lilojame]

You are welcome. my friend, besides I am already working on the prop pack as we speak. 
And the mosaic there looks great!
It is always a pleasure to visit Marathon!

See you later, my friend,
Karin

[Earth quake]

Wow, dustin.

Exceptionnal mosaïc.  .

I really like your city, Il like your Highway, but you have bug in your tunnel no ?
Excellent lotting, i really love your quay.

Just excellent update my friend. 

[kbieniu7]

Well, I usually don't like many skyscrapers, but there they look good
And nice half-diagonal road network and nice banks

[Schulmanator]

Very nice! A great eye candy treat for us. 

[paroch]

Hi Dustin,

I can't keep up with your updates!  They're all looking good though and it's interesting to follow along with the developments here in the Commonwealth of Marathon. 

I'm glad you found the Prop Family tutorial of use and I'm impressed with what you've achieved so far - I can see they will be of great use to you in your terraces.  As for food vendors....... try these searches in LE.

refreshment (Maxis)
chitaco (Maxis)
farmertable (Maxis)  - or if not farmertable just try "table" and you'll get some that may be of use.

RP has a burger trailer in one of his older prop packs but struggling to recall details at mom.
And RT has a prop pack that has some "tapas" restaurants that includes a burger van.
And another of his prop packs has a small food stall - search under "essence" and you'll find it.

Also...... I think in SimGoobers packs you'll find some "bars" which can double as food vendors.

Next time I fire up the LE I'll make a more definitive list of the ones I use and PM them to you.  There are some out there but like most things in LE, it can take some time to find them.


Great pics you've shown us as well Dustin - great to see your MD grow so quickly.

All the best,

Paul

[Jmouse]

Absolutely awesome mosaic, Dustin. If I didn't know you'd only just started, I'd say you were almost finished with your region! Your lots look just fine - you've accomplished a great deal in such a short time, and it's all high quality work!

Later...
Joan

[Pat]

Hey Dustin I like that Mosiac there WoW!!! The fillers are turning out very good!!!

[turtle]

Very nice mosaic, Dustin

I kind of feel bad that I suggested you should find those props as I don't really know where to get them or if they exist. I see that you have set some wheels in motion, though. The only thing i could find, that might be of use is gascookers marketstalls over at ST: http://www.simtropolis.com/stex/index.cfm?id=12499
I don't know if they can compete with whatever people here suggested. Either way, your lots on the waterfront already look very nice 

Thomas

[thundercrack83]

Arthur (art128): Thanks, my friend, so much!

David (Simpson): And thank you, too, David!

Dan (dsrwhat316): Yes! That's been bothering me, as well—thank you! I will be checking that tutorial out as soon as possible!

Karin (Lilojame): Thank you, Karin! I can't wait to see what you'll come up with in the prop pack! Take care!

Earth quake: Hi, my friend! Bug in the tunnel? I don't see one, but that doesn't mean it's not there! If you could point it out for me, that'd be great. We'll try and take care of it!

kbieniu7: Thanks! Come back again!

Schulmanator: Welcome, my friend! Thank you for your kind words!

Paul (paroch): You're a Godsend, Paul! Next time I head into the LE, I will try those searches and see what I can come up with. I've come to realize that the hardest part about the LE is trying to find stuff in it! Thanks so much for all your help, my friend. It's been so great!

Joan (Jmouse): Thank you very much, Joan! I wish I could say that I was almost finished with the region, but we're just getting started! Thanks for stopping in!

Pat: Thanks, bud!

Thomas (turtle): That's OK, my friend—like I said to Paul (paroch), the toughest part about the LE for me is trying to find stuff, and I'm sure I'm not the only one. Any tips, suggestions, or the like are always welcome here, whether you have a link to things or not! Thanks for coming by, and I hope to see you here again!

UPDATE VII
45°
24 November 2008

Before heading into Part II, we'll take a bit of detour. Dave (tooheys), who, in addition to being a good friend, is also the author of Region of Balnavia, asked this question:

...

Marathon is coming along nicely, the hwy and walls are well done and I like the tutorial approach. I see you did mention the NAM and was wondering if you had considered using the 45degree hwy bends?

...

Well, the answer to your question, Dave, is a very easy one—I didn't think of that!

So, I said to myself, "Self," (Boy, oh, boy...) "This should be a quick fix!" Right? Well, not really.

Let's go back to here...

...in Update V: Sunken Highways, A Tutorial, and see where we stand with these 45° curves.

This warrants...

...a different angle and a closer look.

With the grid on, we see...

...the highway trench. So plopping the 45° curve should be a snap!

Just go to your Highway Submenu, click on Custom Interchanges and hit [Shift] + [Tab] one time to get there.

Plop! No problemo, eh? Well, let's delve further...

When we rotate, we find that the curve...

...has brought a retaining wall issue to the surface.

With the current retaining walls that I'm using, the angles that the NAM curve has created are not possible to traverse. So something has to give—the angle, or my choice of retaining walls?

I chose the angle. So...

...we widen the trench.

However, since there is another NAM curve at the end of this diagonal stretch, and it curves in the opposite direction...

...further widening is necessary, giving us...

...this!

And our final product, sans-retaining walls—

So, there's the longer answer for you, Dave! Yes, I do plan to use the 45° curves...and that's how I plan to use them!

Part II will be coming, I promise!

[Simpson]

Hey!! it's really better with the nam curves my friend, this is looking superb and more réalistic.

[paroch]

Nice work there Dustin - it's always interesting to see how other people approach a fresh region and some specific building issues.  And no probs re the LE hints - if ever you're looking for something always feel free to ask.  I'm not as knowledgable as some others on here but have played with the LE enough to have some idea!!

Good luck with the next installment.

Paul

[rooker1]

I know that you just posted this, but how long do we have to wait for Part 2?
 
Just kidding, I guess I can wait.  But I too want to use the curved high way pieces and Buddybud's walls.
I love the mosaic from the previous update, awesome work.


Robin 

[metarvo]

I had never thought of adding NAM 45-degree curves to sunken highways, before, so I can say that you have given me some ideas.  This is an inspiring MD, if I do say so myself, Dustin.

[Ennedi]

Well, well...

I remember many cases when various people suggested you to start your own MD and your constant answer was "Looking at all these amazing MDs I see every day I'm sure my skills are too poor!..." And the only thing I can say now is


Great work Dustin! You not only started the regional development (and it needs much thorough preliminary planning), but you also play with LE and in addition you decided to explain us how did you do everything! That's a very ambitious project. All these tasks need a lot of work, and you should expect many surprises during your region development. But knowing your logical thinking and consequence I'm sure you will handle them all.

I wish you good luck, and every time you will need any help, don't hesitate to ask! I think we will see many unique and innovative things in your MD! 

Adam

[Jmouse]

I like the way you dealt with the issue of curves, Dustin. Also I like the looks of the highway with a little "breathing room" around it (last photo). Do you have plans for feeder roads alongside the main highway? Whether or not, the transport system looks better and better every time you show it!

Later...
Joan

[thundercrack83]

David (Simpson): Thank you, my friend! I like the NAM curves much better myself, too. They are a more gradual curve, not that break-neck elbow that the regular curve gives you. Thanks for coming by!

Paul (paroch): Hi, Paul! I'd say, from what you've helped me out with thus far and from what I've seen, you're quite knowledgeable with LE, my friend! I'll probably be taking you up on your offer to help me out, too, as I head further into the depths of LE'ing! Take care, Paul!

Robin (rooker1): Thank you, Robin! And like I said earlier, congratulations on making it to the Hall of Fame, my friend—you and your work are an inspiration, not only to me, but to everyone, and it is now moving to its well-deserved home!

metarvo: Thank you so much! I've been inspired by so many people here, it feels good to be doing the inspiring! Hope to see you here again!

Adam (Ennedi): Welcome to Marathon, Adam! It's so great to see you back around, my friend, and I'm so happy that you've enjoyed things here so far. As for explaining everything—I'm not sure if you're aware, but there's this MD out there in the MD Hall of Fame called Ennedi Plays Shosaloza, where I've learned more in one sitting than I think I did in four years of college! Your work is one of my many inspirations, Adam, and I strive to have Marathon be a fraction as good as your work is! Hope to see you back soon, my friend!

Joan (Jmouse): I hadn't thought of feeder roads, but now that you mention, it sounds like something to play with! Thanks for the suggestion and your support, Joan!



I was combing though some pictures today and found...

...this—a shot that I missed during the BETA testing of the FAR/FARR. Not a proper Marathon teaser, per se, but we'll be heading into the rural areas of Marathon at some point, too, so this is somewhat appropriate!

Speaking of the FAR/FARR (though, it goes without saying!), if you haven't checked out the FAR/FARR, stop what you're doing and go right over to Three Rivers Region (3RR), where my good friend David (dedgren) is doing things that will, quite simply, knock you right out of your chair. Be forewarned, though, you will completely change your outlook on the game once you step into 3RR! Don't say I didn't warn you!

And Robin (rooker1)—don't fret, my friend! Part II is next on the agenda, just for you!

Until then!