Umm.... New guy here.. help?

[beholder]

Hey, I got lost in the forum somehow, so this is probably not the right place for this post, feel free to move it where it belongs.

So I  used to be a long0time fan of simcity, and now I got back to simcity 4. I had an idea that there is some community that tweaks around with the game, but I forgot it.. lately though, after playing Rome: Total Realism (the popular mod for Rome Total War) I saw how great modifications can be to a game.. and when I installed this game yesterday again, I found this place. Wow, the pictures look AWESOME. If I understand correctly, you guys come up with new building and looks for simcity4... this sounds totally awesome. (excuse me for the excitement, but I am still only getting THAT part, that it's customizable)

Anyway.. I need some help understanding how I can mod the game around with patches I download here, and then I have another in-game question. I have the deluxe version. I will talk more about what I need help with after this post is placed in the right place...

     

[jeronij]

Moved to a more appropriated location 

Deluxe version includes Rush hour expansion, so you can use all the stuff we have here.

I am sure someone will give you further instructions   

tip: place everything in the \My Documents\Sim City4\Plugins folder  , and make sure you download all the needed aditional files ( dependencies) to avoid any problem. Usually these are listed in the main download description 

I hope this helps you to start 

[beholder]

Well my ingame question is about neighbor deals.
Maybe i'm getting rusty (I played the game before a while back), but I can't seem to figure out how to get a deal with my neighboring city. I started one city, made it all farms and stuff, with a power planet that gives it way more juice that they need. Then I started another city below, stretched the power lines (from both ends) so they connect, and tried to buy power from the older city while playing with the new one.. but the menu doesn't appear in the budget window. Why? What am I forgetting?

Regarding devotion's plugins...
really need help here. Where do I start? What is the most important or significant plug0-in, you think, and how do do I install it? (something I couldn't figure out even though I *think* I followed all the instructions...) 

help?

[jplumbley]

@Beholder... For the neighbor connections to update you must have a power source in the city in which you would like to buy power from and a power demand in the city you would like to sell the power to.  Also, for the neighbor connection to be "activated" both cities must be run for a couple of months after the connection is made before the deal can be forged.

[beholder]

Hmm... well the older city (the one with the farms) have a power planet which runs at 60%. there is a power cable that connects them, and I JUST STARTED the other city, with all it's areas flashing that lightinig blot. So do I just sit there and wait until they offer to get power from the other city?

[M4346]

Regarding devotion's plugins...
really need help here. Where do I start? What is the most important or significant plug0-in, you think, and how do do I install it? (something I couldn't figure out even though I *think* I followed all the instructions...)  &opshelp?

I would say that you definitely need the NAM and all its addons (Power Search: LEX Category: NAM) and if you're beginning a new region, you can also have a look at the CAM (Power Search: LEX Category: CAM).

Furthermore you can also look at the various tree and terrain controllers by Cycledogg (Power Search: Creator / Designer: c.p.) to further enhance the visual appeal of your region.

I would also recommend the BSC Parks (Power Search: LEX Category: Parks - BSC Compliant) for that added aesthetic appeal, and then I suggest that you look at custom residential, commercial and industrial content by using the appropriate functions in the power search feature. 

To install just double-click the installer.exe in the .zip file, or, if it does not have an installer, extract the files to the suggested / appropriate directory in your Plugins Folder (My Documents/SimCity 4/Plugins). Follow the instructions in the Readme, where included, and have a very careful look at the dependencies listed! This is important for the correct functioning of your plugins.

You must download and install the external dependencies listed in the Readme. 

If, at any point in time, you have difficulty or don't understand something, feel free to ask here or in the appropriate boards / threads! 

And, finally, welcome to the community!  I trust you will enjoy it here, and, that you will enjoy the custom content available out there! 

[beholder]

To install just double-click the installer.exe in the .zip file, or, if it does not have an installer, extract the files to the suggested / appropriate directory in your Plugins Folder (My Documents/SimCity 4/Plugins). Follow the instructions in the Readme, where included, and have a very careful look at the dependencies listed! This is important for the correct functioning of your plugins.

I think I did that... problem is, I installed the game on a different hard drive in my computer than the usual c:program files\maxis or whatever. I didn't see any changes in the game... I don't remember which one I downloaded, I just remember it had this pic of a foggy bridge and it was under popular downloads on the site (eek). So I'm not sure I installed it right.

Let me know about the neighbor thing it drives me crazzzzy

[beholder]

Wow... I went to the file exchange... wow, you guys are crazy 

I just wanted to look for NAM, figuring there's one plugin, maybe different versions... used the power search like a good boy as I was told.. And I got all these results! and categories within the categories (there are textures, mods and more...), different colors, different versions, some beta, some outdated.. holly smokes!

So where is the page that explain what is what to a new guy like me? MAN I'm never going to see the light of day again..

[M4346]

Wow... I went to the file exchange... wow, you guys are crazy 

I believe the correct word, or the word you were looking for rather, is "devoted."   

So where is the page that explain what is what to a new guy like me? MAN I'm never going to see the light of day again..

I don't think there is such a page... well, at least not that I know of.

The first step, I believe, is figuring out for yourself what you are looking for, or, what you can really use or need at a particular point in time.

You can always start by browsing through the LEX and getting a feel for what is available out there and then if you see something you like, download it, follow the instructions in the Readme, etc. and, well, enjoy it! 

There's no right or wrong when it comes to which plugins you use, but there is a right and wrong when it comes to acquiring, sharing and installing them. 

[Diggis]

A good trick is to start with a developer or two and get used to them.  Simgoober is a great place to start as his stuff is very varied, and numourous.  Anything by Barby is good, and I like Peg's work which can be found at Simpeg.com or Simtropolis.com

[beholder]

So I just downloaded the NAM and it works great... it looks like it just came with the game. As a matter of fact, are the avenue overlaps part of the original game or something you added? I can't tell and I only played the deluxe for a couple of hours.. (if I can't tell, that's a REALLY good sign of course).

I'm curious about one thing that drove me nuts in simcity, and I wonder if you guys have a plug in for that. Is there anything that gets the streets to go diagonally? Further more, something that could maybe get roads to curve? Anything like that?

[M4346]

They are working on the 'get roads to curve', last time I checked anyway. As for the diagonal streets, they come with the NAM. 

[Diggis]

When you installed NAM you should have got a list of options come up, it was one in there.  If you didn't select it you won't have it.

One of the new things we have done is variable textures for street (at the moment, maybe more to come).  There is a SAM Beta V1 uploaded to LEX, which as it says is an open beta.  This is a work in progress and there is a link in my sig to the thread where the work is being discussed.

[hippie159]

Hello Beholder! I totally understand how you feel in regards to "where do I start". I used to play with a plugin folder of about 30 mb. After finding this site it grew to over 2 gigs. Upon realizing my computer doesn't like to run all those I've had to scale back and now I'm down to around 700mb. The best advice plugin wise I could give is this start small. I now only install one maybe two plugins at a time and then check them out in game to see if it is really what I want( everything looks and sounds cool in the readme hehe). As others have said the NAM is a very good place to start as well as the CAM if your into that. And as Diggis mentioned PEG and Simgoober are good places for us plugin newbies to start( I personally started out on them and Jeronij). Sorry I ramble but I thought you might like to hear from someone who was recently in your position. Good luck on your endeavors and remember to always read the readmes for dependancies and most importantly try to have some idea of what you want or you'll be like me and have way more plugins than you know what to do with.