Covington - Update 61 "Chestnut Hills and South River Bend"

[Simpson]

Woaw very good
Your city is very beautiful

[sebes]

Two beautiful updates JB!  The housing are with SFBT flats is absolutely rocking. I tried to get the same the other day in my town but everything else kept on coming instead of these beauties. The monotony of the quarter, but combined with the trees and parks, make it one of the best low-cost housing projects ever seen in MD-land. In fact it resembles the area where I live very much!!!
(linkie)

Your map looks fantastic now - and compared to just a few days ago it is of much higher quality. That makes me think that it's even a method I could learn, or that you are just so d* good at this as well... Please tell us how to try it ourselves OK?

And Washington Heights is very very well done. Just he perfect street/road lay out, the perfect match of homes, and completed with many trees. The park in 11.11 make want to take my bike and sit there in the shade with a nice glass of whine... 

[bat]

A really great new update there JB! And wonderful work on that part of your city!

Looking forward to the next...

[Pat]

Jon WOW the more you do the maps the better your getting at them too!!! I loved this update exspecialy pics 11.04/5/8/10 those pics give a real great feeling of rural america!!!  Even more so with the parkway!!! It reminds me of being back down in Rockford as there is an area by my aunts house that is a beautiful parkway...

[JBSimio]

Paul:  Thanks!  I thought it was about time to showcase the school packs a little bit... I realized after the fact that I managed to include one from every pack too!    I think the houses with the curved facades are actually set up to grow on corners, so that arrangement usually happens without any help from me.

TopCliff:  Thanks!  I'm anxiously awaiting your suggestion.

Matt:  I agree that being on the historical registry can occasionally be a double edged sword.  But (and this shouldn't surprise anyone) I feel the benefits far outweigh any red tape or other downsides.  Thank you!

Duane:  Thanks!  I debated whether that picture was really worth keeping, but now I'm glad I did!

Dustin:  Thank you as always for your kind words!

Joan:  Thank you!  By all means, copy away!  The only issue I'm beginning to run into so far is traffic on the "side streets."  I'm trying to find a way to limit the through traffic in those areas.  The lack of parking at Parkside is just because it's an elementary school... I figured most people would drop their kids off, but not park there for the day.  I haven't really changed the way I make my maps... I think my problem with the first one was that I went too far with the resizing.

Simpson:  Thank you my friend!

Sebes:  Thanks!  I also had a little trouble at first getting the SFBT apartments to grow.  The main trick was limiting the building styles (these grow in Euro tileset only) and altering a couple lots in my plugins so they wouldn't grow in that tileset.  The big "competitors" were Peg's MTP neighborhoods (which I pulled out since I don't need them here anyway) and several BLS large neighborhoods (where I just changed the tileset in Reader)  The map method is honestly very simple, but time consuming.  A short guide is coming up...

Bat:  Thank you!

Pat:  Thanks!  I don't know if rural America is a good thing for the part of town I'm in, but I'll take it nonetheless!   

OK... this isn't really an update this time.  I've had a few comments about the maps and how I make them, so I figured I would try to explain it real quick like.  First off, I use Paint (seriously... stop laughing at me!) and PhotoFiltre to do them.  If you're going to do multiple city tiles you will need to either play the game in a window, or use the "windows" button to switch in and out of the game without exiting.

• Step 1:  While in the game, open up the traffic map and leave it on "congestion."  Take a screen capture using ctrl-alt-print screen making sure to include that map in your screen.
• Step 2:  Open Paint and hit ctrl-v to paste your screen capture into the program.  Draw a selection box around the map and then go to the menu "Edit" and select "Copy to"  This will save just your selected box as a new image file.  Save it as either a BMP or PNG file.  You can then click new image to discard the rest of the capture and be ready for your next one
• Step 3:  Repeat this process for all the city tiles you want to include in your map.
• Step 4:  Once you have all the images you need, close the game and go back into Paint.  The first thing you want to do is trim your images down so there is no border.  The resulting image should be exactly 256x256 pixels.
• Step 5:  You will need to resize any small or large tile maps you've made at this point.  Large tiles should be double (512x512) and small tiles should be half (128x128).  I leave the medium tiles the default size as this makes a standard road 2 pixels wide which seems to work well for me.
• Step 6:  Time to arrange all your individual maps into one large image.  I usually keep a large "template" image of ridiculous size and use the "Paste from" option (in the edit menu) to move all the small images into place.  Having a drawing of the region on graph paper comes in pretty handy here so you know what order everything goes in.
• Step 7:  Basically you just have to draw over all your roads, avenues, rails, etc etc etc by hand at this point.  You will often have individual pixels left along the edges of angled roads and curves as you draw over them, but we'll take care of that shortly.  Once you've filled everything in, save the new file again as a BMP or PNG to keep the colors from blurring.
• Step 8:  Now I go into PhotoFiltre (or whatever more advanced program you have) for the finishing touches.  All the left over neon green from any stations, or network edges... as well as replacing the ground and water colors are done here.  I use the "Replace Color" feature to do all of this.  Usually you can set the tolerence to cover more shades at once, but you'll probably still have to do this several times to get everything filled in.
• Step 9:  Add any text, etc that you may want... crop it to size if you're only showing a section... resize if necessary... save as a JPG.
  

That's about it.  I hope that's relatively clear to read... if not, I can post some pictures for any parts that didn't make sense.

In the meantime... I thought I'd try a picture of the entire region since I've never tried to piece it together before.  My apologies to those with smaller monitors... but this is already half the original size and I couldn't bring myself to go any smaller.  I kind of like the result even if it is a bit hard to see.



Until next time,
JB

[paroch]

Nice explanation there Jon.  I think I'll have to read it again to get it clear, but that could certainly come in useful for something I have in mind.

And that region view is looking stunning.  It really looks realistic, with the patchwork effect of the famr fields, and the urban areas not looking at all square and/or griddy.  I can only imagine how good it'll look when the north is done as well.

[TheTeaCat]

Wonderful updates once again Jon 

I think I got that explanation first time but may just have to read it once again to make sure

Your region shot is superb. those rural areas look so ..... real.
I'm going back for another look from the start of this fantastic MD:D


TTC

[Pat]

LoL Jon these directions where perfectly clear for mapping!!! Funny thing that you mention photofilter as that is what I use as well!!! Gotta love the easyness of it and user friendly too...  I understand you wasnt going for the rural america feeling but I think it truely gives it, well at least on my end!!! yes that is a grand compliment too 

[thundercrack83]

Hey, Jon! Brilliant method and explanation of making the maps, my friend! And don't worry about using Paint, either--I've played with making maps in Paint and they didn't turn out too bad. Photoshop is a bit too advanced for me, yet.

And as always, your region view is extraordinary. I'll be waiting with eager anticipation for your next update!

Dustin

[Jmouse]

Good lesson in map making, Jon. I've never created anything but config.bmp files for map rendering in Paint, but I think a lot of folks get good results like yours. And love the overview!

Later...
Joan

[bat]

Fantastic new map there! And also nice little tutorial!

[Simpson]

Hello my friend
Your map region is magnifical
The field look very réalistic 

[Ennedi]

How I did it that I missed five updates?! I think I will come back and read everything again 

I like your neighbourhoods very much. They have a specific climate (I don't know if I feel it correctly, but it is something new and very interesting for me). And of course your schools - this is an excellent work! 

Your maps are amazing. It is hard to believe that towns and villages are built on the square grid  The fields mosaic looks great, tell me please if they are typical for this RL region? I supposed that American fields are usually larger, yours look a bit like European ones and it is very nice for me 
Great tutorial, will be very useful for me in future, I was thinking about something similar, now I see how you did it and it looks fantastic!

Adam

[mattb325]

Very cool to see you making an MD, JB  The whole anti-grid gives this a great organic feel, and I especially like how you use CP's homes to great effect. The transit networks are some of the most realistic I have seen; particularly with all of the open spaces. Well done 

[Q-Tips]

Great pictures. And your rural areas is nice and makes the region looks good. I like in particular that you tought about the farmfields who can just as well be diagonal. It gives an realistic feeling to your region pics.

[JBSimio]

Paul:  Thank you!  Avoiding the grid was one of my main goals for this region.  Not because I have any problem with grids (I know that opinion is practically sacrelige around here!), but just because I wanted to do something different from what I see every day here in Michigan.  The northern sections begin today! 

Derry:  Thanks!  I'm glad the explaination will be helpful.

Pat:  Thank you!  I actually like PhotoFiltre a lot... it suits my needs and, as you said, is quite easy to use.

Dustin:  Thanks!  Paint actually serves me very well for certain things.  I think the terrible JPG compression is its biggest downfall... otherwise I might use it more often.

Joan:  Thank you for all your kind words here!

Bat:  Thanks as always for visiting!

Simpson:  Thank you, my friend!

Adam:  Thank you!  I'm beginning to find that distinguishing the different neighborhoods is getting a little tougher.  I may need to add a few more housing options to my plugins folder, but then I run the risk of losing the continuity if too many differnt options grow at once.  I think the farm fields are indeed smaller than RL would be, but that is often the case with SC4's scale... especially with things that are supposed to take up a lot of space.  I go with smaller fields just for the visual interest of seeing differnt shades and colors.  As for the odd shapes and layout, I'll let you decide that part at the end of this update. 

Mattb:  Thank you for stopping in and for all you kind words!  It's very nice to see you here.

Q-Tips:  Thanks!  This is probably the first region I've done with the different shapes for fields, and I love the results.  It certainly takes a lot longer to do, but it has been more than worth the time.

Update Time!!!

I decided it was time to change things up for a moment or two... so tonight we'll head north of Covington and see some of the things that are happening up there.

12.01


Here is the latest transportation map.  I haven't begun work on the area between Walnut and Rickland Creeks yet, mostly because it's one large tile, which is very slow to work with on this computer.  (This is also the reason we haven't revisited some of the early towns in this MD like High Point, Ashboro, or Raliegh.)  North of Covington along I-85 is the last of those four "major" outlying towns, which is Riedsville.  We'll visit this town first.

12.02


We'll start, as usual, with an overview of the area.  Riedsville is nestled among the hills and is quickly becoming a bedroom community for Covington.  With I-85 passing so close to the town, it is a fairly quick commute into the city.  US 220, which is still named Summit Avenue here, runs parallel to I-85 and the main railroad line.  Boone Street (State Route 46) runs west and east.

12.03


A closer view of the business district shows what we probably all expected by now.  It's a pretty quiet town with a good bit of historical charm remaining.  The local church adds a nice backdrop to the shops lining Boone Street.

12.04


This is just a closer view of the businesses on the south side of the street.  I just liked the way the church and water tower kind of framed this shot.

12.05


The largest building in Riedsville isn't actually downtown at all, but just to the west in the industrial area.  Gratiot Motors, which has been here for decades, remains the economic backbone of the town.  Although more and more people are beginning to commute into Covington these days, the factory is the the largest employer north of the city for miles and many people in and around town assemble auto parts here.

12.06


With such easy transportation available, Riedsville continues to grow.  These are older subdivisions creeping up the hills south of town just off Summit Avenue, but there are newer ones to be found and probably many more to come.

12.07


South and slightly west of Riedville is a little town called Pisgah Church Grove.  While it is only half the distance from Covington, this town hasn't grown much at all in recent years although suburbia is creeping closer every day.  (OK... it's not really that close yet, but play along with me on this one, OK?  We're just pretending that I've built Covington north up to the point that I intend to. )  As you might expect, the town is named for the church it was settled around.  The church was in turn named for the valley in which is was built.

12.08


All things considered, Pisgah Church seems ridiculously huge for such a rural area.  I wish I had a clever story to explain this, but the factual reasons seem to be lost in history.  Country stories abound, but as with many small town tales, it's hard to say how accurate the stories might be.  The most common explaination is that the church was to be the foundation of a larger seminary complex.  It could be true, although the church is Baptist now.  I suppose it could have been a Catholic church at one time though... who knows?

12.09


Yes... this is as close to a business district as you'll see here.  I liked this picture mainly because it demonstrates just how seamlessly the SmalltownUSA buildings work with Spa's wonderful small commercial buildings.

12.10


And here it is... the region shot of the area.  You can just pick out Pisgah Church Grove in the lower left of the newly finished area.

12.11


Adam asked me how true to reality I was being with the layout of my farms.  I thought I'd let you judge that for yourselves.  This is a satellite image (thank you to Google Maps) of the rural areas just southeast of Greensboro, North Carolina... which is the area I consider to be this region's primary inspiration.  If anything, I'd say my farms are packed a little tighter than they should be... but there again, I plead the game's limitations on space and distance as my excuse.   

Finally, I'd like to take a moment to say thank you to everyone who has been so supportive here.  I've really been enjoying this and I appreciate all the thoughts and comments y'all leave here.  As always, thanks for reading!

JB

[threestooges]

Jon,
Sorry I didn't post on your last update. Great region shot by the way. Part of my summer employment plan didn't work out, so I've been trying to get that straightened out (while trying to enjoy the first days of summer as well). At any rate, how have you been? It looks like you've been keeping busy, and you haven't lost that touch for making your towns look old, yet lively. The auto parts factory is a nice example. It looks old enough to have been there for a while, but I can picture it as an industrial focal point. Hope all is well, and I'll be back around next update.
-Matt

[thundercrack83]

It wasn't until you posted that real-life image from Google Maps that I realized just how close to the real thing you are coming, my friend! I loved the way your farms looked before, but now that I see that, it makes me love them even more!

Magnificent work here, my friend! Keep it up!

Dustin

[Simpson]

Hello Jon
What a beautiful update there
The region is very good 

[paroch]

Hi there JB,

When you said the northern sections start today, I was pleased.  When I saw you've already filled a whole large quad, I was impressed.  When I saw the quality of what you've done in such a short space of time I was amazed.  Surely you must have had this one waiting in the wings for a while.  Did you really do it all in a week?

Anyways, this is such a good update I feel the need for a bit of a ramble..... I hope you don't mind!

12.01 The transport overview is looking very nice indeed.  Love the gentle curves and teh lack of long stright sections, particularly I-85.  But of course it comes at a cost.  For me, I-85 doesn't look so great in 12.02 but there's the play-off.  It looks great in region view, but on city overview it loses much of 'real' look.  I understand why you do it, because the shape of the road is realistic.  Let's just hope that the FAR project I've seen pics of at 3RR someday extends to highways.  The rest of 12.02 is lovely though.  It looks a great little town with plenty of space to breathe.

In 12.03 I have a question for you.  Do such churches exist in such towns in the US?  I really don't know.  The church is just so English for me and yet the town is just so American.  I love the effect, but was kind of expecting a more modern looking church there.

The high street (or should I say Main Street) in 12.04 is just how I imagine many Smalltown USAville's to look - great pic.

12.05  That really is a great bat and it sits there just right.  Have you considered the dead end barrier removal modd.  IMO it makes the end of streets and roads look much better.  12.06 is a great shot of a nice place to live.

12.07/08  I have a theory for you about that church.  Norfolk in England is an agricultural area with many small towns and villages dotted around that grew up to work the various farming estates.  During the 1700 and 1800's the wealthy land and farm owners showed off their wealth by building churches.  Often the churches were far too big for the village they were based it.  But that didn't matter, it was just classic male posturing...."my church is bigger than your church" type stuff.  Maybe something similar happened in Pisgah Church Grove?

12.09  You're right - they look fab.

12.10 That pic tells me that your decision with the 'wavy' I-85 was totally the right one - what a region view 10 out of 10.

You say really enjoying this...well, it shows JB.  And I've enjoyed discovering Covington this month as well.  Keep up the great work mate,

Paul