Railroad Tycoon 3 - Trainmaster Alpha 1

[nedfumpkin]

The cargo icon is just a number in the cty file. It's tied to the cargo rather than the car. All the icons are laid out onto a sheet, and the number references which icon to use. It doesn't use the cargo icon that the game displays.

I wasn't thinking about expanding the cargo icon to the whole of the car, I was thinking more along the lines of half the side of the car, but a bit less than the height. This would give a lot of space to do some nice graphics, and allow for quite a few different logos on a sheet.

Road names would be tied to the commodity as well. Thus, by creating groups, Swift could be set for meat, and Santa Fe for Goods. Exxon for some Tankers. Some cargo wouldn't get icons

[nedfumpkin]

My experiment creating a bungalow concludes that only the house will be recognized as a house. So I am going to create the bungalow as a limited industry, and also a high rise apartment building. As limited industries, they cannot be bought or built by the player, but the map make can set them to spawn in the cities, or they could create regions to become populated by suburbanites.

[FMCRR]

Do we have a solution for the editor crashing the game to desktop??? Or what did I forget to put into the game that's doing it???

[nedfumpkin]

I didn't know it remained a problem. Is it when creating a new map or loading an old map? The only time it happens to me is if I try to load a 1.06 map.

[FMCRR]

Well its now crashing as soon as I hit the button to load a map to play as well, this is a new install on the other system and thought this was all worked out LOL that's why I am wondering if its me that has forgotten something....But I did everything according to the posts again and it worked 1st time around so no clue why it keeps crashing....

[nedfumpkin]

FMCRR...if you are crashing at that point, then you are missing some files. Try re-installing the Alpha, and the patch below.



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The links here have been removed since all the latest files are now located here:

viewtopic.php?f=74&t=1883

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Hint...start in Silibury Bay.

[JFMarvelous]

Just finished my third attempt (XP Home edition), a clean install, C to C, 1.05 patch, TM 1 alpha, TM 1 alpha 1d patch. When I go load a map (TM-Black Diamonds) I get a ---Pack Element <class 25_profile.imb> not found ---error! Where did I go wrong

[nedfumpkin]

That means that you are missing one of the locomotive files. I think you are missing the steam locomotives.pk4 file.


After installation, you should have the following files added to the game, in additon to the new buildings, cargo, and engines...

...\Data\2D\Trainmaster.pk4

...\Data\2D\Trainmaster_Alpha_Patch.pk4

...\Data\PopTopExtraContent\Trainmaster_Bldgs.pk4

...\Data\PopTopExtraContent\Trainmaster_ExpressCars_German.pk4

...\Data\PopTopExtraContent\Trainmaster_Locos_Diesel.pk4

...\Data\PopTopExtraContent\Trainmaster_Locos_Electric.pk4

...\Data\PopTopExtraContent\Trainmaster_Locos_Steam.pk4

...\Data\PopTopExtraContent\Trainmaster_FreightCars.pk4

Also, at this point Black Diamonds can be loaded in the editor but not played. The test map I uploaded can be played.

[JFMarvelous]

Ned, I could not find these files in any of the TM files I have. Where can I get them.
Data\PopTopExtraContent\Trainmaster_Locos_Diesel.pk4

...\Data\PopTopExtraContent\Trainmaster_Locos_Electric.pk4

...\Data\PopTopExtraContent\Trainmaster_Locos_Steam.pk4

[nedfumpkin]

They are in the Trainmaster_Alpha_1_zip.

http://hawkdawg.com/zips/rt3/xtras/ned/ ... lpha_1.zip

[JFMarvelous]

I'm downloading it again now. These files were not in the first download,(maybe I didn't get a full download?). Will try again after I finish download.

[FMCRR]

well something definitely not right, just re-downloaded everything and re-extracted everything and still when I click to start the game either in editor or launching a map it goes to desktop.... This is on a system running XP not Vista....Ned is that making a difference?

[nedfumpkin]

Since I don't know which kinds of maps are being loaded, it's best to try the map I uploaded for testing. Alternately, try creating a map from scratch for testing.

To me it seems like not all the files are being copied to the right folders. It shouldn't matter that your on XP, but I can't say since I have no way to test it, but others have been able to run it on XP.

Check the file list above, and if you are missing files, then extraxt everything to a temp folder and copy them into the correct folders manually.

Another possibility is that you forgot to delete the files you are supposed to before installing the Alpha. Make sure you completely empty the Building Types, Cargot Types and Engine Types folders before unzipping the Alpha 1.zip file.

If there is even the smallest thing from 1.06, or any other mods, then expect things to crash.

[Wolverine@MSU]

I'm not having any problems. I can load 1.05 maps into the game or Editor (although they don't seed correctly for obvious reasons), or create my own from heightmaps. My original problems stemmed from deleting the contants of the /Data/2D folder before copying the stuff from TM. Turns out you need the CtoC.PK4 file there for things to work. Will give your test map a try in the next few days.

[JFMarvelous]

Ned, It loads fine now ! My first download of alpha 1 was not complete(only 200mb extracted size,(should be 253mb?)). Only problem I see is on main menu,( shows T coast to coast R), (should be TRAINMASTER).Do I need the loadscreen pk4 in data/2D.( It wasn't there but I still have the new load screens, it seems ). Also I used the 1.05 patch, but also found in my files the 1.05A exe patch,which I also used. Everthing,(other than the main menu screen), seems to work fine. I will try it out on your test map as soon as I have a couple of hours to devote to it. Looks real good so far.

[nedfumpkin]

The loadscreans and menus are in the Trainmaister.pk4 file that goes in the 2d folder. If the files is somewhere else then the game will still work, but the loadscreens and menus won't show up.

At this point I am only saying that the 1.04 RT3.exe included in the zip will work. If 1.05 or 1.05a works, then it shouldn't make a difference, however, Vista users can't do that, and you can still play and create maps.

I continue working on a nocd crack for Trainmaster/Vista.

Eventually I am expecting to replace the existing files in the 2d and 3d folders rather than add to them. But that will be with the beta when everything is all figured out.

Glad it works though. The map that I uploaded is still in progress, but it has some things to let you see how everything works now. I'll be adding more information as I get time.

[JFMarvelous]

"Also, at this point Black Diamonds can be loaded in the editor but not played." Ned,This map seems to load and play OK,(if you consider being booted out as chairman after 5 years ok). Starts out with 40 or 41 cargos,(Trainmaster cargos are showing), and added TNT at about the 5 year mark. (FYI) XP Home Edition SP3. Also using 1.05 no/cd, works fine.

[nedfumpkin]

Then I must've forgotten something and subsequently fixed it because it crashed on me. Black Diamonds that is. The original version had it so you had to haul a load of gold before a bank would be built and you could get bonds. In one try it took me five years, and another it was 10 before I could get a bond.

The key to making industries profitable is by supplying their needs completely. A papermill will make paper from hemp or pulp and be able to pay for itself in 10 years (with upgrade) if you only supply it with hemp. but if you also supply it with pulp, the money really rolls in.

Flour mills are probably the most lucrative option. They are the "dairy farms" for a small investment that makes good dough. But you need to supply them with textiles or paper or else the flour won't be made.

Recyling plants are excellent because they help deal with the waste that is out there, but also because they supply constituent parts, i.e. iron ore, bauxite, chemicals, pulpwood.

[Wolverine@MSU]

Needing multiple inputs to make output is a good idea except sometimes you can't get the needed inputs where they need to go because of price differentials. Case in point: meat and flour were needed by a food processor, but I couldn't get the meat to go because it was priced higher at the source than at the destination. Lumber mills can also be a problem if machinery is demanded elsewhere at a highr price; without a load of machinery once in a while, the logs just sit there like........well, like a bump on a log. The accessory structures can sometimes overcome this problem, but what the game really needs is "ship at a loss". Even if you take a hit on the cargo, you more than make up for it in industry profit and finished/semi-finished goods.

[nedfumpkin]

Something I found with the food processor and the sugar refinery was that the citizens to precedence over them for cargo so you have to really supply them. I found it's best to put them away from urban areas.

I also found that mail was getting stacked up so I made it so that houses consume 1.2 mail. Other buildings are also consuming more than they produce.

Here is a zip of some changes I made to the recipes, etc.


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The links here have been removed since all the latest files are now located here:

viewtopic.php?f=74&t=1883

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I also made changes to the test map, and it should be easier to get going now. Industies will appear on the map, and it starts in 1910 now.





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If I can get the ship at a loss to work, then I will put it in.