Step-by-Step Guide to Building Routes for Microsoft Train Simulator By Michael Vone [email protected] Step-by-Step Guide to Building Routes for Microsoft Train Simulator Step-by-Step Guide To Building Routes Copyright © 2001, 2002 Michael Vone Copyright © 2001, 2002 Abacus Software, Inc 5130 Patterson St SE Grand Rapids, MI 49512 This book is copyrighted. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior written permission of Abacus Software. Every effort has been made to ensure complete and accurate information concerning the material presented in this book. However, Abacus Software can neither guarantee nor be held legally responsible for any mistakes in printing or faulty instructions contained in this book. The editors always appreciate receiving notice of any errors or misprints. This book contains trade names and trademarks of several companies. Any mention of these names or trademarks in this book are not intended to either convey endorsement or other associations with this book. Printed in the U.S.A. ISBN 1-55755-506-0 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2nd Edition November 2002 2 Step-by-Step Guide to Building Routes for Microsoft Train Simulator Step-by-Step Guide To Building Routes Table of Contents Foreword How to Use this Guide Building "First Route": a project for the first-time user of the MSTS Editors and Tools 1. Planning a Route 1.1 Steps in designing and building a route 1.2 Designing a route 1.3 MSTS limitations 2. The Route Geometry Extractor (RGE) 2.1 What does the RGE do and not do? 2.2 Three types of tiles A. Building "First Route": preparing the geographic tiles on which the route will lay 2.3 Using RGE 2.4 Deleting and adding tiles 2.5 Changing the Route Editor Start Tile 2.6 [NEW] Importing real terrain elevations (DEM) 3. The Route Editor (RE) 3.1 Using RE 3.1.1 Order of operations B. Building "First Route": starting the Route Editor 3.1.2 Starting in RE C. Building "First Route": selecting working windows in the Route Editor 3.1.3 Selecting working windows in RE D. Building "First Route": moving and rotating the camera 3.1.4 Handling the camera 3.1.5 Defining tile properties 3.1.6 Defining patch properties 3.1.7 Using the mode window 3.1.8 Saving and backing up 3.1.9 Recovering from track database errors 3 Step-by-Step Guide to Building Routes for Microsoft Train Simulator Step-by-Step Guide To Building Routes 3.2 Guides for laying tracks 3.2.1 Planting trees 3.2.2 Using markers 3.2.3 Using water E. Building "First Route": laying the first tracks 3.3 Laying track 3.3.1 Selecting a laid track section 3.3.2 Deleting a laid track section 3.3.3 Choice of track sections 3.3.4 Placing track on the ground 3.3.5 Placing the first track section F. Building "First Route": adding sloping tracks over a hill, and creating a spur 3.3.6 Sloping and banking a track section 3.3.7 Adjusting terrain height to fit the track G. Building "First Route": snaking downhill with dynamic track H. Building "First Route": making a siding 3.3.8 Dynamic tracks I. Building "First Route": testing the route with an Activity J. Building "First Route": switching to and from dual track, and placing a dual-track crossover 3.3.9 Some useful track combinations a) Dual-single track transition b) Dual-track crossover c) Double dual-track crossover d) Overlapped double-track crossover e) Proper double-track crossover f) Dual-track branch g) Overhead crossing h) Spirals (helices) i) Spreading dual track around an island platform 3.3.10 Measuring track spacing 3.3.11 Joining meeting tracks a) Using skewed track b) Joining level tracks c) Joining non-level tracks d) Joining offset parallel tracks 3.3.12 Checking for poor joints, especially in grades 3.3.13 [NEW] Add-on tracks and roads, including XTracks 4 Step-by-Step Guide to Building Routes for Microsoft Train Simulator Step-by-Step Guide To Building Routes 3.4 Special track layouts 3.4.1 Bridges 3.5 [NEW] Changing the track's appearance K. Building "First Route": digging a tunnel, and laying track over it 3.4.2 Underground tunnels - the easy part L. Building "First Route": showing water, and making an underwater tunnel 3.4.3 Underwater tunnels - the easy part M. Building "First Route": making a simple station with yard; adding a wye and a reversal loop 3.4.4 Loops and wyes a) Positioning loops and wyes b) Laying a reversal loop (balloon) c) Laying a wye d) Loops and wyes in tunnels 3.4.5 [NEW] Linking distant places with straight tracks 3.5 Terrain shaping N. Building "First Route": shaping a tunnel entrance, one grid point at a time 3.5.1 Manipulating individual wire grid points O. Building "First Route": shaping the river, and covering the underwater tunnel P. Building "First Route": making hills, mountains, and valleys with the "stamp" 3.5.2 Manipulating collections of grid points with the "stamp" (Alter Terrain Height tool) 3.5.3 Flattening (smoothing) terrain 3.5.4 Controlling the width and slopes of the "stamp" (Alter Terrain Height tool) 3.6 Water Q. Building "First Route": adding objects along the tracks - names, signals, speed limits and mileposts 3.7 Interactive track objects 3.7.1 Platform and siding names 3.7.2 Yard definitions 3.7.3 Signals 3.7.4 Speed limits 3.7.5 Mileposts 5 Step-by-Step Guide to Building Routes for Microsoft Train Simulator Step-by-Step Guide To Building Routes 3.7.6 Deer R. Building "First Route": adding objects, such as telephone poles, forests and bridges S. Building "First Route": adding roads, road traffic and level crossings 3.8 Roads, road traffic and level crossings 3.8.1 Laying roads 3.8.2 Adding road traffic 3.8.3 Adding level crossings T. Building "First Route": changing terrain textures 3.9 Importing and using terrain textures and transfers 3.9.1 Importing terrain textures a) Changing the default green terrain texture b) Importing ALL terrain textures from default routes c) Importing SELECTED terrain textures from default routes 3.9.2 Using terrain textures 3.9.3 Importing transfers 3.9.3 Using transfers U. Building "First Route": importing and using objects - platforms and tunnel entrances 3.10 Importing and using objects 3.10.1 Importing objects from other routes a) Importing ALL objects from ONE default route b) Importing ALL objects from SEVERAL default routes c) Importing single objects d) Finding the corresponding texture files 3.10.2 Placing or deleting an object 3.10.3 Moving an object 3.10.4 Rotating an object 3.10.5 Moving or rotating a group of objects 3.10.6 Copying and pasting objects 3.10.7 Object detail level 3.10.8 Object properties 3.10.9 [NEW] Finding an object in the world files 3.10.10 [NEW] Making new objects 3.11 Tunnel entrances and underground structures 3.11.1 An easy way out 3.11.2 Proper tunnel entrances 3.11.3 Underground structures 3.12 Special objects 3.12.1 Pickup objects 6 Step-by-Step Guide to Building Routes for Microsoft Train Simulator Step-by-Step Guide To Building Routes 3.12.2 Static locomotives and railway cars 3.12.3 Other moving road vehicles 3.12.4 Static road vehicles 3.12.5 People and deer 3.12.6 [NEW] Forests V. Building "First Route": importing and using sounds 3.13 Sounds 3.13.1 Importing sound sources and sound regions a) Importing individual sounds from a default MSTS route b) Importing all sounds from a default MSTS route 3.13.2 Placing sound sources 3.13.3 Placing sound regions W. Building "First Route": electrifying the route 3.14 Electrification 3.14.1 Declaring electrification 3.14.2 Placing gantries 3.14.3 The gantry.dat file 3.14.4 Setting the height of gantries 3.15 [NEW] Environment 3.15.1 Managing the environment 3.15.2 Sky a) Quick how to b) Structure of the sky c) Sky shape and textures d) Sky texture design e) Sun and moon f) Fog g) The sky details in the *.env files 3.15.3 Water a) Quick how to b) What aspects of water can be changed? c) The water details in the *.env files d) An example of changed water 3.15.4 Precipitation 3.15.5 Wind 3.15.6 Environmental examples in First Route 3.15.7 Handling the conflict with Sky! Conductor 4. Running tests in MSTS 4.1 Need to use Activities 4.2 Deleting existing Activities 7 Step-by-Step Guide to Building Routes for Microsoft Train Simulator Step-by-Step Guide To Building Routes 4.3 Creating new Activities 4.4 Tests during running 4.5 Main causes of problems 4.6 Main solutions 4.7 Visual scenery inspection 5. The Activity Editor (AE) 5.1 Uses of Activities 5.2 Planning Activities 5.3 Making a simple Activity 5.4 [NEW] Manual vs. automatic switches 5.5 [NEW] Signal location 5.6 [NEW] The structure of activities 5.7 [NEW] Discussion on First Route 5.8 [NEW] Introductory Train Rides (ITRs) 6. [NEW] Documentation and illustration 6.1 Documentation 6.1.1 Advert and thumbnail 6.1.2 Route installation and information 6.2 Front images 6.2.1 Image conversion 6.2.2 Logo 6.2.3 Map screen 6.2.4 Load screen 6.3 Route Maps 7.