SC4Terraformer Support

[jplumbley 5]

@Evil_someone the information you are looking for is in the readme

[wouanagaine 83]

jammin77

This is an external tool, you'll find it in your Start Menu->Program Files->SC4Terraformer

buckbeach

No you don't have to redownload jpeg. Just open your region, then as you have not render them in SC4 you will get only a flat terran. In the 'Global tool' you will have a button named 'Import'. Click on it, browse to your jpeg file, and click ok. it will render the map. Then hit CTRL-S to save and you can go to SC4 to view your region. Be aware that the color you will have in SC4 region view will be the same as the one you have in SC4TF. There is no way to have the same 'rendering' as SC4. You will have to enter and save each city in SC4 to get the proper color.

Evil_Someone

READ THE README !!!!!! It was not made for fun !!!!!!!!!!

jplumbley

Take care

[buckbeach 8]

buckbeach

No you don't have to redownload jpeg. Just open your region, then as you have not render them in SC4 you will get only a flat terran. In the 'Global tool' you will have a button named 'Import'. Click on it, browse to your jpeg file, and click ok. it will render the map. Then hit CTRL-S to save and you can go to SC4 to view your region. Be aware that the color you will have in SC4 region view will be the same as the one you have in SC4TF. There is no way to have the same 'rendering' as SC4. You will have to enter and save each city in SC4 to get the proper color.

quote>

Aghhh, just dropped the connection after typing my post and lost it.

Anyway, thank you.  I have gotten a couple of maps to render.  Boy I can't believe how much faster this is.  

Some of the maps on the STEX refer to elevations to be set with a separate tool but I think they mean if you used the old fashion way of rendering.   Do I have to be concerned with that issue.

Also, I use Cycledogg's Terrain and Tree Mods.  Is this an issue?  Thanks again for your help this is a great tool.

[wouanagaine 83]

Hi buckbear

There is no concern with Cycledogg terran or tree mods. The only 'glitch' is that as with any other rendering , the region view in SC4 will look like the one in SC4TF until you go in each city and save it in SC4

Now regarding the elevations to be set, this will need some computation from your side, or if you have SC4Tools or Reader, you can open the mentinonned plugin and seek for the ImportTerranScaleFactor in the Terran examplar, this is the value you will need to put in the SC4TF import dialog. The minimal height can also be put here or you can raise or lower the whole terran after importing in SC4TF.

the scale factor is how much one grey unit will map to elevation in meters. the default is 2.4, that lead to 256*2.4 max height ( modulo the min height ). if you have been told to used 1000m.dat plugin then the factor should be 1000/256

Take care!

[buckbeach 8]

Originally posted by: wouanagaine

Now regarding the elevations to be set, this will need some computation from your side, or if you have SC4Tools or Reader, you can open the mentinonned plugin and seek for the ImportTerranScaleFactor in the Terran examplar, this is the value you will need to put in the SC4TF import dialog.

!quote>

 

I'm confused with "plugin" as stated above. Are you referring to the Jpeg or config in the "Region" Folder?  If not what plugin (maybe within the Cycledogg Mod I've selected)?  My ignorance maybe due to not ever have used either the reader or SC4Tools.  I think I know where and how to set the factor and I do see where to raise the global terrain level.

What about maps that show no meter adjustment, should that be the default or again dependent on the value of the Terran Examplar within the Mod file selection?  Sorry for the hassle, I hope you will bare with me on this!

[wouanagaine 83]

No probs !

I was thinking you referred to map that need some plugin elevations to be rendered like the author want, ( some of blade2k5 for example ).

If it is just map that need climate mod or texture change ( cycledogg for example, or jeronij mod of cycledogg for snow ) it won't require anything special ( but I may recall if cyclcedogg mod use 2.4 or 3 as factor )

If the map you download does not require any elevation plugin , then using 2.4 or 3 ( if cycledogg mod use 3 ) will do the job

Hope I have clarify but rereading my post I'm not sure

Take care

[CarmineHilton 6]

Every time I want to load a region, is stopts loading @ 10 bars.... How come?

[wouanagaine 83]

CarmineHilton

Run the debug version, and show us the content of the console window when SC4TF stop loading.

I recall seeing this, but I do not recall what was going on.

Maybe your region is to huge for your RAM ?

[buckbeach 8]

I am observing that files rendered by the SC4TF are softer or slightly more eroded than the map using the game rendering function. Is there a difference between the two processes in handling the greyscale JPEG.

[wouanagaine 83]

There is no erosion in SC4TF, at least if you never hit the 'erosion' tool.

so for sure there is a difference as SC4 run erosion on import, contrary to SC4TF.

[buckbeach 8]

Has anyone else mentioned this slight difference or is it just my imagination?  Again, I am saying the SC4 shows less slightly less erosion, or in other words the ridges are sharper an more pronounced.

[jplumbley 5]

Hi Buckbeach,

You should not be experiencing the erosion you are describing from SC4TF... SC4TF writes elevation data directly to the SimCity save game file and is written in the same precision it is shown in SC4TF, so there is absolutley no erosion factor. Have you tried this with other maps? If you import a jpeg from STEX into SC4TF it gets eroded at the same factor or close to what SimCity would do but this is because it is a jpeg and can only hold a 2.4m precision whereas SC4TF has a 0.1m precision. If you import an SC4M file there is no erosion since the file is at the same precision SimCity can handle. I hope this helps you a little better than Wouanagaine's did.

JPlumbley

[wouanagaine 83]

one thing that also may occurs is the following

in SC4TF

*--*

| /|

|/ |

*--*

the * is a vertex, and I always used this orentation

contrary to SC4 that compute differently and sometimes use the other one

[buckbeach 8]

I am overwhelmed with you guys and your abilities to see/feel/know all of these calculations and conceptions. It is definately not your fault you are explaining it but I am to slow to capture it.

Let's forget this issue. I can live with it or try to modify the terrain slightly if I want a different look.

Here is a problem I am now faced with. I import a jpeg that a map maker has submitted. It states an elevation/altitude. For arguement sake it is 2000M. There is no mentiion of water level but when I render it I have islands. I try to tweak it with the SC4TF but I flood it or end up with the ocean as land. I know you can't tell me what to set but are there some clues as to how to zero in on the correct water level?

[wouanagaine 83]

I think that 2000m plugin will get a factor of 2000/256 ie 7.8, so try this factor in import dialog in SC4TF,

do not change water level ie leave it 250m

do not change min height, you will adjust your terran altitude by raising or lowering it

then save and load it in SC4

do not use the 2000m plugin as I don't know if it change the in game sea level.

and tell us which map you downloaded so I can make a quick step by step in pictures ( tomorrow )

Take care

[tharris 1]

i made my map but how do i get it into sc4 then?

[wouanagaine 83]

just save it either via the menu or hitting CTRL S

then go in SC4 and load the region

[buckbeach 8]

Ok here is the map of Innisfile, Australia

https://www.simtropolis.com/stex/index.cfm?id=16290

The instructions for the settings are in the file description.

Buck

[wouanagaine 83]

ok, I will do a step by step tutorial this evening ( currently at office )

In the meantime, looking at the 2000m.dat plugin from mallowthecloud, here are the values needed in SC4TF

WaterLevel = 250m so no need to change

ImportFactor = 8.7962610000

Min height = 20m so no need to change

This will produce the correct map.

Take care

[Romaq 18]

One mention on the MallowTheCloud plugins. It appears to me that they are *only* for changing the scale value for file import of SC4, with the option of turning off erosion when SC4 does the import.

I could be wrong, but if I am correct on my read of what those plugins do, the following points must be made:

1) The plugs, in and of themselves, do *not* raise the height cap of 4000 meters above absolute 0 ( 250m below sea level). They simply make it *possible* to import higher terrain values if SC4TF is *NOT* being used for the import process.

2) SC4TF allows much better control of the import values of 8-bit images, as well as control over erosion and whatnot. And if I read the MallowTheCloud plugin info correctly, the plugins still would not be relevent to an SC4TF user.

That's not to knock the plugins. I'm simply stating what I *think* they do, and I don't think they are as good as SC4TF for the purpose of importing images, and having imported and saved said image, that the plugins 'help'. Please correct my understanding if I am wrong. Especially because, if they *do* help beyond the import process, I *might* want to use 'em!

Cheers!

[wouanagaine 83]

Actually MTC plugins do erosion, the new released High Elevation Import Mods W Erosion Control Parameters by beskhu3epnm plugin set has every relevant combinaison ( ie elevation factor as MTC + no erosion as Moganite set or mine ).

The plugins are relevant to SC4TF users if the map they try to import is too big to fit in RAM within SC4TF. it also has the advantage of having the region view with the correct SC4 colors.

Take care

[buckbeach 8]

Thanks wouanagaine I'm looking forward to reading and hopefully understanding your instructions, principally how you know what the Water Level and Min Height are from the information initially provided (or where to look for it).  I think I understand that the ImportFactor is calculated.

[wouanagaine 83]

So here is a small step by step tutorial on how to correctly import map from STEX that need specific elevation import plugin to be rendered as the author want it.

• Step 1

download datGen or ilive reader or sc4Tools

I will use datGen for this one

• Step 2

download High Elevation Import Mods W Erosion Control Parameters by beskhu3epnm so you will have all possibles elevation plugins ( do not put them in your plugins folder, just unzip it somewhere else and put the recommended one in your plugins)

• Step 4

download your map from STEX and the config.bmp and put the two files in a new folder under MyDoc\SimCity4\Regions

here we will use the one you pointed at ie Innisfail Australia by moganite

• Step 5

Open the recommended plugin file with any of the previously mentionned tools and locater the terran examplar

Search for the SeaLevel, MinTerranHeight and ImageImportScaleFactor properties and write them on a piece of paper

• Step 6

Start SC4TF with the new region

when prompted for the sealevel, enter the one specified in the plugin

here we leave the default 250m value

Step 7

click on 'import image' button in the global tools

Specify your image and the two other values you have get from the plugin

here we set scalefactor to 8.7962610000 and leave min height to 20

• Step 8

Click ok and hit CTRL-S and exit SC4TF (or twick it like you want ) as I just saw a bug you have to manually lower the terran to make the right coastline this will be fixed next week

• Step 9

run SC4 and enjoy

I have the olympic mod from cylcedogg

if you want a normal color view , then you will need to enter and save each city

in this case I recommend you to just have the ground texture in your plugin folder, this will help speedup the process

---

normally I will first open the jpeg file in any editor image, and do a small blur to get rid of the jpg artifact, then I will save to a lossless format ie bmp or png and use this new image as input to SC4TF

if needed I do a global erosion in SC4TF

[Praetorian Cohort 0]

Quick question: I downloaded the program and it didn't work, as I had an old version of DirectX. So I downloaded the new one, installed it to the Program Files directory, and SC4 Terraformer still won't run. My question is: What directory should I be installing the latest DirectX to?

[buckbeach 8]

Thank you, I will study this.

[SC4BOY 20]

great tutorial Wou!! always look forward to your useful contributions..

[wouanagaine 83]

Praetorian Cohort

Once downloaded, you should find a dxsetup.exe somewhere, this is the program to run, it won't ask you where to install dx as dx is at system level. I think I have made a link in the first post of the dev thread . It was posted by rayden.

buckbeach & SC4BOY Thx !

[aaron0l 0]

How can you make the city boarders larger?

[prince_of_sims 0]

I posted in your other thread, the answer should suffice.

[CarmineHilton 6]

Originally posted by: CarmineHilton Hi,

(https://www.simtropolis.com/stex/index.cfm?page=1&keyword=Dubai&type=all#) = Dubai With Palm Jumeirahquote>

 

I Want that city but my PC won't make that Region... Can someone make it for me and then send it to me plz? MSN, E-Mail, ... ?

Thank You