Copying Lot Config Properties (another way to convert between lot types)

[Equinox 1,218]

This tutorial will teach you how to effectively copy lot designs from one type of lot to another one entirely, without too much hassle. I have created a different thread for this other than Toroca's converting ploppable BATs to growables thread because this method - in my humble opinion - is a bit easier, but more importantly, is much more flexible. You can use this tutorial to copy lot designs from a growable lot to a ploppable utility building, or from a ploppable landmark to a seaport, or whatever the case is.

--------------------

First, a bit of background information to get you familiar with what we're doing and why it works.

Lot files are comprised of two exemplars: the building (statistics and building properties as set in the Plugin Manager), and the LotConfig. The LotConfig is comprised of a few statistics, such as the lot's growth stage, exemplar name, maximum slope placement, and a few other things, but the primary function of the LC is what SC4 reads to create the lot. Each of the LotConfigObjectData lines contains placement instructions for one piece of a lot. They are numbered sequentially, as you see if you look in the property ID column. Order does not matter (you can have #1 be a prop, #2 a texture, #3 a prop, and so on), so long as there is a continuous string of sequential property IDs (e.g. 1,2,3,4 is good, but you can't have 1,2,4,5 - that crashes the Lot Editor and probably the game, too).

How to tell the difference between each type of placement property is important, too, as you'll see in a bit. Properties with the first value being 0x00000000 are the ones we're interested in - there will only be one of these per lot file, but there always will be one, never zero - it is the placement instructions for the Building, as set in the Building tab of the LE. The rest are either textures, props, or transit-enabled tile code (those have 2 more reps than the rest, should you ever need to know which ones control transit enabling). With all this said, you know pretty much what I knew when I thought of how to copy lot designs.

Alrighty, so, let's say you have a lot downloaded from the STEX that's a landmark. You want to make it a CS$$$. You make the sc4desc file in the Plugin Manager, open the lot editor, throw together a lot with no effort (random base textures, no props, just a building), making sure it is the same dimensions as the downloaded version in terms of tile size. Now save it as a new file and exit the Lot Editor. Open the new lot in the Reader and go to the LotConfig exemplar. Find the LotConfigObjetData property that begins with 0x00000000 and double-click on it. Now, in the Values as Text field, select everything, and copy it to the clipboard. Open up Windows Notepad or some simple word processing program and paste those values. Back in the Reader, now select all LotConfigObjectData properties by clicking once on the first one, then holding shift and clicking on the last one. Right-click and select Delete Properties. Now you should have a LotConfig exemplar with no LotConfigObjectData properties!

Open up another instance of the Reader and load the original lot file that you want to copy the designs from. Again, go to the LotConfig exemplar and click on the first LotConfigObjectData property, hold shift, then click on the last. Now, right-click and select Copy Properties. See where we're going with this? Now, switch back to the new lot file you threw together, go to the LotConfig exemplar, right-click, and select Paste Properties. Only one more step!

Find the 0x00000000 property again and double-click on it. Select the text in the Values as Text field and press Delete. Now, go back to your word processing document, select all the text you pasted, and copy it back to the clipboard (the LotConfigObjectData lines overwrote it in the system clipboard). Paste it in the Values as Text field, press the Apply button immediately to the right of the text area, then click on OK. Save the file and load the Lot Editor, re-loading the file you earlier threw together. Tada; you should have a duplicate of the original lot, except for the Building's placement, which you can obviously then adjust.

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I hope this was a relatively coherent tutorial; I threw it together during the last half of my lunch, originally for T Wrecks. If you have any questions, please post here. I know there are ways I could improve this.

[crookedasscop 1]

The fact that there aren't replies to this thread asking for help, much less any of the others, made me hesitant to ask for help anywhere.  Reposted in the correct topic as per your request fosterk.

 

I am trying with much effort to follow Equinox's above help thread for an easier method of converting lots between types.

 

From what I understand, it looks like I am creating a random lot; then copying the properties from the lot I want and applying them to the new lot I created.  Then, in order to change whether I want the lot to be a landmark, growable, or ploppable, I need to change the building's placement in the...lotconfig?  Okay, I still follow  think.  Now the thread is telling me to open the lot up in something called Reader.  At first I thought this was just part of the PIM but upon trying to further follow the instructions I get lost, so I ask first, is this some other program?  If so I will toy with that and see if I can continue following.  Because I think it is there where I can edit the placement.  Okay now that I wrote all this out I'll look around in the threads for this Reader thing and maybe beat you guys to helping myself.  I hope no one minds this newbish somewhat only self-serving post.

 

 

Okay, looking at the other more complex thread again by jportland I think his name is, I see Reader is another program, so I remember correctly.  However all the links I can find are dead.  Can someone llink me to a functional download?

 

And, by looking at jportland's instructions as further guidance, it is there in Reader at one of the last steps where I set the placement, the lot type I want it to be, correct?

[greyveil 37]

Yeas, Reader is a program written by Ilive, its full name is ilive reader, it allows you to make modifications to all types of sc4 files, in the forums it is commonly refered to as just Reader, you can find it here in the modding section

https://www.simtropolis.com/modding/index.cfm?mode=details&show=346

 

ilive and darkmatter, have written several tools that are invaluable see them all here

 

https://www.simtropolis.com/modding/index.cfm?mode=files

 

hope this helps...

[durtlskdi 0]

wow- interesting

[deckone 1]

Having trouble with this.. if anyone has any suggestions or help just let me know.

[Andreas Roth 626]

Originally posted by: deckone Having trouble with this.. if anyone has any suggestions or help just let me know.quote>

 

Sure... So what exactly is your problem?

[Sam 163]

Below is the retrieved full version of Equinox's tutorial after the crash of May 2008

Originally posted by: Equinox

This tutorial will teach you how to effectively copy lot designs from one type of lot to another one entirely, without too much hassle. I have created a different thread for this other than Toroca's converting ploppable BATs to growables thread because this method - in my humble opinion - is a bit easier, but more importantly, is much more flexible. You can use this tutorial to copy lot designs from a growable lot to a ploppable utility building, or from a ploppable landmark to a seaport, or whatever the case is.

--------------------

First, a bit of background information to get you familiar with what we're doing and why it works.

Lot files are comprised of two exemplars: the building (statistics and building properties as set in the Plugin Manager), and the LotConfig. The LotConfig is comprised of a few statistics, such as the lot's growth stage, exemplar name, maximum slope placement, and a few other things, but the primary function of the LC is what SC4 reads to create the lot. Each of the LotConfigObjectData lines contains placement instructions for one piece of a lot. They are numbered sequentially, as you see if you look in the property ID column. Order does not matter (you can have #1 be a prop, #2 a texture, #3 a prop, and so on), so long as there is a continuous string of sequential property IDs (e.g. 1,2,3,4 is good, but you can't have 1,2,4,5 - that crashes the Lot Editor and probably the game, too).

How to tell the difference between each type of placement property is important, too, as you'll see in a bit. Properties with the first value being 0x00000000 are the ones we're interested in - there will only be one of these per lot file, but there always will be one, never zero - it is the placement instructions for the Building, as set in the Building tab of the LE. The rest are either textures, props, or transit-enabled tile code (those have 2 more reps than the rest, should you ever need to know which ones control transit enabling). With all this said, you know pretty much what I knew when I thought of how to copy lot designs.

Alrighty, so, let's say you have a lot downloaded from the STEX that's a landmark. You want to make it a CS$$$. You make the sc4desc file in the Plugin Manager, open the lot editor, throw together a lot with no effort (random base textures, no props, just a building), making sure it is the same dimensions as the downloaded version in terms of tile size. Now save it as a new file and exit the Lot Editor. Open the new lot in the Reader and go to the LotConfig exemplar. Find the LotConfigObjetData property that begins with 0x00000000 and double-click on it. Now, in the Values as Text field, select everything, and copy it to the clipboard. Open up Windows Notepad or some simple word processing program and paste those values. Back in the Reader, now select all LotConfigObjectData properties by clicking once on the first one, then holding shift and clicking on the last one. Right-click and select Delete Properties. Now you should have a LotConfig exemplar with no LotConfigObjectData properties!

Open up another instance of the Reader and load the original lot file that you want to copy the designs from. Again, go to the LotConfig exemplar and click on the first LotConfigObjectData property, hold shift, then click on the last. Now, right-click and select Copy Properties. See where we're going with this? Now, switch back to the new lot file you threw together, go to the LotConfig exemplar, right-click, and select Paste Properties. Only one more step!

Find the 0x00000000 property again and double-click on it. Select the text in the Values as Text field and press Delete. Now, go back to your word processing document, select all the text you

[cogeo 960]

Nice turorial, can prove useful to newbies!

I feel though the need to add my €0.02:

- The first rep of the LotConfig... lines specifies the type of the object: 0x00000000 is the building exemplar (this line is mandatory and you can have one and only one of these), 0x00000001 means a prop, 0x00000002 a texture (either base or overlay, depending on whether the texture contains an alpha mask) and 0x00000007 means transit-enabling information (those purple squares with the arrows you see in LE).

- The LotConfig... lines specify not only the placement of an object, but also which object it is (in the last rep).

- LotConfig... lines can be copied/pasted between lots, or even in the same lot (if you want to copy/paste an object and then modify it). After copying/pasting or even deleting LotConfig... lines, you need to right-click on the properties list and select Reindex LotConfig. This makes sure that the LotConfig lines get consecutive property IDs, which is required (otherwise LE or SC4 may not be able to read the lot file correctly).

[Evil Weasel 88]

I do what seems simple. To convert a growable to a ploppable, I copy the 0x00000 string of a random landmark and past it over the 0x000000 string of the growable. This is essentially the polar opposite of what's described in the tutorial and logic dictates that it should keep every information BUT lot usage. IE it should be exactly the same BUT now be a landmark. This absolutely must work.

THIS FAILS utterly. Any idea why this is not working? Nothing new appears in my landmark menu.

Please help me I'm at my wits end here, I'm extremely frustrated at how people are able to do this and I'm not (there are tonnes of growable-to-ploppable conversions on the stex). Though I think I won't get a response until cities xl comes out in a few months, with my awesome luck. Everybody just says "oh it's complicated to switch from growable to ploppable" but I don't care if it's complicated, I wan't to know how, period!

[Andreas Roth 626]

In the 0x00000000 LotConfig line, the last REP (the last ID, it is the ID of the building on your lot) is crucial. This ID must be the one that refers to the Building Exemplar file ID of the new lot. So, in short, create a new lot of the desired type, write down the Building Exemplar file ID that can be found in the 0x00000000 LotConfig line of your new lot, then open the old lot and copy all LotConfig lines over to the new lot, and finally replace the ID in the 0x00000000 LotConfig line with the one that you wrote down earlier.

[FureeTutawk 1]

This may be off topic but it's the best place I can find so far.. I am trying to use the same usage statistics as the game's defaults. For instance, I made a new elementary school using the Plugin Manager, I put the model into 'education: elementary' and the result is that it creates the benefits of a large elementary school, with the huge coverage area AND the huge monthly cost, but only allows 500 students like the small elementary, instead of "lots of young sims." I know how to change those things, but.. I want to change them to what the defaults would be. But without a model to load into the PIM, I am having trouble figuring out how to find out how much a default elementary school costs in ratio below and above the $400 per month, or does that set itself automaticallly on the slider when reducing or increasing the city budget for it? More importantly, what is the default radius for the small elementary and the default EQ and other things for it. Basically, where would I find a list of the default numbers for everything, like the benefits a large plaza provides vs. a small plaza and if there is a difference between benefits and consumption between plazas vs gardens, etc.

[jason leo 485]

This may be off topic but it's the best place I can find so far.. I am trying to use the same usage statistics as the game's defaults. For instance, I made a new elementary school using the Plugin Manager, I put the model into 'education: elementary' and the result is that it creates the benefits of a large elementary school, with the huge coverage area AND the huge monthly cost, but only allows 500 students like the small elementary, instead of "lots of young sims." I know how to change those things, but.. I want to change them to what the defaults would be. But without a model to load into the PIM, I am having trouble figuring out how to find out how much a default elementary school costs in ratio below and above the $400 per month, or does that set itself automaticallly on the slider when reducing or increasing the city budget for it? More importantly, what is the default radius for the small elementary and the default EQ and other things for it. Basically, where would I find a list of the default numbers for everything, like the benefits a large plaza provides vs. a small plaza and if there is a difference between benefits and consumption between plazas vs gardens, etc.

1. To get more information about Maxis buildings, I suggest you to at least have one of these files (PIM-X)(), the default PIM is not designed to do such thing.

2. Look at the last post's posting date, it is 3 October 2008. Please, don't bump an old thread another time and start a new topic instead.

[FureeTutawk 1]

This may be off topic but it's the best place I can find so far.. I am trying to use the same usage statistics as the game's defaults. For instance, I made a new elementary school using the Plugin Manager, I put the model into 'education: elementary' and the result is that it creates the benefits of a large elementary school, with the huge coverage area AND the huge monthly cost, but only allows 500 students like the small elementary, instead of "lots of young sims." I know how to change those things, but.. I want to change them to what the defaults would be. But without a model to load into the PIM, I am having trouble figuring out how to find out how much a default elementary school costs in ratio below and above the $400 per month, or does that set itself automaticallly on the slider when reducing or increasing the city budget for it? More importantly, what is the default radius for the small elementary and the default EQ and other things for it. Basically, where would I find a list of the default numbers for everything, like the benefits a large plaza provides vs. a small plaza and if there is a difference between benefits and consumption between plazas vs gardens, etc.

1. To get more information about Maxis buildings, I suggest you to at least have one of these files (PIM-X)(), the default PIM is not designed to do such thing.

2. Look at the last post's posting date, it is 3 October 2008. Please, don't bump an old thread another time and start a new topic instead.

Thanks. I get yelled at by grumpy admins at every site I join, they are all different. On others, if I create a new thread, they move my post to an old one and say "didn't you see this thread here for this topic??????" Oh well. Anyway, appreciate all the info. I tried the links to the BSC thing for yet another program to download PIMx and it says it has an xml list of properties and their formulae but all the links just go in a circle, unable to download the separately offered xml file (which is all I need is a readable LIST not the program, so I was excited at first) but none of the links work they just go in circles. I am able to make all the changes in PIM that I want to change, the very ones I was listing... school radius,.. student capacity, cost per month, etc, etc, for all those things police vs big police, small school vs big school all have different ratios and costs and I want the custom ones to align with the appropriate formulae designed for the challenge of the game. I've deduced a few of them but hoped for a list of them, such as the zoo tycoon list of all the needs of each animal or exhibit, etc. I can change the monthly cost of the school and the school buses and the coverage radius all in PIM believe it or not without downloading another program, I am barely getting used to the 20 dozen I have already. I'll keep track of all the info I gather and maybe upload a list myself in future for others. :-)

[Tyrone9876 2]

This has been very helpful to me and its working like a charm, thank you so much Equinox.

Now I can go ahead with all these downloadable landmarks and turn them into growables much easier!

[rsc204 21,866]

Thing is, you could follow this tutorial, or you could save yourself a load of hassle and download/install PIM-X.

There you simply open the landmark's building exemplar, right click it and select "Create a Growable Lot using this Building". It's quite the time-saver.

[Tyrone9876 2]

No rsc204, because then you would make a new lot which is completely empty of any props, you'd have to spend a lot of time into placing new props yourself manually.

This tutorial lets you copy all the props from your landmark lot over to your new growable lot, what you are suggesting is basically step 0 of what this tutorial is all about and then it builds on top of that step.

As Equinox says himself "throw together a lot with no effort", this IS your new growable lot that you create in a program like PIM.

 

EDIT: rsc204 was kinda right, you can actually copy paste those lot properties through PIMX just as easily (if not more easily), read below.

[nos.17 5,255]

51 minutes ago, Tyrone9876 said:

No rsc204, because then you would make a new lot which is completely empty of any props, you'd have to spend a lot of time into placing new props yourself manually.

This tutorial lets you copy all the props from your landmark lot over to your new growable lot, what you are suggesting is basically step 0 of what this tutorial is all about and then it builds on top of that step.

As Equinox says himself "throw together a lot with no effort", this IS your new growable lot that you create in a program like PIM.

 

 

 

Actually, @rsc204 is correct. The PIMX has this same capability. Go to the old lot, highlight all textures and props (it tells you the type of LotObjects they are explicitly), right click to copy exemplars, and then paste them to your new lot, making sure to delete the default base texture it gives you when a new lot is created. All functions you can do in the PIM you can also do in PIMX, and then some. If done efficiently, a new lot type can be created in about 20 seconds. 

[Tyrone9876 2]

Hmmmm, interesting, I just tested this with PIMX and it does seem to work just as good.

But what about that whole "Properties with the first value being 0x00000000" this tutorial is talking about, thats basically the Building LotObject, I can't seem to delete or edit that in PIMX, do I just leave that as it is in the new Lot or do I need to do something else with it?

[rsc204 21,866]

You don't need to, the buildings exemplar links to the lot via the building upon it (that's what this property is). PIM-X knows the ID of the buildings exemplar and handles this for you automatically. Usually that object will be the actual main building on the lot, but it could be an invisible prop too.

This is something few seem to grasp, but fundamental to how SC4 works. A model is just a model, you can re-use the same model many times, but only ever need one of them to do it. The buildings exemplar has an RTK property, the ID which links to the model to be used. But the buildings exemplar is NOT the model. Much the same with props, flora and other types.

[Tyrone9876 2]

Cool, thanks for all the help guys, I really appreciate it!