Cannot render IMAGES in to REGIONS

[alexmatusiak 0]

Heya,

 

I was rendering a .jpg image in to a region this morning as I have done many times before.  This time, however, the game minimized during the process of creating the cities.  When I restored the game, the region map was up but only about half the cities were created, the rest were flat.  I tried again but the game wouldn't open the .jpg.  I started from scratch and it simply would not open the image to render a region.  I would select the image, hit open, but nothing happens.

 

I created new regions, used different images etc but my game simply will not open images to make regions any more.

 

ANY IDEAS AT ALL ???

 

Thanks,

 

Alex

[comdude21 6]

Hmmmm. The first part of your problem, the game becoming minimized, I can help you with. The other part, I'm not too sure about.

While rendering maps, I've had the same thing happen to me, which is the game becoming minimized. I noticed that if you let your computer be and let it render for a while, it eventually does that. The way I've fixed it (Or I hope I have fixed it ) is by wiggling the mouse every couple of minutes while the map is rendering. It can be a pain to wiggle the mouse every couple of minutes, but from experience, it prevents the game from becoming minimized. I have no idea why, but it seems to work.

The reason that only some of the cities were created is more simple then the minimizing issue. Those cities were simply the only ones that had rendered so far, before the game got minimized. The rendering stoppped when the game got minimized, but not after sucessfully rendering some of the cities.

As for the problem with the .jpg files, I don't any idea what could be wrong. Hopefully another Mapp Squad member, or somebody else, will have a solution to this problem.

I hope this helps.

comdude

[MallowTheCloud 41]

comdude is right about the first part... Hey, comdude, do you have a screensaver or does anything shut off after your computer runs for awhile without being used?

That's probably why moving your mouse helps. If you can find the settings for Energy Saving and turn them off, and/or turn off your screen saver while you render, that may solve that problem... but then I'd suggest you turn off your monitor while rendering, just to make sure an image isn't burned in to the screen...



On to the other issue... I have had times when a perfectly good jpg image wouldn't render, and did exactly what alex explains (nothing). The solution that worked for me was to load the jpg in an image editor (I used IrfanView), raise the color depth, then drop it back to a greyscale jpg and save it...

Unfortunately, I don't know if this will help your situation, as you said this problem is affecting all your jpg images.


My only other suggestion would be to completely reinstall SC4... though this is just a guess.

[alexmatusiak 0]

Heya,

Well the minimizing thing works so thanks with that.  I have a cordless mouse so while I sit on the couch beside my comp, I just move it once a while (actually I got one of those new logitech laser mouses and I highly recommend them!).

 

As for the images, it was totally my fault.  I changed the default image type to CMYK before making new ones because I took a time-out to finish some pictures I was printing, and never changed it back.

 

Just goes to show that the simplest answer is usually the correct one.  I just changed my images back to GS and they worked.

 

Thanks for your input

 

Alex

[RMJcar 2]

How do you render an image because i have tried to use downloaded maps but all i don't know how to makie those pictures into maps

[MallowTheCloud 41]

MAP INSTALLATION INSTRUCTIONS

1) Create a new folder called [Region Name] in your ..My Documents\Sim City 4\Regions directory.
2) Put the corresponding config.bmp in the new folder
3) Run your SimCity 4 game
4) Open the [Region Name] region
5) On your keyboard, press and hold down 'ctrl' + 'alt' + 'shift' + 'r'--this should bring up a dialogue box
6) Browse to the folder with the [regionname.jpg], find [regionname.jpg], and open this file.
7) This should start the rendering. BE PATIENT. This can take between 15 minutes and 2 hours.
Have fun with your new region!

[kristinaswan 2]

I am having this problem too with .jpg's not rendering.  Specifically one image won't render.....Pinellas County, FL.  Initially it said the size was incorrect.  I changed it to the dimensions it proposed and it now does nothing.  if i use the original image it still tells me the size is incorrect.  The image is 1025 x 1025 and can be found here on the STEX:

https://www.simtropolis.com/stex/index.cfm?mode=files&filetype=map&category=default&sortby=DatePosted&show=12&Str=pinellas

 

Any thoughts on this?  Someone mentioned CYMK?(something to do with the colors I'm guessing*cyan, yellow, magenta, ?*)  What is that?  If you change the color depth, will it effect how it goes back into greyscale?  Is there a way to inadvertently alter the pic in the viewer? (I use MS Paint to view .jpg's)  I promise I'm not a computer illiterate, but I don't deal with greyscale images in my computer dealings.

TIA for any advice/solutions.

Kristi

[MallowTheCloud 41]

Well the size has to do with the config. For a 1025 by 1025 map, the config should be 16 by 16 pixels.

CMYK, for your information, stands for cyan-magenta-yellow-black... as opposed to RGB(W) for red-green-blue(-white)


Anyway, try to load the jpg in an image editor (I use IrfanView), raise the color depth, then drop it back to a greyscale jpg and save it... if using IrfanView, make sure to check the box that says 'Save as greyscale JPG'.

I hope this helps.

[Murakumon 1]

OMG! I can not tell you how many times i had this problem. But i have found a sure-fire solution everytime. Open up Landscape Designer ( GET IT HERE ). On the start up screen, click Config Bitmap Creator . A window will appear. In that window click File / Load Terrian Image, then browse for the .jpg terrian picture you want to render. Press Open.

The Terrian Should Now Appear Behind the grid. Use the tools provided to fill in the tiles with the colored squares.

Save it as Config.bmp into the desired region folder. ( replace the one already in there )


I have found this to work everytime. Sometimes the configs on the stex don't work. Really hope this can help you. Really saved me lots of headaches

[po 0]

 

Mallow's instructions were extremely helpful in explaining the basics, just what I was looking for.  Thanks!

 

However . . .

 

 

When I look in the region folders that came with the game, the Maxis files  are in .bmp format, not .jpeg.  So I went ahead and saved my new map as .bmp also.  Is this a problem?

 

Then I loaded up my new region in Rush Hour, hit ctrl+sht+alt+r, but nothing told me it was rendering.

 

I tried saving my new map as a .jpeg (renamed the .bmp) and trying again, but nothing told me it was rendering.

 

I made sure the file size was 16 pixels by 16 pixels, the same as maxis.

 

Also, when I open the maxis .bmp files in my paint program, they were in color, not greyscale.  So that is how I saved my my new files. 

 

 

What, oh Wise Ones, am I doing wrong?  

 

 

P.S.  All I am trying to make is a really large region with one huge city area, and five smaller ones around the edges.  I downloaded something like that eons ago, but searched through the entire map downloads at Simtropolis, and couldn't find it.

[MallowTheCloud 41]

po: So... if I understand you correctly, you're trying to just make a flat blank region with a customized city-size configuration?

If that's the case, you do not need to import anything. All you need to do is create your config.bmp file and put it in your region folder.

As Murakumon said, Landscape Designer is a great tool to create custom config.bmp files.


I hope this helps. If it wasn't what you were looking for, maybe try to explain the situation again and I may understand.

[po 0]

Thanks for the heads up, Murakumon, that program was pretty easy.  Sort of.

Somewere in LD, it says something like, Do NOT click on anything but the config. file  after bringing up that box by hitting ctl+alt+sht+r.  However, clicking on the config file did nothing, but clicking on the jpeg rendered it just fine.  But all I've got so far is a really ugly terrain with the standard size cities.  *sigh*

 

For some reason that program doesn't want to save my colored boxes as a config file, and I had to do something funky with copy/paste in order for that file to appear in the regions's folder.  I'm confussed.

[po 0]

Hi Mallow!  Sorry, I didn't see your reply earlier. 

 

So... if I understand you correctly, you're trying to just make a flat blank region with a customized city-size configuration?

 

 

Yes, exactly.  But still having trouble.  I shall look through the threads a bit more, to see if I can figure out where I'm messing up.

 

Thanks, you're full of helpful goodness, and this is a great site!