Help Request RE: Props on the Lot Mouseover

[megalopolitan 0]

This is the first time I've ever tried to modify anything in the game, so I don't know much.

I downloaded this lot from the STEX.  I figured out how to change the properties I wanted to change on the lot with the SC4Tool.  I figured out how to rename the lot with the lot editor and change a couple of minor things.

I have looked... and searched... and read... and will keep looking, but I can't seem to find an answer to this last question I have so while I am looking and reading I will ask it here.

The lot is a school, and the model attached to the lot, when you mouseover it in the game, gives the correct name of the lot.  However when you mouseover the other parts of the lot, such as the buildings used as props, it gives the name of the prop.

Sometimes that isn't a problem, like if the prop is a basketball court or something like that.  But in this case the props used as buildings have names that have nothing to do with a school.

So when you hover over the prop it gives the name of the prop used as a building, where I want it to give the name of the building.  I noticed that on the default maxis schools that the props used have no names... I'm thinking there must be some way to edit this information and either SC4Tool is the wrong tool for the job or I just can't find it.

Can anyone give me the answer or point me to something to read to get the answer?  Thank you.

[Andreas Roth 614]

You'll have to edit the prop exemplar in the following way. Set "Query as main building" to "true (0x01)", and add a "User Visible Name Key" property, if it's not present already. If not, you can safely give it the ID "0x00000000,0x00000000,0x00000000". After saving the file, you should get the usual hover query that shows up when hovering over a "real" building.

[megalopolitan 0]

Maybe I'm not understanding this...

It seems to me the props are coming from the original simcity files.  The only thing included with the download was a lot file with no dependencies.

When I open the lot in ilive reader the lot exemplar contains a long list of "LotConfigPropertyLotObjectData" calls that seem to contain the hex numbers that relate to the props in use.

SC4Tools sees these same calls but lists them under "Lot" as "0x88EDC901 : TileDef", which has location x,y,z and position x1,y1, etc with hex values and an IID value in hex.

The two lists seem to be the same.

I tried adding "Query as main building" to "true (0x01)" and add a "User Visible Name Key" property with the value of "0x00000000,0x00000000,0x00000000" to the lot exemplar but this didn't work... I didn't expect it to, but I don't know a lot and tried this anyway.

I've managed to create an LTEXT file for it with LEProp, and was reading about some of the things you can do with LTEXT files.  Thats getting over my head pretty fast at this point.

I'm under the impression I can't alter the original buildings that are being used as props directly... is that wrong, or is there another way, or do I just not "get it" lol?

 

[Shadow_prophet 91]

I really have no where else to turn now so i hope by posting here, i can get some assistance. I recently downloaded certain lots from the STEX and discovered that some lots are not showing up but the options are available in the game. I also have cases where i cant seem to see certain parts of the lots like the plaza or the base of the building. I believe this is because i have not yet found the dependencies files and installed them into my plugins folder. Can anyone help where i can find all the plugin modds so that i can make the lots function properly? Any help would be extremely appreciated.

[Andreas Roth 614]

@megalopolitan: Ah, I didn't realize that you were referring to Maxis props... You will have to find the prop exemplar file (not the lot exemplar file in the lot!) in the original game files or in the "buildings as props" plugin (depending on what prop you actually used), make a copy and put it either in your lot file or in a separate DAT. Then you can modify the prop exemplar file as described above.

@Shadow_prophet: If you don't have all dependencies, you'll need to install them first. Usually, they should be listed in the description and/or in the included readme file. If not, PM the creator and ask him for such a list. After all, he created the lot, so he should know which props and textures he has used.

[megalopolitan 0]

@ Roth: Thank you for that answer. I understand what you are saying to do, but I wouldn't know how to get a copy of the prop exemplar file out of the original game dats or the buildings as props plugs, although I know where those files are. Could you breifly explain how to extract a copy of a prop exemplar from the original dats or provide a link if its covered somewhere else in the forum?

I recently found the "blank lot sets" in the downloads area... for the school I ended up using a different lot, I made a set of civic buildings for me to play with that has the attributes that I like. Nothing worth releasing (and since made with a bunch of plugins in the folder jeebus knows how many odd dependencies...) but its steps in the right direction.

@ Shadow: Yeah, be careful and go slow when adding custom content. Read the readme files and double check dependencies. Some of the dependency files are better found on SC4Devotion (look up that site and register) than here these days. I could have *sworn* that while I was using one of these tools (ilive reader, LEProp, SC4Tool) that I saw a list of dependecies when I opened a file, but it escapes me now where that was.

[Andreas Roth 614]

"Andreas", please. Well, you could use those blank lots, but I don't recommend them, since they are very old, created in a time when modding was still something very new, and it's likely that they are not up to current standards. This is certainly true for the "ploppable blank lots", which cause blank lots growing in your city (sounds odd, but it's the case, unfortunately). Which building are you referring to in your particular case (post the name, or maybe a picture of it). Then I can tell you how to retrieve the necessary exemplar file.

[megalopolitan 0]

I attached a zip with three (crappy) pictures.  One is a picture of Justanotherism's high school with 3 of the university buildings added.  In this one, the mouseover functions like it should, with the orange background, apple ratings for the school, and the correct name of "County High School" displayed.  I did not cause it to act right, it just did by default.

Another pic is of a County Elementary School, but this time the prop buildings that are added show up with a white bubble with the name of the prop, in this case "elementary school".  The building on the left of it (the large grey gothic looking thing) is the model attached to the lot and shows up with the correct query as above.

The third picture is a picture of a county hospital, with the same problem as the elementary school.  The  building next to the hospital shows up as a "Hi-Rise Tenement", and its a prop on the lot with the hospital as the model building.  The hospital building shows the correct query.

If the blank lots are outdated is there an updated set?

SimCity-4-Pics4youAndreas.zip

[Andreas Roth 614]

Ok, here's what you need to do. Open the lot in question in the Lot Editor, switch to the "Props" tab and click on the prop that you used as building. In the lower right corner of the right panel, it will display the ID. Write down the ID, close the LE and open the "bldgprop_vol1.dat" with the Reader. After clicking "Fill the list", you should see a large number of exemplar files. Click on the "instance" column in order to sort them alphabetically. Now locate the exemplar file that matches the ID you wrote down. The exemplar name (shown in the right panel) should indicate that you selected the correct building.

Right-click on the exemplar file and select "Copy file(s)". For the sake of simplicity, I suggest to include the copy in your lot file, so locate that one on your HD and open it in the Reader. Right-click again and select "Paste file(s)". Now select the exemplar file and right-click in the right panel. Select "Add property" and pick "Query as main building" from the drop-down list. Type "1" (= "true") in the "Value as text" box below, press the "Apply" button right next to this box, and finally press the other "Apply" button that is below the box. Now save your lot, exit the Reader and start SimCity. If you hover the mouse cursor over the building, it should have the correct hover query now.

Note: Make sure that your lot is loaded after the "Buildings as props" file. I suggest to put all Maxis downloads in \Program Files\Maxis\SimCity 4\Plugins and your custom content in \My Documents\SimCity 4\Plugins - this will ensure that it's loaded after the Maxis stuff.

[megalopolitan 0]

That answer filled in a lot of gaps in my knowledge, it worked perfectly as well. I did have to move the BAP files to the PF plugins folder for it to work, glad you added that note. I can see now how you take an exemplar from the original files and include it in a lot with different properties. Thanks!