Problem Downloading Region

[Guido78 0]

I have not played SC4 in a very long time so I'm starting over. I have successfully downloaded regions in the past, but I'm having problems with it now. I couldn't remember how to do it so I read the instructions for it. I've followed what it said but when I hit Ctrl+Atl+Shift+R I can't find the Grayscale Image I downloaded. Can anyone help me?

[CaptCity 4,753]

Guido78...

A couple things to start off... What particular map are you trying? Does the download have a config and jpg greyscale image or a SC4M file? The SC4M is a different type of map file and requires different installation procedures. If the first, did you create a new region file with the config and greyscale image in the Regions folder of the Documents folder? And is that the one you navigated to in the game?

[Guido78 0]

I'm trying to download the Orlando region in the accurate scale maps. It only has a grayscale image. I saw one source that said create the region first then exit the game and download the map. Another said create the folder and save it into the folder. Then go into the game and open it up. I tried both ways and neither one worked.

I'm probably doing something wrong or I'm missing something. When I go into Ctrl+Atl+Shift+R I can't find the folder for the new region or the grayscale image.

[CaptCity 4,753]

Hmmm... Is this the one you're trying? I tried it, seemed to be OK.

Are you sure you're navigating to the correct folder when trying to render it in game? Path should be something like this (for XP)

C:\Documents and Settings\*Name*\My Documents\SimCity 4\Regions\Orlando

Also, as you mentioned, there's only a greyscale. But it is the standard 1025 X 1025, so the default Maxis region should work.

[tungston 19]

The best place to get instructions is the Omnibus Omnimapps.   But here are the simplified steps:

Copy the grayscale in a place that will be easy to browse to.

With the game shut down.

Create a new folder in the C:\My Documents\SimCity 4\Regions folder.

Name it with the name of the region you would like.

Copy the config.bmp file there.

Start the game, load the region you just made.

Do the key press [shift ctrl alt R] browse to the grayscale [*.jpg] and select it.

If the name of the grayscale doesn't show in the selection box below when you select it,

you will need to type the name of the grayscale.jpg in the box.

[Guido78 0]

When I create the new region folder and try to navigate to it in the game using Ctrl+Alt+Shift+R it's not there. The default regions that come with the game are there but mine isn't. When I type the grayscale into the box nothing happens.

I've deleted them and tried to go through the process again about four times. Each time I haven't been able to locate the region folder or the grayscale image in the game.

[tungston 19]

If you follow the steps above carefully, the region will be there. 

If when you do the key press, and highlight the grayscale, and nothing happens, then there is a good chance the grayscale is not a true 8 bit, 256 color grayscale image. 

Load the grayscale in an image editor and check the properties to see if it is a true grayscale.

[CaptCity 4,753]

Originally posted by: Guido78

When I create the new region folder and try to navigate to it in the game using Ctrl+Alt+Shift+R it's not there. The default regions that come with the game are there but mine isn't. quote>

Well, if you can't find the region folder, it just sounds like you may have put in in the wrong place or you're looking in the wrong place. Are you sure you placed it in the Documents region folder and not the Program File region folder and that you are looking in the Documents folder? Or if you run the game, try to load your new region, and find it in the list, then chances are you're looking somewhere else when using Ctrl+Alt+Shift+R to render it. Unless something strange is going on...

[Guido78 0]

OK, I found my region folder in the game, but it saved the map as a .bmp. I went back and tried to save it again but my computer will only let me save it as a .bmp. Every other picture saved on my computer is saved as a .jpg. I don't understand.

[tungston 19]

Did you check to see if the image file was a true grayscale?  Load it in an image editor, you can use "Paint", check the properties, then use the "save-as" function to save it as a jpg.

[ldvger 19]

Guido-

I understand how frustrating making a new map can be...I just went through a couple of weeks of map woes but finally got my map up and running in the last few days. 

To save a .bmp file to a .jpg file, you will need a graphics editing program like Photoshop or PaintShop Pro.  There is a freeware program called GIMP that you can also use and it's free to download off the web. 

Open your .bmp file in the graphics program.  Use the "Save As" command under the File menu to save the .bmp as a .jpg.  Be sure to make a note of where you store the new image.  As stated above, it needs to go to

c:\Documents and Settings\(your name)\My Documents\SimCity4\Regions\(new region folder). 

Make sure you have a config.bmp file in your new region folder.  If the greyscale map didn't come with a config.bmp file, then you need to make one for it.  You can download Landscape Designer here off the STEX and use that to make a config.bmp file and there is a tutorial here in the OmniMaps section for how to go about it.  Save your config.bmp to the new region file.  Your new region file should now have two items in it: 1.) the greyscale .jpg file and 2.) the config.bmp file.

Activate your game.  From the opening region screen, chose the botton at the top left, then the Load Region.  A drop down list will open and you should see your new region listed among all the other regions in your game.  Select your new region from the list.  At this point one of several thing may happen.

1.)  Your region may begin to load without your pressing Ctrl+Alt+Shift+R.  New regions take some time to render into the game, up to 30 minutes, depending on many things, so give the game a couple of minutes and see if anything happens.  If the region is actually loading, you may get the little hourglass icon.  If you do, wait it out.  Go for walk.

2.  If nothing happens, no hourglass, then do the Ctrl+Alt+Shift+R and very carefully navigate yourself, using the path I typed above, to your new region folder.  It's buried pretty deep in the path directory, so make sure you go to the correct place.  If you can't find your new region folder, then you are not in the correct place.  Once you find the new region file, open it and double click on the greyscale .jpg file.  This should activate the game to begin loading your new region.  Again, it may take some time, so be patient.

3.)  This happened once to me and so I pass it along to you.  One region I tried to load came into the game immediately after I selected it from the Load Region menu, but it came in as a greyscale.  Using the Ctrl+Alt+Shift+R tool didn't do anything.  Just for kicks, I clicked on a city tile, THEN did the Crtl+Alt+Shift+R and immediately got the little rotating hourglass and the scroll of nonsense messages across the top of the screen that always goes with loading a city.  Forty minutes later (it was a big region), the city closed and I was dumped back out to region view, but now my new region was 100% fully rendered. 

I hope this helps!  Be patient and keep trying.  There's a little bit of a learning curve involved.

Lora/LD

[CaptCity 4,753]

Originally posted by: Guido78

OK, I found my region folder in the game, but it saved the map as a .bmp. I went back and tried to save it again but my computer will only let me save it as a .bmp. Every other picture saved on my computer is saved as a .jpg. I don't understand.quote>

I think I know what happened here... For some reason the Map downloads aren't using the same procedures as before. To get a jpg file of the maps, you need to right click on the 'Download' link and then select 'Save Target As...'. Clicking directly on the download link produces a bmp map. When you select Save Target As, you can save the file any where and then move it into your region folder. Hope this does it for you...

[tungston 19]

One correction I would make, is the grayscale doesn't need to be in the region folder.  I find it much easier to save the file on the desktop, fewer folders to browse though to get to it.  Also you may delete the file once the region is rendered, it is no longer needed.

[Guido78 0]

I got into the image editor and used "paint" to change it to a .jpg file. It still did not work (no hourglass). I downloaded this region a long time ago on my old computer. I didn't have any problems then.  I tried a different region that came with it's own config.bmp file and I couldn't get that one to work either. Obviously I'm doing something wrong.

The only route that I've found to get to my new region folder is users/ owner/ documents/ simcity 4/ regions. When I click on documents and settings it won't open up. This is getting frustrating.

[tungston 19]

You should be able to get to the regions folder by looking in the "My documents" [XP}, or "Documents" [Vista},  If you are using Vista you may not have permission to open the "User" folders.

[Guido78 0]

I have Vista. Opening the user folder is the only way I've been able to get in. Have other Vista users had problems?

[tungston 19]

I misunderstood what you were saying.

Vista is not a problem with any of the SC4 tools, or any part of SC4.

[CaptCity 4,753]

Guido78...

At the risk of repeating what others have already mentioned, I thought I would post the steps I use for new regions... It might help you...

A few beginning notes: 1) This is only for regular maps, not ones created with Terraformer. 2) Some steps are different than the methods used before the site upgrade to ST 6.0 (don't know why it was changed). 3) I'm on XP and use IE 7.0 and don't know if things are different for other browsers. 4) I'm sure there are various things that I could do more efficiently, but it's what I'm used to (and it's hard to teach an old dog new tricks...  ).

1) Create a folder on my desktop with the name of the new Region.

2) Select the Region to download from the STEX.

3) When the download window pops up: Right-click on the config image (if there is one - if not, skip step 4). This is an image consisting of a combination of blue, green, or red sections; or all one color.

4) Select 'Save Picture As...' and save it to my desktop. This should be a bmp file named 'config'. Do not rename it.

5) Right-click on the 'Download' link for a jpg image - Do not left-click it; it will produce a bmp image. Doing this, you do not need to open the image with a photo editor to re-save.

6) Select 'Save Target As...' and save to my desktop. This should be a greyscale jpg file with some name (usually the Region name)

7) Go to my desktop and move both the config and the greyscale into the folder I created for the new region.

Open 'My Documents' (XP) or 'Documents (Vista) and move the new region file into the SimCity 4\Region folder.

9) Start the game, select Load Region, and select the new one. It should be a flat green terrain with only city boundaries showing.

10) Press ctrl+alt+shift+R and the rendering window should open.

11) Navigate to the new region folder. For me on XP the path is C:\Documents and Settings\*user name*\My Documents\SimCity 4\Regions\*Name of new region*. I know Vista is a bit different, but I think you can find the path by opening the folder or checking its properties (It's been a while since I used the game on Vista). Once this folder is open, you should see your region along with the game's default regions. If you see the default regions but not yours, then the new region wasn't placed correctly.

12) After selecting the new region, the jpg image file should be visible. Select it and rendering should begin (indicated by an hour-glass).

Note: Steps 3 through 6 are different than with previous versions of the STEX, so they won't match the tutorials.

Feel free to ask for any clarification on this. And anyone else who notices any room for improvement, please offer it. Hope this helps...

[Yuu Caa Sim 55]

Out of curiosity, why do you have to create a new region folder using "Make New Folder" in Windows? Shouldn't you be able to make a new region just by using the game's "Make New Region" feature?

From there, the game creates a config file and the region.ini file. You just have to load a different region, then minimize the game, go into "users/documents/simcity 4/regions/@@", and then edit the config to your liking, or copy into the folder one that was downloaded from the internet.

Go back into the game, load the region you just created again, and then use ctrl+alt+shift+R to find the grayscale .jpg, and load the terrain in.

[CaptCity 4,753]

Originally posted by: yunxiang

Out of curiosity, why do you have to create a new region folder using "Make New Folder" in Windows? Shouldn't you be able to make a new region just by using the game's "Make New Region" feature? From there, the game creates a config file and the region.ini file. You just have to load a different region, then minimize the game, go into "users/documents/simcity 4/regions/@@", and then edit the config to your liking, or copy into the folder one that was downloaded from the internet. Go back into the game, load the region you just created again, and then use ctrl+alt+shift+R to find the grayscale .jpg, and load the terrain in.quote>

Yes, that sounds like a perfectly acceptable way to do it. But for a couple reasons, it's just easier for me to create a new file. I like working from scratch on the desktop so I don't get confused switching files around (and, believe me, I would   ). Plus, I have kind of an older system and would rather have everything ready for when I open the game instead of doing things while the game is running. It would take too long.

[Guido78 0]

OK, I figured out what I was doing wrong but now it says that I have the wrong bitmap size. It's 1025x1025 and it needs to be 961x961. How do I handle this. This particular region doesn't have it's own config.bmp.

[tungston 19]

You need a config.bmp file that is 15x15 pixels, you can create one in Paint.  If you have a better image editor that will do a 16 zoom it will be easier.  Paint only does a 8:1 zoom.

small city use red, 1 pixel

medium city use green, 2x2 pixels

large city use blue, 4x4 pixels

Edit:  I just downloaded the grayscale, and it is 1025x1025, which would require a 16x16 pixel config.bmp, or use none and let the game size the cities. 

You have done something while working on it.  I suggest downloading the grayscale again. 

Right click on the "Download" link, and choose "Save target as", and make sure the popup has jpeg selected in the "Save as type" box.

[ldvger 19]

Chiming in once again-

If I may be so bold, you might consider abandoning your efforts, for a number of reasons. 

First, the file you originally downloaded years ago was probably created for Windows XP, not Vista.  I have seen a lot of folks have trouble using Vista with maps intended to be used in XP. 

Second, while I believe it's still possible to install 8 bit maps into SC4, most of the maps nowdays are 16 bit.  That may also be a source of your trials.

Third, is your game the original SC4 or is it SC4 Deluxe/Rush Hour?  This could also make a difference.  Maps developed for the SC4 game do not always work in the Deluxe/Rush Hour expansion packs. 

I went through this same process for about 10 days and finally was rescued by a thread I found here in the Custom Content area by Heblem in which he offered to create a custom map for anyone, providing they provided him the information he required.  In the space of 2 days, he created me the exact map I was looking for and it loaded flawlessly into my game.  We went through another week or so of tweaking things, but I suggest you try this option. 

If Heblem makes you a map, you will need to download Mapper to install it, as the files he creates are from USGS data, scale accurate, and are in SC4M file format, which only Mapper can open.  However, they are a cince to load into your game IF you have the Deluxe/Rush Hour version.  If not, I don't know how to further advise you, other than to maybe check out Ebay and see if you can't pick up a copy of the expansion pack.

I know how frustrating getting a new map into your game can be.  Be patient, hang tough, and be persistant.  It'll happen.

Lora/LD

[Guido78 0]

IT WORKED!!!

It finally worked. I had given up on it and downloaded a different region. Haha

To everyone who offered their advice and hung in there with me, I thank you.