Real Highway (RHW) - Development and Support

[Ryan B 35]

qurlix - 36 KB / s? Holy mackerel! That's slow ( no offence ). Have you looked into upgrading to a better Internet service?

Don't mean to get off topic - - the RHW director deserves better than that.

[kassarc16 4]

After a functional release in the next NAM, would it be possible to get the textures tweaked and applied to the regular 2-lane ANT. Just need to switch the white and yellow lines and make a road-ANT piece to blend. The only way to tell the ANT from a road at the moment is to query it or have the dashed lines mod, which only works in unzoned/low density. But that's all future wishing! I can almost feel the public release of the RHW!

[mikemac 0]

Woot page 28! lol sorry haven't gotten new next page so I took advantage. Nice hihgways though

[ardecila 125]

I have DSL and I'm lucky to maintain 36Kbps on downloads. Pages load very fast, though.

"Possibilities" - I just meant whether you would support or oppose such a thing. Unfortunately, I can only think of three people who are good at type-21 exemplar-ing, and they're all fantastically busy. I've fiddled with type-21s myself (I made the original Street Tree Modd), but I could never figure out how the patterns worked, so I just stumbled in the dark until I got something that I liked.

[qurlix 20]

Well 36 Kbps is my "maximum"; usually downloads run between 0.4 and 4.2 Kbps. I know it's slow, but there isn't any cable or dsl service here, and DirectWay (satellite internet) is a bit (ahem...incredibly) expensive.

Anyway back on topic I would like to see barriers myself, even as an inherent part of the plugin, but I'd rather do what the public wants the most...which may be to leave it as an option (available on the STEX, cause creating another option in the NAM, especially one that's purely cosmetic, would just complicate things). Of course, I always wonder "how many of these decisions are really mine?" Really, isn't the final say smoncrie's? I'm still the newest NAM team member, so I should be the least important in decision-making, right?

kassarc16: Yeah, I'd like to do something with the regular ANT. I'm pretty sure we've abandoned trying to protect it for the people that use it the way it is. (apparently they are a lot fewer than I thought) That reminds me of a story... Technically the newest released version of the RHW was version 13, which like twenty people out there have (nearly everyone has v12). ***NOTE: Don't go looking for it cause it isn't available!*** It was paired up with lakeyboy and 1dera3's euro 2-lane highway mod and there was no icon problem. I liked those textures and the way they were going, but I would rather have something with the same theme as the RHW. Maybe it'll happen.

Hey, ryanb_sc4, seeing as you've showed up too (apparently we're having a reunion here) do you want to throw some concept ideas together for a one-tile portion of the RHW? I don't mean finished textures or anything, just various ideas... As a matter of fact, any of you out there can contribute ideas. We want to hear what you want to see in the basic ANT; what the RHW network will look like before being transformed into a two-tile highway.

bixel: I know, I'm kind of sick of the name, too. At one point we seriously considered changing it, but I think it would be in the better interest for all present and future noobs not to confuse anyone via a name change. Seeing as 97% of the time it is abbreviated anyway, you could think of it as the "Real HighWay modd". At least it's more realistic in my opinion, because around here there are about 30 highways of this style for every one of the in-game style.

So to everyone:

1) Do you want to see crash barriers on the outsides of the highway as a part of the mod?

2) How do you want us to change the ANT pre-transformation? (a 1-tile form of the RHW?)

Start off-topic, end off-topic: I really don't like those hybrid M&M ("Smarties" for you europeans) and Jelly Bean candies...JBZ? I feel they're purely a gimmicky commercial ploy intended to get quick money from people who have yet to try them. Or maybe mine was just bad. Does anyone know what I'm talking about?

-qurlix

[lakeyboy 12]

Well, 1) I would like to see the barriers there but only on corners and curves of RHW otherwise it would look abit unrealistic but that is only when 2 RHW is drawn next to each other and no barriers at all when there is a 1 tile or more gap between the carrageways. 2)There should be something similar to what I started to do with my two lane highway. I think quite a few pages back I made some rough textures for transitions from 2LHW to RHW.

Here is the textures from Page 16 that I made:

 

quote>

[Fraz86 0]

Hi, I'm new here, but I have been using the RHW for about a week now and I absolutely love the concept. So, I thought I'd just throw in my two cents in response to your questions:

So to everyone:

1) Do you want to see crash barriers on the outsides of the highway as a part of the mod?

2) How do you want us to change the ANT pre-transformation? (a 1-tile form of the RHW?)quote>

1) Crash barriers along the entire highway would be quite unrealistic, at least in regard to what I've seen across the US. However, if there is some way that you could integrate crash barriers on only turns, bridges, and perhaps slopes, that would be very nice. But, if it's a choice between crash barriers everywhere or not at all, I think I would prefer not at all.

2) I would be quite happy with a two lane version of the current RHW texture. A simple double orange stripe down the middle with one lane of traffic going in each direction.

[pilotdaryl 25]

I have found a way to actually TE lots for rural highway/ANT mod.  You need SC4Hex (found in the Modding Files section).  Open SC4 Hex, go to the lot config tab and fiddle with the "Unknown" checkbox, originally meant for the cancelled "DirtRoad," converted to ANT by the NAM, and the RHW by the RHW mod.  Fiddle with it as if it were the normal ANT, but think well so that you don't get a mistake (you may have tribules thinking that the divided RHW is a two-tile network, but it is actually one-tile networks beside each other).  Then try it out and see if it works.  I don't have time for this now, however MUNUFPro (Metropolitan Underpass and Underground Freeway Project) is planning to make a RHW-underground highway transition using these methods.

It would require the work of extracting the traffic textures and making them standard textures.

On second note: Once I get it done, I WILL post a tutorial on the omnibus about Transit Enabling RHW/ANT networks.

[Andreas Roth 616]

In Germany, "rural highways" (that would be federal roads with four lanes) always have iron crash barriers, so I'd vote for them. The screenshot that was posted looked very much like what I see every day (minus the streetlights, though), so it would fit in perfectly between avenues and ground highways in the game. As for transformations and intersections, it's a mixture between avenues and ground highways; while you won't find at-grade intersections with traffic lights on highways (Autobahns), they can be found occasionally on rural highways, esp. when it's too expensive or when there's not enough room for overpasses, but those are preferred nowadays to improve the traffic flow and to reduce traffic accidents. Transitions between two-lane roads look like the Maxis road/avenue transition in almost every case.

[Haljackey 17,385]

I also support iorn crash berriers with Andreas Roth.  I would also like to add that when you biuld anything next to the RHW (even open grass areas or signs) a sidewalk is created on the other side of the RHW.  I think it would be best if this area was replaced with another shoulder so that it takes up this extra space or a berrier (concrete or iorn, just somthing other than a sidewalk).  Heres a photo of it (straight and diagional)

[skyliner22 16]

hi ive been searching everywhere to download the RHW system thanks

[sim1234 62]

Originally posted by: skyliner22 hi ive been searching everywhere to download the RHW system thanksquote>

 

Welcome to Simtropolis skyliner22!

The RHW system can be downloaded here:

http://koti.mbnet.fi/heka33/RHW-public-v012.zip

[skyliner22 16]

I tried using the RHW but when  i layed it out it wasnt visible is there something wrong?

[hamsterTK 93]

you have to place two of them next to each other for them to turn into a RHW. you also need NAM with the ANT plugin.

btw, if you guys are gonna do crash barriers, could you do concrete ones to? the metal type arent too common in the US but those big concrete ones are.

[skyliner22 16]

i have the NAM but i dont know where to get the ANT plugin

[prince_of_sims 0]

when you installed the NAM, you should've seen an option to install the ANT. if you didnt select it, install the NAM again, and this time choose the option. the ANT will be available at the top of the Highways menu once installed.

[skyliner22 16]

ok it appears to work but it takes a while to create teh RHW which i find kind of odd

[Swamper77 90]

The delay in creating the RHW will be fixed in the next version.  The pathfiles for the ends of the RHW are missing. This is the cause of the delay.

-Swamper77

[Marsjam 0]

Erm...I just downloaded the RHW and i cant find out where to put it....do i put it with the NAM?or do i just put it in the base Plug-Ins folder?I am confused....
Any answers appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

-Marsjam  

[prince_of_sims 0]

best bet: put it in a subfolder in the NAM folder.

[simzebu 20]

I think if qurlix could edit the first post to have a link to the download, it would be a good idea. And a readme with installation instructions if not already included.

[kassarc16 4]

Just four things this time!

First, two questions about the future: Can we ever expect bridges or is the ANT hardcoded not to have any? And can we expect RHW Puzzle Pieces eventually?

Second, another question: Do you guys have anybody working on textures to replace the "Base" ANT to more resemble the RHW? If not I'd like to at least try my hand at helping since I'd love to see it (as soon as I figure out how to make textures, though changing the line colors won't be too hard once I get the hang of it.)

Thirdly, a request: Is it possible to remove any sidewalks that appear when zones or buildings are next to the RHW. They always show up on one side and look wierd, and if they can't be gotten rid of, maybe stretch the shoulder out to cover the whole tile.

And lastly: Thank you again, guys, for all your hard work on this! You and the others in the Modd Squads and talented BATers make the game forever enjoyable!

Edit: Quick 1 minute job on the straight zoom 5 piece. Any need guys?

[phattonez 1]

I've searched this thread, but I haven't found anything about on/off ramps. I know that they are being worked on, but how can put them now without an intersection and without using a freeway?

[Swamper77 90]

Kassarc,

1. Bridges can be added. No one has made any yet because several projects involving the ANT were going at the time when bridges were first mentioned. Now that there is just one project, maybe bridges could get started.

2. The network textures have Group ID 1ABE787D. The ANT textures start with "5E" and are found in the ANT plugin. You can use SC4Tool to view the textures and then extract them for editing. SC4Tool supports importing/exporting of images for the game.

3. The sidewalks are controlled by the EXE for the networks. However, we can hide them by extending the textures, as you suggested. For the curves/diagonals, some sort of grass texture should be used to cover the rest of the tile past the shoulder.

-Swamper77

[kassarc16 4]

An honor once again Swamper. (I love your freight spawning scripts, any chance for a passenger train one?)

Thanks for the advice to use SC4Tool. I use FiSHMAN and the Reader to get the above texture together. 

Edit: OK.... was there a program that could take the zoom 5 texture and make all the others? I swore there was, and if so, would save a lot of time. Otherwise I'm on to the other zooms.

As you can see, I extended the shoulder to make them equal on both sides, since it's a two-way road both sides need a good shoulder. I also changed the line length to something similar to base roads, I think it looks much better. The RHW is about twice as long as it should be.

Edit: Heres an "in-game" shot...

[jplumbley 5]

Looks really good there kassarc16 I would love that to go with my RHW system!! I think this is one of the best projects going on right now and cant wait!!

[kassarc16 4]

Ok just a little update. Getting some more of the Zoom 5 textures done. Though I discovered I;m more of a tweaker than a maker. But if you guys make a texture I can switch it.

One question: Streets: Stop line or no? My money's on no since you probably wouldn't find them on rural streets into a major highway.

                               

Comments, suggestions?

[Swamper77 90]

Kassarc,

Around where I live, there are stop lines for streets that intersect divided highways.

If you want, I could compile the images for you to replace the two-way RHW's images (ones that currently look like roads).

-Swamper77

[kassarc16 4]

Sounds good, right on track with my plan anyways! Let me get some more done (and try the diagonals) and I'll let you have at.

[K1A 0]

In the next NAM, will the new version of the RHW have on/off ramps like on interstate 15 or the 80???