regions

[xhysteriax 0]

okay. i am pretty techy i would like to think.. i have a pretty good size plugin folder.. but for the DOG in me.. i can not figure out how to make the regions i download load correctly. help please?

[Cefien 361]

Sorry, but i don't really understand...what is the connection between your good size plugins folder and you regions?

Region has its own folder, it has nothing to do with the size of your plugins.

[jason leo 485]

Maybe what you need is this tutorial. Look around the omnibus, there are some tutorials about how to do many things.

[A Nonny Moose 8,261]

Regions come in two basic styles. If there is a file in the download with an extension of .SC4M you have a region that needs the SC4Terraformer (look on the STEX or at SC4Devotion's LEX).

The standard style for rendering in-game comes with a gray-scale map, usually a .jpg, and a file explicitly named config.bmp. You render these into a region by:

1. Creating a new folder in your Regions folder with the name of the city
   
   
2. Moving both these files into it.
   
   
3. Open the game and select the new region. You will get an all green layout showing the config.bmp tiles
   
   
4. Press CTRL+ALT+SHIFT+r. Gives you a file dialogue box. Locate the grey-scale map, make sure it is in the selection box and press OK.
   
   
5. The game renderer starts. This may not be interrupted nor switched away. Go for a coffee. Big maps might take an hour or so.
   

[T Wrecks 10,209]

Yeah, and if you don't find the answer there, I recommend asking questions that are specific enough to be answerable at all.

"Region" is horribly unspecific, and "load correctly" as well. If the problem persists, you should let people know:

- which particular region (download link) you are trying to load

- which are the exact steps you took, and in the order you took them

- at which particular step the process exited (if applicable), or - if the process finished, but not with the desired result -,

- what the outcome was (screenshot or good description)

By the way, a descriptive thread title can also help. "Regions". Hm. Yeah, regions what? Recommendable regions? Regions with high mountains? Looking for particular regions? Making some? Places to download? Questions about playing with them?

How about "Problem rendering region XYZ - plz help!1!1" or something (minus the "!!1!1!" part)?

The way you formulated the question, it's pretty much as if one of us had said "Hey guys, I'm pretty good with toasters, but I can't figure out how to fix my car. What do I do?" in a thread called "Cars".

Would you be able to give a helpful answer under these circumstances? I don't think so.

I'm not writing all this waffle to annoy you. In the end, you do yourself a favour because people will know right from the start what the thread is about, they won't have to ask further questions, they are probably able to spot the problem directly, and all the sooner will you have your answer.

EDIT

Once again the dinosaur finds himself outpaced by a helpful moose...

[Turjan 1,048]

Regions come in two basic styles. If there is a file in the download with an extension of .SC4M you have a region that needs the SC4Terraformer (look on the STEX or at SC4Devotion's LEX).

If you use something like Windows Vista or Windows 7, I would recommend SC4Mapper 2013 instead (available on the LEX). It's a bit more lightweight than Terraformer, and it has the unicode issue fixed that prevented SC4Terraformer and the older versions of SC4Mapper from running on many modern Windows systems. It's a very nice program, and you can even easily change the city tile layout on any map with a few clicks.

[xhysteriax 0]

thanks for all your help. i am sorry if i didnt put enough info.

what i was saying is..

i know how to put files into the pluggins folder.. thats not the issue. when i place a region in the regions folder it never seems to load. it is just a flat map. no water or mountains or terrain.

i downloaded Miami for example. just a blank map.

thats what i was trying to figure out. what was i doing wrong? both files are in there. guess i did something along the way??

[Turjan 1,048]

thanks for all your help. i am sorry if i didnt put enough info.

what i was saying is..

i know how to put files into the pluggins folder.. thats not the issue. when i place a region in the regions folder it never seems to load. it is just a flat map. no water or mountains or terrain.

i downloaded Miami for example. just a blank map.

thats what i was trying to figure out. what was i doing wrong? both files are in there. guess i did something along the way??

So, what is this Miami you download (link please), and what do you do with it?

[xhysteriax 0]

[Cefien 361]

I have this map too and it works fine to me.

I don't know what's wrong, but did you use Terraformer or SC4Mapper after downloading the map?

[xhysteriax 0]

no. where do i get that from? seems like you have to go here and there for files. kinda annoying.

[Cefien 361]

no. where do i get that from? seems like you have to go here and there for files. kinda annoying.

Now that's the problem right there,...you'll need at least one of these tools to make the maps you downloaded work.

Here are the links:

http://sc4devotion.c...php?lotGET=2880

http://sc4devotion.c....php?lotGET=731

You can either download both of them or just one, they have almost the same function. It's all on you.

Note: Registration/Login required for both links. Read the readme clearly before installing these tools and use it afterwards.

[A Nonny Moose 8,261]

There is a perfectly good readme file in RTF format in this package. There are none so blind as those who will not see.

[xhysteriax 0]

ok. i am there. but there is no download link??

[Turjan 1,048]

ok. i am there. but there is no download link??

You should at least read the answers in this thread:

Note: Registration/Login required for both links. Read the readme clearly before installing these tools and use it afterwards.

Oh, and take the first link. .

[xhysteriax 0]

i am registered. have been for years. i did click the two links above. when i go to SimDev there is not a download link at all.

i have downloaded items from there before and there is a download link under the header image. there is nothing there for these.

[Turjan 1,048]

i am registered. have been for years. i did click the two links above. when i go to SimDev there is not a download link at all.

If you are registered and logged in at the LEX, there will be a download link for you. If I click on the links up there, I see the download links. If you don't see them, you are not logged in.

In case you really have to register, make sure that you register at the file exchange and not at the forum. The registration processes are independent.

[Cefien 361]

Those links i provided are dirrect links to the LEX. That's why i noted that at least registration or log in is required.

Go to sc4dev and log in to the LEX first. You should then see the download links.

[xhysteriax 0]

ahhhh got it thanks!!