Brand newish with Questions. Grab your coffee, or beer!

[blacksugar419 74]

Ok, so I have many questions. For example, I did a search on the STEX with the word "Airport" and all I see is individual pieces. My question is, is there only individual pieces to download, or is there a full package somewhere that I am not seeing wrapped up together with some other stuff and perhaps thats why im not finding it? I couldve swore I seen a few years ago on a youtube video (dont even remember who) mention an airport and or seaport pack among many other things. 

Also, with all the different little airport pieces, none of them are made by the same person it appears, so my next question is, are they compatible with each other? are they even functional for it to matter if they are compatible?

Also when I search the term airport on the STEX, and sort by relevancy, there is police stations, maps and stuff nothing to do with airports, so there is a lot of work to do. Not complaining, I have no suggestions on making anything better lol, just noting how my lack of focus, overly confused ass is here! Im sure there is something very simple that I am missing.

I ran across a cul-de-sacs thing to download, and realised, I used to have some sort of cul-de-sacs on the older version of NAM i had. and realised it is no longer there in my game. is that accurate, did they remove that? I noticed the removed alot of things from it actually, unless it didnt install correctly? I updated from version 32 I believe

Regarding PLEX.. Im assuming thats nothing I need as that is for creating stuff correct? I can barely tie my shoes and breathe at the same time, ya know what im saying?

 

Thank you in advance for any replies or views or pointing in the right direction. I will delete this in the case of being shown similar threads.

[CorinaMarie 29,934]

6 minutes ago, blacksugar419 said:

I will delete this in the case of being shown similar threads.

No need to delete this. We encourage new members to post and ask their questions. Then the peeps here who know where to find things will reply to help you find what you are looking for.

I'm personally not an expert with the Airport stuff, but I'm sure someone'll be along to post about them. For the cul-de-sacs in NAM, I believe they are an optional item which needs selecting via the Custom Install option.

The PLEX is our copy of the files from the now lost SimPeg website. It has optional content with some very nice stuff.

[Cyclone Boom 17,033]

For the custom airports, I know of the RIMP sets which are perhaps the most common for creating modular terminals and runways.

That's far from my particular area of expertise though, so I'll have to pass on giving further details there. They do have quite a few dependencies which are additional files required, so just be sure to get those should it sound worth looking into.

One tip for locating particular items on the STEX can be to use a Google targeted search like so:

<Search Term> site:community.simtropolis.com/files/

Adding the keywords to search for, and then it'll only look in the STEX here for any results. Enclosing a term in quotes would also only retrieve specific matches. The local site search here isn't the most reliable, so this can be a useful way around to discover specifically what you'd like to find.

For the cul-de-sacs, as Cori said they are included as part of the NAM when selecting a "Custom" installation.

As follows:

Just make sure to expand the sub-option for Main Road texture Style and then check the selected option.

You may also be interested in this mod which is for larger cul-de-sacs which I believe is still compatible with the NAM.

[jeffryfisher 2,176]

4 hours ago, blacksugar419 said:

I did a search on the STEX with the word "Airport" and all I see is individual pieces.

Google "modular airport" + "SimCity 4".

[blacksugar419 74]

Thank you everyone.

I never got notifications for this, so I wouldve responded much earlier since I had today off of work. well really even if I were at work I wouldve responded since I just sit on a forklift all....day....

7 hours ago, CorinaMarie said:

I'm personally not an expert with the Airport stuff, but I'm sure someone'll be along to post about them. For the cul-de-sacs in NAM, I believe they are an optional item which needs selecting via the Custom Install option.

I dont even necessarily want airports. More so just looking for cool upgrades and figured i'd start with airports. However, I see airports look like a lot of work. about 20-30 dependencies. Looks like a pain trying to track alot of them down also. I think ill give up on that idea lol.

Yea I did the complete standard installation, missing the word standard, so that makes sense. damn.. and I been building all these highways with very limited options. now the possibilities are endless!

7 hours ago, Cyclone Boom said:

For the custom airports, I know of the RIMP sets which are perhaps the most common for creating modular terminals and runways.

That's far from my particular area of expertise though, so I'll have to pass on giving further details there. They do have quite a few dependencies which are additional files required, so just be sure to get those should it sound worth looking into.

One tip for locating particular items on the STEX can be to use a Google targeted search like so:

<Search Term> site:community.simtropolis.com/files/

You may also be interested in this mod which is for larger cul-de-sacs which I believe is still compatible with the NAM.

Yup, I see RIMP is the preferred airport set it looks like. Yup lots to download. Im gonna steer clear for now, or maybe forever.

as far as searches go, thats actually close to what I was doing, or actually just what jeffry suggested,

3 hours ago, jeffryfisher said:

Google "modular airport" + "SimCity 4".

which led me to so much confusion. I actually started searching 2 weeks ago for a realistic trash solution to a region full of islands. West New Guinea map actually. It is huge, and loaded with just big enough islands to develope on, which is what I want to do. But then I realise I have no way to get rid of trash other than put a dump on the island. Then I realised this is a real life problem for real island nations... But I dont want my game to be that realistic lol. NonnyMoose (RIP. I am sad to see that his wealth of information will no longer be available going forward) I google search for this, stumbled upon a thread on here which he suggested using a barge thing that takes it out to sea. Now I cannot find that post because I deleted my search history through my antivirus, and cannot replicate the exact search I made. I found one barge thing that sits in the water and goes no where, so in theory acts the same as the trash chute mod, and I dont want that either. If the barge at least pretends to take the trash somewhere else, thats all the realism I am looking for. but I gave up on that too...

I appreciate everyone helping me. I think im just realising adding all of this is much more than I bargained for. Think Ill just wait the long wait and hope for the best with these discs when I get around to donating and requesting them.

[Cyclone Boom 17,033]

35 minutes ago, blacksugar419 said:

I google search for this, stumbled upon a thread on here which he suggested using a barge thing that takes it out to sea.

It sounds like that might be the: PEG CDK3 Garbage Docks

 

35 minutes ago, blacksugar419 said:

I think im just realising adding all of this is much more than I bargained for.

It sure can be overwhelming with knowing what should be added.

With the base game providing such a solid foundation, thankfully there's no need to install many items at all to make SC4 enjoyable.

The STEX is really a library of choice to expand or alter aspects in ways you personally wish to do so. Maybe a specific theme for a few additional buildings, or certain mods to change elements here and there. The great thing is there's incredible flexibility to pick and choose. Far from all content is needed for the game to be fun, and there isn't pressure with deciding on what you'd like to install either.

That's completely up to you, and all in your own time whenever ready for exploring more.

[infamousjbe 593]

5 minutes ago, Cyclone Boom said:

It sounds like that might be the: PEG CDK3 Garbage Docks

Was in the process of typing this up, but CB beat me too it....   so I second this option. I have a few of them in my region. Works well for my taste. And I do like as much realism in my building style as possible. I has to make sense for me to accept the mod. No cheaty mods, those some could be looked at as such by others, but it does to me and that's what matters. 

[Naomi57 2,985]

1 hour ago, blacksugar419 said:

West New Guinea map actually. It is huge, and loaded with just big enough islands to develope on, which is what I want to do.

I love islands, I did one recently, which occupied about a quarter of the large city tile it was sitting on.

If you're keen on effective use of Passenger Ferries and Car Ferries for inter-city transport in an island region, I did a tutorial post on that recently.

1 hour ago, blacksugar419 said:

Yup, I see RIMP is the preferred airport set it looks like. Yup lots to download. Im gonna steer clear for now, or maybe forever.

I steer clear of big and complicated mods, too.  I've an insanely small list of easy and important mods, which I'm happy to share if you'd like to know.

34 minutes ago, infamousjbe said:

  18 minutes ago, Cyclone Boom said:

It sounds like that might be the: PEG CDK3 Garbage Docks

I've just added this one to my list to try one day.  

[blacksugar419 74]

19 hours ago, Naomi57 said:

I've an insanely small list of easy and important mods, which I'm happy to share if you'd like to know.

Yea absolutely! Id love to start peaking at some other peoples smaller lists. Ive seen some overwhelmingly large lists too... they made my contacts fell off my eyeballs.

 

also thanks for the PEG CDK3 suggestion everyone. I do believe that is what Nonny mentioned in a post. its ringing a bell.

[Naomi57 2,985]

My Insanely Small Mod List

You might already have these mods @blacksugar419, but just in case you don't yet, here they are, in the order I installed them.

1. https://community.simtropolis.com/files/file/24830-helicopter-sound-silencer/
   Helicopter sound silencer By sghi
   My first mod downloaded, and still my favourite.  That helicopter noise was driving me nuts ... I still can't decide whether I like this one better, or the NAM.  
    
2. https://www.sc4devotion.com/csxlex/lex_filedesc.php?lotGET=2261
   Maxis Extra Cheats.dll  Creator: Buggi
   The ones I use most are Ctrl+X  moolah 50000000 , and Ctrl+X  drawpaths on  /  hidepaths .
   While 50 million simoleons might seem a crazy amount, I've never gone bankrupt, that way.  That one and only city startup loan allows me to easily track my record to paying it off, which is one of my economic goals with each city.  It also means I'm pretty blase about plopping a school, and then bulldozing it 5 minutes later, to reposition it one tile over!    Monthly Cost means the world to my gameplay style, but capital Plop Cost, no biggie.
    
3. NAM36, of course!
    
4. https://www.sc4devotion.com/csxlex/lex_filedesc.php?lotGET=3541
   Modern Police Station  Creator: mattb325
   This one fixes the "organised crime bug", that plagues large plops like Airport, University, and Country Club, because the Maxis default police stations (and most downloadable police stations), don't have the "Dispatch Radius" to penetrate those plops.  "Dispatch Radius" is how far police can travel off-road to catch the bad guys, while "Police Protection Radius" (aka "Radius") is the blue circle you see on your Crime view.
   
   Due to it's police protection radius being slightly bigger than the Large Police Station, this one is cheaty to the tune of about §10-15 Simoleons a month, which I can tolerate in my vanilla economic gameplay.  Maybe I'll edit it to increase it's monthly cost, when I learn how to use the iLive - Reader.
   
   Weirdly, installing this one gave me some very nice additions to my Trees menu, which I've been enjoying ... Logs, Redwood, Subalpine Fir, Lodgepole, Small Cypress, Juniper, Red Cedar, Small Spruce, Penderosa Pine, and Broadleaf Tree.
    
5. https://www.sc4devotion.com/csxlex/lex_filedesc.php?lotGET=2690
   Diagonal Bridge Enabler  Creator: NAM Team
   One of the most potentially aggravating mods you can download.  Sometimes the diagonal bridge works like a dream, but mine took about 15 hours of solid playtime, so frustrating!  My first diagonal bridge is built and works now, but still looks really weird ... here's hoping my future diagonal bridges turn out easier!  I might do a tutorial on this one day, if I can figure out it's quirks.
   
   My favourite use of this mod, is simply for draining the sea, so I can minutely terraform my sea, river, creek and canal bottoms, using Ctrl+Alt+Shift God mode, and even 1x1 street plops on the sea bed!  Some people even use it to decorate the sea bed with plops, or for laying diagonal FLUPs paths across to adjoining islands.  I go to considerable lengths to beautify my shorelines, which will be one of my focuses for getting more cosmetic mods someday.
    
6. https://community.simtropolis.com/forums/topic/55304-construction-sound/?tab=comments#comment-1720695
   Silent Road and Rail Construction.dat by our very own @CorinaMarie and @Cyclone Boom, which I'm currently beta testing ... and so loving it!  This one gets rid of the "beep beep beep" of tarmac trucks and road finishing crews, which had been running in an infinite loop for me due to a NAM FlexHeight bug.
    

I've come to the uncomfortable conclusion that my high density Brownsville, New York city tile will need the Industry Doubler.  So this one will be my 7th mod.

https://community.simtropolis.com/files/file/15758-industry-doubler/
https://community.simtropolis.com/files/file/21293-industry-quadrupler/
https://community.simtropolis.com/files/file/25651-commercial-services-doubler/

... and I REALLY should have installed the IH missing $$$ jobs fix ages ago!  

https://www.simtropolis.com/forum/files/file/22771-ih-missing-jobs-fix-update/

I've got a few more priority mods, on my short list to try one day, which I can list for you if you'd like.

[blacksugar419 74]

On 10/11/2019 at 2:16 AM, Naomi57 said:

My Insanely Small Mod List

You might already have these mods @blacksugar419, but just in case you don't yet, here they are, in the order I installed them.

I've got a few more priority mods, on my short list to try one day, which I can list for you if you'd like.

Thank you Naomi! That is a perfectly small list! I did download the extra cheats .dll but could not get that to work. seems to be some confusion as to where to place the file on the interweb as well. I tried both locations, My Documents/Simcity4/Plugins and also in the Programs86/Maxis/SImcity4/Plugins. Neither worked. No biggie. Maybe you or anyone can help with that.

I will give 4 and 5 a try when I get time to sign up at sc4devotion. I want to get more familiar with this site first however.

I also want to try the commericial and industry doublers. I already downloaded an Agricultural one which gave me the choice to x5, x10 or even higher amounts of jobs which I selected x5 as it seems more realistic. Because those industry jobs worth only 70 jobs max is not realistic at all. I work at Jeep for example which employs 6000 people! Granted I dont want a bunch of industry with that many jobs but a doubler would be nice and polite.

I would take any and all suggestions if you got more. You seem conservative enough to not go crazy with all thats out there, so I feel like you wont lead me down a path of millions of downloads lol. which I would be fine with that as well. 

I also installed the PEGCD3K pack and the barges. Fricken NEAT Man!!! Im in love with that.

I hope this helps other new comers with slightly getting eased into the game instead of being overwhelmed with all thats out there. this has helped me tremendously. It is guiding me to understanding this site at the same time and how these files all work. nice slow introduction. I cant thank you Corina, CB and everyone else enough.

I do have one more thing. I also Reinstalled the Nam36 for the culdesac and other extra options, And I apparently selected a file I shouldnt of because I lost my curved roads. I couldnt even figure out what to search to investigate this problem because I dont know the proper terminology for what to search for.

When I plop the extra road piece in the corner to make the bend curve more it disappears. At first I loaded a city that had all these disappeared curves so I though maybe they just needed deleted and replaced, but not so. I started another blank city and it still happens so that why I am assuming I selected a file that is conflicting with another one? I did run the cleanitol after the reinstallation of NAM36 also, not sure if thats what that is designed to take care of or not.

I can however use the plopable curves under the wide radius curves group which is the same thing, it is just so much easier to do it the way I showed in the pictures. however I am perfectly content with using the plopable wrc for now or forever. it will be a pain going through all my cities replacing each curve with a plopable wrc as well.. but oh well... lol

[Cyclone Boom 17,033]

2 hours ago, blacksugar419 said:

I did download the extra cheats .dll but could not get that to work.

For the Extra Cheats DLL one thing is how it has the specific requirement of being placed directly in the Plugins folder. This means the file itself won't load if inside any subfolders, and so it must go straight into the root directory.

As such the path would be:
Documents\SimCity 4\Plugins\SimCity 4 Extra Cheats Plugin.dll

 

2 hours ago, blacksugar419 said:

When I plop the extra road piece in the corner to make the bend curve more it disappears.

I'll confess I'm personally not a NAM expert, but this is something I recall seeing also with some curved networks including the both rail and roads.

I believe it might be due to when there's not a suitable curve which can fit to join the angle. When dragging from a starter piece curve and I've observed this occasionally too. It might be how it depends on the connection between two existing networks to be slightly different for an appropriate curve to make them properly interlink. So perhaps try bulldozing at either and and then see whether that makes a difference.

[blacksugar419 74]

22 minutes ago, Cyclone Boom said:

For the Extra Cheats DLL one thing is how it has the specific requirement of being placed directly in the Plugins folder. This means the file itself won't load if inside any subfolders, and so it must go straight in there inside the root directory.

As such the path would be:
Documents\SimCity 4\Plugins\SimCity 4 Extra Cheats Plugin.dll

Thats currently where I have the cheats.dll  stored. Actually I just restarted the game and Now it works. Hoo-ray. As far as the curved road reply.. Im not sure I follow, im on my 9th beer of the day and ive only taken up drinking in the past month lol. I did try playing around with deleting certain segments and the whole 9 yards. Only thing I can note is, I created them that way before with no problem and now that I have re-installed NAM36 i have cities with missing curves in the road. so something isnt right. but again its not the end of the world I suppose. Ill just have to take the time to delete them and use the WRC plop pieces. Thank you though, I still appreciate the response. You guys are becoming my new family! lol, thats extreme but a genuine feeling

[CorinaMarie 29,934]

I'm certain the curved roads vanishing act will be a textures file that has gotten removed. I only know it as a concept cause I had the very same issue with curved streets and one of the NAM peeps (prolly @rsc204) immediately identified which file was lost and then that fixed mine right up. No need to bulldoze or anything after adding the correct file into plugins.

So, just hang on till NAM experts arrive and I'm sure they'll know what went missing.

[c4bl3fl4m3 405]

On 11/8/2019 at 3:25 PM, blacksugar419 said:

Think Ill just wait the long wait and hope for the best with these discs when I get around to donating and requesting them.

Well, the disks are a bit out of date so they don't have some of the good stuff, IMO. (Edit: I didn't realize they put out new volumes! oh man, gotta get the new ones!)

 

On 11/8/2019 at 3:25 PM, blacksugar419 said:

More so just looking for cool upgrades

What's cool to you? I mean, I run thousands of different plugins, but I can start with a few of my favorites.

@paeng's Parks. Any of them. Paeng makes the most gorgeous parks, and they're all modular, so you can totally get lost down a rabbit hole of making parks big and small. (Note: I haven't played around with the texture changer.) I'm starting to realize a number of people have taken Paeng's parks and built even more cool parkness off of them so yay! (I even saw a R$$$ building that built in my game that used some Paeng park stuff in the landscaping.)

(EDIT: while not required, this plugin is INVALUABLE with the positioning of Paeng's parks. https://community.simtropolis.com/files/file/24509-spot-simpeg-plop-orientation-tool/)

@madhatter106's files. They help fill in "holes" in the game where it's short on certain things. I esp. love the little 1x1-3 C$ shops... they have so much CHARACTER. (Also, the mid-level office buildings. They fit in so well, I have a tendency to forget they're not built-in to the game.))

The SPAM (& SimGoober's ag files... frankly, @SimGoober's files are good, period) The SPAM's a bit more complicated, but nothing like the NAM (from what I remember of it from the late 2000s... if it's easier now, let me know). But it makes doing ag something worth playing. (Note: IIRC, the SPAM does its own thing with numbers of people working on SPAM farms, so a multiplier interferes with it.)

I like the rewards files that people put out... gives you extra things to work towards, and extra buildings. I like adding in extra churches & other houses of worship. (The OMG Iconic Cathedral is the one file that I wish could have Mac lighting.) I like varying my Residential to have housing styles from around the world. (But the Garrison Woods BATs have a special place in my heart. @spa's works are just good in general, esp. if you want Canadian architecture. The Atlantic Canada BATs are great, esp. the small apt. building Halifax BATs.) There's some interesting industrial out there too.

Oh, and if you're not running the NAM, there's some essential transit BATs (higher capacity bus/subway stations, combo bus/subway stations, ones that can be built on top of streets).

I've got some cool museums, I've got a few libraries, I've got a consolidated elementary/HS, some various medical BATs (inc. a large dental practice), a few different fire stations & police stations. And these small solar panels (that come with their own trade-offs, but that makes it feel less like cheating.)

Those are the ones I can remember off the top of my head. Most of my other ones are real world businesses.

But that's what I find fun. What are you into? Maybe you're into fixing cars, so you'd like a bunch of mechanic shops in your industrial. Maybe you want every single Starbucks or McDonalds available. Or you want to make a suburban area filled with big box stores. What's cool to you?

[rsc204 21,869]

4 hours ago, blacksugar419 said:

When I plop the extra road piece in the corner to make the bend curve more it disappears. At first I loaded a city that had all these disappeared curves so I though maybe they just needed deleted and replaced, but not so. I started another blank city and it still happens so that why I am assuming I selected a file that is conflicting with another one? I did run the cleanitol after the reinstallation of NAM36 also, not sure if thats what that is designed to take care of or not.

I'm guessing you're missing one or more files needed for the WRC textures. Those should be in the file "NetworkAddonMod_draggable_FANs_and_WRCs.dat", inside the "Fractionally Angled Networks" folder of NAM. Bear in mind, the WRC options in the NAM are the older puzzle-based pieces. You should re-run the NAM installer, selecting a custom install, then make sure you select under NAM Networks and Network Expansions / Fractionally Angled Road Networks the option Draggable FAR. This will ensure both draggable FAR and WRCs are installed.

Just to note, the Cleanitol file is intended to run before NAM install, not afterwards. In fact there is an option in the installer Run Cleanitol and the Station Updater, to do this during install too.

[infamousjbe 593]

2 hours ago, c4bl3fl4m3 said:

Oh, and if you're not running the NAM, there's some essential transit BATs (higher capacity bus/subway stations, combo bus/subway stations, ones that can be built on top of streets).

 

Think you might be referring to the Road Top Mass Transit (RTMT). Also believe there are add-ons by various modders, and some of it has been packaged with NAM.  I use the "on street/road" bus stops extensively throughout my cities. Really dislike the default bus stop kiosks. That little 1x1 space is more valuable to me than a shelter for the Sims.. lol. 

Speaking of Bus Stops, I also use the SPAM Rural 1x1/2x1 stops a lot as well. Great for filling gaps from orth/diag intersections outside the metro areas.

Speaking of SPAM, SPAM itself I feel is good if you like Farm/Rural areas as much as Metro. This mod also has a ton of extra content created for it, depending on how deep you want to get with your Rural/Farm areas. 

The other custom content I'd recommend once you start to dive is, the Industrial Revolution Mod (IRM). like the SPAM, it has plenty of add on content depending on how deep you want to get with your I-D/I-M areas.

But first and for most, all the "fixes" should be top priority before cosmetics. IMO...   

Currently playing with 3gb of content in the plugins folder, out of the 5gb dl'ed and sampled, and the "wanted list" even bigger. I want it all!!!  Been collecting since 2013, with the occasional hiatus here & there. Just currently back from about 4 years. SC4 always calls me back.....  Still playing the same 4x4m region since 2013 without the urge to start a new one yet, kind of. 

[Naomi57 2,985]

9 hours ago, blacksugar419 said:

I would take any and all suggestions if you got more. You seem conservative enough to not go crazy with all thats out there, so I feel like you wont lead me down a path of millions of downloads lol. which I would be fine with that as well. 

I also installed the PEGCD3K pack and the barges. Fricken NEAT Man!!! Im in love with that.

Yea, I want to try the barges someday, too.  

Aside from SC4 Mapper 2013, which I think you've already used, I've also used this external Census tool that @Cyclone Boom put me onto, to take a nicer region snapshot ... and it provides a tiny little bit of helpful regional overview data, too.

https://www.sc4devotion.com/csxlex/lex_filedesc.php?lotGET=913
Sawtooth's Region Census v0.8  Creator: BSC Custodian

See screenshots of that Census tool in this other thread.

https://community.simtropolis.com/forums/topic/758135-how-many-have-developed-all-cities/?page=2&tab=comments#comment-1720811

Again, this list is roughly in the order that I plan to install these mods, a very slow uptake curve.  You'll probably beat me there!  

I've got my eye on this slope mod, which looks like it might just be the perfect compromise between aesthetics and ease of use ... but I haven't tried it yet.  Slope mods can be super annoying, until you get used to them, because they make road and rail construction operations more likely to be invalid (red), but they produce exquisitely smooth results.  Most experienced SimCity 4 players consider a slope mod an absolute necessity, but they take a little getting used to.

https://www.sc4devotion.com/csxlex/lex_filedesc.php?lotGET=72
CSX Tunnel and Slope Mod  Creator: Colyn
This MOD was originally done by BigRedFish but I found the settings too radical.

I have modified it to be between the BRF Mod and the Maxis standard. At these settings I find that the transport networks looks better and most of the annoying hacksaw bumps are levelled out.

Maxis standard slope settings are easy to use, but infamous for producing yucky, bumpy, road and rail.  The BigRedFish slope mod produces amazing aesthetics, but is hard to use as a result, which is why this CSX slope mod is the first one I'll try, with slope settings between the two, balancing aesthetics and ease-of-use.

Given I've got Mattb's Police Station already, his other civic buildings look like they share a similar set of dependencies, and they look very well made, so I've got these on my shortlist, too.  When you settle on a mod maker you like, it's a good and easy option to check out their other mods.  I can't comment on their functionality yet.  High school, elementary school, library, hospital.

https://www.sc4devotion.com/csxlex/lex_filedesc.php?lotGET=3770
https://www.sc4devotion.com/csxlex/lex_filedesc.php?lotGET=3746
https://www.sc4devotion.com/csxlex/lex_filedesc.php?lotGET=3721
https://www.sc4devotion.com/csxlex/lex_filedesc.php?lotGET=3753

Here's a super high capacity Passenger Ferry.  As my region grows, if my passenger ferries start getting congested, I might try this out.

https://community.simtropolis.com/files/file/3355-gdv-water-taxi-station-wbus-stop-new-water-taxi
GDV Water Taxi Station wBus Stop New Water Taxi  By goldiva
This is a 10000 capacity modern water taxi station, functions like the original passenger ferry terminal, plus more.
The 1x4 station comes with its own bus stop, saves us from wasting a tile to a bus stop.

The integrated bus stop on this one, solves the Bus Stop adjacency issues which are a problem for transit lots in general, and is particularly noticeable for the Ferry & Bus Stop combination in particular.  I explain that adjacency issue in this comment, with further explanations in subsequent comments on that same thread.

https://community.simtropolis.com/forums/topic/758481-how-do-i-increase-high-tech-industrial-demand/?page=3&tab=comments#comment-1720303
Ferry Strategies

OTOH, maybe I'll just customise my own ferries by then, using iLive - Reader.  I haven't found a super high capacity Car Ferry Terminal, yet.

I want to install this garbage mod one day, just simply because it looks so darn cool.  

https://www.sc4devotion.com/csxlex/lex_filedesc.php?lotGET=3700#
SM2 The Pit  Creator: Simmer2

... and this air purifier mod, not nearly as cheaty as most of those are.

https://www.sc4devotion.com/csxlex/lex_filedesc.php?lotGET=3590
SM2 Air Purifier Facility (v2.0)  Creator: Simmer2

I also want to take a tiny little dive into parking facilities, to pair with my ferries and transit stations that don't have inbuilt parking.  Parking facilities go with suburban transit stations, with the idea that sims drive to the parking lot, then take Mass Transit to get to work.  The commercial/industrial side of mass transit is best paired with subway (heavy use) or light rail (light use), and bus stops, with no parking lots (unless you're using Park & Ride mode in the TSCT).

https://www.sc4devotion.com/csxlex/lex_filedesc.php?lotGET=2444
Modular Parking Garages - 2 level  Creator: mike

https://www.sc4devotion.com/csxlex/lex_filedesc.php?lotGET=3647
Underground Parking Garage  Creator: mattb325

This next mod might be of particular interest to you @blacksugar419, if you're planning to do any little fishing villages, or mountain habitats.

https://www.sc4devotion.com/csxlex/lex_filedesc.php?lotGET=515
CSX Civic - Town Hall  Creator: Colyn
... this is an active Town Hall and provides Police, Fire Protection and a small Clinic.

It's got a rather colonial look about it, so you might consider it the last vestiges of colonialism, still providing essential services to remote districts.  

On the same village theme, here's some curious combo educational facilities.

https://www.sc4devotion.com/csxlex/lex_filedesc.php?lotGET=250
Bourke Street Public School  Creator: mattb325
It is both a junior and senior school & 19th Century sensibilities abound: high narrow windows to allow abundant light and airflow, but high enough to stop indolent daydreaming; a small bell tower to announce class times with a single peal and separate entrances for boys and girls in the front senior wing.

https://www.sc4devotion.com/csxlex/lex_filedesc.php?lotGET=682
JB School Pack - Volume Three  Creator: JBSimio
This is a special edition of private schools, all of which function as rewards in the world of SC4. There are two parochial elementary schools which, in addition to being working schools, also function as ingame houses of worship. The third school is a combination of high school and jail.

... and a couple interesting wilderness themed business deal plops.  A bit cheaty, but perfect for sustaining a small economy with the tiniest sprinkle of farms, industry, or commercial.  These will pay for your civic plops, which will then be the main employers in town!

https://www.sc4devotion.com/csxlex/lex_filedesc.php?lotGET=182
CSXNature - PEG Hunters Cabin  Creator: Colyn

https://www.sc4devotion.com/csxlex/lex_filedesc.php?lotGET=181
CSX Nature - PEG Hotspring  Creator: Colyn

On the cosmetic side, for beautiful and realistic shorelines, I've got my eye on this one, which has no dependencies.  

https://www.sc4devotion.com/csxlex/lex_filedesc.php?lotGET=3402
SM2 Coastline and Marine MMPs  Creator: Simmer2
This MMP pack comprises of 17 different sea and coastline items.
From fish to vegetation to rocks, etc.

Again, on the cosmetic side, these look super easy to use, and also have the advantage of needing no police protection.  

https://www.sc4devotion.com/csxlex/lex_filedesc.php?lotGET=1885
RRP Draggable Paths  Creator: ChrisAdamas3997

https://community.simtropolis.com/files/file/21531-teirusu-rain-tool-additional-god-mode-terrain-tools-2/
Teirusu "Rain Tool" Additional God Mode Terrain Tools 2  By Teirusu
This plugin file contains the 'Rain Tool' that is needed to construct landbridges or plop water lots above sea level.
The water created by the rain tool will only last for a single game session.
When the city tile is reopened the rain water will no longer be there.

[blacksugar419 74]

5 hours ago, CorinaMarie said:

hang on till NAM experts arrive and I'm sure they'll know what went missing.

Thank you corina

5 hours ago, c4bl3fl4m3 said:

What's cool to you?

Yea I guess I dont know. I guess I kinda just think its all cool. Just about any and everything. In real life, my list of hobbies or potential hobbies and appreciations is a mile long. Im a big collector of so many things (not like a hoarder or anything, I keep my house in order). Its like asking me whats my favorite beer or favorite kind of beer... Im not sure I can answer that. Ive tried over 1000 beers and have logged 800 of them on my untappd app for example and I have an appreciation for them all. so yea I think I just want everything I can get my hands on as long as it adds functional value, some sort of realism, and visual aesthetics to the game. I will definitely check those things out too so thank you for those suggestions!

4 hours ago, rsc204 said:

I'm guessing you're missing one or more files needed for the WRC textures. Just to note, the Cleanitol file is intended to run before NAM install, not afterwards. In fact there is an option in the installer Run Cleanitol and the Station Updater, to do this during install too.

Thank you kindly. Ill report back tomorrow and let you know if I get it taken care of. Im confident with that info I can do so. Also, I was mistaken about the cleanitol. it was definitely during beginning of the installation process. The cleanitol folder actually has a roadviaducts_draggable.dat file in it. Not sure if that is worth noting.

 

[blacksugar419 74]

2 hours ago, infamousjbe said:

The other custom content I'd recommend once you start to dive is, the Industrial Revolution Mod (IRM). like the SPAM, it has plenty of add on content depending on how deep you want to get with your I-D/I-M areas.

But first and for most, all the "fixes" should be top priority before cosmetics. IMO...   

SC4 always calls me back.....  Still playing the same 4x4m region since 2013 without the urge to start a new one yet, kind of. 

I will check the IRM out.

I installed the IH census fix, I will look for others tomorrow.

Amen to that. Playing the same map takes focus. my adhd allows me to get bored on occasion and start another new map. These poor sims and their cities will never be complete lol.

1 hour ago, Naomi57 said:

Aside from SC4 Mapper 2013, which I think you've already used, I've also used this external Census tool that @Cyclone Boom put me onto, to take a nicer region snapshot ... and it provides a tiny little bit of helpful regional overview data, too.

When you settle on a mod maker you like, it's a good and easy option to check out their other mods.

Yup ive used the SC4Mapper. Cool tool.

I was reading some stuff corina posted on slope mods, which led me to RSC guide to chosing a slope mod (i believe thats what the page is, I havent read it yet, but getting ready to)

By mod maker, do you mean the people/groups like BSC and whatnot? is the point here, that one mod maker is gonna use all their same dependencies im assuming making it easier to download police stations from them for example if you already have other stuff from them (not sure if they have police stations, just making up an example). If what I am saying is correct, do these mod makers compile all their stuff together in a big package? Im guessing yes, but i feel as if i am overlooking them. Because all I have seen is individual buildings and mods, where it seemed like stuff could be packaged together, unless that just cant be done? 

Ive never even fathomed exceding ferry capacity holy cow, but makes sense if you made a giant manhattan style city. Ill be sure to check your post out too.

british/dutch colonial architecture is what makes the carribean islands so beautiful IMO, and reminds you of the painful history that was endured at the same time. all your recommendations are totally up my alley. 

Looks like I got some work to do the next couple days!

[Naomi57 2,985]

46 minutes ago, blacksugar419 said:

By mod maker, do you mean the people/groups like BSC and whatnot? is the point here, that one mod maker is gonna use all their same dependencies im assuming making it easier to download police stations from them for example if you already have other stuff from them (not sure if they have police stations, just making up an example). If what I am saying is correct, do these mod makers compile all their stuff together in a big package? Im guessing yes, but i feel as if i am overlooking them. Because all I have seen is individual buildings and mods, where it seemed like stuff could be packaged together, unless that just cant be done? 

Yes, that's right.  The same person/group, tends to use the same set of dependencies, and they have other similarities, too:

• Aesthetics
• Play style
• Special interest areas
• Quality for correct painless integration with NAM, SPAM or CAM.
• Fixes for limitations or bugs with Maxis vanilla features.

Rather than just downloading anything I like the look of, I preference families of mods by the same creators.

46 minutes ago, blacksugar419 said:

Ive never even fathomed exceding ferry capacity holy cow, but makes sense if you made a giant manhattan style city. Ill be sure to check your post out too.

I've done it before, and I'll do it again!  One of the big factors governing ferry overload is simply the number of cities with ferries in them.  Ferries are basically ploppable Neighbour Connections, so learning to create a highly effective Ferry Terminal commercial zone helps to moderate the overload, as well as milking the commercial benefits of ferries.

Being a Neighbour Connection, ferries suffer from their own unique version of the eternal commuter bug, which I explain in this post.

Neighbour Connection Strategy with a C$$$ Tourism Focus

If the eternal commuter bug is new to you, @CorinaMarie details exactly how it works with a most excellent experiment she ran, which is my favourite post of hers.

https://community.simtropolis.com/forums/topic/75411-possible-maybe-not-solution-to-eternal-commuter-problem/?tab=comments#comment-1698394

46 minutes ago, blacksugar419 said:

british/dutch colonial architecture is what makes the carribean islands so beautiful IMO, and reminds you of the painful history that was endured at the same time. all your recommendations are totally up my alley. 

Looks like I got some work to do the next couple days!

Not having used these second list of mods yet, I'll be fascinated to hear from you on how they go!  

[rsc204 21,869]

9 hours ago, Naomi57 said:

Maxis standard slope settings are easy to use, but infamous for producing yucky, bumpy, road and rail.  The BigRedFish slope mod produces amazing aesthetics, but is hard to use as a result, which is why this CSX slope mod is the first one I'll try, with slope settings between the two, balancing aesthetics and ease-of-use.

Just bear in mind that's really very much a personal thing, what one user finds difficult may be easy for another. For example, I've been using the BRF mod for years and never found it hugely restrictive, perhaps with the exception of rail networks. My advice is that it's better to try many different options, then find which suits your play-style best, since once you find the right slope mod, you'll probably want to stick with it. Using a blank city/region, you can mess about as much as you need to get a feel for the various options.

[blacksugar419 74]

rsc, the re-install worked. I got my beautiful curves back.

[Naomi57 2,985]

Thanks to our conversation here, @blacksugar419, I finally got the Industry Doubler and I-HT Jobs Fix mods installed, and watched carefully to make sure they're working.    All good!  

Chatting about it here gave me the motivation to get it done.  Have been in to two of my city tiles, to check in on the economic effects and make sure they're okay, two more city tiles to go.  So glad I got this done before I had more cities developed in my region.

There were quite painless to install.  No bulldozing required.  Even the double pollution was in reasonable proportion, and well managed well enough by the trees and Water Treatment Plant I had already.  An extra Water Pump required was the only big issue with the Industry Doubler.

[blacksugar419 74]

yup they worked for me too. however I did not unpause my cities, because I wasnt prepared to deal with the change in demand for commercial and residential. I was gonna go with the quadrupler, but someone made a great point on a post somewhere. while the jobs offered per building are really small, the buildings and lots them self are really small. so all in all its probably actually really proportionate. which leads me to my next thought, I wonder if theres any big industrial lot downloads available. like some 10x20 airport sized buildings? ill look to see.

[Naomi57 2,985]

That's true.  I felt the Doubler was suitably proportional, after I installed it.  I won't do the quadrupler.  Not only is it overkill, the quadrupler is not as carefully designed, from what I read, which can result in the gameplay being out of balance.

If you find some big industrial growable lots, please do let me know.  That sounds like a really interesting idea!

[blacksugar419 74]

well, right off the bat, I found this package of 6 growable 9x8's at simsdom (never heard of them).

https://www.simsdom.com/en/download/simcity4/item/industrial-manufacturers-lots-i-m-65764

Edit: this link redirects you to simtropolis 

 

and this person on reddit has a picture of all kinds of large industrial manufacturing lots

 

[blacksugar419 74]

A post someone else made on simtropolis asking for large industrial buildings, someone mentioned theres a large collection at the LEX. However, It doesnt appear I can do a search on the LEX. I can see and browse the LEX page, but no search bar anywhere. would that be because search is only enabled after signing up? 

[CorinaMarie 29,934]

I believe you can use their Power Search even if not registered. But, ofc, you won't be able to download anything you find until registering.

[blacksugar419 74]

Omg... This is unbelievably complicated. Im trying to use SC4devotion to download the BSC dependencies. I registered for an account. But when I go to download the file its requiring me to login again but it wont except my login. but yet im on the home page as blacksugar419. I dont understand....

ok I see you have to have another separate account for the LEX... I go to sign up for the LEX with my email and it says im already registered... boulderdash!