Got a quick SC4 question?... Ask here!

[CorinaMarie 29,605]

37 minutes ago, Max4k said:

Can I have a road on that side as well and will Sims access it ?

It should be fine, yes.

And you can check in the game. Use the Route Query Tool. Here's an example, albeit not a diagonal station:

[rsc204 21,808]

1 hour ago, Max4k said:

According to this thread you can't,

My understanding is that the Arrow, or rotation of the lot, doesn't matter provided road access is touching the lot, it doesn't have to be the front.

The same is true of Transit Lots (like stations), the way the switches work that they use, sims can enter/exit by any network tile touching the lot.

[SIM-ple Jack 17,444]

22 hours ago, nos.17 said:

After selecting a texture (either from the menu or already on the lot) press 'd' twice. Note you cannot control which one will come out on top. You will have to remember to do this every time you what to move a texture and make it multi layered, otherwise, you'll overwrite what is there.

It didn't seem to work. I'll try it again later. I seem to remember it was only one key pressed.

19 hours ago, BartonThinks said:

2. To make sure I understand you correctly, you're asking if when a residential lot grows, it reduces the population, rather than adding to it? Is that right? I don't believe there's any way to do that, but if there's a particular reason you want to do this, there might be a workaround to help you achieve something similar.

I'm experimenting with tricks to prevent abandonment. It's one of a few ideas I'm trying.

19 hours ago, BartonThinks said:

3. My usual recommendation for this is to just use the PIM-X lot editor, and Nos. 17 mentioned. In terms of the best overlay textures, it really depends on what you're looking for, but these are the packs I use for overlay textures, myself (if I'm not making my own overlays in Photoshop). I'd say 75% of the time I'm using CP's textures (the first link). I don't think there's anything earth shattering in here, but there are definitely some non-sidewalk, non-parking lot options:

I'm looking for something different than what I usually find in overlays. 

Quote

I suspect this might be from the various animations which don't pause when paused. As an example, pause the game with a steam engine and you can watch the smoke continually shift, but it's going straight up rather than trailing behind the train (since the train itself is paused).  Cori

I've been doing some experimenting with time in the game, partially with the help of a time mod KloudKicker whipped up for me, months ago. Seeing how long I can forestall abandonment, having crops and trees "bloom" out of season, reversing the aging process on power plants etc. I noticed that the game never truly stops on pause. If you have the day/night cycle on and reset the time of day to 5am, you can watch the dawn and day light slowly progress, even though it shouldn't be. This could explain the change in color of pixels in the pics, even though you may have snapped them seconds apart. I'm aware most automata will not freeze frame(smoke, cars, boats, etc.)

[BartonThinks 3,416]

3 hours ago, SIM-ple Jack said:

I'm looking for something different than what I usually find in overlays. 

Alright, then: https://www.gimp.org/

3 hours ago, SIM-ple Jack said:

 I've been doing some experimenting with time in the game, partially with the help of a time mod KloudKicker whipped up for me, months ago. Seeing how long I can forestall abandonment, having crops and trees "bloom" out of season, reversing the aging process on power plants etc. I noticed that the game never truly stops on pause. If you have the day/night cycle on and reset the time of day to 5am, you can watch the dawn and day light slowly progress, even though it shouldn't be. This could explain the change in color of pixels in the pics, even though you may have snapped them seconds apart. I'm aware most automata will not freeze frame(smoke, cars, boats, etc.)

Pause stops the calendar (the day/month) but it does not stop the clock (time of day). Also, if I'm not mistaken, the game speed settings only affect the calendar, not the clock.

As far as I'm aware, the game's clock and simulator speeds are both controlled by the Main Simulator. I haven't modded this exemplar before, but after poking through its settings, I don't see anything that would allow you to tie to the game clock to the game's speed and pause settings.

I take it the reason you're asking is because you want to take multiple screenshots with "sunrise" or "sundown" lighting, and you want the lighting to be consistent between screenshots? In that case, you might just want to create your own lighting mods to tint the game's lighting to your preferred settings. For example, you could set it so that the game uses 5 AM lighting throughout the day, or for a 4-hour period, so that you have enough time to take screenshots without the light changing.

[Mytzenka 106]

On 9/12/2021 at 3:37 PM, CorinaMarie said:

Yep. Here's a mod to do that. You'll need to run time for the existing ones to disappear in your city tiles.

I'm sorry to bother you, but any possibility to also remove the sound of the animals? I still hear my non-existent horses neighing.

[SIM-ple Jack 17,444]

19 hours ago, BartonThinks said:

I take it the reason you're asking is because you want to take multiple screenshots with "sunrise" or "sundown" lighting, and you want the lighting to be consistent between screenshots? In that case, you might just want to create your own lighting mods to tint the game's lighting to your preferred settings. For example, you could set it so that the game uses 5 AM lighting throughout the day, or for a 4-hour period, so that you have enough time to take screenshots without the light changing.

Not at all. It's more or less an observation about the game clock. I can simulate any time of day with filters in PS.

19 hours ago, BartonThinks said:

Alright, then: https://www.gimp.org/

No thanks. I already have it. I guess you are suggesting(none to subtle- y) that "If you don't like what we got, go make it your own damn self!" Not a bad idea. Point me to a tutorial for making textures for the game. I have hundreds of textures stockpiled on different drives. I assume they are in png. format like everything else with this game. Hard to know for sure as all my game textures are datpacked.

[City Boss 75]

I seemed to have wrecked my tree controller. I have maybe 2 controllers conflicting with one another one that is probably Pacific NW and the other a seasonal type. I can play a city from the beginning with one type then return later with the other and so forth. Sometimes I will have several runs, say with the Pacific NW, then one run with the seasonal using the G-mode. I don't know the order in which they should load from in the plugins, so really - it is a mess now.

I either would want to return back to the Maxis trees or get it working again with the trees of my choice. I prefer mostly pines mix with seasonal (September 1st) trees with an occasional tropical or Floridian type. Please help...

[CorinaMarie 29,605]

16 hours ago, Mytzenka said:

I'm sorry to bother you, but any possibility to also remove the sound of the animals? I still hear my non-existent horses neighing.

I believe this is a much better way (on my part) to remove both the animals and the sound of them: Wild Fauna Remover by Cori v1.1.dat Additionally, it should take effect immediately with no need to run time awaiting their disappearance.

You can remove the v1.0 version as it won't be needed. Please let me know if this does what you want.

[BartonThinks 3,416]

4 hours ago, SIM-ple Jack said:

No thanks. I already have it. I guess you are suggesting(none to subtle- y) that "If you don't like what we got, go make it your own damn self!" Not a bad idea. Point me to a tutorial for making textures for the game. I have hundreds of textures stockpiled on different drives. I assume they are in png. format like everything else with this game. Hard to know for sure as all my game textures are datpacked.

Yeah, outside of those packs I'm generally making my own textures. I've found other packs either (a) don't play well with other textures, (b) are just not-so-great in quality, or (c) so specialized that they can only be used for specific projects (e.g., the textures that come with JMyers Small Houses).

I learned everything I needed to know about making textures through the GoFSH manual (and occasionally pestering Rivit with questions), so I'd start there. GoFSH makes things very easy if you have a decent handle on Gimp or Photoshop. It also allows you to extract textures from DATs, which means you can modify or re-purpose textures from other creators.

My usual MO is to extract textures (or texture elements) from other content packs and then use them as brushes or elements in Photoshop. This way, I don't need to worry about making my own base textures or brushes, and everything matches up nicely with other content packs. A lot of the time, rather than making individual textures or overlay textures, I use the Slice n Dice feature, which allows you to model the textures for an entire lot in a single image and then cut them up for export as a set.

One other trick I've used is making a grid texture that I can use in the lot editor, which allows me to see how certain buildings and props line up with the grid. I can then model textures to match the buildings/props precisely, which makes it easy to do things like line up driveways and paths on buildings where this is usually a pain.

 

[BartonThinks 3,416]

On 9/30/2021 at 2:12 PM, City Boss said:

I seemed to have wrecked my tree controller. I have maybe 2 controllers conflicting with one another one that is probably Pacific NW and the other a seasonal type. I can play a city from the beginning with one type then return later with the other and so forth. Sometimes I will have several runs, say with the Pacific NW, then one run with the seasonal using the G-mode. I don't know the order in which they should load from in the plugins, so really - it is a mess now.

I either would want to return back to the Maxis trees or get it working again with the trees of my choice. I prefer mostly pines mix with seasonal (September 1st) trees with an occasional tropical or Floridian type. Please help...

You cannot mix tree controllers (as noted in the PNW Tree Controller's download page and readme). If you've run a city and planted trees with two different tree controllers, it is possible that the only way to fix the issue is to eliminate all flora with the "Flora Off" cheat and start over.

[11241036 5,097]

On 29.9.2021 at 7:35 PM, Max4k said:

I got a quick question on Arrow placement.

In regards to the HSR / Monorail Station that is Diagonal.   I have a road touching the arrow for the Arrow placement, but what about the Opposite side of the Diagonal station ?   Can I have a road on that side as well and will Sims access it ?

According to this thread you can't, but for example  SM2 Suncor Solar Panels,  I have the lot facing a different back road , while the back of the lot is touch a main street and Sims are accessing the lot from the back.    Is this just a matter of how the Lot was made , not apply to everything ?

 

For an answer to this question, we need to distinguish two situations under which Sims will enter/exit a lot:

Because a lot has jobs or residents: They can enter from any direction, as well as exit, independently from the orientation arrow.

Because it is a transit station: It can be defined from which direction Sims can enter and where they can exit. For most transit stations I've come across so far, they can enter/exit either anywhere or along a network if it is network-enabled, but in theory, this can be modded in a different way. The easiest way to find out is just in-game, but I don't believe that there are many transit stations online which will ever cause you trouble in this regard.

[City Boss 75]

Included is an example of what I get from using Ctrl, Alt, Shift keys to access G-mode: one tree mod may be from the Pacific NW, the other is a seasonal one (not liked). This has happened in several of my cities. The issue I'm trying to address is where are these stored in the plugins and how to correct the Tree Controller by selecting one to use. Also, is there a relationship to the Terrain mod?

[BartonThinks 3,416]

10 hours ago, City Boss said:

Included is an example of what I get from using Ctrl, Alt, Shift keys to access G-mode: one tree mod may be from the Pacific NW, the other is a seasonal one (not liked). This has happened in several of my cities. The issue I'm trying to address is where are these stored in the plugins and how to correct the Tree Controller by selecting one to use. Also, is there a relationship to the Terrain mod?

The pine trees look like they're from the PEG MTP God Mode Tree Mod, which is not a proper tree controller, so that might explain why you've been able to use multiple tree mods at the same time.

If you have used a tree controller and you want to get rid of it, the only solution is to delete all of the trees, uninstall the tree controller by deleting it from your plugins folder, and then plant new trees, either using Maxis trees or a new tree controller. You cannot delete a tree controller without deleting the trees first. The easiest way to delete the trees is to use the "Flora Off" cheat, which will eliminate all flora from your city. After that, you'll need to use the "Flora On" cheat so that flora works properly again.

I would recommend making a backup of any cities before doing this, since once you get rid of the trees, you can't simply bring them back.

In the future, you should never mix tree controllers or switch back and forth between different tree controllers in the same city. The game does not support multiple tree controllers, and you can easily break a city this way.

[vw_oklahoma 308]

On 9/30/2021 at 3:36 PM, CorinaMarie said:

I believe this is a much better way (on my part) to remove both the animals and the sound of them: Wild Fauna Remover by Cori v1.1.dat Additionally, it should take effect immediately with no need to run time awaiting their disappearance.

You can remove the v1.0 version as it won't be needed. Please let me know if this does what you want.

Just curious, but if there is a mod to get rid of fauna is there a fauna multiplier? I just love watching the animals run amok in the city, and there's just not enough of it in the game. 

[SIM-ple Jack 17,444]

15 minutes ago, vw_oklahoma said:

is there a fauna multiplier? I just love watching the animals run amok in the city, and there's just not enough of it in the game. 

Yep, it's called your finger. Keep pressing the button. They all fade out after a while, so the effect doesn't last. I make my cow herds with a combination of non-moving mmp's and automata.

[vw_oklahoma 308]

9 minutes ago, SIM-ple Jack said:

Yep, it's called your finger. Keep pressing the button. They all fade out after a while, so the effect doesn't last. I make my cow herds with a combination of non-moving mmp's and automata.

ok, thanks. 

[CorinaMarie 29,605]

4 hours ago, vw_oklahoma said:

... is there a fauna multiplier?

The great @xannepan over at Devotion created ploppable animal generator lots.

Here's the list in the order the Power Search shows them:

1. Crocodiles
2. Penguins
3. Cows
4. Foxes
5. Orcas
6. Tyrannosaurus Rex
7. Pigs
8. Sheep
9. Flamingos
10. Scarlet Macaw
11. Crows
12. Buzzards
13. Pigeons
14. Seagulls
15. Deer
16. Moose
17. Pandas
18. Rhinos
19. Elephants
20. Whales
21. Dolphins
22. Giraffes
23. Chimps
24. Kangaroos
25. Brown Bears
26. Polar Bears
27. Lions
28. Tigers
29. Zebras

Edit: Here's a pic of the lots plopped in close proximity:

[vw_oklahoma 308]

wow, thats amazing. thanks.

 

[jbkone 14]

On 10/17/2021 at 1:57 PM, CorinaMarie said:

The great @xannepan over at Devotion created ploppable animal generator lots....

 

That's cool!  Is there any benefit to them, or are they just visual candy?  Do animals affect anything in-game?

[CorinaMarie 29,605]

8 minutes ago, jbkone said:

Is there any benefit to them, or are they just visual candy?  Do animals affect anything in-game?

They are visual only.

[Scarecrow 0]

Any good bridge mods that you recommend?
I have searched but only NAM appears, and I already have it installed.
Also, is it possible to make bridges over a cliff without water? I have seen several images but I don't know how to do it.

[SIM-ple Jack 17,444]

59 minutes ago, Scarecrow said:

Any good bridge mods that you recommend?
I have searched but only NAM appears, and I already have it installed.

Because all the bridge mods are in the NAM.

 

59 minutes ago, Scarecrow said:

Also, is it possible to make bridges over a cliff without water? I have seen several images but I don't know how to do it.

I assume you mean chasm or valley, because a bridge over a cliff is kind of fatal. Check out the "rain tool" and a thread on how to use it. You can also make ersatz bridges with raised highway and rail.

[rsc204 21,808]

19 hours ago, Scarecrow said:

I have searched but only NAM appears, and I already have it installed.

Bridges (functional ones), require additional special code to work, since that code is all maintained for the community by the NAM team, you won't find many functional bridges on the exchanges, most you do have updated versions in the NAM itself.

19 hours ago, Scarecrow said:

Also, is it possible to make bridges over a cliff without water? I have seen several images but I don't know how to do it.

Yes and No, in order to make such a bridge, water must be present to begin with and that's what the Rain Tool mod is designed to do. You have to sculpt the terrain, such that any water won't 'escape', much like filling any container with water. Then you use the Rain Tool (found with the other God-Mode tools) to fill a depression with water, I'd highly recommend taking in the readme, it explains some very important details/caveats for this process. Now you can build bridges because water exists, once you are happy save and quit the tile, when you re-open it any water added by the rain tool will have disappeared and the bridge will remain.

[jbkone 14]

Can you build a tunnel across water?  I think I've seen that before, but couldn't seem to do it yesterday.  Tips?

 

[rsc204 21,808]

Tunnels (except their portals) don’t really exist, the game just works out the distance between a set of portals and the traffic uses then. So with a bit of trickery you can easily make them over water, but the water can’t be there when you build it. You need to make a land bridge (I’d use the level tool for this), which is wide enough for a tunnel (3 or 4 tiles for single/dual tile networks). Now dig lower using a hole digger from the NAM 15m is enough for most networks, do this on either side of your tunnel and build it as normal. Afterwards, using the terrain tools, gently restore the body of water, being careful to avoid the tiles surrounding the tunnel portals. 

[CorinaMarie 29,605]

3 hours ago, jbkone said:

Can you build a tunnel across water? 

• See the Underwater Highways Made Easy tutorial for the land bridge method @rsc204 mentioned.
• Also this How to Make an Underwater Tunnel in SimCity 4 video.
• And if you have NAM: How to Build Underwater Tunnel Using Flexible Underpasses (FLUPs).

[SIM-ple Jack 17,444]

What is the earliest available version of NAM? I know I have 36 stored away(maybe 32 too) somewhere but am interested in earlier versions if they still can be got.

[Cyclone Boom 16,875]

3 minutes ago, SIM-ple Jack said:

What is the earliest available version of NAM? I know I have 36 stored away(maybe 32 too) somewhere but am interested in earlier versions if they still can be got.

There's some info on the NAM history in this article.

For older versions, the NAM Team have a strict policy to only keep the current version available, which is NAM 42 as of writing (as you know).

[SIM-ple Jack 17,444]

23 hours ago, Cyclone Boom said:

There's some info on the NAM history in this article.

For older versions, the NAM Team have a strict policy to only keep the current version available, which is NAM 42 as of writing (as you know).

If older versions still exist, does the site rule about trading still apply to something that, theoretically, was made by a team and is not available. Not that it would go through site mail anyway, as older versions usually clocked in at over 300mbs. I'm asking as a hypothetical, as I'm not aware of anyone who has older versions. I checked what I have, and mine only go back to 36.

[CorinaMarie 29,605]

1 hour ago, SIM-ple Jack said:

... does the site rule about trading still apply to something that, theoretically, was made by a team and is not available.

This is a completely different situation. Where we do allow redistribution of files, or more specifically restoring / adding them to the STEX, is when something has gone missing and the creators can no longer be contacted.

Since the NAM team is still completely active and present, their rule about not providing prior versions applies to Simtropolis too.

-Cori & CB