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

[hazelnot 0]

I found FLEX Overpass, but not FLEX Viaduct. I tried using the overpass for it but it didn't really work the way I wanted it to... though to be fair the elevation on this map is completely messed up too (I ran out of patience when trying to generate a heightmap with the Tangram Heighmapper and repeatedly importing them with SC4Mapper - SC4Terraformer seems to not work on Linux at all so I had to just import it over and over and hope half the city isn't flooded or that the sea isn't land

[rsc204 21,808]

Generally where networks intersect you want the land to be flattened. You have the option of either L1 or L2 viaducts, but whilst they are slope tolerant, that won’t look visually ideal in many cases.

If you plop rail by clicking once on every cell, that will flatten the land easily. Use that technique in combination with the Ground Raiser/Digger lots and you can easily get perfect heights to build on-slopes for example.

Whilst this tutorial was intended for RHW, the principles work for other networks. It shows the basics of terraforming and building such:

 

[Aka 412]

Hello,

What is the purpose of the following zone types, under ‘LotConfigPropertyZoneTypes’ in the Reader :

• 0x0A (Military)
• 0x0B (Airport)
• 0x0C (Seaport)
• 0x0D (Spaceport)

For 0x0E (Landfill) and 0x0F (Plop Build), there are no worries and they are obvious. On the other hand, I don't know about the four above, can anyone explain?

Did the developers intend to make zones (like RCI) for these types, like in SC2 and 3 with the ports and airports to be zoned?

Thanks in advance!

[Null 45 3,041]

5 minutes ago, Aka said:

Did the developers intend to make zones (like RCI) for these types, like in SC2 and 3 with the ports and airports to be zoned?

Possibly, only the original developers would know what their full plans were. It is clear that a lot of SC4's planned features were cut before release.

[CorinaMarie 29,605]

3 hours ago, Aka said:

On the other hand, I don't know about the four above, can anyone explain?

Some interesting info here.  

[paulmc 391]

Hey guys, for some unknown reason ( at least for me) this perfectly round area is having dense air pollution. I have put many air filters and it didnt solve the issue. Also I have buldozed whatever was on that area ( packed the area with dozens and dozens of air filters until it disappeared )and rebuilt with different positioning of the stuff and the pollution came to bother me again. I have never had pollution like that on any of my cities even on the dense dirty industrial areas. I wonder what is causing that , does anybody have any clues ?

[matias93 7,535]

22 hours ago, paulmc said:

Hey guys, for some unknown reason ( at least for me) this perfectly round area is having dense air pollution. I have put many air filters and it didnt solve the issue. Also I have buldozed whatever was on that area ( packed the area with dozens and dozens of air filters until it disappeared )and rebuilt with different positioning of the stuff and the pollution came to bother me again. I have never had pollution like that on any of my cities even on the dense dirty industrial areas. I wonder what is causing that , does anybody have any clues ?

You might have plopped a building with a modding error, that caused that pollution effect to stick on the city even after bulldozed. In theory, this should not be fixable, but I wonder if a DLL approach could help, in the same way that the radiation-removing cheat made by @simmaster07 works. Maybe @Null 45 could say.

[Null 45 3,041]

51 minutes ago, matias93 said:

Maybe @Null 45 could say.

It should be possible, but I haven't looked into the pollution systems beyond seeing that radiation is a Boolean (a cell either has radiation pollution or it does not). My Query Tool UI Extensions DLL has a pollution query mode.

[Null 45 3,041]

On 6/29/2025 at 6:31 PM, paulmc said:

Hey guys, for some unknown reason ( at least for me) this perfectly round area is having dense air pollution. I have put many air filters and it didnt solve the issue. Also I have buldozed whatever was on that area ( packed the area with dozens and dozens of air filters until it disappeared )and rebuilt with different positioning of the stuff and the pollution came to bother me again. I have never had pollution like that on any of my cities even on the dense dirty industrial areas. I wonder what is causing that , does anybody have any clues ?

As @matias93 said, it is probably caused by a lot. I made a DLL that clears pollution, but I don't know if it will fix your problem.

[paulmc 391]

On 01/07/2025 at 3:52 AM, Null 45 said:

As @matias93 said, it is probably caused by a lot. I made a DLL that clears pollution, but I don't know if it will fix your problem.

I tried your DLL, it worked like magic. Thank you a lot .

[Jackspital 391]

Hey all!

I have a few quick queries relating to some street texture mods and NAM. I have recently downloaded the WWS WestWind Streets Mod alongside NAM 49. I have an issue with the Cul-De-Sacs with the WWS Street Cul-De-Sacs (For reference, I am utilising EU textures for the NAM). I am wondering if it is a file overlap or a texture overlap issue?

Also, is the NAM Euro Cosmetic Re-Texture Mod still compatible with NAM 49? I am aiming for a UK/EU look for my playthrough.

Photos below for reference:

[hugues aroux 3,784]

10 minutes ago, Jackspital said:

I have recently downloaded the WWS WestWind Streets Mod

Sometimes asking the author directly can be worthwhile! .. Yes, you do indeed have files that are overloading WWStreet or you missed something in your installation of my plugin. Read the provided instructions carefully, it's short. Don't forget that only the last plugin loaded ( street, or cul-de-sac !  ...) in your directory will be displayed. The NAM-euro-Cosmetic plugin.. dates from 2012 and has obviously not received an update, so without being incompatible, probably some segments will not be compliant with NAM-49. Maybe put NAM-euro-cosmetic between NAM and WWS loading!

[Jackspital 391]

Thank you so much! I will read back through and reconfigure my files. 

[rsc204 21,808]

6 hours ago, Jackspital said:

Also, is the NAM Euro Cosmetic Re-Texture Mod still compatible with NAM 49? I am aiming for a UK/EU look for my playthrough.

Common misunderstanding, but the Euro textures were included in the NAM and subsequently built upon, whereas the standalone mods are hideously out of date. Just don't use them is my advise, you'll get better coverage in the NAM by selecting the EU texture set. Basically this is the default, most complete and still maintained version of EU textures.

As for UK specific stuff, there isn't really a lot out there, sans some legacy puzzle pieces like the TuLEPs.

[vetram 221]

Hello! ..a quick question about the installation of CAM.......i already playing a new region using CAM 2.5.0 Extended by @Ulisse Wolf and i wanted to confirm that i have made the installation right .. So, i have noticed that in the java file into the welcome screen is written that ,  if its the first time be sure to apply the 4GB patch to SimCity 4.exe , and have simcity_1.dat patched installed 

is there any way that i can be sure that have already patched this file (simcity_1.dat) ? ..since in the downloadable .zip file the above file no more exists?

 

[Ulisse Wolf 4,412]

2 hours ago, vetram said:

Hello! ..a quick question about the installation of CAM.......i already playing a new region using CAM 2.5.0 Extended by @Ulisse Wolf and i wanted to confirm that i have made the installation right .. So, i have noticed that in the java file into the welcome screen is written that ,  if its the first time be sure to apply the 4GB patch to SimCity 4.exe , and have simcity_1.dat patched installed 

is there any way that i can be sure that have already patched this file (simcity_1.dat) ? ..since in the downloadable .zip file the above file no more exists?

 

Ignore that thing. The patch method of simcity_1.dat is obsolete

[vetram 221]

-Hi! i am trying to use Building Style: Mediterranean Heritage by @Ulisse Wolf into my city , after downloaded every dependency , i checked Mediterranean heritage as the only building style control , and also checked Build all styles at once , W2W and Standard , and No kick out lower wealth .... the only thing that i havent done is to edit the two .ini files (Building styles.ini and SC4MoreBuildingsStyles.ini) , although i copied them into the root directory as  the installation guide describes...

now my problem is that i do not see any new buildings although i have zoned them...what am i doing wrong?  ...perhaps is it necessary also to edit the .ini files ?  and if yes how?  Thanx

[Null 45 3,041]

6 hours ago, vetram said:

now my problem is that i do not see any new buildings although i have zoned them...what am i doing wrong?

SC4 picks growable buildings at random, so it can take a while for it to pick one with the correct style. If the game doesn't find a match, nothing will be grown. This is especially noticeable with styles that have a small pool of buildings.

SC4MoreBuildingsStyles.ini has a few debug log options (BuildingStyleSelection and LotStyleSelection) that log the success/failure of the game's style picks. As noted in the readme, those options are very chatty and should only be enabled for testing.

[vetram 221]

 @Null 45 in the dependencies of Mediterranean heritage there are many mediterranean buildings , which i download it almost all ( except MBEAR's content as link doesnt work right) ...i supposed that those buildings are the ones i choosed for the game when i clicked just only Mediterranean Heritage from the building style control.....but it seems that it doesnt find any building for zoning ...not even one !

PS1 : notice also that if i click also and the Euro building style with the Mediterranean heritage game do find building almost immediately ...

PS2 : also just turned into =true (BuildingStyleSelection and LotStyleSelection) you mentioned , but still nothing seems changed ...

[Null 45 3,041]

5 hours ago, vetram said:

PS2 : also just turned into =true (BuildingStyleSelection and LotStyleSelection) you mentioned , but still nothing seems changed ...

Those options simply log what the game is doing, they wouldn't change the behavior. The output is written to SC4MoreBuildingsStyles.log.

5 hours ago, vetram said:

PS1 : notice also that if i click also and the Euro building style with the Mediterranean heritage game do find building almost immediately ...

As I previously mentioned, the Maxis styles have a much larger pool of buildings to pick from. So the game will have a much easier time finding a building with the stage and density it wants to build.

[vetram 221]

18 hours ago, Null 45 said:

As I previously mentioned, the Maxis styles have a much larger pool of buildings to pick from. So the game will have a much easier time finding a building with the stage and density it wants to build

I am very happy to report that after the latest update from @Ulisse Wolf ver 2 of Mediterranean heritage , now game easily find Med. buildings without delay at all !...Thanx...I would also like to propose for even more variety of Med. buildings such as.....Italian Collection Relots: W2W Apartments  ...there also many more Med.buildings By @11241036.....

PS1:  Reading the following ..." i wonder how to add the  Building Styles property (property id 0xAA1DD400) to the building exemplar using PIMX ?  if the answer is complicated pls dont answer !

Adding Buildings to Custom Building Styles

This process is performed with ilive's Reader or PIMX.

The building's intended styles should be added to the building exemplar using the Building Styles property (property id 0xAA1DD400). The building will only grow when one or more of the custom or Maxis styles in that property is selected in the game's UI. The DLL will ignore the building styles in the Occupant Groups property (property id 0xAA1DD396) when the Building Styles property is present.

For compatibility with players who are not using the DLL, the Maxis styles in the Occupant Groups property should be left alone. If you are creating a new building, add the Building Styles property for users with the DLL and set the Occupant Groups property to one or more of the 4 Maxis styles for users without the DLL."

PS2 : also i have already written in the comments of Med.Heritage file that links concerning MBEAR'S buildings seems need to be fixed ..

[Simizen 1,098]

uh... not sure where to post this question, but feels like the best place:

anyone got any resources for Lua?

I remember someone posted a link one time, but icr if it was here, or over on one of the discords or what, and sadly idt i saved it to my bookmarks on my browser

and probably could do a google search but figured i could start with what was suggested once before, and then go from there (i'm certain i will not have any remote shortage of things for lua, lol, but goal is to not be overwhelmed atm)

Spoiler

how the heck did my topic become flaired for "featured"? lol

i mean, i'm cool with it, just very confusing is all

 

[Null 45 3,041]

1 hour ago, Simizen said:

anyone got any resources for Lua?

I have used several resources.

• The official Lua 5.0 Programming Guide is a detailed introduction to the language.
• The Lua 5.0 Reference Manual.
• Maxis wrote their own Lua overview, that also covers some of the stuff that is specific to SC4.
  • The same repository contains all of the Lua scripts from SimCity_1.dat to make them easier to examine.

[Simizen 1,098]

thank you for this!!

also, didn't know Maxis made an overview of their stuff, so that's cool to know!!

[Jackspital 391]

Hey all,

I'm having some troubles with my automata, as most of the vehicles disappear after a second or two. When I installed NAM 49 I selected: NetworkAddonMod_Automata_Plugin_Automata24_Persist

Would the Persistant Automata Mod be more effective as an Automata controller?

Thanks!

[matias93 7,535]

1 hour ago, Jackspital said:

Hey all,

I'm having some troubles with my automata, as most of the vehicles disappear after a second or two. When I installed NAM 49 I selected: NetworkAddonMod_Automata_Plugin_Automata24_Persist

Would the Persistant Automata Mod be more effective as an Automata controller?

Thanks!

It should work in the same way, though the 24 means that the persistence effect varies around the (in-game) clock, so it might be that the vehicles are dissapearing more easily if you're seeing the simulation when it's internally at night. Try checking by activating the day-night cycle.

[Jackspital 391]

Hey all,

 

Just a quick question on MGB - No Grass NAM (NGN). When I intall this mod, it works correctly with the sidewalks having no grass, however it overrides my custom street textures. Is this an issue of mod load order, or something else?

 

Thanks! 

[Transshipment Envoy 4]

Is there any reverse engineering documentation or information on the traffic simulation in SimCity 4?

[Ulisse Wolf 4,412]

12 minutes ago, Transshipment Envoy said:

Is there any reverse engineering documentation or information on the traffic simulation in SimCity 4?

The only information available is this

https://www.sc4nam.com/docs/feature-guides/the-NAM-traffic-simulator/

[Kel9509 1,363]

7 hours ago, Transshipment Envoy said:

Is there any reverse engineering documentation or information on the traffic simulation in SimCity 4?

The NAM documentation that was linked above distills things down very well.  Some additional details can be found in the older threads from the SC4 Devotion forums if you search for them with a websearch (the old forums are just read-only).  I took those threads and the NAM documentation and  tried to distill down the basics into my Dept of Transportation Building, where you can hover over stats and items to understand how the NAM operates. The documentation in the NAM website doesn't really get into some of the finer details about how the Traffic Simulator actually works - it speaks in generalities instead of precision.  I tried to be precise in my tooltips.  The NAM team was a lot of help in providing that precision, to the extent possible.

If you want to read up on the Traffic Simulator from Z, the NAM documentation is the latest official word on it.  But his threads are helpful too: 

A Guide to the Operation of the Traffic Simulator

Tutorial: Understanding the Traffic Simulator (SC4 Devotion Wiki page - largely written by Z)

NAM Traffic Simulator Development and Theory (last page in a 29 page thread, very insightful)