Jumpthefence

Wow, it's been a while since I posted here... ...1 month, 3 weeks, 3 days... ...Sigh...things have been busy. First the Simtropolis upgrade, then I was coincidentally hit with 6 or so projects within a month (2 of which are still a work in progress), and track season started and I'm in two concerts over the course of two weeks, and side projects... etc etc. You know how it is. Replies: DCMetro34: Exams were okay; I ended up averaging exactly 95, and made honor roll, so that's good. The snow's mostly melted by now, but we still have piles in the woods that provide very little traction for running, and our track has two inches of ice on the shady backstretch, so we certainly can't run a quarter mile at once. Strange weather lately. Aaron: Welcoming me back probably isn't the most fitting thing to do, considering I have a lot going on... but I have to admit, it's good to be back. AlexandrosB13: I'm sure there are a lot of ways to make graffiti; I worked a lot with Layers for a recent project, and I bet the tutorial could be improved further using different tools such as Layers. I guess you never stop learning. OMG! Where are your Chinatown models? At the moment, that's kind of stalled. I exported everything, and even began modding just a bit, when I noticed this: The sides of the stairs were showing up in the renders, which I most certainly did not want. I meant to check the Omnibus for an answer, but it was down (and I still can't see it, but that may be just me). It took me a while to find an answer, and it looks like I have to re-export with ground planes. I don't remember having to do this in the past, nor do I want to do this, but if someone could confirm that I need this, it would be appreciated. I'll probably be re-exporting with ground planes (unless there is an alternative) on Saturday. Walk-ups Under Construction: Things are progressing on this front. I have the second building nearly done, and the third's well underway. Which means I might have the exports of two packs overlapping, but that shouldn't be too bad. It just needs roof junk. Other Not-School Project: Things are good, but it's just taking forever. I think I'll ease back on it. Although I have to say, Sketchup can do some pretty cool things. [Link] Irony: The first day of track practice- within the first 25 meters- we jumped a fence to get off the track and onto the trail. I fell on my stomach on the other side. I'm usually better at jumping fences, but at least it was just a 4-foot fence. --- I hope everyone is well; I don't know when I'll be back (hopefully soon). Enjoy the weather if it's nice!

Things look good, nothing stands out too much at this point. For window blinds, I think you'd be best off incorporating them into your glass texture at random intervals. I use a different method, but that's for smallish buildings; it would take forever to add window variations the way I do on a skyscraper like this. Not to mention, your memory and CPU capacity wouldn't be happy with a lot of new window blind geometry. Tip: Using the Gizmo submodifier with the UVW Mapping modifier, it's possible to move your texture where you want, with precision, which could be a useful method depending on your texture application style. It also looks like you need a larger lighting rig, or at least seems that way from the bottom right corner. I'm no expert on the subject (SimHoTToDDy, throw us a rope), but this Omnibus article should help. This lighting rig fix is mentioned about 2/3 down the page. But for now, just worry about the model, as you're still a ways off from exporting. You're doing a fine job, keep it up!

Seven (real) games so far, and I've enjoyed every minute.

Woohoo. I'm back. Exams are finally over (I actually didn't have my band or history exams until January 31st, which was later than expected because of a snow day). If anyone cares, I know I scored an average of 94.6/100, though I haven't seen the score for my geometry exam, which, as you can probably imagine, was a subject easily grasped for me and will probably bring the average above 95. Not bad; I think I could have done better. Anyways, since I haven't posted since January 15th, I have plenty to show y'all. It seems like NYBT has been especially productive in the last few weeks, so I guess I'll join the party. This post needs some Replies: PBGV103: Oh, does it now? Well, I'll be exporting soon. Aaron Graham: Well, "there's no such thing as a perfect BAT, just at some point you stop working and decide to export it because it's pretty darn close to perfect". I forget who said that, I think it was either SimHoTToDDy or Simfox. And they'll be on the STEX once we get the llamas out of the broccoli (again). serebii666: I'd like to think exams went well. GuerrilaWarfare: I'm actually glad you asked; I've been meaning to write a tutorial on that for a while now. It'll appear later on in the post. Chinatown II: Actually, The picture would be too large for this forum, so I'm going to link to it. Every possible level 5 view of the shops. Click the link, look 'em all over, scrutinize everything, and tell me what you think. >2,436,117 pixels, give it a moment to load< Aside from a few minor changes, the only thing I added was nightlights. Observant readers will note that A3 and A6 look very different, and that's because I'm going to try some special nightlighting. If no one has any objections, I'll be exporting tomorrow. Current Project: I decided to return to the walkups under construction, because, well, I only have to do 2/3 the work from here, since one's already done. Here's the next one in the set: As usual, I'm giving you the psychadelic version first, but I've already done a little bit of texturing by this point, and that's the next step. The fully constructed building on the left is 67 Bayard Street, and the building under construction is entirely fictional. Any ideas for what I can add to the construction site to make it look a little bit more... productive? I have a ladder, some plywood and crates, a table saw, what appear to be pressure washers (I'll just pretend they do welding), and there's a water heater being put in place behind the building. I don't know anyone in the construction business, so if anyone does, help would be appreciated. Other Current Project: I'm testing out some concepts with animation in Sketchup. Hence the background picture on the banner, which is part of the scene I plan to use. Hopefully I can expand my horizons with what I've learned with BATing beyond BATing itself. I'll see what becomes of that project. Tutorial: So, GuerrilaWarfare informally requested a tutorial on graffiti application. I've actually been meaning to write something on the subject for a while now, but now I can finally say I have. Because it would take up a boatload of space on the forum itself, I created a Google Doc. >Graffiti Tutorial by Jumpthefence< Give it a moment to load, there are a whole bunch of pictures to guide you along. Note that this probably isn't the best tutorial you'll ever see. It also isn't the best way to make graffiti. But if you're starting from square one, this is the way I do it. Also, I can't emphasize it enough: don't just learn how to make graffiti; learn how to take the techniques presented and apply them for your purposes. Story Time (This is the part you can skip if you want): Snow - A Lot of It! I remember how Massachusetts was one of the last states on the Eastern Seaboard to get a lot of snow (even after Georgia!), but there's no denying that we eventually got a lot over the last month. It's the most I remember seeing since 2008. And just to illustrate my point, I'll show you a picture taken from the bottom of my driveway. PURPLE: Today was the first day in a while where it's been both above freezing and the sun has been shining. Needless to say, there's been a lot of snowmelt. GREEN: Anyone who doesn't own a roof rake will have some problems with leaking, insulation and frozen gutters. We borrowed one this morning, and the roof it's like night and day. BLUE: This is the highest point on our lawn; it's a 6 foot snowpile. Thanks to you, snowplows, now it takes two people to get the snow somewhere on the pile where it won't just roll down. RED: This is a 10 foot retaining wall. Somewhere. YELLOW: This is actually a garden with a couple of bushes, but it's also where we pile about a third of the snow from our driveway. It's collapsed at least twice, and will probably again. ORANGE: The driveway has been caked with ice for weeks. Don't be fooled. And that's not even the worst of it; we've had 5 snow days so far, some schools have had 7. Meanwhile in Boston, they want to dump all their snow in the Charles River. Townhouse Oddity: It must have been last Tuesday (I think I was simultaneously watching Glee) that I was reading the month's Wired magazine. I got to this article about members-only bars that are hidden behind very unassuming entrances and I thought "well, that's interesting". And what do you know, there was this place called "Milk and Honey", a bar in Manhattan. But what was funny is that it's at 134 Eldridge Street, which, I swear, is a complete coincidence that it's one of the buildings I've BATed. Now, I do a bit of research for every building I make, but I've never even heard of this! I laughed for a couple minutes. Wonder if I could get in because I BATed their building... Probably not. The article's on Wired's website right here. In Conclusion... Okay, I'm going to wrap things up, since I'm sure all the Americans reading are also gearing up for the Super Bowl. I know I am. I hope everyone can spend tonight with friends and family. And to those of you tuning in, enjoy the game.

I can't think of anything witty/exciting to open this post with. I cleaned my desk and there's 17 inches of snow outside my window. Replies: Paul: I'm shooting for something looking somewhat neglected, but I can't figure out how excessive graffiti is in cities. Rural Massachusetts isn't the best baseline to go by, but where there is graffiti, there's a lot of it. So maybe I'll try what you suggested and omit graffiti from 68 Bayard. Also, everything below the ground plane will be fine once I reset the LODs and modify them; it shouldn't be a problem. Aaron: Got it! gutterclub: I have conflicted feelings about graffiti artists. It doesn't seem like the safest or most appreciated form of art, but there's got to be some reason behind it I simply don't get. I can't say I've heard of Banksy, but he makes some of the better graffiti I've seen. 80 Bayard Street: I think this is basically done; at least, I can't think of anything it needs. I might play with the air conditioners, windows or various textures, but that'll be if I have the time and nothing better to do. Speaking of having time, I won't for the next two weeks or so. Mid-year exams are coming up, from January 25th-28th. I don't know what to expect (first exams of freshmen year) so I've been studying like crazy the last few days, and won't let up until the end of the month. So don't expect any BAT-related progress. Fingers crossed, good luck to everyone else who has exams coming up.

Bon Année mes amis! Hopefully, everyone had a good New Year's; I spent the majority of the day watching the Twilight Zone and BATing (which is exactly what I wanted to do) so it's all good. Oh, I also took a nap. Replies: Todd: Ah, you like? 80 Bayard Street will look good when I'm though with it. And the tree, that's just one of the things I do to amuse myself while BATing. If I were to export in HD, a lot of people would be confused why "Drew Is Awesome!" is written into the graffiti over and over. Brandon: No more psychedelic colors for you! Instead, you get these depressing textures of grime and filth! ...which probably make Todd, Glenni and Sam Johnson smile... Jason: Well, your post was tl;dr () and I didn't get through it all, but thanks! 68 Bayard Street: I'm still thinking about what to do in terms of graffiti, but everything's essentially done. I still have to remove that temporary pink test plane front the storefront area, but that's easy. Any ideas are welcome. All I have to do now are textures for 80 Bayard Street as well as I few small changes with 68 and 61. After that I have no sure clue what I'll do. Here are my ideas: -Finish the walkups-under-construction that I started a few months back -Try some Industrial Revolution buildings; I've thought about the ones from Gustave Dore's "Over London" but that idea's just floating around. -Make some brownstones, though that'll be a change of pace if I have to make $$ buildings, and they may be awkward to do as a $ building. -Find another neighborhood to pick townhouses out of, even though I've just about exhausted that resource. The Lower East Side is about the only place where tenements were built on a grand scale and haven't been demolished (as far as I've seen). Here's to another year of productive BATing! Cheers!

Here's to a happy, healthy and safe year. Happy New Years everyone!

I hope everyone's enjoying their holiday; I'm in Pennsylvania right now, posting using some pictures I put on a thumb drive hastily on December 24th, aka "My Christmas this year". It's been pretty laid back, I got to visit some family in New York (although, not New York City), and I'll be visiting some more family later this week in Virginia. Tell Paul (PBGV103) to steer clear of Fairfax County for the rest of the week. I'll be back to regular work and posting shortly before New Years. Reply: T Wrecks: First off, I'm glad to see you won a Trixie for your behind-the-scenes support; I wouldn't be who I am today if it wasn't for you and Todd back in Februrary. Second, that's a good way of putting reclaiming progress in perspective; "annoying" is a good word for it. And I'm glad you like the building. Picture: There it is, the back of 68 Bayard Street. I'm sorry I'm still on the psychadelic coloring stage; texturing can't come soon enough, but I just have to do roof junk. There's not really much for you to comment on, but either way I want to include a picture. Merry Christmas everyone. On a partially related note, I see I've won a Trixie...? It's good to see NYBT is getting recognized, I think we've really been striving for success this last year. And I wouldn't have been able to contribute as much as I have if it weren't for... -Todd (SimHoTToDDy) for all the help he provided, especially last Februrary, as well as a long list of others: (Jasoncw, T Wrecks, Paul, Brandon, Aaron, et cetera et cetera). I also have you to thank for keeping me interested and productive when it comes to BATing. And also for keeping me focused. -Alternative rock, for keeping me moderately unfocused through it all. Ezra Koenig for President! < It's a Major Award. I won it! Damn, hell, you say won it? Yeah, mind power, Swede; mind power. Have a happy, healthy, and safe holiday season and New Year's everyone!

Originally posted by: DCMetro34 Time for an update on Greenbelt! ... Any comments from the peanut gallery so far? DCquote> Hey, that model's not half bad! Nope, it's all bad! He ha ho ho ho! But seriously, it's coming along well. Here're my suggestions: 1) The wooden poles' color seems to be off. I always imagined something like that would be pretty near grey from weathering (unless it's painted or stained). And even if the wood were new, I don't think it would be that close to brown (I've only seen mahogany or cedar of that color, and even then it was probably stained pinewood because wood isn't cheap these days!). Also, I can't tell if you're using a texture or solid color. A little contrast might not hurt. 2) The light bulbs look a bit bright for my taste. But that's kind of "meh, I could go either way". 3) The roof texture has a tiling issue, which jumped out at me but may or may not be a major issue. The easy fix I might use is to rotate the uvw map to some odd angle with the gizmo submodifier so the tiling never appears more than twice if done well. But it's probably perferred that you make a larger, better texture altogether. Again, not necessarily a major issue. P.S. Is this intended to be $$ item? Or a kind of fit-anywhere item? Keep up the good work! I'd like to see were you go with this and the nightlighting and all.

So today I'm just going to do a quickie post to fill the gap between the 6:00 news and USA network at 9:00. Replies: Paul: The snow's been creeping in over the last few days, and there are a bunch of puddles that froze over on my way home from school (I should be more careful about that). As for quality control, I believe deadlines create the urgency that gets things done, so long as quality doesn't suffer. That's my basic ideology, though I don't strictly follow it. Also, good luck with that car of yours. Salt is probably bad for it. Just a guess. Aaron: The colors aren't usually too much of a bother, I don't mess with the default gmax colors, and I don't know why. Glad to hear you like everything. Brandon: Meh, overshooting a deadline here doesn't have major consequences (and I don't regret anything considering I lost a few weeks of work). I'm kind of guessing with the parapet walls based on the shadows from Google Maps and Bing Maps, they might be lower or higher. My train of thought is "would a penny-pinching building owner worry much about a parapet's height for safety reasons?" To some extent, but it's still a guess. Also, it'll be a 1x2 with a good bit of overhang into the street. Picture Time! I managed to patch up my differences with 68 Bayard Street. I reclaimed all the progress surprisingly painlessly on Tuesday and Wednesday night (two nights-not bad!). I don't like to flip-flop, but I'm going to stick with this one hopefully until it's finished. There are obviously a few small geometry changes/inaccuracies that were not intended, but aren't going to be a huge problem. The original picture is only 9 posts up, take a look. There's not much to say, it was basically reclaiming lost work this week. Fun. I'll do a little bit more geometry this weekend, and hopefully I'll get to texturing. Until then, everyone have their snow shovels at the ready. Well, except for Sgt Pepper.

This may help if you forgot/had a problem saving. Try opening the BAT (or gmax) like you normally do to BAT. Click File>Open In the pop-up window, navigate to C Drive(or wherever your gmax files are)>gmax>autoback>Autobak1.gx Select the file to open it, and it should be a more recent version than your last save. If this doesn't help, check Autobak2.gx and Autobak3.gx *Note that to see the autobak files once you navigate to the folder, you have to choose "All Files" under file type, or else gmax will think you want to open a .gmax file instead of a .gx. **This may not work based on your specific autosave preferences. I also don't understand how autosaving works, so I honestly wouldn't get your hopes up. ***This may not work a Mac. I have a PC, so I can't be sure. Otherwise, I can't wait to see this thing further down the road. It's got a lot of potential for wall ornaments, base level stuff and lotting. Good work so far!

Here's another one I just found for you: those yellow and black guardrail covers are wrong. Their stripes are supposed to point downwards towards the road, so drivers at night can tell where the road is. Like this: The one on the right implies the road is to the right of the tunnel... This doesn't look like a well-engineered road...

Originally posted by: DocRorlach Thanks, un1, but I cannot get to that link since I am (due to my own volition) no longer a member of the vaunted halls of SC4D. Maybe someone could port something similar to the Omnbus?quote> If you want to change a lot's icon, just make a 176x44 image and use the LE Prop, that's what I do. It's the most user friendly way to do it, although you can use the iLive Reader as well (and there might be a third program, but I don't know it off the top of my head). Here's a link to the LE Prop on the STEX, and there's a helpful article here. It's a lot more time-intensive than default LE icons, but these look a lot nicer. Hope that helps!

"Hopefully my hectic holiday season will be anything but." Nevermind, it was exactly that. Very hectic. I was able to squeeze in BATing yesterday and today between a high school band concert, and a friend's party this afternoon. And at the same time, I watched Raiders of the Lost Ark. Luckily, I'm getting to the point of the learning curve where I may not be learning as many new skills, but I can do stuff a heck of a lot faster. Although watching TV and BATing at the same time is a new skill, eh? Reply: Aaron Graham: Yeah, 80 Bayard Street is almost a small tenement if you ask me. A little bit different from what I normally do, it'll be odd doing a roof texture that's not relatively square. And you can be sure that I back up all my files often after the incident with 68 Bayard. Don't need a repeat of that. Picture: So obviously, this is the progress on 80 Bayard Street. The roof is kind of a jumbled mess, but that should look better after texturing. The cornices were a little odd, but they came out pretty well. And I don't know about the rest of you, but I really like that clothesline and the antennae on the roof. Geometry is 99% done as far as I can see. I still have to stock the shelves of the corner building, but that's it. I'll start on texturing either late tonight or tomorrow. It's starting to look unlikely that I'll be done with Chinatown Part 2 by Christmas. I'll still try, I'm a persistent person, but I'm not going to get my hopes up. If the deadline has to be pushed back to January or something, so be it. Other than that, there isn't much I have to say. It snowed late last night here in Massachusetts, and it's still cold. Everyone keep warm. See y'all later.

Well, Todd, it's about time! Your horribly depressing Soviet BAT grime and rust has been disgustingly fantastic! I know what I said. Give yourself a pat on the back, you deserve it. Same goes for you, Chptrk, though probably not for the same reason. You are both very deserving; congratulations!

Well, after two tryptophan-induced comas, I have various good and bad news. GOOD: I made a lot of progress before Wednesday last week, finishing on 68 Bayard with roof junk, back details, and beginning with texturing. GOOD: I was actually able to upload the Bowery Shops by my artificial deadline. And they got surprising good ratings (I was actually more skeptical than happy when it stayed at 5.00 full stars for a full day). BAD: I discovered on Wednesday that the file for 68 Bayard was corrupted, most likely the last time I saved (that's often where gmax files get corrupted). I checked the autobak files, which would have been good in most situations, but since I wasn't happy with some of the Bowery Shop exports, I re-exported earlier that week, and overwrote the autobak files. I went to bed at almost midnight on Tuesday thinking the files were gone forever, after trying everything I could. GOOD: I got back from a Thanksgiving trip Friday and found a solution within a half-hour (thank you, automatic external backup!). BAD: The backup file was at least a week old, so a lot of progress was lost. Was it worth it after about five hours of searching? Maybe not. It was worth trying. GOOD: After getting angry about 68 Bayard, I temporarily gave up on it to work on 80 Bayard. I made some major headway in just a few hours. 68 Bayard will be finished soon, but at the moment it's a few weeks behind schedule. GOOD: There was a lot of turkey at Thanksgiving. BETTER: There was a lot of stuffing. BEST: There was a lot of mashed potatoes. Mmm... BAD: If you're going to work off the meal by going for a run, consult with a coach before deciding to go 8.1 miles. And if you plan to stop a friend's house 5 miles down the trail, don't forget his house number at the 4 mile mark. Replies: Sgt Pepper: Yep, one thing we're not lacking in is BATs! As for the wall texture, that's a good question. It's a brick texture, but it's so flat you can barely tell. Google Street View looks like a flat color, but I eventually found a picture to prove that it is, in fact, brick. Aaron Graham: False, my BATing is [currently] not the best. But I'm working towards that general goal. Pictures: 80 Bayard Street It's the first left-facing corner building I've made since the first Chinatown pack from 2009, so I need more of those. As for completion, it's going at a steady pace. The facade is a colorful, jumbled mess as always, but that'll look pretty nice when it's done. The building to the right is a souvenir store, so I have my work cut out for me making sunglass racks, etc. 68 Bayard Street Obviously, there's no positive progress on this one, but at least I know what to do exactly. Considering I've already done it. And I also have a couple textures finished, so progress on this one should go more quickly than other townhouses the first time around. I have plenty to work on, but I'm pretty tired right now. I'll see how busy this week will be, and then I'll work my plans out. Hopefully my hectic holiday season will be anything but. So, bye for now.

I think I left those BATs to stew for a while. Nonetheless, I'm back. For those of you who care about my cross country antics, I finished 10th out of 110 people at a local race. And it was the day before Halloween. And I got to wear a costume. Only in my crazy little town do people get to do that. But you're not here for that news! You're here for replies! T Wrecks: I have to say, little details are my favorite part when BATing. They may not always be easy or convenient, but looking back, I'm always happy with where I added them. As for the flat planes? If I understood you correctly... I add those only during the building process, just to help me judge how subterranean elements will look. I used a similar plane on 68 Bayard Street (as you'll soon see), but by the time I export, it'll be gone. madhatter106: Well, I'm glad you like them! To be honest, I always look at the buildings you've made before I build the annexes on some townhouses. They're often textbook examples of high-quality small CS$ businesses. Aaron Graham: It's all a matter of opinion. A little practice and experimentation is all it takes. lucky7: Hmm... "perfect" and "decay" together in a sentence. Not something you see every day... WillG_75: Well, I'm glad to hear you like the textures! And you also want to see some pictures! I think 61 Bayard Street is done at this point. I may try some things with the cars or the windows (curtains? more variations with blinds?) , but only small things. As for the bulk of my work over the past few weeks, the result is 68 Bayard Street: I think this is the tallest pair of townhouses I've ever made, so that'll be interesting. Speaking of interesting, how 'bout that right fire escape? It actually looks really inefficient and confusing. I wouldn't want to live on the top floor... Anyways, I still have my work cut out for me. More updates in the coming days. Here's the schedule I'm going to try and stick with (naturally, it's centered around holidays): -NYBT Bowery Shops uploaded by Thanksgiving -NYBT Chinatown Shops 2 uploaded by Christmas -I also have plans for something else before New Years, but I'll see how everything pans out. This should be pretty manageable. We got our first snow last night, so it's going to be a long winter with a lot of boring snow days. Plenty of time to BAT! This update is already long enough, so I'll let everyone get back to their lives. Have a good week!

I suppose this site deserves a mention. A Journey through Chinatown Granted, it's mostly Lower Manhattan storefront, which some people (like myself) will find useful, and some (such as skyscraper or mod designers) will not. It's surprising how often vans parked on the side of the road block my view in Google Street View, so this is a welcome alternative. If you like looking at storefronts, that's fine too.

Well, I hope everyone had an exciting week. Reply: Aaron: Well, I'm glad you like how it's coming out. And here's how I textured them up: I actually didn't finish the roof, another week will probably go by before I get that done. Anyways: What you see is what you get. At this point everything is essentially done in terms of geometry. As for texturing, that will be in the next update, and I'll be working on details in the coming days. Windows need variation, graffiti will get messed with, air conditioners will be installed, nightlights will be lit, and roof textures will be textured. In other news, I was looking at the old NYBT Thread where I got my start, and I've come a helluva long way since February. I'm also starting to wonder if it's a crime against American standards to imply that people actually work in the increasingly depressing buildings I'm making. I hope not. I think I'll be exporting my Bowery Shops on Monday (if I'm lucky). I have some free time then. Although, don't expect them on the STEX soon. I'm the kind of guy that enjoys the journey and forgets the destination. I'm done for today. Bye.

Hey, it's been a while, hasn't it? -For one, I was sick for at least 7 days total since my last reply. It turns out that if you want to beat Turners Fall's team, it helps to run 6 miles in the rain. Although I can't say it helps the immune system. Neither does running the track after soaking your shoes in puddles during the warm-up. But I'll survive. -I'm in a kind of awkward stage between being done with one pack o' townhouses and gearing up for the next. -Life's been busy. Replies: Todd: Well, it's the details that make a good BAT a great BAT. I'll take your advice on Old Glory, because it's a pretty simple switch to decrease saturation. As for the graffiti, the LE-tacked-on thing probably stems from my reasoning. I'd imagine graffiti artists can only reach to x height, and with everyone wanting their own area to be creative, they'll go up from the ground up in random places, eventually filling in the wall. I can make the top of the graffiti plane a jagged line (so long as it doesn't cut off the graffiti in the middle), or I can fill graffiti all the way to x. I switched the latter to the former on 140, it looks more natural. That is, assuming the graffiti artists wouldn't fill a wall to x. As for the white static, it has to do with the use of white spray paint when I'm using a white background for transparency guides. That problem's been fixed. As for the part about alphas, I don't really know what you're talking about, nor do I know where I mentioned that. I'll have to go look them up. Jon: That would certainly be easier, but I wouldn't be a BATer if I always took the path of least resistance. The way I see it, NYC has plenty of townhouses, and I won't be running out anytime soon. It would also be a little degrading to the original if there was a repainted copy, wouldn't it? Time for pictures! I'm just being obsessive about the details here, there's only small changes at this point. I changed graffiti and the saturation on the American flag, added a flag to 134, and played with the lighting in the empty lot behind 129. Here's what I've been working on in sporadic sessions: This is 61 Bayard Street, right next door to the third townhouse I ever made. Obviously, it needs to be textured. The only things that have been textured so far are those not-so-shiny new cars and the flag. On the other hand, the geometry is nearly done. I just need to work on the roof and maybe a bit more in the back. There's still a lot to be done in coming weeks, so this is more of a teaser than anything you can really comment on. Happy Columbus Day in America! Happy October 11th to everyone else! Everyone have a great day back at school/work tomorrow.

Congratulations you two!

Well, cross country was okay. I'm tired. Westfield is pretty good. I improved by a minute on my 5k. Did I mention I was tired? Who wants a reply? Here ya go: Replies: Aaron: Yeah, things are coming along pretty well. And yeah, I remember my first BAT. Not a disaster, but as you can tell, I've come a LONG way since then. Paul: I don't think I've ever been called that... nor do I know what emotion to feel right now. But I've glad you like the models! Todd: Your grammar I don't quite understand. Confusing and shifted it is. You for your compliments and help I thank. I'm going to link to today's image, because it includes every possible level 5 view of the shops. Click the link, look 'em all over, scrutinize everything, and tell me what you think. >2,436,117 pixels, give it a moment to load< So here's all that's new (if I can remember it all): new air conditioners on 129 Eldridge, window variations and nightlighting on 134 and 140, erosion/discoloration on 129's left building, lots of graffiti, nightlighting changes on the facade of 129, a record store (there's no real reason I did this, it just looks busier) to fill in the lower back wall of 140, changes to the ad on the left side of 140, and anything else I may be forgetting. Otherwise, just some final touching-up before I export. That's all for today, exporting will hopefully begin soon. PS. I think I'll do some more Chinatown townhouses for the upcoming set, but I'm just hatching the idea now. More on the topic to come.