Thanks SLO blokes, I really appreciate it ALL.
Jumper, the "big" jump in the top picture really can't be changed, and the first lap in your replay shows how it should be ideally done - the back wheels of the truck clipping the very edge of the bottom road during landing. As such, people travelling that bottom road would do well to avoid riding the edge. Not going off the big jump with sufficient speed may cause a bit of mayhem on the way down, but that is essentially by design, as well as a bit of a compromise.
Now as for the landing seen in the bottom picture, there is room to raise the jump there a bit and I'll see if I can do that in order to provide just a tiny bit more height, though, again, that particular three way junction was dangerous by design, as was the whole track, and I certainly respect your preferences.
That said...
> "If there are instances where the bi-directional roads cause collisions...so be it!"
Aye. I've run many hundreds of laps, crashed, been smashed, and have gotten "pinched" in that way that makes you really fly - and through that I've learned to place barriers in appropriate spots as much as possible, so that Army Armstrong won't be inclined to make some comment like "Elvis has left the building!" on your way out, hehe.
Now as for your instant replay, thanks for uploading that - I watched the first lap and was stunned, you ran THE ideal line as I have seen it, but I've never been able to run it so clean! (this could explain why I've never been to the Zone, hehe) I can also tell you like the non-collide CPs too.
Replay - so THATS what a racer looks like on the track. <img src=http://rhinoseros.com/~forum/pages/smilies/eek.gif>
> "Buildings, bridges & fences are so accurate I’m speechless."
Since I'm feeling so 'verbose', hehe -Traxx lets you rotate models on all 'axes' in one degree increments, TrackEd3 in hundredths of a degree increments. Traxx lets you raise and lower models in one tenth of a foot increments, TrackEd3 in hundredths of a foot - and even lets you align with raw numbers for perfect horizontal alignments. Additionally, you can work with models at four times the height that Traxx will allow. All TrackEd3 movements are keyboard driven (with a slo-mo key to help) in realtime, Traxx uses the mouse for side to side movements and a dialog box for rotations. Additionally , the display in TrackEd3 is "true", not to mention 3D accelerated (it even shows facing models as facing, and the scenery levels in realtime), whereas models stuck into terrain in Traxx won't display correctly where they meet. Don't get me wrong - Traxx is awesome and Guitar Bill a truly masterful programmer, but as models go - TrackEd3 by Gromit has won me over. That said, TrackEd3 is way more than is needed for just planting trees on the side of a road. ;-) It also doesn't do some model related things as well as Traxx, and requires a few workarounds in order to use it for MTM. TrackEd3 also requires 4x4 Evolution be installed (demo or full version).
- Stop the music! I've pretty much decided to use a stock wav soundtrack this time around, I'd wanted to showcase the "new mod technology" with this track (to go right along with the new TrackEd3 process) but have just about decided to wait until a later date, mainly because the music choices I have don't fit the track quite to my liking. Honest truth: I keep the music turned down completely too, playing my own in the background when desired.
- I'll be adding a sign to the confusing intersection.
- Checkpoints stay non-collide.
- Since framerates have been reported as quite acceptable all around I'll probably not make sparse mode quite as lean I first planned, but I will do away with a lot of unnecessary eye candy.
- In the pic Mal posted along with the words "cannot find a single thing out of place", I happened to see floating people, hehe, they were among the first to arrive on site, I think I'm gonna have to nail them back down.
- Gonna look into refining the AI as well.
> "no probs with the heli, either. Guy even offered to drop me off at the lodge, which I thought was dern nice of him "
lol, glad to hear it. As an aside to track makers: all of the buildings are recycled goods, and most of the larger buildings are just an assemblage of individual smaller buildings and other pieces.
A little perspective: back when the track was nothing more than textured terrain, in the thread that has since been deleted, I wrote: "The concept was to build a tight multi-player track, wherein the competition is almost always in view, and where there is plenty of cross traffic to (successfully) navigate, while being big enough to easily handle eight players. I'm quite pleased with the result..."
So, a tight, pretzel-like, wide enough multi-player track, doubling back using tight turns, overlapping and constant close proximity, coupled with a hair raising element of danger was in fact the "gimmick" from the moment of conception.
BTW, I'm running with a P2 450 mhz, 128 ram, and a Rage 128 (32 meg card). My last computer, used during my first couple of years with the game, was a Pentium Pro, with 32 ram and a 4 meg vid card - I learned what an "efficient" track was back then. (back when I used to whine to Enocell all the time) ;-)
The rest of this is for Kdawg and other track makers:
> [TrackEd3] don't understand how to deselect a model after it is placed or how you write the pod for mtm2 ect..
I'm glad you're interested Kdawg, I'd planned to do a writeup about it all and I'll probably do so sooner since you're interested (this isn't it). To do what I did with my track (importing into MTM2) requires a trick you are not in a position to exploit just yet, and I must admit there is a fair bit to know and the learning curve is not instantaneous, familiarity with and the ability to edit .SIT files is also a required skill - but only at a very basic level. The "trick" is in using a utilty that Phineus has developed, it will convert the "boxes" (models) portion of an Evo1 .SIT file into the MTM2 variety, which can then be pasted into the .SIT file produced by Traxx.
Right now the overall procedure looks like this:
- Create most of the track in Traxx and include the BIN models you wish to use.
- Extract the track pod into the TrackEd3 folder and open it (load the SIT).
- Edit your models then save, which then saves the SIT in Evo1 format.
- Load the new SIT in Wordpad, prepare it for Phin's utilty, then save it.
- Convert the SIT with Phin's utility, you then have the "boxes" portion isolated.
- Paste the converted "boxes" section back into your original Traxx-made SIT file.
- Build your POD with a pod utility and mount it in the game.
- Note: along the way there are tricks to snyc the two versions so development can continue on both fronts.
- As you can see, ONLY the "boxes" portion of the Evo1 SIT file is used, and it's placement in your MTM2 track is not through an instant or direct route - but once you know how it's quite easy to do.
As TrackEd3 goes, one thing to know is there are two camera modes, "free" and "object spot", you toggle between them with the "K" key, and you do so quite regularly. In 'object spot' you are always holding the model, if you move the keys it will move, you deselect it by using the mouse to select another, or by switching to free mode. Whatever you click on in free mode is then selected in object spot mode, and that's probably the best way move around. (As an aside, "intuitively" remembering the different camara navigation keys while switching between Traxx, TrackEd3 and MTM2 Gold mode is a challenge!). Just remember context sensitive help is available by pressing F1. Spend time learning all of the camera movement keys and model rotation keys and you'll be a happy customer. Avoid the "X" key, it will delete any selected model faster than you can blink. Hold ALT to slow ALL movement, and SHIFT to speed it up.
Ah, see? Copious Cope and Philosophic Phin got nothing on Wordy Wint. ;-) Anyway, many thanks to all. Phineus especially, without whom this track would not have taken shape as it has.
