Discussion Forums - RR

Is it possible, if a default trainset file and a default consist file where made, that RR could be altered to get what is needed when checking a route. Using Ottodad's method of a seperate sim file for each route means a lot of memory tied up with all the train files in each route.
I delete the train file before checking a new route, and replace from my trainset backup as needed. A lot of work! If RR could replace the missing files the same way it doe's the other files, it would save a lot of work. What would be good if someone discovered a way to ace the individual trainset files
to a main trainset file, from each route.CPTrainman63
Trucker58R@netscape.net
Rick

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RE: RR, OTTODAD, Nov-22-04, 12:55 PM, (1) RE: RR, CPTrainman63R, Nov-22-04, 02:40 PM, (2) RE: RR, CPTrainman63R, Nov-22-04, 02:49 PM, (3) RE: RR, derekmorton, Nov-22-04, 04:27 PM, (4) RE: RR, CPTrainman63R, Nov-22-04, 05:10 PM, (5) RE: RR, MikeSimpson, Nov-22-04, 05:12 PM, (6) RE: RR, CPTrainman63R, Nov-22-04, 05:25 PM, (7) RE: RR, OTTODAD, Nov-22-04, 10:02 PM, (8) RE: RR, Hack, Nov-22-04, 10:32 PM, (9) RE: RR, CPTrainman63R, Nov-22-04, 11:31 PM, (10) RE: RR, MikeSimpson, Nov-23-04, 00:10 AM, (11) RE: RR, fixin2, Nov-23-04, 12:19 PM, (12) RE: RR, Hack, Nov-23-04, 03:36 PM, (13) RE: RR, fixin2, Nov-23-04, 05:57 PM, (14) RE: RR, CPTrainman63R, Nov-24-04, 01:29 PM, (15) RE: RR, MikeSimpson, Nov-24-04, 06:04 PM, (16) RE: RR, CPTrainman63R, Nov-24-04, 06:51 PM, (17) RE: RR, Hack, Nov-25-04, 02:32 AM, (18) RE: RR, MikeSimpson, Nov-25-04, 04:40 PM, (19) RE: RR, CPTrainman63R, Nov-25-04, 05:46 PM, (20) RE: RR, Hack, Nov-25-04, 08:23 PM, (21)

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Hi Rick !Multiple copies of anything on a hard drive do not use Memory, only disk space.A MSTS MINI Route loads into Memory only the Route, it's Activities, Consists and their Rolling Stock in the TRAINS Folders.The smaller the latter the faster a MINI Route loads.O t t o

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>Hi Rick !
>
>Multiple copies of anything on a hard drive do not use
>Memory, only disk space.
>
>A MSTS MINI Route loads into Memory only the Route, it's
>Activities, Consists and their Rolling Stock in the TRAINS
>Folders.
>
>The smaller the latter the faster a MINI Route loads.
>
>O t t o
That was the point of my question. If all the Trainset and con files could be aced to a default trainset and con file, it would do away with a lot of disk use. I have deleted all the trainset files from the routes that I am not useing and recovered one third of my drive space, on a 120G drive.CPTrainman63R
trucker58R@netscape.net
Rick

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Wish this forum had private voice chat rooms, there is so many questions I would like to ask you.CPTrainman63R
trucker58r@netscape.net
RickMy company closed the doors last thur. so I have a lot of time to house clean my sim files!

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Rick,ask away

Derek
EngMod@sgrail.org
www.sgrail.org
EngMod forum
http://www.3dtrains.com/forums/index.php?s=3c21ea4e4882bb70177f35d82c51523b&act=SF&f=59

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OK
The Sim goes from train to consist and trainset when starting a route. Can it be changed to go to a trainset folder and a consist folder outside the sim but on the same drive? The ideas are there but I have no knowledge of how to do it.CPTrainman63R
trucker58r@netscape.net
Rick

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Hi Rick,Yes, anything is possible, but it would be a bit cumbersome running RR each time you wanted to run MSTS, just to copy over your rolling stock. RR can at this time read any selected Activity and give you a list of the rolling stock and consists required.Why not use those to build a .bat file which would copy over the rolling stock to your mini route when you wanted to run it, a similar .bat file could then delete them all when you had finished.Mike

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sounds good but wouldn't it be better if the mini route accessed the default files as if they were in the sim. no one has said yes or no if it is possible to ace a folder to a folder.CPTrainman63R
trucker58r@netscape.net
Rick

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Yes Rick, there are many ways in which KUJU could have organised MSTS better and more efficiently, but what we got is what we are stuck with, software like TRAINSTORE is improving on but seemingly a handful to use for some ! The advantage of having individual TRAINS folders for MINI Routes is that they can be tailored for their particular use, like DIESEL, STEAM, ELECTRIC, PERIOD and COUNTRY specific assortments.O t t o

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LAST EDITED ON Nov-22-04 AT 10:54 PM (EST)

Just a thought - when I was into racing sims, some had resorted to hex-editing the EXE to look at other-than-default folders so as to have different "eras" for the sim. Might work for MSTS too.Update: I created a new EXE that calls ROUTEA, TRAINS/TRAIN00, and TRAINS/CONSISTA. Everything worked like a champ. The only thing needed is to make sure you include a copy of the "DEFAULT" folder from the Trains\Trainset folder into the new folder containing the other rollingstock folders. Cheers!
Marc - 3DTrains
http://www.3dtrains.comPro Series v4.0 SuperPacks

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tell us how you did this. sounds like what i'm looking for. CPTrainman63R
trucker58r@netscape.net
Rick

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Thanks Marc,Now they will all be distributing a hacked .exe with their routes Reminds me of solving Zork by decompiling the binary. (A long time ago, in a Galaxy far far away.)Mike

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>
>I created a new EXE that calls ROUTEA, TRAINS/TRAIN00, and TRAINS/CONSISTA.
>What are we talking here, a modified Train.exe or another executable to add to the Train Simulator directory?

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Yes, I copied and modified the train.exe, and created several for the above test: Train_A.exe, Train_B.exe, and Train_C.exe. The original and added folders are:MSTS - (main folder)
- ROUTEA
- ROUTEB
- ROUTEC
- ROUTES (original)
- TRAINS
-------- CONSISTA
-------- CONSISTB
-------- CONSISTC
-------- CONSISTS (original)
-------- TRAINS01
-------- TRAINS02
-------- TRAINS03
-------- TRAINSET (original)TRAIN_A.exe controls ROUTEA, TRAINS\CONSISTA and TRAINS\TRAINS01.
TRAIN_B.exe controls ROUTEB, TRAINS\CONSISTB and TRAINS\TRAINS02.
TRAIN_C.exe controls ROUTEC, TRAINS\CONSISTC and TRAINS\TRAINS03.All other folders (Global, Sound, etc.) need not be changed. This would only muddy the waters. Using the above scheme, and in order to be somewhat organized and readable, this gives you 35 additional route and consist folders (A through Z, and 0 through 9), and literally thousands of possible combinations of trainset folders (00 through 99, plus alpha-numeric combinations thrown in for grins and giggles).I suppose there are a number of ways to do this, and no doubt if I tinkered a bit I could come up with a more steamlined approach. The above, however, should be viewed as an illustration of what's possible. If you don't know your way around hex-editing, stay out.IIRC, in the EXE there are two route paths (routes\%s), one trainset path (trainset\%s) and one consist path (consist\%s). Make sure if editing that you don't alter the length of the path statement (ie: routes should become routeA\%s or route1\%s, etc.).Cheers!
Marc - 3DTrains
http://www.3dtrains.comPro Series v4.0 SuperPacks

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Thanks for the explanation. Cool. Good find. While you are wondering around in train.exe there are a couple of things....

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If Windows can access the files in the Common folder from other programs or folders in other programs, how does it do it, and what is the path.
Can it not do the same thing with the Mini Sims. If so folders like GUI,Global, and Sound, as well as Utilities like new roads, x-tracks and others as well as the consist and trainset, could be done the same way. Windows does it, why not the Sim. The Trainset common file could be set up as American, Narrow guage and so on. Has anyone any Ideas.CPTrainman63R
trucker58r@netscape.net
Rick

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Hi Rick,Windows, and DOS for that matter use Environmental variables and Paths in the old Autoexec.bat and Config.sys files - These pointed to places the operating system was to look for things which were not in their expected position, the operating system was programmed accordingly.MSTS is hard coded to look in Train Simulator\Trainset or Global or Routes or whatever for the various items, Kuju in their wisdom probably never envisaged users with 30 copies of MSTS on the one PC, or people having 5000 consists etc.Marc's ideas above however do allow for some flexibility as having multiple Train_X.exe files would allow you to have multiple trainset,consist and route folders in the one installation of MSTS. (Note that Route-Riter would not check them at this time though).Mike

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Mike
For some reason you keep missing the point! Multiple trainsets and so on are what we are trying to get rid of. CPTrainman63R
trucker58r@netscape.net
Rick

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I believe the point is to keep things nice and tidy (for whatever reason), and to avoid the pitfalls of reaching critical mass with consists, trainsets, and routes. I'm now using a version of the above just to test locomotive sets over a small test route (modified default training route), without having to use TrainStore or cut/copy/paste methods.Cheers!
Marc - 3DTrains
http://www.3dtrains.comPro Series v4.0 SuperPacks

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Hi Rick,No, I think I understand where you are coming from, my understanding is that you want to set up a single master trainset folder and consists folder (Outside of MSTS). Then when you want to run a particular route, the trains/consists required by that route are copied to the Trains\Trainset and Trains\Consists folder of your MSTS setup?However as this is similar to what TrainStore does(in a slightly different way), I can not see the requirement for another utility?
Mike

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Your getting close, the trainset and consist file would REPLACE
the trainset and consist file in the Mini Sim, and would be accessed the same way those files are now, but be outside the Mini Sim. One default trainset and one default consist file, read by all the Mini Sims. It may not be possible, but if someone could figure how, think how other files in the Sim could reduced as to how much drive space they took. Back to the same question I have been asking, can a folder be ACE'd to another folder.CPTrainman63R
trucker58r@netscape.net
Rick

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>can a folder be ACE'd to another folder.Did you mean "aliased?" Then no - only files.Cheers!
Marc - 3DTrains
http://www.3dtrains.comPro Series v4.0 SuperPacks

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