Tanks4me05
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Posts posted by Tanks4me05
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I am trying to recreate a piece of undeveloped terrain of a real park to make a new coaster of mine. My normal process in NL1 is as follows:
1: Make a template of the top down view of the build area with supports.
2: Use Google Sketchup to export that slice of terrain as a .3DS file.
3: Import the .3DS skin and drag the terrain to match the contours of the .3DS skin of the terrain, tile by tile.
I have come across two problems when trying to execute Step 3:
First off, the .3DS files are no longer viewed in wire frame mode, which has actually helped me because I could see the terrain below the .3DS file as I was adjusting it. How could I manipulate the .3DS file so that it is partially transparent.
Second, I am coming across a very weird glitch where any modified terrain appears to auto-smooth the farther away I zoom out, but appears at the correct height when I am very close. I tried maxing the LOD switch distance, but that didn't appear to do anything. This makes it incredibly difficult to tell how far I actually dragged the terrain markers.
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^ I don't see how counting ties would vary that much from counting segments really?
I did some testing on "ties variation" between different coasters and found out that the difference in the editor is not significant, it stays at about 1.25 meters or so between the ties no matter what. But you can easily compare it with the spacing of the grid.
So just place a node and then count whatever number of ties you want, place the next one and repeat. Not much harder than that.
You said that you wanted an "approximation" of the distance, and this is the simplest method, which got a lot easier with NL2 since the distance is fixed on the whole length of the ride.
The concept is the same, but at 1.25 meter segments or so, it will by nature take longer than counting 2 meter segments. I was hoping for something less time consuming, but it does work nonetheless, so I guess I'll stick with it.
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^ I was thinking of that between the time I submitted my post and when you suggested it, but I was hoping there would be something less painstaking. Have you figured out the amount of track ties per track segment, or does that vary from coaster to coaster?
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Has anyone figured out how to evenly space support connections? When using Newton in NL1.X, it was pretty easy because each track segment was the same length (default size was 2 meters.) But now that the track segments are at variable length in NL2, has anyone else found another metric to approximate even spacing of supports?
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Lastly... I know they are coming, but I really wanted B&M wing coasters! But I look forward to the update whenever they do come!
Tip: To functionally achieve the same thing, just use the 4D's but don't put in any rotation of the seats.
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^If you are talking about the beveled corners, it appears to work just fine between free nodes.
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Question for either the devs or those who have been astute enough to find where they are: Is there a list for the heartline values of the coasters, particularly the new ones? I still want to build the majority of the track in Newton, and I obviously need the values to properly build them.
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A few questions:
1: Might you be able to bring back the Tracking View in a future update? I found it to be particularly useful when I wanted to view the coaster off ride, but there are a lot of supports, trees, etc. occluding my view.
2: Do you see ZacSpins being added to the lineup some time in the future?
3: I have noticed that you guys seem to feature your Kumba recreation more than any of your pre-made coasters over the years. Is there a reason?
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^As much as I am impressed with the coaster as well as the weather featured in the video, I was kinda hoping that the last coaster would be a surprise that would be kept secret until tomorrow. Still love it, though.
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What I noticed more than the graphics was the massive upgrade in sound quality.... fantastically done.
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Are you considering bobsleds/flying turns or Zacspins/Ball Coasters to be added for future updates?
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Syracuse, NY:
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^^^I like Newton. I prefer to build that way, because I have extremely precise control down to the millisecond, a ten-thousandth of a degree, and less than 0.001 G's. I can whip out a full sized coaster that is fully compliant with ASTM G force regulations within a day or two, so why bother spending the time to learn a system that is less precise?
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Will the heartline height values be listed, particularly for the new coaster types? If not, will you reply to this thread (once NL2 is out) and tell us what those values are, so we don't have to guess when we use programs like Newton?
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A suggestion, if you have a crap ton of time on your hands: When making a POV video, you can mimic the gondola section by making a stop motion (up to 30 FPS even) by modifying the .3DS file of the ski lift so that the gondola shifts position a little each frame, and then the rest can be direct video export.
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Will there be any number of functioning flat rides pre-made or is it just coasters?
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For those who want to really utilize the scripting capabilities and make custom flat rides and whatnot but have pretty much zero java experience (like me) will the tutorial that you are implementing be sufficient to explain what to do? My only real "coding" experience is with MATLAB. If independent study is recommended, what websites or books would you recommend me to read?
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Will I be able to enter in the length and direction of support columns, so I will be able to make a more uniform structure? The current method of eyeballing it annoys me.
Also, with NL1.X, support columns are simple cylinders that are joined by a diametrical line through one of the circular faces, which results in what is seen in the attached image. Has this been fixed where appropriate angled cuts in the pipes would be automatically calculated (like in the prefab supports) or will we still have to result in the "overhang" technique (extending one of the supports in the direction they are pointing so that the connecting support doesn't connect at the flat face of one of the other supports.)
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Just a suggestion to add to the new coaster list for future updates: S&S Free Fly-X Coasters and Intamin ZacSpins/Ball Coasters.
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^If they don't have it already built in, it's definitely possible as a scripted element. If you're not good at scripting, you can just use someone else's when they make it and upload it; I can assure those will be among the first 3rd party scripted elements that will be uploaded.
Will I be able to make bodies of water "above sea level"? In NL 1.X, you could only put lakes positioned at the zero height; i.e. Can you fill in any terrain depression with water, regardless of its height above ground?
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^Yes, but I'm honestly not that interested in that, because that's just a drop and a fish hook. Polercoasters, on the other hand....
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The current max template size IIRC is 440 m x 440 m wide, and 150 m high and the max launch speed was 200 km/hr for NL1.X. What are the max values in NL2?
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Will there be any clearance detection warnings to automatically detect track, train, terrain, support or scenery collisions, or do we still have to stick with the old tunnel test?
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Can the pro version directly export the coasters to CAD file formats?
The Official NoLimits/NL2 Help Thread
in Roller Coaster Games, Models, and Other Randomness
Posted
^Though the assistance is appreciated, it appears that I figured out a way to circumvent all my issues. For those who are interested and wish to adopt my build method, I simply do the same by utilizing Sketchup to extract the terrain and export as a .3DS file, (Google Earth may have inaccurate topographic data, but it's the best one can get for free) then importing into the editor as before, except when dragging the terrain up to fit the contour of the .3DS file from above the terrain, it is done below the terrain, and I stop dragging each marker right when it disappears beyond the black underside of the terrain object.