TrainPlayer-TrackLayer Readme
Version Beta 3.0b1, Oct 18, 2007
Welcome to TrainPlayer 3!
We started work on version 3.0 over a year ago. There were nine months of distraction while giving birth to the Mac version and the Screen Saver, and on getting back to the job we found most parts needed to be reworked, but we persisted and are now pleased to present the 3.0 Beta in what we hope is almost-ready-to-release condition.
This version is being distributed to licensed users who have volunteered to do some testing and bug reporting. Thank you, we appreciate the help! Instructions for beta testing are below.
New Features
The major new feature in 3.0 is scripting, a way of programming train operation. The goal is to allow you to capture a series of moves, a typical daily schedule, switching puzzle solution, or maybe a complete operating session, as a sort of editable movie. You can play it back, send it to another user, or post it for the TrainPlayer public, so others can learn about your operation or find ways to improve it. Like operating sessions, scripts are fun to plan and develop and watch.
For a complete description of 3.0 scripting and related devices, see:
http://www.trainplayer.com/Features/Scripting/index.html.
Another major feature is an overhaul of the graphics machinery, for better performance, smoother scrolling, and unlimited zoom. If you have the Screen Saver, you've already seen this new machinery in action. Now you can work with it in TrainPlayer and TrackLayer.
Another advance in 3.0 is the improvement of sounds. Chuffing steam engines now sound good at all speeds, there are more engine horns to choose from, and now you can locate sounds around your layout! Hear a bell when you cross the road, or rushing water as you cross the trestle.
For more about these and other new features, see:
Beta Testing
Since you are reading this file, it means you have already downloaded and installed 3.0 Beta. Here's what to do next:
- Report any problems you encountered with the installation, licensing, or documentation.
- Try playing back the Cerro Azul demo script.
- Try the new features documented below.
- Try recording and playing back your own script.
- Run the program through your usual paces, keeping an eye out for any surprises or glitches.
- Send bug reports. We don't have a formal procedure or questionnaire, just send a message with whatever you observed, in enough detail so we can reproduce it.
- Watch your e-mail for news of updates. There are likely to be several in the near future. If you reported a bug and we fixed it, we will ask you to retest it with the update.
- Thanks.
Undocumented Features
The complete user manual for scripting is at the above link. Usage of other new features is documented here.
Sounds
To access new train horns and whistles: in Train Properties, the drop-down menu under Horn now includes Other... This brings up the Loco Sounds dialog, where you see a list of sounds by name. Click on one and you hear a preview. Double-click the one you want to attach to the train.
The names in this list are the names of all .wav files in the new folder TrainPlayer\Sounds\Loco. Add another wav in this folder, and it will show up in the list. If the Loco Sounds dialog is empty, check and see if you have this folder and it contains files.
To add sounds to the layout: create a station where you want the sound to be played, then choose a sound in the Station Properties dialog. The sound will play once when a train enters the station area.
Creating a station is described in the manual or online help. Choose the Station tool, then draw a rectangle which encloses some portion of track. (The way a station works has changed a bit; in 3.0, a train enters a station only when its lead car crosses the rectangular boundary.) To access Station Properties, right-click the station boundary and choose Properties.
The sounds available for stations are files in the Sounds\Layout folder. As with the horns, you can add your own wav files to this folder for use on the layout.
Chuff sounds: if you're curious about how the new chuff sounds work, look in Sounds\Chuff. Each file in that folder is a sound for a different speed. Each filename contains the speed range, in mph. You can experiment with assigning sounds to different ranges by changing the filenames.
Tunnels
To mark the angle of a tunnel portal: normally when a car moves from a visible to a hidden section of track, it is divided into visible and hidden parts by a line perpendicular to its length. If it is entering a tunnel portal not perpendicular to the track, it doesn't look right. To fix this, draw a short section of track at the same angle as the portal, crossing through the junction where visible track meets hidden. Right-click that segment and mark it "tunnel" -- it becomes a light dotted line. This defines the angle, and the image will be clipped to match.
If you mark a section as tunnel and it disappears, make sure either the Edit or Track tool is active, and try View Refresh.
Clipping regions: when a train goes under a narrow overpass, you want just the portion underneath to be hidden. This cannot be done with hidden track. Instead you can use another new 3.0 feature involving tunnel track. It's a bit complicated -- better instructions with diagrams will be available by release time.
To define a clipping region: using four short sections of track, draw a polygon around the area where you want the train to hide. For example, if you have a rectangular bridge sitting over the rail, draw a box around the bridge. Mark all four sections as "tunnel." You now have a light dotted 4-sided box. When the train passes through, the portion inside the box is hidden.
To add visible track on top of a clipping region: Suppose you have a rail going across the bridge. A train on that rail must remain visible, and not clip to the box. To arrange this, create a junction in the top rail, exactly at a point where it crosses any edge of the clip box. When the program sees a track with a junction on top of a clip line, it takes it as a visible track and does not hide cars on it. The same applies to any other track within the box which is "electrically connected" to the visible one.
It is tricky to create a junction at such a spot, because of the possibility that you will accidentally create a four-way switch connecting the visible track with the clip box edge. To avoid this: after creating the box, mark all four tracks as "untouchable," then create the junction.
To see how these shapes look and work, watch the video demo, and wait for the part where the background scenery is removed.
Downloads
To download layouts from the web: connect to the internet, then use the command File > Import from Web. This brings up a layout chooser which works just like the one you are used to, except that it now has visual previews, and in this one when you choose a layout, it downloads and installs it into your Layouts folder automatically, then opens it.
Car Display
To display 3.0-style ID's on selected cars or trains: there is now a popup menu under Train > Show Car IDs. To display the ID on a single car, first select the car (click on it, so it shows an X), then from this popup choose Selected Car. To display IDs on all cars of the same train, choose Selected Train. Or choose All to show ID's on all cars on all trains. All these options are toggles -- use them once to show, again to hide.
Car labelling choices are now stored in the layout file, so if you turn on the display for a particular car, it will remain on even after you close and reopen the layout.
Volunteers Sought
At release time, we intend to distribute several layouts having operation scripts. We are looking for users to help create them. The job description:
- Choose one from the set of layouts we want to make available.
- Work out a reasonable plan of operation involving one or maybe two trains.
- Position the cars as necessary and save this as the starting point.
- Record and debug a script.
- Write the operation plan as comments in the script, so another user could try running it before watching.
- Submit the results, along with a list of the bugs and problems you encountered.
If you're interested and available, write us at the address below.
Contact
web www.trainplayer.com info@trainplayer.com forum groups.yahoo.com/group/TrainPlayer 4200 E. Arcadian Dr., Castro Valley, CA 94546