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I want to help.

Discussion in 'Modding Help Quarter' started by ronrn, Sep 15, 2015.

  1. ronrn

    ronrn Governor

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    For anyone that may be interested:
    I have some extra time.
    I'd like to work on making some XL plazas XXL compatable and/or creating new plazas from scratch. Not looking for credit, I just want more good things for building realistic cities. What you can put between and around the cool buildings and roads can make a huge difference in realism.
    I can use Pak/Unpack and Notepad++ and know some things about using/editing textures. I've experimented with some plaza files already, but with little success.
    All I need ...I think... is a recipe(lack of a better word). The more specific the instructions, the less I'll need to request of someone else's valuable time.
     
    kipate likes this.
  2. Monty

    Monty Governor

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    Hey. Probably the easiest way to get it working is to unpack one of the plaza mods and then raplace the textures with yours. Then it's all a matter of renaming the files and fixing the file paths to work with those new file names. If you want to change the objects and trees, you can use the Layout editor for 3ds max 2012. It makes more easier creating layouts.
     
    kipate likes this.
  3. ronrn

    ronrn Governor

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    I've managed to successfully exchange my own textures with a couple of png files, alter some file names and create additional plazas (cloned class & layout files) to the same data/design folder. I'm afraid I don't have 3ds to replace any dds files.
    No success in changing paths in order to create stand alone plazas.

    My challenge at the moment is trying to edit some existing XL plazas so they wont crash XXL. I copy/pasted a "tag" line from a working XXL plaza, still crashed.
    Copy/pasted some lines that appeared to be missing in the XL layout files: example
    <NormalMapIntensity>0.6999999881</NormalMapIntensity>
    <DetailLodDistanceNearFar>0,0</DetailLodDistanceNearFar>
    still crashed.

    I need a better understanding of how to read and interpret the lines in the class, layout, and other files.
     
  4. ronrn

    ronrn Governor

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    ..........\data\interface\ddstexture\buildings\xxx.dds
    These .dds files are only for the interface icons(thumbnails), correct?
    Can any other file format be used instead?
    Do they affect the actual game display or function of the mod (a plaza for example) in any way?
     
  5. Monty

    Monty Governor

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    Maybe tga files work. I've never tried. But to create dds files you only need nvidia dds plugin for Photoshop or the DDS plugin for Gimp. I'm sure there are other free programs to work or convert files to dds format. And yeah, they are only used for interface icons.
     
  6. ronrn

    ronrn Governor

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    I have the dds plugin for Gimp and thanks for the verification.
     
  7. ronrn

    ronrn Governor

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    Issue: XL Plaza mods crashing XXL(2015)
    The plazas work well when placed properly between roads, but, with a plaza selected, and the cursor is positioned at any point outside of roads with the "area not enclosed by roads" prompt showing, the game will freeze momentarily and then crash.

    Fix: Edit this line in the .class file of an XL plaza mod. Change ### to a maximum of 40.

    <SurfaceOperation>
    <ExpandWidth>###</ExpandWidth>

    I'm sure not everyone has this issue. Maybe just me.
    There may be other or even better fixes, but this is the only one I could find.
    Attached is a text file showing a list of plaza mods that I've edited and tested with success in eliminating any crashes.
     

    Attached Files:

  8. Mr.X²

    Mr.X² Moderator
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    you can send me nice facade pictures of prague buildings if you want to :D sth like this Texture - European Façades | XLNation - Cities XXL just from prague

    PS: sorry cant help you with plazas cause i never did one :(
    maybe @skullz613 has an idea
     
  9. nicko2u

    nicko2u Governor

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    yep I think that is only fix as far as i know, expandWidth seems to work on high end PC but crashes on lower end.
    so best to just use max.40 or even 30 or less like you said.
     
    Drazicdesign likes this.
  10. ronrn

    ronrn Governor

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    I'm sure the capabilities of a PC has a lot to do with mod performance. I'm running a fairly strong machine with an Intel i7 core and an older Radeon 6900 card.
     
  11. ronrn

    ronrn Governor

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    Perhaps a couple of resources you may not have tried yet.
    Free textures for 3D modeling, design and game development
    [CG Textures] - Textures for 3D, graphic design and Photoshop!

    I lost all of my resource bookmarks, not to mention all the other things, with a pc crash last month. These I remember.
     

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