XSec files

[Carinthia]

I have permission to adapt a set of custom track definition files to work with a different route - from the discontinued "NorthWalesCoast" to the current "NWC-CreweCaergybi".

Unfortunately the chap who created the files is no longer in this world, so I can't ask him how to configure them. The format seems to be as follows in this example:
track01_wood_jointed.bin
track01_wood_jointed.XSec
track01cap_wood_jointed.XSec
I have copied these to the new (current) route and disabled them in the old one.

The BIN file references several other files in the route's AP file (with the same file names), and it is a simple matter to change the paths to the new route using Serz. Once done, the track becomes selectable in the editor and can be laid but displays invisibly. I must have missed something somewhere but am currently flummoxed.

The XSec files are compiled and I cannot decompile them to see their contents. But I am wondering if a path might be hardcoded there? If so, is there a way to redefine this? Or have I missed copying something critical across?

Thanks in advance for any pointers,

John

[AndiS]

I believe I converted them using serz.exe. Maybe I chanced the extension to .bin to do so.

At any rate, there was an XML file that basically contained a chain of vertices with 2 dimensions plus texture coordinates. It is the profile of the loft.

I cannot try it out myself now. But I did change the figures in the coordinates a bit and it worked (after serzing it back, of course).

Maybe RWTools open the XSec files, maybe only after changing the extension? You may prefer that over starting serz.exe, then Notepad++, then serz.exe again.

Maybe start with something in the Vegetation department or a wall where you are sure it is just a rectangle (or a U upside down).

For the tracks, I am sure the origin is at the level of the rail tops, in the centre line of the track. And these 0.36 m which the train is above ground must be defined in the track's .bin file.

[Carinthia]

I believe I converted them using serz.exe. Maybe I chanced the extension to .bin to do so.

At any rate, there was an XML file that basically contained a chain of vertices with 2 dimensions plus texture coordinates. It is the profile of the loft.

I cannot try it out myself now. But I did change the figures in the coordinates a bit and it worked (after serzing it back, of course).

Maybe RWTools open the XSec files, maybe only after changing the extension? You may prefer that over starting serz.exe, then Notepad++, then serz.exe again.

Maybe start with something in the Vegetation department or a wall where you are sure it is just a rectangle (or a U upside down).

For the tracks, I am sure the origin is at the level of the rail tops, in the centre line of the track. And these 0.36 m which the train is above ground must be defined in the track's .bin file.

Thanks, Andi, I will try that. Some good ideas there.

Best regards,

John

[SteveP_trains]

Hi
Just to say that the XSEC files can be opened using TSTools (select the file and right click and chose Open With..... is the easiest option) but there are no folder paths within the file to worry about.
So you should only need to edit the BIN file for it to work.

Check that you have the textures folder in place and contains the right textures as well.

I would expect that if you've copied all the correct files/folders over to you new location and then edit the BIN file using TSTools, it should work.

Regards
Steve

[AndiS]

That said, I would not rule out that I edited the .bin file and not the .XSec file, some 10 years ago. I do remember messing with the vertices, but all the rest is in a haze.

The one bit that clearly comes up is that I stopped experimenting when I found the situation at switches too complex for a quick fix. There were those early tracks where you clearly saw where the switch track ends and the normal track starts and I was hoping for a simple fix. 3.41 track distance instead of 3.14 was easy. The switch texture fix was not.

[Carinthia]

That said, I would not rule out that I edited the .bin file and not the .XSec file, some 10 years ago. I do remember messing with the vertices, but all the rest is in a haze.

The one bit that clearly comes up is that I stopped experimenting when I found the situation at switches too complex for a quick fix. There were those early tracks where you clearly saw where the switch track ends and the normal track starts and I was hoping for a simple fix. 3.41 track distance instead of 3.14 was easy. The switch texture fix was not.

Thanks, both. I will look into this more deeply in due course, the project is on the back burner for the moment but will not be forgotten. I will recheck (again!) the BIN file, I certainly can make mistakes.

John

[Carinthia]

I'm afraid I gave up with this project. I have used some alternative track as I don't want it to hold back release of the route. That doesn't bother me in the slightest, but I was hoping to use this track to help a friend convert his route which is dependent on assets from a now discontinued and replaced route from DTG.

I have more recently tried to convert a tunnel lining, and came up against similar problems. In this instance the walls showed up but the ground showed the "texture missing" graphic. Yet there is only one texture in the BIN referred to!

I'm not fond of using TS-Tools as it seems to throw up a lot of errors and seems to break things from time to time. But I tried converting the tunnel's XSec file with Serz by adding .bin to its name and it works. SteveP is absolutely correct to say there is nothing there about paths. I have checked the BINs over and over again and I feel sure everything us as it should be there, too.

So for now both of these remain a mystery to me and I will simply abandon the plans for now and use other scenery assets in their place. If only my friend who created them was still alive.

Thank you both for the help, anyway.

John