Trainz DLS on a roll

There have been times this year when there would be no activity at the Trainz Download Station for weeks on end as Auran's stretched staff was busy elsewhere. When they finally did catch up we would be inundated with thousands of new assets to wade through. Things appear to be getting closer to the good old days when there were new assets nearly every day (except on weekends, of course). There are now about 1300 or so new assets since my last post on this subject, which seems like just the other day. I especially like the NSW RailCity 7200/6200 DMU railcar set. It's beautiful!!!! .. and I like railcars anyway.

Cheers,
Al

Second Extension to Lincolnpin Rail Road

See my article "Lincolnpin Rail Road Extension 2" at my VR Reading Room page and download the route and session. Trainz TRS2006 and Service Pack SP-1 are required.

Cheers,
Al

Another batch of items at the Trainz DLS

As soon as I turned my back the folks at Auran uploaded several hundred more items to the Download Station. Happy hunting, Trainz fans!!

AL

Trainz DLS Update

Since Auran has taken to updating its Download Station in big blocks of items rather than the old way of daily updates, it has become a chore to check for updates and an even bigger chore to scan through the new items when they arrive. That said, how can we complain when the items are still free?

I spotted the latest update today: 1200+ items ranging from 30-inch (760 mm) logging caboose and track and trestle to standard gauge railcars and railbuses and - at last - a US interurban car. There are some big and small steam locos and a kazillion signs, among other things to numerous to mention.

Enjoy.

Al

New at the VR Reading Room

Hot off the virtual press:

Traveling on the Orient Express by John D'Angelo. Learn all about this famous train now available for Trainz. It's all at the VR Reading Room .

Cheers,
Al

BVE and Vista

I spoke too soon. There IS a way to get BVE to work on Vista. Here's the link that provides instructions.

So far I've tried it with BVE 2. It should work for BVE 4 as well.

Cheers,
Al

Open BVE Project

Fans of the popular BVE train simulator have been disappointed by its lack of support for Windows Vista. Moreover, it appears that BVE's creator, Mackoy, has turned his attention to other matters - as one might expect from a young man in his twenties. (Of course, it is also possible that he is working on the next killer version of BVE, but so far we have had no news of anything in the pipeline for quite a while.)

The new Open BVE Project, launched in April 2008, may be the answer to Vista problems and carry some good news as well. The new Open BVE is already available as a demo for Windows (including Vista) and is expected to work on Linux as well. (I'll be trying it once I get my Linux machine.) I didn't see anything about Macs, but Mac fans can get on the OpenBVE forum (at the web site) and make their wishes known.

Open BVE is all new coding - no copyright infringement on Mackoy's work - and recognizes BVE add-ons. So far, only BVE 2 routes are usable with Open BVE. In my limited trial, I had success with the Uchibo route but found some of the scenery objects for the Flushing Line not working. I haven't gone back to examine the list of non-fatal errors associated with the Flushing Line. I am happy to report that the trains I tried ran well and the sounds were all there.

Open BVE will be adding new features as well, including animated objects and external view. The underlying code structure is less restrictive and said to be more efficient than BVE, so route designers will have more flexibility in setting track curves and placing objects.

In short, Open BVE is still in its early stages, holds lots of promise, and is available at the Open BVE home page here.

This is indeed good news for BVE fans and others who have not yet experienced the great sim qualities of BVE and its available add-ons.

Al

Trainz is back on track!

As announced on the Trainz forum by Tony Hilliam:

"We are very pleased to announce that n3vrf41l Publishing (N3V) have licensed two new versions of Trainz to be released world-wide over the next two years. These two releases will continue the evolution of Trainz from a simple piece of fun software to an in-depth and serious simulation. Trainz is a virtual hobby that combines the raw power of railroads with the digital power of computer simulation. As more and more people become connected via computer, the audience for train simulation continues to grow and as the longest running railroad simulation series, Trainz is set to capitalize on this growth.

"These two new releases will deliver many of the enhancements and additions Trainz fans have been asking for and will reaffirm the position of Trainz as the most flexible and extensible rail simulation platform ever created.

"We have elected to make this initial announcement on the Trainz forums to allow our regular community members the opportunity to comment and give their feedback on our plans. A more detailed public announcement will be made later in June to coincide with the launch of the new TS2009 website and forums as well as the new TrainzExchange community portal and the new TrainzDev site which is designed to further support the content creation community.

See here for the full announcement and thread.

The most important part of the announcement for me is the acknowledgment that virtual railroading is a hobby. This sets VR apart from most computer games, which basically come and go. Virtual railroading requires a different mindset on the part of publishers and developers, one that requires a long perspective and all that that entails. This announcement is a most encouraging development for me. Way to go!!!!!

Al

New subway sim coming

There is a new simulator on the way. See World of Subways web site. This is to be a standalone subway simulator. The first route is NY PATH to be released 3rd quarter 2008.

Cheers,
Al