[HSBforMSTS]

I'm genereally excited about Open Rails and very thankfull for it, but I also want to give an important message as feedback to the developers:
Please leave room for individuality. Not every railway is like the other.

In my case: Since years I'm working on a realistic route of the Harz narrow-gauge railways. The last release was in 2018. The project is characterized by a high level of gaming fun, because much value was placed on animations and variety. Compared to the MSTS, Open Rails unfortunately restricts this in some points.

First Example:
In Open Rails sound regions in curves are unreliable.The route-wide sound in curves is a nice solution, but is played from a certain radius. Disadvantage: This value is fix. Narrow-gauge railways generally have smaller radii. So the sound is played constantly. From when a curve is considered tight should be able to be determined individually for each route.

Second Example:
The Open Rails manual says, hazards are supported, but that's exaggerated compared to the MSTS. The MSTS offers the very interesting possibility of displaying any shape in a task-related manner. In one task, a special train goes to the fair. When you reach the destination, there is a big Ferris wheel. It's surprising, because it is only visible during this task/activity. In another activity, there is a forest fire. Fire engines are parked along the railway line then. This and much more was possible in MSTS. Think about temporary construction sites, accidents on level crossings or any other scene. Everything is possible, to make every ride on a route unique. This storytelling makes fun, instead of only getting von A to B again and again. And it's worth the effort to build a route, if the community enjoys it for a long time. Unfortunately Open Rails has not yet offered these MSTS option for individuality shapes. To do this, Open Rails would first have to differentiate between hazards of humans/people and animals (as a side note, in OpenRails deer hazards don't even stick to the terrain anymore on the run).

MSTS differs types of hazard based on a digit in the *.tdb file. And secondly, MSTS can also play out two different shapes per hazard placement. Therefore the second "shape"-entry in the *.haz file is taken into account, if a speed limit is set. Open Rails shows nothing at all. So in MSTS there are no limits to creativity and changing, individual scenes along the track. My wish would be to get Open Rails on an equal footing here. I think adding that shouldn't be difficult?

Third point:
OpenRails claims a high level of realism, but it seems to me that the focus is exclusively on modern freight trains. For example, why can the use of a pickup no longer be fixed. Instead, all supplies fill up instantly. How realistic is that? For all steam locomotives, this is a disadvantage if water has to be taken several times during the journey.

Thanks for reading and thinking about it.

[charland]

As I'm making activities for the ONR I am finding a few things that were never a problem but are now. I'm working on a Timmins Yard activity, simply switching cars in the yard, then delivering them to customers. The yard is flat, I'm not connecting the air on any cars. Sometimes it works fine, other times every time I pick up or set out a car OR is reconnecting all the air hoses by itself and then expects me to sit there for ten minutes pumping up the air... for every movement. I've tried hitting SHIFT+\ and see it says I've disconnected all the air hoses, then SHIFT+/ do dump any air. The works fine until I spot the first car or pick one up, them OR connects all the hoses and thinks I'm going to sit an pump the air. Doing this for hours is getting annoying when it doesn't need to be done at all. This use to work but no longer.

Paul

[vince]

Hi Paul,

I see a problem with this.

Quote

SHIFT+\ and see it says I've disconnected all the air hoses, then SHIFT+/ do dump any air.

The SHIFT+/ initializes brakes! It connects all hoses, pumps up air, not 'dump' air. .

Maybe following the initialize command SHIFT+\ with closing the angle cocks on your engine and then manually pumping up just the engine air ( a minute or two?) and then proceed to shunt?

My method is this:
With a shunt engine I connect to a car/consist and then manually open angle cocks/ release any hand brakes on all connected wagons, not touching my engine air/hoses/angle cocks at all and proceed with shunting.
I understand this to be prototypical operation


regards,
vince

[charland]

Hi Vince,

I had no trouble doing that with the first cut of cars I was switching but now doing the same with the second cut I've had to keep disconnecting the air hoses every time I do anything. I've been stuck in the same spot for the last hour. I had one car at one end of the engine and coupled on to 12 cars at the other end of the engine. Now the engine will not move no matter what I try. I even tried to go back to OR v1.3 so I could read a proper HUD and hope it would give me a clue what to look for but the current activity save from v1.4 is not compatible with v1.3... not really surprised at that but there is nowhere in the manual that says where to get the information you use to be able to get from the F5 HUD.

I have been doing exactly what you suggested Vince. At the start of the activity the engine is light at the roundhouse. In order for it to move, I do have to take a minute or so to pump up the air. Working the first couple of cuts of cars works fine.

This is a long activity, not happy being three hours into the activity and having to start over and over because of brake issues that won't go away.

Paul :-)

[charland]

After deleting the last save I started resumed with an earlier save. Everything was going normally but when I went to throw the ninth switch I was told the switch was locked and I would need to go into Manual.... I was already in MANUAL!

Just deleted Open Rails v1.4 and now back in 1.3. I'll start the activity from scratch for the fourth time tomorrow.

Paul

[Jonatan]

I will agree with Paul that OR making decisions for me is absolutely unacceptible. I too get incredibly mad over having switches thrown or modes changed without my saying so! I've had switches refuse to throw even when a cut of cars are well in the clear beond the track node, even in explore mode where manual is default!!
When in manual mode any switch should be thrown regardless of what ever else is happening. It is the God mode and I demand my will to be undeniable when it's active!

There's a number of things MSTS does better than OR, either because nobody's bothered to implement it or because nobody cares to improve on it. I'd like t see the percipitation FX finalized with snow and rain falling infront of the trains and objects. I'd like to see a multitude of light cones for both player and AI trains. I'd like to see more animations and features to give trains and landscapes even more life and realism, like what HSBforMSTS mentioned with customizable hazards. And I'd like to see a dedicated activity editor outside of resource-hogging 3D space like we had with the MSTS AE.

We, the humble users, have one simple request: fix glaring problems and shortcomings instead of faffing about with how many buttons the options menu should have!



EDIT: Sorry, I get mad because I can't enjoy the sim when things keep going wrong with it.

[R H Steele]

Jonatan, on 18 May 2022 - 12:36 PM, said:

We, the humble users, have one simple request: fix glaring problems and shortcomings instead of faffing about with how many buttons the options menu should have!

Speaking only for myself ...
Please speak for yourself, "We the humble users, I have one simple request...."
Quite a few of the problems with switches in routes previously made for MSTS are more about how the route and interactive are constructed...OR IMO has made an admirable effort at interpolating all the myriad hacks, glitches, and individual skill levels at route construction and track laying....also many of the things you want are about allocation of available resources...precipitation, multiple light cones, etc. These are all in the works, they have been discussed many times...but a volunteer effort takes time.

IMO it is best to proceed methodically according to a structured plan. Making that plan also involves many things the ordinary user ( like you & I ) do not see...it's all accomplished out of sight.

Jonatan, on 18 May 2022 - 12:36 PM, said:

EDIT: Sorry, I get mad because I can't enjoy the sim when things keep going wrong with it.

It's okay, we all get frustrated -- time-to-time --- I don't know what is driving yours right now, but I know you've been around long enough to appreciate the improvements that have been made to OR since 2010-2013...think back...while far from perfect ( whatever that is? ) --- Open Rails is definitely a world class train simulator...and it's free --- with a dedicated, enthusiastic and knowledgeable base of users...no matter how you parse it, that's something to admire.
Okay end of my version of a rant. http://www.elvastower.com/forums/public/style_emoticons/default/rtfm.gif http://www.elvastower.com/forums/public/style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif

[engmod]

>I understand this to be prototypical operation

Hi Vince,

I may have missed it but,

If you are going to shunt without air ( real life ):-

1. dump the air from the brake pipe,
2. release the air from the aux reservoir in each car using the release lever,

shunt away

[Weter]

Those are called "bleed valves" in ORTS and accessible through F9 menu.

[vince]

engmod, on 20 May 2022 - 02:56 PM, said:

>I understand this to be prototypical operation

Hi Vince,

I may have missed it but,

If you are going to shunt without air ( real life ):-

1. dump the air from the brake pipe,
2. release the air from the aux reservoir in each car using the release lever,

shunt away

Yep. . . . . I missed #2

vince