[roeter]

Passenger trains often have destination blinds or boards or whatever, in many shapes and forms, which indicate where the train is going to.
Presently, if you want to have trains showing the correct information, you need as many different .eng or .wag files, and sometimes even .s files, as there are different destinations. Changing these en-route is, ofcourse, not possible.
Now, don't think these are just minor details you can only see when close-up. The former route-codes on the Southern region trains were quite large and could be seen at a fair distance - which was exactly what was intended.

The various suggestions about new texture files, and in particular the suggestion about ace-file information in the .sd-file, as aired in this thread, set me thinking.
What if we could define a line in the .sd file which directs the program to a directory as multiple source for a particular texture? This directory could hold all required destination blind texture-files. Additional definitions in the OR Activity Editor then could set what blind is required for any train, both AI and player. And it could be changed en-route as well, e.g. when the train terminates and reverses.

Doesn't look too difficult to me, all it requires are an additional line in the .sd-file, an additional command in the service or traffic definition (or whatever format the new Activity Editor will use), and a few lines of code loading the required texture from the sub-directory rather than loading the default texture.
The result would be, for instance, that all trains on Southern region simulations are showing the correct route-code. And in many cases it would reduce the required number of different .eng, .wag and .s files.

It's use wouldn't even end there. With further additions to the Activity Editor commands, it could even be possible to select textures for platform indicators in a similar way as blinds for trains.
And using a similar technique, we could perhaps even create real running clocks that show the correct playing time.

Regards,
Rob Roeterdink

[gpz]

I think, when we implement destination indicators eventually, then we should implement it in a way as it is supposed to work in a real simulator. So the indicator should be controlled by a cabcontrol, as in real life. It shouldn't be set by activity creator or route builder, but rather by the driver, through an interface, like in real life.

[roeter]

gpz, on 05 February 2014 - 02:30 AM, said:

I think, when we implement destination indicators eventually, then we should implement it in a way as it is supposed to work in a real simulator. So the indicator should be controlled by a cabcontrol, as in real life. It shouldn't be set by activity creator or route builder, but rather by the driver, through an interface, like in real life.

For AI trains, the activity definition is the "driver".

Regards,
Rob Roeterdink

[gpz]

Ooops, yes, you are right. ;)

[markus_GE]

What about letting the player train be controlled by it´s driver (IE, the player), while AIs are controlled by the files?

Like the idea ;)

Cheers, Markus

[eugenR]

There are more wishes about Destination-indicators like:
Destination-indicators at the end of the train,
Destination-indicators at the side of the cars
Destination-indicator at the platforms on the stations, with departure time from the timetable, controlled by the trains.

What do you think about?

[roeter]

eugenR, on 05 February 2014 - 01:37 PM, said:

There are more wishes about Destination-indicators like:
Destination-indicators at the end of the train,
Destination-indicators at the side of the cars

In principle, these are just .ace files, linked to the relevant engine or wagon.
As long as the full train has a single destination, using same names for the .ace files for both engine and wagons would load the required destination indicator for all cars in the train.
Things do get rather complicated when the train conveys through coaches to other destinations ("kurswagen"), I've not yet considered if and how that could be handled.
Ofcourse, back in the 'good old days' of loco-hauled international services here in Europe (upto the 1980's), some trains had as many different destinations as they had cars.

Quote

Destination-indicator at the platforms on the stations, with departure time from the timetable, controlled by the trains.

That is in principle a similar set-up, with different ace-files per train per station.
For large stations this could lead to quite a bit of ace-files, though (just think of the total number of different destinations at stations like Köln, Frankfurt, Basel or Zürich).

Regards,
Rob Roeterdink