Railworks 2: Train Simulator

[Retro]

Hello one and all,
Having been pretty critical of the new version of Railworks in my posts up until now.I feel I have to be fair also. I waited to update until last night. I had a trouble free installation, It has not destroyed my Route and the new Interface is pretty good. I am still not sure about the new HUD although it seems to work well with the exception of the confused percentage values with the Class 390. It has little impact on the Framerates which was always a worry for me and some views that where not available before. I have yet to try out the Editors but on the whole I am pretty happy at the moment. Well done to all at RSC. It is obvious a lot of time and effort has gone into producing Railworks 2.
Kind regards James.

[Dougjuk]

My first impression of the new hud was not that good, but I have to say it is quiet usefull at times now I have spent a bit of time using it. I tend to still use the keyboard even with the hud active. There is a lot of information available as well as easy keys access. Anyone found a buttin to changes cabs, was trying them all out last night, I guess its time to look at the manual.

My upgrade went very well with all my payware being available, so far so good.

I think the future is bright

[smarty2]

Yes I must agree, this hud thingy has definitely grown on me, I really like the scrolling doobry firkin thingy! Very informative.

[nelson]

Anyone found a buttin to changes cabs, was trying them all out last night, I guess its time to look at the manual.

They're on the RHS bottom display at the end of the middle row: "Previous/Next Vehicle". If your in-cab it toggles cabs, if your in outside view mode it selects the next wagon/coach.
Regards
Dave

[Traveller54]

Yes I must agree, this hud thingy has definitely grown on me, I really like the scrolling doobry firkin thingy! Very informative.

Does the 'thingy' show the colour aspect of the next signal?

[msey0002]

the 'thingy' doesn't want to go away from me . emailed support yesterday, no reply as of yet..

[transadelaide]

the 'thingy' doesn't want to go away from me . emailed support yesterday, no reply as of yet..

Remove any modified input mappers, restart Steam and verify the local cache, then email support if still nothing happens.

Does the 'thingy' show the colour aspect of the next signal?

No. The idea is you look through the windscreen like a real UK/US driver. Cab signals for countries with rail systems that have moved beyond 1960s standards are not yet modelled.

[Traveller54]

Does the 'thingy' show the colour aspect of the next signal?

No. The idea is you look through the windscreen like a real UK/US driver. Cab signals for countries with rail systems that have moved beyond 1960s standards are not yet modelled.

Thanks for that clarification - thought my eyes had gone!
Interesting though - RW makes the sim into an 'eye candy game' then remove that part to make it more like real life - go figure!!

[msey0002]

the 'thingy' doesn't want to go away from me . emailed support yesterday, no reply as of yet..

Remove any modified input mappers, restart Steam and verify the local cache, then email support if still nothing happens.

Hi mate, thanks very much for the reply . Only problem is, however, that I barely know what an input mapper is, let alone how to modify it and from where to remove it

[USRailFan]

the 'thingy' doesn't want to go away from me . emailed support yesterday, no reply as of yet..

Remove any modified input mappers, restart Steam and verify the local cache, then email support if still nothing happens.

Dave Brindley's stuff (Class 58, Class 86, Class 317, possibly his US stuff as well?) contains modified input mappers that are put in the same location as the defaults - could these be what are causing problems for many people? If so maybe he should upgrade his stuff to put the modified mappers in the DRB_Simstuff assets folder instead (similar to how the WCML Class 86 places its modified mapper file in the keithmross assets dir)?

[Traveller54]

Question: When not in 'full screen' mode the opening screen (FGW HST) opens in a random position on my monitor and I have to drag it to align with the top & centre and then the subsequent screens are OK (btw, this happened with the original version of RW too). Anyone else have this?
If it is a common problem then maybe the coding boys could make it align at start-up?

[alanch]

Question: When not in 'full screen' mode the opening screen (FGW HST) opens in a random position on my monitor and I have to drag it to align with the top & centre and then the subsequent screens are OK (btw, this happened with the original version of RW too). Anyone else have this?
If it is a common problem then maybe the coding boys could make it align at start-up?

This has always happened for me too - one of the little niggles that I've learnt to live with. The code should be there so that the location of the window is retained.

[AndiS]

Does the 'thingy' show the colour aspect of the next signal?

No. The idea is you look through the windscreen like a real UK/US driver. Cab signals for countries with rail systems that have moved beyond 1960s standards are not yet modelled.

Cab signalling is the one open flank of the new HUD (besides customising the look of the handles). This is not surprising since there is no working cab signalling in any cab -- at least not in the default stock.

Once this is implemented (mostly a matter of engine scripting), there will be three options:

1) RSC leave room for cab signalling in the HUD. Since the required area varies between countries, this will call for a more intelligent and dynamic arrangement of display groups, which will be welcome anyway.

2) In cabs with cab signalling, people shun the use of the HUD, since the controls are in the centre anyway. Depends on the prototype, of course, but of many modern European engines, you have the important handles and the cab signalling in the middle under the front window. In this case, it would be cool to have the option to display the information part of the new HUD only. No levers, just the scrolling "route knowledge" display, and maybe some of the bars, since some displays in the 3D cab may be hard to read or a bit outside the view (like brake pipe pressure). Again, customisation would be the key to avoid disappointment by some parts of the community, since engines are just too diverse to find a single solution for all.

3) The camera position is set in such a way that the cab signalling of the 3D cab just peeks out above the upper border of the HUD. Again, possible in some cases, but not in all.

My hopes would be for 1), of course. Given the wide range of screen formats people are using, it would be great if people could just push around these display groups using the mouse, or at least if there was an XML file somewhere to change the placement.

[transadelaide]

Cab signalling is the one open flank of the new HUD (besides customising the look of the handles). This is not surprising since there is no working cab signalling in any cab -- at least not in the default stock.

Once this is implemented (mostly a matter of engine scripting), there will be three options:

1) RSC leave room for cab signalling in the HUD. Since the required area varies between countries, this will call for a more intelligent and dynamic arrangement of display groups, which will be welcome anyway.

2) In cabs with cab signalling, people shun the use of the HUD, since the controls are in the centre anyway. Depends on the prototype, of course, but of many modern European engines, you have the important handles and the cab signalling in the middle under the front window. In this case, it would be cool to have the option to display the information part of the new HUD only. No levers, just the scrolling "route knowledge" display, and maybe some of the bars, since some displays in the 3D cab may be hard to read or a bit outside the view (like brake pipe pressure). Again, customisation would be the key to avoid disappointment by some parts of the community, since engines are just too diverse to find a single solution for all.

3) The camera position is set in such a way that the cab signalling of the 3D cab just peeks out above the upper border of the HUD. Again, possible in some cases, but not in all.

My hopes would be for 1), of course. Given the wide range of screen formats people are using, it would be great if people could just push around these display groups using the mouse, or at least if there was an XML file somewhere to change the placement.

I would back a two-pronged approach combining elements of your 1) and 2) but not 3). There should be a cab signal edition of the HUD (just as there is a steam edition) where everything else on the upper part is contracted a bit to fit it in (especially the reverser, it only needs a forwards/backwards switch because steam is not involved) including any controls required for it. Secondly, incorporating your idea of 2) it should be depicted in the 3D cab exactly the same for those wishing to forgo the HUD, again including buttons needed for controls required. Having it included in the HUD means the cab signalling is available for those wanting to use the HUD and if there is something making it less than optimal to use it in the 3D cab, while having it in the cab allows for people to drive without the HUD.

For me your 3) is right out because it is entirely dependant on the user staying with the exact correct viewing angle (which would then be dictated more by the HUD than the real seating position) and it makes neither the cab or HUD sufficient. This is also a tough one because the position of the driver's head and the realistic viewing angle on screen quite often precludes seeing much of the dashboard. The HUD should be able to work on it's own at all times (barring third-party addons with custom scripted controls) and in good quality payware the 3D cab should be able to work on it's own or in conjunction with the F3 route knowledge substitute.


I think there is a case for the option of used a reduced height HUD that contains just a) the panel with scenario instructions, ETA and clock; b) the narrow panel with current speed and speed limit; and c) the wide route knowledge and coupling panel. This is something that should not be tied to using cab signalling or any other particular features, just the option of having a "situational information only" version of the HUD.

[Irishrailguy]

I just updated a week ago and after starting up for the first time the developer box doesn't show the Class 390 or 221.It shows my class 158 so it has nothing to do with expansion packs. Can anyone help me with this?