Commonwealth updates

So I'm really going to not get this deleted this time

So I'll start at update 29 cuz I can't directly send stuff from ST to here, and the previous 2 updates are HUGE. Maybe later.

Small update today compared to the last two. I'm sure you all are wondering what happened to the colony of Washington in West Paradise. it's doing fine. The president just got some pics and I'll show them to you.

The house for Hamilton Washington has been built as well as the park.



Farms are being built and the residential area has gotten bigger...





A makeshift seaport has been put in place....



And the country's second paradite mine has been finished.



This town is small now but big things are headed its way. For now, they just have to get through winter. Yup, they're going to have to put on long sleeve shirts. D: The Commonwealth's winters are very mild, you see. k50 knows what I mean.



Obligatory map...



And a couple of progress pics...

I-2 at Rt 502 (soon to be renumbered Rt 33) This is east of the capital.



I-601 is going as planned...





Look out for the next update. Seeing dfnva comment on made me long for an update like the one I'll soon put up. For those of you not in the know, dfnva had two cjs on fictional cities in Virginia, with roadgeeking galore. He actually inspired me to make my cj. Hope I do him proud!

I like it! Good to see something from you!

Looks fantastic, I especially like the highway stuffz. Glad to see you back!

Nice update and love the of custom content in the second picture.

Welcome back as well.. haven't met before, but glad to see some more faces about the place, and I look forward to seeing more of your CJ.

Welcome back! Your city looks very nice

D: Nice!

Welcome back!

Looks Awesome ^_^ and I guess welcome back, was I registered when you left?

StanislavSoltys: Thanks.
Chip: And here to stay, so stop deleting my thread
Fox: But you comment on my cj at ST, so we technically we have...
Daniel: Thanks!
111222333444: Thank you
YingBlanc: I don't think you were. But thanks nonetheless!

Update time....of course pasting 56 pics here is no fun

so go here

http://www.simtropolis.com/forum/journals/2138/entry-14473-update-30-lexington-to-origin-park/

or here

http://www.simtropolis.com/forum/topic/26957-the-commonwealth-of-paradise-usnw/page__st__390

for update 30. Let me know what you think!

Unfortunately, since I'm using a school computer (which means Simtropolis is not allowed), I can't see those until I go home

I think I already commented (at ST), but I'll comment again because it's SO FREAKING AWESOME!!!

I saw it and it's cool!

I did too, looks great I just wish you'd post them here

Amazing

Daniel: Thanks Glad you liked it
numbers: Thanks
Chip: If it wasn't 56 pics I would
Forth: Thanks.

I'm going to put up a tutorial possibly tonight or tomorrow. I think a certain person will find it useful.

Yay!

Today I'm putting this up for Ale's sake so you better read it.

Mass Transit Map Tutorial

Ever marvel at the subway and rail line maps in CJs and wonder how they’re made? Want to make one yourself? They’re not as hard as you might think.
For starters you’re going to need Inkscape. It’s a free image editing program that you can find on its self named site, inkscape.org.
At this point you have two options: if you know the route of the lines you want to map, you can skip down to where it says “Inkscape time.” However, if you want an accurate map, or have no clue where you laid those tracks, you should do this step.
If you want to map rail lines, which tend to span more than a single tile, you might want to also download Region Census, which will produce a map you can edit. After opening your region in Region Census, you can save its image.
If you are only mapping a single tile, or mapping subway/light rail/el-rail lines, then you should start SC4, as subway lines don’t show up on the region view. Open the tile the lines are in. For this tutorial I’m going to use one of my cities with established light rail/subway/el-rail lines, Paradise City.



Open the traffic data view. At this point I’m making the assumption that you’ve had the latest NAM installed so you should have the traffic volume data view. After switching to the subway volume data view, take a pic of it:



As you can see my lines are being used as much as they could be so they’re pretty dim. That won’t be a problem though.
Inkscape time.
After closing SC4, open up Inkscape, and open the pic file. You might have to enlarge it so it’s a reasonable size. If you do enlarge it, make sure you click the lock button so the pic enlarges proportionally.




Next comes the part where we make the lines. Using the Bezier tool (the tool that looks like a pen, under the pencil tool, which looks like—you guessed it—a pencil), simply trace the rail/subway lines over. Start with one line, and just click where the line curves from diagonal to orthogonal. When you get to the end of a line click at the end and press enter. This will create a almost nonexistent black line:



Now this is the part where you can be creative. After creating the line, click your cursor where it shows the color of the stroke, which should be black as default (in the bottom left corner). A window will pop up.



If you click the third tab, that says Stroke Style, you can customize the line. First, you might actually want to see it, so increase the width by inserting a number or by clicking the up arrow until your desired width appears. Anything above 5 usually works for me, though you’re free to experiment. See what works for you. Now you can customize the line. You can change how the line turns corners, under Join, and whether the line dashes or not; useful for lines under construction, or lines with special functions (part time lines for instance). After you’ve finished that, you can change its color (unless you want all black lines) by a) clicking the Stroke paint tab and choosing a spot on the color wheel (change the basic color by clicking on the outside of the wheel, and click in the triangle to change the lightness of the color, or b) hold SHIFT down and click one of the colors on the bottom of the window.



After you’ve drawn lines to your heart’s content, you should take the time to adjust the lines as they usually tend to come out crooked. Just click on the nodes (the diamond shapes at each corner) and move them until they line up the way you want them to. it’s time to add the stations. They can be added by adding circles or squares in the spots where the stations are on the train lines.



To make it easier, if you get a particularly nice looking circle or square you can make copies by selecting it and pressing CTRL, then D. This will create a duplicate shape directly on top of the first one. Just move the duplicate off and the original will stay where you copied it. If you want rounded squares, draw a square and this should appear:



Just move the circles around for you desired roundness.
At this point you’ll want to move the data view pic, its work is done now. Just click anywhere on it and hit the delete button.
To add names, simply click the text tool (button with the A), and click where you want to type… and type. Change the font and size where, in my pic it says "Segoe UI" and 38



You can also change the size of text by clicking the regular cursor (the arrow) on text and use the arrows to change it that way.
If you want, you can add a legend, with the steps I just taught you, and add special symbols, either by making them, or importing them (click the arrow pointing into the rectangle):



To finish, make sure you export the file by clicking the button next to the import button. This is optional but you can also save your file as a .svg file so you can modify it later.

And there you have the basics on how to make a rail/subway map. I know I missed a bit, but if you have any questions just let me know.

Wait, is Inkscape free?

It is, but the page looks different from when I dl'ed it. Just click "download now" at the top and click where it says "Looking for the latest version?" A form will pop up but you don't need to fill it out. Just wait until it asks you if you want to save or run the exe.

Great tutorial, Kenny If I ever need another subway map, then this tutorial I'll use

Awesome tutorial. I always wondered how you guys did such awesome maps.

Daniel: Thanks, let me know if it was easy to understand
Fox: Thanks

Ok, so ale made me a coat of arms so I'm happy



But enough on that, time for update

Today we visit one of the few towns with no freeways, no fancy malls or light rail, no train stations, or anything like that. Welcome to Vermillion.

The town is really nothing to speak of. A small commercial area where people gather and talk and shop. Stores don't stay open late. Everyone knows everyone on their street. It's quaint.



The interesting part of Vermillion is the part east of it. Because there is the Viridian National Forest. A vast expanse of trees the country has decided not to cut down. It's a calming place...











Hope you enjoyed! Here's a teaser of somewhere else...



And the temporary end of the 601 beltway near the capital...

Cool COA and highway!

That is a wicked intrechange and Coat of Arms, beautiful work

WOOO Excellent, waiting for more!!!