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Wikibook Project Trainz Main How-To and Tools guideline

TOC | Beginnings | Fun | AM&C | Creation | InBook Refs | ORP Refs:  • Index • Containers • Kinds • Tags | Appendixes  • Vers

 

• To-Do Hotlist, Trainz/Project/ToFinish — feel free to jump in and move things along!
• General Project writing guidelines are listed in: Project/writing.

 

Project Organization

This page is part of Wikibooks Trainz Wikibook Administration, and index page and listing for reserving tutorials identity prefixes using NAMCON organized subpage names using the straight forward XXXtut-### naming convention, where {XXX: AM&C, CC, CM, DVR, FIX, SUR, SES, TXT, and WIN} and an ID-number are combined to prefix the tutorial page name(s)—since they can be linked into booklets, and preferably any images and video titles used in it's writing.

• Since the guideline is simple, it has been placed lower on the page. [Click here] for the rules and tips.

Editor's note: Please note, individual images are 'category-classed' by what they depict, so even if a tutorial is mainly about content modification, upkeep, repair, or creation, an image in the sequence using a Windows application to do something 'needs-must-use' the proper control tag(s) corresponding to the image displayed—not unthinking use of the tutorial class Identifier 'XXX' in 'XXXtut-###' prefixes as the sole thought.  • The image's title can be kept within the tutorial ID schema ('XXX...'), but the auto-categories triggered need the correct classification by what is displayed passed into the |permissions={{Trainz Image}}(sub-template) line on the upload wizard. (More below in Rules, including the variants doing extra auto-categorizations and call {{Trainz Image}} as a common process.)

Our Lists by Tasks

AM&C-Groups

AM&C-Asset Mods

Asset modification and Repairs topics

Introduction and Intermediate needs skills topics s.a. Fixing a particular sort of fault, simple reskinning, changing bogeys, using obsolete-tables within a cloned asset to eliminate speedtrees before porting to TANE and so forth.
 •

 

1. AM&Ctut-01 - TBDL
2. AM&Ctut-04 - TBDL
3. AM&Ctut-07 - TBDL

...  

CM-HowTo & Tips

Pages on getting the most from Content Manager

written with the new user or newly enthusiastic users in mind. Also, text based tutorials on config.txt files

1. CMtut-01 - TBDL
2. CMtut-04 - TBDL
3. CMtut-07 - TBDL

...  

Fixing Assets

and also,

specifically for repair HowTo subjects:

1. FIXtut-01 - TBDL
2. FIXtut-04 - TBDL
3. FIXtut-07 - TBDL

...  

AM&C-Tools topics

Introductory or Intermediate level HowTo topics,(e.g. AssetX, IrfanView, Notepad++, PEVtools, etc.).

1. AMTtut-01 - TBDL
2. AMTtut-04 - TBDL
3. AMTtut-07 - TBDL

...  

CC-Content Creation

Creation of New Assets topics

using any involved process and differing advanced software utilities
 • Please note many items that were long existing on the Wikibook are CC topics, and may be given a consistent designation as a redirected page title. Just allocate the index, and create a redirect page! (I, and a few other editors, can also Move the page title and do the reverse sort of redirect, upon request. We want help organizing this thing! ~80 FrankB)

1. CCtut-01 - TBDL
2. CCtut-04 - TBDL
3. CCtut-07 - TBDL

...  

DVR-HowTo & Tips

1. DVRtut-01 - TBDL
2. DVRtut-04 - TBDL
3. DVRtut-07 - TBDL

...  

ED-HowTo & Tips

Editor tutorials

Tips, tricks, and setups of various supporting tools.
 • When adding such topic images to the Commons, also set | editor=true or use also set | text=true if it displays command line mode screens (For example: to capture a directory list to a text file). Such should also set | WIN=true since it's an OS image.

• Note: Microsoft has finally and belatedly licensed it's software's screenshots for educational uses for the Wikimedia Foundation Projects. We qualify, and this command switch tags the image appropriately. ('|text=1' is for another commons category tie-in, just to be nice to our hosts and respective of their needs.)

1. EDtut-01 - TBDL
2. EDtut-04 - TBDL
3. EDtut-07 - TBDL

...  

Them's The Rules

There are only three rules ("about fight club..." ~8>))! ):

1. Rule 1 - Pre-order any index tutorial number as soon as you decide you want to write it!
2. Rule 2 - Use a numerical iteration ID-Number about three-to-five counts above the index number last used. But if your tutorial is best thought of as between two others, go ahead and use an interval number when and where available. Suffixing a lowercase 'a', 'b', ...'z' also adds flexibility if numbers run out. (I do that with picture# sequence codings often-then write with the list organized in name order.)
    • Keeping such a list in threading order is UNLIKELY, but 'worthy' of an attempt in principle, so picking an iteration with a gap, allows someone to insert a new tutorial in between three which should be threaded.
3. Rule 3 - Add your Wiki Signature to the line allocating that code to you. (just place '~~~~' after a comma+space on the same line. (see above entries as samples, the 'User names' are Wiki signatures, settable in your profiles options.) This tells who to contact, and date stamps the start.

 

Tips and Tricks

 • Allocate as above, and per Rule 1
 • then stub in your 'minds-eye' title with that prefix as a redlink, or even go ahead and create and stub in a rough page... (You can revise it or have it moved (so renaming it) later if you like.

1. Such creation moments can be just an outline, a collection of pics, or as text outline or paras to jot down and organize the flow of your thoughts at the moment of inspiration; a start later needing pics. Either mode works, so dig in either way, as suits your style and working preferences.
    • The {{TRS-underconstruction}} template is for just such rough page development--projects begun and should be developed soon. It creates a ToDo list reminder by it's auto-category!
    • Starting is half-done, as 'they' say.
2. But also... consider, if you've yet to create them, or feel inclined to rename them, NAME your pics with the same prefix for easy location on the Wikimedia Commons
   1. and then use the same ID-prefix to group the pictures in the Commons category assigned by specifying the |sort=XXXtut-## identity in the licensing template.
   2. When in doubt, use the commons template family: Trainz Image (preferably those 'parents' it lists which better target auto-categories), with the same control parameter ({CM, DVR,...,SUR, WIN}) when laying the template in the '|permissions= entry' in the upload wizard.
      for example: | permissions={{Trainz Image-AR|CM=1|sort=FIXtut-17}},
       • will place CM text in the permissions,
       • default to the CC-by-SA-3.0 license,
       • and categorize the image to the Trainz repair examples sub-category. (Easy-Peasey!)
3. If the tutorial is long, say with more than 20 pictures (arbitrary, but a good benchmark number), the Commons assignment templates will also take a override category name, which should generally be a sub-category of the target parent category:
    • example:
   | permissions={{Trainz Image-AM|CM=1|sort=FIXtut-007|CAT=Introduction to Trainz CM Tutorials}}
4. Image organization, management and handling is the worst part of the battle of uploading images, so here are some really useful techniques
   1. Create a folder for your project on your data hard drive.
   2. Create or Move your pictures there immediately, and name (or rename) them consistent with a name sort gives you the order you want in the tutorial prose.
       • Each project involving a series of pics I start with the same string in the title. As Advised Here Above, that string should have a short suffix about the task (14 pics with beginning 'AM&C_Third_Party_Content_###' just happens to be in my text editor at the moment)
   3. IrfanView's renaming features makes prefixing such a collection a snap.
   4. When creating a series prefix the titles as you go, but that won't work for CM, SUR, or DVR series... Print Screen gets date coded in the \screenshots folder in the later two, and CM just ignores your Print Screen Hotkey.
      1. In the first case Alt+Tab ↹ and ⇧ Shift+Alt+Tab ↹ allow you to toggle to an image editor, or good multiple tabs text file editor such as Notepad++, ConText, Programmer's Notepad, or Crimson.
      2. Since you want to rename \UserData\Screenshots saved images later, by toggling you can write instead your preferred titles, the caption, and indeed a whole wiki markup capable line for the images being harvested.
      3. For CM screenies, you want to toggle to save the image and to create nearly finished text wiki markup text. (Window 7& up's Paint.exe works pretty well these days for a low memory, quick switching CM screen shot; just not for TGA's.)
          • Do the Screenie, toggle to Paint (or Paint.NET, etc.); Ctrl+V to paste,
          • Alt+Tab ↹ to toggle to the editor and create the name. Copy that, then make it wiki markup on the line under, complete with caption. (You're already writing the 'hard part' of the tutorial, you see!)
          • Toggle back to the image editor of your choice, and do a Save As, with your newly minted properly coded title. The text file's your cheat sheet (use this as upload boilerplate for the bunch, and for accessing the images in the below step.
          • Cutting and Pasting a group of pics goes very quick this way.
          • Especially if you prepare the various |permissions= taggings at the same time.
   5. When writing the prose, having the images appear about correctly helps our thinking. Consider the bare bones word processing power of Window's Wordpad as an aid as actually being superior (quick switch, low memory impact, no frills) for the need than Office or Writer.
      1. Write your prose starting with an rtf file in the same folder, named as you like.
      2. when you want to embed an image, you know where to load it from, and embed (RMBh+drag} and scale it appropriately by dragging the corners and placement around.
      3. Add the wikimarkup for the photo just above or after the image. (learn to ignore the square brackets!)
   6. When the text is ready for paste up, your images match your text cheat sheet readied for uploading, and just Ctrl+A, Ctrl+C
   7. AND THEN paste it into another tab on the text editor... That strips out the pictures and leaves you ready to paste into the wiki.
   8. Ctrl+A, Ctrl+C the text only version, open your browser to the redlink, and paste away. Instant article ready for polishing.
   9. Save that, then upload using the cheat sheet to expedite the process. All the pics in the folder can be uploaded at once.
   10. Finish that, tab back to the article, and copy edit.
   11. Congratulations!

Tips on Uploads

Project/Commons_Needs  

 

* Setting the 'freeintcam' switch parameter in trainzoptions.txt (TR04—TS12) or checking the clickbox with the same function (Freeing Internal Cameras) in TANE and after, changes the function of the keyboard arrows from rotate and tilt functions, to instead slide the camera position forward and back, or side to side. Freeintcam mode enables the user to move many cameras entirely outside the CAB or to a much better advantaged viewing (and mouse-controlling) angle.

Notes, Footnotes & References

Config.txt files are endemic and ever present in Trainz assets, for no asset can be defined without this type of Computer Science container. The keyword-value_of_key pairing must always be kept in mind in editing or creating Trainz content. The TrainzBaseSpec contains values and containers which are most common in asset defining config.txt files.  

Notes

 

Footnotes

 

References

• Trainz printed or pdf file Manuals, applicable version - usually in the ..\extras or ..\extras\manuals folder
• TrainzOnline Wiki Config.txt file page and various other pages
• TrainzOnline Wiki: Content Creator's Guide pages (various)
• Various CCG and Auran websites