Line news April, 2004

• <30-Apr-04>: The demise of MSTS 2 hasn't deterred authors contributing to the Train-sim.com library: all of us should be able to find various pieces of rolling stock from the wide range provided by Tony Calorel, from gondolas and box cars to tankers. Then there are the NZR FM-class vans from TSNZ Railway Workshops, nzr_fmv1.zip (1.4Mb, 29-Apr-04), and Peter Czarnowski's CPR ALCO RS-11 locos, cpr_rs11.zip (3.3Mb, 29-Apr-04), and accompanying CPR Freight Set, cpcpzfr0.zip (623kb, 29-Apr-04). An important development to solve one of MSTS' recurring problems is provided by Joe Morris in his Front Coupler Modification document, fcoupler.zip (6kb, 29-Apr-04). The Etnaland Italian fantasy route (64Mb) was released a couple of days ago at Amicitreni.net and today there's loco TF 545 (2.9Mb) in Etnaland livery.

• <29-Apr-04>: There's another Milwaukee Road EF-4 boxcab, milwef4b.zip (3.8Mb, 28-Apr-04) at the Train-sim.com library and in the Train-sim.com forum there's some modifications to provide a possible solution to the front coupler problem which has bothered all those who are shunting enthusiasts from day one.

• <28-Apr-04>: Just a couple of new additions to the Train-sim.com library caught web•TrainSim's eye: a patch for the Penn Central Alco RS-11 loco pack, pc_rs11f.zip (1.0Mb, 27-Apr-04) and pc_rs-11.zip (4.6Mb, 25-Apr-04), and a range of Union Pacific 100 ton covered hoppers, such as #79190, up79190.zip (2.3Mb, 27-Apr-04). Due to a glitch somewhere in the system (but not at web•TrainSim's end thankfully), yesterday's line news was not posted until today and you may not have been able to reach web•TrainSim.com - all now seems well.

• <27-Apr-04>: At Train-sim.com there is another set of NSWGR MK3 48 Class ALCO-powered locos, on this occasion in Red Terror livery, 48mk3_rt.zip (3.1Mb, 26-Apr-04). Mike Simpson has added more features to Route Riter and the latest update, RRit5_1_00exe.zip (786kb, 25-Apr-04), from the Route Riter page brings it to version 5.1.00. We can now print and/or save pictures of shape files and Route Riter will automatically arrange six pictures per page for printing. For route builders, Route Riter backs up the World/Tile/TD/Root folders into a folder named with the date of the backup.

• <26-Apr-04>: The 165 kilometre Scenario Riviera route mentioned yesterday is also available as the Riviera Express route from the Train-sim.com library in nine files, beginning with rivierx1.exe (15Mb, 25-Apr-04); other files are RAR files so you'll need WinRAR installed before running rivierx1.exe to install. Also of note is a set of South Australian Railways Redhen Class 300 suburban railcars, redhen.zip (6.8Mb, 25-Apr-04), and there is a set of NSWGR MK3 48 Class ALCO-powered locos in candy livery, 48mk3_c.zip (3.1Mb, 25-Apr-04). At Australian Add-ons for MSTS Stew Winston has some Queensland Railways 2800-class diesel-electrics, AU_QR2800_MSTS1_Setup.exe (1.2Mb, 23-Apr-04).

• <2x-Apr-04>: Not a great deal to talk about except the Trenomania.it team have brought out a new route, the Scenario Riviera, which runs from Genova to Ventimiglia. It's a 130Mb download from the Scenari page at Trenomania.it. So you can place the area, try the tourism section of the Genova province site.

• <24-Apr-04>: Latest ontributions to the Train-sim.com library include: Dick Cowen's SD60MAC Reskinning Kit, britkt22.zip (3.2Mb, 23-Apr-04); TSNZ Railway Workshops' NZ Rails Kiwi Lager DC loco, nzr_dcv1.zip (1.5Mb, 23-Apr-04), with alternative weathered textures, nzrdc11.zip (1.6Mb, 23-Apr-04); and Southern Pacific SD70Ms No. 9804, sp9804.zip (12.5Mb, 23-Apr-04), and No. 9810, sp9810.zip (11.4Mb, 23-Apr-04).

• <23-Apr-04>: Take a quick look at the PRR Class I1sa Decapod #4483 and start downloading the Pennsylvania Railroad I1sa Megapack, i1sa12.zip (30.1Mb, 22-Apr-04), from Train-sim.com - it's one of those MSTS models that all steam fans will want in their roundhouse. Michael Sinclair has more electric arcing sound sets, such as , elecarc1.zip (10Mb, 22-Apr-04), and, on a quieter note, Dick Cowen has an update to his SD40 reskinning kit, sd40ug02.zip (380kb, 22-Apr-04).

• <22-Apr-04>: At Train-sim.com there's a patch for the Milwaukee Road, Rocky Mtn. Division 2nd Subdivision route, rmd2ptc2.zip (78kb, 21-Apr-04), to replace a snow texture. And at Australian Add-ons for MSTS there are Michael Thompson's Sydney CityRail Tangara G-Set and T-Set suburban EMUs, AU_nswT2_MSTS1_Setup.exe (4.3Mb, 22-Apr-04) which will prove popular. Edouard Staniczek has revealed his third clue on his surprise page (web•TrainSim is none the wiser, as his mind goes blank when he sees chem formulas).

• <21-Apr-04>: Peter Czarnowski has contributed a wide range of Canadian Pacific Railway locos to the Train-sim.com library, including two CPR Alco C630s, cp_ac630.zip (1.8Mb, 20-Apr-04), a set of CPR SD60s, cpsd9set.zip (4.6Mb, 20-Apr-04), and a number of CPR Dash 9s such as No. 9631, mltpcz06.zip (1.5Mb, 20-Apr-04). For Western Australian enthusiasts, there's Stew Winston's WAGR/ARG AB Class diesel, ab1534.zip (3.1Mb, 20-Apr-04). Dwight E. Miller has a fix for the textures for his DD35 locos, up80bupd.zip (186kb, 20-Apr-04), and Michael Sinclair has two more Kosmos sound sets, Severe Engine Malfunction 1, engmalf1.zip (4.4Mb, 20-Apr-04), and Severe Engine Malfunction 2, engmalf2.zip (6.7Mb, 20-Apr-04) - the mind boggles at the thought of Michael's sounds combined with those coming from an electric loco that uses Belphegor sounds!. For those wanting to cut down on the installation size of the Coal Road can find a few hints on this thread at Train-sim.com.

• <20-Apr-04>: ALCO-power fans will be able to enjoy another set of New South Wales Government Railways 48-class locos, 48mk3_r.zip (3.3Mb, 19-Apr-04) from the Train-sim.com library; Bob Pickering has contributed his Marias Pass 3.1 activity pack of thirty or so BNSF and Amtrak services which should keep us all busy, mp31ap.zip (690kb, 18-Apr-04); and there's a Milwaukee Road EF-4 electric loco, milwef4a.zip (7.2Mb, 18-Apr-04). The Vysocina Czech Railways route can be updated to version 2 by patching version 1; check the Simtrain-fr.net MSTS forum for a direct link to the download (30Mb).

• <19-Apr-04>: Not a lot of good news with regard to MSTS 2 on the forums so we'll just have to keep enjoying what we've got and look forward to more high-quality freeware from the many talented contributors who've added so much to MSTS 1 over the past couple of years. In that light, it's good to see a V/Line N-class loco being modelled - have a look at N478 here. And Mike Simpson has adapted Route Riter with another small update to bring it to version 5.0.59 - download the EXE from his Railpage site. The good news is that the Graphics15 team are back at work on Wupper Express 8 - this route will keep web•TrainSim out of mischief for weeks.

• <18-Apr-04>: Two new locos of note have been added to the Train-sim.com library: Nigel Booth's New Zealand loco DC4415 in the new MAXX livery in anticipation of Auckland's new transport operator, mxdcv1.zip (1.67Mb, 17-Apr-04), and Andy Keffer's Norfolk Southern SD40-2 No. 3237 with detailed lighting features, sound and cab, ns3237.zip (3.33Mb, 17-Apr-04). Simtrain France has a new address at www.simtrain-fr.net. The main site for downloads is still being put together but the MSTS forum is functioning.

• <17-Apr-04>: At Train-sim.com Frank Musick has his Texturing For Faint Hearts 2 tutorial, faintht2.zip (354kb, 16-Apr-04); Jean-Louis Chauvin has contributed his default wagon files that he's modified for more realistic braking, us2wagbr.zip (36kb, 16-Apr-04), and his Kicking Horse Pass 2 loco and wagon files that he's done similar work on, khp2_b.zip (5.6Mb, 16-Apr-04); and there's a set of passenger train activities for the MARC Camden section of NEC4, marccam2.zip (156kb, 16-Apr-04).

• <16-Apr-04>: A quieter day so web•TrainSim checked the links to some Australian MSTS sites which have changed over the past week or so: Australian Add-ons for MSTS (Steam4Me), now at www.railpage.org.au/steam4me/trainsim/ (no index.html any more), James Brooks' Victorian Rail for MSTS now at www.railpage.org.au/vr/msts.php, and this link will take you to Railpage MSTS General Discussions. At this stage, John Cleverdon's authoritative and informative The Australian Locopage has not been reloaded on the new Railpage server.

• <15-Apr-04>: At the Train-sim.com library, a couple of Hamersley Iron SD50 locos make their appearance, hisd50.zip (820kb, 14-Apr-04) and hi6060.zip (2.0Mb, 14-Apr-04) - if you're not familiar with the iron ore trains of the Pilbara region in Western Australia, check the Hamersley Iron and Pilbara Railways sites. And there are more tutorials, too: Texturing Details, papcut-3.zip (380kb, 15-Apr-04), and Reskin Basics, feyer.zip (44kb, 14-Apr-04). web•TrainSim found a DB 612 DMU set which has a driveable number two end so try out the ME-Stadtwald-Dusseldorf and return activity and be held up by all the important trains in the morning peak!

• <14-Apr-04>: A couple of handy tutorials for those starting out on the graphics side of MSTS are now available from Train-sim.com: Texturing for the Faint Hearted, fainthrt.zip (352kb, 13-Apr-04), and Texturing Tips, texttips.zip (961kb, 13-Apr-04). Mike Simpson has added a couple of little tweaks to Route Riter to bring it up to version 5.0.59 - the EXE can be downloaded from his site (726kb). web•TrainSim has re-organised the traffic in his Rhein-Munsterland Express (SG-Obligs to Dortmund) activity - you'll be particularly busy if you can reach Gruiten by 1554.

• <13-Apr-04>: A quiet day so web•TrainSim put some time (Long overdue. Editor.) into a few write-ups for some of the rolling stock used in activities on the Wupper Express route: Doppelstockwagen (double-decker carriages) installation folder, using the Modern carriage sounds, regen braking for the ET423 EMU trainset, and setting up the TS-EastRail E143 257 & E143 582 locos with cabs and sounds - you'll find instructions for all these on the Small Fixes 16 page.

• <12-Apr-04>: In 1963 the three big loco manufacturers introduced far more powerful locos to replace their first generation models: GE had its U50, ALCO the Century series, and EMD its 5000hp 35 series. It's the latter that Dwight Miller has modelled with his five loco set, updd35pk.zip (7.5Mb, 11-Apr-04), now available from the Train-sim.com library. Other new additions include Chuck Zeiler's modified Smokemain.ace for steam locos, zsmoke.zip (1.0Mb, 11-Apr-04), Adam Brooks' corrected .S shape file for the SD40-2, sd402upd.zip (382kb, 11-Apr-04), TSNZ Railway Workshops' NZGR DA Class diesel loco, nzr_dav2.zip (2.5Mb, 11-Apr-04), and there are many, many objects for route builders contributed by Marcel Despont. Please note the set of NJT Comet IV carriages and ALP-44 loco has been removed from the Train-sim.com library for reasons of unauthorised use of NALW material. web•TrainSim has completed his first run of his Rhein-Munsterland Express (SG-Obligs to Dortmund) activity and there were no disasters so give it a try yourself if you like. The list of rolling stock has been updated by the way and web•TrainSim needs to take a breather from driving to write up some small fixes for some of the activities' rolling stock.

• <11-Apr-04>: Another route across the U.S.A. Continental Divide, the Denver South Park & Pacific route by Jonathan Lewis, the first of eight files being dspp1.zip (5.7Mb, 10-Apr-04). There's plenty of information at the Denver South Park & Pacific Group's site, the official site of the DSP&P. Also at Train-sim.com are a set of NJT Comet IV carriages, including an ALP-44 loco, comet4.zip (16.5Mb, 10-Apr-04), and a set of four NSWGR Class 48 ALCO powered diesel-electric locos, 48mk3_ir.zip (3.7Mb, 10-Apr-04).

Our Wupper Express ICE2 overtakes a double-decker set not far from NE-Rheinpark Centre on our way into Dusseldorf.

• <10-Apr-04>: Australian trainsimmers with ALCO locos in their roundhouse will be pleased with Gary Ball's updated sounds, au_alco.zip (1.2Mb, 09-Apr-04), in the Train-sim.com library. Also there's an activity to introduce you to the Paola Reggio di Calabria route, ebpao1v1.zip (200kb, 09-Apr-04), and one for the Sumpter Valley Railroad, ebsumpt3.zip (35kb, 09-Apr-04). For those driving over this holiday period, take every care on the road.

• <09-Apr-04>: At Train-sim.com Michael Sinclair has made available some recordings he's made at two of the U.K.'s busiest railway locations, the Clapham Junction and Oxford Circus on the London Underground; download files include clapham1.zip (9Mb, 08-Apr-04) and oxcircus.zip (3Mb, 08-Apr-04). web•TrainSim is testing his RE4: Wupper Express (Monchengladbach to Dortmund) activity - there are some screenshots and you can download this preliminary version, taking note to be careful at Gruiten.

• <08-Apr-04>: The Paola-Reggio Calabria route in the Train-sim.com library has been updated to correct a bug in the scenery, paolaptc.zip (2.5Mb, 07-Apr-04). Paola-Reggio Calabria is also available from Amicitreni.net in a 70Mb download (possibly one file). Route Riter has received another upgrade, this time to version 5.0.57 to ensure there are no problems with the way some route builders have named their files. You'll find notes on each upgrade towards the bottom of Route Riter's homepage. web•TrainSim's S8 0742 service Hagen to Monchengladbach activity has been revised to include more traffic and it's now raining (only in the activity!).

• <07-Apr-04>: After browsing the Train-sim.com library today you may need to make more space in your roundhouse: there's the Paola-Reggio Cal. route, the first of nine files being paola-01.exe (10Mb, 06-Apr-04), which you run to unpack the other files compressed with WinRAR; Bruce Bridges has used Dick Cowen's models to give us Conrail SD60I Pack 1, crsd60i1.zip (3.2Mb, 06-Apr-04); and Chris Bogley has something for everybody with a spare fifty hours or so over the Easter break, his BNSF/CSX 15 Route Z-Train activity pack, bnsfcsxz.zip (395kb, 06-Apr-04). You can update Route Riter to version 5.0.55 by either installing just the EXE, RRit5_0_55exe.zip (743kb, 06-Apr-04), or carrying out a full install; a couple of bugs are fixed and Mike has included a couple of features in various reports which he'd forgotten he'd coded for.

• <06-Apr-04>: The following in the Train-sim.com library caught web•TrainSim's eye: How in The World Heavy Rain for Kosmos, severers.zip (2.6Mb, 05-Apr-04), with blizzard sounds to follow; version 3.10 of the XTracks Self-Installer, xtracks.zip (4.9Mb, 05-Apr-04), and XTracks for Route Builders, xtracksr.zip (20.9Mb, 05-Apr-04); described by the author as something different, the Pentecosta - La Ligne de Petit Arbre route, the first of nine files being palv10.zip (8.2Mb, 05-Apr-04), other files being about 22Mb each.

• <05-Apr-04>: Peter Harvey's steam loco models are always fine models so steam enthusiasts will be happy to see he has another one available, Ex-LNER BR17 61606 Audley End, 61606v2.zip (4.4Mb, 04-Apr-04), in the Train-sim.com library. The UKTrainsim.com library already has the next version of XTracks, the self-installer one being XTracks.zip (4.9Mb, 04-Apr-04); the three different formats (route builder, files only and self-installer) should appear in the next day or two at Train-sim.com. web•TrainSim has completed the S8 0742 service Hagen to Monchengladbach activity without incident. More traffic is needed over one particular section and web•TrainSim experienced his biggest stutter ever when his train turned to come into the Dusseldorf Hbf platform but everything recovered. Finally, TS-Eastrail.de is a site for a wide range of MSTS German rolling stock that web•TrainSim came across today.

• <04-Apr-04>: Or should it be 04-04-04? Some people were looking for sites with Swiss rolling stock; two sites passed on to web•TrainSim are Rhb for MSTS and Swiss Trainsimulator Portal. Mike Simpson has fixed a small bug in Route Riter and an updated EXE can be downloaded from the Steam4Me Route Riter page, RRit5_0_51exe.zip (737kb, 30-Mar-04). Finally, web•TrainSim is trialling another activity on Wupper Express, the S8 0742 service Hagen to Monchengladbach.

• <03-Apr-04>: Oops, web•TrainSim may have been a bit slow in pointing you to the Graphics15 team's gremlin they came across in building a couple of stations for Wupper Express 8; they've taken holidays (to recover?) for the next couple of weeks. Meanwhile at the Train-sim.com library, there's plenty to keep us all busy: Frank Eyer's Reskinning Tutorial, reskbasc.zip (21kb, 02-Apr-04), Cyndi Richards' Basics for Beginners Tutorial, basics.zip (15kb, 02-Apr-04), TSNZ Railway Workshops' Class DSC loco in Bumble Bee livery, tzrdscv2.zip (1.8Mb, 02-Apr-04), Peter Czarnowski's reskins of Canadian Pacific SD60 locos, e.g., cpsd9012.zip (940kb, 02-Apr-04), using Dick Cowen's kit, and Juergen Romanowski's YTracks German railways prototypical points sets, ytrack01.zip (1.0Mb, 02-Apr-04) (TheTrain.de suggests YTracks are for expert users at this stage).

• <02-Apr-04>: Fans of the Wupper Express route will know that version 8 is being built. Apparently the Graphics15 team had a mishap yesterday when a giant underground worm undermined buildings at some stations; reconstruction is underway. web•TrainSim's ET423 commuter service Duisberg Hbf to Dusseldorf Hbf has been tested and can be downloaded; any chance you can get, do an external view to hear the ICE3 services go past.

• <01-Apr-04>: web•TrainSim.com begins its third year with Chris Bogley's What Runs Where Guide (version 2) being available from the Train-sim.com library in file wrw2.zip (293kb, 31-Mar-04). Chris' guide will help us all decide which route to download and install next! Presently, WRW only includes North American routes (eight payware, thirty-nine free), giving route length, location, terrain, principal traffic type and railway companies (past and present). Knowing a former U.K. fireman brings up all sorts of interesting information. Push-pull trains were used in steam days on some U.K. branch lines, with the driver passing regulator settings to the fireman with whistles, and all U.K. steam drivers and firemen knew the importance of Rule 55.

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• Email me at info@webDotTrainsim.com if you have questions or comments. I'll try to answer as best I can. Certainly post me if any step-by-step instructions on various how-to pages need clarification.