Try to use new Activity in Open Rails

[cn bala]

Earlier this evening I changed the activity with the time for player and ai trains and no changes with the paths or services or traffic. I changed the time in ConText Editor with MSTS_TimeCalc. When I am in Open Rails Simulator with the revised activity to run on the route that I have but still show me the old activity with the time to start in Open Rails Simulator not the new one. What have I done wrong with this? I thought that I can change the times in ConText Editor with MSTS_TimeCalc and can use with new activity and same route to run on Open Rails after the changes of time. Am I missing something with Open Rails to use the new activity??

Please let me know about this.

John

[slipperman]

Hi John,
I know it's a silly question, but have you checked that the .act file actually contains your revised times?

Cheers,
Ged

[cn bala]

Ged -- Yes I did check the .act file with the revised times but for some reasons Open Rails look at the previous .act file and use this to run in simulator.

John

[slipperman]

Hi John,
To be honest, mate, if the original .act file no longer exists, it's impossible for Open Rails to pick it up! Are you absolutely certain that your modified .act file is in the same MSTS/OR installation that you are actually opening in the Open Rails menu?

To avoid this type of problem, use a different name for the modified .act file and make a similar change to its 'Name' value (near the top of the file) so that it can be identified in the MSTS/ORTS activity selection list.

Cheers,
Ged

[cn bala]

All I see that I have the modified .act file in the route folder of cnbalav2 and no original .act file there but where did Open Rails find the original .act file from? That's my question about this.

[slipperman]

Hi John,
Unless OR has some hidden ability, I say it's impossible!!
May I suggest that you open the activity in NotePad, or other text editor, and make sure it is your modified version.

Cheers,
Ged

EDIT : Also, make sure the Start Time of the activity is what you want it to be - under the Briefing entry in the .act file.

[cn bala]

I will try with NotePad to see if that .act file have been modified or not.

John

[cn bala]

Just checked the .act file in NotePad and the changes was done before in ConText Editor. Guess that I will have to wait for someone on Open Rails development team see my message and be able to help with this.

John

[slipperman]

Hi John,
I doubt it's an Open Rails problem - even it can't read something which isn't there!!

I appreciate that you used ConText to modify your file. Do you confirm that all the changes you made are in the .act file in the cnbalav2 folder? How do you know that OR is not using the new file? If it's the activity start time, are you sure you amended the original? (This a repeat of my EDIT in case you missed it!).

Cheers,
Ged

EDIT : You're not using Resume from a save are you? That's the only way I can think of where the previous activity details could possibly be shown.

[cn bala]

OK Ged -- How do I know that the act did not change after I did make the changes in .act file with different times. I set up the player train time to start at 6:30 a.m. also three other times for AI times too. After start up the program of Open Rails and see on the left pane of Installation Profile and show me the time -- Time: 05:00:00 not 06:30:00. Yes I did resume from a save with old times and decided to change the time in ConText Editor then start again with Open Rails not resume but Start the simulator. I was surprised to see that the time still show old not new. Even I did restart my desktop then open up the simulator. I don't know what next with this.

John

[cn bala]

The only thing that I think of is to create a new activity similar to this activity with new times for Player and AI trains. No changes with path or service for the Player and AI trains. I will do this shortly and see if that is working or not.

John

[slipperman]

Hi John,
There is no point in creating a new activity because it won't answer this particular problem!

The start time shown on the left-hand side of the OR menu comes directly from the StartTime value in the .act file. Are you saying that those two values DO NOT match? If so, although you've changed times for the Player and several AI trains, did you also change the activity start time? I think that, maybe, you didn't!

Cheers,
Ged

[cn bala]

That could be and I will check with this

[cn bala]

All is good and I have to change the Activity start time from 5 0 0 to 6 30 0. And now all is set to go to run this activity. I have to remember this part to change for next time. Want to say thank you to you, Ged for your help with this.

John

[slipperman]

Hi John,
Glad you've got it sorted
Please remember that computers and their programs are basically very stupid and do exactly what we humans tell them to do with information that we humans present them with, as long as it's in a form they've been told about !!

I know because I've been in computers since the 1960s when 'programs' were created by plugging wires into a matrix board - ahh!! those were the days

Cheers,
Ged