Mullan Pass Timetable Mode Version 2

[R. Steele]

I only have one problem with these timetables --- and I acknowledge that's it's due to my ignorance of Mullan operations --- when I choose a train, I don't know what I'm getting into, a long slow coal slogging it out over the pass, or some fast freight. I know I could probably figure it all out by looking at the actual timetables, but laziness does figure into it.

Part of this naturally comes from the fact that timetables were primarily intended for passenger operations, not freight, especially North American freight ops. ( when first introduced by Rob back in the year 1 )

I wish there was some kind of short description of the train, weight, number of cars, type of service...something like that. ( is there? ...and I just missed it? )

By the way, working okay using all versions of monogame I've tried...loading takes considerably longer than activities...is that to be expected for timetables?

[Peter M]

Hello,

I remember seeing something about this over on Elvastower, but I'm not sure if it has been utilized for freeware timetables yet.

http://www.elvastower.com/forums/ind..._1#entry252073

This handy popup "briefing" can be used to display as much information as the creator wants to include, like train weight, service, etc...

From a very non-technical standpoint, I would imagine that the Timetable format in itself encourages the creation of more trains, with greater emphasis on schedule accuracy, than a single activity can. This leads to more work for the sim and slower loading times.

Peter

[ngc427]

Hello,

I remember seeing something about this over on Elvastower, but I'm not sure if it has been utilized for freeware timetables yet.

http://www.elvastower.com/forums/ind..._1#entry252073

This handy popup "briefing" can be used to display as much information as the creator wants to include, like train weight, service, etc...

From a very non-technical standpoint, I would imagine that the Timetable format in itself encourages the creation of more trains, with greater emphasis on schedule accuracy. This leads to more work for the sim and slower loading times.

Peter

Interesting, Open Rails features surprise me every day. I may give that a shot, however this means another update for both the expansion and main timetables unfortunately. I'll keep you posted on if I find success with playing around with this feature.

You would also be correct with the loading times, a lot of trains to load in and the game needs to calculate where all of them would be at any given moment.

I only have one problem with these timetables --- and I acknowledge that's it's due to my ignorance of Mullan operations --- when I choose a train, I don't know what I'm getting into, a long slow coal slogging it out over the pass, or some fast freight. I know I could probably figure it all out by looking at the actual timetables, but laziness does figure into it.

You can figure out the type train your going to be running by looking at train symbols. BNSF named them pretty smart, C- for loaded coal, E- for empty coal, G- for grain, X- for empty grain, etc. The rest of the symbol is where the train originates and terminates which will tell you which way a train is headed, however you can see which direction the train is headed based off of the path names (EB = eastbound, WB = westbound). My go-to guide is the table on QStation.

http://www.qstation.org/bnsf/BNSF_Train_Symbols.pdf

This is a painfully slow grind from Helena; blimey, I'm crawling along at 12mph and expecting to come to a stop at any moment but no, it keeps plugging up the grade! Agonising!

The loaded coal trains up the grade are definitely my favorite to run! On the edge of your seat the whole time, making sure you won't stall out, it's definitely a real test your train handling skills. A true slice of railroading too, you expect trains to run around the speed limit for as long as they can, but on the real railroad it's, "if it ain't stalling, keep hauling".

I'm glad to hear reports of the timetable working on Monogame Open Rails as well. It's been pretty hit or miss and thankfully it sounds like it's just a problem on my end.

[R. Steele]

Interesting, Open Rails features surprise me every day. I may give that a shot, however this means another update for both the expansion and main timetables unfortunately. I'll keep you posted on if I find success with playing around with this feature.

You would also be correct with the loading times, a lot of trains to load in and the game needs to calculate where all of them would be at any given moment.



You can figure out the type train your going to be running by looking at train symbols. BNSF named them pretty smart, C- for loaded coal, E- for empty coal, G- for grain, X- for empty grain, etc. The rest of the symbol is where the train originates and terminates which will tell you which way a train is headed, however you can see which direction the train is headed based off of the path names (EB = eastbound, WB = westbound). My go-to guide is the table on QStation.

http://www.qstation.org/bnsf/BNSF_Train_Symbols.pdf

The loaded coal trains up the grade are definitely my favorite to run! On the edge of your seat the whole time, making sure you won't stall out, it's definitely a real test your train handling skills. A true slice of railroading too, you expect trains to run around the speed limit for as long as they can, but on the real railroad it's, "if it ain't stalling, keep hauling".

I'm glad to hear reports of the timetable working on Monogame Open Rails as well. It's been pretty hit or miss and thankfully it sounds like it's just a problem on my end.

Thanks for the answer. Very helpful. Especially that part about the prefix to the train designation. I printed out the BNSF pdf -- do most of the US roads use the same prefix system?

( "Forever, ridin' drag in railroad knowledge" --- it's not at the end of my posts for decoration! )

Yep, heavy coal hauls are a good way to test your skills and concentration but sometimes I like a fast Z. Thanks for all the work, I know how much effort you've put into these timetables...MUCH APPRECIATED!

[seagoon]

.......I'm glad to hear reports of the timetable working on Monogame Open Rails as well. It's been pretty hit or miss and thankfully it sounds like it's just a problem on my end.

Just a question regarding the timetable displayed under Shift+F5:
There is a long list of AI, but only the top four or five are actually active.
Is this correct and, if so, why are all the others listed?

[jonpd]

Iprinted out the BNSF pdf -- do most of the US roads use the same prefix system?

It varies. Unfortunately most do not have as nice a system as BNSF does.

Norfolk Southern uses a 3 character alphanumeric designation usually 3numbers or 2 numbers and a letter.

http://railroadfan.com/wiki/index.php/NS_Train_Symbols

CSX uses a letter followed by 3 numbers. The letter indicates the division and class of train.

http://railroadfan.com/wiki/index.php/CSX_Train_Symbols

Myhome railroad Pan Am uses 2 letters for origin + 2 letters for destination for through freights e.g. AYPO = Ayer to Portland (RigbyYard). Locals are origin yard plus a number e.g. AY1, AY2, etc. for locals out of Ayer.

I recall Conrail had a similar 4 letter system as the Pan Am one. CSAO may still use that as far as I know.

Update: Looks like UP uses a similar system as BNSF:

http://railroadfan.com/wiki/index.php/UP_Train_Symbols

Jon

[ebnertra000]

CN uses a similar version to CSX, but with a little bit extra:

http://railroadfan.com/wiki/index.php/CN_Train_Symbols

CP's is just a number for the most part

http://railroadfan.com/wiki/index.php/CP_Train_Symbols

I do think that while BNSF's system can get a little long-winded, it is the smartest way of naming trains

[R. Steele]

It varies. Unfortunately most do not have as nice a system as BNSF does......

CN uses a similar version to CSX, but with a little bit extra...

Thanks to both for your replies, and especially the links...good references. The more I refer to them the more I'll remember., start with BNSF...it is long winded, but complete.

Interesting on the UP ( says "outdated but historical" ) the amount of coal they used to run...times are changing.

Okay, thanks again, enough of this...too far off topic.

[ngc427]

You guys asked and I delivered, I just finished up with the train briefings on the Mullan timetable mode. I based the briefings off of the real paperwork that train crews get that tells them the information on their train. The briefing includes train symbol, train type, direction, horsepower per ton, feet, tons, loads, empties, and key train status for each train. If you can think of any other useful information that would be on a real consist report, feel free to suggest it and I'll see if I can get it added on before I finish up the patch.

While combing through all of this information for each train, I had discovered that a few trains had HpT ratings as low as 1.3 and some as high as 8.8 (2.5-3.0 seems to be the most comfortable rating). I plan on going through and correcting a few of the consists to balance out those numbers, turning this quick addition into a small bug fix as well. I also plan on making this a standard feature on all of the timetables I have planned, it's nice to have all of that information at a glance as real engineers would.

[R. Steele]

You guys asked and I delivered, I just finished up with the train briefings on the Mullan timetable mode. ... I also plan on making this a standard feature on all of the timetables I have planned, it's nice to have all of that information at a glance as real engineers would.

HatTip.jpg coolbeans.jpg much appreciated.

[Kuckoo]

You guys asked and I delivered, I just finished up with the train briefings on the Mullan timetable mode. I based the briefings off of the real paperwork that train crews get that tells them the information on their train. The briefing includes train symbol, train type, direction, horsepower per ton, feet, tons, loads, empties, and key train status for each train. If you can think of any other useful information that would be on a real consist report, feel free to suggest it and I'll see if I can get it added on before I finish up the patch.

While combing through all of this information for each train, I had discovered that a few trains had HpT ratings as low as 1.3 and some as high as 8.8 (2.5-3.0 seems to be the most comfortable rating). I plan on going through and correcting a few of the consists to balance out those numbers, turning this quick addition into a small bug fix as well. I also plan on making this a standard feature on all of the timetables I have planned, it's nice to have all of that information at a glance as real engineers would.

This sounds very good.
I don't know if ToB speed restrictions would be part of real consist report, or if what you already mentioned would contain that information. Just thought I'd mention it.

Thanks for making these. Almost feel guilty for using them.

[ngc427]

Sorry for the radio silence for the past month or so, with summer beginning my schedule has been out of whack, but I finally found the drive to finish up the Timetable v2.1 update.

It includes the train briefings, and updated consists to fix train weight balance (Some trains were flat out un-runnable due to poor weight balance before, one of the MRL manifest trains was 0.X HpT and wouldn't even start on a flat grade!). It's a minor patch, but should greatly improve the running experience of the timetable.

Another thing I'd like to mention is that most likely this will be the last update for the timetable, as I don't want to release a ton of individual updates just for 1 timetable as it can become confusing when downloading it, and there are a few other projects that I'd like to set my sights on full time.

The update should be up on the file library within the next day or so, as I just submitted it as I'm writing this post. Have fun!

[Kuckoo]

...one of the MRL manifest trains was 0.X HpT and wouldn't even start on a flat grade!

Yeah, a zero HPT would work if you're going downhill both ways, lol.

Also noticed there is a static empty coal consist parked on a siding outside of Missoula that is blocking a level crossing, and there were cars waiting to cross. Westbound before the orange caboose museum. Not a real issue since it doesn't affect the timetable, but was funny to see.

Really enjoying your timetables. As stated before that is now my primary mode of play in OR now, at least for the routes that have them. Learning about how to edit and create TTs to do something about the rest, though I'm not planning on anything for Mullan and Seligman since I'm not interested in submitting a competing product should I decide to upload anything. Though I have been playing around with the Scenic timetable, including adding the Seligman Amtrak Southwest Chief as a substitute for the Empire Builder that runs through the line, and also a couple of the Boeing trains coming from Wichita.

Anyway...

Thanks again for your TTs.

[Timbit]

Hi,
I just downloaded the update and when I try and run an activity, and I have tried a few I get this message, can some one help me understand what to do to fix it.
"Nullable object must have a value"
Thanks Tim
Error: System.InvalidOperationException: Nullable object must have a value.
at System.ThrowHelper.ThrowInvalidOperationException( ExceptionResource resource)
at System.Nullable`1.get_Value()
at Orts.Simulation.AIs.StartTrains.InsertTrain(AITrai n thisTrain) in F:\ADRIANA\Carlo\OR_Work\Git_ORTS_source_mio\Sourc e\Orts.Simulation\Simulation\AIs\AI.cs:line 1397
at Orts.Simulation.AIs.AI..ctor(Simulator simulator, List`1 allTrains, Double& ClockTime, Int32 playerTrainOriginalTrain, FormCommand playerTrainFormedOfType, TTTrain playerTrain, CancellationToken cancellation) in F:\ADRIANA\Carlo\OR_Work\Git_ORTS_source_mio\Sourc e\Orts.Simulation\Simulation\AIs\AI.cs:line 137
at Orts.Simulation.Simulator.StartTimetable(String[] arguments, CancellationToken cancellation) in F:\ADRIANA\Carlo\OR_Work\Git_ORTS_source_mio\Sourc e\Orts.Simulation\Simulation\Simulator.cs:line 474
at Orts.Viewer3D.Processes.GameStateRunActivity.Start (UserSettings settings, String acttype, String[] args) in F:\ADRIANA\Carlo\OR_Work\Git_ORTS_source_mio\Sourc e\RunActivity\Viewer3D\Processes\GameStateRunActiv ity.cs:line 294
at Orts.Viewer3D.Processes.GameStateRunActivity.<>c__ DisplayClass35_0.<Load>b__3() in F:\ADRIANA\Carlo\OR_Work\Git_ORTS_source_mio\Sourc e\RunActivity\Viewer3D\Processes\GameStateRunActiv ity.cs:line 160
at Orts.Viewer3D.Processes.GameStateRunActivity.Load( ) in F:\ADRIANA\Carlo\OR_Work\Git_ORTS_source_mio\Sourc e\RunActivity\Viewer3D\Processes\GameStateRunActiv ity.cs:line 201
at Orts.Viewer3D.Processes.LoaderProcess.Load() in F:\ADRIANA\Carlo\OR_Work\Git_ORTS_source_mio\Sourc e\RunActivity\Viewer3D\Processes\LoaderProcess.cs: line 159
at Orts.Viewer3D.Processes.LoaderProcess.DoLoad() in F:\ADRIANA\Carlo\OR_Work\Git_ORTS_source_mio\Sourc e\RunActivity\Viewer3D\Processes\LoaderProcess.cs: line 138
at Orts.Viewer3D.Processes.LoaderProcess.LoaderThread () in F:\ADRIANA\Carlo\OR_Work\Git_ORTS_source_mio\Sourc e\RunActivity\Viewer3D\Processes\LoaderProcess.cs: line 109
at System.Threading.ExecutionContext.RunInternal(Exec utionContext executionContext, ContextCallback callback, Object state, Boolean preserveSyncCtx)
at System.Threading.ExecutionContext.Run(ExecutionCon text executionContext, ContextCallback callback, Object state, Boolean preserveSyncCtx)
at System.Threading.ExecutionContext.Run(ExecutionCon text executionContext, ContextCallback callback, Object state)
at System.Threading.ThreadHelper.ThreadStart()

[gammaray84]

I want to say thank you very much, but i can't. I did try 4 of them, none of them worked.
Here is my logfile:

https://1drv.ms/t/s!AvLRFpDe9UrJiw-bqWTlqs1wrO_B