[REL] Custom Content Organiser (fully working version, but still without a guide!)

[apet08]

Latest version here! (http://www.rct-theme-world.de/downloads/Custom%20Content%20Organiser.zip)

*Rapidshare link* (http://rapidshare.com/files/135930160/Custom_Content_Organiser.zip)


[Old post]:

Download v. 0.1 here (http://rapidshare.com/files/46145943/Custom_Scenery_Organiser_v._0.1__31-7-07_.zip.html).

This is going to be a very long post. Please, read it very carefully before answering and/or contributing to what I am doing.

I wasn't going to announce the creation of Custom Scenery Organiser (CSOr), but seeing that Wingsofhalo created a thread (http://www.ataricommunity.com/forums/showthread.php?t=599847) for a similar project, I think I should do it now, in order to avoid letting people work on something that is already under way. Read on to understand.

Some of you may remember me as the one who updated the complete list of CS sets, before errt and RCT-Spanky graciously took over. While I was away from these boards, I occasionally checked them for keeping up with anything new. One of the most interesting posts was one of Belgabor's in the pinned complete CS list (#41). Go on and read it. The idea sounded great, but my experience from CS (and I have all of them in every single game I play), I realised that it had to be done methodically and in a very organised way, if such an endeavour was to be of any use. So, I started making a list of my own in Excel format.

What I have already done is a list in Excel (which I simply call "CS list") with the following columns:
Set
Downloaded file
Folders in Style\Themed
CreatorThe Downloaded file column contains the name of the archive I have downloaded from the internet. This may sometimes be different from what you have, simply because the original creator may have re-uploaded it somewhere else and changed the name slightly (or not).

The Set column contains the name of the set, most of the times being identical to the one from the official complete list. When it is not identical, I use alternate names in parentheses, so that if you cannot immediately find what you are looking for, you can always press Control+F to look for it.

The Folders in Style\Themed column is, for the moment, the most useful one, because it lists the name of the folder(s) each CS set installs in Atari\RollerCoaster Tycoon® 3\Style\Themed. When used in combination with other parts of CSOr (more on that later), it's a handy tool. For example (and I'm sure you'll find other uses as well), let's say you create a ride and want to place a ride fence that is not visible from the ride fence menu, because it is cluttered. If you know for sure what sets (containing ride fences) you are not going to use, you may temporarily move their relevant folders from Atari\RollerCoaster Tycoon® 3\Style\Themed to another place on your hard disk, until you finish what you're doing, after which you may put them back. Some people prefer to only install what they are going to use for each park, but the ones I had in mind when creating the CSOr were those who have all CS installed and just want to pick and choose on the go.

The Creator column is self-explanatory.

Notes:
1. If the latest and most complete (or only) version comes from Net-On, this is listed instead in column 2.
2. If a CS archive (column 2) contains more than one folder to be placed in Atari\RollerCoaster Tycoon® 3\Style\Themed, it has the equivalent amount of entries.
3. If a CS set (column 1) has more than one downloaded archives, it has the equivalent amount of entries.
4. If a CS set contains folders and/or files that need to be placed somewhere other than Atari\RollerCoaster Tycoon® 3\Style\Themed (like hotroddude's park Xtraz, for example), it gets an extra entry and column 3 (Folders in Style\Themed) also mentions which place that is.

This list is already finished and contains every single CS set, including the newest ones. It is far from complete, though. This was the first phase of my project and this list will be completed in the third and final one. More on that later.

The second phase (on which I am currently working) concerns a second Excel list titled (surprisingly) Custom Scenery Organiser. This is the really complicated list and a very useful one.

This Excel file contains different worksheets, each for every place in-game where you can find custom scenery. It currently contains the following:

- Ride entrances
- Ride exits
- Shops & Facilities-Food
- Shops & Facilities-Stalls
- Shops & Facilities-Facilities
- Scenery-Foliage
- Scenery-Fences
- Scenery-Walls, Roofs etc.
- Scenery-Path Extras
- Scenery-Scenery Items

I am working on the last worksheet, but all the previous ones are finished. After that, it will include ride events, terrain blocks, park entrances and billboards.

The first column of every worksheet contains the name of every single entry in the equivalent tab in the game, including the vanilla objects. I did it so, because I wanted the user (including me, naturally) to be able to find it easier. Had I excluded the vanilla objects, one could get lost, especially in tabs like Scenery-Scenery Items. That means that, in the latter, for example, there are currently no less than 475 entries. If a set (custom or not) is expandable (with the plus sign) in-game, I do not list the pieces contained therein. Again, this is because I'm interested in the user knowing where to find it; the name of each piece is, I believe, of little importance.

There are several things to note here. RCT3 does not list items in the normal alphabetical way, since a CAPITAL letter takes precedence over the small one. Somewhere in the Scenery-Scenery Items worksheet, for example, the list is as follows:
- Kumali Cave
- Kumali Text
- LG_HarbourSet
- Large Mayan statue
- Large Sized Coral Reef
- Large boulder
- Lasso Larry animatronic
- LittleMac's Vendor Carts
Normally, LG_HarbourSet should go after Lasso Larry animatronic, but since its second letter is a capital "G", it goes before Large Mayan statue, whose second letter is a small "a". I have kept the order exactly as it appears in-game. That is also the reason all of shyguy's sets are found at the bottom of each list, since they start with a small letter. Whenever a set does not have a name in-game, I have kept it in its place and written a description of its icon. The beginning of the worksheet I'm using as an example starts like this:
- [Plain grey icon - beginning of list]
- [Plain green icon]
- [Xistics Water]
- [Xistics Fire]
-
- 1920's car [1st in order]
- 1920's car [2nd in order]
- A-Goodies for Coaster Set, flat part
- AJM+ Jonnyears- DEMON DROP

I will now list the columns each worksheet has and will explain what is needed as I go along. I will not provide notes for the columns that are already explained in a previous worksheet. Keep in mind that this is work that has already been done.

- Ride entrances
-- Custom [Note: [B]yes if it is from a custom set; if not, I leave it blank. I use the same method for every column that requires a yes/no data entry]

- Ride exits
-- Custom

- Shops & Facilities-Food
-- Custom
-- Expansion [Note: this is useful for those that don't have Soaked! and/or Wild!, so that they could make these entries not to appear in the Excel file]
-- Theme [Note: Generic, Spooky, Atlantis etc.]
-- Recolourable?

- Shops & Facilities-Stalls
-- Custom
-- Expansion
-- Theme
-- Recolourable?
-- Working Billboard? [Note: you can place billboards through the shop's menu]

- Shops & Facilities-Facilities
-- Custom
-- Recolourable?

- Scenery-Foliage
-- Custom
-- Expands? [Note: yes if it contains a plus sign and can be expanded]
-- Expansion
-- Theme
-- Trees? [Note: this piece, or at least one piece in the set, if the set contains more than one pieces, can be seen if only the Trees filter is selected]
-- Plants? [Note: this piece, or at least one piece in the set, if the set contains more than one pieces, can be seen if only the Plants filter is selected]
-- Shrubs? [Note: this piece, or at least one piece in the set, if the set contains more than one pieces, can be seen if only the Shrubs filter is selected]
-- Flowers? [Note: this piece, or at least one piece in the set, if the set contains more than one pieces, can be seen if only the Flowers filter is selected]
-- Recolourable? [Note: yes if this piece, or at least one piece in the set, if the set contains more than one pieces, is recolourable]
-- Collision? [Note: yes if this piece, or at least one piece in the set, if the set contains more than one pieces, has collision detention]
-- Conforms to terrain? [Note: yes if this piece, or at least one piece in the set, if the set contains more than one pieces, conforms to terrain]
-- Swaying/Animated/Particle effects? [Note: yes if this piece, or at least one piece in the set, if the set contains more than one pieces, is animated in any way, including animated textures, or contains particle effects]

- Scenery-Fences
-- Number of items [Note: useful only for these items, because of the ride fence problem; if the user wants to temporarily remove some fences that clutter the ride fence menu, it helps to know how many fences a CS set contains, as this information also tells how much space the user will gain by doing so]
-- Custom
-- Expands?
-- Expansion
-- Theme
-- Recolourable?
-- Collision?
-- Conforms to terrain?
-- Light emitter? [Note: yes if this piece, or at least one piece in the set, if the set contains more than one pieces, is a light emitter. By "light emitter" I mean pieces that illuminate their surroundings (lamps, lights, whatever); pieces that glow but do not illuminate their surroundings are not considered to be light emitters (at least in CSOr)]

- Scenery-Walls, Roofs etc.
-- Custom
-- Expands?
-- Expansion
-- Theme
-- Misc? [Note: this piece, or at least one piece in the set, if the set contains more than one pieces, can be seen if only the Misc filter is selected]
-- Walls? [Note: this piece, or at least one piece in the set, if the set contains more than one pieces, can be seen if only the Walls filter is selected]
-- Roofs? [Note: this piece, or at least one piece in the set, if the set contains more than one pieces, can be seen if only the Roofs filter is selected]
-- Corners? [Note: this piece, or at least one piece in the set, if the set contains more than one pieces, can be seen if only the Corners filter is selected]
-- Recolourable?
-- Collision?
-- Conforms to terrain?
-- Animated/Particle effects? [Note: yes if this piece, or at least one piece in the set, if the set contains more than one pieces, is animated in any way, including animated textures, or contains particle effects]
-- Working Billboard? [Note: yes if this piece, or at least one piece in the set, if the set contains more than one pieces, can act as a billboard, ie. you can place billboards through the item's menu]
-- Working Seat? [Note: yes if this piece, or at least one piece in the set, if the set contains more than one pieces, is a place that peeps actually sit on]
-- Working Bin? [Note: yes if this piece, or at least one piece in the set, if the set contains more than one pieces, is a piece that peeps actually throw garbage in]
-- Working Loud Speaker? [Note: yes if this piece, or at least one piece in the set, if the set contains more than one pieces, can act as a loud speaker, ie. you can assign songs to be heard from the item through its menu]
-- Light emitter?
-- Has to be placed on path [Note: yes if this piece, or at least one piece in the set, if the set contains more than one pieces, can only be placed on a path edge]

- Scenery-Path Extras
-- Custom
-- Expands?
-- Expansion
-- Theme
-- Lamps? [Note: this piece, or at least one piece in the set, if the set contains more than one pieces, can be seen if only the Lamps filter is selected]
-- Bins? [Note: this piece, or at least one piece in the set, if the set contains more than one pieces, can be seen if only the Bins filter is selected]
-- Seats? [Note: this piece, or at least one piece in the set, if the set contains more than one pieces, can be seen if only the Seats filter is selected]
-- Signs? [Note: this piece, or at least one piece in the set, if the set contains more than one pieces, can be seen if only the Signs filter is selected]
-- Other? [Note: this piece, or at least one piece in the set, if the set contains more than one pieces, can be seen if only the Other filter is selected]
-- Recolourable?
-- Collision?
-- Conforms to terrain?
-- Working Billboard?
-- Working Seat?
-- Working Bin?
-- Light emitter?
-- Working Sign? [Note: yes if a scrolling sign or a "No entry" sign can be assigned to this piece, or at least one piece in the set, if the set contains more than one pieces]
-- Working Photo Spot? [Note: yes if this piece, or at least one piece in the set, if the set contains more than one pieces, is a piece that peeps actually stop by to admire the view or take pictures]
-- Working Loud Speaker?
-- Working Passport Machine? [Note: yes if this piece, or at least one piece in the set, if the set contains more than one pieces, is a piece that peeps actually stop by to place a stamp on their passport]
-- Can be placed outside path [Note: yes if this piece, or at least one piece in the set, if the set contains more than one pieces, can be placed outside a path]
-- Animated/Particle effects?

- Scenery-Scenery Items
-- Custom
-- Expands?
-- Expansion
-- Theme
-- Small? [Note: this piece, or at least one piece in the set, if the set contains more than one pieces, can be seen if only the Small filter is selected]
-- Medium? [Note: this piece, or at least one piece in the set, if the set contains more than one pieces, can be seen if only the Medium filter is selected]
-- Large? [Note: this piece, or at least one piece in the set, if the set contains more than one pieces, can be seen if only the Large filter is selected]
-- Animatronic? [Note: this piece, or at least one piece in the set, if the set contains more than one pieces, can be seen if only the Animatronic filter is selected]
-- Visible when no filters selected?[Note: this piece, or at least one piece in the set, if the set contains more than one pieces, can be seen if no filters are selected. This tab is the only one that contains such pieces, both from CS sets and from the game and its expansions]
-- Recolourable?
-- Collision?
-- Conforms to terrain?
-- Animated/Particle effects?
-- Light emitter?
-- Working Billboard?
-- Working Seat?
-- Working Bin?
-- Working Loud Speaker?
-- Working Passport Machine?
-- Has to be placed on path

Can you see a pattern here? Going back to Belgabor's post mentioned in the beginning of this post, you can see that much is left out.

After a lot of thinking, I decided to break down the description of a set into three categories: location, functionality and appearance. The second phase I am currently working on deals with the first two. "Location" is about the theme of the set and the filters that apply to it, as well as the place it can be found in-game and its position in the game's peculiar alphabetical order. This can be done in an objective manner. "Functionality" is about the function a piece can perform in-game and includes such categories as "light emitter", "collision", "working seat" etc. This can also be done in an objective manner.

What cannot be done in an objective manner is the appearance part, which was also what Belgabor was talking about. Which set contains Disney pieces or comic book heroes? Where can you find walls and path borders, or even path covers? Ride supports? Chinese pieces? The list can go on and on forever.

When the second phase is finished, after which I will release these lists as a tentative version 0.1 of the CSOr, half of the questions frequently being asked in these borders will be able to be answered; that is, all these questions asking for lights, benches, new billboards etc. That's the "functionality" part of the description of a set.

For the "appearance" part, I will need your help. As you understand, this is a very difficult task and I would hate to go through the sets more times than is necessary. I (obviously) am a masochist, but not that much. So, while I am finishing phase 2 (hopefully before the end of next week-end), I'd like the community to help me create a list of the so-talked keywords that are reasonable and helpful, but only those that pertain to the appearance of a set. The current CSOr already answers those questions regarding functionality. I can already think of several keywords (walls, seats, roofs, windows, disney, china and so on), but I think it would be tremendously helpful if we started a discussion now on what is necessary, useful and reasonable to add. Common sense must definitely prevail.

So, I rushed to make this thread because of Wingsofhalo's one. I didn't post anything there, because it would be rude. Wingsofhalo, if you read this, I thought it would be only fair from me to tell you what I have already done, so that you don't do needless work.

Any other suggestions, apart from the discussion I asked you to start, are always welcome. Again, be reasonable. It's been a tedious work, very, very, VERY not fun at all, but it's the only way.

Oh, one last thing concerning CSOr and the complete list of CS. CSOr, when finished, will always be available as a couple of Excel documents (when it comes out, some of you may want to help me make it look better), so that you can easily use it when playing the game, or even print parts of it. If possible, certain of its functions will be added to the CS list, but only those that are feasible. I have discussed it already with errt, but RCT-Spanky is the one who will tell me what can be added (and easily updated, of course) and what cannot.

If you've read this far, congratulations!

[EDIT: I forgot to add something very important: in the third and final phase, I will also list which CS set places what and where, thus linking the "CS list" file to the "Custom Scenery Organiser" one.]

[-Nuclear Fish-]

First of all, it's GREAT off you to have spent the time doing all this. I've been annoyed how disorganised CS is becoming for the past several months and how few people seem to bother, so thank you very much for helping to get it all better organised. This should really help everyone sorting out which sets contain what and finding what they need and stuff.

So, about these keywords... the sorts of keywords we need can probably be fit into two category's - objects and themes. Objects would be keywords like seats, walls, roofs, particles, supports, rocks, path covers, lights, etc. Themes would be things like China, Disney, Spooky, Atlantis, Snow, Space, Sci-fi, Castle, etc. Something like that. I'll have a think about more keywords...

[wabigbear]

WOW! What a huge amount of work you've already put into this! First, a sincere thank you for all you've done so far.

A couple keywords I thought of are interior, trim, ceilings, windows, doors, and for theme keywords I'd suggest Historical or Main Street

[apet08]

Thanks for the kind words!

Yes, it's been a lot of work, but I'm glad to say phase 2 is now finished! I've temporarily uploaded v. 0.1 at RapidShare (http://rapidshare.com/files/46145943/Custom_Scenery_Organiser_v._0.1__31-7-07_.zip.html), but I'm looking for a permanent host, which must, however, allow me to upload an updated version whenever I want. Which one should I choose?

Anyway, I've made a couple of changes (additions, actually), but the idea and the structure remains the same. Please note that as it stands now, CSOr doesn't help you find which CS contains the pieces you want. What it does, however, is actually organise all your CS you have downloaded. Even if you haven't downloaded all of them, I think you will find many uses for it. I think it is obvious how to use it, but I'm waiting for some feedback before I also write a guide, in case some people are not that familiar with Excel.

I like the idea of two categories of keywords, it will help us find as many as possible. I'm not creating a keyword list yet (here, in this thread), because I'd like more people to say what they are looking for in custom scenery in general.

I hope you enjoy what I have done so far!

[Maverick2007]

There's one thing I'd suggest. If every set needs to be in the excel sheet, an updater would be a great feature.

[apet08]

There's one thing I'd suggest. If every set needs to be in the excel sheet, an updater would be a great feature.

What do you mean by that? I am going to update it and from time to time upload the updated version. Is that what you're suggesting? And as I said, every single CS set is going to be included. Right now, for example, I've also included 741852963951753's Wall Set (http://www.ataricommunity.com/forums/showthread.php?t=600478), but it's not in the uploaded version.

OK, it seems some organising is needed. Here are the keywords I can come up with - I'm following Nuclear Fish's suggestions concerning categories. In addition, I thought of another category that is very useful: texture/material

Objects:

airplane, animals, arcades, arch, balls, beams, benches, billboards, bins, blocks, boats, borders, boxes, bridge, bridge supports, buses, bushes, canoe, cars, castle, catwalk, cave, ceilings, chain, chairs, cliff, clock, domes, doors, drains, facilities, fences, figures, flags, floor, flowers, furniture, gates, girders, ground covers, hedges, interior, lamps, laser, letters, lights, loud speakers, monument, neon, paintings, park map, particles, path covers, photographs, photos, pictures, planters, plants, poles, pool coverings, portraits, projectors, pyramid, railings, ramp, ride entrances, ride events, ride exits, ride signs, rockets, rocks, roller coaster, roller coaster supports, roofs, rope, ruin, seating, seats, shelters, ships, shops, signs, spacecraft, spaceship, spheres, spotlight, stairs, statues, tables, tent, terrain surface, toons, topiaries, tower, toys, trackbeds, trash, trees, trim, trucks, tubes, tunnels, turnstile, vaults, vehicles,
vending machines, vendor carts, walls, windows

Texture/Material

brick, concrete, granite, glass, grass, metal, rock, rust, sand, steel, stone, stucco, water, wood

For the themes, I will go as I check every set, but I really need you to tell me themes that are not easily identifiable, yet quite needed (real life park names, themes suitable for multiple sets, like sports, ancient, airport, etc.).

Again, I'm waiting for contributions.

[RCT-Spanky]

This is a very good idea and I'm surprised how far you are with this project.

But don't forget to mentioned, that you also back in the CS-List-Team. So with your help and ideas, I'm sure the Complete List of Custom Scenery will be always current and with your tool always well organized.

BTW: Maybe you can get some help from errt, because the CSO²-Database has a similar idea, but not so many options. But I know, that errt has also a few ideas to expand the list and make it more usable.

Too bad, that not any CS-Artist appreciate this work. I wish they would support us a little bit more with current links to their downloads. It's not always funny to read any thread, if a new set was relesed or just WIP.

Keep it up ... :up:

[Maverick2007]

What do you mean by that?
Now that I downloaded it, nevermind.

[apet08]

This is a very good idea and I'm surprised how far you are with this project.

But don't forget to mentioned, that you also back in the CS-List-Team. So with your help and ideas, I'm sure the Complete List of Custom Scenery will be always current and with your tool always well organized.

BTW: Maybe you can get some help from errt, because the CSO²-Database has a similar idea, but not so many options. But I know, that errt has also a few ideas to expand the list and make it more usable.

Too bad, that not any CS-Artist appreciate this work. I wish they would support us a little bit more with current links to their downloads. It's not always funny to read any thread, if a new set was relesed or just WIP.

Keep it up ... :up:

Thanks, RCT-Spanky, I'm also glad that I am going to help with the list. I'll send you a PM later tonight or tomorrow about the list. I think I've figured out how it works, but I want to be sure.

I think I've seen the categorisation of CSO²-Database, but the main difference is that in CSOr a set will have multiple keywords, rather than be assigned to a simple category. I'll definitely discuss it with errt.

And don't worry about newly released sets. Both you and errt are also scenery makers, which I'm not, meaning I have the time to pester the creators about hosting their sets elsewhere when they are no longer available. ;)

Now that I downloaded it, nevermind.

Did you find it difficult to use? ARE you going to use it? Can you suggest anything to make it more user-friendly? You're the first one who I know for sure has downloaded it, so any feedback will be greatly appreciated.

[errt]

Please don't talk about a CSO²-database ;) CSO² is the (old and not very good) programm (which will hopefully be redone soon) using the database, the database itsself is only called (RCT-Net) CSO-DB ;)

I didn't think of our keyword-system for the list, I will explain you in a PM what I thought could be used.

[wabigbear]

Sorry ape08, I haven't been able to take a look yet, but it's on my agenda for today!

[apet08]

Sorry ape08, I haven't been able to take a look yet, but it's on my agenda for today!

I'm eagerly waiting for your opinion. :respect:

[baz6174]

This is a great idea, downloading now.

A suggestion for you: under the Texture/Material heading could we have glass too? There are a lot more glass pieces now and i think this would be helpful.

Thanks for sharing.

[LightGrenades]

I just took a look around, and wow. All I can say is incredible job! everything is so organized.

[coinich]

Oh my gosh, thank you so much!

[wabigbear]

Great job! I can clearly see the possibilities with this program.

The one thought I had right off the bat with the CSor is that I would consider adding a column for the designer's name.

The reason I suggest it is that I, like many others, download most CS released, and I've always installed, opened and looked at the set to see what's there. I have a mental image to go with the set, but I usually associate with the designer's name more than just relying on the name of the set or the name of the individual piece. This isn't a problem if the designer's name is included in the set's name, but that doesn't always happen. Take for instance the first two entries under Shops & Facilities/Food...002 Blue Shop 001 doesn't ring any bells in my mind - I don't recall who created it. Same with Shops & Facilities/Stalls...because LittleMac's name is in his Vendor Cart's name, I have an instant picture in my mind of it and the entire set. But Kiosk (recolorable) caused me to pause because I didn't have a name to go with it until I remembered that most likely is Vodin's work.

So far that's the only suggestion I have, but I'll continue to explore it. Nice work!

[errt]

The blue shop should be from Eddi22's Xistics Modern Art Blue, I think. But I miss a creator column, too.

[apet08]

Don't worry, this will be included during the third and last phase. This is still a work in progress. In the third phase I will go through every single set, one at a time, so that I make sure the only custom material I have in the game comes from a single set, and note down what it adds and where. Then I'll add the creator and the set's name, exactly as it is found in the "CS list.xls" document, thus somehow linking it to "Custom Scenery Organiser.xls". At the same time, I will check (again) what's in each set and assign the necessary keywords to it, probably in a third .doc document. This is not the complete CSOr, just part of it. Look at it as the foundation of what is to come, which is why I started this progress in the first place: to know which set adds what.

[apet08]

Sorry for the double post, but I think it's better than starting another thread.

I have a few questions for all scenery makers (or anyone else who might know).

As we all know, each custom scenery set places a folder in Atari\RollerCoaster Tycoon® 3\Style\Themed, sometimes more than one. Each of these folders corresponds to a custom scenery set in-game, which can be either one or several single objects (that do not contain the plus sign next to their name in the game and, therefore, cannot be expanded) or a set WITH the plus sign that can be expanded (which sometimes contains a single object, but that's irrelevant). I am interested in those "expandable" sets.

In quite a few cases, a CS set can appear with the same name in different places. Romana Asmosia by Sir Asmo (Asmodis), for example, appears in Scenery Items, in Path Extras, in Walls, Roofs and Buildings and in Foliage. In all of these places, it appears with the same name (which is "expandable"): Romana Asmosia.

1. Is it possible that a single (custom scenery) folder found in Atari\RollerCoaster Tycoon® 3\Style\Themed places custom scenery in-game under more than one name? In the example above, the set places a folder named "RomanaAsmosia" in Atari\RollerCoaster Tycoon® 3\Style\Themed; could scenery added by this single folder appear in-game under multiple names? For example, could that folder also place different CS pieces found in the Walls section under the name of "Romana Asmosia Extras" (hypothetically speaking)? Or would a second folder be needed for that?

2. Is it possible that a single folder as described above places both "expandable" names and non-"expandable" ones? With the Romana Asmosia example, could its folder also create a single piece in the Fences section (non-"expandable") with the name of "Roman Fence"?

In both of these questions, I'm actually asking whether the current CS Importer makes these situations possible or not, should a CS creator choose to do so.

The reason I'm asking is that, as I've said, I've entered the third phase of the CSOr and it would help me go through the sets much faster if I knew for certain that, once I find a CS set in-game anywhere under a specific name, I don't have to look for it under another name elsewhere. I'm running my game with a single CS folder in Atari\RollerCoaster Tycoon® 3\Style\Themed at a time, but I still have to go through all the trees, scenery items etc. to make sure I don's miss anything and that has already got very tiring (and time-consuming).

I hope I've made clear what I'm asking exactly.

Thanks in advance for your answers.

[errt]

Yes, all of this is possible. It's just the group setting in the scenery dialog.

[apet08]

Thanks a lot, errt. I guess it's gonna be the hard way...

[Vodhin]

To understand the situation- you can have multiple piece groups (walls in Scenery Walls > "my-wallset-walls" and also have walls in Scenery Items > "my-other-wallset-walls" based on a selected group. If the group option is disabled for a piece, it appears in the master list.

On top of that, the items can be further "Filtered" under a ThemeStyle (all pieces affected) and also in a category filter (wall straight, wall corner, wall roof, etc).

Lastly, it is possible to make different groups (as per point 1) so I have what appears to be multiple sets that actually exist in one common folder. My Cafe Kit does this as does the upcoming Oz (5 sets in one, and that's just the walls).

Hope that helps :D

[apet08]

OK, I need your help once again.

These are the textures on my list at the moment:

Texture/Material/Patterns
asphalt, brick, carpet, caustic, chrome, clay, cobble-stone, concrete, corrugated, crazy paving, crenellation, dirt, glass, glow, gold, granite, grass, gravel, marble, metal, mosaic, rock, rust, sand, snow, starry, steel, stone, striped, stucco, tiles, uneven, water, wood

The thing is, after having finished approximately 50 sets, I realised it would be nice to add which set has pieces with the caustic effect (my latest addition to the list). This means I now have to go through all 50 sets again to check for this texture, before I go on.

What I'm asking is this: are there any other textures I should be adding? I'm not talking about materials (like stone, dirt etc.) or patterns (like striped), because I can easily detect those on the way. I'm talking about effects like chrome and caustic. For those of you into computer modeling, are there any other effects I should be looking out for?

[errt]

What about unlit textures?

[apet08]

What are those? I've put "glow" in there, if that's the opposite of what you're talking about (those textures that can be seen at night without emitting any light, like the set you're working on;)), so, if it's not there, that would be an "unlit" texture. Is that it? Or is it something completely different?

[errt]

Unlit is exactly this. Unlit means, they glow at night (which is completely different to my lasers, they are real light) The Neon Lighting Set is made with unlits for example. Unlit, because the game doesn't light and doesn't shade them, so they are allways full bright.

[apet08]

Not knowing the technical word for it, I used "glow", but in the guide that will come along with the full release I'll mention that "glow" stands for the unlit texture. Thanks, errt!
Any other effects?

[EDIT: I've found out there are four texture styles that are similar: Chrome, Reflection, Gloss and Specular. I've got them from here (http://belgabor.vodhin.net/facts/#d0e667). What are the differences between them? Are they easy to detect? Should I put them in the list as a searchable keyword?]

[RCT-Spanky]

I think, they have a different kind of reflections. Chrome is more metallic, gloss looks more wet.

[Belgabor]

Gloss gives you a wet like effect (governed by the "alpha" channel), but no reflection.
I currently can't remember the difference between Chrome and Reflective.
For the sake of this list you can forget about specular, it only governs some lighting details but no real effect difference.
There are also Emissive texture styles which are a special effect, but I don't think any CS creator has used them yet (might be wrong though).

[apet08]

I have uploaded version 0.2 (http://rs180.rapidshare.com/files/48755760/Custom_Scenery_Organiser_v._0.2.zip). Again, I will need feedback.

In this version, I have merged the two previous Excel documents in one; now, "Custom Scenery Organiser.xls" contains another worksheet, which is the list of all the scenery sets and where they can be found. Check it out to see what I mean - this is how I was thinking to "link" this list with the rest of the worksheets. It's not finished yet, but this is the final form. Only the data are missing.

The second document (CSOr Appearance.doc) is what I need your feedback on. This, I believe, is what most of the users will first go through in order to look for a specific item or set that best suits their needs. It's the "appearance" aspect of a set description, as I mentioned in my previous posts.

In the beginning is a list with all the keywords (or key phrases) used in the list, alphabetically sorted and arranged in three subcategories: "Objects", "Texture/Material/Patterns" and "Themes". The first one is the most important, so I'll deal with it in the end.

As you can see, each of the sets that have already been included contains at least one keyword in both "Objects" and "Themes". This is not the case with "Texture/Material/Patterns", because in some situations no obvious texture can be detected. (Just a reminder: the ability of a piece to be recolourable is contained in the "functionality" aspect of a set's description, so it is listed in the "Custom Scenery Organiser.xls" document; this part is finished and updated).

Please, take a look at the sets that have been included up to now (in "CSOr Appearance.doc"). You will notice that every keyword or phrase in the table is preceded AND followed by an asterisk (*), separated from the former by a single space. This is so that it is easy to search for a specific keyword. For example, in the "Themes" part of the list of keywords in the beginning, you will find, among others, the phrase "park entrance". This is for those sets whose pieces are specifically made to be used for the entrance of a park, or those that contain pieces that are mostly useful there. If you search for this term (in the Word's search field, you should also put the asterisks, like this: * park entrance *), for the moment you will get these four sets: Custom Entrance set BETA by {Freak}Rct3, Drehkreuz Set 2.2 by Caederus, Drehkreuze / Turnstiles 1.7 by Caederus again and Big Building by coaster-inc. Because of the asterisks, you will not find this term in the list of keywords at the beginning. Now, if you look in the list of keywords for "Objects", you will notice there is a key phrase called "park entrances" (in plural form). Now search for that (* park entrances *). Only Big Building by coaster-inc turns up, because this is the only set (of those listed up to now) that contains a piece that appears to be a park entrance. (If you look for it in "Custom Scenery Organiser.xls", you will notice it doesn't say anything on its being a functional park entrance, because it is not. It looks like one, though, so this is why it is listed so in "CSOr Appearance.doc").

To recapitulate: a keyword or phrase cannot be found with the exact same name in more than one of the three categories of keywords. Other examples are flag (in Objects) and flags (in Themes), castle (in Objects) and castles (in Themes), cobble-stone and stone (in Texture/Material/Patterns) and rocks and stones (in Themes) and so on. This will make your search accurate and precise. Naturally, in the guide that will be included in the complete version, I will explain my choices for those ambiguous keywords or phrases.

Now, on to the content of these keywords.

Feedback n. 1:
What do you think of the "Themes" keywords so far? As with the rest of the keywords, more will be added as I go along, but do you have any kind of observation concerning what's there already?

Feedback n. 2:
This is about "Texture/Material/Patterns" and is closely related to the previous posts. It more specifically concerns texture (or texture effects). For the moment, these effects are contained: caustic, chrome, glass (both for pieces that look like a piece of glass, as well as for those the one can see through, even if they do not look like glass), glow (the equivalent to "unlit", for those who create custom scenery), reflection and water.

The first issue I want your help with is about "glass" and "water". I haven't found any "water" pieces yet (I've only gone through about 60 CS sets). I know there will be pieces that look like water, but, if I remember well, it will mostly be a "caustic" effect. Additionally, I'm also using "glass" for something that either looks like a piece of glass, or gives you the ability to see through, as I said above. My question is this: should I skip this keyword (water) altogether? Should I keep it for those pieces that actually contain water (like fountains, etc.), disregarding thus any effects/properties the word "water" might implicate as far as modeling is concerned? In a PM I was told that water, the way RCT3 has made it, cannot be done with CS; I also got the impression that "glass" is actually achieved with different techniques, so (if I understood correctly) there is no distinction (technically) between "water" and "glass" in RCT3 modeling (or it is inconsequential to try to separate these two). What do you suggest?

The second issue is about "chrome" and "reflection". In post #27 above I mentioned four "texture styles": Chrome, Reflection, Gloss and Specular. I've understood what "gloss" and "specular" stand for and I've decided to scrap them altogether. As far as "chrome" and "reflection" are concerned, however, there IS a difference, although I'm not sure I can easily distinguish them. What I'm asking is this: is it important that I leave both of these keywords and try to find pieces with either of these properties? If so, could you give me as many examples of custom scenery pieces that have either "chrome" or "reflection", so that I can more easily spot the difference in the future? The alternative would be to keep only one of them (chrome) and mention in the guide that this term also applies to the pieces that have the "reflection" property, or use a different term that applies to both. Obviously, if you think I should include gloss and specular as well, I'd be grateful if you could give me some custom scenery examples that could help me spot them on a CS piece.

Feedback n. 3 (and most important!):
This is about the individual pieces (keywords under "Objects").

You may have noticed that this category contains keywords that really apply to a specific CS set only (like "bowling pins"). It also contains some keywords or phrases, however, that are more generic in nature. Beams, walls, path covers, trim, signs etc. are pieces that many sets contain. I have already made some more accurate descriptions for certain pieces.

Check out "walls", for example. Apart from this keyword, I have also included "curved walls" and "diagonal walls". Apart from "path covers", I have also included "half path covers", "curved path covers" and "diagonal path covers", as well as an alternative keyword ("ground covers"). The same with "windows" ("curved windows").

My first question concerns these cases: should I include more specific key phrases for other generic pieces as well? In a recent PM, Vodhin told me the following, which I reproduce here: "I don't think folks will need to search for the properties of any piece, but the piece itself- someone might look for chrome trim. They also might look for shiny trim. but what type of trim will be more important- trim for cars? trim for buildings? Interior or exterior? etc." (This consideration, actually, prompted me to make this post and release a v. 0.2 of CSOr for your feedback). So, what other more specialised key phrases should I put? What do you, people, most frequently look for when creating your parks, that would be useful to be included in CSOr?

The second question is about the interior/exterior distinction. Although I have included "interior" as a keyword, I haven't added "exterior", because it would have to be put in many sets. Although I can understand the need for interior/exterior separation, how easy is it to spot it? Should I simply go with what a CS creator names his/her pieces? It is possible that a park creator uses "exterior" pieces for interior settings and vice-versa. Should I go with my intuition and choose accordingly? (I have already used that in some cases. Look for Edward's Western AddOn (Porch Poles, Edward's Western Add-On) by _Edward_ in "CSOr Appearance.doc", for example. Although the set is about wooden coaster supports, among other things, I've also included the keyword "fences" in the "Objects" column, because I think that some of these pieces look like fences, regardless of the creator's original intention).

So, these are the questions I have. If you have read this long (again) post AND downloaded the new version, please leave some feedback. I really need it before I go on. And I don't mean some negative/positive comments (although these are welcome, of course), but specific answers to what I'm asking.

Thanks for reading!

[apet08]

Sorry for the double post.

I think I'm half way through and I would really like your comments on my progress so far. There is still no guide inside, but you will be able to figure most things out yourselves.

[Link removed, read the first post of this thread for the regularly updated download links]

[yesmydear]

Amazing work apet08 and very useful for the whole community ! Thanks for doing this.

[apet08]

I'm proud to say that CSOr is now fully functional! You can find the new (and permanent, no Rapidshare anymore!) link in the first post!

It is not over yet, as I want to add some more info on the sets (like number of pieces, the exact size of the folders in Style\Themed for your reference, as well as a guide), but the keywords/key phrases part is complete!

Now you can search for the actual content of the sets! And yes, you can find anything even remotely related to Disney, but also much, much, MUCH more!

There will be a guide eventually, but after so many months' work (thankfully it was summer), I think I'll take a break. I was frantically trying to catch up with all the new sets being constantly released, while assigning keywords to the old ones, but I did it!

Thanks to everyone for your kind words. I hope CSOr will make 90% of all the threads asking for specific kinds of scenery obsolete.

Enjoy!

[Edit:] As always, I would truly appreciate your feedback. Go ahead and try to find which sets have the objects you want and tell me whether it was easy for you to get what you were looking for. Don't be afraid to offer any kind of criticism!

[CoasterSim.Fan]

I cant find a working link...

[apet08]

The first link is not working for me either. That is the same server for the complete list, so I expect it will be temporary. RCT-Spanky can tell us. That's why I've uploaded to Rapidshare as well, which is working for me. Have you tried that?

[CoasterSim.Fan]

I got it now, I have to say this is a really nice thing you made. I am sure it can help also of people.

I was actually thinking of maybe trying to create some type of database like this but on line. Goal was to set up / make my own content management system and then make a system that would allow people to enter all kinds of information about a set and then make the list search able.

Its a big project and I have no time line for it but If I ever get it going I will definitely give you first dibs at seeding up the information for it, heck you have more ideas then I had and with all the information fount already.

If you want to get this on line you can try saving them as html and if they look good I will be wiling to give you the hosting space needed if spanky cant.

[apet08]

Thanks for at least downloading it, CoasterSim.Fan. I begin to seriously wonder whether CSOr is really that useful; only 6 people have downloaded it from Rapidshare, although I cannot know how many have got it from Spanky's site (which, by the way, seems to have some problems at the moment).

Saving the .doc files as html is no problem, but the .xls is another story. I would like the html version of the Excel file to retain its full functionality, but when I save it with it, I cannot see it on my browser. I've tried to download the necessary Windows files to no avail. Does any of you know of any sites where I can upload it for free? I've tried Google docs, but the filters (for example) were not there, making "Custom Scenery Organiser.xls" quite useless.

[RCT-Spanky]

The site was was hacked, for that reason, the link doesn't work currently. I work on this problem and thank anyone for your patience. Sorry apet for the trouble. But it looks like hat absolute anything was deleted. Fortunatly I have an backup of the important files and I hope the site was rebuild in the next two days.

[apet08]

No worries, Spanky. I too have a backup copy of all the files necessary for the list, as well as all custom scenery ever made. If you need anything, just tell me so.

[apet08]

I am sorry for the double-post, but I really want to ask these questions:

I am in the process of checking the number of items per set, so that I fill out the "Number of items" worksheet of "Custom Scenery Organiser.xls". I was told the easier way to do so is by counting the number of items in the Style\Themed folder, excluding the style.common.ovl and style.unique.ovl files, as well as any shared textures files, and then dividing that number by 2.

I have come across some sets which do not contain TWO files per item, but one. Castle Defense Walls by Adnecles, for example, places a folder titles "Adnecles castle defense walls" in Style\Themed, which contains, among other things, a folder titled "castle defense walls", wherein there is a file called "Adnecles battlement wall steps.unique.ovl", but not "Adnecles battlement wall steps.common.ovl", as one would expect. This item, however, does appear in-game without any problems. This has forced me to look in every set for any single files that do not go together with their "pair". Is there an easier way to count the number of items through the importer? I would really hate to count them in-game.

The second question is a more serious one and I found out about it accidentally. Quidditch-Ring v.1.0 by Eviron places a folder titled "hp" in Style\Themed, which contains another subfolder with the same name. Inside the last one there are four files, which would indicate two items:
ring2.common.ovl
ring2.unique.ovl
ring.common.ovl
ring.unique.ovl
Unfortunately, I can only find one item in-game for this set. This made me wonder whether the same thing could happen with the rest of the sets, in which case the method I'm following is completely wrong. I would expect that when some of the .ovl files are corrupted, that the specific item would appear in-game and would simply yield the no sid error, but this is not the case with the Quidditch-Ring; only one item appears, and it does so with no errors. Could any of you CS makers explain that to me?

In plain English, all I'm asking is this: can one see how many pieces a set contains through either the "style.common.ovl" or the "style.unique.ovl" file in the Scenery Importer? Or is counting the pieces of each set in-game the only sure method?

[Madman1974]

WOW you have created a very large database for CSO! I have downloaded it and I am currently looking at it going WOW.

You have spent hours upon hours creating and then updating these files.

This will deffinately help those who download and install (correctly) find out where the items actually are in-game.

THANK YOU!

[JackyX]

Thats an amazing idea! It really helps allot. Thanx! :D

[apet08]

Thanks, Madman1974 and JackyX, for your kind words. I was hoping more people would use it, but I keep seeing all these threads popping up asking where some sets can be found and what they contain; unfortunately, the veterans do not point to this list, not do they seem to consult it in order to help others. I guess it will take some time before people know of its existence.

From now on (and until further notice), the links in the first post will be updated every time the complete list is updated. I will think of ways of uploading .html versions of the .doc files (at least) in the future, but I want to finish the Excel file and the guide first.

So, since the complete list has just been updated, enjoy (and go to the first post for the updated versions)!

[cris]

i cant dl it it says file not found

[apet08]

i cant dl it it says file not found

Both links work for me.

[Ryder17z]

Both links work for me.

Which one ?

They all says File Not Found

[sr3d]

Which one ?

They all says File Not Found
It works fine :rolleyes:

[XcoasterdudeX]

I dont have MS word is that a problem?

[Ryder17z]

CSOr v. 0.5 (http://rapidshare.com/files/53233746/Custom_Scenery_Organiser_v._0.5.zip)


That file doesn't exist, reupload at FileDen or FileFront

[apet08]

I dont have MS word is that a problem?

It could be, I don't know for sure. I have tried to make at least the .doc files available on-line and it is possible, but I decided to wait until I have the guide ready. Right now I'm filling in the info concerning the number of items of each CS set, which is why the guide has not been worked on yet. You are all welcome, of course, to make the CSOr files available on-line yourselves; in fact, I don't mind if anyone takes parts of CSOr or all of it and re-uploads it (or makes it appear on-line) anywhere in the web. Just keep in mind that CSOr is regularly updated and, until the guide is created, you can only guess at how I choose to assign specific keywords/key phrases to CS sets. Consider this a permission to host CSOr anywhere you like, or use parts of it for any website.

That file doesn't exist, reupload at FileDen or FileFront

It seems that quite a few people have got confused by that post, which contained a link to an outdated version, so I've changed the post to point you to the first post of this thread.

Since I've kept myself quiet over this project for a while, I think I should tell you about how I'm going to proceed with it.

Right now, as I said, I'm filling in the number of items per set part ("Number of items" worksheet of the "Custom Scenery Organiser.xls" file), which will also say which sets require that shadows be turned off (a piece of info already contained in the current complete list of CS). Next, it's the (now empty) "Folders' content" worksheet of the "Custom Scenery Organiser.xls" file; this will provide info on how many files and subfolders each CS folder places into Style\Themed, as well as the size of that folder. That way, you will know for sure whether the version you have of a particular set is indeed the latest one.

If all goes well, these will be finished before the end of the year; after that, I'll get to the last (and final) part, the creation of a guide. When I start working on that, I may start a new thread (and ask for the closing of the this one), so that the first post simply makes sense.

[XcoasterdudeX]

^^ i dont get these instructions....

[apet08]

There are no instructions in my answer. I just said that I didn't know whether you would be able to open the files of CSOr without MS Word (and Excel). The rest of my answer is for those who have downloaded CSOr and know its layout and how it works; if you haven't, you won't be able to understand what I'm saying.

[XcoasterdudeX]

^^
No i meen on the first post. Where do i extract?

[apet08]

Sorry about that, my mistake. You don't have to extract it to a particular place; CSOr is simply a bunch of files that categorise released CS sets according to the functionality and appearance of the pieces contained therein. It's a sort of a list that is not to be loaded together with RCT3 or placed somewhere in the game's folders, you just consult it whenever you want.

The first post and the subsequent ones are from when I first announced my intention of making CSOr; they're quite long to read and not much of use now. I'm thinking of creating a new thread with a short and clear first post when I finish the guide to CSOr. Having said that, the first page does contain information on how CSOr is organised, so, until the guide is released, you can refer back to those first posts in order to understand anything that confuses you in CSOr, but I'd suggest you do that only if you really can't tell how the information in CSOr is presented.

[XcoasterdudeX]

Sorry about that, my mistake. You don't have to extract it to a particular place; CSOr is simply a bunch of files that categorise released CS sets according to the functionality and appearance of the pieces contained therein. It's a sort of a list that is not to be loaded together with RCT3 or placed somewhere in the game's folders, you just consult it whenever you want.

The first post and the subsequent ones are from when I first announced my intention of making CSOr; they're quite long to read and not much of use now. I'm thinking of creating a new thread with a short and clear first post when I finish the guide to CSOr. Having said that, the first page does contain information on how CSOr is organised, so, until the guide is released, you can refer back to those first posts in order to understand anything that confuses you in CSOr, but I'd suggest you do that only if you really can't tell how the information in CSOr is presented.


Oh so whats this http://www.ataricommunity.com/forums/showthread.php?t=625901

[apet08]

That's something totally irrelevant to CSOr. It's a poll Belgabor made based on the original thread (http://www.ataricommunity.com/forums/showthread.php?t=624880). Basically, we can now have additional theme filters in the game. I had nothing to do with that.

[XcoasterdudeX]

That's something totally irrelevant to CSOr. It's a poll Belgabor made based on the original thread (http://www.ataricommunity.com/forums/showthread.php?t=624880). Basically, we can now have additional theme filters in the game. I had nothing to do with that.


All right now your making since. I was wondring why you started this thread and not him. They had the same name so i got conffused.

[apet08]

With the latest version of CSOr a few changes were made, that I think I should tell you about:

First of all, the number of items each set contains is now listed for all of them, so that part of CSOr is finished (that's the "Number of items" worksheet of the .xls file).

Secondly, with Belgabor's Invisible Changing Room a new kind of CS is created, (oddly enough) "Changing Rooms".

Lastly (and most importantly), it is now possible that future CS sets are not placed in Styles\Themed, but in Styles\Custom instead (a folder that needs to be created). CSOr reflects that change; at the moment, this kind of information will not be added in the complete list, although this may change.

Enjoy!

[Wingsofhalo]

After Returning from a 'Vacation' [A 1 Year Vacation :rolleyes:] I never released my idea actually was put into motion. Apet, I would like to thank you for picking this up. :up:

[apet08]

Thanks, Wingsofhalo, although I was mostly inspired by an idea Belgabor had.

After the latest update of the complete list, Belgabor's Invisible Doodads have been added to CSOr and a few changes were made to it. Apart from the obvious additions (paths), which are not scenery in the strict sense, the "Custom scenery list" worksheet of the "Custom Scenery Organiser.xls" file has been slightly altered, to accommodate Belgabor's set's peculiar installation. Look for the set's entries under the "Folders in RollerCoaster Tycoon® 3\[path name]" column and you will find more information than usual. This was the way I came up with in order to keep that feature's usefulness: you can still tell which set a particular folder in your RCT3 installation directory comes from, while providing additional information on which other folders are necessary for the particular pieces (columns "Name in-game" and "Place in-game") to work.

I know this is quite technical and that not many people use CSOr but, for those who do, these are all the changes made to CSOr at the moment. Of course, when some rides are added;), I will tell you of further changes, if they are not self-explanatory.

Enjoy CSOr (and use it)!

[wabigbear]

Nice additions and tweaks, thanks apet08!

[ComplexAudio99]

Wow... this is so helpful. I can't believe I haven't found it before.

I think this thread needs to be stickied so people can use it along with the "I Search An Object" thread.

This set is especially helpful when looking for themed items or new fences.

Great job and keep up the amazing work!

[apet08]

Thanks for the kind words, guys!

This time there has been a major change. Custom Scenery Organiser exists no more; everybody welcome Custom Content Organiser (or CCOr)!

With the addition of jonwil's set and his two roller coasters, a new worksheet has been added to "Custom Content Organiser.xls": not surprisingly, "Rides-RollerCoasters". What do you think of it? I've also decided to add some colours to all the worksheets, so that they are less chaotic than before.

I'm not going to explain what's in that worksheet, because I believe it is easy to understand, but if you have any comments to make or suggestions, I'm eager to hear them.

Custom flat rides will follow when they are added to the complete list.

So, the big question: aren't we going to have a separate list for custom roller coasters and flat rides?

The answer is no, it is not needed; in fact, it is better to have it as it is. Take jonwil's set, for example: anyone looking up the dark rides key phrase, will now also see his set listed. It is not scenery, but it's certainly something very useful for that theme. Or suppose that someone included custom scenery together with his custom roller coaster or flat ride (it was suggested to stu-2693 (Doughnuts) that he did just that with his Mad House): it is so much easier for us (and, I believe, eventually for you the users of the list and CCOr) to have everything under one place.

Now, if there is no separate list for custom roller coasters (or flat rides in the future), how can you know what sets there are?

The complete list will not help you there, but CCOr can.

There are three ways:

1. In the "Custom content list" worksheet of the "Custom Content Organiser.xls" file, you can filter column D (titled "[Path name]") by pressing the little arrow on its top and then choose "tracks\coasters" (or whatever will be added for CFR in the future). This is the installation path for roller coasters, so you can see what there is - at the moment, only jonwil's set, of course!

2. Just look into the relevant worksheet itself; at the moment, only "Rides-RollerCoasters". Filter column B (titled "Custom"), so that only "yes" fields are shown and voilà! Custom roller coasters!

3. This is the best method, in my opinion. Check out the set's entry in the "CCOr Appearance.doc" file (look for "Totally black wooden wild mouse coasters" by jonwil). As you can see, roller coaster is listed as an object key phrase. I have used this key phrase for scenery as well: anything that is part of a roller coaster and acts as scenery (cars, brakes, mechanisms, lift chains etc.). I have used separate key phrases for other things (ride decoration, ride signs, ride supports etc.), but everything else has been given the roller coaster key phrase. But, there is a difference: look at Friction Wheels (deco) by _Edward_, for example. It has the roller coaster key phrase under "objects" and the ride extras key phrase under "themes". The ride extras key phrase signifies custom scenery. Back to jonwil's set: instead of ride extras, it has custom roller coaster. That is only attached to proper custom roller coasters. The same will be done with flat rides: there is a flat rides "object" keyword (see Frog Hopper by Maylene (rct3m, Goliathdude), for example), which will also be used by CFRs, but the difference will be in the "themes" keywords. Flat rides that are just scenery have, again, the ride extras key phrase, whereas CFRs will have custom flat rides.

So, will there be a list of custom rides/roller coasters/flat rides etc.? The answer is yes, in CCOr's "Keywords - Themes.doc" file. Simply look for the custom roller coaster key phrase (or custom flat ride etc. in the future) and you will easily find all custom rides listed there in one place.

I hope that helps. Enjoy - and use it!

[wabigbear]

Hey, great update! I like your take on adding custom rides, that makes a lot of sense to do it this way. As usual - great job and a sincere "thank you!"...I just wish more people would take advantage of this!

[apet08]

Thanks! The roller coaster section was hard to make, so I'm glad that the most complicated thing in the game has finally been added to CCOr.

"Theme" keywords can be very useful; if someone is willing to make a park with a pirates theme, for example, he can easily find all sets with relevant scenery, and now also rides that fit their park (like ImagineerJohn's Heave Ho, for example, which will be added in the future).

I don't know how many people use CCOr, although I can see how many use the Rapidshare link (about 10 between each update), but not those who get it from the first link (RCT-THEME-WORLD). It would be interesting to know...

[herman925]

apet08..............I know I sound so ridiculous... I am such a noob but I really want to know....how can I make good use of your excel list and then use it to arrange the files of all the custom sceneries and contents????? I am so puzzled that what I downloaded seemed to be the complete list of the CS but it doesn't help me a lot in rearranging or making my in-game content list look more sorted.....can you please gimme a lil help coz I desperately need it

[errt]

It's not to sort the scenery in your game, but to find the scenery you need.

[herman925]

Oh alright....thanx....

So is there anyway to 'sort' the contents? Coz it is now too messy......and sometimes even looking at them feels so unpleasant....I know it is useful with the CSOr but sometimes I do not know what I want yet and I prefer to have a very organized menu of selection....

[errt]

Well, the only way you can sort CS in your game is the CategoryChanger. Search for it on the forums. With this, you can chose a category for a CS and so e.g. put packs you need more often into categories different from sets you hardly use.

[herman925]

Thanx errt :) Your English ain't bad, u know? mine is bad lol.....I'm from Hong Kong.

thanks for the help anywayz:)

[errt]

Well, I thinks it's much better now then when I came to this forums^^ But now, bck to the topic ;)

[apet08]

Just a small notice: with Cube Sitting by Belgabor, thrill rides have been included in the Excel file. You will notice that I list the excitement, intensity and nausea ratings, something that I have not done for the roller coasters. The reason is simple: flat rides cannot by modified by the player; a Tagada is always the same and its ratings will always be the same. It may be that if you place vanilla scenery around it they change, but I don't know. The ratings have been recorded in an otherwise empty park without any scenery.

Some of them, however, have an "N/A" entry, like the "Giant Slide". These are the flat rides that can be modified or constructed in different ways (or can have alternative launch systems etc.), similarly to roller coasters; that's the reason I do not list any ratings for them, because they depend on your design. Coincidentally, these "N/A" entries also signify that a design can be saved for this ride.

[Edit] With the addition of Totally black ghost train ride by jonwil, two new key phrases have been added to the "object" and "theme" keywords: tracked rides and custom tracked ride respectively. I'm not going to repeat what I said before regarding custom rides, especially how you can find what custom rides (flat rides, tracked rides or roller coasters) have been released and what the difference is between an "object" keyword and its equivalent "theme" keyword; not am I going to discuss why the recently released CTRides are not included in CCOr or the complete list. The latter is something that can be discussed in the list's thread.

I am going to clarify, however, what a "tracked ride" is as far as CCOr is concerned. I know that, technically, all roller coasters are tracked rides, as well as those attractions found in "Rides/Other Rides and Attractions" in-game; even the transport rides and attractions like the Aquarium and the golf course are technically tracked rides. Tracked rides are distinguished from both tower rides (like the "Launched FreeFall") and flat rides.

In CCOr, however, things are different: a "tracked ride" (and its equivalent "theme" key phrase, the "custom tracked ride") is defined by what it is not. The rule is this: a "tracked ride" is an attraction that is technically a "tracked ride", but it is also not a roller coaster, a transport ride, a water ride or a flat ride (thrill, junior, gentle etc.) that technically has a track. Basically, for the purposes of CCOr, a "tracked ride" is a tracked attraction that Frontier would place under "Rides/Other Rides and Attractions". I don't know what may be available in the future, so this rule might change, but for the moment this is what is meant by those two key phrases mentioned in the beginning of this edit.

[TidalWaveAsh]

im new here so can someone please help me, on the first page of this thread theres this link saying "latest version here" i click on the link and ended up downloading something i unziped it but all there is, is word files and an excel file both with full of text, what is this. how do i actualy get to use some of these CS? please help thnx

[apet08]

Sorry for not replying earlier, TidalWaveAsh. CCOr, which you have already downloaded, does not help you "use some of these CS", it is just a tool you can use either to find those sets that have the pieces or themes you are looking for or to find a piece from sets you have already downloaded. Since we have over 600 sets already, if you download a lot of them (or all of them), it is only certain that you will forget what exactly you already have.

Unfortunately I haven't been able to write a guide yet, so it must be difficult for first-time downloaders to understand what CCOr is all about, but I hope I'll be able to do it in the future.

I really have no clue whether others have been able to use it successfully and whether it has indeed been helpful in their searches, simply because no one has told me yet about its usefulness! I can assume that, without a guide, people may not fully understand my choice of keywords. Hopefully someone will tell me in the future.

You can also read this post (http://www.ataricommunity.com/forums/showthread.php?p=10571534#post10571534) of mine for additional information on CCOr, which explains what it does in a few words.

[TidalWaveAsh]

Sorry for not replying earlier, TidalWaveAsh. CCOr, which you have already downloaded, does not help you "use some of these CS", it is just a tool you can use either to find those sets that have the pieces or themes you are looking for or to find a piece from sets you have already downloaded. Since we have over 600 sets already, if you download a lot of them (or all of them), it is only certain that you will forget what exactly you already have.

Unfortunately I haven't been able to write a guide yet, so it must be difficult for first-time downloaders to understand what CCOr is all about, but I hope I'll be able to do it in the future.

I really have no clue whether others have been able to use it successfully and whether it has indeed been helpful in their searches, simply because no one has told me yet about its usefulness! I can assume that, without a guide, people may not fully understand my choice of keywords. Hopefully someone will tell me in the future.

You can also read this post (http://www.ataricommunity.com/forums/showthread.php?p=10571534#post10571534) of mine for additional information on CCOr, which explains what it does in a few words.

sorry if i keep bugging you but where can i find these CS. sorry but i find this real hard. can you give me the link please thanks

[Folli]

Hi, I am a bit new to rollercoaster tycoon 3, and i'm from holland so my english is not really good. I got the normal RCT 3 and i dowloaded ur Custom Content Organiser, is that like Custom Scenery? I don't know how it works and got no time to read ur descripiton. So please help me install it, i just want cool stuff on RCT 3. That's all, if someone can help me, thanks!