The Structure Parameter File

In this section we will take a closer look at the format of the Parameter File. But first, let's review what we just did to create the Two-Story Factory. The first step involved laying down 2 filled rectangles to establish a basic footprint. This was done initially so that other filled objects could overlay these rectangles. This is necessary since the parameter file is used by XTrkCad to draw objects in a "top-down" or first come first served order. Therefore the gray rectangle's edges were over written with the reddish brown roof walls. And likewise, the other roof detail overlaid the underlying objects. The main rule when creating structures is to place the underlying objects first and overlay them with the upper layer objects. This will make the various images visible. Such is the result of the Top-Down structure of the parameter file. The second rule is to use color to contrast objects from one another.

Now let's look at the Tutorial.xtp file (see below). The CONTENTS part is the Title we entered in the dialog box. Next is the code word STRUCTURE followed by the information we entered in the Custom Management dialog. The next line begins with F3. that indicates the Filled Box command and it's color (8421504). Following this are the x-y coordinates the for rectangle. The first two segments are obviously our two Gray rectangles. The next six sections are the reddish brown (8388608) roof walls. The final part of the file contains the lines (L3) for the roof ribs and the circles (G3). Normally you do not need to be concerned with the parameter file. However, there may be a time when you might want to edit the file using a text editor like Wordpad. You may want to move an object to a different order in the file. Remember that XTrkCad will draw each object in the order it is read from this file (i.e. top to bottom). 'So if you find it necessary to overlay a larger object over other objects, you could edit this file to move that object above the other objects to make them all visible. Only advanced users should try this approach and in any case you should always make a backup before editing this file.


CONTENTS Tutorial
STRUCTURE N "Walther's Two-Story factory 933-3295"

F3 8421504 0.000000 4

0.000000 0.000000 0
5.171875 0.000000 0
5.171875 2.625000 0
0.000000 2.625000 0

F3 8421504 0.000000 4

0.000000 2.625000 0
7.750000 2.625000 0
7.750000 5.265625 0
0.000000 5.265625 0

F3 8388608 0.000000 4

0.000000 0.000000 0
5.156250 0.000000 0
5.156250 0.125000 0
0.000000 0.125000 0

F3 8388608 0.000000 4

5.156250 0.031250 0
5.000000 0.031250 0
5.000000 2.687500 0
5.156250 2.687500 0

F3 8388608 0.000000 4

7.750000 5.250000 0
7.625000 5.250000 0
7.625000 2.640625 0
7.750000 2.640625 0

F3 8388608 0.000000 4

0.000000 5.281250 0
7.750000 5.281250 0
7.750000 5.125000 0
0.000000 5.125000 0

F3 8388608 0.000000 4

0.000000 5.281250 0
0.109375 5.281250 0
0.109375 0.015625 0
0.000000 0.015625 0

F3 8388608 0.000000 4

7.734375 2.640625 0
0.000000 2.640625 0
0.000000 2.750000 0
7.734375 2.750000 0

L3 0 0.000000 0.093750 1.375000 0 5.000000 1.390625 0

L3 0 0.000000 0.250000 2.640625 0 0.250000 0.125000 0

L3 0 0.000000 0.500000 2.656250 0 0.500000 0.125000 0

L3 0 0.000000 0.750000 2.656250 0 0.750000 0.062500 0

L3 0 0.000000 1.000000 2.640625 0 1.000000 0.125000 0

L3 0 0.000000 1.250000 2.656250 0 1.250000 0.125000 0

L3 0 0.000000 1.500000 2.656250 0 1.500000 0.125000 0

L3 0 0.000000 1.750000 2.656250 0 1.750000 0.125000 0

L3 0 0.000000 2.000000 2.656250 0 2.000000 0.125000 0

L3 0 0.000000 2.250000 2.656250 0 2.250000 0.125000 0

L3 0 0.000000 2.500000 2.656250 0 2.500000 0.125000 0

L3 0 0.000000 2.750000 2.656250 0 2.734375 0.140625 0

L3 0 0.000000 3.000000 2.640625 0 3.000000 0.156250 0

L3 0 0.000000 3.250000 2.656250 0 3.250000 0.156250 0

L3 0 0.000000 3.500000 2.656250 0 3.500000 0.125000 0

L3 0 0.000000 3.750000 2.671875 0 3.734375 0.125000 0

L3 0 0.000000 4.000000 2.656250 0 4.000000 0.140625 0

L3 0 0.000000 4.250000 2.656250 0 4.250000 0.125000 0

L3 0 0.000000 4.500000 2.656250 0 4.484375 0.156250 0

L3 0 0.000000 4.750000 2.656250 0 4.750000 0.125000 0

G3 0 0.000000 0.110485 0.875000 1.906250 0

G3 0 0.000000 0.104816 2.390625 0.750000 0

G3 0 0.000000 0.093750 4.109375 1.718750 0

F3 0 0.000000 4

1.812500 1.937500 0
1.937500 1.937500 0
1.937500 1.781250 0
1.812500 1.781250 0

G3 0 0.000000 0.156250 5.218750 3.140625 0

G3 0 0.000000 0.174693 6.750000 3.171875 0

END

Conclusion

With a little trial and error you will become proficient in developing structures and parameter files that can be useful not only for your own layout designs bit also for other users of the XTrkCad community. By spending the time to compile structures into a new parameter file and contributing that file into the XTrkCad community, you will be promoting the use of this excellent tool for the model railroad hobby. It is hoped that through the combined efforts of the users of XTrkCad, we can create an extensive library of model train structures in each scale for the benefit of all hobbyists like ourselves.

And finally there is one last concept to consider. The intent of structures in XTrkCad is for placing buildings and other such objects on your layout. But there is another use for structures. You can create structures which are used as alignment tools. These structures are templates that can be used for specialized alignment of track sections or other objects. An example of this is an urban street template that can be used to properly align buildings for a city. The template can be placed on the layout, the buildings aligned next to the roadway, and then the template can be removed if so desired. Another example is a vehicle structure that can be used to determine if the road or highway width is correct or if a parking lot contains enough room for the desired number of vehicles. A track gauge could be created to check for separation between tracks or spacing to a loading dock at an Industrial site. There are many other uses that are left to your imagination. So if you create a useful tool or structure, please consider contributing your parameter file to the XTrkCad community through the User Group. Enjoy and have fun!

Go to < 1 2 3 >

---

Categories

CategoryUser