Revision as of 09:57, 20 July 2024

The information in this Wiki Page applies to the palettes and windows found in Trainz Plus and TRS22 Platinum Surveyor (Surveyor 2.0) and in Driver.

1 The Trainz Plus World
- 1.1 Hiding and Showing Palettes and Windows
- 1.2 Docking and Undocking Palettes
- 1.3 Resizing Palettes and Windows
2 The Trainz Plus World
- 2.1 Hiding and Showing Palettes and Windows
- 2.2 Docking and Undocking Palettes
- 2.3 Resizing Palettes and Windows
- 2.4 Minimise Maximise Close
3 The Info Palette
- 3.1 Palette Coordinates
- 3.2 Info Settings Menu
- 3.3 Focus Info and Controls
- 3.4 Asset Name Menu
- 3.5 Object Name
- 3.6 Position Info and Controls
- 3.7 Rotation Info and Controls
- 3.8 Layer Info and Controls
- 3.9 Assigning Objects to a Different Layer
- 3.10 Assigning Objects to a Binding Layer
4 The Tools Palette
- 4.1 The Brush Tool
- 4.2 The Placement Tool
- 4.3 The Eyedropper Tool
- 4.4 The Free Move Tool
- 4.5 The Fine Adjustment Tool
- 4.6 The Marquee Tool
5 The Tool Options Palette
- 5.1 Tool Options Popups
- 5.2 Tool Options Active Controls
6 The Assets Palette
- 6.1 Using the Assets Palette
- 6.2 Expanding the Assets List View
- 6.3 Thumbnail View
- 6.4 Picklists and Search Filters
7 The Layers Palette
- 7.1 Lock the Route Layer Group
- 7.2 Open a Layer Group
- 7.3 Add a New Layer
- 7.4 Renaming a Layer
- 7.5 Deleting a Layer
- 7.6 Moving a Layer
- 7.7 Merging a Layer
- 7.8 Hiding Layers
- 7.9 Locking Layers
- 7.10 Setting the Active Layer
- 7.11 Move an Object to Another Layer
8 The Scrapbook Palette
- 8.1 Creating a New Scrapbook
- 8.2 Painting or Pasting a Scrapbook
  - 8.2.1 Setting the Filters
9 The Asset Preview Palette
10 The Content Packages Palette
- 10.1 Content Package Details
- 10.2 Testing the Packages
- 10.3 Dealing with Unsupported Assets
- 10.4 Apply and Upload
11 The Drivers Palette/Driver Control Center
- 11.1 Adding a Driver
- 11.2 Assigning Drivers
- 11.3 Switching Drivers
- 11.4 Driver Properties
- 11.5 Driver Location
- 11.6 Player Assignment
- 11.7 Command Status
- 11.8 Activity Log
12 The Logs Palette
13 The Session Options Window
14 The Commodity Picker Window
15 The Session Info Window
16 The Waybill Window
17 The Schedule Info Window
18 Trainz Wiki
19 The Info Palette
- 19.1 Palette Coordinates
- 19.2 Info Settings Menu
- 19.3 Focus Info and Controls
- 19.4 Asset Name Menu
- 19.5 Object Name
- 19.6 Position Info and Controls
- 19.7 Rotation Info and Controls
- 19.8 Layer Info and Controls
- 19.9 Assigning Objects to a Different Layer
- 19.10 Assigning Objects to a Binding Layer
20 The Tools Palette
- 20.1 The Brush Tool
- 20.2 The Placement Tool
- 20.3 The Eyedropper Tool
- 20.4 The Free Move Tool
- 20.5 The Fine Adjustment Tool
- 20.6 The Marquee Tool
21 The Tool Options Palette
- 21.1 Tool Options Popups
- 21.2 Tool Options Active Controls
22 The Assets Palette
- 22.1 Using the Assets Palette
- 22.2 Expanding the Assets List View
- 22.3 Thumbnail View
23 The Layers Palette
- 23.1 Lock the Route Layer Group
- 23.2 Open a Layer Group
- 23.3 Add a New Layer
- 23.4 Renaming a Layer
- 23.5 Deleting a Layer
- 23.6 Moving a Layer
- 23.7 Merging a Layer
- 23.8 Hiding Layers
- 23.9 Locking Layers
- 23.10 Setting the Active Layer
- 23.11 Move an Object to Another Layer
24 The Scrapbook Palette
- 24.1 Creating a New Scrapbook
- 24.2 Painting or Pasting a Scrapbook
  - 24.2.1 Setting the Filters
25 The Asset Preview Palette
26 The Content Packages Palette
- 26.1 Content Package Details
- 26.2 Testing the Packages
- 26.3 Dealing with Unsupported Assets
- 26.4 Apply and Upload
27 The Drivers Palette/Driver Control Center
- 27.1 Adding a Driver
- 27.2 Assigning Drivers
- 27.3 Switching Drivers
- 27.4 Driver Properties
- 27.5 Driver Location
- 27.6 Player Assignment
- 27.7 Command Status
- 27.8 Activity Log
28 The Logs Palette
29 The Session Options Window
30 The Commodity Picker Window
31 The Session Info Window
32 The Waybill Window
33 The Schedule Info Window
34 Trainz Wiki

The Trainz Plus World

When you start Trainz Plus and TRS22 Platinum the world presented will look something like the following images, but what you actually see can be highly customised to your own preferences.

Surveyor 2.0

S20 SurveyorScreen.png

The dark grey strips on the left and right of the screen contain Palettes that have been Docked into the positions shown. Palettes are where selections can be made, information displayed and controls set.

The main difference between a Palette and a Window is that palettes can be docked or grouped together, windows cannot. All those in Surveyor can be docked so they are Palettes

Shown in the image above are 5 Palettes from top left to bottom right:-
	Assets
	Layers
	Info
	Tools
	Tool Options

Not shown are 5 more Palettes that have been hidden from view:-

	Scrapbook
	Asset Preview
	Content Packages
	Logs
	Drivers

Driver

The main difference between a Palette and a Window is that palettes can be docked or grouped together, windows cannot. All those in Driver cannot be docked so they are Windows

All the windows in Driver are normally hidden.

S20 DriverScreen.png

Shown in the image above are 2 Windows:-
	Session Options
	Commodity Picker

Not shown are 4 more Windows:-

	Session Info
	Driver Control Centre (the Surveyor Drivers palette)
	Waybills
	Schedule Info

Hiding and Showing Palettes and Windows

Palettes and Windows, in both Surveyor and Driver, are hidden and revealed using the

Window Menu.

In Surveyor the visible/hidden state of each palette will be saved when you close the program. When you restart each palette will be returned to that last saved state.

The visible and hidden Palettes and Windows in the screenshots shown above have had their visibility set by:-

Surveyor

Driver

Steps: To Hide or Show a palette/window:-

Left Click on the

Window Menu

	The popup menu will show:-
	visible palettes/windows have ticks next to their names - this includes those that are visible but minimised
	invisible (hidden) palettes/windows have no ticks next to their names
	minimised palettes and windows (e.g. the Mini Map or Drivers as shown in the images) are also listed below the bottom dividing line

To hide a visible palette or window, or to reveal an invisible one, simply Left Click on its name OR on the

icon next to its name

To show a minimised palette or window Left Click on its name

See also Minimise Maximise Close below.

Docking and Undocking Palettes

	Palettes in Surveyor are normally Docked, locked into fixed positions on both sides of the Surveyor Screen. They can be Undocked and freed to move anywhere on the screen.
	Windows in Driver are Undocked and are free to move anywhere on the screen. They cannot be Docked.

Notes:

	In Surveyor the docked or undocked state and position of each palette will be saved when you close the program. When you restart each palette will be returned to that last saved state.
	In Driver the position of a window will NOT be saved when you close the program.

Undocking a Palette

Steps: To Undock a palette from its docked position on either side of the screen:-

Move the mouse pointer onto the Title Bar of the palette to be undocked. The pointer will take the shape of a 4 headed arrow

Left Click and Drag the palette to any position on the screen

Release the mouse button in the new position

	Notes:
	If an Undocked and resized palette is Hidden or Minimised and then made Visible again then it will be returned to its previous Undocked position and size
	If an Undocked and resized palette is Closed and then reopened again it will be returned to its previous Undocked position but NOT to its previous size

To hide an Undocked palette and later return it to the same Undocked state, Left Click on its Minimise - icon on its top menu bar. To restore it to the screen see

Minimise Maximise Close below.

Docking a Palette

Steps: To reverse the process and dock a palette:-
	Move the mouse pointer onto the Title Bar of the free palette that is to be docked

	Left Click and Drag the palette to the desired position in a docking area. A light grey area will show the palettes docking position

	Release the mouse button and the palette

The palette does not have to be returned to its original position.

Free floating (Undocked) palettes can be docked together in Surveyor to form a docked group that is still free floating

Resizing Palettes and Windows

	Only Surveyor palettes that are Undocked can be resized. Some palettes have to be resized to display all their available information.
	Most Driver windows cannot be resized.

	In Surveyor the resized state of each palette will be saved when you close the program. When you restart each palette will be returned to that last saved state.
	In Driver the resized state of a window will NOT be saved when you close the program.

Steps: To resize a palette or window:-
	Move the mouse pointer onto any corner or onto an edge (left, right or bottom) of the palette/window. When it is in the correct position the pointer "mouse" arrow will change to a "two headed" arrow - if it does not change then it is a window that cannot be resized.
	Left Click and Drag the pointer to expand or reduce the size of the palette or window. Palettes and windows have a maximum and minimum size beyond which they cannot be extended or reduced
	Release the mouse button when the palette or window has reached the required size

If a resized palette is returned to a docking area on either side of the screen or is closed and then reopened, its dimensions will return to its default (original) values

To hide an Resized palette or window and later return it to the same state, Left Click on its Minimise - icon on its top menu bar. To restore it to the screen see the next section

Minimise Maximise Close.

The information in this Wiki Page applies to the palettes and windows found in Trainz Plus and TRS22 Platinum Surveyor (Surveyor 2.0) and in Driver.

The Trainz Plus World

When you start Trainz Plus and TRS22 Platinum the world presented will look something like the following images, but what you actually see can be highly customised to your own preferences.

Surveyor 2.0

S20 SurveyorScreen.png

The dark grey strips on the left and right of the screen contain Palettes that have been Docked into the positions shown. Palettes are where selections can be made, information displayed and controls set.

The main difference between a Palette and a Window is that palettes can be docked or grouped together, windows cannot. All those in Surveyor can be docked so they are Palettes

Shown in the image above are 5 Palettes from top left to bottom right:-
	Assets
	Layers
	Info
	Tools
	Tool Options

Not shown are 5 more Palettes that have been hidden from view:-

	Scrapbook
	Asset Preview
	Content Packages
	Logs
	Drivers

Driver

The main difference between a Palette and a Window is that palettes can be docked or grouped together, windows cannot. All those in Driver cannot be docked so they are Windows

All the windows in Driver are normally hidden.

S20 DriverScreen.png

Shown in the image above are 2 Windows:-
	Session Options
	Commodity Picker

Not shown are 4 more Windows:-

	Session Info
	Driver Control Centre (the Surveyor Drivers palette)
	Waybills
	Schedule Info

Hiding and Showing Palettes and Windows

Palettes and Windows, in both Surveyor and Driver, are hidden and revealed using the

Window Menu.

In Surveyor the visible/hidden state of each palette will be saved when you close the program. When you restart each palette will be returned to that last saved state.

The visible and hidden Palettes and Windows in the screenshots shown above have had their visibility set by:-

Surveyor

Driver

Steps: To Hide or Show a palette/window:-

Left Click on the

Window Menu

	The popup menu will show:-
	visible palettes/windows have ticks next to their names - this includes those that are visible but minimised
	invisible (hidden) palettes/windows have no ticks next to their names
	minimised palettes and windows (e.g. the Mini Map or Drivers as shown in the images) are also listed below the bottom dividing line

To hide a visible palette or window, or to reveal an invisible one, simply Left Click on its name OR on the

icon next to its name

To show a minimised palette or window Left Click on its name

See also Minimise Maximise Close below.

Docking and Undocking Palettes

	Palettes in Surveyor are normally Docked, locked into fixed positions on both sides of the Surveyor Screen. They can be Undocked and freed to move anywhere on the screen.
	Windows in Driver are Undocked and are free to move anywhere on the screen. They cannot be Docked.

Notes:

	In Surveyor the docked or undocked state and position of each palette will be saved when you close the program. When you restart each palette will be returned to that last saved state.
	In Driver the position of a window will NOT be saved when you close the program.

Undocking a Palette

Steps: To Undock a palette from its docked position on either side of the screen:-

Move the mouse pointer onto the Title Bar of the palette to be undocked. The pointer will take the shape of a 4 headed arrow

Left Click and Drag the palette to any position on the screen

Release the mouse button in the new position

	Notes:
	If an Undocked and resized palette is Hidden or Minimised and then made Visible again then it will be returned to its previous Undocked position and size
	If an Undocked and resized palette is Closed and then reopened again it will be returned to its previous Undocked position but NOT to its previous size

To hide an Undocked palette and later return it to the same Undocked state, Left Click on its Minimise - icon on its top menu bar. To restore it to the screen see

Minimise Maximise Close below.

Docking a Palette

Steps: To reverse the process and dock a palette:-
	Move the mouse pointer onto the Title Bar of the free palette that is to be docked

	Left Click and Drag the palette to the desired position in a docking area. A light grey area will show the palettes docking position

	Release the mouse button and the palette

The palette does not have to be returned to its original position.

Free floating (Undocked) palettes can be docked together in Surveyor to form a docked group that is still free floating

Resizing Palettes and Windows

	Only Surveyor palettes that are Undocked can be resized. Some palettes have to be resized to display all their available information.
	Most Driver windows cannot be resized.

	In Surveyor the resized state of each palette will be saved when you close the program. When you restart each palette will be returned to that last saved state.
	In Driver the resized state of a window will NOT be saved when you close the program.

Steps: To resize a palette or window:-
	Move the mouse pointer onto any corner or onto an edge (left, right or bottom) of the palette/window. When it is in the correct position the pointer "mouse" arrow will change to a "two headed" arrow - if it does not change then it is a window that cannot be resized.
	Left Click and Drag the pointer to expand or reduce the size of the palette or window. Palettes and windows have a maximum and minimum size beyond which they cannot be extended or reduced
	Release the mouse button when the palette or window has reached the required size

If a resized palette is returned to a docking area on either side of the screen or is closed and then reopened, its dimensions will return to its default (original) values

To hide an Resized palette or window and later return it to the same state, Left Click on its Minimise - icon on its top menu bar. To restore it to the screen see the next section

Minimise Maximise Close.

Minimise Maximise Close

	Minimising will hide a palette or window but retain its size and position data.
	Maximising will return it to the screen using its last size and position data.
	Closing will hide it but its size and position data will be lost. When next displayed a closed palette will be shown docked to the side of the screen.

Notes:

All Surveyor palettes can be minimised

Only two Driver windows can be minimised:-

	Session Options, and
	Driver Control Center

The image below shows a Surveyor 2.0 screen with an open window box (the Find Object Tool) and two Undocked palettes (Info and Layers)

Each of the windows and palettes shown can be:-
Options:

individually Minimised by a Left Click on the - icon in each of their top menu bars

individually Closed by a Left Click on the x icon in each of their top menu bars

simultaneously Minimised in a single action from the

Window Menu by selecting Minimise All Windows

Minimising will "remember" the size and position of a palette or window while Closing will not

Notes:

A Left Click on the

Window Menu will show all the palettes and windows, visible and hidden, plus any that are minimised.

In the image shown on the left the minimised windows are listed at the bottom of the menu list in the Minimised Windows Area as Find Object, Info and Layers. Layers is also shown with the name of the currently selected layer.

Note that the Layers and Info palettes are listed twice - once with a

icon in the Palette Area, which indicates that they are "active", and again in the Minimised Windows Area at the bottom, which indicates that they are "active" but "minimised".

Steps: To Maximise a palette or window:-

Left Click on its name or title in the Minimised Windows Area at the bottom of the list.

Warning:
DO NOT click on the name of the palette or window shown with the

icon in the upper Palettes section - this will reset it so it will become hidden (not just minimised) and it will lose its size and position data.

The Info Palette

This is a Surveyor Only palette

If the Info Palette is not visible on the screen then refer to

Hiding and Showing Palettes and Windows at the top of this document. Some Info Palette functions will also require the Assets Palette and the Tool Options Palette.

This palette can be easily overlooked but it has some very useful features:-
	naming objects
	providing precise data and control over the "focus" - the position of the cursor
	providing precise data and control over the position and orientation of objects (it can be used instead of the Free Move Tool and the Fine Adjustment Tool)
	identifying and setting the "home" layer and binding layer of a selected object
	used for locking and unlocking a selected objects layer

The components of the Info Palette are identified in the image below.

	Every item in the palette can be edited.
	Each of the small arrowhead icons in the palette will open to display more information and controls or a drop down menu of options.

	The Asset Name is the name given to the asset by its creator and the name that will appear in the asset list of Content Manager and in the Assets Palette
	The Object Name is the optional name that you have given the object so that it can be quickly located in the route and/or session. Some objects, such as station name signs, will require an Object Name that will be visible in Surveyor and Driver

Palette Coordinates

Notes:

All the positional data and controls in the Info Palette are defined in the following ways:-

x	is ALWAYS the North-South compass direction regardless of the direction that an object is facing
y	is ALWAYS the East-West compass direction regardless of the direction that an object is facing
z	is ALWAYS the Vertical direction (perpendicular to the compass directions) regardless of how an object has been rolled or tilted

	distances are measured in metres from the North-West corner of the first baseboard. If that baseboard is later deleted then distances will still be measured from its original and now "virtual" North-West corner.
	+ positive distances are in the South and East directions
	- negative distances are in the North and West directions
	New boards added to the North of the first baseboard will have negative x coordinates and new boards added to the West of the first baseboard will have negative y coordinates.

Info Settings Menu

All the Focus, Position and Rotation settings have drop down menus that allow values to be transferred to and from other settings and other tools.

Steps:

Right Click inside an Info Palette setting box

The first time the popup menu is opened it will only show two active options - Paste and Select All.

Paste

will paste the contents of your Operating System (Windows, MacOS) clipboard into the setting. If data is already present then the new data will be added to it, not replace it

Select All will highlight the contents of the selected setting. You can also achieve this with a Left Click and Drag across the contents of the setting

Right Click inside the same Info Palette setting box

Once the value in a setting has been selected (highlighted) the popup menu will show all options as active.

Cut	will copy the contents of the selected setting into your Operating System clipboard. The contents will then be deleted from the setting

Copy	will copy the contents of the selected setting into your Operating System clipboard without deleting it

Delete will delete the contents of the selected setting. You can also achieve this with a Left Click and Drag across the contents and then press the Delete key

Next to the z co-ordinate in both the Focus and Position is a small white down arrowhead. Left Click on the arrowhead to open its menu.

There is only one option in the sub-menu.

Left Click on the Use Height for Brush option to copy the current z value to the Tool Options Palette Height setting.

Focus Info and Controls

The Focus shows the current position and height of the Cursor object.

Open up the Focus by a Left Click on its arrowhead icon.

Before changing the cursor position with the Focus controls, set a Bookmark at its current position.

The current cursor position is shown in the x, y and z text boxes. These values can be edited to move the cursor to a new position but CARE will be needed.

On the right of each data entry box is a pair of Up/Down arrow controls. Left Click and Drag up or down on these to adjust the position in smaller increments down to centimetres

Notes:

If you enter an x or y value that is "out in empty space" (beyond the edge of a boundary baseboard) then the cursor will be refocused at a point on the baseboard edge that is the closest to the entered co-ordinates.

If it has not been deleted you can identify the North-West corner of the original (first) baseboard by entering 0 as the Focus x and y co-ordinates

Asset Name Menu

"Asset Name" refers to the name of the asset as displayed in the Assets Palette and in Content Manager. This is not the same as the Object Name (see the next section)

You must have an object (or objects) selected for an Asset Name to be shown and for this menu to be available.

If more than one object has been selected then the name and position data shown will be for the last selected object. If different objects (with different kuid codes) have been selected then a count of the additional objects will be added. The (+2) shown in the object name in the image on the left indicates that 2 additional different objects are in the group of selected objects.

Next to the Asset Name is a small white Down Arrowhead. Left Click on the arrowhead to open its menu.

Asset Name Menu Options

Copy	NOT WORKING (a known bug)

Show Asset Details

opens a new window showing the image and description of the selected object

List Assets in New Window

opens up Content Manager and lists all the selected objects

Add to Picklist

adds selected objects to a Picklist

Remove from Picklist

removes selected objects from a Picklist (objects must already be in a Picklist)

Select in Assets Palette

selects and highlights the selected object in the Assets Palette

Object Name

"Object Name" refers to the name that you give to an object

You can give any object in your Trainz World an identifying name. In some cases a name is vital for AI and session operations, in other cases it will be needed as a display feature - for example: to be shown on a station nameboard. You must have the object (or objects) selected for this option to be available. If more than one object has been selected then only the last object (the one with the Context Icon) will be affected

Steps: To name (or rename) an object:-
	Left Click inside the Name text entry box
	Enter a name
	Press the Enter key

There is no ban on two or more objects using the same name

In the image shown on the left there are 4 objects all named Old Orroroo Rd.

This will not cause any problems for scenery objects.

However, duplicated names will cause problems for Industries (including passenger enabled stations), Locomotives, Track Marks, Triggers, Switches, Signals, etc that have to be identified to control the operation of a session.

These objects must have unique names

Position Info and Controls

You must have an object (or objects) selected for the position data to be shown and edited. Open up the position data by a Left Click on its Pos: arrowhead icon.

The position of the selected object (or the last object if more than one is selected) is shown in the x, y and z text boxes. These values can be edited to move the object or objects to a new position but CARE will be needed.

On the right of each data entry box is a pair of Up/Down arrow controls. Left Click and Drag up or down on these to adjust the position in smaller increments down to centimetres

Notes:

If you enter an x or y value that is "out in empty space" (beyond the edge of a boundary baseboard) then the objects will be moved to that position and may vanish from view. The Undo command can be used to reverse the move or the Marquee Tool can be used to add a baseboard under the "floating" objects.

Rotation Info and Controls

You must have an object (or objects) selected for the rotation data to be shown and edited. Open up the rotation data by a Left Click on its Rot: arrowhead icon.

The rotational orientation of the selected object (or the last object if more than one is selected) is shown in the r, p and y text boxes (the letters stand for Roll, Pitch and Yaw). These values can be edited to rotate the object or objects in 3D space BUT not all objects can be rotated in certain directions.

Notes:

	If several objects have been selected then the last selected object, the one with the Context Icon, will be the centre of all rotations.
	Not all objects will allow rotations. For example, SpeedTree objects can only be rotated using the y value ( r and p entries will be ignored) while Spline objects cannot be rotated at all

On the right of each box is a pair of Up/Down arrow controls. Left Click and Drag up or down on these to adjust the rotation angle in increments of 1°.

Notes:

The rotation data and controls are defined in the following ways:-

r

ALWAYS rotates in the vertical plane around the selected objects Y axis (which was defined when it was created).
This is the same as the Red Rotational Anchor in the Fine Adjustment Tool

p

ALWAYS rotates in the vertical plane around the selected objects Y axis PLUS 90°.
This is the same as the Green Rotational Anchor in the Fine Adjustment Tool

y

ALWAYS rotates in the horizontal plane around the compass Z or Vertical axis regardless of how the object has been rolled or pitched.

This is similar to but NOT exactly the same as the Blue Rotational Anchor in the Fine Adjustment Tool

Rot: y =

0° East

90° North

180° West

270° South

Original	Roll: r = 45	Pitch: p = 45	Yaw: y = 45
	All rotations shown are 45° in the + (anticlockwise) direction


	Some objects (for example: SpeedTrees) will NOT allow Roll or Pitch rotations
	all angles are measured in degrees
	+ positive angles are anticlockwise when viewed facing the rotation axis direction
	- negative angles are clockwise when viewed facing the rotation axis direction
	angles greater than 360° can be entered but will give the same result as the angle minus 360°. For example: 450° is exactly the same angle as 90° (450°-360°=90°)
	clockwise and anti-clockwise angles are complementary. For example: entering -270° (clockwise) will give the same angle as entering +90° (anticlockwise)

Layer Info and Controls

You must have an object (or objects) selected for the layer data to be shown and edited. Open up the layer data by a Left Click on its Layer: arrowhead icon.

	Notes:
	the Info Palette is best used to show and edit the layer and binding layer assignments of individual selected objects
	operations such as creating, deleting, merging, renaming, moving and hiding layers are performed using the Layers Palette
	layers can be Locked and Unlocked using the Info Palette or the Layers Palette but the Layers Palette is often the better choice for these tasks

This will show the:-

current layer assigned to the selected object

its assigned Binding Layer (if any)

the Locked or Unlocked state of the assigned layer

Layer is currently Unlocked. Click this button to Lock the layer

Layer is currently Locked. Click this button to Unlock the layer

Using this button will also change the Locked or Unlocked padlock icon shown next to the layer name in the Layers Palette

AssetsPaletteLockedUnlockedLayers S20.png

Notes:

	Objects in a Locked Layer cannot be deleted or moved
	Locked Layers can be deleted, moved and merged with other layers

If multiple objects from different layers have been selected then no layer name will be shown in the Layer and Binding boxes. Instead they will be left "blank" as shown in the image on the left.

Both boxes can still be opened to assign layers to objects.

WARNING:

	Setting a layer for multiple objects that are in different layers will move ALL those objects to that layer
	If objects are moved from one layer group to another (such as from the Route Layers to the Session Layers) then it will change where those objects are saved (in the Route or in the Session)

Assigning Objects to a Different Layer

The Active Layer is the layer used by the Placement Tool when objects are added to your Trainz World.

A selected object or group of selected objects can be assigned to a different layer. If multiple objects have been selected then they do not have to all be in the same layer.

Steps: To change the assigned layer of an object or group of objects:-
	Left Click on the Layer drop down box. The layer containing the object (for a single selected object only) will be shown with a in front of its name
	Select the destination layer name from the drop down list. See Warning above
The layer reassignment will start the instant the destination layer is selected
	If you see a Debugging Window on the screen as the task is processed, it will inform you when the task has been completed. You can then close the window

Once a target layer has been selected then the Select Layer button, which sets the Active Layer, will become active IF the target layer is not the Active Layer. A Left Click on this button will set it as the Active Layer.

You can also set the Active Layer by selecting its name from the list in the Layers Palette.

Options: To set current layer to the Active Layer:-
If the Select Layer button is greyed out
	then the selected object is now assigned to the current Active Layer so there is no need to use this option
If it is NOT greyed out
	then the selected object is now assigned to a layer that is not the current Active Layer. Left Click on the Select Layer button to switch the Active Layer to the same layer as the object

Assigning Objects to a Binding Layer

The Binding Layer, or Bound Layer as it is also called, is a tool used in the development of your Trainz World. It allows you to temporarily assign an object to a second layer while it is still in its original layer. The object will then take on the properties (Locked or Unlocked, Hidden or Visible) of both layers.

Assigned Layer	Binding Layer	Object Status

Unlocked	or None	Unlocked
LOCKED	or or None	LOCKED
Unlocked	LOCKED	LOCKED

Visible	or None	Visible
HIDDEN	or or None	HIDDEN
Visible	HIDDEN	HIDDEN

In Summary:-
	If the Assigned Layer or the Binding Layer of an object is Locked then the object will be Locked
	If the Assigned Layer or the Binding Layer of an object is Hidden then the object will be Hidden

	Notes:
	Objects in a Hidden Layer cannot be seen and therefore, cannot be selected, deleted or moved
	The Layers Palette is the ONLY way to create, delete, name and hide layers

Some examples of using the Binding Layer:- Example 1:
The problem:	You need to stop an object from being selected so that you can you move other objects on or around it
The solution:	Use the Layers Palette to create a new empty layer and lock it. Set the Binding Layer of the object to the new locked layer. The object will then be locked so it cannot be selected or moved even though its original layer is unlocked. When the edit has been completed delete the empty locked layer you just created to unlock all its bound objects and remove all their bindings
Example 2:
The problem:	A group of objects (e.g trees) are blocking access to another object.
The solution:	Use the Layers Palette to create a new empty layer and hide it. Set the Binding Layer of the blocking objects to the new hidden layer. The blocking objects will no longer be visible and cannot be selected even though their original layer is still visible. When the edit has been completed delete the empty hidden layer you just created to make all its bound objects visible and remove all their bindings

Steps: To change the assigned binding layer of an object or group of objects:-
	Left Click on the Binding drop down box. For a single selected object only the binding layer (which may be <none>) will be shown with a in front of its name
	Select the Binding layer name from the drop down list. Note: the objects assigned layer will not appear in the list because an object cannot be bound to its own layer
The layer reassignment will start the instant the layer is selected
	If you see a Debugging Window on the screen as the task is processed, it will inform you when the task has been completed. You can then close the window

As an example, the image below shows what you will see for a single object that has had:-

	its assigned layer changed (in the example from "route-layer" to "Station Industries")
	its binding layer set (in the example to "Multi Industries")
	the newly assigned layer is not locked so you have the option to lock it
	the newly assigned layer is not the Active Layer so you have the option to make it the Active Layer

More information on creating, editing and using Layers can be found on the Trainz Wiki at:-

How to Use Layers

The Tools Palette

This is a Surveyor Only palette

If the Tools Palette is not visible on the screen then refer to

Hiding and Showing Palettes and Windows at the top of this document

The Tools Palette is at the core of the new interface and takes the place of all the Tool Flyouts that have been the standard for Trainz Surveyor for many years. Some of the tools are new while others have been given a makeover and new abilities. The tools manipulate the Surveyor World you see in many different ways.

The Context Tool is attached as an icon to a selected or newly placed object. The icon and its Context menu will vary according to the type of object.

Various brush tools make use of the Tool Options Palette, the Assets Palette, the Info Palette, the Layers Palette and the Scrapbook Palette. If a palette required by one of the brush tools is not visible on the screen then refer to

Hiding and Showing Palettes and Windows at the top of this document.

The Brush Tool

Keyboard Shortcut: W

The Brush Tool "paints" the ground height, ground textures, effect layers and scrapbook scenes in the Trainz World

The Brush Tool has two drop down menu lists.

The first drop down menu will set the "Brush Target" which is the type of brush.

The Targets are:-

	Ground Height
	Ground Texture
	Scrapbook Data
	*<List of Effect Layers>*
	Edit Effect Layers

If you have any Effect Layers then they will appear as Targets in this drop down list. Select an Effect Layer to use the brush to paint with that layer.

The Brush Targets Ground Height , Scrapbook Data and Effect Layers have a second drop down menu that controls the Brush Action.

For more detailed information on using the Brush Tool see the Trainz Wiki page

How to Use the Surveyor 2.0 Tools

The Placement Tool

Keyboard Shortcut: E

The Placement Tool adds objects to a Trainz World

The Placement Tool places all types of objects except ground textures and effect layers. Use the Brush Tool to add ground textures and effect layers.
	all non-spline scenery assets	all spline scenery assets
	all track spline assets	all track (non spline) assets (signals, etc)
	all rolling stock assets

For more detailed information on using the Placement Tool see the Trainz Wiki page

How to Use the Surveyor 2.0 Tools

The Eyedropper Tool

Keyboard Shortcut: R

The Eyedropper Tool identifies and selects objects in a Trainz World

The Eyedropper is also inside all the tools in this palette so you can quickly identify any object without having to switch to the Eyedropper Tool and back again. Hold down the Alt key to activate this feature in other tools

For more detailed information on using the Eyedropper Tool see the Trainz Wiki page

How to Use the Surveyor 2.0 Tools

The Free Move Tool

Keyboard Shortcut: S

The Free Move Tool moves objects around a Trainz World

Notes:

The Free Move Tool can move any selected object or objects (except Ground Textures and Effect Layers) in any direction horizontally. Vertical movements can be achieved by using the Height control in the Tool Options Palette.

For more detailed information on using the Free Move Tool see the Trainz Wiki page

How to Use the Surveyor 2.0 Tools

The Fine Adjustment Tool

Keyboard Shortcut: D

The Fine Adjustment Tool makes 3D adjustments (XYZ position and rotations) to objects in a Trainz World

Notes:

The Fine Adjustment Tool can move any selected object or objects (except Ground Textures and Effect Layers) in any direction horizontally and vertically. It can also rotate those objects through 3 different axes of rotation.

The most obvious feature of the Fine Adjustment Tool is the 3D Anchor Frame it adds to a selected object. The frame is made of 3 straight and 3 curved coloured lines, called Anchors, which control position and orientation.

The Anchor controls are:-

The Horizontal and Vertical Anchors
Red Green Blue	move the object (forward and back, or up and down) in the direction of the Anchor line
The Rotational Anchors
Red Green Blue	rotate the object (clockwise and anti-clockwise) along the Anchor arc line. Note: Not all objects will allow rotations in all directions
The Object Anchor
(black central dot) moves the object in any horizontal direction

For more detailed information on using the Fine Adjustment Tool see the Trainz Wiki page

How to Use the Surveyor 2.0 Tools

The Marquee Tool

Keyboard Shortcut: F

The Marquee Tool selects and copies objects, deletes baseboards, adds new baseboards and sets their properties, adds texture to baseboards in a Trainz World, creates scrapbooks

Notes:

	The Marquee Tool draws out a rectangular area, the Marquee Selection Area, on the route. Any objects (including Ground Heights, Ground Textures and Effect Layers) that are inside the Marquee Selection Area or touched by its boundary can be selected to be added to a Scrapbook, moved, rotated or deleted (scenery objects only)
	The Marquee Selection Area can be drawn outside the baseboards to add new baseboards or over existing baseboards to delete or convert them

For more detailed information on using the Marquee Tool see the Trainz Wiki page

How to Use the Surveyor 2.0 Tools

The Tool Options Palette

This is a Surveyor Only palette

If the Tool Options Palette is not visible on the screen then refer to

Hiding and Showing Palettes and Windows at the top of this document

This palette is used by various tools to set controls and parameters. For a detailed description of all the options presented by the Tools Palette for the different tools, see the Trainz Wiki page

How to Use the Surveyor 2.0 Tools

All the Tool Options controls and settings are shown in the image below. The controls are shown in the image as being "inactive". An "active" control will have its icon (to the left of the control name) shown in Gold . Different Brush Types and Brush Actions will activate different controls.

On the right of each data entry box is a pair of Up/Down arrow controls. Left Click and Drag up or down on these to adjust the value in smaller increments

Radius

All Brushes the brush radius (metres)

Range:

5m and above for 5m and 10m grid resolutions

0.125m and above for HD Terrain (available in Trainz Plus only)

For Effect Layers the minimum brush size will vary. See Notes: below

Height

Set Ground Height Water Effect Layer Object Placement the brush or object height (metres)

Range:

-3000m to 3000m

Sensitivity

All Ground Heights Ground Textures Scrapbook Data Water Effect Layers the rate at which the ground height/water layer is raised/lowered or the texture being "painted" becomes visible

Range:

1% (very slowly) to
100% (very quickly)

Grade

Ground Height Grade Water Effect Layer Spline Object Placement the slope of the ground, spline or water effect layer

Range:

0% (flat) to
±100% (steep but not vertical)

Angle

Ground Height Grade Water Effect Layer grade direction (compass degrees)

Range:

0° (North) to ±359°
a negative value reverses the grade direction

Rotation

Ground Textures Scrapbook Data initial rotation angle (degrees)

Range:

0° to ±360°

Scale

Ground Textures Scrapbook Data (Clone Brush) the brush scaling factor

Range:

0.01% = smallest to

100% = full size to

>100% larger than full size

Intensity

TurfFX & Clutter Effect Layers the effect layer density within the brush area

Range:

1% (almost none) to
100% (maximum)

Condition

Track Spline Object Placement sets the track condition (or "ride comfort") for each segment

Range:

1% (terrible track condition) to

50% (average track condition) to
100% (perfect track condition)

Shape

Scrapbook Data brush shape

Options:

Circle and Square will set the brush to the selected shape
Natural will set the brush to the same shape as the Marquee that created the scrapbook, which may be rectangular

Color

Color Effect Layer colour selection (RGB and Brightness values) - Trainz Plus only

Range:

Left Click on the coloured box next to the title Color to open the colour selector. Set a Colour: Select a colour by either:-
	a Left Click on the colour in the colour picker device, OR
	enter its RGB value in Hexadecimal
Optionally: Set a brightness value for the selected colour by moving the slider up or down
Reset: Left Click the Reset button (the circular arrow on the bottom right) to cancel your changes and reset the colour to its default value. This default value is set using the Edit Effect Layer... - see Edit Color Effect Layer below

Notes:

Unlike Surveyor Classic, there is no upper limit to the brush Radius . Brushes of hundreds of metres (even kilometres) in size are possible. However, the program performance will decrease as the brush radius increases. If you are using the brush to set an entire baseboard, or many baseboards, to a specific height then the Marquee Tool would be a better choice.

The Grade is defined as vertical rise divided by horizontal distance converted to a percentage figure. So a grade of 100% (the maximum allowed) would mean a slope formed by the height and distance both being the same value (e.g. a height increase of 50m over a distance of 50m). A vertical slope (e.g. a cliff) would have an infinite grade which is currently impossible in Surveyor.

The Rotation controls the starting angle for placing a scrapbook or a texture when painting and is often used to avoid pattern repetition. As in Surveyor Classic, holding down the [ or ] keys while painting a texture will continuously change the rotation angle

For TurfFX and Clutter effect layers the minimum brush Radius will depend on the configuration settings (asset density, resources used, etc) of the layer that is being painted. If the Radius setting is below the minimum for the selected layer then the brush circle will turn red and it will not paint

Warning:
Setting extreme values for the Scale and the Radius when using the Scrapbook Data Clone Brush can cause performance issues (i.e. long delays) while the program attempts to scale and clone the scrapbook contents

Tool Options Popups

Most of the data entry boxes in the Tool Options Palette have a Popup Menu. Right Click inside a box to bring up its menu

Tool Popup Common Options for Radius Angle Sensitivity Rotation Scale Intensity
Cut	copies and deletes the highlighted value in the data entry box into your Operating System (Windows, MacOS) clipboard
Copy	copies the highlighted value in the data entry box to your Operating System clipboard
Paste	copies the value from your Operating System clipboard into the data entry box
Delete	deletes the highlighted value in the data entry box
Select All	selects (highlights) the current value in the data entry box

Highlight the value in the text box (use a Left Click and Drag over the data entry or Left Click the Select All option first) before choosing the Cut , Copy or Delete options above

Tool Popup Options for Height
All of the Tool Popup Common Options above plus ...
Get Height from Selection	copies the Height value of the Selected Object and places it into the data entry box
Get Height at Compass	copies the Height value of the Compass Rose and places it into the data entry box. This is the Focus z value from the Info Palette
Set Height to Selection	applies the Height value to the Selected Object

Tool Popup Options for Grade
All of the Tool Popup Common Options above plus ...
Get Grade from Selection	copies the Grade value of the Selected Object and places it into the data entry box
Set Grade to Selection	applies the Grade value to the Selected Object

The Grade setting only applies to Spline Objects, Ground Heights (Grade) and Water Effect Layers

Tool Popup Options for Condition
All of the Tool Popup Common Options above plus ...
Get Condition from Selection	copies the Condition value of the Selected Track Spline and places it into the data entry box
Set Condition to Selection	applies the Condition value to the Selected Track Spline

The Condition setting only applies to Track Spline Objects

Tool Options Active Controls

Different Tool Palette and Brush Type selections will activate different option controls

Some examples of when the controls will become active are:-

If a Brush Tool is selected then the exact controls that will be active will vary between the different brushes and brush actions. For example, selecting the Ground Height Brush and the Set Height brush action will active the following Tool Options.

Radius

the brush radius (metres)

Range:

5m and above for 5m and 10m grid resolutions
0.125m and above for HD Terrain (available in Trainz Plus only)

Height

the exact height, in metres, that the ground will be raised (or lowered) to

Range:

-3000m to +3000m

Sensitivity

the speed at which the ground height will be changed

Range:

1% (very slowly) to
100% (very quickly)

On the right of each data entry box is a pair of Up/Down arrow controls. Left Click and Drag up or down on these to adjust the value in smaller increments

If a Track Spline Object is selected with the Free Move Tool or the Fine Adjustment Tool then the following Tool Options will become active.

Grade

the track gradient. A positive grade will set the 2^nd endpoint higher than the 1^st. A negative grade will set the 2^nd endpoint lower than the 1^st.

Range:

0% = flat ("Plateau" in Classic) to
±100% = steep (but not vertical)

Condition

the track condition of each track segment

Range:

1% (terrible track condition) to

50% (average track condition) to
100% (perfect track condition)

	Use the Free Move Tool or the Fine Adjustment Tool to select multiple track segments and set their track condition simultaneously
	The Track Condition can also be set for each individal track segment in its Context Menu Edit Properties option
	On the right of each data entry box is a pair of Up/Down arrow controls. Left Click and Drag up or down on these to adjust the value in smaller increments

If the Scrapbook Data Brush is selected to paint the current Scrapbook into the Trainz World then certain controls that will affect the painting of the Scrapbook will, depending on the brush action selected, become active.

Scrapbook Brush
Brush options

Scrapbook Clone
Clone options

Radius

the brush radius (metres)

Range:

5m and above for 5m and 10m grid resolutions
0.125m and above for HD Terrain (available in Trainz Plus only)

Sensitivity

if the Ground Height option has been enabled in the Scrapbook Palette filter settings, then this will set the rate or speed at which the ground height will change

Range:

1% (very slowly) to
100% (very quickly)

Rotation

the starting angle (or orientation) of the scrapbook

Range:

0° to ±360° (larger angles can be entered)

Scale

the scaling factor as a % used by the Scrapbook Clone action

Range:

0.01% = smallest to

100% = full size to

>100% larger than full size

Shape

the physical shape of the scrapbook brush

Options:		Circle and Square will set the brush to the selected shape with the Radius setting the brush size
	Natural will set the brush to the same shape as the Marquee that created the scrapbook, which may be rectangular. The Radius setting will scale the brush size

On the right of each data entry box is a pair of Up/Down arrow controls. Left Click and Drag up or down on these to adjust the value in smaller increments

Warning:
Setting both a large Radius and a small Scale will cause performance issues

More examples and more detailed descriptions of the Tool Options Palette Active Controls can be found on the Trainz Wiki at:-

How to Use S20 Tools: The Brush Tool

The Assets Palette

This is a Surveyor Only palette

	The Assets Palette provides lists of assets that can be used with the Placement Tool, Free Move Tool, Fine Adjustment Tool, Marquee Tool and the Eyedropper Tool.
	The Filter Palette provides the tools used to narrow down the lists provided by the Assets Palette.

If the Assets Palette and the Filter Palette are not visible on the screen then refer to

Hiding and Showing Palettes and Windows at the top of this document.

From Trainz Plus and TRS22PE SP4 build number 126273 (July 2024) and later the filter functions that were originally in the Assets Palette have been moved to the new Filter Palette. To use the filters ensure that the Filter Palette is visible on the screen

When using the Eyedropper - either the Eyedropper Tool (press R ) or the Eyedropper Icon (press and hold down the Alt key) - the Filter Palette is used to restrict the eyedropper to only "seeing" and selecting certain objects or types of objects.

Using the Assets Palette

When used by itself, the Assets Palette will be restricted to showing the list of assets for the asset type currently selected in the Filter Palette, regardless of whether the Filter Palette is visible or not. The default asset type shown in the Assets Palette for a displayed, or minimised, unedited Filter Palette will be Ground Textures. However, if the Filter Palette is closed ( Left Click on its menu bar x icon) then the Assets Palette will default to displaying the list of ALL installed assets

At the top of the palette is the Search Box is where you can enter text, such as the name or part of the name of an asset. UPPER/lower case is not important. The search will return all assets that contain the entered text in their names or descriptions.

The Search Box will also accept a <kuid> code, or a list of <kuid> codes seperated by commas. This list can be created using Content Manager and pasted into the search box

In each case the search results shown in the Assets Palette will be taken from the list already created by the filter set in the Filter Palette. In the examples shown on the left this starting list is the Ground Textures.
To change the starting list you must change the filter in the Filter Palette

Steps: To Select an asset from the List View to be placed in your Trainz World:-

Left Click on its name in the list

	the asset name will be highlighted with a light grey background
	the correct Tool or Brush Target in the Tools Palette will be automatically selected
	you can then immediately place or paint the asset in your Trainz World

To get a better view or more details about an asset, choose one of the following:-
Options:

	Double Left Click on an asset name to open its Asset Properties window, OR
	Open the Asset Preview Palette and then Left Click on an asset name in the Assets Palette. This will create a rotating image of the asset in the Preview Palette. The Preview Palette can be resized.

Expanding the Assets List View

The Assets Palette can be expanded to provide more information about each listed asset. See

Docking and Undocking Palettes and Resizing Palettes at the top of this document.

Steps: To move and resize columns:-
	To Move: Left Click and Drag the column heading left or right to a new position
	To Resize: Left Click and Drag the dividing line between two column headings left or right to reduce or increase the column width

Steps: To sort the data in a column:-
	resize the undocked Assets Palette by dragging its right edge further out to the right. This will reveal additional columns of data in an identical display to what you would see in Content Manager
	to sort the data in a column, Left Click on the column heading. Each Left Click will cycle through different sorting options

Just like in Content Manager, additional columns can be added, removed, resized and moved to a different position.

Steps: To add new columns
	Right Click on a column heading where you want to insert a new column
	Select the option Insert Column and then select the column to be added
Steps: To remove a column
	Right Click on the column heading and select the option Remove Column

	Notes:
	If the palette is docked to another it will be resized to the same width as the palette it is docked to.
	To hide the palette so that its new size and position will be restored when it is made visible again, Left Click on its Minimise - icon on its top menu bar and then to restore it to full size maximise it from the Window Menu. See Minimise Maximise Close at the top of this document.
	If you close the palette then it will return to its default size when it is reopened

Thumbnail View

As an alternative to the list view of assets there is a thumbnail view option. This works best when the Assets Palette has been undocked. See

Docking and Undocking Palettes at the top of this document.

AssetsPaletteNewPBRAsphaltThumbnail S20.png

Steps: To switch to the Thumbnail View:-
	undock and resize the Assets Palette as described in Docking and Undocking Palettes and Resizing Palettes above.
	Left Click the Thumbnail icon at the end of the Name Search box
Steps: To switch back to the List View:-
	Left Click the Thumbnail icon at the end of the Name Search box

If the Filter Palette is closed then the Assets Palette will default to displaying the list of ALL installed assets

Steps: To Select an asset from the Thumbnail View to be placed in your Trainz World:-

Left Click on its thumbnail

	the thumbnail will be surrounded by a blue border or it will have a blue background
	the correct Tool or Brush Target in the Tools Palette will be automatically selected
	you can then immediately place or paint the asset in your Trainz World

To get a better view or more details about an asset, choose one of the following:-
Options:

	Double Left Click on an asset name to open its Asset Properties window, OR
	Open the Asset Preview Palette and then Left Click on an asset name in the Assets Palette. This will create a rotating image of the asset in the Preview Palette. The Preview Palette can be resized.

Notes:

If the assets in the list are constructed from 3D meshes then their thumbnail views will be built from the meshes and their textures. If they are ground textures then the actual textures will be shown. The thumbnail.jpg image that should be supplied with each asset is not be used - the exceptions are assets with no meshes and no textures. This overcomes common problems caused by missing, generic, incorrect or confusing thumbnails that give you no useful information about each asset. Some actual examples from the DLS:-

Scenery Mesh Asset

Supplied Thumbnail	Palette Displayed Thumbnail

Ground Texture Asset

Supplied Thumbnail	Palette Displayed Thumbnail

If the asset is animated then its animation will play in the thumbnail

Picklists and Search Filters

the Assets Palette also manages (creates, edits, renames, clones, deletes) your saved Picklists and Search Filters

Steps: To access your Picklists and Search Filters

Left Click on the Asset Type data box (showing Ground Textures in the image) or on the double arrowhead as shown on its right to open up its lists of filters. The currently selected asset type (Ground Textures in the image), search filter or picklist will have a

in front of its name in the drop down list

The list shows all the:-

	Asset Types (e.g. Track Objects) in the top section from All Content (all installed assets) to Presets (saved Effect Layers)
	Search Filters both built in (such as the Faulty and Open for Editing filters) and any that you have created and saved in the middle section
	Picklists both built in (the Default Picklist) and any that you have created and saved in the lower section

to select and open a specific Asset Type, Search Filter or Picklist Left Click on its name.

The Assets Palette name window display will change to show those assets that match the selected Asset Type, Search Filter or Picklist.

For example, selecting the saved Picklist Oz Houses will list all the assets that have been added to that particular Picklist. Likewise, selecting the saved Search Filter Updates Available will display all the assets that have a positive match with the filter settings

The assets found by the Search Filter or in the Picklist can be narrowed down further by entering a text string in the Search box. For example typing house (UPPER/lower case is not important) will restrict the list to only showing those assets containing the text string "house" in their names or descriptions

The Thumbnail icon

next to the Search text box will toggle the list of assets between text and thumbnail views. The thumbnail view works best when the Assets Palette is undocked and resized

At the bottom of the drop down list (you may have to scroll down) is an option Edit Filters and Picklists... Left Click on the option Edit Filters and Picklists...

This will open a window listing all the Picklists and Search Filters. Right Click on an item in the list to open up its edit menu.

For detailed instructions on using the Filters and Picklists Editor, see the Wiki Page

How to Manage Filters and Picklists

The Layers Palette

This is a Surveyor Only palette

If the Layers Palette is not visible on the screen then refer to

Hiding and Showing Palettes and Windows at the top of this document

	This palette is used to manage layers, both object (route and session) and effect (TurfFX, clutter and water) layers
	It can create, rename, merge, delete, move, hide/show and lock/unlock layers and set the Active Layer

The Layers Palette will show all the layers in their groups (Effect, Route and Session) plus the Ground Height and Ground Textures special "layers". In the image on the left all the layer groups have been minimised (the arrowhead symbol to the left of each group name is pointing to the right).

	The Route Layers group, along with the Ground Height, Ground Textures and Effect Layers, are saved and loaded with the Route
	The Session Layers group, along with any Session Rules and commodity settings, is saved and loaded with the Session. A Session Layers group, but one without any stored objects and using the Session default settings, will always be present when a Route is loaded without a Session

Lock the Route Layer Group

All the Route Layers can be locked against accidental alteration.

The Route Layers group has a open padlock icon next to its name - shown as (unlocked).

Steps: To lock/unlock all the Route Layers:-
	Left Click on the unlocked (open padlock) icon to lock ALL the Route Layers The icon will change to (locked)
	Left Click on the locked (closed padlock) icon to unlock ALL the route layers The icon will change to (unlocked)

Open a Layer Group

To the left of each group name is a small arrowhead pointing to the right. Left Click on the arrowhead to open up the group.

The image on the left shows that the Session Layers is open and its individual layers are now displayed. To close or minimise the group Left Click on the arrowhead again.

The image shows that the Session Layers contains 3 individual layers:-

	the top layer in the Session Layers group is always named session-layer. It is possible to rename this layer and move it to a new position but those actions are NOT recommended for the session-layer.
	likewise, the top layer in the Route Layers group is always named route-layer. It is also possible to rename this layer and move it to a new position but again those actions are NOT recommended for the route-layer.
	there are two additional user created layers in the Session Layers group. They are named Track Markers and Rail Workers - layer names are chosen by the creator and do not necessarily indicate their contents or purpose
	the Rail Workers layer is highlighted in blue which means that it has been selected by a Left Click and is now the Active Layer where any newly placed assets will be added

Add a New Layer

You cannot create new layer groups but you can add new layers to a existing group.

Each layer group has a

icon next to its name. Left Click on the icon to add and name a new layer to that group. If you are adding a new Effect Layer then you will also have to identify the type of effect - TurfFX, Clutter or Water.

Renaming a Layer

Steps: To rename a layer:-
	Right Click on a layer name and select Rename Layer.. from the popup menu. You cannot rename a Layer Group.
	You will be asked to enter a new name for the layer.

While you are free to rename any layers (but not the Layer Group names), it is recommended that you DO NOT rename two specific layers:-

route-layer
session-layer
These layers are used to store critical objects (track and track objects in the case of the route-layer and (optionally) rolling stock in the case of the session-layer). Using these two layer names in every Trainz World can make it easier (and less confusing) to manage those assets. But this is a recommendation only.

Deleting a Layer

Warning: Deleting a Layer will delete every object that has been assigned to that layer

Steps: To delete a layer:-
	Right Click on a layer name and select Delete Layer from the popup menu. You cannot select a Layer Group name to be deleted. You will be given a warning that you are about to delete a layer.
	if you confirm the delete order then the layer and ALL OF ITS CONTENTS will be deleted
	depending on the contents of the layer and the size of the Trainz World, the process may take some time. You will be shown a progress bar in a message window during the delete operation

	when the message Operation complete, layers updated successfully appears close the message window
The deleted layer and its contents can be restored (after the delete has completed) using the Ctrl + Z keys

Moving a Layer

Layers can be individually moved up and down within the same layer group or between the Route Layers and the Session Layers groups.

Notes:

	Warning: Moving layers between the Session Layers and the Route Layers groups will move the contents of those layers from one group to the other. This will change where the layers and their contents are saved (in the Route or in the Session)
	Warning: Layers containing Track Objects (signals, switches, buffers, track signs, etc) cannot be moved to a position that is above the layer containing the track

there is no advantage in moving a layer within the same layer group except if you are preparing for a layer merge operation (see Merging a Layer below)

layers in the Effect Layers group cannot be moved

layers from the other groups cannot be moved into the Effect Layers group

the Ground Height and Texture layers are special "single layer" groups, not groups of layers, and cannot be moved or have other layers added to them

Moving the Rail Workers layer up one level

Steps: To move a layer:-

Left Click and Drag the layer name up or down to its new position. Note: You cannot move a Layer Group.

release the layer in its new position.

depending on the contents of the layer and the size of the Trainz World, the process may take some time. You will be shown a progress bar in a message window during the move operation

at the conclusion, hopefully, you will be shown a message "Operation complete"

If instead you get an error message then the most likely cause will be moving a layer containing Track Objects to a position that is above the layer containing the track

close the progress message window

The move can be reversed (after it has completed) by using the Ctrl + Z keys

Notes: Moving Layers - What Could Possibly Go Wrong? 😀

Well, a great deal it seems. You may get a different message during the layer move operation.
LayersMoveFailure S20.png

The most common error when moving layers is, as the message above states, an invalid hierarchy. This occurs when a layer is moved to an incorrect level for the type of objects it contains. It is Track Splines and Track Objects (e.g. signals, switches, speed signs, etc) that cause this problem.

The situation that created the error messages shown above is shown in the image below left:-

all the track splines, the parent track identified in the error messages, are in the route-layer

track objects, in this case signals but any track objects could have been used, have been placed in the Signals layer. This layer, according to the order of the layers from the top to the bottom, is one layer below the route-layer that contains the track where the signals are attached. In this position, physically below the route-layer, the Signals layer and the track objects it contains will cause no problems

the Signals layer is being moved up to a position shown by the dashed red line. The new position, again according to the order of the layers from the top to the bottom, is one layer above the route-layer.

The final error message shown is confusing and, from a commonsense point of view, incorrect.

Trackside objects cannot be in a layer below the layer their track is in.
Best Advice: Ignore the word below and replace it with the word above so the message reads
Trackside objects cannot be in a layer above the layer their track is in.

Solutions to This Problem:

Options:
	use the route-layer to hold the track splines and never move any layer containing track objects, or any layer at all to be absolutely safe, above this layer OR
	use the route-layer to hold the track splines and ALL track objects
Track objects such as Trackmarks and Triggers that are needed for a Session but not the Route can still be placed in the Session Layers group as long as the layer used remains in the Session Layers group

Merging a Layer

A layer can be merged with the layer immediately above it

Steps: To merge two layers:-
	Right Click on a layer name in the Layers Palette
	select the Merge Layer Up option from the popup menu

	Notes:
	the selected layer will be merged with the layer immediately above it
	you may need to move the layer being merged into the correct position before the merge (see Moving a Layer above)
	depending on the contents of the layer, the process may take some time. You will be shown a progress bar in a message window during the merge operation
	the merged layers and their contents can be restored (after the merge has completed) back into two separate layers by using the Ctrl + Z keys
	layers in the Effect Layers Group cannot be merged. In place of Merge Layer Up the popup menu for an Effect Layer will have an Edit Layer option

Hiding Layers

Each individual layer has an Eye icon that controls the state (visible or hidden) of that layer

Left Click on the Eye icon to toggle its state between visible and hidden.

If the Eye icon is:-
	Open then layer is visible in both Surveyor and Driver
	Closed then layer is hidden in both Surveyor and Driver

Notes:

	Hiding a layer will protect its objects from being selected, deleted and moved
	New assets can be added to a hidden layer by confirming the action in a dialogue window which will make the layer visible
	Objects can be assigned to a hidden layer using the Info Palette
	Hidden layers can still be deleted, renamed, moved and merged

Locking Layers

	Each individual layer has a Padlock icon that controls the state (locked or unlocked) of that layer
	The Route Layers Group has a Padlock icon that controls the state (locked or unlocked) of ALL the Route Layers

Left Click on the Padlock icon to toggle its state between locked and unlocked

If the Padlock icon is:-
	Open then layer is unlocked
	Closed then layer is locked

Notes:

	Locking a layer will protect its objects from being deleted and moved
	New assets can be added to a locked layer by confirming the action in a dialogue window which will unlock the layer
	Objects can be assigned to a locked layer using the Info Palette
	Locked layers can still be deleted, renamed, moved and merged

Setting the Active Layer

	The Active Layer is the layer where new objects will be automatically added when using the Placement Tool
	Only Route and Session layers can be selected as the Active Layer

The active layer is shown in the palette with its name on a Blue or Light Grey background. The name of the current Active Layer is also shown in the Layer Palette Title Bar. In the images below the Rail Workers layer from the Session Layers Group is the current Active Layer.

Steps: To set a new Active Layer:-
	Left Click on the layer name.

You can also use the Info Palette to set the layer occupied by a selected object as the Active Layer

Move an Object to Another Layer

Use the Info Palette to move objects to another layer.

The Info Palette will show the layer assigned to the currently selected object. An object is selected by using the Free Move Tool (the S key) or the Fine Adjustment Tool (the D key) found in the Tools Palette.

Info palette

Layer control

Steps: To assign a selected object to a layer:-

Switch to the Info Palette. If this palette is not visible then refer to

Hiding and Showing Palettes and Windows at the top of this document

Left Click on the small arrowhead next to the layer name. This will open the layer properties for the selected object

Left Click the Layer drop down box to select a new layer for the object

Warning: You cannot move Track Objects (signals, switches, buffers, track signs, etc) into a layer that is above the layer that contains the track

if required, Left Click the Binding drop down box to select a new binding layer for the object. See the section

Assigning Objects to a Binding Layer for more information on Binding objects to layers

if required, Left Click the Lock Layer button to lock the selected layer. If the layer is already locked then this will be shown as an Unlock Layer button

Multiple objects from the same layer or from different layers can be selected and assigned to another layer

Warning: Setting a layer for multiple objects that are in different layers will move ALL those objects to that layer - except those objects that are in locked layers. If this moves any of them from one layer group to another (such as from the Route Layers to the Session Layers) then it will change where those objects are saved (in the Route or in the Session)

The Scrapbook Palette

This is a Surveyor Only palette

If the Scrapbook Palette is not visible on the screen then refer to

Hiding and Showing Palettes and Windows at the top of this document. Some Scrapbook Palette functions will also require the Tool Options Palette.

This palette manages the Scrapbooks that you have created yourself, installed from other sources (such as the DLS) or came installed with Trainz. It also controls which parts of a scrapbook are pasted or painted into the Trainz World.

	Notes:
Scrapbooks, when created, will contain:-
	Ground Heights
	Ground Textures
	Effect Layers - if present
	Selected Objects - scenery items, splines, track, signals, etc
	But NOT Rolling Stock (Trains)
Ground heights, textures and effect layers are always included in a scrapbook but you can control which scenery objects are added by manually selecting them or using the filter controls in the Assets Palette

	Notes:
Scrapbooks, when painted or pasted, can contain any combinations of:-
	Ground Heights
	Ground Textures
	Effect Layers
	Scenery Objects (Meshes) - individual buildings, trees, signals, etc
	Scenery Splines - roads, track, fences, etc
You have options that will control which of these data categories are transferred and how they are transferred from the scrapbook into the Trainz World.

Left Click on the pin icon to Lock (blue pin) and Unlock (white pin) the scrapbook. Locked scrapbooks are permanent (but can still be deleted). Unlocked scrapbooks will "expire" (self delete) after 5 days

Left Click on the delete icon to delete the current scrapbook - most scrapbooks can be deleted (see Notes: Deleting Built-in Scrapbooks below on how to deal with the exceptions to this)

Deleting a scrapbook WILL NOT delete any objects that it has painted or pasted into the route. The scrapbook simply identifies the objects, it has no control over them after they have been added to the route.

The thumbnail of the currently displayed scrapbook and the one that will be painted or pasted into the Trainz World

Identifies the currently displayed scrapbook (the first number) and the total number of stored scrapbooks (the second number)

Left Click on the < or > to move forwards or backwards through the stored scrapbooks to select the scrapbook that will be added to the Trainz World

The scrapbook name can be edited. Simply Left Click inside the name box to edit or replace the current name then Left Click on the image OR press the Enter key

Notes: Deleting Built-in Scrapbooks

Some scrapbooks are installed with Trainz and cannot be deleted. These scrapbooks have the label Prefab at the front of their names (you may have to scroll to the front of the name to see it). While they cannot be deleted they can be "disabled" so that they won't appear as an installed scrapbook. Unlocking them will not cause them to "expire" - after 5 days they will just become locked again.

Steps: To disable built-in scrapbooks
	Open Content Manager and locate the "permanent" scrapbook or scrapbooks. Search Tips: Name: starts with "Prefab"; Status: is Built-in; Type: is Misc
	Highlight (select) the scrapbook assets individually or as a group
	Open the Content menu and select the Disable option

You can reverse this and enable any or all of these scrapbooks at any time if you need them.

Creating a New Scrapbook

A new scrapbook can be created by either:-

Options:

Individually selecting one or more objects OR

Drawing a Marquee Selection Area around one or more objects and:-

Then choose one of the following:-

press Ctrl + C to copy the selection to a new scrapbook OR

press Ctrl + X to cut the selection to a new scrapbook - the object or objects will be removed from the Trainz World OR

open the

Surveyor Edit Menu and select Cut or Copy

	Notes:
	Rolling Stock Objects cannot be added to a Scrapbook but they can be saved as a Consist Asset in the Assets Palette
	Regardless of how it is created, the ground height, ground textures and, if present, effect layers under the selected objects will always be added to the scrapbook.

You don't have to use the Marquee Tool to create a new Scrapbook. You can use the Free Move Tool or the Fine Adjustment Tool to select any number of objects and then press Ctrl + C . The selected objects, along with the ground height, ground textures, and any effect layers, will be copied into a new Scrapbook

When a new Scrapbook is created by a Cut or Copy , it will appear in the Scrapbook palette with some basic details.

The newly created scrapbook will be given:-

a name consisting of the date and time of its creation

a thumbnail

The thumbnail image will be taken using the current camera POV (point of view). Move the cursor position and zoom in/out to get the best possible shot of the Scrapbook objects before giving the Cut or Copy options

a scrapbook number (it will be inserted as №1 scrapbook)

an expiry date which will be set 5 days after its creation - this will countdown each day until 0 when the new scrapbook will be deleted

	Notes:
	Scrapbooks use very little memory so there is no real limit to how many you can store in the palette but finding the one you want will be more difficult as the list grows longer
	Rolling Stock Objects cannot be added to a Scrapbook but they can be saved as a Consist Asset in the Assets Palette

	Most scrapbooks, old and new, can be deleted at any time by a Left Click on the Delete icon. See Notes: Deleting Built-in Scrapbooks in the section above for the exceptions
	Deleting a Scrapbook after it has been pasted does not delete the objects that it has added to the Trainz World

There are two changes that can be made to the new scrapbook:-

Give it a name - Left Click inside the Name Text Box and type a new name. To set its new name Left Click on the image OR press the Enter key

Make it permanent - Left Click the white Pin icon (

) to change it to blue. The scrapbook will no longer expire but it can still be deleted at any time

Pinned scrapbooks are always shown with a blue pin icon

and the words "pinned, no expiry" displayed next to their scrapbook №

The Pinning of any scrapbook can be reversed so that it will expire in 5 days time. Simply Left Click the Blue pin icon to change it back to White.

Once a scrapbook has been Pinned it becomes an asset and will appear in Content Manager

Notes:

	If a Pinned scrapbook is deleted from the Scrapbook Palette then it will also be deleted as an asset from Content Manager
	If a scrapbook asset is deleted (or disabled) in Content Manager then it will also be deleted from the Scrapbook Palette

The scrapbook asset can be saved as a CDP file and uploaded to the DLS.

You can archive your scrapbooks as CDP files to keep the number of installed scrapbooks to a minimum. If an archived scrapbook is needed then you can use the Import Content Files option in Content Manager to add it to the Scrapbook Palette. It can be deleted from the palette later, when no longer needed.

Painting or Pasting a Scrapbook

Painting a Scrapbook

Existing Scrapbooks can be painted into the Trainz World using the Brush Tool (see the Trainz Wiki page

How to Use the Surveyor 2.0 Tools) or Pasted into the Trainz World.
When the Scrapbook Data Target is selected in the Brush Tool, a second drop down box will give a choice of two brush Actions that control how the scrapbook will be applied.

The actions are:-

	Scrapbook Brush
	Scrapbook Clone

Scrapbook Brush Actions:

Scrapbook Brush will resize the scrapbook contents to fit the selected brush shape and size

Scrapbook Clone will paint the scrapbook sized according to the Tool Options Palette Scale setting. See Notes below

Notes:

Scrapbook Brush will resize the scrapbook contents to fit the selected brush shape and size.

	If the brush is small then the scrapbook contents will be compressed closer together
	If the brush is large then the contents will be spaced further apart
	Every Left Click will paste another complete scrapbook copy
	The Scale setting in the Tool Options Palette is ignored.

Scrapbook Clone will paste the scrapbook sized according to the Scale setting (100% = original size)

If the brush is the same size as the scaled scrapbook then a single exact copy will be pasted

If the brush is smaller than the scaled scrapbook in size then only the central part of the scrapbook will be revealed and more will be added when the brush is moved around until the "painted" area covers the same area as the scaled scrapbook. Further painting will clone or tile the scrapbook contents

If the brush is larger than the scaled scrapbook in size then the contents will be cloned or tiled to fill the set brush radius

WARNING:

Take care if setting both the Scale and the Radius . Using extreme values for both, such as a very large brush radius and a very small scale value, can cause performance issues (i.e. long delays) while the program attempts to scale and clone the scrapbook contents

	Tool Options Palette Controls
	The active scrapbook brush options for each action are shown in the Tool Options Palette with a Gold coloured icon next to their names. Those options that have their icon greyed out will be ignored by the selected action, but they can still be edited.
	Most of the data entry boxes in the Tool Options Palette have a Popup Menu (Right Click inside the box) that can be used to collect and distribute data - see the Wiki Page How to Use the Surveyor 2.0 Palettes for more details.

Scrapbook Brush
Brush options

Scrapbook Clone
Clone options

Radius

the brush radius (metres) - see Notes: below

Range:

5m and above for 5m and 10m grid resolutions
0.125m and above for HD Terrain (available in Trainz Plus only)

Sensitivity

if the Ground Height option has been enabled in the Scrapbook Palette filter settings, then this will set the rate or speed at which the ground height will change

Range:

1% = slowest to
100% = fastest

Rotation

initial rotation angle (degrees) - see Notes: below

Range:

0° to ±360° (larger angles can be entered)

Scale

the scrapbook scaling factor - see Notes: below

Range:

0.01% = smallest to

100% = full size to

>100% larger than full size

Shape

brush shape

Options:		Circle and Square will set the brush to the selected shape with the Radius setting the brush size
	Natural will set the brush to the same shape as the Marquee that created the scrapbook, which may be rectangular. The Radius setting will scale the brush size

The Height setting has no effect on the Scrapbook. This feature is controlled by the Scrapbook Palette Filter Ground Height options.

On the right of each data entry box is a pair of Up/Down arrow controls. Left Click and Drag up or down on these to adjust the value in smaller increments

Notes:

	Unlike Surveyor Classic, there is no upper limit to the brush Radius . Brushes of hundreds of metres (even kilometres) in size are possible. However, the performance will decrease as the brush radius increases.
	The Rotation controls the starting angle for pasting the scrapbook objects. In Surveyor Classic you could only rotate and paste in 90° increments. In S20 you can rotate and paste at any angle.
	The Ground Height options in the Scrapbook Filters control how the terrain heights in the Scrapbook are applied
	Take care if setting both the Scale and the Radius . Using extreme values for both, such as a very large brush radius and a very small scale value, can cause performance issues (i.e. long delays) while the program attempts to scale and clone the scrapbook contents

Pasting a Scrapbook

The current Scrapbook can be Pasted into the Trainz World at the cursor (the Compass Rose) position by either:-
Options:
	pressing Ctrl + V , OR
	selecting Paste from the Context Menu of a selected object
In both cases the scrapbook contents will be pasted using the original scrapbooks size. It will be pasted inside a Marquee Selection Area that can be moved and resized. The objects that are pasted and how they are pasted is controlled by the current Scrapbook Palette filter settings

Setting the Filters

You will probably need to undock and resize the Scrapbook palette to make full use of its filters. Refer to

Hiding and Showing Palettes and Windows at the top of this document for undocking and resizing instructions

Steps: To Open the Scrapbook Filters
	Left Click on the arrowhead next to the Filters: label below the scrapbook image to open the scrapbook filters.
These filters control which elements in the scrapbook are added to the Trainz World and how they are added.

Sample Filter Settings:-
You can vary the appearance of the scrapbook when added to a route by painting or pasting it with different filter combinations. For example:-

Ground Height:

None

ground height data will not be pasted and the ground heights already in the target area will be used

Ground Texture:

Overwrite

textures present in the scrapbook will replace those already in the target area

Meshes:

Add

scenery objects in the scrapbook will be added to those already in the target area

Splines:

Add

scenery splines in the scrapbook will be added to those already in the target area

Effect Layers:

None

effect layers in the scrapbook will not be pasted and any already in the target area will be used

You can also add more variety when painting a Scrapbook by changing its Tool Options Palette Scale and Rotation settings in combination with different Filter selections (as shown above)

Scrapbook Painting/Pasting Options
What Data to Transfer
	Ground Height	terrain height(s) used in the scrapbook
	Texture	textures used in the scrapbook
	Meshes	scenery objects (e.g. trees, buildings) used in the scrapbook
	Splines	spline objects used in the scrapbook
	Effect Layers	effect layers (TurfFX, Clutter, Water Layer) used in the scrapbook
How to Transfer the Data
	None	do not paste/paint this feature
	Add	add this feature to those already present
	Overwrite	use this feature to replace those already present
For the Ground Height:-
	None	do not paste/paint the scrapbook ground heights, use the existing ground heights instead
	Absolute	use the ground heights in the scrapbook to replace the existing ground heights
	Relative	use the difference between the existing ground heights and those used in the scrapbook

The Asset Preview Palette

This is a Surveyor Only palette

If the Asset Preview Palette is not visible on the screen then refer to

Hiding and Showing Palettes and Windows at the top of this document.

This palette gives a rotating 3D view of an asset that has been selected in the Assets Palette. It works with all assets except effect layers.

The Asset Preview Palette can be enlarged once it has been undocked.

The current Surveyor 2.0 version has no display or control options and lacks the "zoom" and other features found in the Preview function of Content Manager.

The Content Packages Palette

This is a Surveyor Only palette

If the Content Packages Palette is not visible on the screen then refer to

Hiding and Showing Palettes and Windows at the top of this document.

This palette is mainly intended for content creators, particularly MPS (Multi Player Surveyor) content. It helps manage, prepare and upload to the MPS Server a user created "Content Package". The web site for the TCCP (Trainz Content Creation Program), which is not MPS specific, can be found at info.trainzsimulator.com/tccp

For a more technical description of using the Content Packages Palette see the Trainz Wiki page

Content Packages

Notes:

	The Content Packages Palette is intended for use by Content Creators , particularly those creating MPS (Multi Player Surveyor) routes . But it can be used by anyone to help manage installed packages and identify their details and contents.
	Its content creation function does not support session data - it is for routes only

The palette lists all the installed Content Packages that have assets available for use. Two special packages are included in the list:-

	All Installed Content which covers all offline (non-MPS) content, and
	multiplayersurveyor which includes all the default content on the live MPS Server

Each package in the list can be individually:-
	Enabled - which means its assets will be available for use in a new user created package OR
	Disabled - which means its assets will NOT be available for use in a new user created package
The top package. All Installed Content is enabled by default but it can be disabled

Steps: To Enable a package:-
	Left Click on the (Disabled icon) after the name of the package
To Disable a package:-
	Left Click on the (Enabled icon) after the name of the package

Once you have enabled a package, the Revert button will become active. Click it to Disable all enabled packages except the All Installed Content package (which can be disabled manually).

Enabling packages in an MPS Route will prompt other users who download the Route to install the same packages

Content Package Details

Steps: To view the details of a package:-
	Right Click on the package name
	Select the option View Details

Some packages will display the message

If details are available then something like the following example will be shown.

Details:
	description
	status e.g. Purchased (installed), Purchased (update available)
	ID code
	version - packages that have been Uninstalled will show (not installed)

Options:
Left Click to uninstall the package but first read the Warning below
Left Click to open a Content Manager window listing the contents of this package

If you Uninstall a package it will still appear in the palette content package list until the palette is either Hidden or Closed. Uninstalled packages can be reinstalled later using the Content Store

Warning:

If you Uninstall a package you will also delete any Packaged assets it contains that may be needed by other assets on your system, such as routes. Packaged assets may (or may not) be found on the DLS - that is a decision made by the creator of the package. They are not Payware but come as part of an installed DLC package. Trainz has no way of knowing if a "packaged" asset it is about to delete had previously been "Installed from the DLS", and could therefore be needed elsewhere, or was only installed with the package.

Uninstalling a package can leave you with some (or many) "Missing dependency" error messages. The remedy is to use Content Manager to first perform a DBR (database repair) and then download the missing dependencies from the DLS BUT it is possible that some of the "missing dependencies" can only be found in the DLC Package you have just uninstalled.

Testing the Packages

While you can manually select the packages to be enabled, an easier option may be to let the program perform that task.

With or without any packages enabled, Left Click on the icon showing 3 horizontal bars (bottom right) to open a menu.
S20 PalettePackagesMenu.png

Automatically Enable Required Packages

attempts to automatically identify and enable the minimum number of packages required by the current route. This only affects the packages listed in the palette and nothing else

List Assets Unsupported by Enabled Packages

this will either:-

	open Content Manager with a window displaying all the assets (objects) used in the current route that are not found in the enabled packages, OR
	give the preferred result as shown in the following message

Steps: To identify the assets that are required by the current route that are not supported by the enabled packages:-
	Disable all packages - the Revert button will reset any enabled packages leaving only the top package enabled
	Select the menu option Automatically Enable Required Packages . There may be a delay of a few seconds.
	Select the menu option List Assets Unsupported by Enabled Packages

Dealing with Unsupported Assets

If you have manually selected and enabled the packages you want to include and have been shown a list of assets that are not supported by your selection, then you will need to identify the missing packages (if any) and add them manually.

Steps: To identify and add missing packages:-
	Left Click on the first asset in the Content Manager window
	open the Content Menu and select the option Report Containing Packages
	note the ID of the package. If no ID is shown then the asset does not belong to an installed package (see option below for dealing with these assets)
	repeat for each asset in the Content Manager list
	Enable the identified missing packages. The IDs of all the installed packages can be found by using the steps described in Content Package Details above

If you have used the Automatically Enable Required Packages option then any unsupported assets found will not belong to any installed packages. In this case you will need to create a new package using TCCP and add them to that package - see the Trainz Wiki Page at

TCCP Content Creation. If that is not a suitable option then you will need to either remove the unsupported assets from the route or replace them with supported assets.

Apply and Upload

Once you have enabled the required packages, you need to prepare the route for uploading to the live MPS Server

Steps:

Left Click the Apply button at the bottom of the palette window.

You may be shown an error report which will list the assets, by their kuids, that have failed a compliance test. In this case the package creation will not proceed. You will need to identify each asset listed in the report and take any necessary action, such as replacing the assets or removing them from the route.
If there is no error report then you will be shown the following message:-

Note:

If you have NOT already saved this route then it will be saved using "New Route" as its name. Left Click Cancel , save using your preferred route name and then return to the Content Packages Palette.

To accept the changes, Left Click OK

The next step is to upload the new package to the live MPS Server.

Steps:

Open the

Surveyor Sharing Menu from the Main Menu icons

	Select the option Share Route . You will receive a warning that Session Data is not supported.
	To proceed Left Click OK To cancel the upload Left Click Cancel

Assuming that you selected OK then the route will be packaged and uploaded to the live MPS Server. A successful upload will be indicated by the final message as shown below:-

A route that has been uploaded to the MPS Server will appear with a colour band in the Surveyor Select a Route/Session window.

The Drivers Palette/Driver Control Center

This is a Surveyor palette

and a Driver window (where it is named the Driver Control Center)

In Surveyor if the Drivers Palette is not visible on the screen then refer to

Hiding and Showing Palettes and Windows at the top of this document

In Driver to show the Driver Control Centre on the screen either:-

	Left Click on the Driver Icon at the bottom left of the screen OR
	open the Window Menu and select the Driver Control Center option

Notes:

This has been redesigned for the Trainz Living Railroad (TLR) feature that is only available in Trainz Plus.

	some of its features can be used without the TLR
	it is NOT a replacement for the Driver Setup Rule in the Session Editor

	This provides a full list of available drivers, their assigned trains and the tools to manage them in both Surveyor and Driver
	In Driver it is named the Driver Control Center and is a Window

	The driver with the current camera focus is shown on a blue background
	In Surveyor this palette and its child windows can be minimised and resized
	In Driver this window can be minimised but NOT resized, however its child windows can be both minimised and resized

Next to the image of each driver is:-

	a thumbnail of their assigned locomotive (or No assigned location)
	the assigned locomotives Object Name. This can be set in Surveyor using either the Info Palette or the Driver Properties Tool
	the current control state of the train - the next command in their Driver Command List (driver Bald shown left), Manual Control (driver Aldair), Not in a Train (driver Kenny) or Idle (driver Jane)

Above each drivers image is a Tool Bar for that driver

Left Click to open a drop down menu to assign this driver to:-

Not Assigned (driver Jane shown left) will make the driver unavailable for use but will still remain in the driver list

Player Controlled will return them to active duty in the driver list

Automatic Scheduler this assigns control of the driver to the TLR (available in Trainz Plus only). The Living Railroad Dispatch setting must be Enabled in the

Session Options Window

Left Click to Delete the current driver

If a driver has been assigned to a train (drivers Adair and Bald) then Left Click this icon to Remove the driver from this train. See

Switching Drivers below

This indicates that the driver is classified as Not Assigned and is not available for use (driver Jane)

If a driver has NOT been assigned to a train (driver Kenny) then Left Click this icon to select a train to assign to this driver. See

Assigning Drivers below

This indicates that the driver is classified as Not Assigned and is not available for use

Left Click to view and edit the details for the current driver and train. This is for use in TLR (available in Trainz Plus only). See

Driver Properties below

If a driver is assigned to a train Left Click this icon to change the camera focus and the blue background to this driver

Located at the bottom of the driver list (you may have to scroll down) Left Click to Add a New Driver. See Adding a Driver below

The Drivers Palette list can be scrolled up and down to reveal more available drivers.

Adding a Driver

New drivers can be added to the Drivers Palette

Notes:

A randomly selected driver will be automatically added to the Drivers Palette when a locomotive is added to your Trainz World. The driver will be assigned to the new locomotive

Steps: To add a new driver to the Drivers Palette:-
	scroll down the driver list to the bottom to reveal the Add New Driver button
	Left Click on the button to open the Driver Selection window shown on the left
	select (Left Click on) a driver and then Left Click on the tick icon
The selected driver will be added to the end of the driver list but will be not be assigned to a train

A driver can be deleted from the list at any time using the

tool in the driver tool bar

Assigning Drivers

A driver that has no currently assigned train can have one assigned to them

Steps: To assign a driver to a train:-

Move to Destination
Left Click on the icon to select a new train for the driver. The Drivers Palette will change to the image shown below right

If this tool cannot be selected then check if the driver has been set to Not Assigned or Automatic Scheduler (available in Trainz Plus only). If necessary you can change the setting to Player Controlled but that may affect other operations

Then...

Choose one of the following:- Options:
	Left Click on a train in your Trainz World that does not already have an assigned driver. The selected driver will then be assigned to this train
	Left Click on the icon OR press the Esc key to Cancel the selection operation and return to the normal Drivers Palette
	Left Click on the Add New Driver button to select and add a new unassigned driver to the palette as described in Adding a Driver above. Then repeat the process described from Step 1 above

Switching Drivers

A driver that is currently assigned to a train can be reassigned to a different train or to no train

Steps: To switch a driver from one train to another:-

Get off Train
Left Click on the icon to leave the assigned train so that the driver can be assigned to another or none

Once the driver has left the train, the icon will change to a new design

Move to Destination
This is optional. You can reasign the driver by a Left Click on the new icon to select a new train for the driver. The Drivers Palette will change to the image shown below right

If this tool cannot be selected then check if the driver has been set to Not Assigned or Automatic Scheduler . If necessary you can change the setting to Player Controlled but that may affect other operations such as the TLR

Then...

Choose one of the following:- Options:
	Left Click on a train in your Trainz World that does not already have an assigned driver. The selected driver will then be assigned to this train
	Left Click on the icon OR press the Esc key to Cancel the selection operation and return to the normal Drivers Palette
	Left Click on the Add New Driver button to select and add a new unassigned driver to the palette as described in Adding a Driver above. Then continue the process described from Step 2 above

Driver Properties

	Notes:
	These features are mostly intended for use in the Trainz Living Railroad (TLR) (available in Trainz Plus only) but some can be used with normal Sessions
	They will have no effect in the running of normal (non-TLR) Sessions

In Surveyor and Driver

After selecting the View Driver Properties Tool, the following Properties window will open.

The Mini Map

driver location in the Trainz World

it can be zoomed in and out

Driver Settings

Displays the currently assigned Driver Properties:-

	location (assigned train)
	assigned user

Command Status

text description of the next command in the driver queue

commands (as icons) waiting in the Driver Command Queue

Activity Log

the progress of the driver

The Driver Settings and Command Status can be edited. The Activity Log can be filtered.

In Driver

In Trainz Plus Only: When used in Driver Mode a coloured line will appear above the track showing the path, or possible paths, when the next command in the Command Status queue is a movement command, such as Drive To..., Navigate To... or Couple To.... The path lines will not be shown when these commands are not being executed. The colour of the path lines are Blue, Green, Orange and Red.

	Notes: Path Colours:- These colours identify the type of service and are a "Work In Progress". They may change in future releases
	Locomotive only
	Passenger (not yet implemented)
	Freight
	Active Path (for the selected driver)
If you do not want the coloured paths to appear then close the Driver Properties Window

Notes:

	The signals and switches along the path may not be correctly set until the train approaches and activates them
	In the current retail Trainz Plus version, the path will be visible as long as the Driver Properties window is open (but it can be minimised)
	The path options are controlled from the Main Display Menu, as shown below, and are independent of the Driver Properties window

To open the Driver Properties window in Driver, choose one of the following:-
Options:

From the Driver Icon:-

Steps:
	Left Click on the Driver Icon at the bottom left of the screen
	select the driver from the driver list (Left Click on its Eye icon if it is not the driver with the focus)
	Left Click on the View Driver Properties Tool for that driver

From the Window Menu:-

Steps:
	Open the Window Menu and select Driver Control Center
	select the driver from the driver list (Left Click on its Eye icon if it is not the driver with the focus)
	Left Click on the View Driver Properties Tool for that driver

Left Click on the Close button to close the window and return to the Drivers Palette or Driver Control Center but closing it will turn off the path line. To keep the path line on the screen Minimise the window instead.

Driver Location

This allows you to move the driver to a new train and to view/edit the details of their current train

Steps: To edit the driver location:-
	Left Click on the white Down Arrowhead following the name of the assigned locomotive
	select an option from the drop down menu

Choose one of the following:-
Options:

Move to Train...

performs the same task as shown in

Switching Drivers above, OR

Get off Train

the driver assignment to this train will be terminated, OR

Show <name of loco>

this will open a new Properties window showing details of the assigned train. Some of those details can be edited. See Train Properties below

Left Click on the Close button to close the window and return to the Drivers Palette.

Train Properties

The Show <name of loco> option will open the Train Properties window

There are a number of control and display options built into this window.

Train Priority:
	Left Click the white down arrowhead next to the label Priority and select a priority value 1 , 2 or 3 to assign to this train

Classification:
	Left Click the white down arrowhead and select a running classification for this train

Driver:
	Left Click the white down arrowhead just below the Driver Image and select an option Show Driver <Name of Driver> will re-open the Train Properties window if it had been closed or minimised Move to Train... and Get off Train are the same as described above

Left Click on the Close button to close the window and return to the Driver Properties window.

Script Properties

Steps: To display the legacy script properties of the locomotive:-
	Left Click on the window icon to open the Script Properties window
		Left Click the button to close the window

You can edit the Script Properties of a locomotive.

DriverPaletteScriptPropertiesWindowEdit S20.png

Steps: To edit the Script Properties:-
	Left Click on the Enable Editing button
	All the script controlled properties of that particular locomotive, as shown left, can be opened (Left Click on the link) and edited
	To Save your edits Left Click on the Save Changes button, OR To Cancel your edits Left Click on the Cancel button

Player Assignment

This allows you to set the driver control assignment

Steps: To change a driver assignment:-
	Left Click on the white Down Arrowhead following the name of the player
	select an option from the drop down menu

Choose one of the following:-
Options:

Not Assigned

makes the driver unavailable but keeps them in the driver list, OR

Automatic Scheduler

this assigns control of the driver to the TLR (available in Trainz Plus only) but the Living Railroad Dispatch setting must be Enabled in the

Session Options Window, OR

Player Controlled

returns the driver to active duty in the driver list

Left Click on the Close button to close the window and return to the Drivers Palette.

Command Status

	The Command Status displays the list of driver commands waiting for execution by the selected driver
	New driver commands can be added and existing commands removed

A sample list of driver commands

Steps: To add a command to the driver command list:-

Left Click on the Command Point identified by the red arrow in the image on the left

select the command from the pop up menu

The commands shown in the pop up menu are set by the

Driver Command Rule in the

Session Editor

repeat as needed for each new command

Steps: To remove a command from the driver command list:-
	Left Click and Drag the command to be removed out of the Command Status area and release the mouse button

The changes you make to the Command Status list will also be made in the Driver Command Bar at the bottom right of the screen

Left Click on the Close button to close the window and return to the Drivers Palette.

Activity Log

This allows you to monitor the activity and progress of a driver

This gives a detailed list of every operation started and completed by the selected driver. In the example shown on the left this includes gaining and releasing "permits" (access or permission) for each junction switch along the drivers path.

the display area has a vertical scroll bar on the right for longer reports

Left Click on the coloured dots to toggle them on/off and filter the log entries by message type

	Grey ON shows general messages: Grey OFF hides general messages
	Yellow ON shows warnings: Yellow OFF hides warnings
	Red ON shows error messages: Red OFF hides error messages
	Green ON shows "task completed" messages: Green OFF hides "task completed" messages

Left Click in the Search text box to enter a text string to filter the log entries

Left Click on the Close button to close the window and return to the Drivers Palette.

The Logs Palette

This is a Surveyor Only palette

In Driver to show the Logs Palette on the screen refer to

Hiding and Showing Palettes and Windows at the top of this document

This palette displays the Trainz System Log which details the loading of assets, the operation of scripts, messages displayed on the screen (in Driver), etc. It is for diagnostic purposes.

the display area has a vertical scroll bar on the right for longer reports

Left Click on the coloured dots to toggle them on/off and filter the log entries by message type

	Grey ON shows general messages: Yellow OFF hides general messages
	Yellow ON shows warnings: Yellow OFF hides warnings
	Red ON shows error messages: Red OFF hides error messages
	Green ON shows "task completed" messages: Green OFF hides "task completed" messages

Left Click in the Search text box to enter a text string to filter the log entries

	Notes:
	This palette can be minimised and resized
	Left Click on the icon to close the palette

The Session Options Window

This is a Driver Only window

In Driver to show the Session Options Window on the screen refer to

Hiding and Showing Palettes and Windows at the top of this document

This window allows you to change session settings in Driver "on the fly"

	Notes:
	This window can be minimised but it cannot be resized
	Left Click on the icon to close the window

Each item shown in the window can be edited:-

	Left Click on a boxed item to select an option from its drop down menu (see below)
	In the calendar Left Click on date (the day and/or the left/right month arrows) to change the season of the year or enter a new date in the text entry box (the year entered does not matter)
	In the clock Left Click and Drag the clock hand around the dial to change the time of day

Derailment Mode
	sets the realism level of derailments. Options are None (no derailments will occur), Arcade (derailments will occur far more often than reality) and Realistic

Living Railroad Dispatch
	sets the operation of the TLR (Trainz Living Railroad - available in Trainz Plus only). Options are Enabled (feature is on) and Disabled (feature is off)

Restart Stuck AI
	sets whether or not attempts will be made to resolve AI conflicts and restart "stuck" AI controlled trains. Options are Enabled (feature is on) and Disabled (feature is off)

Weather
	sets the current weather conditions. Options are Clear, Cloudy, Drizzle, Rain, Stormy, Light Snow, Medium Snow, Heavy Snow

Weather Changeability
	sets the rate and scope of changes to the weather conditions during the session. Options are None (no weather changes), Periodic (minor and gradual changes) and Extreme (rapid and wide ranging changes)

Time Rate
	sets the speed at which time changes during the session. This does not affect the speed of trains or other operations. Options range from 1x (normal time) to 1440x (extremely rapid time)

Current Time
	sets, very inaccurately, the current time shown on the session clock. Left Click and Drag on the pointer shown on the clock dial. Each of the small dividing lines on the dial represents 36 minutes which makes accurate time setting difficult - approximations are best.

The Commodity Picker Window

This is a Driver Only window

In Driver to show the Commodity Picker Window on the screen open the

Window Menu and select the Commodity Picker option

This window allows you to change the commodities (products) carried by rolling stock in Driver "on the fly"

	Notes:
	This window cannot be minimised or resized
	Left Click on the icon to close the window

Steps: To change the commodities (products) carried by a rolling stock object:-

move the mouse pointer onto a commodity icon in the Picker. A Tooltip identifying the product will appear on the pointer

Left Click on an icon to select its commodity. The message at the top of the palette will change to confirm the selection
CommodityPickerPaletteClick S20.png

move the pointer onto the rolling stock asset that will have its product queue restricted to the selected product only. The mouse pointer will have a Load icon

attached to it

Left Click on the rolling stock object to restrict it to the selected product only. If the change is accepted then the mouse pointer will change to the icon for the selected product

The selection will fail if the rolling stock object has not been configured to accept the selected commodity. Failure is indicated when the Load icon attached to the pointer does not change when a rolling stock object has been clicked

The Session Info Window

This is a Driver Only window

In Driver to show the Session Info Window on the screen open the

Window Menu and select the Session Info option

This window displays the active message windows that were created for this session by a HTML Asset or a Message Popup Rule starting with the last one displayed

	Notes: This window can also be displayed by pressing the F1 function key
	If no HTML Asset or Message Popup Rule exists in the session, or those present have not yet been activated, then nothing will be displayed
	This window cannot be minimised or resized
	Left and Right arrow icons at the bottom of the palette will allow you to move forward and back through any other message windows that have been activated for this session
	A icon indicates no more messages. Left Click on the or the icons to close the window

The Waybill Window

This is a Driver Only window

In Driver to show the Waybill Window on the screen open the

Window Menu and select the Waybill option

This window displays the commodity deliveries and pickups for this train

	Notes:
	This window cannot be minimised or resized
	Left Click on the icon to close the window

The Schedule Info Window

This is a Driver Only window

In Driver to show the Schedule Info Window on the screen open the

Window Menu and select the Schedule Info option

This window displays the Trainz Living Railroad (TLR) (available in Trainz Plus only) schedule for the train

	Notes:
	This window is fully functional in the Trainz Living Railroad (TLR) (available in Trainz Plus only) feature
	This window cannot be minimised or resized
	Left Click on the icon to close the window

Trainz Wiki

More Tutorials and Guides to Using Trainz

Related Links

This page was created by Trainz user pware in February 2023 and was last updated as shown below.

The Info Palette

This is a Surveyor Only palette

If the Info Palette is not visible on the screen then refer to

Hiding and Showing Palettes and Windows at the top of this document. Some Info Palette functions will also require the Assets Palette and the Tool Options Palette.

This palette can be easily overlooked but it has some very useful features:-
	naming objects
	providing precise data and control over the "focus" - the position of the cursor
	providing precise data and control over the position and orientation of objects (it can be used instead of the Free Move Tool and the Fine Adjustment Tool)
	identifying and setting the "home" layer and binding layer of a selected object
	used for locking and unlocking a selected objects layer

The components of the Info Palette are identified in the image below.

	Every item in the palette can be edited.
	Each of the small arrowhead icons in the palette will open to display more information and controls or a drop down menu of options.

	The Asset Name is the name given to the asset by its creator and the name that will appear in the asset list of Content Manager and in the Assets Palette
	The Object Name is the optional name that you have given the object so that it can be quickly located in the route and/or session. Some objects, such as station name signs, will require an Object Name that will be visible in Surveyor and Driver

Palette Coordinates

Notes:

All the positional data and controls in the Info Palette are defined in the following ways:-

x	is ALWAYS the North-South compass direction regardless of the direction that an object is facing
y	is ALWAYS the East-West compass direction regardless of the direction that an object is facing
z	is ALWAYS the Vertical direction (perpendicular to the compass directions) regardless of how an object has been rolled or tilted

	distances are measured in metres from the North-West corner of the first baseboard. If that baseboard is later deleted then distances will still be measured from its original and now "virtual" North-West corner.
	+ positive distances are in the South and East directions
	- negative distances are in the North and West directions
	New boards added to the North of the first baseboard will have negative x coordinates and new boards added to the West of the first baseboard will have negative y coordinates.

Info Settings Menu

All the Focus, Position and Rotation settings have drop down menus that allow values to be transferred to and from other settings and other tools.

Steps:

Right Click inside an Info Palette setting box

The first time the popup menu is opened it will only show two active options - Paste and Select All.

Paste

will paste the contents of your Operating System (Windows, MacOS) clipboard into the setting. If data is already present then the new data will be added to it, not replace it

Select All will highlight the contents of the selected setting. You can also achieve this with a Left Click and Drag across the contents of the setting

Right Click inside the same Info Palette setting box

Once the value in a setting has been selected (highlighted) the popup menu will show all options as active.

Cut	will copy the contents of the selected setting into your Operating System clipboard. The contents will then be deleted from the setting

Copy	will copy the contents of the selected setting into your Operating System clipboard without deleting it

Delete will delete the contents of the selected setting. You can also achieve this with a Left Click and Drag across the contents and then press the Delete key

Next to the z co-ordinate in both the Focus and Position is a small white down arrowhead. Left Click on the arrowhead to open its menu.

There is only one option in the sub-menu.

Left Click on the Use Height for Brush option to copy the current z value to the Tool Options Palette Height setting.

Focus Info and Controls

The Focus shows the current position and height of the Cursor object.

Open up the Focus by a Left Click on its arrowhead icon.

Before changing the cursor position with the Focus controls, set a Bookmark at its current position.

The current cursor position is shown in the x, y and z text boxes. These values can be edited to move the cursor to a new position but CARE will be needed.

On the right of each data entry box is a pair of Up/Down arrow controls. Left Click and Drag up or down on these to adjust the position in smaller increments down to centimetres

Notes:

If you enter an x or y value that is "out in empty space" (beyond the edge of a boundary baseboard) then the cursor will be refocused at a point on the baseboard edge that is the closest to the entered co-ordinates.

If it has not been deleted you can identify the North-West corner of the original (first) baseboard by entering 0 as the Focus x and y co-ordinates

Asset Name Menu

"Asset Name" refers to the name of the asset as displayed in the Assets Palette and in Content Manager. This is not the same as the Object Name (see the next section)

You must have an object (or objects) selected for an Asset Name to be shown and for this menu to be available.

If more than one object has been selected then the name and position data shown will be for the last selected object. If different objects (with different kuid codes) have been selected then a count of the additional objects will be added. The (+2) shown in the object name in the image on the left indicates that 2 additional different objects are in the group of selected objects.

Next to the Asset Name is a small white Down Arrowhead. Left Click on the arrowhead to open its menu.

Asset Name Menu Options

Copy	NOT WORKING (a known bug)

Show Asset Details

opens a new window showing the image and description of the selected object

List Assets in New Window

opens up Content Manager and lists all the selected objects

Add to Picklist

adds selected objects to a Picklist

Remove from Picklist

removes selected objects from a Picklist (objects must already be in a Picklist)

Select in Assets Palette

selects and highlights the selected object in the Assets Palette

Object Name

"Object Name" refers to the name that you give to an object

You can give any object in your Trainz World an identifying name. In some cases a name is vital for AI and session operations, in other cases it will be needed as a display feature - for example: to be shown on a station nameboard. You must have the object (or objects) selected for this option to be available. If more than one object has been selected then only the last object (the one with the Context Icon) will be affected

Steps: To name (or rename) an object:-
	Left Click inside the Name text entry box
	Enter a name
	Press the Enter key

There is no ban on two or more objects using the same name

In the image shown on the left there are 4 objects all named Old Orroroo Rd.

This will not cause any problems for scenery objects.

However, duplicated names will cause problems for Industries (including passenger enabled stations), Locomotives, Track Marks, Triggers, Switches, Signals, etc that have to be identified to control the operation of a session.

These objects must have unique names

Position Info and Controls

You must have an object (or objects) selected for the position data to be shown and edited. Open up the position data by a Left Click on its Pos: arrowhead icon.

The position of the selected object (or the last object if more than one is selected) is shown in the x, y and z text boxes. These values can be edited to move the object or objects to a new position but CARE will be needed.

On the right of each data entry box is a pair of Up/Down arrow controls. Left Click and Drag up or down on these to adjust the position in smaller increments down to centimetres

Notes:

If you enter an x or y value that is "out in empty space" (beyond the edge of a boundary baseboard) then the objects will be moved to that position and may vanish from view. The Undo command can be used to reverse the move or the Marquee Tool can be used to add a baseboard under the "floating" objects.

Rotation Info and Controls

You must have an object (or objects) selected for the rotation data to be shown and edited. Open up the rotation data by a Left Click on its Rot: arrowhead icon.

The rotational orientation of the selected object (or the last object if more than one is selected) is shown in the r, p and y text boxes (the letters stand for Roll, Pitch and Yaw). These values can be edited to rotate the object or objects in 3D space BUT not all objects can be rotated in certain directions.

Notes:

	If several objects have been selected then the last selected object, the one with the Context Icon, will be the centre of all rotations.
	Not all objects will allow rotations. For example, SpeedTree objects can only be rotated using the y value ( r and p entries will be ignored) while Spline objects cannot be rotated at all

On the right of each box is a pair of Up/Down arrow controls. Left Click and Drag up or down on these to adjust the rotation angle in increments of 1°.

Notes:

The rotation data and controls are defined in the following ways:-

r

ALWAYS rotates in the vertical plane around the selected objects Y axis (which was defined when it was created).
This is the same as the Red Rotational Anchor in the Fine Adjustment Tool

p

ALWAYS rotates in the vertical plane around the selected objects Y axis PLUS 90°.
This is the same as the Green Rotational Anchor in the Fine Adjustment Tool

y

ALWAYS rotates in the horizontal plane around the compass Z or Vertical axis regardless of how the object has been rolled or pitched.

This is similar to but NOT exactly the same as the Blue Rotational Anchor in the Fine Adjustment Tool

Rot: y =

0° East

90° North

180° West

270° South

Original	Roll: r = 45	Pitch: p = 45	Yaw: y = 45
	All rotations shown are 45° in the + (anticlockwise) direction


	Some objects (for example: SpeedTrees) will NOT allow Roll or Pitch rotations
	all angles are measured in degrees
	+ positive angles are anticlockwise when viewed facing the rotation axis direction
	- negative angles are clockwise when viewed facing the rotation axis direction
	angles greater than 360° can be entered but will give the same result as the angle minus 360°. For example: 450° is exactly the same angle as 90° (450°-360°=90°)
	clockwise and anti-clockwise angles are complementary. For example: entering -270° (clockwise) will give the same angle as entering +90° (anticlockwise)

Layer Info and Controls

You must have an object (or objects) selected for the layer data to be shown and edited. Open up the layer data by a Left Click on its Layer: arrowhead icon.

	Notes:
	the Info Palette is best used to show and edit the layer and binding layer assignments of individual selected objects
	operations such as creating, deleting, merging, renaming, moving and hiding layers are performed using the Layers Palette
	layers can be Locked and Unlocked using the Info Palette or the Layers Palette but the Layers Palette is often the better choice for these tasks

This will show the:-

current layer assigned to the selected object

its assigned Binding Layer (if any)

the Locked or Unlocked state of the assigned layer

Layer is currently Unlocked. Click this button to Lock the layer

Layer is currently Locked. Click this button to Unlock the layer

Using this button will also change the Locked or Unlocked padlock icon shown next to the layer name in the Layers Palette

Notes:

	Objects in a Locked Layer cannot be deleted or moved
	Locked Layers can be deleted, moved and merged with other layers

If multiple objects from different layers have been selected then no layer name will be shown in the Layer and Binding boxes. Instead they will be left "blank" as shown in the image on the left.

Both boxes can still be opened to assign layers to objects.

WARNING:

	Setting a layer for multiple objects that are in different layers will move ALL those objects to that layer
	If objects are moved from one layer group to another (such as from the Route Layers to the Session Layers) then it will change where those objects are saved (in the Route or in the Session)

Assigning Objects to a Different Layer

The Active Layer is the layer used by the Placement Tool when objects are added to your Trainz World.

A selected object or group of selected objects can be assigned to a different layer. If multiple objects have been selected then they do not have to all be in the same layer.

Steps: To change the assigned layer of an object or group of objects:-
	Left Click on the Layer drop down box. The layer containing the object (for a single selected object only) will be shown with a in front of its name
	Select the destination layer name from the drop down list. See Warning above
The layer reassignment will start the instant the destination layer is selected
	If you see a Debugging Window on the screen as the task is processed, it will inform you when the task has been completed. You can then close the window

Once a target layer has been selected then the Select Layer button, which sets the Active Layer, will become active IF the target layer is not the Active Layer. A Left Click on this button will set it as the Active Layer.

You can also set the Active Layer by selecting its name from the list in the Layers Palette.

Options: To set current layer to the Active Layer:-
If the Select Layer button is greyed out
	then the selected object is now assigned to the current Active Layer so there is no need to use this option
If it is NOT greyed out
	then the selected object is now assigned to a layer that is not the current Active Layer. Left Click on the Select Layer button to switch the Active Layer to the same layer as the object

Assigning Objects to a Binding Layer

The Binding Layer, or Bound Layer as it is also called, is a tool used in the development of your Trainz World. It allows you to temporarily assign an object to a second layer while it is still in its original layer. The object will then take on the properties (Locked or Unlocked, Hidden or Visible) of both layers.

Assigned Layer	Binding Layer	Object Status

Unlocked	or None	Unlocked
LOCKED	or or None	LOCKED
Unlocked	LOCKED	LOCKED

Visible	or None	Visible
HIDDEN	or or None	HIDDEN
Visible	HIDDEN	HIDDEN

In Summary:-
	If the Assigned Layer or the Binding Layer of an object is Locked then the object will be Locked
	If the Assigned Layer or the Binding Layer of an object is Hidden then the object will be Hidden

	Notes:
	Objects in a Hidden Layer cannot be seen and therefore, cannot be selected, deleted or moved
	The Layers Palette is the ONLY way to create, delete, name and hide layers

Some examples of using the Binding Layer:- Example 1:
The problem:	You need to stop an object from being selected so that you can you move other objects on or around it
The solution:	Use the Layers Palette to create a new empty layer and lock it. Set the Binding Layer of the object to the new locked layer. The object will then be locked so it cannot be selected or moved even though its original layer is unlocked. When the edit has been completed delete the empty locked layer you just created to unlock all its bound objects and remove all their bindings
Example 2:
The problem:	A group of objects (e.g trees) are blocking access to another object.
The solution:	Use the Layers Palette to create a new empty layer and hide it. Set the Binding Layer of the blocking objects to the new hidden layer. The blocking objects will no longer be visible and cannot be selected even though their original layer is still visible. When the edit has been completed delete the empty hidden layer you just created to make all its bound objects visible and remove all their bindings

Steps: To change the assigned binding layer of an object or group of objects:-
	Left Click on the Binding drop down box. For a single selected object only the binding layer (which may be <none>) will be shown with a in front of its name
	Select the Binding layer name from the drop down list. Note: the objects assigned layer will not appear in the list because an object cannot be bound to its own layer
The layer reassignment will start the instant the layer is selected
	If you see a Debugging Window on the screen as the task is processed, it will inform you when the task has been completed. You can then close the window

As an example, the image below shows what you will see for a single object that has had:-

	its assigned layer changed (in the example from "route-layer" to "Station Industries")
	its binding layer set (in the example to "Multi Industries")
	the newly assigned layer is not locked so you have the option to lock it
	the newly assigned layer is not the Active Layer so you have the option to make it the Active Layer

More information on creating, editing and using Layers can be found on the Trainz Wiki at:-

How to Use Layers

The Tools Palette

This is a Surveyor Only palette

If the Tools Palette is not visible on the screen then refer to

Hiding and Showing Palettes and Windows at the top of this document

The Tools Palette is at the core of the new interface and takes the place of all the Tool Flyouts that have been the standard for Trainz Surveyor for many years. Some of the tools are new while others have been given a makeover and new abilities. The tools manipulate the Surveyor World you see in many different ways.

The Context Tool is attached as an icon to a selected or newly placed object. The icon and its Context menu will vary according to the type of object.

Various brush tools make use of the Tool Options Palette, the Assets Palette, the Info Palette, the Layers Palette and the Scrapbook Palette. If a palette required by one of the brush tools is not visible on the screen then refer to

Hiding and Showing Palettes and Windows at the top of this document.

The Brush Tool

Keyboard Shortcut: W

The Brush Tool "paints" the ground height, ground textures, effect layers and scrapbook scenes in the Trainz World

The Brush Tool has two drop down menu lists.

The first drop down menu will set the "Brush Target" which is the type of brush.

The Targets are:-

	Ground Height
	Ground Texture
	Scrapbook Data
	*<List of Effect Layers>*
	Edit Effect Layers

If you have any Effect Layers then they will appear as Targets in this drop down list. Select an Effect Layer to use the brush to paint with that layer.

The Brush Targets Ground Height , Scrapbook Data and Effect Layers have a second drop down menu that controls the Brush Action.

For more detailed information on using the Brush Tool see the Trainz Wiki page

How to Use the Surveyor 2.0 Tools

The Placement Tool

Keyboard Shortcut: E

The Placement Tool adds objects to a Trainz World

The Placement Tool places all types of objects except ground textures and effect layers. Use the Brush Tool to add ground textures and effect layers.
	all non-spline scenery assets	all spline scenery assets
	all track spline assets	all track (non spline) assets (signals, etc)
	all rolling stock assets

For more detailed information on using the Placement Tool see the Trainz Wiki page

How to Use the Surveyor 2.0 Tools

The Eyedropper Tool

Keyboard Shortcut: R

The Eyedropper Tool identifies and selects objects in a Trainz World

The Eyedropper is also inside all the tools in this palette so you can quickly identify any object without having to switch to the Eyedropper Tool and back again. Hold down the Alt key to activate this feature in other tools

For more detailed information on using the Eyedropper Tool see the Trainz Wiki page

How to Use the Surveyor 2.0 Tools

The Free Move Tool

Keyboard Shortcut: S

The Free Move Tool moves objects around a Trainz World

Notes:

The Free Move Tool can move any selected object or objects (except Ground Textures and Effect Layers) in any direction horizontally. Vertical movements can be achieved by using the Height control in the Tool Options Palette.

For more detailed information on using the Free Move Tool see the Trainz Wiki page

How to Use the Surveyor 2.0 Tools

The Fine Adjustment Tool

Keyboard Shortcut: D

The Fine Adjustment Tool makes 3D adjustments (XYZ position and rotations) to objects in a Trainz World

Notes:

The Fine Adjustment Tool can move any selected object or objects (except Ground Textures and Effect Layers) in any direction horizontally and vertically. It can also rotate those objects through 3 different axes of rotation.

The most obvious feature of the Fine Adjustment Tool is the 3D Anchor Frame it adds to a selected object. The frame is made of 3 straight and 3 curved coloured lines, called Anchors, which control position and orientation.

The Anchor controls are:-

The Horizontal and Vertical Anchors
Red Green Blue	move the object (forward and back, or up and down) in the direction of the Anchor line
The Rotational Anchors
Red Green Blue	rotate the object (clockwise and anti-clockwise) along the Anchor arc line. Note: Not all objects will allow rotations in all directions
The Object Anchor
(black central dot) moves the object in any horizontal direction

For more detailed information on using the Fine Adjustment Tool see the Trainz Wiki page

How to Use the Surveyor 2.0 Tools

The Marquee Tool

Keyboard Shortcut: F

The Marquee Tool selects and copies objects, deletes baseboards, adds new baseboards and sets their properties, adds texture to baseboards in a Trainz World, creates scrapbooks

Notes:

	The Marquee Tool draws out a rectangular area, the Marquee Selection Area, on the route. Any objects (including Ground Heights, Ground Textures and Effect Layers) that are inside the Marquee Selection Area or touched by its boundary can be selected to be added to a Scrapbook, moved, rotated or deleted (scenery objects only)
	The Marquee Selection Area can be drawn outside the baseboards to add new baseboards or over existing baseboards to delete or convert them

For more detailed information on using the Marquee Tool see the Trainz Wiki page

How to Use the Surveyor 2.0 Tools

The Tool Options Palette

This is a Surveyor Only palette

If the Tool Options Palette is not visible on the screen then refer to

Hiding and Showing Palettes and Windows at the top of this document

This palette is used by various tools to set controls and parameters. For a detailed description of all the options presented by the Tools Palette for the different tools, see the Trainz Wiki page

How to Use the Surveyor 2.0 Tools

All the Tool Options controls and settings are shown in the image below. The controls are shown in the image as being "inactive". An "active" control will have its icon (to the left of the control name) shown in Gold . Different Brush Types and Brush Actions will activate different controls.

On the right of each data entry box is a pair of Up/Down arrow controls. Left Click and Drag up or down on these to adjust the value in smaller increments

Radius

All Brushes the brush radius (metres)

Range:

5m and above for 5m and 10m grid resolutions

0.125m and above for HD Terrain (available in Trainz Plus only)

For Effect Layers the minimum brush size will vary. See Notes: below

Height

Set Ground Height Water Effect Layer Object Placement the brush or object height (metres)

Range:

-3000m to 3000m

Sensitivity

All Ground Heights Ground Textures Scrapbook Data Water Effect Layers the rate at which the ground height/water layer is raised/lowered or the texture being "painted" becomes visible

Range:

1% (very slowly) to
100% (very quickly)

Grade

Ground Height Grade Water Effect Layer Spline Object Placement the slope of the ground, spline or water effect layer

Range:

0% (flat) to
±100% (steep but not vertical)

Angle

Ground Height Grade Water Effect Layer grade direction (compass degrees)

Range:

0° (North) to ±359°
a negative value reverses the grade direction

Rotation

Ground Textures Scrapbook Data initial rotation angle (degrees)

Range:

0° to ±360°

Scale

Ground Textures Scrapbook Data (Clone Brush) the brush scaling factor

Range:

0.01% = smallest to

100% = full size to

>100% larger than full size

Intensity

TurfFX & Clutter Effect Layers the effect layer density within the brush area

Range:

1% (almost none) to
100% (maximum)

Condition

Track Spline Object Placement sets the track condition (or "ride comfort") for each segment

Range:

1% (terrible track condition) to

50% (average track condition) to
100% (perfect track condition)

Shape

Scrapbook Data brush shape

Options:

Circle and Square will set the brush to the selected shape
Natural will set the brush to the same shape as the Marquee that created the scrapbook, which may be rectangular

Color

Color Effect Layer colour selection (RGB and Brightness values) - Trainz Plus only

Range:

Left Click on the coloured box next to the title Color to open the colour selector. Set a Colour: Select a colour by either:-
	a Left Click on the colour in the colour picker device, OR
	enter its RGB value in Hexadecimal
Optionally: Set a brightness value for the selected colour by moving the slider up or down
Reset: Left Click the Reset button (the circular arrow on the bottom right) to cancel your changes and reset the colour to its default value. This default value is set using the Edit Effect Layer... - see Edit Color Effect Layer below

Notes:

Unlike Surveyor Classic, there is no upper limit to the brush Radius . Brushes of hundreds of metres (even kilometres) in size are possible. However, the program performance will decrease as the brush radius increases. If you are using the brush to set an entire baseboard, or many baseboards, to a specific height then the Marquee Tool would be a better choice.

The Grade is defined as vertical rise divided by horizontal distance converted to a percentage figure. So a grade of 100% (the maximum allowed) would mean a slope formed by the height and distance both being the same value (e.g. a height increase of 50m over a distance of 50m). A vertical slope (e.g. a cliff) would have an infinite grade which is currently impossible in Surveyor.

The Rotation controls the starting angle for placing a scrapbook or a texture when painting and is often used to avoid pattern repetition. As in Surveyor Classic, holding down the [ or ] keys while painting a texture will continuously change the rotation angle

For TurfFX and Clutter effect layers the minimum brush Radius will depend on the configuration settings (asset density, resources used, etc) of the layer that is being painted. If the Radius setting is below the minimum for the selected layer then the brush circle will turn red and it will not paint

Warning:
Setting extreme values for the Scale and the Radius when using the Scrapbook Data Clone Brush can cause performance issues (i.e. long delays) while the program attempts to scale and clone the scrapbook contents

Tool Options Popups

Most of the data entry boxes in the Tool Options Palette have a Popup Menu. Right Click inside a box to bring up its menu

Tool Popup Common Options for Radius Angle Sensitivity Rotation Scale Intensity
Cut	copies and deletes the highlighted value in the data entry box into your Operating System (Windows, MacOS) clipboard
Copy	copies the highlighted value in the data entry box to your Operating System clipboard
Paste	copies the value from your Operating System clipboard into the data entry box
Delete	deletes the highlighted value in the data entry box
Select All	selects (highlights) the current value in the data entry box

Highlight the value in the text box (use a Left Click and Drag over the data entry or Left Click the Select All option first) before choosing the Cut , Copy or Delete options above

Tool Popup Options for Height
All of the Tool Popup Common Options above plus ...
Get Height from Selection	copies the Height value of the Selected Object and places it into the data entry box
Get Height at Compass	copies the Height value of the Compass Rose and places it into the data entry box. This is the Focus z value from the Info Palette
Set Height to Selection	applies the Height value to the Selected Object

Tool Popup Options for Grade
All of the Tool Popup Common Options above plus ...
Get Grade from Selection	copies the Grade value of the Selected Object and places it into the data entry box
Set Grade to Selection	applies the Grade value to the Selected Object

The Grade setting only applies to Spline Objects, Ground Heights (Grade) and Water Effect Layers

Tool Popup Options for Condition
All of the Tool Popup Common Options above plus ...
Get Condition from Selection	copies the Condition value of the Selected Track Spline and places it into the data entry box
Set Condition to Selection	applies the Condition value to the Selected Track Spline

The Condition setting only applies to Track Spline Objects

Tool Options Active Controls

Different Tool Palette and Brush Type selections will activate different option controls

Some examples of when the controls will become active are:-

If a Brush Tool is selected then the exact controls that will be active will vary between the different brushes and brush actions. For example, selecting the Ground Height Brush and the Set Height brush action will active the following Tool Options.

Radius

the brush radius (metres)

Range:

5m and above for 5m and 10m grid resolutions
0.125m and above for HD Terrain (available in Trainz Plus only)

Height

the exact height, in metres, that the ground will be raised (or lowered) to

Range:

-3000m to +3000m

Sensitivity

the speed at which the ground height will be changed

Range:

1% (very slowly) to
100% (very quickly)

On the right of each data entry box is a pair of Up/Down arrow controls. Left Click and Drag up or down on these to adjust the value in smaller increments

If a Track Spline Object is selected with the Free Move Tool or the Fine Adjustment Tool then the following Tool Options will become active.

Grade

the track gradient. A positive grade will set the 2^nd endpoint higher than the 1^st. A negative grade will set the 2^nd endpoint lower than the 1^st.

Range:

0% = flat ("Plateau" in Classic) to
±100% = steep (but not vertical)

Condition

the track condition of each track segment

Range:

1% (terrible track condition) to

50% (average track condition) to
100% (perfect track condition)

	Use the Free Move Tool or the Fine Adjustment Tool to select multiple track segments and set their track condition simultaneously
	The Track Condition can also be set for each individal track segment in its Context Menu Edit Properties option
	On the right of each data entry box is a pair of Up/Down arrow controls. Left Click and Drag up or down on these to adjust the value in smaller increments

If the Scrapbook Data Brush is selected to paint the current Scrapbook into the Trainz World then certain controls that will affect the painting of the Scrapbook will, depending on the brush action selected, become active.

Scrapbook Brush
Brush options

Scrapbook Clone
Clone options

Radius

the brush radius (metres)

Range:

5m and above for 5m and 10m grid resolutions
0.125m and above for HD Terrain (available in Trainz Plus only)

Sensitivity

if the Ground Height option has been enabled in the Scrapbook Palette filter settings, then this will set the rate or speed at which the ground height will change

Range:

1% (very slowly) to
100% (very quickly)

Rotation

the starting angle (or orientation) of the scrapbook

Range:

0° to ±360° (larger angles can be entered)

Scale

the scaling factor as a % used by the Scrapbook Clone action

Range:

0.01% = smallest to

100% = full size to

>100% larger than full size

Shape

the physical shape of the scrapbook brush

Options:		Circle and Square will set the brush to the selected shape with the Radius setting the brush size
	Natural will set the brush to the same shape as the Marquee that created the scrapbook, which may be rectangular. The Radius setting will scale the brush size

On the right of each data entry box is a pair of Up/Down arrow controls. Left Click and Drag up or down on these to adjust the value in smaller increments

Warning:
Setting both a large Radius and a small Scale will cause performance issues

More examples and more detailed descriptions of the Tool Options Palette Active Controls can be found on the Trainz Wiki at:-

How to Use S20 Tools: The Brush Tool

The Assets Palette

This is a Surveyor Only palette

	The Assets Palette provides lists of assets that can be used with the Placement Tool, Free Move Tool, Fine Adjustment Tool, Marquee Tool and the Eyedropper Tool.
	The Filter Palette provides the tools used to narrow down the lists provided by the Assets Palette.

If the Assets Palette and the Filter Palette are not visible on the screen then refer to

Hiding and Showing Palettes and Windows at the top of this document.

From Trainz Plus and TRS22PE SP4 build numbers 126273 and above the filter functions that were originally in the Assets Palette have been moved to a new Filter Palette. To use the filters ensure that the Filter Palette is visible on the screen

When using the Eyedropper - either the Eyedropper Tool (press R ) or the Eyedropper Icon (press and hold down the Alt key) - the Filter Palette is used to restrict the eyedropper to only "seeing" and selecting certain objects or types of objects.

Using the Assets Palette

When used by itself, the Assets Palette will be restricted to showing the list of assets for the asset type currently selected in the Filter Palette, regardless of whether the Filter Palette is visible or not. The default asset type shown in the Assets Palette for a displayed, or minimised, unedited Filter Palette will be Ground Textures. However, if the Filter Palette is closed ( Left Click on its menu bar

icon) then the Assets Palette will default to displaying the list of ALL installed assets

The Search Box is where you can enter text, such as the name or part of the name of an asset. UPPER/lower case is not important. The search will return all assets that contain the entered text in their names or descriptions.

The Search Box will also accept a <kuid> code, or a list of <kuid> codes seperated by commas. This list can be created using Content Manager and pasted into the search box

In each case the search results shown in the Assets Palette will be taken from the list already created by the filter set in the Filter Palette. In the examples shown on the left this starting list is the Ground Textures.
To change the starting list you must change the filter in the Filter Palette

Steps: To Select an asset from the List View to be placed in your Trainz World:-

Left Click on its name in the list

	the asset name will be highlighted with a light grey background
	the correct Tool or Brush Target in the Tools Palette will be automatically selected
	you can then immediately place or paint the asset in your Trainz World

To get a better view or more details about an asset, choose one of the following:-
Options:

	Double Left Click on an asset name to open its Asset Properties window, OR
	Open the Asset Preview Palette and then Left Click on an asset name in the Assets Palette. This will create a rotating image of the asset in the Preview Palette. The Preview Palette can be resized.

Expanding the Assets List View

The Assets Palette can be expanded to provide more information about each listed asset. See

Docking and Undocking Palettes and Resizing Palettes at the top of this document.

Steps: To move and resize columns:-
	To Move: Left Click and Drag the column heading left or right to a new position
	To Resize: Left Click and Drag the dividing line between two column headings left or right to reduce or increase the column width

Steps: To sort the data in a column:-
	resize the undocked Assets Palette by dragging its right edge further out to the right. This will reveal additional columns of data in an identical display to what you would see in Content Manager
	to sort the data in a column, Left Click on the column heading. Each Left Click will cycle through different sorting options

Just like in Content Manager, additional columns can be added, removed, resized and moved to a different position.

Steps: To add new columns
	Right Click on a column heading where you want to insert a new column
	Select the option Insert Column and then select the column to be added
Steps: To remove a column
	Right Click on the column heading and select the option Remove Column

	Notes:
	If you dock the palette to another palette after resizing, then it will return to its original (docked) dimensions.
	To hide the palette so that its new size and position will be restored when it is made visible again, Left Click on its Minimise - icon on its top menu bar and then to restore it to full size maximise it from the Window Menu. See Minimise Maximise Close at the top of this document.
	If you close the palette then it will return to its default size when it is reopened

Thumbnail View

As an alternative to the list view of assets there is a thumbnail view option. This works best when the Assets Palette has been undocked. See

Docking and Undocking Palettes at the top of this document.

Steps: To switch to the Thumbnail View:-
	undock and resize the Assets Palette as described in Docking and Undocking Palettes and Resizing Palettes above.
	Left Click the Thumbnail icon at the end of the Name Search box
Steps: To switch back to the List View:-
	Left Click the Thumbnail icon at the end of the Name Search box

If the Filter Palette is closed then the Assets Palette will default to displaying the list of ALL installed assets

Steps: To Select an asset from the Thumbnail View to be placed in your Trainz World:-

Left Click on its thumbnail

	the thumbnail will be surrounded by a blue border or it will have a blue background
	the correct Tool or Brush Target in the Tools Palette will be automatically selected
	you can then immediately place or paint the asset in your Trainz World

To get a better view or more details about an asset, choose one of the following:-
Options:

	Double Left Click on an asset name to open its Asset Properties window, OR
	Open the Asset Preview Palette and then Left Click on an asset name in the Assets Palette. This will create a rotating image of the asset in the Preview Palette. The Preview Palette can be resized.

Notes:

If the assets in the list are constructed from 3D meshes then their thumbnail views will be built from the meshes. If they are ground textures then the actual textures will be shown. The thumbnail.jpg image that should be supplied with each asset will not be used. This overcomes common problems caused by missing, generic, incorrect or confusing thumbnails that give you no useful information about each asset. Some actual examples from the DLS:-

Scenery Mesh Asset

Supplied Thumbnail	Palette Displayed Thumbnail

Ground Texture Asset

Supplied Thumbnail	Palette Displayed Thumbnail

If the asset is animated then its animation will play in the thumbnail

The Layers Palette

This is a Surveyor Only palette

If the Layers Palette is not visible on the screen then refer to

Hiding and Showing Palettes and Windows at the top of this document

	This palette is used to manage layers, both object (route and session) and effect (TurfFX, clutter and water) layers
	It can create, rename, merge, delete, move, hide/show and lock/unlock layers and set the Active Layer

The Layers Palette will show all the layers in their groups (Effect, Route and Session) plus the Ground Height and Ground Textures special "layers". In the image on the left all the layer groups have been minimised (the arrowhead symbol to the left of each group name is pointing to the right).

	The Route Layers group, along with the Ground Height, Ground Textures and Effect Layers, are saved and loaded with the Route
	The Session Layers group, along with any Session Rules and commodity settings, is saved and loaded with the Session. A Session Layers group, but one without any stored objects and using the Session default settings, will always be present when a Route is loaded without a Session

Lock the Route Layer Group

All the Route Layers can be locked against accidental alteration.

The Route Layers group has a open padlock icon next to its name - shown as (unlocked).

Steps: To lock/unlock all the Route Layers:-
	Left Click on the unlocked (open padlock) icon to lock ALL the Route Layers The icon will change to (locked)
	Left Click on the locked (closed padlock) icon to unlock ALL the route layers The icon will change to (unlocked)

Open a Layer Group

To the left of each group name is a small arrowhead pointing to the right. Left Click on the arrowhead to open up the group.

The image on the left shows that the Session Layers is open and its individual layers are now displayed. To close or minimise the group Left Click on the arrowhead again.

The image shows that the Session Layers contains 3 individual layers:-

	the top layer in the Session Layers group is always named session-layer. It is possible to rename this layer and move it to a new position but those actions are NOT recommended for the session-layer.
	likewise, the top layer in the Route Layers group is always named route-layer. It is also possible to rename this layer and move it to a new position but again those actions are NOT recommended for the route-layer.
	there are two additional user created layers in the Session Layers group. They are named Track Markers and Rail Workers - layer names are chosen by the creator and do not necessarily indicate their contents or purpose
	the Rail Workers layer is highlighted in blue which means that it has been selected by a Left Click and is now the Active Layer where any newly placed assets will be added

Add a New Layer

You cannot create new layer groups but you can add new layers to a existing group.

Each layer group has a

icon next to its name. Left Click on the icon to add and name a new layer to that group. If you are adding a new Effect Layer then you will also have to identify the type of effect - TurfFX, Clutter or Water.

Renaming a Layer

Steps: To rename a layer:-
	Right Click on a layer name and select Rename Layer.. from the popup menu. You cannot rename a Layer Group.
	You will be asked to enter a new name for the layer.

While you are free to rename any layers (but not the Layer Group names), it is recommended that you DO NOT rename two specific layers:-

route-layer
session-layer
These layers are used to store critical objects (track and track objects in the case of the route-layer and (optionally) rolling stock in the case of the session-layer). Using these two layer names in every Trainz World can make it easier (and less confusing) to manage those assets. But this is a recommendation only.

Deleting a Layer

Warning: Deleting a Layer will delete every object that has been assigned to that layer

Steps: To delete a layer:-
	Right Click on a layer name and select Delete Layer from the popup menu. You cannot select a Layer Group name to be deleted. You will be given a warning that you are about to delete a layer.
	if you confirm the delete order then the layer and ALL OF ITS CONTENTS will be deleted
	depending on the contents of the layer and the size of the Trainz World, the process may take some time. You will be shown a progress bar in a message window during the delete operation

	when the message Operation complete, layers updated successfully appears close the message window
The deleted layer and its contents can be restored (after the delete has completed) using the Ctrl + Z keys

Moving a Layer

Layers can be individually moved up and down within the same layer group or between the Route Layers and the Session Layers groups.

Notes:

	Warning: Moving layers between the Session Layers and the Route Layers groups will move the contents of those layers from one group to the other. This will change where the layers and their contents are saved (in the Route or in the Session)
	Warning: Layers containing Track Objects (signals, switches, buffers, track signs, etc) cannot be moved to a position that is above the layer containing the track