How to choose a tool for mapping?

[Mark Oliva]

It is a pity that I don't know what kind of code is used in fings like Smart Building too on FM8 or on City Designer for CC3+. If I could see their code, I could understand it and develop a similar code for sci-fi setting like Star Wars, Star Trek, etc.

???#!!?

What is a fing? And what kind of code do you mean? And what is a Smart Building?

Sorry. You really lost me here.

I used to get complimented on my programming and upon my work as a programming teacher before I retired, so I assume I wasn't all that bad. Of course, I did only data base programming, not graphical stuff. Still... Nonetheless ...

[nichendrix]

???#!!?

What is a fing? And what kind of code do you mean? And what is a Smart Building?

Sorry. You really lost me here.

It was supposed to be things.

It's one of the issues of having SwiftKey configured to work on multiple languages, it takes just a random wrong swipe with your thumb to inadvertently change which language the spellchecker will use.

I used to get complimented on my programming and upon my work as a programming teacher before I retired, so I assume I wasn't all that bad. Of course, I did only data base programming, not graphical stuff. Still... Nonetheless ...

Part of my daily work is to develop applications and simulations so my programming skills are still sharp. I'm also used to develop add-ons, plug-ins and tools for AutoCAD/Revit, so I know more or less how to handle creating a new tool to perform some desirable graphical output.

What I don't know is how these mapping software handle these things. Since I don't know how the software works, I can't develop a script to do/automate it.

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[Mark Oliva]

It was supposed to be things.

OK. That clears that up!

What I don't know is how these mapping software handle these things. Since I don't know how the software works, I can't develop a script to do/automate it.

I'm not sure want you want to automate. There are drawing tools in CC3+ that are quite easy to make. They don't involve coding. There's a PDF book by Remy Monsen in Norway (written in English) that gives complete instruction in how to do this and almost anything else that one can do with CC3+. You can buy it from ProFantasy. The macro programming language also is included.

Any kind of tool that one would use in FM8 already is built in, as far as my imagination can conceive of things. If you have some ideas in mind for specific tools, tell me what you need to know. (I know FM8 pretty thoroughly. I wrote one of the two manuals for it.)

If you want to learn the secrets of making MapForgre add-ons, I'm afraid you'll have to pry those secrets out of Heruca.

After a lot of consideration I've decided to give a chance to the combo FM8+AS3. If I don't like it, I'll try MapForge or CC3+.

That route certainly should bring you to the best possible result.

[nichendrix]

I'm not sure want you want to automate. There are drawing tools in CC3+ that are quite easy to make. They don't involve coding. There's a PDF book by Remy Monsen in Norway (written in English) that gives complete instruction in how to do this and almost anything else that one can do with CC3+. You can buy it from ProFantasy. The macro programming language also is included.

I was thinking about something very similar to Smart Building Tool on FM8, but making random sci-fi buildings for city maps.

Obviously the easiest way would use the AutoCAD approach and create a library of buildings and adding it randomly on the map by hand, but this way, but what I've found interesting in the Smart Building Tool was that it implement random variations on the buildings and sometimes is even able adapt its design to the designated boundaries.

In the end my idea is to implement random variation of the geometry of the buildings and the elements on the rooftops and avoid the "feeling" that it is just a few buildings that were cut'n'pasted gazillion times over.

In the NBOS forum, @Ed_NBOS suggested that flat roofed buildings could be easily created with Polypath Tool, I didn't have time to test it.

Any kind of tool that one would use in FM8 already is built in, as far as my imagination can conceive of things. If you have some ideas in mind for specific tools, tell me what you need to know. (I know FM8 pretty thoroughly. I wrote one of the two manuals for it.)

If I were doing medieval fantasy maps I could certainly agree that FM8 and CC3+ probably have far more tools than anyone could possibly hope using.

But if you're mapping anything not related to medieval fantasy, things are not easy. Not only the programs offer less tools, but a some of the most interesting tools are not usable on other contexts.

Even looking at the stuff running around the Internet, be it paid or free, you'll find that there aren't that much to look for and you'll notice that most of the stuff you find most of then are duplicated instance of the Dubdjini Archive content.

I know a few people doing beautiful sci-fi maps and deckplans, most of them do most of the art from scratch, using very few things from internet content. Unfortunately what they all have in common is that they have far more available free time for doing their maps and more artistic skills than me.

But let me just dig into FM8 for a few months and see how hard is to make sci-fi stuff with it.

That route certainly should bring you to the best possible result.

I liked AS3 a lot, despite sometimes it being a little quirky, I've even started to use it to map/log my astronomical observation.

FM8 seems to be very straight forward, but I didn't dig deeply into it, but I already noticed the immense assimetry between the amount of medieval fantasy content compared to content for other types of settings.

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