Two other questions...

[Golo]

While building a track, I have two questions now:

1. It appears, that the signs dont work as they should.... they do load, but if their size is two big, you can just see the full sign if youre very close... else you jsut see a very little part of the image. The problem wasnt there frome the beginning, i dont know if >Ive chantged anything, all Ive tried to get rid of it didnt work till now- Has anyone the same problem?

2. Mixing with United blocks is a bit difficult, the game often shuts down triing to place a united block. For me it seems random when this happens, but maybe there are things which arent "allowed" in general. Anyone has an idea?

Thank you!

[popgun]

I make static signs and general images normally 512x256 pixels and save as .jpg with detail level of about 8 (max 12 in photoshop). More important images (for example maps) I'll make 1024x512pixels and take the detail up a little.
For .bik signs I keep the frames per second to a max of 40 and a min of 20. Low frames <10 per sec can have a lagging effect on the game. Additionally, .bik quality can be lowered by 50% as no one looks for details in moving images, especially when their car is moving too.

pop

(Sorry can't help on point 2)

[N00BYZOR]

I had only a very few problems like you describe in the point 2.
Even I already mixed united blocks with stadium water and dirt, that worked fine.

What mix are you trying exactly ?
Do you have the 0.4.2 version of tmunlimiter ? (with the 0.4.1 one, the game shut down when you place united signs)

[Golo]

Thanks for your awnsers
You got a helpful advice there, pitstep, I made some bik files for a track and didnt know about the frame rate... so Ill change it up from 5 fps to 30 fps to reduce lags (if I understood you right)
The image issue concerns actually almost every image, even small ones, so I guess, its just my computer which cant load shadows right or sth...

N00by: Yeah, I got 0.4.2 ...
I noticed now that it happens mainly on desert/snow/maybe also rally (didnt try) road and plattform blocks...
scenery is no problem but wenn I want to place a longr road or platform line or connect them it shuts down (sometimes even just when putting a single road block... its very odd, cause sometimes it seems like no problem to make platforms and then... it just shuts down. With Bay, island, Coast are no problems at all for me.

[N00BYZOR]

I don't really know why it do that... :huh:
I think I remember I had the same problem, then I always used challenge edit variations to connect those united roads. It takes time, but that way it never shut down

[Golo]

ok alright ,
sry for the dumb question but how do you connect desert platform blocks with CE ? =)

[GSNPaul]

Remember my tutorial about mixing terrain blocks?

It works basically the same way, just with fewer block variations.

Small cheat sheet:

0: + + + +
1: ? ? ? ?
2: ? ? ? ?
3: ? ? ? ?
4: ? ? ? ?
5: ? ? ? ?

Read this like the table in my tutorial for terrain blocks. LINK
Each row is another value for "Variation 2", the columns are the rotations from 0 through 3, relative to the orientation you have when opening the editor.

Hope this is helpful!

[N00BYZOR]

That's not really a dumb question, I don't know either the united blocks variations ^^
But to do so, I used to do the following:
When I need to connect some united blocks in a certain way, I first put them "non-connected" in the map (where I want to place them), then, in an empty area of the map, I make the same but this time I connect the blocks. (I will use those blocks as a pattern).
I save the map and load it into challenge edit.
And now I see the first blocks I placed "non-connected" (variations = 0 most of time), and the others blocks I connected, with the variations I need. (the pattern)
Then, as you can guess, I just write those variations in the first non-connected blocks.
I save and load in trackmania, then I remove the "pattern blocks".
That's it !

I hope it's not too confused ^^

(You will say "so I still need to connect those blocks in game, that doesn't help !" XD
But the game apparently shut down when trying to connect united blocks that are already mixed with others blocks. So as long as you make the "pattern" in an empty place, it's ok )

PS: Paul already said a more efficient way to do it, while I was writing this XD

[Golo]

Thanks alot you two