Map Making

[Meyer1]

ORIGINAL: larryfulkerson

We may have to sit Lobster down in a darkened room with a lamp pointing in his face and
a stenographer to take down everything he says and supply him with lots of black
coffee and so on.

Yeah, but after he give us the program [:D]

[Lobster]

Yes, well, the unfortunate part is that I can't email it. My ISP does not allow mailing of any executable files or compressed files. Afraid they may be virus laden WMD. Too bad Matrix doesn't provide upload/download space. It is allowed to distribute ODD publicly so that's not a problem.

[Meyer1]

I was looking for mods at Telumar's page saw this link by accident http://forums.gamesquad.com/downloads.p ... le&id=1972

[larryfulkerson]

ORIGINAL: Lobster
Yes, well, the unfortunate part is that I can't email it. My ISP does not allow mailing of any executable files or compressed files. Afraid they may be virus laden WMD. Too bad Matrix doesn't provide upload/download space. It is allowed to distribute ODD publicly so that's not a problem.

Hey Lobster dude: Why don't you just upload the file(s) to a file server somewhere and post the link? I go to this place to do that:


http://www.filedropper.com/

[Lobster]

Here, try this. https://www.dropbox.com/sh/z1p8udpev247 ... ysTia?dl=0

Make sure you download all of the files including the two on top, one is an image with a picture of colors and one is an image with a picture of counters. Just plop them all in a file folder on your computer. I put them in my TOAW directory in a subfolder called ODD. I'll keep this link up for a couple of days.

BTW, if you have Windoze7 or 8 you will have to go to Micro$haft to download a file that will make the Help file work. Try and run Help and you will see the message and I think a link.

The above link is no longer valid.

[Meyer1]

Guys, I just gave the link for download the tool at gamesquad http://forums.gamesquad.com/downloads.p ... le&id=1972

[larryfulkerson]

ORIGINAL: Lobster
Here, try this. https://www.dropbox.com/sh/z1p8udpev247 ... ysTia?dl=0

Make sure you download all of the files including the two on top, one is an image with a picture of colors and one is an image with a picture of counters. Just plop them all in a file folder on your computer. I put them in my TOAW directory in a subfolder called ODD. I'll keep this link up for a couple of days.

Thanks for the link Lobster dude. I downloaded the entire thing ( the zip file ) from the link in post #23 and uploaded the zip
file to a file server for those who don't want to register somewhere just for the file. I put the zip file here:

http://www.filedropper.com/odd

[Lobster]

lol. oh well

[sPzAbt653]

My ISP does not allow mailing of any executable files or compressed files.

Yeah, I had the same problem when Curt tried to e-mail it to me once.

I downloaded the entire thing ( the zip file ) from the link in post #23 and uploaded the zip file to a file server

Thanks Mr. Fulkerson, you sure are the cats's meow ! Now I have ODD 4.0 !!

And thanks for the program, Curt !!!

[sPzAbt653]

download a file that will make the Help file work ... The above link is no longer valid.

Two things, Curt - how do we get the help file to work ?

and, I can't find HexThingy again, anybody have it or a link ?

[larryfulkerson]

http://www.desperationmorale.com/play-a ... rs-section

is a good link for the HexThingy thing.

[sPzAbt653]

[&o][&o][&o]

[Lobster]

ORIGINAL: sPzAbt653

download a file that will make the Help file work ... The above link is no longer valid.

Two things, Curt - how do we get the help file to work ?

and, I can't find HexThingy again, anybody have it or a link ?

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/917607 Follow these instructions to enable ODD Help.

[golden delicious]

ORIGINAL: Curtis Lemay

If you look in the "Article Index" sticky thread, I have a few articles on map making.

I've used ODD to make maps and it's probably the easiest way of making a decent map.

BUT if you want to make the most accurate map, pay attention to Bob. His LatLong programme really is pretty foolproof.

[Lobster]

Now I'm curious. ODD puts the hex grid directly on the map. How could anything be more accurate than that? [&:]

[Curtis Lemay]

ORIGINAL: Lobster

Now I'm curious. ODD puts the hex grid directly on the map. How could anything be more accurate than that? [&:]

The main advantage that Latlong has over grid overlays is that you are guaranteed to get a sinusoidal projection. With grid overlays you're at the mercy of whatever projection the overlaid map used.

[Lobster]

I've used Latlong and I've used ODD. I stick with military maps. That would be a Transverse Mercator projection which, at the scales most typically used in TOAW, is not any more nor any less accurate than what you use in Latlong. Using this in ODD makes map making much more simple and as accurate as Latlong. Since the vast majority of military maps are Transverse Mercator finding a map is no problem. So, if Transverse Mercator is good enough for the worlds armies then it's good enough for me. That and ODD makes accurate map making a snap.

Here's a good read. Sorry but they don't mention sinusoidal. http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/ ... -7/ch4.pdf

[Curtis Lemay]

ORIGINAL: Lobster

I've used Latlong and I've used ODD. I stick with military maps. That would be a Transverse Mercator projection which, at the scales most typically used in TOAW, is not any more nor any less accurate than what you use in Latlong. Using this in ODD makes map making much more simple and as accurate as Latlong. Since the vast majority of military maps are Transverse Mercator finding a map is no problem. So, if Transverse Mercator is good enough for the worlds armies then it's good enough for me. That and ODD makes accurate map making a snap.

Here's a good read. Sorry but they don't mention sinusoidal. http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/ ... -7/ch4.pdf

Any Mercator projection is cylindrical. That's guaranteed to be distorting. The standard Mercator projection is very distorting around the poles. But, depending upon how the cylinder is oriented, the distortion can be "rearranged" somewhat. Nevertheless, if the map covers a large area, I'd avoid any cylindrical projection. For maps of small areas, of course, any projection will usually do.

Regardless, map sources are often hard to come by. That's why knowing the lats and longs of your hexes is useful - you can use any (or multiple) source maps of any type of projection.

Let me also add that the needs for military maps and wargaming maps are going to normally be quite different. Military maps are for men navigating around the real world usually using a compass. That makes it very important that compass angles be preserved on the map, meaning that meridians need to be vertical straight lines and parallels need to be horizontal straight lines. Distance distortion is only important to artillery, and they have correction tables for that. Area distortion isn't important at all. So, cylindrical projections can be just what they need.

In contrast, a wargaming map's greatest need is to be constant area. Constant distance is second. Compass angles are of no importance whatsoever. That makes sinusoidal projections almost perfect. They are very hard to come by, though.

[lion_of_judah]

I have looked at the ODD software and tried to figure out how to make a map, but I have failed miserably I must say.

[Lobster]

1) Convert your map to a .bmp file
2) Open ODD. Click Map Tool button.
3) On menu bar at top click Import.
4) Browse to the folder your .bmp map file is located. Click on the file to high light it. Then click on the Open button. Your .bmp file will appear in the ODD Map Tool window.
5) At the top of the Map Tool window you will see a tool bar. On the tool bar is a hexagon in a button. Click on this to scale your map.
6) When you click on that button mentioned in 5 a bar will appear at the bottom of the window.
7) Click the Set Scale button.
8) This next step is one of the most important. Locate two points on your map whose distance you are CERTAIN of. Usually the map scale bars that are on almost every map. Since I use 1:250,000 scale U.S. Army Map Service maps with a Transverse Mercator Projection and 10k meter Universal Transverse Mercator Grid I am able to use the 10km grid lines. You can find them at the U of Texas http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/topo/ . Military maps are the best way to go, Soviet/Russian military (my preferred) or U.S. military. So, back on subject. Left click the first point and don't let up on the mouse button. Scroll to the second point and release the mouse button. This will tell ODD how many pixels this distance equals and this pixel number appears in the first box after the Set Scale button. Now you are ready to fill in the remaining scaling boxes.
9) pixels = __ Kilometers you enter how many kilometers the pixels in the first box are equal to.
10) Starting X and starting Y leave empty. They will self fill.
11) The last box is where you enter the map scale. If you are making a 5 kilometer per hex map enter 5.0 here. Now click on the draw grid box. Tada. You map has a grid.
12) Click on the Export button on the top menu bar and save your map at a location you desire with a name you give it. IMPORTANT. Be sure to save it as NAME.BMP!!! DO NOT FORGET TO TYPE IN THE .BMP EXTENSION!!!
12) Some people complain the lines are too faint. So, copy the Starting X and Y numbers and the pixels = number. Leave the program. Start it back up. Load your map with the grid that you have already made. Proceed as above but since you already know the scale you don't have to set it. Just fill in the number, the pixels = and the Starting X and the Starting Y. Now reduce or increase the Starting X and Starting Y number by one number. Enter the scale and click the draw grid button. Since the grid is offset one pixel from original the lines appear darker. Save as before.

Any questions send me a PM. I will see it in my emails that I check four or more times a day.

I've used this thing hundreds of times and it works great. Better than anything else out there that's available to the public for free. Kudos and an atta boy to Curt Chambers. I'm currently using it to make the 2.5km per hex map for Nigel Askey's Operation Barbarossa scenario that will be available when his final volume is done (see link below). The maps I'm using from the U of T are also used by John Tiller's map makers for his Panzer Campaign series. Didn't find that out till last fall. So it appears I'm in very good company. I don't know what they use to lay their grids. Probably some in house tool.