Good enough, guys!:) I didn't think Tracer realized that I have been _ss deep in the middle of constructing all of the cities involved in the Market-Garden Campaign for the last few years, or seen the ones I've posted at Redleg's. So his enthusiastic support for Brent's work was a blow to my ego. If he had seen my stuff, and made that statement, then I was going to turn in my mouse!
Brent, I looked at your Karkhov map, and I think you did a good job on it.
One way I judge a city map is if the "strategic" map looks like a map of a city, which yours does. I also judge a city map by whether or not the maker knows how to create very large buildings/complexes when they historically should be there, of which yours has plenty! Another is consistency in architectural style (there aren't a preponderence of Arab mud huts and bazaars in a map of Russia, for example). Your map passes that test as well. For what my opinion is worth.......
I'm not sure that I agree that there are necessarily a "lot" of good maps out there, as it seems to me that to most people, map quality is really secondary to other aspects of a scenario, or they just don't desire to put in the hours that it takes to master/discover the art of map-making. Some very good map-makers just disappear. What happened, for example, to the guy who created the D-Day maps?? Plus, unlike scenario design, there isn't any real, critical feedback (have you ever tried scenario design? People are not afraid to tear you a new rear-end!). There isn't that willingness in the map-making community to say, "Bud, you just need to take it back to the drawing board!" . As a result, the "overall" quality of the maps being done just hasn't advanced that far (IMO).
I have, however, discovered a handful of "new generation" (at least some of you are to me, as I've been here almost since the beginning) map makers who truly do create good stuff, and are "milking" the available tools provided, as is the case with Tracer and Harry, for everything that can be done to improve the art. I am very pleased, as, for a while, I felt that I was the only one in this community who would almost rather be making maps than playing scenarios.
But, I digress....Continue Gentlemen. I'm hanging on every post! Tracer, it's amazing how fast you have "whooped" this problem! Are you graphics artist/designer, or something? I'm saving this thread so that I can learn from it and dig into the multi-hex residential buildings, as well as some of the MH city buildings when I can come up with the time (you've already done the Ter61 file, so there's no sense in reinventing the wheel!)
Regards,
David Boutwell
"Out of ammunition. God save the King."
Some things that i remember from past time working with shape edit is that the crosshairs (in shpfix) don´t always move to the right location,...positive as opposed to negative values or vice versa. I found putting a minus ("-") sign directly into the data boxes works quite nice when it´s not possible to move it by use of the buttons/arrows.
I can take the IMO, but "hands down" is going too far!:)
