15,000th post on TSSH!

Well it never registered that one of my recent posts constituted the 15,000th post on TSSH! Mind you as I seem to be the only really active poster perhaps it's hardly surprising. It's made me realise that it's not that MSTS is fading but the active participation in the forums that is fading.

Does that matter you may wonder?

Well in the vast scale of things, not a jot! Perhaps we all know the answers to those familiar MSTS questions, or is it that the new Windows OS is a step too far for a 15 year old programme?

I'm certainly not going to worry about it, as I am more than happy to live in my own virtual train simulation world. When TSSH first started I thought and hoped that we could maintain interest in MSTS, and for a brief period that appeared to be the case - the Helpful Links and Route Directory did seem to generate a surge in interest. I now accept that I have neither the energy or will to promote TSSH, although where relevant I would post a link to the Route Directory in other forums. I shall continue to post in the Workshop area as I complete items of rolling stock as a means of providing snippets of information about LYR and LNWR wagons/carriages.

In terms of social contact I have actually joined Facebook, which I never imagined I would but which at least keeps me in contact with members of my family. Let me know if anyone with an interest in the above would like to maintain contact through that media - not that I'm expecting much in that line.

Well done on the 15,000th post.

Rufuskins wrote:or is it that the new Windows OS is a step too far for a 15 year old programme?

Hi Alec.

As you know I upgraded to windows 10 a while back, MSTS/ORTS run surprisingly well under the new operating system with no problems as long as you set the permissions (no different to Windows Vista and above) and run everything MSTS related as administrator,  for those with the troublesome AMD card drivers, there is now a fix for it.

I'm glad I upgraded when I did.

I am still trying to come to terms with the software, both MSTS and OR.  Only been looking for a few weeks as a result of my grandson expressing an interest.   I visit here a couple of times a day and note that it is a very quiet forum and [maybe it's just me] is pitched a little higher than that of which I am competent / comfortable.  Regards.

ps TS2016 is just as complex for me !!!

M.

Hi Milamber.

Welcome to the forum.

Most of us on here are experienced MSTS users, but don't let that put you off, if you need questions answered or advice RE: MSTS/OR, no matter how simple it is, just post it in the help section, the people on here are more than happy to help wherever possible.

Thank you kindly for the response Mark.  I am sure that somewhere along the way I will be able to formulate a query that will be understandable.  Right now I'm just plodding along.  Regards.

Maurice.

Hi Guys,

For me personally, things have been a bit rough of late which is why I went quiet.
On the day after my last post, I woke up with an infection in my left eye which caused it to constantly weep, which then spread to my right eye a few days later, which meant I basically couldn't see to do any work for a period longer than 5-10 minutes.
By the time that had cleared up where I could see for long enough to do anything, I only had 4 days of holiday left.
The evening of that 4th last day I received some very bad personal news which then took the final 3 days to "clean up", however the fallout from this has left me in a bit of a state mentally.

Don't get me wrong, I am not giving up on MSTS in any way, I have actually been verbally promoting it and this forum whilst discussing my work that I do for my university course that I am doing. It has actually triggered some interest in certain people, though I do not know if they have followed up on it or not.

As soon as I can pull things together I really want to hit my workshop again and "go hard". I do actually get a modelling itch, where I want/need to do MSTS work, but I need to have the right frame of mind to do so otherwise I end up making silly mistakes which in the past has taken me 3 hours to figure out where I went wrong.

Maurice: please feel free to ask any of us any questions that you may have. Whilst this forum may seem highly technical, the thing that it does best is put people who need help in touch with people who know how to solve the problems. We all help and learn from each other on this forum, I personally have helped people with things in the past, and I have asked for help as well with my projects.

Keep well my friends,
Justin

Hi All,

When I upgraded to W10 I found that both MSTS and OR worked well especially when I applied all the recommended Nvidia Graphics settings. However, I wasn't happy with W10 itself and following an automatic update my internet stopped working - coincidence? I don't know. As I was unable to fix the internet myself I had to use a local repair company who not only got the internet working but, at my request, reinstalled W7 for a reasonable fee. My only complaints are that they re-lettered the other 3 hard drives causing me confusion and a lot of mending short cuts, instead of  a 64 bit system I now have a 32 bit one and they have changed my main SSD C drive for what is, I suspect, a standard HDD. When I feel up to it I will take the cover off to check.

Since applying the Nvidia settings I have found that there is very little difference in the graphic quality between MSTS and OR to the extent that for basic operations I am happily running MSTS once more. OR, of course, does have more functions giving an improved experience.

The fact that I haven't posted much here recently doesn't mean that I have forsaken train simming simply that I have spent more time running old and new activities, and improving how some of mine run. I do check the forums at least twice a day to see what other people are doing, having problems for which I might be able to help. As I have stated elsewhere I intend to stay with both OR and MSTS - there are activities which don't work in OR.

I am always willing to try and help others when I can.

Regards,

Stephen

Hi all,

I am still plodding along slowly with MSTS as and when time allows. Work has picked up at a pace at the moment, which is good. But this obviously doesn't allow much time for work to be done on the Midhants Route.

But congrats on the major Milestone Alec. And long may this forum and MSTS continue.

All the best everyone.

Cheers

Andy

Hi Stephen,

My only complaints are that they re-lettered the other 3 hard drives causing me confusion and a lot of mending short cuts, instead of  a 64 bit system I now have a 32 bit one and they have changed my main SSD C drive for what is, I suspect, a standard HDD

That is disgusting!!  I think you would be justified in making a strong complaint - I'm only only talking about the change in drive letters and the replacement of a 64bit OS with a 32bit version.  There can be absolutely no excuse if the SSD has been replaced.

You should be able to check if your system drive is an SSD, or not :
1. Left-click the Start Button,
2. Right-click "Computer"
3. Left-click "Properties"
4. Left-click "Device Manager" (top left of screen)
5. Left-click the + next to "Disk drives"
This will now show a list of drives - if one isn't identified as SSD, please post the complete list here and I will check them.

Cheers,
Ged

Hi Ged,

I followed your instructions and the results weren't obvious to me as 2 of the other drives are SSD but only 1 says so.

I then checked for this new drive on the web and below is a section of the specifications:-

Hard Disk Model

HITACHI HTS542516K9SA00
Disk Family
Travelstar 5K250
Form Factor
2.5"
Capacity
160 GB (160 x 1 000 000 000 bytes)
Number Of Disks
2
Number Of Heads
3
Rotational Speed
5400 RPM
Rotation Time
11.11 ms
Average Rotational Latency
5.56 ms

This to me looks like a standard HDD to me, agree?

The other thing which puzzles me is that although I have 12GB of RAM installed only 3.12GB are usable!!!

Would any of this explain why it now takes nearly 5 minutes to become usable when I first switch on? Once up and running then everything runs fairly well if a bit slower than it used to. I am reluctant to go back to this company so any help will be gratefully received.

Stephen

Hi Stephen,
Yes, the Hitachi is a "slow" hard drive meant for laptops. If that is the one which contains your Windows 7, it explains why loading is slower than it used to be.

You mention that the other two drives are SSDs, but only one so indicates. Can you tell me what the Device Manager reports - each drive should have a name, followed by the word "Device".

The reason you've only got a usable 3.12GB of memory is because your OS has been replaced by the 32bit version - that's all it can "see" - the remainder is wasted in your current configuration.

You've definitely got grounds to go back to the company and make a strong complaint - I'm sure other members will support me in that opinion. The only exception being if you actually asked them to replace your OS with Win 7 32bit version and that you requested a replacement disk drive; I, somehow, doubt that very much! At the very least, you should demand the return of your SSD.

I'm sorry I can't offer much more help because the changes made are physical.

Cheers,
Ged

Hi Ged,

Thanks for your reply and advice. I only asked that W10 be reverted back to W7 and to restore the internet. I did offer to let them use my W7 installation disc but they said that they would use their own. Nothing was ever said about changing the disc drive or that a 32bit system would be used.

The other 3 drives are:- OCZ AGILITY 3 SATA III 2.5" 120G OCZ-A3120G ATA Device
SANDISK SSD PLUS 2.5 480GB SAN-480P ATA Device
WDC WD3200AAJB-00J 3AO ATA Device

The first should be a SSD as when I bought it I also had to buy the adapter plate to mount it and the connecting cable - this to replace an old HDD. The second is definitely a SSD - I only installed it earlier this year.

Thanks again for your help,

Stephen

Hi Stephen,
Yes, the OCZ Agility 3 is definitely an SSD

The WD3200AAJB-00J is a 320GB hard drive, maybe with the old IDE interface (ie pre-SATA times). It is probably the drive which came with your original PC as it dates from about 2007.

If you do open up your PC, you'll see that the Hitachi drive is most probably fitted in an adapter plate because it is about the same size (width) as an SSD.

What was the brand of the SSD the Hitachi replaced?

Cheers,
Ged

Hi Ged,

The original SSD was a 840 EVO SATA 6GBS S 2.5 SSD120GB bought to replace one that had failed. The WD3200AAJB-00J 320GB hard drive actually came from a previous computer and installed into this one when it was built a few years ago along with a much smaller one which has only recently been replaced by the SANDISK SSD PLUS 2.5 480GB SAN-480P.

Regards,

Stephen

Hi Stephen,
The Samsung SSDs are, to my mind, the best that are currently available! I originally had an 840 EVO 120GB in this PC but replaced it last year with an 850 EVO 250GB to provide comfortable space for two operating systems and their programs (but not MSTS!).
You will definitely notice a huge difference between running with the 840 and Hitachi!!

Cheers,
Ged