HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
From: ovr@lk-hp-13.hut.fi (Otto-Ville Ronkainen)
Newsgroups: rec.railroad
Subject: Re: INFO REQUEST: Railroad Tycoon for the Atari ST bug?
Date: 8 Jan 1993 03:19:40 GMT
Organization: L{nsi-Uudenmaan Keisarillinen Polyteknillinen Koulu
Distribution: inet
Reply-To: ovr@snakemail.hut.fi (Otto-Ville Ronkainen)
NNTP-Posting-Host: lk-hp-13.hut.fi

In article <1993Jan7.213514.3576@borland.com> johnh@borland.com (John Haskey) writes:
>It's easy to retire as president on the PC version.  You  just exploit the
>bug that eventually the price required to buy your competitor overflows the
>signed 16 bit integer and goes negative.  When it wraps around to about
>-2,000,000 dollars, snap up the company and then liquidate stock.  Watch 
>your income soar!!!

Another bug is that if your amount of cash goes below -30,000,000 dollars,
that will eventually change to positive.
--
Ott-Vill R______________________
ovr@snakemail.hut.fi
Newsgroups: rec.railroad
From: eravin@panix.com (Ed Ravin)
Subject: Re: Electric Train Sparking
Date: Tue, 12 Jan 1993 23:58:58 GMT
Organization: Not Just Another Pretty Face
Keywords: subway: if you're in a hurry take the express, it will go right by your local address

Out here in the Bronx, if I look west out my window at night, I'll see the
sparks from the IRT #1 line.  If they're big enough, and if they reflect in
the right places, then sometimes I'm fooled into wondering where the
lightning flashes are coming from.  Sometimes a big spark will trail with
several little sparking things falling away from the train, obviously
towards the street below, but I've never heard of any of them hitting
anyone...
-- 
Ed Ravin            | I like to think (it has to be!) of a cybernetic ecology
eravin@panix.com    | where we are free of our labors and joined back to nature
philabs!trintex!elr | returned to our mammal brothers and sisters,
+1 914 993 4737     | and all watched over by machines of loving grace
Newsgroups: rec.railroad
Subject: touring Beech Grove
From: <CSS3@psuvm.psu.edu>
Date: Tue, 5 Jan 1993 16:34:35 EST
Organization: Penn State University

   In a recent thread regarding what will happen to Amtrak Heritage fleet
cars when they are retired, someone asked how did I get a tour of the Beech
Grove facility.
   I went on the tour as a member of an organization called the Indiana
 Association of Railroad Passengers. About once every two years the group gets
 a guided tour of the Beech Grove facility, which is located in a suburb of
 Indianapolis. Also, on occasion the NARP region that includes Indiana holds
 its annual meeting in Indianapolis. When that occurs, a tour of Beech Grove
 is usually on the schedule.
    INDARP members are allowed to bring guests along so if you know someone
 who is an INDARP member you might ask them if you could go along next time
 they tour the facility. It is an interesting facility to tour. An F40 and a
 passenger car look much different with their "guts" taken apart then they do
 at trackside.
    Some of the Beech Grove facility is visible from public streets. Beech
 Grove shops are located at Emerson and Garstang streets. The best place to
 look through the fence is along Garstang (also known as Walter Barrick Drive
 in honor of the man who was Amtrak's Beech Grove shops superintendent for
 many years. The entrance to the shops is also along Garstang.
    By the way, the cars that Amtrak offered for sale were placed on tracks
just inside the fence along Garstang. The Amtrak Beech Grove shops formally
were a New York Central facility. (Built by the Big Four). Many of the streets
 in Beech Grove are named for cities served by the NYC.

 craig sanders
Newsgroups: rec.railroad
From: ggg9y@poe.acc.Virginia.EDU (Garth G. Groff)
Subject: Re: Steam over the Blue Ridge?!?
Organization: University of Virginia
Distribution: rec
Date: Tue, 12 Jan 1993 21:20:59 GMT


BLUE RIDGE STEAM COMMENTS

The proposed schedule will make for some interesting
excursions.  The Saturday train is set up to allow
riders to spend most of the day in Staunton.  Much
of Staunton's downtown is filled with delightful
Victorian buildings.  The former C&O station is now
a resturant and the freight station is an antique
shop.  The old feed store and produce buildings across
the street from the depot are also antique shops.  Of
course, the main attraction of the trip (other than 
the trains) is the fall foliage, which is probably why
the trips are planned for October rather than during
the summer tourist season.

I can't see that Gordonsville has much to recommend.
The previous post implies that the train will make a
quick turn-around there.  Gordonsville does have an
Civil War medical museum, though I have not visited and
cannot say if it is worth the trip.

The Saturday westbound and Sunday eastbound excursions
are cleverly positioned to avoid any conflict with other
trains, particularly Amtrak's Cardinal.  It runs through
Charlottesville on Sunday, with a 4 p.m. westbound and
4:30 p.m. eastbound stop in Charlottesville (if memory
serves me correctly--I don't have a schedule here at
work).  The steam train should be safely out of the way
by then.

You can bet that I'll be on the train at least once in
October.

~S
--
Garth (Haridas) Groff
"Not yet famous author"
ggg9y@poe.acc.virginia.EDU         Chant "Govinda Bohlo Hare"
From: mstoffan@uumark.UUCP (Mark Stoffan)
Newsgroups: rec.railroad
Subject: U25B
Date: Sat, 09 Jan 93 00:01:10 GMT
Reply-To: nlbbs!mstoffan@uunet.uu.net
Distribution: world
Organization: 


In article <16B4F9EA5.M00209@MBVM.Mitre.Org> M00209@MBVM.Mitre.Org writes:

 > >Would anyone out there have any information on a model U25B deisel
 > >engine? Maine Central bought about 14 of them in the early 80's from
 > >the Rock Island Line and I'm doing some MEC history now to replicate
 > >the line as close as I can in HO scale. But looking for authentic info
 > >on the real thing. Any help would be appreciated.
 > >
 > >dkl
 >  
 > I'm sure that both the 470 Club and the B&MRRHS would have many photos of the
 > MEC's U25Bs.  Looks like you're in Portland.  Why not come to the 470 Club
 > meeting, at Prides Corner Congregational Church 7:30 P.M., 1/20.  In the
 > meantime I'll see if I can find any published photos.  B&MRRHS MIGHT have
 > engineering diagrams.  I'll try to remember to ask at the meeting this Sat.

Also, a book by Edwin "Bill" Robertson, ROCK ISLAND LOCOMOTIVES ON THE 
MAINE CENTRAL has both photographs and diagrams. The photos are B & W 
but show both the Rock paint schemes and MEC redos.
        Bill is a 470 member and would likely be at the next meeting as 
well. Most libraries in the area should have a copy, too.

 Mark Stoffan                           mstoffan@nlbbs.UUCP
 Gorham, Maine  USA                     mark@btsgatep.caps.maine.edu
 Member, 470 RR Club, &                 Mark.Stoffan@lambada.oit.unc.edu
   B & M RR Historical Soc., Inc.       bg213@cleveland.freenet.edu
From: bw936@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Gregory K. Ramsey)
Newsgroups: rec.railroad
Subject: Re: Railroad Tycoon computer game - what is it?
Date: 8 Jan 1993 16:46:21 GMT
Organization: Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio (USA)
NNTP-Posting-Host: hela.ins.cwru.edu


Since we are on the topic of RR games or simulators does anybody
Know anything about the "Railroad Simulator" I've seen advertised
Railway Age & Railway Track and Structures.  It's about $49 but
of course I can't find an ad for it right now.

Greg
-- 
Gregory K Ramsey                            greg@ncel.navy.mil
Naval Civil Engineering Lab, Code L74
Port Hueneme, CA  93043-4328
805/982-9720
From: rogerm@PROBLEM_WITH_INEWS_GATEWAY_FILE (Roger Mitchell)
Newsgroups: rec.railroad
Subject: More About Diesels
Date: 7 Jan 93 22:41:07 GMT
Organization: Hewlett-Packard Fort Collins Site
X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.1.4 PL6]


All of the diesel locomotives I have seen so far (both 2 stroke and 4 stroke) 
use only the heat from compression to ignite the fuel in the cylinders. There
are some units that the BN has converted to run on LNG and have special 
carburetors that mix the gas with the intake air but the mixture is ignited
by the injection of a small amount of diesel fuel at the beginning of each
power stroke. Woodward Governor builds special governors and fuel control 
systems for these locomotives.
The big difference between the 2 and 4 stroke engines is that the 4 stroke 
engines use 1 of their strokes to purge the exhaust gases from the cylinders
and another to pull in the next charge of air. The 2 stroke diesels use a 
roots blower to supply compressed air to purge and recharge the cylinder
at the bottom of each power stroke. There are ports that get uncovered at the 
bottom of the stroke that admit air to the cylinders and at this time there 4 
exhaust valves at the top of the head that open and allow the exhaust gases 
to escape to the exhaust manifold. 2 stroke engine cylinders have a power
stroke on each revolution and 4 stroke engines hit on every other revolution.
2 stroke engines are lighter for the amount of power they deliver and 4 stroke
engines are more efficient when it comes to fuel consumption per horsepower hour.
On newer locomotives, both types are now equipped with turbochargers.

On smaller automotive and industrial diesel engines using pre-combustion
chambers glow plugs are sometimes used to assist in cold starting of the
engine. Some older diesel engines built by International Harvester a setup
was used where the engine was started as a gasoline engine using a carburetor
and spark plugs, where after it warmed up as a gas engine a lever was thrown
which closed off valves to the starting chambers which contained the spark 
plugs and lowered the compression of each cylinder, shut off the gasoline 
to the carburetor and started the fuel injectors for diesel operation.


				Roger Mitchell
				Master Mechanic: Ft. Collins Municipal Railway
Newsgroups: rec.railroad,rec.models.railroad
From: downs@helios.nevada.edu (Lamont Downs)
Subject: Re: Railroad Tycoon computer game - what is it?
Organization: UNLV
Distribution: usa
Date: Fri, 8 Jan 1993 04:06:43 GMT

>Can someone who has used Railroad Tycoon post some information about
>it?  What is it?  Is it any or all of these things?
>
>	A rail dispatching game?
>	A track/layout design tool?
>	A locomotive operation simulator?
>
>How are the graphics you see?  Does it involve realistic motion?
>How far does the detail go?
>
>PC? MAC? Atari? (etc).  Is it generally available in stores?  Mail order?
>
>Inquiring minds want to know!

From an RRT fanatic:

I'd describe it as a combination high-level model railroading game combined 
with some fantastic business simulation. RRT provides you with four 
different maps, each with four scales available, from (for example) the 
entire Western U.S. on your screen down to what would probably be about the 
size of the Metropolitan New York area. You lay track, build stations of 
various sizes, run trains, selecting the types of consist in order to pick 
up and deliver appropriate freight and/or passenger loads to cities on your 
line that need it. You also buy and sell stock in your railroad and three 
computer-generated competitors, who try to build into your cities, block 
your expansion plans, and even try to buy your stock out from under you. It 
does _not_ provide locomotive-simulation level railroading (you give your 
trains up to four cities and tell them what consist changes to make in those 
cities; the rest is pretty much up to the software). Graphics are EGA or VGA-
that-looks-like-EGA (16 colors only), and things like factories, stations, 
etc. are more like icons than photorealistic aerial views. It's sort of like 
railroading on a topographic map, I guess.

Motion is actually more realistic than you might expect; trains start slowly 
and pick up speed; slow down on upgrades and curves; slow down with heavier 
loads and/or lighter engines.

The business simulation end is incredible (IMHO much more gripping than, 
say, Sim City). You get regular reports on track/station maintenance 
expenses, stock profits, etc. Train reports include profits made and 
maintenance costs for the past two play periods (two years each).

I've seen it for sale for as low as $20 (MicroProse is selling it in some 
kind of "classic" series at the moment). Repeated pleas from a number of us 
kooks have failed to move MP to do an upgrade. It is currently available for 
PC, Mac and Atari, and I at least see the PC version frequently still in 
software stores, especially the ones like Software Etc. that sell a lot of 
games.

By the way, if you lose the stockholders _literally_ run you out of town on 
a handcar...

Lamont Downs
downs@helios.nevada.edu

PS: If you buy this one, expect to miss a lot of sleep.
Newsgroups: rec.railroad
From: ellens@bnr.ca (Chris Ellens)
Subject: A-Train (Was: Re: Railroad Tycoon computer game - what is it?)
Followup-To: rec.railroad
Organization: Bell-Northern Research
Distribution: usa
Date: Fri, 8 Jan 1993 21:46:43 GMT

We've had some opinions on Railroad Tycoon - anybody have any comments on
A-Train? It's from Maxis (the Sim_City people) and is available for the Mac
and PC (others?). I had the chance to try it out very briefly, and although
the graphics look pretty good (you look down from a 45 degree angle), I
wasn't impressed with the game itself. It seems to take a long time to
accomplish anything, and your ability to schedule trains is rather limited
(you need to double track everything to keep the trains running). Railroad
Tycoon sounds better to me, even if it is older - 

Chris Ellens         ellens@bnr.ca
From: judice@sulaco.enet.dec.com
Newsgroups: rec.railroad
Subject: Re: Railroad Tycoon computer game - what is it?
Date: 8 Jan 93 18:37:23 GMT
Reply-To: judice@sulaco.enet.dec.com ()
Distribution: usa
Organization: Digital Equipment Corporation


I agree that RR Tycoon is a lot of fun. I almost never play
computer games, but the first time I tried it, on a Saturday morning
I was still playing well into the next Sunday morning. Very
addictive, though I probably only play it once every 2 months or so, 
when the wife is on a business trip :)

I don't personally care for the business aspects of the game, and
there is a trick if you just want to build and run a RR:

	- Build $32M worth of industries.
	- Your net worth goes from -32M to +32M (i guess due
 	  a RRT or DOS error)
	- Buy 51% of the stock.
	- You're now president for the next 100 years and no one
	  can fire you.

/ljj

--

Louis J. Judice		| Email:      judice@sulaco.enet.dec.com
Digital Equipment Corp.	| Office   :  908-562-4103
20 Corp. Pl South		| FAX:        908-562-4570
Piscataway, NJ 08876	| "Right now, pigs are becoming lunch."
From: craig@kralizec.zeta.org.au (Craig Dewick)
Newsgroups: rec.railroad
Subject: Re: Talking Detectors/Axle Counters
Date: 25 Dec 1992 08:48:16 +1100
Organization: Kralizec Dialup Unix Sydney: +61-2-837-1183 V.42bis
NNTP-Posting-Host: kralizec.zeta.org.au

Now that the subject has turned to axle counters as well as talking
detectors, here's some news for you.

Here is NSW, Australia, we've been using axle counters made by Siemens
for a few years on the VERY steep (continuous 1:30 grades) single line
track between Unanderra (near Wollongong) and Moss Vale. There were a
few initial teething problems caused by Westinghouse engineers getting
the wiring wrong. Queensland Railways also use these same axle counters.

This particular type relies on an magnetic field disturbance detector
to count wheels. It consists of a box mounted on the rail, with two
steel plates mounted on the rail, one in front and one behind, around
the detector box. These are sloped at about 30 degrees.
 
A magnetic field is set up in the rail and these sloped plates. When a
steel wheel passes the detector, eddy currents are set up in the wheel,
which in turn distort the original field set up by the detector, thus
triggering the equipment in the relay room to count one more wheel.

It's possible (I've done it when we were testing the things) to fool the
detector by running a large, flat steel object (a rail plate is a good
thing to use for this!) past the detector to simulate a wheel. I'm not
sure exactly what the limits are on what the system thinks is a real 
train wheel and what isn't.

In this case, if a train goes into the section at this end and came
out at the far end, the counters would register a miscount, since I'd
already counted in one axle before the train passed the detector. This
requires a dual reset between an electrician in the local relay room 
and the controller in the CTC complex at Wollongong in order to clear
the counters (once it's been determined beyond all reasonable doubt
that there's no part of a train still in the section!) and reset the
system to normal.

Now, talking detectors have also been discussed. In NSW, we're currently
trialling automatic hot box and dragging load detectors that announce
information to the train crew via the radio system. This seems very
similar to other systems being described here.

I don't know too much about them at the moment.
-- 
 Craig Dewick, Station Master, Possum Power Tank BBS. +612-544-1060 (ringback).
    Send electronic mail to craig@kralizec.zeta.org.au, flames to /dev/null.
                      - Railway Preservation Industries -
          Supporting the Preservation of Australia's Railway Heritage
Newsgroups: rec.railroad
From: baer@uwovax.uwo.ca
Subject: Re: A-Train (Was: Re: Railroad Tycoon computer game - what is it?)
Organization: University of Western Ont, London
Distribution: usa
Date: Sun, 10 Jan 1993 19:10:52 GMT
Followup-To: rec.railroad

In article <ellens-080193164553@47.220.2.154>, ellens@bnr.ca (Chris Ellens) writes:
> We've had some opinions on Railroad Tycoon - anybody have any comments on
> A-Train? It's from Maxis (the Sim_City people) and is available for the Mac
> and PC (others?). I had the chance to try it out very briefly, and although
> the graphics look pretty good (you look down from a 45 degree angle), I
> wasn't impressed with the game itself. It seems to take a long time to
> accomplish anything, and your ability to schedule trains is rather limited
> (you need to double track everything to keep the trains running). Railroad
> Tycoon sounds better to me, even if it is older - 
>
I generally agree with this poster.  Nice graphics, but boring.  The 
mechanics of the game (open spaces nearest station for storage then
can't be "rezoned" for buildings until supplies used  ... can't redirect
supplies to other storage sites) distract from any sense that one is 
simulating an approximation to real life.  Also, one of the few games I 
know of that won't run properly under OS/2. (RR Tycoon runs at very 
high speed, which is probably distracting for first time users but 
can actually be pleasing to games types who like to get a quick sense of
the implications of different development strategies rather than waiting
forever for the game to "play out").
 
> Chris Ellens         ellens@bnr.ca
-- 
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Douglas Baer
University of Western Ontario, London, Canada N6A 5C2
Internet: BAER@UWOVAX.UWO.CA
Organization: mbp Software&Systems GmbH at ESOC, Darmstadt, Germany
Date: Thursday, 7 Jan 1993 08:46:12 CET
From: Dr. Lutz Massonne <LMASSONN@ESOC.BITNET>
Newsgroups: rec.railroad
Subject: Re: Steam Heat on Electric Locomotives

In Germany, before electric heating equipment was installed in the
majority of passenger cars, electric locomotives and diesel locos
used to have oil-fired boilers.
The earliest (Prussian) electric locomotives even had coal-fired boilers
for train heating purposes.

Regards, Lutz
Newsgroups: rec.railroad
From: ardie@UIUC (R.D. McClary)
Subject: Re: U25B
Organization: Department of Plant Pathology
Date: Thu, 7 Jan 1993 12:12:17 GMT

In article <726369683snx@coastal.UUCP> donl@coastal.UUCP (Don Lockhart) writes:
>From: donl@coastal.UUCP (Don Lockhart)
>Subject: U25B
>Date: Thu, 07 Jan 93 01:21:23 GMT
>Don Lockhart - donl@nlbbs - Portland, Maine
>
>Would anyone out there have any information on a model U25B deisel
>engine? Maine Central bought about 14 of them in the early 80's from
>the Rock Island Line and I'm doing some MEC history now to replicate
>the line as close as I can in HO scale. But looking for authentic info
>on the real thing. Any help would be appreciated.
>
>dkl

     Don Heimburger's book on the Wabash has, in an appendix, not only a 
loco roster but some "notebook" pages as well, giving a silouette (sp?) 
sketch and ALL statistics - date built, weight, ratings, fuel capacity, 
etc.  As the Wabash let GE scrap their FA's in trade, their should be data 
on the u-boat as well.
     (I have provided info on a Wabash loco here before.  If you can't find 
or don't feel like coughing up about $45 for your own copy - and living in 
Maine, I wouldn't blame you! - I'll post the info here in a few days.)
From: ed@wente.llnl.gov (Ed Suranyi)
Newsgroups: rec.railroad
Subject: Re: Local L.A. info request
Date: 6 Jan 93 00:09:56 GMT
Distribution: usa
Organization: UC Davis Dept of Applied Science at LLNL

In article <1993Jan4.210212.8336@netcom.com> despair@netcom.com (Scott Hanson) writes:
>The "Metro" is nearly completed I think, be sure to ask.  Otherwise, there
>is a bus (Line 20) which goes from Union Station to Santa Monica.  One transfer
>should get you to Loyola, the trip would be interesting and inexpensive.
>Some people cannot stand public transportation, you do not seem to be the type.

The Metro Blue Line (downtown L.A. to Long Beach) is operating, and the
first part of the Red Line (Union Station to Alvarado St.) will probably
open very soon.  Unfortunately, neither of these lines, nor any of the
lines under construction, goes anywhere near Loyola.  There aren't even
any plans to get rail transit into that part of the city before the next
century.  So if you want to get there by public transit, you have to take
the bus, probably with at least one transfer.

Ed
ed@wente.llnl.gov

From: Fred.W..Hyde@f4016.n282.z1.tdkt.kksys.com (Fred W. Hyde)
Sender: FredGate@tdkt.kksys.com
Newsgroups: rec.railroad
Subject: Re: magazines
Date: Thu, 07 Jan 1993 12:59:49 -0600

Re: Looking for Rail Magazines
By: M00209 #0 @1:282/31 FIDOnet     

You could also check out CTC Railroads Illustrated, which has good articles
but publications dates are quite spotty. Also have heard of a new mag,
Control Point, which I have not seen but have been asked to write for on
midwestern topics. The best of the roster magazines, Extra 2200 South, still
have the best diesel data archives around. Another possibility....Pacific
Rail News, which covers Mississippi River & west, but includes Wisconsin and
Illinois.

Newsgroups: rec.railroad
From: rogerm@PROBLEM_WITH_INEWS_GATEWAY_FILE (Roger Mitchell)
Subject: Re: Electric Train Sparking
Date: Tue, 12 Jan 1993 15:29:26 GMT
Organization: Hewlett-Packard Fort Collins Site
X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.1.4 PL6]

On the Fort Collins Municipal Railway in the Fall when the leaves start 
falling off the trees, we have our biggest problem. The leaves build up 
on the wheels, insulating them from the track. When this happens the only
way to operate the car without stalling out is to run the car in full 
parallel (Run notch 9) and ride the brakes to control the speed of the
car. While doing this sometimes arcs as long as a couple of feet are 
drawn from the wheels to the track. If the car does stall the motorman
can find himself in the unpleasant position of having a 600 volt DC
potential between the car body and earth ground along with the tracks.
When this happens the only thing that can be done is to pull the trolley
pole down to disconnect the power and scrape the leaves off the wheels.
 
					Roger Mitchell
					Master Mechanic: FCMRy