NEW Trainz Tutorial : Importing Google Earth Images into Trainz for Route Building

A New and Improved Video for my Older Tutorial 1 Year Ago.
( WINDOWS ONLY ) Link to Basemaps Program :
sites.google.com/view/dhobh-n...
Link to Google Earth For Windows, Mac, or Linux :www.google.com/earth/download...
Closed Captioning HIGHLY RECOMMENDED. This is a Tutorial on How to Import a Google earth image of a route into Trainz for Your Building. Thanks for Watching!

[@royburnell4169]

Very informative - Thank you so much. I use the Google Earth 'Marker pins' in each 4 corners, then it is easy to capture the next shot when you have a marker to pin point accuracy.

[@johnsawyer2486]

Thanks for this tutorial. Just completed 25 Basemapz of Sacramento port area. No problems; need to very careful that the saved images are the same size. I used images with 400 feet scale showing in lower right. Saved per your instructions, then moved Google image for small overlap, saved again (new folder), etc. In Trainz (TANE), laid them all out with the overlaps matched. It was helpful to do the entire Basemapz session at the same time. Makes overlapping much easier. My Basemapz overhang the underlying Trainz grid, OK with me. Can add the Trainz grid later if desired. Great job, thanks!

[@southpaw7364]

great video. Just did my 1st map. This will help me improve my route detail. Thanks for making this. Keep up the great work

[@giob7386]

Thank you man!!!! I've been searching my local route for a long time with no success! Finally I can do it by myself!

[@xero925]

This feature made me want to upgrade to the newest version of Trainz. Thanks for sharing!

[@lewisner]

You are one hell of a tutor ! I only had one hiccup at 7.58 when it flashed up "unhandled exception". The only thing I did different was to save the GE image in 4K resolution and look up how to ramp all GE settings up to max.

[@ceciliaruiz6191]

i was you're 990 sub btw c: Wink Wink ;3 May you live on with the power of Trainz

[@grandchungus173]

Awesome tutorial!🙌🏾

[@positionlightproductions6187]

This really helps! I'm making the rockville bridge in trainz so this makes it a little bit more realistic.

[@SparklesAndreJr.Railfan_Andre]

Nice video. I'm definitely giving this a try when I make routes for Trainz.

[@virginiatrains7886]

Thanks man! Really helped me. Now I can finally build the CSX line I live on!

[@DalaganGarona]

Hey bro it's hard to get audio right recording no worries ty for the tutorial. Having reference easiely accessable is key to creating anything this tutorial is a gem thank you.

[@capefeartrainsandsirens]

Thank you for this tutorial Flamerailzzz! I can finally build Hamlet in Trainz!

[@TheMonstertrucker]

Great tutorial gives me a jump start back to trainz

[@parrotyee]

I don't mind the gray border, in Basmapz what do I do so that a 3840×2160 fits into a 1:1 ratio without squashing obviously? Once again the grey borders can extend as far as they want as long as I get my 1:1?

[@aprintojoss8079]

Very good guidance ... So if I want to create a real scale map (1000meters in real = 1000meters in TRS), I need GE to zoom altitude 720m and set basemapz both Xscale and Yscale = 1 Am I in correct number? How about track elevation? GE no have information about it.

[@joshuabenjamin2484]

I am just curious to ask would this strategy work for “fallen flags” or extinct railroads? I want to recreate one that had traversed through my hometown.

[@paulnortness1354]

Not quite sure about that "eye altitude" bit. I am building the rail yard in Whitefish, MT. When I set my eye alt to 3250, everything is so damn close it is useless

[@superflashlightrailproduct1355]

How did you get user at the top of Basemapz on the image line?

[@alienandy]

Wow! I know this is 3 years old, but it works like a charm still in 2022! So if anyone happens on this video and wonders if it works currently with 2022, it totally does! I figured SOMETHING would snag me up, but thanks to this video, I imported and set up my first surveyor map in about the time it takes to watch this video. I'm almost curious to see this other video he keeps apologizing for lol. Don't be so hard on yourself! I never saw that one, but this one worked so great! If I had known I could do this, I would have gotten back to trainz years ago. The only thing is the link to google earth pro is dead, but I was able to find it easy. Thanks again @Flamerailzzz !

[@HarunaInKrupp3118]

Thanks for nice tutorial im using it for fixing Romulus areas.

[@HarunaInKrupp3118]

@@GRE2057ok i get it I built route CSX Saginaw sub on MI area

[@railfanmaximstill7279]

The area I'm using I'm not even gonna use the compass. I'm so familiar with the area I can figure out which way is North, South, East, and West by the track Layout

[@parrotyee]

My monitor is 2560×1080 (21:9), And I've read that cropping it to 1:1 beforehand will not distort it... Can I get confirmation from someone?

[@MISINGINACTION]

I'm following every step in this video and when i go to import it, i get a warning saying it cant read the config file. do you know how to fix this?

[@ks_56]

how do you get the terrain for route building?

[@sibat7052]

thanks this was a helpful video

[@josephsnyder1842]

I undestand thiis is an older tutorial. I can not find a good link to download basemapz. Can anyone help?

[@thejohnd9264]

How to good cartographic mapping of the terrain by using google maps, google earth of cartographic maps? Not only roads and railway tracks

[@multiPS3gamer1]

is there a way to setup Google Earth to have sections of the map with the dimensions you need for each basemap. Say I need like 20 basemaps, and I want to be accurate. How exactly would I go about doing that?

[@Flamerailzzz]

If I’m understanding you correctly, You can change the size or shape of the image ( when selecting image resolution) and Resize it appropriately in Basemapz. There’s no way to have preset Dimensions for Google earth pro. You’ll still need to do each one 1 at a time and place them as such. Reason being Basemapz can only create 1 at a time and Google Earth Pro doesn’t have a function for Making multiple sections around the relative area you’ll need. In addition, Since these are screenshots you’ll still need to move around on the map 🗺 and keep screenshotting every part of it. And just lay them down. The method for laying them down overlapping each other is in my older Tutorial for this. Search the Title for this video in the search bar without “ NEW “ in it and take a look.

[@bongman123]

when i try to insert the basemap it comes as red text and i cant place it why?

[@srennicolaisen1068]

Hi. Link to basemapz doesn't seem to work. Can anyone help?

[@zachbates6541]

I’ve have a question sir, how did you get basemapz I like to try it can help me please and good friends

[@eduardderoubaix9306]

Can you remove the base image when younare done?

[@KO-ed8om]

How do I face the ground directly?

[@georgiarailproductions]

I cant build on it when its locked, it says you cannot build on this layer when it is locked.

[@superflashlightrailproduct1355]

How did you get TransDEM? I try to email but it doesn't work. Is there a way to get this when you buy and where do you buy it?

[@dwarfagp]

I keep getting "Unable to read config file for asset" when importing to Trainz 2019 :( If anyone has suggestions on how to fix would be appreciated.

[@duskeyduskey]

can you make a tutorial for multiple images?

[@ajipboy]

really nice tutorial! I have a question though, can you use it in DEM generated baseboards? because of the elevations and that stuff

[@superflashlightrailproduct1355]

Where can I get DEM?

[@jessetrains7558]

When I added my base map to my layout, the tracks on the map are so fuzzy I can hardly see them to trace them with the track. I think it is because my google earth image is fuzzy. Is there a way to make it more clear like yours is?

[@Flamerailzzz]

Jesse Trains Make sure your zoom distance is right and also check your image quality and make sure it’s set to 1080p or higher

[@jessetrains7558]

Do you mean image quality on google earth? If so, how do you set it? Thanks for the help!

[@Flamerailzzz]

It’s in the video, pay close attention to When you’ve taken the screenshot and are about to remove the extra logos and information and look for resolution

[@trainman467railfanningsept5]

Nice 👍🏾

[@Island_Line_Rail_Productions]

if I need to make a hill or trench or something will the basemap adjust to that? I am going to recreate the Rutland Railroad's Island Line and it has a lot of causeways over the lake and trenches through parts of the Islands

[@Flamerailzzz]

Island Line Rail Productions Nah , The hills and Trenches will go through the Basemaps. You’ll have to work with it as long as you know where everything is.

[@Island_Line_Rail_Productions]

@@Flamerailzzz I guess I can use the basemap to lay track and all the buildings then remove it and just use the ground textures then or something...

[@Flamerailzzz]

Yeah that’s really all it is. Terrain is the only thing not included

[@southeasternpennsylvaniara1588]

Thank you for the tutorial. I have a question. Do you know why, the base maps keep saying their faulty? It says that “The asset has an invalid KUID user Id”.

[@Flamerailzzz]

Matthew Graziano are you changing your kuids for each Basemap? Have you made a typo in the kuids ?

[@southeasternpennsylvaniara1588]

Flamerailzzz yes. And I don’t think so but I will check.

[@southeasternpennsylvaniara1588]

Flamerailzzz I checked and I didn’t see a typo.

[@azumi-osaki]

May I ask... how to add another tile following the previous tile ? You are showing how to install the first tile but not the second "(¬ . ¬)"

[@wolfdragon8874]

Does this work for Trainz 12

[@T1_Productions]

Hey dude. Can you do Cordele, Georgia?

[@westvirginiarailproductions]

I recently tried to build a 12.5 mile route and it turned out to be about 24.5 miles. I used all of the dimensions you had and lined all of the basemaps up accordingly. How would I go about building an actual map with accurate mileage?

[@paulnortness1354]

YES! I am glad I am not the only one experiencing this. It's somehow stretching out the route. I am doing a real world route between Seattle and Everett running along Puget Sound. The main BNSF rail yard is about 3 times longer than it is in real life. The fun thing about the route is all the curves as it hugs the shoreline but because the stretching issue, all the curves are also stretched out and not as pronounced.

[@SentientElectricLamp]

Got this...i assume there's nothing in BaseMapz that will include the terrain with it as far as real areas go, and that would require something else?

[@Flamerailzzz]

Carolina Luxray Yes For That , You would need to Purchase the TransDEM Program to Get the Terrain For Your Route.

[@SentientElectricLamp]

@@Flamerailzzz All right. Well, i don't have that, but i do have the allowance...will see to that as soon as i can. Murphy Branch plans still aren't out of the question.

[@Flamerailzzz]

Carolina Luxray Good sir. Also You’ll most likely need to also get The Basemaps or (UTM) files from TransDEM as well as it offers A way to lay Basemapz across your route fully. It’s a tool in the Program. The Overall Program is going to be quite complicated to use but it’s very Useful.

[@SentientElectricLamp]

@@Flamerailzzz Good to know. I guess for now, though, i'll try out some little town in either Kansas or Nebraska, where it's real flat and won't have to be concerned about terrain.

[@carsonthegoat667]

How do I download basemapz?

[@joshuabenjamin2484]

Is it possible to use Google Earth to map out "fallen flags" railroads, as in lines that have been either abandoned or ripped up? I am currently working with the mobile Trainz Driver 2 version and recreating the former regional corridor of the Oil Creek Railroad from Corry, PA to Titusville,PA. Also I would like ask if anyone wants some old historical rail routes, I happened to know quite a large number of them within my state of Pennsylvania!

[@Flamerailzzz]

Google earth will only show what exists as far back as the 80s or 90s I believe with satellite imagery. Anything older than that will require a legit map for that railroad during that time period. I’m which case, basemapz will still import it as long as it’s a supported image file.

[@mr_nodes2297]

can any one help me to install route in trainz sim 12 pc ? please reply

[@southpaw7364]

Great video Flamerailzzz. For the Start content ID, does it have to start with a 5 digit number? Or can I simply start with the number 1?

[@Flamerailzzz]

It has to be your Content Creator ID and The Second set Can be any number as long as it hasn’t been used for any of your other Creations of any type.

[@dghcpumpernickeldeluxe7391]

@@Flamerailzzz i have it from 3250 to 3300 and the track is STILL SMALLER What did I do wrong

[@Flamerailzzz]

@@dghcpumpernickeldeluxe7391 hmmmm you can zoom in a bit more if necessary. Also double check to make sure the game is set to real scale and not any other scale

[@dghcpumpernickeldeluxe7391]

@@Flamerailzzz it is on real scale i think i got it i used 2380 ft

[@heyitshuttz3705]

OMG your in mableton I stoped by there on a car trip once

[@dylanforrest6156]

Hey man, very good video. I think it'll get me into route building again, instead of modeling. Just a quick question, how does it look on a DEM?

[@Flamerailzzz]

Dylan Forrest for a DEM, this method would not be as effective or affective at all because of the terrain and because of the image being an object your base maps would be floating up one above another, below one another and it would be very difficult for you to build above and under that onto the terrain. So for that the more ideal method would be The transDEM method.

[@dylanforrest6156]

@@Flamerailzzz Thanks for the response!

[@taoskid8769]

In step 4 where do you drag import folder to?

[@taoskid8769]

OK I got it thanks. It worked.

[@zemildlybird2024]

Question: Website is not working

[@escenasfavoritas5806]

I see one problem: BaseMapz crams the entire rectangular image into a square format. So if somebody wants to accurately recreate a route, this method won't be helpful.

[@allthingsbotdf]

If you crop the image to a 1:1 ratio before putting it into BaseMapz it wont be distorted, A little extra work but worth it!

[@fairwayrailproductions3239]

do you need to download net

[@taoskid8769]

My screen shot on Google Earth wont save to a file. I press save and nothing happens. What do I do? Is there some kind of program to download Google Pro files? I used Infranview for Basemapz. Thanks Rob

[@Flamerailzzz]

Rob Jay Try to save it on the desktop or an open location to see if it exports and be sure the file extension is correct. I am not sure if there is an alternate program for exporting google earth files.

[@taoskid8769]

Thanks I'll keep at it and try different things. I have a rebuilt computer that only had windows picture viewer. I added Irfanviewer to use in base mapz. It worked for track plans from my own jpg files. Nice video I might add. I appreciate all you guys that go and do it and show us all how to do it. Thanks.

[@taoskid8769]

Thanks. I got it. I had to give the file a title! LOL!

[@aprintojoss8079]

Maybe use snip built in application?

[@taoskid8769]

Thanks for the tip. I got a new computer since that post and that solved the problem...

[@teejaythomas4043]

The first try worked with no problem, but very save and import into tranz since have had mesh errors? is there something to fix this?

[@Flamerailzzz]

Are you changing your KUIDs?

[@Flamerailzzz]

Maybe the type of image you are using.

[@teejaythomas4043]

@@Flamerailzzz same as the first... I didn't change anything but the kuid number

[@noahhaley0640]

it says unable to read config file for file asset

[@Flamerailzzz]

noah haley productions Might Be corrupted. Try again and check the file formats as well.

[@Griz1231]

Basemaps is no longer available

[@portowiec15]

A bit mis-explained, Basemap has narrowed and it doesn't look right ...

[@dghcpumpernickeldeluxe7391]

I tried the range and the 1080p resolution andther map is blurry in the game is that normal

[@Flamerailzzz]

If you can’t see what I see in the game, you might have to turn your scenery setting to max.

[@dghcpumpernickeldeluxe7391]

@@Flamerailzzz how do you do that

[@devl1474]

my trainz doesnt have layers....

[@skylieden]

Its coming out scrunched up and off scaled. Fix?

[@greaterhoustonrailfan]

Use photoshop before you do it to make the image square

[@taoskid8769]

I got to the Base Mapz program and when I try to render map it says "Parameter not valid" What does that mean?

[@Flamerailzzz]

Is the Image a jpg ? Or maybe the X & Y dimensions are incorrect? I’m not sure. The way I did it in the vid is the way I was informed it was supposed to go.

[@taoskid8769]

The X& Y dim are as per the video, but the file extension is .ge.print. I will change it to a jpg ext. thanks.

[@taoskid8769]

Ok, changed it to a jpg but I keep getting the same message

[@taoskid8769]

Tried to open file in Irfanviewer and it says "Unknown file format, empty/damaged file or file not found" Did I do it right?

[@Flamerailzzz]

Hmmmm I’m not sure. If it’s damaged just try again . If it’s not found empty or a unknown, look for The file on your computer and repeat the process. Also try resetting it the program base map settings to default

[@lcs3491]

So much better without the music

[@superflashlightrailproduct1355]

When I click on an image it will say "There are invalid characters in the image file name and/or its folder path.

[@Flamerailzzz]

Super Flashlight Rail Productions Make sure there are no underscores or anything in the file name.

[@superflashlightrailproduct1355]

@@Flamerailzzz okay how? mine's Windows 10.

[@teejaythomas4043]

Trainz 19 errors are VE48: This assest uses an obsolete trainz-build number. Trainz-build 3.5 are no longer supported. VE76: Unable to load mesh file

[@Flamerailzzz]

As long as it is not faulty, don't worry about it. Make sure to copy everything I set in the video. Your shouldn't get any errors.

[@teejaythomas4043]

@@Flamerailzzz it is faulty, VE76 is the faulty.... I change the kuid number everytime, like i said, first one did just fine, every attempt since not and I get this error message

[@trainman467railfanningsept5]

Wow dude train

[@MuscleLineRailfan]

May need another guide since basemapz doesn’t work apparently

[@ctclark1]

Easiest way to make sure your view is perfectly vertical and north oriented is to press 'R' in Google earth.

[@heyitshuttz3705]

I wish you could do this on Trainz 2 Mobile

[@emiliacortessa3070]

i feel my map strecth, any idea, thx for the tutor

[@Flamerailzzz]

Adjust the size of the screenshot in basemapz, as long as it doesn’t go beyond the boundaries and it doesn’t has too wide of a resolution and your in game map size is wet to real scale, it should fit

[@emiliacortessa3070]

@@Flamerailzzz it fit, but i just feel strecth, i will try it,

[@nickstransportvlogs]

Damn boi, your rich.

[@Flamerailzzz]

I’m rich?

[@nickstransportvlogs]

Flamerailzzz Yeah, because the Payware Content.

[@Flamerailzzz]

nicktrainfan1550 The Railfan Lmao not rich ,but I’m ehhh alright

[@GRE2057]

the new basemapz link is DEAD 404 Error!

[@Flamerailzzz]

Thanks for the Heads up. I will Look into it.

[@southeastvirginiarailfan2110]

It's cool to do that, not my style. I have some new videos coming. Wouldn't mind watching would you?

[@Flamerailzzz]

Wouldn't mind at all.

[@SalchyDev]

Working in Trainz a New Era?

[@Flamerailzzz]

Yes

[@SalchyDev]

@@Flamerailzzz Nice, thanks!

[@speedyslothee3093]

Should of used steam engines cause your computer was chugging hard hahahah

[@SekHakuna]

Painful to ummmm ...listen to. Lots of repeating and ummmm, well, ummmssss.

[@Flamerailzzz]

Sorry , maybe I’ll prepare a script next time and not stress the importance of the process multiple times.

[@duskeyduskey]

can you make a tutorial for multiple images?