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Add direction arrows to Train block visualisation

Posted: Sun Jan 28, 2018 3:19 am
by EmperorArthur
TL;DR
Replace the vertical lines between train blocks with arrows indicating directions.

What ?
Current block visualisations look like this:
Image

The only way to see what direction are allowed in a segment of track is to mouse over the rail signal at the start of that section. Instead, this might be better:
fff-198-rail-block-visualisation with arrows.png
fff-198-rail-block-visualisation with arrows.png (998.73 KiB) Viewed 2135 times
Where the arrows show what direction trains are allowed to enter each block.
Why ?
While my simple example may appear more cluttered, it certainly makes it easier to understand what's going on. Just drawing those arrows was a mental exercise. Now I can immediately look at the diagram and know exactly where the trains are allowed to go.

Re: Add direction arrows to Train block visualisation

Posted: Sun Jan 28, 2018 4:38 am
by eradicator
+1

Though you'd need arrows on both ends and some funcky double headed one for two-directional or mixed directional segments.

Re: Add direction arrows to Train block visualisation

Posted: Sun Jan 28, 2018 3:52 pm
by Skeletpiece
This could be useful with very long rail segments, but arrows should be smaller

Re: Add direction arrows to Train block visualisation

Posted: Sun Jan 28, 2018 8:54 pm
by Engimage
I do totally agree with you. I did even suggest replacing solid line with arrows (if I am not mistaken it is like that when placing signals)

Re: Add direction arrows to Train block visualisation

Posted: Fri Apr 19, 2019 1:15 am
by mrudat
I was about to post a suggestion for this, though I was going to suggest that the arrows are drawn just before the signal, this way two-way rail would look like the following:

Code: Select all

|----><-----><------><-----><----|
and one-way rail would look like this:

Code: Select all

|---->|----->|------>|----->|----|

Re: Add direction arrows to Train block visualisation

Posted: Fri Apr 19, 2019 12:46 pm
by Darinth
I can definitely get behind making the rail direction visualization available all of the time.

Re: Add direction arrows to Train block visualisation

Posted: Fri Apr 19, 2019 1:24 pm
by Ultros
Another possibility is to have it similar to the "train path" arrows you get while hovering over an automatic train in motion, but with additional colouring for block. Unidirectional tracks get single arrows, and dual-directional tracks get a set of two arrows.