Introduction

The Traffic Screensaver documentation (Reference Handbook) was written more, than a dozen years ago. Unfortunately several new functions, possibilities added to Traffic were not added to this description, they were communicated only in forum messages on Bahnschranke - the forum to share vehicle drawings for screensavers, and converse with each other about them.

So, it's not only about time to update the Traffic Screensaver documentation, but it is a huge work.

In the meantime the WTraffic project has reached the point it is worth to take a look into, not only to enjoy the scenes, but also to play with the possibilities, to try to create new, own scenes. So, the interested audience needs a description about the program.

I assume you have read the introduction to this WTraffic site, so you are familiar with the main goal and characteristics of Traffic and WTraffic.

Traffic and WTraffic has common roots and common formats, common syntax, but they are not identical. Traffic is a screensaver on a Windows PC, it serves only one master. WTraffic runs divided on a webserver and in browsers, the server have to please several clients - browsers, and the people sitting before them.

I am trying at first to update the parts of this documentation, which are valid both for Traffic and WTraffic, and the users have no other way to get to know them. Even if you have not read about the program, usually you can use it, and reach the most of it's functions: the menus, buttons, tooltips of the controls tell a lot about the possibilities. In contrary, when you have to write a program-like text to control something, you are lost without knowledge of the 'language' this text have to be in. So, first you will see here, how to write a timetable for both programs:

• how to compose trains from individual vehicle drawings
• how to select vehicles randomly
• what kind of movements are implemented, and how to control them
• how to group the movements, determine the sequence they are running
• how to create foregrounds and backgrounds for the movements
• how the create scenes having multiple tracks with moving consists on several of them at the same time
• how to control the animations the vehicles are capable of (pantographs, windows, flashlights)
• how to control animations on the foreground/background layers

So far you will be able to use the existing drawings.

To create new vehicles - especially with animations, or randomly filled windows - one have to know the modifiers too, which are applied to the graphic(s), and (mostly) stored at the images.

I will continue working on this documentation, revising and releasing the parts dealing with the usage of the Traffic screensaver and adding the counterpart about WTraffic.