Namdoc:Glossary

NAM Documentation

Introduction Feature Guides Index Glossary

This page contains all important terms and acronyms related to the Network Addon Mod or networks in general. See also SC4 Glossary for general terms and acronyms not found in this list.

Network Addon Mod and SC4 Transportation-Related Acronyms

NAM

Network Addon Mod

The Network Addon Mod is an extensive mod for SimCity 4 Deluxe/Rush Hour, which encompasses virtually all community-developed transport network content (excluding stations, cosmetic mods and lot-based items).

ABEP

Arthur Berkhardt Expressway Project

An "April Fools Day" cosmetic mod produced by Tarkus for the RealHighway's RHW-8S network, inspired by the episode of the American comedy series "Seinfeld".

ARD

Asymmetrical Road

An Asymmetrical Road is a Road in which there are more lanes travelling in one direction than the other. The ARD-3 network in the Network Widening Mod has 2 lanes in one direction, 1 lane in the other, and is a Road-based override from a starter piece, and has a higher capacity than the default Road network through the use of Distilled Intersection Paths (DIPs)

ATL

Avenue Turning Lanes

An optional plugin in the NAM Core, which adds turn lanes to +-intersections between two orthogonal Avenues.

AVE

Avenue

An abbreviation used not only to refer to the game's default Avenue network (sometimes called "AVE-4" in this short hand, because it has 4 lanes), but also the single-tile 2-lane (AVE-2) and triple-tile 6-lane (AVE-6) networks with divided medians, included in the Network Widening Mod (both of which are actually Road-based override networks built from starter pieces, as single-tile and triple-tile networks are extraordinary difficult to build from the dual-tile Avenue network).

BTM

Bullet Train Mod (also called Shinkansen Addon Mod)

A Monorail replacement mod developed by the Japanese content creator APTX, and popularized by Haljackey.

CAN-AM

Canal Addon Mod

A NAM Core option that allows for fully functional transportation via Canal, using puzzle pieces. Developed by daeley, Chrisim, and members of the BSC.

CP

Cosmetic Piece

Cosmetic Pieces are specialized puzzle pieces, designed to allow users desiring great attention to detail to customize the look and feel of their transportation networks. The best known Cosmetic Pieces are included in the RealHighway system.

DBE

Diagonal Bridge Enabler

A Plugin that uses temporary files, draining all of a city's water and locking road and rail slopes, to allow the construction of diagonal bridges and other advanced bridge designs from starter pieces.

DDI

Diverging Diamond Interchange

A type of interchange popularized by American traffic engineer Gilbert Chlewicki, which resembles a standard diamond interchange, but flips the driving directions between the freeway connections along the surface street, to allow smoother movement of cross-turning traffic. The RealHighway system includes pieces to construct DDIs, which, in-game, have a higher capacity than standard diamond interchanges.

DIP

Distilled Intersection Path

A Distilled Intersection Path is a bogus path designed to trick the game into thinking that a non-intersection tile is an intersection tile. Coupled with the settings for intersection capacity in the NAM Traffic Simulator, DIPs actually increase the capacity of affected tiles by 25%. They cannot be used on any network tile that already has an intersection or crossover path. DIPs are used to adjust capacities of wider networks in the RealHighway (RHW) system, the Network Widening Mod (NWM), and some Turn Lane Extension Pieces (TuLEPs).

DRI

Draggable Ramp Interface

A Draggable Ramp Interface is a type of ramp interface built through draggable means for the RealHighway system. For more information, see the entry on "RI" (Ramp Interface).

DTR

Dual Track Rail

An acronym sometimes used to refer to the game's default Rail network, particularly in the context of the extended networks included in the Railway Addon Mod (RAM).

ELR

Elevated Light Rail

An acronym sometimes used to refer to the game's default Elevated Rail network, particularly when discussing its ground-level counterpart, Ground Light Rail (GLR), an addition included in the NAM Core.

EMHW

Elevated Maxis Highway

An acronym sometimes used to refer to the game's default Elevated Highway network.

ERHW

Elevated RealHighway

An acronym sometimes used to refer to Elevated RealHighways.

ETRM

Euro Texture Replacement Mod

A cosmetic mod designed to change the appearance of roads to look more European/International, rather than the American default. The most recent version is MandelSoft's.

FA

Fractional Angle

A network piece that is neither orthogonal, nor diagonal, but in between the two. The angle for the existing FA content is 18.4 degrees/71.6 degrees, and is referred to as "FA3", because each tileable segment is 3 tiles long. Another angle, "FA2" (26.6 degrees/63.4 degrees), sometimes called "HD" (half-diagonal) is in development, named because each tileable segment is 2 tiles long. FA3 content is currently available for Roads, Avenues, Rails, and some RealHighway networks. FA2 content is not yet available for any network.

FAA

Fractional Angle Avenue

See FA.

FAOWR

Fractional Angle One-Way Road

See FA.

FAR

Fractional Angle Road

See FA.

FARHW

Fractional Angle RealHighway

See FA.

FARR

Fractional Angle Railroad

See FA.

FHW

FakeHighway

A pejorative term sometimes used to describe MHW, due to the fact that it is half-scaled compared to other game networks.

FLEXFly

Flexible Flyover

A special flyover ramp puzzle piece included in the RealHighway system. It is placed like a puzzle piece, but is overrideable like a draggable item. It is a WAVERide piece.

FlexSPUI

Flexible Single-Point Urban Interchange

A special puzzle piece included in the RealHighway system, designed to allow for the construction of Single Point Urban Interchanges, which resemble standard diamond interchanges, but with the ramps meeting in the center to form a single intersection. It is placed like a puzzle piece, but is overrideable like a draggable item. It is a WAVERide piece.

GID

Group ID

A hexadecimal identifier designed to specify the function of a given game asset.

GHSR

Ground High Speed Rail

The ground-level component of the High Speed Rail Project (HSRP). It is a Monorail-based override network built from a starter piece.

GLR

Ground Light Rail

A ground-level counterpart to the game's default Elevated Rail network, included in the NAM Core (sometimes also called the "Tram" network). It exists in several style variants, all of which are Elevated Rail-based override networks built from a starter piece, and dual-networking options, embedded in Avenues, Roads, and Streets, also exist (see T-RAM, TIA, TIR, TOR, and TOS).

GMHW

Ground Maxis Highway

An acronym sometimes used to refer to the game's default Ground Highway network.

HSR

High Speed Rail

The elevated component of the High Speed Rail Project (HSRP). It is a Monorail-based override network built from a starter piece. It is primarily cosmetic in effect.

HSRP

High Speed Rail Project

A project which adds starter piece-based mass transit networks based upon the Monorail network. The two components included are the Elevated High Speed Rail (HSR), and Ground High Speed Rail (GHSR).

IID

Instance ID

A hexadecimal number used to identify a specific network piece, exemplar, RUL file, etc.

INRUL

Individual Network Rule File

A type of Network Rule (RUL) File, used to handle the placement of individual networks, including intersections of the given network with itself. All INRULs lie in the IID range between 0x00000001 and 0x00000018.

MAVE

Medianless Avenue (deprecated)

A Medianless Avenue is a network that maintains a lane count of 4 or greater (equaling or exceeding that of the game's default Avenue), but has a narrow, painted division between opposing directions of traffic. Two MAVEs exist the Network Widening Mod, a 4-lane version (MAVE-4), and a 6-lane version (MAVE-6), the latter of which has a higher capacity. Despite their name, MAVEs are Road-based override networks built from starter pieces. The term MAVE is being phased out in the next NAM release, to avoid confusion between the triple-tile AVE-6 and the dual-tile MAVE-6, and these networks will be considered wider versions of Road network (RD-4 and RD-6).

MHW

Maxis Highway

A term sometimes used to refer to the game's default Elevated and Ground Highway networks, often in contradistinction to the RealHighway (RHW) system.

MIS

Modular Interchange System

This term has a dual meaning. The MIS is generically used to refer to the RealHighway (RHW) system's capabilities to build modular interchanges, as opposed to the pre-fabricated plop interchanges of the Maxis Highway system. More specifically, it is also used to refer to the "MIS Ramp", single-lane, one-way RealHighway-based override network, built from starter pieces, and is most often used to connect RealHighways to surface streets or other larger RealHighways.

NREE

Nicole Richie Effect Eliminators

Early codename for RHW Neighbor Connectors.

NSGID

Network-Specific Group ID

A Group ID (GID) for exemplar files, which is specific for a given network.

NWM

Network Widening Mod

The Network Widening Mod is a NAM Plugin, which currently exists as a separate-download module, but will be added to the NAM Core with the upcoming NAM 31 release. It uses Road-based and One-Way Road-based override networks (but not Avenue-based override networks) from starter pieces to vary their width, capacity, and appearance. Network Widening networks are often referred to in a short hand based on their type and number of lanes they have (e.g. TLA-5, OWR-3). Five basic types of NWM networks currently exist: Road-based Avenues (AVE, 2-lane and 6-lane), Road-based Asymmetrical Roads (ARD, 3-lane), Road-based Medianless Avenues (MAVE, 4-lane and 6-lane) Road-based Turning Lane Avenues (TLA, 3-lane, 5-lane and 7-lane), and extended One-Way Roads (OWR, 1-lane, 3-lane, 4-lane, and 5-lane). Most NWM networks do have higher capacities compared to the networks upon which they are based.

OWR

One-Way Road

An abbreviation used not only to refer to the game's default One-Way Road network (sometimes called "OWR-2" in this short hand, because it has 2 lanes), but also the single-tile 1-lane (OWR-1) and 3-lane (OWR-3), and dual-tile 4-lane (OWR-4) and 5-lane (OWR-5) variants, included in the Network Widening Mod, as One-Way Road-based override networks built from starter pieces.

PedMall

Pedestrian Mall

A type of puzzle piece designed to carry only pedestrian traffic.

QTR

Quadruple Track Rail

RABET

Roundabout Extension Tiles

RAM

Railway Addon Mod

RD

Road

RI

Ramp Interface

RHW

RealHighway (formerly Rural Highway, before late-2009)

The RealHighway system is a NAM Plugin, which currently exists as a separate-download module, but will be added to the NAM Core with the upcoming NAM 31 release. It is based upon an unfinished network ("DirtRoad") that Maxis left in the game's files, and was reactivated by the NAM Team in 2004-2005. It currently consists of a series of variable-width highways (ranging from 2 to 10 lanes) with the ability to have variable-width medians, built from starter pieces, and uses modular construction techniques to construct interchanges, rather than the pre-fabricated plop interchanges of the default Maxis Highways. RealHighways are connected to surface streets (Roads, One-Way Roads and Avenues) and other RealHighways through Ramp Interfaces. Transitions between different widths and ground and elevated networks are accomplished through Transition Pieces. RealHighway networks are often referred to in a short hand based on the number of lanes they have in a symmetrical setup allowing for travel in both directions, for example, RHW-2, RHW-4. Networks beyond the RHW-4 often are classified as either being C-type or S-type (e.g. RHW-6C, RHW-8S). C-type networks are "combined", and the two travel directions cannot be separated like S-type ("separable") networks.

RTL

Road Turning Lanes

An optional plugin in the NAM Core, which adds turn lanes to +-intersections and T-intersections between two orthogonal Roads.

RTMT

Road-Top Mass Transit

RUL

Network Rule File

RUL2

Shorthand for the RUL with the Instance ID 0x100000002, the NetworkOverrides RUL, which is used in the creation of "override networks".

RuRP

Rural Roads Plugin

SAM

Street Addon Mod

SIP

Signalized Intersection Piece

SPM

Signage Piece Mod

STR

Single Track Rail

T-RAM

Tram-Road Addon Mod

T21

Type 21 Exemplar

TIA

Tram (GLR)-in-Avenue

TIR

Tram (GLR)-in-Road

TLA

Turning Lane Avenue

TOR

Tram (GLR)-on-Road

TOS

Tram (GLR)-on-Street

TTR

Triple Track Rail

TuLEP

Turning Lane Extension Piece(s) (or Project)

WAVERide

Wave Override