Flamelord wrote:So, we have:
-Hover Trains (1)
-Tubed Monorail Trains (2)
-Tubed Maglev (3)
I thought we decided that the tubed trains were impractical. As redstar said above, they don't look so good because they are mostly obscured by the tube. I'd rather have us use an open advanced monorail (which would actually be a monorail - maglev (see TransRapid). I think that for type three, we should deviate more from the standard and go with the transmission tubes for the ultralight-and-fast type. It would add interest, and wouldn't require a tube.
I'd love to see someone come up with a sensible tube junction.

I didn't say that tubes dont' look good. If you design them properly and using lots of transparency I think they would look nice.
I said that I don't know if it is /possible/ for normal track types to have two layers: One in front the train sprite (the glass between the observer and the train) and one behind it (the glass that is on the "other" side of the train, if you look from the observers position) ...damn is it difficult to describe such a simple thing... did you get what I mean?
About the junctions:
A simple crossing is no problem. A crossing like
would just be a bigger tube complex, but completely hollow, I think. And the trains have their own drive, so can "decide" which way to go on such a junction by using small manoeuvring engines directing on the right... erm... track. Well, the track is a tube, of course
Apart from that: Just did some brainstorming. Here are the results.
Idea A - land modifications:
cpt_jack wrote:I don't think there is anyway to stop people from raising land out of space, unless we just make it cost a huge amount.
1) Well, "raising" land /could/ of course be interpreted as carrying huge blocks of interstellar rock material to the designated position (where this position is the point where someone clicks with the mouse).
2) "Lowering" land could then be interpreted as blasting the corresponding part of the asteroid away with a superduperwhooperlaserblaster or transporting big areas of the asteroid away into space. (To make it more logical: these areas could then be interpreted as material without essential minerals/ores which don't interest our space mining corporations

.)
Both actions then would of course cost much money because of the large expenditure to let BIG and heavy spaceships transport huge amounts of asteroid blocks.
For action 1) then we just still have to figure out why it would be logical to bring such huge amounts of space rocks to our asteroid field (in which we play in), instead of do mining on these rocks at their initial positions.
Idea B - environment:
1) It would be nice to have decoration objects, not just craters, but also... well, maybe some spaceship wrecks lying around, small ice or open mineral fields (as in StarCraft), craters, pirate bases (?) and similar little things making the grey-in-grey background a little more interesting. Cool would be an UFO wreck in a secluded area

.
2) What about replacing the trees by transmitter antennas? Please don't ask how antennas should grow - they /dont't/, of course: But instead they get extended. So always when an antenna "grows" we can say that in "reality" it has been modified and extended to get more transfer capacities. Of course if we make it like this we need LESS trees... eeeehm antennas in the game that we have now.
I think it also makes sense with the local authorities: They would be grateful if you "plant"

antennas in their area because so they get more communication possibilities.
...I know, it's still a little bit silly, but better than craters, if you ask me. (Craters can then be placed as decoration objects, as said above.)
3) Current lighthouses and antennas can become two different sorts of navigational beacons (so it is still logic that you are not able to remove them because they are /needed/ - needed for navigation).
PS: Oh it would be sooo cool to design the heavy freight cruisers which replace the ships *dreaming*
