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Templot on the Mac

Focalplane

Entry posted by Focalplane

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Although I already have Peco track for Shipston, I am slowly but surely moving toward a better looking OO-SF look and design. Several years ago I used Templot for a while, working under a PC emulator on my Mac (I have been a Mac user since 1992), but the emulator was expensive to upgrade and really didn't seem to be that reliable. Templot fascinated me in that it appears to have a steep learning curve for those of us who have done a lot of CAD and vector based drawing on computers. This is because it has what could be called artificial intelligence based on the inherent design of points and switches. It controls the mouse rather than the other way round, might be one explanation for what it does. The ability to plot out accurate templates for building custom track is the end product.

 

Which means that Templot and self made track would be a very good option for Shipston. Back in the 1970s I made quite a lot of track using bullhead rail and PCB sleepers. So I asked a few questions on the track laying forum and got some strange answers. The reason for this was that I had asked the question of where I could source "PCB sleepers". The answer was that they are not called that, they are "copper clad sleepers". Well, so they may be today, but all those years ago they were made of printed circuit board, which, of course, happens to be copper clad fiberglass. The PCB term continues to be used in North America to this day.

 

So, where do we go from here, you might ask? I have a Mac, so how can I use Templot? Happily Martin Wynne came up with a solution which did not involve either me buying a Windows machine or him porting Templot over to OSX! I had never heard of WINE, WINEBOTTLER or CrossOver, but these are the inexpensive solutions for running some (not all) Windows software on a UNIX based operating system (Linux or OSX). I have downloaded a 14 day free trial from CrossOver and also have the updated Templot2. So far, so good, Templot runs very nicely under WINE. All I have to do now is climb the relatively steep learning curve and design the track layout in Templot. Retirement is proving to be a very busy time!

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Ian Smith

I have been using Templot for quite a while on my iMac without any issues (running under Wine).  Whenever Templot detects that it needs to install a later copy of itself, it does so without any issues too.  I am currently using OS Mavericks by the way, I am thinking of updating to OS Yosemite but have held off in case I get any issues with the non-apple software (like Templot) that I use - a quick read of the reviews for Yosemite indicates that people have encountered problems in this area.

 

Ian

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Focalplane

I have been using Templot for quite a while on my iMac without any issues (running under Wine).  Whenever Templot detects that it needs to install a later copy of itself, it does so without any issues too.  I am currently using OS Mavericks by the way, I am thinking of updating to OS Yosemite but have held off in case I get any issues with the non-apple software (like Templot) that I use - a quick read of the reviews for Yosemite indicates that people have encountered problems in this area.

 

Ian

Hi Ian

 

I am using Yosemite with no apparent problems, though I have not really tested Templot to the full as I really am at the bottom of the steep learning curve!

 

Paul

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Rammstein2609

Hi both

 

I've currently got three Mac's at home all running OS X Yosemite without any problems.  Two of these machines run Crossover and Templot without any problems too.

 

Paul

 

A little trick I found with Crossover is to wait for your trial to expire and around a week later you will likely be sent an email with a code to get around 20% off the price.

 

Martin

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Focalplane
Hi both

 

I've currently got three Mac's at home all running OS X Yosemite without any problems.  Two of these machines run Crossover and Templot without any problems too.

 

Paul

 

A little trick I found with Crossover is to wait for your trial to expire and around a week later you will likely be sent an email with a code to get around 20% off the price.

 

Martin

 

Just received the discount email, only six days into the free trial. It reads:

 

I would like to take the opportunity to thank you for downloading a trial copy of our software, CrossOver in the past. According to our database, it appears that you may have not purchased our product. Maybe our software didn't support the application(s) that you needed, or maybe you felt it may have been too expensive....At any rate, I would like to extend a unique opportunity to purchase our software. We have released a new version of our software, CrossOver 14, which is compatible with the new Mac OS X Yosemite, as well as improved support for a number of Windows based applications, all at a discounted rate.

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