KANI Rail System
| KANI | |
|---|---|
 KANI's coverage as of December 5th, 2021 | |
| Community Project | |
| Goals: | Automatic Rail Routing Maintenance and Expansion of Rail Networks |
| Administrators: | Amelorate |
| Website: | amel.pw/kani/ |
| Project Github | KANI |
| Discord: | 4JuByFCQqJ |
| Status: | Inactive |
The KANI Rail System, usually referred to as just KANI (Knot and Nexus Interchange), formerly NIG(Nexus International Gateway) was a rail routing standard. It was primarily used by Icenia and other UDF affiliated nations and regions in CivClassic 2.0.
The routing standard was created by Amelorate for the remodeled Nexus rail hub using the Icenia Transit System as a base.
Specification
TODO: Rewrite this with civwiki formatting
History
The first prototype of the KANI was a simple one-way roundabout RailSwitch system around downtown Icenia (CivClassic 2.0). Using this system, Amelorate reasoned about the various rail systems they've seen around the server and eventually came upon one solution for the spaghetti junctions RailSwitch had become known for. At the time, there was no modularity to the destination command, so the only two ways to implement a routing network was to either have all rails return to a central hub for routing, or to have every switch be aware of every destination in the network. Most networks did neither.
Amelorate modified the RailSwitch plugin to implement the now well-utilized word-splitting OR mechanic in the destination command, and then started to remodel Nexus and the j:knot junction. Nexus featured several elements that weren't nearly as emphasized in future stations. For example, Nexus had a disembarking track that ran back and forth for about 20 seconds to allow players to get off the switch and retreive their minecart. This was implemented at the time because players were expected to write their destination commands manually and they would likely omit the 0,0:exit element. At this time, all switches were documented on Amelorate's personal website, and players were expected to write their own destination commands.
After a few switches were built, the KANI started to outgrow its TiddlyWiki documentation. Most players didn't understand the layout of the network, which made it very difficult to write a /dest command and get to their desired destinations. To significantly ease these issues, Amelorate wrote what was at the time called the Nexus International Gateway Express Routing System (NIGERS, pronounced nai-jers). An announcement was made upon the CivClassic subreddit, and Amelorate was quickly threatened into renaming the NIG because the post lacked the pronouncement of the web app[1].
During this time, Amelorate contempted ending their efforts on the NIG because of this threat. However, in a sudden revelation it was revealed to Amelorate a suitable name for the rail system: KANI. Not only was the name based on the Japanese word for crab, but it also sounded like Cunny. Additionally, if the KANI were to ever be connected to the GOR the combined acronym of the two (KANI-GOR) contains the rail system's original name. These factors helped to reinforce the idea that Amelorate was a true anime fan, so continuing the KANI became a desirable idea for Amelorate.
With the new name and an increased presence on the CivClassic subreddit, the KANI entered a new age of player contribution. Gjum rewrote the ERS web app to compute the command in the web browser which significantly reduced load times for the ERS[2], as the previous version downloaded a JSON file containing the command for each pair of origin and destination. More nations got connected to the KANI, and a KANI layer was added to CCMap[3].
Around this time, the KANI also got competition. Namely, the AURA and SARS. The SARS eventually became OneDest on future servers, however on CivClassic it never expaned outside the South Augusta area. The AURA aimed to be a strict superset of the KANI, however it eventually fell victim to its complexity as it allowed too many different kinds of switches. However, taking influence from the AURA, the KANI implemented functionality to implement two-way trunk rails. This eliminated a common complaint that destination commands for trunk rails were too long. Before this change, destinations that traveled from one end of a trunk rail to the other would refer to each junction along the rail. This functionality could have one day been used to integrate the KANI with the GOR without impacting the usage of the GOR without the KANI.
When Amelorate's interest in CivClassic waned, the routing system slowly decayed into disrepair. At this time, Amelorate expected the community to fix rails as they came across issues. This did not happen and the KANI gained a poor reputation for being in poor repair by the end of CivClassic 2.0. One factor that compounded this issue was the fact that there was no one central NameLayer group for KANI infrastructure. In fact, most infrastructure was on unknown groups after being repurposed unused rails, and thus was very difficult to repair.
When CivClassic 2.0 ended, Amelorate announced the KANI would not move to any future Civ server although others would be allowed to implement the standard. Nobody implemented the standard as the OneDest standard was better, so the KANI naturally dissolved at this time.
Trivia
- The KANI connected to the GOR through Mount Augusta (CivClassic 2.0)'s rail system around South Augusta, specifically
j:sa:west. South Agusta had a section of rail that went above ground and eventually merged with the GOR. This was not represented in the ERS in order to prevent controversy.[4]
Media
External Links
References
- ↑ https://old.reddit.com/r/civclassics/comments/kkb4bh/announcing_the_nexus_international_gateway/
- ↑ https://old.reddit.com/r/civclassics/comments/ozcwg4/kani_update_10/
- ↑ https://old.reddit.com/r/civclassics/comments/o4hjn6/kani_changelog_06202021/
- ↑ https://github.com/Ameliorate/KANI/blob/master/data/CompliantSwitches/Line/sa/j%3Asa%3Awest.toml#L11-L12