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1<head><title>Inside The Simulator</title></head><body>
2
3<h1>Inside The Simulator</h1>
4
5<h2>How the Simulator Works and Strategies for Using It</h2>
6
7Many factors influence the chance of your city's prospering or
8floundering: both internal factors (the structure and efficiency of
9your city) and external factors (the regional economy, disasters,
10etc.). <p>
11
12<h3>Zones</h3>
13
14Your city is divided up into three primary zones: residential,
15commercial and industrial. These zones symbolize the three basic
16pillars upon which a city is based: population, industry, and
17commerce. All three are necessary for your city to grow and thrive.
18<p>
19
20<ul>
21
22<li>Residential Zones are where the Sims live. Here they build houses,
23apartments and community facilities such as churches and schools. Sims
24are the work force for your city's commercial and industrial zones.
25<p>
26
27<li>Industrial Zones are used to site warehouses, factories, and other
28unsightly and polluting structures which have a negative impact on
29surrounding zones. One of the major goals of planning is to separate
30these "nuisances" from the areas where people live. In this
31simulation, industrial zones represent the "basic" production of your
32city. Things produced here are sold outside the city to an "external
33market," bringing money into the city for future growth. <p>
34
35<li>Commercial Zones represent the retail stores and services in your
36city, including gas stations, grocery stores, banks, and offices.
37Commercial areas are mainly dedicated to producing goods and services
38needed within your city. This is called "non-basic" production or
39production for the "internal market." <p>
40
41</ul>
42<p>
43
44<h3>Population -- Residential</h3>
45
46The major factors controlling residential population are birthrate,
47availability of jobs and housing, unemployment, and quality of life
48within the city. <p>
49
50Birthrate as used here, is actually a combination of the birthrate
51(positive) and the deathrate (negative). Within Micropolis there is
52always a positive birthrate. <p>
53
54Availability of jobs (the employment rate) is a ratio of the current
55commercial and industrial populations to the total residential
56population. As a rule of thumb, the number of commercial and
57industrial zones together should roughly equal the number of
58residential zones. <p>
59
60If there are more jobs in your city than residents, new settlers will
61be attracted. If the job market declines during a local recession,
62your people will migrate away in search of jobs. <p>
63
64Housing for your residents is built in the residential zones. These
65zones must be powered and connected to the places of employment by
66roads. The structures built in residential zones are influenced by
67land value and population density. <p>
68
69Quality of life is a measure of relative "attractiveness" assigned to
70different zone locations. It is affected by negative factors such as
71pollution and crime, and positive factors such as parks and
72accessibility. <p>
73
74<h3>External Market -- Industrial</h3>
75
76There are thousands of variables that influence your city. All these
77variables can be influenced by your actions with the exception of one.
78<p>
79
80The external market (the economic conditions that exist outside of
81your city) is controlled by the simulation -- there is nothing you can
82do to change it. In many ways, this external market is the original
83source of all city growth. Towns frequently begin as production
84centers (steel towns, refineries, etc.) that service a demand in the
85surrounding region. As time passes, the external market grows to
86reflect the regional growth going on around your city. <p>
87
88The industry in your city will attempt to grow as the external market
89grows. For this to happen there must be room for expansion (more
90industrial zones) and an adequate labor supply (more residential
91zones). <p>
92
93<h3>Internal Market -- Commercial</h3>
94
95The internal market is completely influenced by the conditions within
96your city. Internal production, created in the commercial zones,
97represents all the things which are purchased and consumed within the
98city. Food stores, gas stations, retail stores, financial services,
99medical care, etc. -- all depend on a nearby population to service.
100Within Micropolis, the size of the internal market determines the rate at
101which commercial zones will prosper. Commercial zones need enough
102zoned land to build on and an existent, sufficient work force to
103employ. The structures built in commercial zones are mainly influenced
104by land value and population density. <p>
105
106Commercial zones grow and develop to serve the expanding internal
107market. Commercial growth will usually be slow at first, when the
108population is small and needs very little. As your city grows,
109commercial growth will accelerate and the internal market will become
110a much larger consumer of your total city production. This
111accelerating effect, when the external/industrial production is
112overtaken by the accelerating internal/commercial sector, can turn a
113sleepy little town of 50,000 into a thriving capital of 200,000 in a
114few short years. <p>
115
116<h3>Tax Rate</h3>
117
118The tax rate you set controls the amount of income generated by your
119city. As taxes are collected each year (simulation time), the Budget
120Window will appear, giving you the fiscal details of your city and a
121chance to adjust rates. The simulation determines the amount of
122revenue collected by assessing each zone an amount based on its land
123value, current level of development and the current tax rate. <p>
124
125The tax rate has a global affect on your city's growth rate. If you
126set it low (0%-4%), growth will be brisk but the city income will be
127low. If you set it high (10%-20%), you will collect a lot in the short
128run but in the long run tax income will decrease along with the
129population. You must keep tax income high enough to invest in new
130development, but low enough not to scare off residents and businesses.
131A high tax rate is one way to control city growth, should you want to
132experiment with "growth control measures." <p>
133
134<h3>Budgeting</h3>
135
136City budgeting affects the way your city grows. City infrastructure
137cost is represented by three departments: police, fire, and
138transportation. You may set the funding levels separately for each.
139All three departments will request a certain level of funding each
140year. You may supply all or part of the requested funds, in the
141attempt to balance safety needs and budgetary concerns. <p>
142
143<ul>
144
145<li>Police Department: Police stations lower the crime rate around a
146territory. The effective radius of your police station is related to
147the amount of funding allocated to the police department. Police
148stations cost $100 per year to fund.
149
150<li>Fire Department: Fire stations prevent and extinguish fires. The
151level of funding determines the effective radius of a fire station.
152Fire stations put out fires within this radius much sooner than
153outside it, and decrease the chance that they will start in the first
154place. Fire stations cost $100 per year to fund.
155
156<li>Transportation Department:When you build roads and rail systems
157you are charged for construction and yearly maintenance. The larger
158your transportation network, the more it will cost for upkeep. If you
159decide not to or are unable to pay this maintenance cost, roads will
160slowly deteriorate and become unusable. The maintenance cost for each
161piece is: Road - $1, Bridge - $4, Rail - $4, Rail tunnel - $10.
162
163</ul>
164
165<h3>Power</h3>
166
167Electrical power makes modern cities possible. Efficient and reliable
168power transmission to all zones is the goal of good "power
169management." <p>
170
171The entire power grid of your city is periodically checked in the
172simulation for links to power. If a zone is connected (by other zones
173or power lines) to a power plant, the zone is considered powered. <p>
174
175Zones must be powered for development to occur. Many things (such as
176fires, tornadoes, earthquakes and bulldozers) can knock down power
177lines and cause blackouts in parts of your city. Development will stop
178in unpowered zones, and if power is not quickly restored, the zone
179will decline back to its original state of emptiness. <p>
180
181Redundant power plants and power connections can make your power grid
182more reliable, but running more line adds construction costs. <p>
183
184<h3>Transportation -- Traffic</h3>
185
186One of the most important elements of city structure is the
187transportation network. It moves Sims and good throughout your city.
188Roads typically occupy as much as 25%-40% of the land in urban areas.
189Traffic along these roads indicates which sections of your road system
190are used the most. <p>
191
192Traffic levels are simulated by a process known as "Trip Generation."
193Over time, each populated zone in the city will generate a number of
194trips, depending on the population. Each generated trip starts at the
195origin zone, travels down the road, and if a "proper destination" is
196reached, ends at the destination zone -- otherwise, the trip fails.
197Trip failure indicates inaccessibility of a zone and limits its
198growth. <p>
199
200The majority of generated trips represent people commuting to and from
201work. Additional traffic is generated by residents traveling to
202shopping, recreation, etc. When analyzing traffic, the simulator tests
203the following traffic routes: <p>
204
205<i>Traffic Patterns</i><p>
206
207<ul>
208
209<li>From Residential
210 <ul>
211 <li>To Commercial
212 <li>To Industrial
213 </ul>
214
215<li>From Commercial
216 <ul>
217 <li>To Residential
218 <li>To Industrial
219 </ul>
220
221<li>From Industrial
222 <ul>
223 <li>To Residential
224 </ul>
225
226</ul>
227
228<p>
229
230When Sims drive away from an origin zone, they have a limited "trip
231range" in which to find a destination zone. Heavy traffic decreases
232the trip range. If the destination zone is too far away, the trip is
233unsuccessful. Repeated unsuccessful trips will cause the Sims to move
234out of the origin zone. <p>
235
236Each road has a limited capacity for traffic. When this capacity is
237exceeded traffic jams will form. Traffic jams drastically lower the
238capacity of a road, compounding the problem and frustrating drivers.
239<p>
240
241Traffic conditions fluctuate quickly. Avoid traffic problems by
242providing several routes for the traffic to take. <p>
243
244A road must be adjacent to a zone for the zone to be connected to the
245traffic pattern. Zones do not conduct traffic the way they conduct
246power. <p>
247
248<h3>Pollution</h3>
249
250Pollution levels are tracked in all areas of your city. This is a
251general "nuisance level" that includes air and water pollution, noise
252pollution, toxic wastes, etc. Pollution has a negative impact on the
253growth of residential areas. <p>
254
255The primary cause of pollution is industrialized zones. The level of
256pollution created by an industrial zone increases with its level of
257growth. <p>
258
259Traffic is another cause of pollution. There are limited means of
260combating the pollution level. Lowering traffic density, limiting
261industrial development, and separating the pollution from the
262residential areas will help. <p>
263
264<h3>Crime</h3>
265
266Crime rates are influenced by population density, local law
267enforcement, and land values. As population density increases in an
268area, the number of crimes committed increases. Crime will also
269increase in areas of low land value. <p>
270
271The most effective way to deal with high crime rates is to introduce a
272police station into the area. Based on its level of funding, the
273police station will reduce the rate of crime in its sphere of
274influence. A long-term approach to lowering crime is to raise the land
275value of the area. One way to do this is to demolish and rezone (urban
276renewal). <p>
277
278<h3>Land Value</h3>
279
280Land value is one of the most fundamental aspects of urban structure.
281The land value of an area affects how that area is used. In this
282simulation the land value of an area is based on terrain,
283accessibility, pollution, and distance to downtown. <p>
284
285The farther the residents have to go to work, the lower the land value
286where they live, due in part to transportation costs. The value of
287commercial zones depends greatly on accessibility by the populace.
288<p>
289
290Land value is also affected by surrounding terrain. If land is closer
291to water, trees, agricultural areas, or parks, its value will rise.
292Creative placement of zones within the terrain, with little
293bulldozing, can make good use of this natural advantage. <p>
294
295Land value and crime rate have a feedback effect on each other. Lower
296land values cause crime rates to rise. Higher crime rates cause land
297values to drop, and can cause "transition areas" near your central
298city to rapidly decline in value. <p>
299
300<p>
301
302<hr>
303<p>
304<h2>Micropolis, Unix Version.</h2>
305This game was released for the Unix platform
306in or about 1990 and has been modified for inclusion in the One Laptop
307Per Child program. Copyright &copy; 1989 - 2007 Electronic Arts Inc. If
308you need assistance with this program, you may contact:
309<a href="http://wiki.laptop.org/go/Micropolis">http://wiki.laptop.org/go/Micropolis</a> or email <a href="mailto:micropolis@laptop.org">micropolis@laptop.org</a>.
310</p><p>
311
312This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
313it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by
314the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the License, or (at
315your option) any later version.
316</p><p>
317
318This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but
319WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
320MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the GNU
321General Public License for more details. You should have received a
322copy of the GNU General Public License along with this program. If
323not, see <a href="http://www.gnu.org/licenses/">http://www.gnu.org/licenses/</a>.
324</p><p>
325
326<h3 align="center">ADDITIONAL TERMS per GNU GPL Section 7</h3>
327
328</p><p>
329No trademark or publicity rights are granted. This license does NOT
330give you any right, title or interest in the trademark SimCity or any
331other Electronic Arts trademark. You may not distribute any
332modification of this program using the trademark SimCity or claim any
333affliation or association with Electronic Arts Inc. or its employees.
334</p><p>
335
336Any propagation or conveyance of this program must include this
337copyright notice and these terms.
338</p><p>
339
340If you convey this program (or any modifications of it) and assume
341contractual liability for the program to recipients of it, you agree
342to indemnify Electronic Arts for any liability that those contractual
343assumptions impose on Electronic Arts.
344</p><p>
345
346You may not misrepresent the origins of this program; modified
347versions of the program must be marked as such and not identified as
348the original program.
349</p><p>
350
351This disclaimer supplements the one included in the General Public
352License. <b>TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMISSIBLE UNDER APPLICABLE LAW, THIS
353PROGRAM IS PROVIDED TO YOU "AS IS," WITH ALL FAULTS, WITHOUT WARRANTY
354OF ANY KIND, AND YOUR USE IS AT YOUR SOLE RISK. THE ENTIRE RISK OF
355SATISFACTORY QUALITY AND PERFORMANCE RESIDES WITH YOU. ELECTRONIC ARTS
356DISCLAIMS ANY AND ALL EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY WARRANTIES,
357INCLUDING IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, SATISFACTORY QUALITY,
358FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, NONINFRINGEMENT OF THIRD PARTY
359RIGHTS, AND WARRANTIES (IF ANY) ARISING FROM A COURSE OF DEALING,
360USAGE, OR TRADE PRACTICE. ELECTRONIC ARTS DOES NOT WARRANT AGAINST
361INTERFERENCE WITH YOUR ENJOYMENT OF THE PROGRAM; THAT THE PROGRAM WILL
362MEET YOUR REQUIREMENTS; THAT OPERATION OF THE PROGRAM WILL BE
363UNINTERRUPTED OR ERROR-FREE, OR THAT THE PROGRAM WILL BE COMPATIBLE
364WITH THIRD PARTY SOFTWARE OR THAT ANY ERRORS IN THE PROGRAM WILL BE
365CORRECTED. NO ORAL OR WRITTEN ADVICE PROVIDED BY ELECTRONIC ARTS OR
366ANY AUTHORIZED REPRESENTATIVE SHALL CREATE A WARRANTY. SOME
367JURISDICTIONS DO NOT ALLOW THE EXCLUSION OF OR LIMITATIONS ON IMPLIED
368WARRANTIES OR THE LIMITATIONS ON THE APPLICABLE STATUTORY RIGHTS OF A
369CONSUMER, SO SOME OR ALL OF THE ABOVE EXCLUSIONS AND LIMITATIONS MAY
370NOT APPLY TO YOU.</b>
371</p>
372</body>
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