Stonehenge - Whats "centers the world map" mean?

[Ceggon]

Sorry if this is too obvious, or if has been answered elsewhere (I did search and found no posts on it).

What the heck does the effect of "Centers the World Map" mean with regards to Stonehenge? Is this some subtle game mechanic I just don't understand?

Or is it just as simple as the game centers on the town where it is built?(seems unlikely since the game does this for many wonders and none of them have that listed as an "effect")

I'm flummoxed... and its keeping me from getting anything productive done at work!!

 

[Yuri2356]

It makes the centre of the minimap match up with the real size of the map. Normaly, at the begining, the minimap is scaled so that it only chows an area as large as what you've explored, but once you hit something that 'centres world map', the Mini reflects the proper shape/size of the planet.

At least, I'm quite sure that's what it is...

 

[Aratirn]

Before you know much of the map it is centered around your civilization's territory. Once the map 'is centered' you know your civilization no longer is the 'center' of the world. And so, the minimap shows the real position of your civilization in the map (instead of just showing you in the middle it would show you in a corner, or the southern hemisphere or wherever you are).

 

[Ceggon]

awesome, thanks for the speedy reply (I'm not kidding, I posted, hit the bathroom, and you had both replyed by the time I got back.... and no reading there!)

Much appreciated info... I can get back to work.

thx again!

 

[Stylesjl]

By the way calender has the same effect. Stonehenge just makes this effect come in earlier

 

[Micky G]

That's because Stonehenge was basically a huge calander produced by basically stone age people- appartently incredibly accurate too, like a huge sundial. Makes you feel kind of stupid knowing that a people on the way to discovering bronze created someing that would be difficult to recreate today, doesn't it?

 

[beestar]

It makes the centre of the minimap match up with the real size of the map. Normaly, at the begining, the minimap is scaled so that it only chows an area as large as what you've explored, but once you hit something that 'centres world map', the Mini reflects the proper shape/size of the planet.

At least, I'm quite sure that's what it is...

It took me a while to figure it out too. You know, a better name would be "Uncenters the world map" as you now know that your little civ is no longer the centre of the world!

 

[cuchulain]

It took me a while to figure it out too. You know, a better name would be "Uncenters the world map" as you now know that your little civ is no longer the centre of the world!

Good call.

 

[Reg Pither]

It took me a while to figure it out too. You know, a better name would be "Uncenters the world map" as you now know that your little civ is no longer the centre of the world!

'Orientates' the world map? Verifies? Adjusts? Confirms?

Yes, it could be a bit clearer in the wording somehow, but it's still not as confusing as First Strike...

 

[Meffy]

That's because Stonehenge was basically a huge calander produced by basically stone age people- appartently incredibly accurate too, like a huge sundial.

Yup, it seems to have been built in order to fix a few important dates in the ceremonial calendar. It's not really incredible that it's accurate; the motion of the earth around the sun is uniform. If Stonehenge were INaccurate, then something would be seriously wrong! :-D

That's not intended to detract from their accomplishment. Darned good work. It demonstrates quite nicely that the builders knew enough about the sky to understand that a fixed installation would let them determine precisely when certain well-defined annual events occurred. It's not entirely intuitive that this is the case. (I presume Stonehenge was preceded by less durable instruments, probably wooden, long extinct.)

Makes you feel kind of stupid knowing that a people on the way to discovering bronze created someing that would be difficult to recreate today, doesn't it?

Well, no. It wouldn't be at all difficult to recreate Stonehenge today. Quite easy given modern technology, and even if we disallow that it'd still be no harder now than it was back then.

What's amazing to me [and to you too, I bet ] is the effort and ingenuity it took for people who didn't have all our advantages to build this and other ancient works.

 

[Meffy]

'Orientates' the world map? Verifies? Adjusts? Confirms?

When doing map-and-compass work, "orienting" the map means determining how to hold it so it shows North in the same direction as real North -- so it matches the real terrain around you. I think "orienting the map" would be the best term for what construction of Stonehenge or the discovery of the Calendar tech does. Second best would be "adjusts the map."