California Northern layout in HO

[jwb]

One question I have, in that case, is how this layout potentially differs from a diorama or a photo posing board. Is it set up to operate or otherwise behave like a railroad? One thing I see in UK style US prototype layouts is that they only come out at exhibitions, where the owners and operators are, by their own account, distracted by questions and other interaction with the visitors -- and in fact might be perceived as unsociable if they just concentrate on operation, since the assumption is that the visitors, or "punters" in UK parlance, are normally not well informed about the hobby and would rather ask basic questions or chat than watch. So the layouts are normally vertical in a closet, but when they come out, they can do little more than run back and forth at random to entertain the public. So in my view, many UK layouts are dioramas or conversation pieces rather than model railroads in the sense that many US modelers see the hobby.

A diorama is fine, but it isn't necessarily the same hobby. Do you do anything to operate this layout in a prototypical way?