Old, Archived Dead Threads Graveyard 3

Yeah, it totally, totally borked on me. I had something in there that was corrupted for sure and considering my downloads folder was over 10GB, it was just too overwhelming to try and figure it out.

I was totally bummed to say the least but now, a couple of days later, I just chalk it up to starting over from scratch and really organizing now. This time I might even reinstall OFB, if I can find that disk....

@Toni - Oh sweetie, that would be so awesome if you have the time. Thank you so much my fellow clutter-a-holic!!!

AdriannaSimmie wrote:

Yeah, it totally, totally borked on me. I had something in there that was corrupted for sure and considering my downloads folder was over 10GB, it was just too overwhelming to try and figure it out.

I was totally bummed to say the least but now, a couple of days later, I just chalk it up to starting over from scratch and really organizing now. This time I might even reinstall OFB, if I can find that disk....

AdriannaSimmie wrote:

@Toni - Oh sweetie, that would be so awesome if you have the time. Thank you so much my fellow clutter-a-holic!!!

Happy to help! As soon as I get home I'll get right on it. I've got BUILD MODE and BUY MODE separated by function and then I've got CREATORS...this is a combination of both build and buy separated by creator.

Pretty much any creator who's got more than say more than 2 dozen files, I've sub-foldered them. The creator sub-folders also include the recolors so that the meshes and recolors are together.

Connect later......

PS....and I periodically back up my Downloads folder with a date, so if stuff goes wonky, I can salvage things. In fact, I'll send you my back-up folder before my recent pruning exercise. That'll give you more stuff! All told though, my DLs even at their recent peak were just shy of 8GB including skin and clothes and all that.

Lady T wrote:

When I come home later, I can zip up my build and buy mode folders - all sub-foldered by type or creator - and upload them to Box or mediafire and send them to you. Pleeeease accept them ... In fact, I'll send you my back-up folder before my recent pruning exercise. That'll give you more stuff!

That's so great of you, Toni! I can't imagine how much time, research & energy this is going to save our Jen.

Awww Toni,




Thank you sooooooooo much!!!!! I couldn't think of anything sweeter than a fellow clutter a holic helping another one out!!

You my dear, have made me a very happy chick!

Check your PM's hon!

Thank you three so much for your lovely comments, I'm glad you like these lots. I do apologise I am not able to upload these, its not for selfish reasons I assure you, I created them for my own game not thinking they would come out as well as they did, so a few of the items are from none share policies, in particular the windows on both lots, the fencing, doors and lights in the second lot and the stairs and one of the doors on the first lot

I'm so sorry please blame anyone else but me

I come with a peace offering of a new update:

Here is my blue room:












I hope you like.

I love it, Claire. Absolutely beautiful.

Quote :

I am not able to upload these, its not for selfish reasons I assure you...I'm so sorry please blame anyone else but me

As you know, we are really big on respecting creator's policies, so no worries. I am sorry you can't upload the lots, though. I love your work, and look forward to seeing what you come up with in the future.

Elle hun, thank you very much sweetie, I am so glad you are enjoying my work, I hope I continue to keep impressing you.

After My blue room I went on to decorate the rest of the house, Just a maxis one this time:



























(Excuse the kitchen pictures, that room is so small and hard to take pictures for)

I hope you all enjoyed this update!

Jen, how are things coming along with your download folder?
Have you replenished your lost items to your satisfaction with Toni's help?

Uninstalling your game sounds like a very drastic step and should be the last thing you consider while looking for a problem. Have you tried running a vanilla game to see how things are running? Did you try just adding a few things back at a time, as Sugah suggested, to see if you could nail down a borky download? Have you tried the Hack Conflict Utility Detection program from Sims Wardrobe (found under Sims 2/Programs) - it will search through all your Sims 2 files to see if any of the mods you use conflict with each other - just keep in mind that some, like ACR and Inteen intentionally conflict. But it could point out problems of hacks or mods that overwrite the same piece of code.

Have you made sure all of the hacks/mods you use are up to date with all of the expansions you have? If they're not, that can cause some serious borkiness right there - been there done that!

What was your game doing? Was it crashing, or did it have some other borkiness? I really hate to see that people mention uninstalling. It's an awful lot of time and energy spent and may not even solve the problem. Playing the game vanilla is a good starting point to see if you have a persistent issue or not.

Have you been deleting your cache files?

Also, your game problem may not be related to content at all, but your computer's performance. Here is a guide at MTS2 that can help you out.

Here is a guide from Garden of Shadows written for Sims 3, but it works for Sims 2, as well.

This thread also has some useful information, particularly if you're running the game on Windows 7.

And this talks about how a very simple problem in the game settings, such as smooth edges found under game options, can cause a huge graphical problem.

I've also read something recently about changing your game's memory capacity - to make sure it sees enough memory to run efficiently - but I'll have to look that info up later as I'm out of time now. That info may already be in one of the threads I mentioned, but I can't remember for certain.

Sorry to dump so much info on your head at one time, but reinstalling should really be the last thing you try when you have a problem, not the first. And since I don't know what your game is doing (or not doing), I don't know which kind of help you need.

I hope you made backups so if you do end of reinstalling, then you don't lose all the projects you worked so hard on!

Ari,

Thank you soooo much for all of the helpful links and tips sweetie!!!! I truly appreciate you dear

Well, I have been working on this house off and on all weekend long. I spent more time working on the outside than I did on the inside. I am still not done but wanted to post a few piccies. I so want to live here myself :))

Whispering Willow Cottage

Oh Jen, Whispering Willow Cottage is just beautiful!

The stone walls and roof and the old stone wall around the house, create a cozy old-world feel. Particularly loving the archway at the entrance, the rocking chairs sitting in the lilacs...I can just feel the breeze blowing through them...and the pond with the swans and the little dock, circled by trees and flowers, is just lovely. And of course, I'm all about potted plants....love the collection in the yard near the pond, and that nice little seating area in the back with the umbrella is so cute. Love the old tap and lantern near the screened door.

Now inside...I can't get enough of painted brick, and I love how you've combined it with the worn white-washed wood. The furnishings are cozy and inviting, especially love the bedroom, and those brick-y bedside tables are to die for. Totally in love with Evanesco's door and window set (the one you've got leading from the bedroom to the living room area. They're one of my favourite sets.

Anime recently did some nice aged wood recolours and Sims 2 Palette did some bright neon-y ones, that I haven't yet been able to envision how I'd use, but I had to have them anyway!

DO NOT click those links, if you're worried about your heaving DL folder!!!!

By the way, you'll notice that same door leading from Marco's dining room to his kitchen. See? Only the best for my favourite simmies!

Awwww thank you so much for the very sweet comments :))

Oh girl, I snagged those recolors from Anime the other day, as a matter of fact, the ones I used are her recolors. However, I have not seen the neon ones but you can bet I am going to get them now ;)
Thanks so much my fellow clutter a holic ..

I honestly spent more time on the outside of the house than I have on the inside. I lucked upon that water cover the other day. You have to build a pond first then put it on top. Once you are playing your game, the water moves like a real stream. That is pretty sweet :)) I think I got it from my mashup when I downloaded one of her houses..,,

By the way, you'll notice that same door leading from Marco's dining room to his kitchen. See? Only the best for my favourite simmies!

You know it, those doors and windows are my absolute favorites and I over use them in all of my lots but meh....lol.

AdriannaSimmie wrote:

I lucked upon that water cover the other day. You have to build a pond first then put it on top. Once you are playing your game, the water moves like a real stream. That is pretty sweet :))

Oh yes indeedy! Pixelhate's Buyable Water surface.

I had it in my game for ages, but it was one of the things I removed in my 'I-haven't-used-it-for-two-years-it-must-go' pruning exercise a few months ago. Now I want it back!

Do you have all the recolours? They're HERE.

Oh, Jen! This is SIMply stunning!
I absolutely LOVE Whispering Willow Cottage.
Please tell me you are planning to offer this lovely abode for our Anniversary update!

Lady J wrote:

I lucked upon that water cover the other day. You have to build a pond first then put it on top. Once you are playing your game, the water moves like a real stream. That is pretty sweet :))

Lady T wrote:

Oh yes indeedy! Pixelhate's Buyable Water surface

.

It's amazing! I've never seen anything like it before.
T'was the very first thing that caught my eye about your cottage.
And the swans are a fabulous touch!
The water really moves like a real stream? I have GOT to see this!!!



Everything that Toni said about your lovely abode, I couldn't agree more with.
This is true genius inside and out, my friend.

This is just a place to bury threads that are rather old and have not been visited for a year or more.
If the original Simmer returns to us, he/she is always welcome to start a new "What's Been Happening in Your Game These Days" thread!


In fact, we'd welcome that!

It's been forever since I've posted anything. I confess that I have the problem of often getting bored with Sims. Hold on, don't burn me at the stake just yet!

What I mean is, I get tired of the way I play the game and am always thinking of new ways to play. I usually play it safe and predictable, making my sims happy and giving them what they want. It's fun...for awhile, but after all, I have always been more of a Role Playing Game player and now turning into a bit of a First Person Shooter player, as well. Sims, in its difference, kept me entertained for a long time, but I crave more adventure and excitement often, and "normal" families that do "normal" things and have "normal" interests makes me yawn. Which is why I keep leaving and coming back. I love sims, but I need to find a way to play it that keeps me engaged as I have many gaming interests right now, and sims is only one of them.

I usually try to take on hard challenges, but sometimes they are tedious, or when I finish the 'meat' of the challenge, I feel there is little left to work for and off I flit to some other adventure.

I've tried the Medieval Charter Challenge and liked the concept, but can never manage to get very far in it before running out of steam. There are some aspects in the The Warwickshire Challenge, but it is a very (VERY) deep challenge that gets into favor points, alignment, and very intricate ideas. It's way too complex for me, as I'm more of a simpleton - simple ideas, but not exactly simple gameplay. I also had a Royal Kingdom Challenge going for awhile, and had fun with that until one day when I realized that I was playing it safe, and it was too easy, which is...boring.

So...I'm going to try something different. I'm taking the aspects I like (and only the ones that I like!) from all of these challenges and mashing them up together. I'll call it....My Medieval Kingdomshire. Right up front, I'll state that this will not be historically accurate - not at all - because it's my little fantasy land and I want to paint my own pictures. Also, there will be death and excitement, and danger, from randomly rolled events to keep me excited to play. I want to have an adventure with my pixel people - to cheer with them, cry with them, and fear for them. Does any of this make any sense? I'm just not like other simmers, I suppose.

I am currently compiling all the ideas I'm going to use into my own document for easy reference. So my game will be as such: A race to be crowned as the royal family. I will create several starter families - each one with a different occupation. They will each have their own home business, where they sell their wares. At the beginning of each season, there will be taxes to pay. Each starting family will be peasants (yes, I know, historically inaccurate, but I don't care ). To move up in social standing, a family will have to have the funds to purchase a title. There are 6 classes. When a family reaches Gentry status, they will leave behind their crafting occupations and take up other careers. And, just because I like it so much and I'll still need peasant families, I'll create another family to take their place.

I'm not going to bog anyone down with all my rules because it's just too much to post. But, I will need your help for cool and interesting names! I'll need a kingdom name, and names for my families. I have some names picked out already, but was hoping someone could give me more ideas?

These are my family names so far:

Flower Arranging - Wyldthorne

Robotics - Ironforge

Fishing - Sandbar

Pottery - Stoneware

Sewing - Jacquard

Healer/Midwife - Honeymead (This family will harvest honey and fruit trees, and will also be summoned for healing a sick sim or performing midwife duties)

Gardening - Shadygrove

Toymaking - Mapletrinket (So far I have Marionette - but suppose they actually win the race to become the royal family - King Marionette sounds...dorky )

Painting - Kaleidoscope

Animal handling/breeding (Cats) - Sabreclaw

Animal handling/breeding (Dogs) -

Gypsy - Mystic

So that's my new thing. I'm excited to get started making all these new families and looking forward to sharing them here.

Family names:

For Healer, there's always (if you want to get exotic) Paracelsus (a renaissance physician/pharmacist), also Galen (from Roman times), also Leach - yuck poo! -

Painting: Mahler - from the German (my wife's mom's maiden name, also the composer - my wife is his great-great-great niece)

Gardiner: Grafton or Grove

BTW - I love "Sprockett" Over the years (now) I've just about used every variation of "Hunter" for all of her brilliant creations: Huntsman, Huntley, Yeager, Ryoshi, Casadora, etc.

Ooh I like Grove! Like...Shadygrove, maybe. Yeah I like that one - thanks!

I know what you mean, Ari. That's how I used to play the original Sims. I'd play a lot and then leave it for awhile and then come back. The Sims 2 I stuck with more consistently. Maybe because of storytelling. Maybe because of the generational nature of it. I never could play challenges as far along as you. Maybe if I were a faster player I would have gotten bored with it more often. I think it's normal and perfectly okay to be an on again, off again player.

Quote :

I want to have an adventure with my pixel people - to cheer with them, cry with them, and fear for them. Does any of this make any sense?

Yes! That's what I want to do too and why I always think I'm going to roll random events, but often times I don't go through with it and I feel like I'm missing out.

I am really interested in your Medieval Kingdom Shire idea. I think I was going for a little of that with the Founders challenge I tried to make up awhile back. As in I wanted them to start out equal (I didn't plan it specifically in my challenge, but I like the idea of certain families getting ahead and possibly rising to power.) and I wanted them to make their own way with crafting benches. I like that you start each family out with a different craft. I didn't get that much into it with my challenge, because I was first focusing on their survival and now, (in the third generation) trying to make sure I have enough marriageable couples to keep the colony going. Maybe it would help me to assign different families different tasks. I might have to borrow some of your ideas.

I'm terrible with names, so I don't know if I'll have much to help.

Healer/Midwife - the name Goode comes to mind (good health, good fortune with new children.) You could look for patron saints of healing or there's a greek name I'm thinking of . . . Asclepius (I had to google it.) Something with Arbor, since they tend trees?

Painting - combinations or modifications of the names of any famous artist would be good.

Animal Handler/Breeder - Something with a variation of fauna or livery? Maybe something with an animal name in it like wolf?

I don't know. My sims tend to have some pretty lame last names.

I'm going to do it this time, Em. I'm going to be ruthless. I'm not going to say, "Aw, but I like her, maybe I'll just cheat the dice just this once." What comes up on the dice comes up. On the outside it sounds mean, but, I really need to spice things up to stay interested. I get bored with the keeping sims happy all the time routine. I need more punch.

I didn't give up on our founder's challenge, I was just unsure of exactly what I wanted to do with it and where I wanted it to go. I still have all those sims in my modern game.

I've got just about everyone named, yay!

This time around, I braved installing empty neighborhood templates. It was actually pretty easy, I just had a hard time finding directions that made sense to me. Most of the tutorials I found either assumed you understood your core game files, or were just too complicated for my simple brain to wrap itself around. By the third neighborhood I was starting to 'get it'. And since then I even did AL by myself. I will post a link to the tutorial in the Schmoozin' section later for anyone else that wants to give it a try.

I really wanted to install empty templates because every one of the neighborhoods I've started in the last 2 years I did a major oops to, and those will eventually all get corrupted. After starting the neighborhood, I had gone into the characters file in the game (the regular game files in MyDocuments - not the core files) and deleted all the characters in it. I think you mentioned once before, Em, that you thought you had heard that this wasn't really safe, and you were right. I recently found out that it's on a list at MTS2 as one of the big game borking things to never do to your game. It is here if anyone would like to see it, though I may post this in another thread, too, so more people see it.

I can't tell you how nice it was to start a neighborhood and not have 1 single family in the sim bin! I made the steward of my future castle, plunked him on an empty lot called Castle Grounds, and used my teleporter to try to summon members from all the different social groups - nothing! No AL default townies! Woot! So very very happy. The only sims that will be here will be my sims. And necessary NPCs I have notowineregen and antiredundancy and a couple of other mods from MATY that are recommended for installing empty or clean templates.

I decided since my game was going to be cleaner, I wanted to change my skin and eye defaults. I removed the addon Anva package that tells my Anva skins to function as defaults, only, they were still trying to. Well, S3 and S4 were still trying to. I removed every skin I could find from the game and my skins were still funking up. I searched through my downloads folder multiple times using different words and still could not find the rogue piece that was messing up my skins. So I took all of the downloads out. Well, all the downloads except my hacks/fixes - I knew they weren't part of the issue. It fixed it, so then I went ahead and installed my new skin and eye defaults, along with a geneticized set of the same eyes so all my townies will spawn with them. Currently, I'm using these skins and these eyes - with their geneticized set, as well. And that's it. No other skins (except default ones for supernaturals) and no other eyes. I don't need creator stuff in this game since I don't use it for creating, anyway, why take up the space? Skins are big - they suck up a lot of space.

Morganna has been working on a lot of default clothing sets. I've got them all so far. Even though many of them are for the social group townies (which I no longer have) the outfits work for all sims and override some of the catalog outfits.

Anyhoo, this is already a long post, so I will start sharing pictures next time. I have started rolling up my families, using this fun little randomizer I found. I've got some interesting families coming up.

Wow!! It has been such a long time since I sat down and actually played me game...

I started working on this house this morning. This one proved to be somewhat of a challenge to me but it was so much fun to try and work everything out on it. So far I just have it built and landscaped but I plan on trying to start decorating later tonight or sometime this week..

It's a two bedroom one and half bath two story home.

Love those white (grey?) floorboards! Can we swim with the swans?

Thank you sweet Mac...

They are white floors. I am on this kick with all white right now, it's just so clean and I like the fact I can add any other colors for a little splash. It's kind of like a blank canvas at this point.

This house took me quite a long time to build as I kept having to play around with each room size and I will probably end up adjusting it a little more when I go to put everything in it :)