[MAC USER]Advice on house uploads

[mooch13]

Well I just switched over to MAC and I am starting to read up on the differences with uploads and content on this site. I only use the base game and I really only upload houses and sims. My questions are:

1) When packaging lots, will moving my downloads folder before packaging disrupt the game? Can I just move the folder back and forth in the same session?

2) Would it be easier (or wise or even possible for that matter) to have two games set up on my computer. One with no custom content at all so I can make houses that I know will be clean. And one that I use for general play with all the custon content I want.

I was really starting to get into building before the switch, but now I am discouraged with out the help of clean installer:(

[rhiamom]

You need to remove the downloads folder before starting the game if you want a clean lot. Moving the folder back in after you package a lot won't then make the custom content available. The game reads the downloads folder at game start, and if it isn't there doesn't use any.

Using a clean version of the game is a good idea. All you have to do to get one is to rename your "The Sims 2" folder in Documents/EA Games/ to something you can remember, like "dirty game" and start the game. It will make a whole new "The Sims 2" folder. You will have two completely separate sets of neighborhoods. Name the new "The Sims 2" folder "clean game" when you are done playing. Just rename whichever one you want to play "The Sims 2" before starting the game. It's that easy.

You might want to look at my tutorial for the Mac Base Game Setup for how to get all the different EPs of the game to play or not play as you choose.

[luws]

Also, if you go the route of removing the downloads folder, then replacing it, be sure NOT to save your game when you have the DL folder out of the game. That way, nothing will change.

[mooch13]

Here is another question...what if I partitioned my MAC and kept the clean one on one and the custom content on the other?

[HugeLunatic]

Partitioning seems like a lot more work than necessary. You can also make a custom neighborhood for building sims/lots. Remove your dowloads folder prior to entering game and build lots and sims in this custom hood. Its quite easy to do it just bey removing your downloads.

[mooch13]

HugeLunatic: if I move my downloads prior to starting the game, then play my clean hood...can I save without moving the DL folder back and not affect my other dirty hoods? If so that would be very easy.

[HugeLunatic]

Yep. The only way the hoods and houses have there info changed is if you go into them. Just make sure not to enter any houses with cc while your download folder is removed from the game.

[mooch13]

Thanks everyone! I will play around with it and see what I can do.

[rhiamom]

Partitioning the drive? That won't work because the game only looks in one specific place for the game data folder, ~/Documents/EA Games/The Sims 2.

[mooch13]

I ended up using the two game idea. I have a play game and build game which I keep cc free and it is working great. It also gives me a great way to test lots in a new game.

But there is new problem. People are having a hard time using Q-Xpres to dl and install my mac lots. They are coming up with a file corrupt or not a Sim2Pack file error. But it is fine if they dl manually. I am using Mac to archive (zip) the files. What can I do differently??

[HugeLunatic]

Try another zip utility. I like the unarchiver. http://wakaba.c3.cx/s/apps/unarchiver.html

I know plasticbox had the same issue, but I can't remember how he fixed it.

[plasticbox]

Don't use the built-in zip utility (what comes up when you right-click). Apparently that's not compatible with some Windows unarchiving thingies (it will also mangle PS Type 1 font files btw, making them 0KB when unzipped even on a mac).

I'm now using DropZip 7.0 (Aladdin) and haven't had any complaints since then.


ETA: there are, in my eyes, two distinct problems and I'm not sure how closely they're related (if at all): one is when people attempt to use QX and the DL doesn't arrive in one piece, then it seems to help downloading manually instead (to me this seems like purely a transfer issue, nothing to do with the file itself). The other one is when the DL does arrive completely but shows as 0KB: this is because of the OSX zip thing incompatibility/brokenness.

I'm running OSX 10.3.9 btw.


ETA once more: I can also second what others have said about moving the DL folder around in order to manage what CC will be packaged -- this is what I've done since the beginning of time, and it's always worked perfectly. In my experience, it's not even a problem to enter houses with lots of CC while having no DLs installed -- you'll see a lot of flashing blue things, but as long as you don't *save* the game, everything will be fine the next time around. The game only records what's used in a lot when you save, not when you open it.

The only thing that will break is Monique's AutoPayment mod from this site, just in case you're using that: as soon as you run the game without it, even if you don't touch the hood in question, all the payment data will be gone.

[mooch13]

thanks I will look into that program plasticbox.