Tutorial: Fixing Flashing Blue Accessories

[HystericalParoxysm]

:here: What is this tutorial for?

From the Pets expansion onward, certain accessories categorized as glasses would flash blue when worn by sims. This could be fixed by taking the sim to the mirror and having them Change Appearance, but this would only fix it temporarily.

Thanks to JM Pescado, we now know the cause of why this happens to certain accessories and not others, and most importantly, how to fix it.

This tutorial will explain the steps of how to fix an accessory that flashes blue. This tutorial is mostly meant for the accessory creators to fix their own work, so they can upload fixed versions for everyone to enjoy - but it can be used by downloaders to fix items that the mesh creators won't fix. It is written in a format that hopefully should be easy to understand, even if you know nothing about SimPE or meshes.

This tutorial is ONLY for flashing blue accessories! It doesn't relate to flashing blue anything else!

:here: What causes some accessories to flash blue and not others?

When a user creates a custom accessory, they will be cloning that accessory from a Maxis accessory. Maxis accessories usually have a number of groups. For example, the accessory they're cloning from may have the groups: frame, rim, and lens.

However, the user making the accessory may not need all three groups, and may only need to use one - for example, the "frame" group.

The proper way of making an accessory when you do not need all the groups is to make a small "placeholder" group in your mesh - that is, a single polygon named the same as the group(s) you are not using... so in our example, the user would make two placeholder groups - "rim" and "lens". Meshes created properly, with placeholder groups for the unneeded groups will not flash blue.

If the user creating an accessory fails to create placeholder groups and simply leaves them out, creating an accessory with only the "frame" group while the mesh is cloned from an accessory with more groups and is expecting more groups, you will get a flashing blue accessory - when those groups can't be found, the game goes, "Ack!" and breaks the accessory temporarily.

This can be fixed by putting back those placeholder groups.

:here: What you will need:

SimPE (http://sims.ambertation.de) - I am using v 0.64a, but this should work in most any version.
Managed Direct X 9c - You will find a link to this on the SimPE download page, under "Needed Software to run SimPE" - because you are working with meshes, you will need this.
My Placeholder Obj File (http://www.modyourpanties.com/hosting/30789_111017035921placeholder.rar) - This is what actually fixes the mesh. Download the .rar file and extract the .obj file from it, to a folder where you can find it.
The mesh file of the accessory you wish to fix.

:here: Fixing the Accessory:

1. Open the mesh file in SimPE.

For my example, I am fixing Ren's #3 Elf Ears (http://www.modthesims2.com/member/showthread.php?t=216324) as Ren's accessories are well known to flash blue.

Once the file is open, you should see a screen that looks something like this, with a small pane on the left, a larger one with a bigger list on the right, and probably a blank space at the bottom:

Click for a larger version of this image:
http://www.modyourpanties.com/hosting/1709_080424074308flashingblue01-s.jpg (http://www.modyourpanties.com/hosting/1708_080424074226flashingblue01.jpg)

2. Find the list of expected parts.

Before we can fix the mesh file, we need to find what parts the mesh is expecting will be there - we know at least one is missing as the accessory flashes blue, but we don't know what it is called. For that, we need to look in the SHPE file.

A. Look at the left pane in SimPE. You will see where it says "Resource Tree" up at the top.

B. Click on the line that says "Shape (SHPE) (#)" in the list. My mesh file has the number 6 showing there as mine has multiple meshes in the same file, for different ages. Yours may have one or it may have more.

C. Look over on the right pane. You will see where it says "Resource List" up at the top. This list will have changed when you clicked on the SHPE, showing only SHPE files under the "Type" column.

D. Click on the first SHPE file in the list. If you only have one, just click on the only SHPE file you have.

E. Make sure you are using Plugin View. You should have a tab for it along the bottom or the right side. If you do not see this tab, click on the Window menu, and then choose Plugin View to bring it up.

F. Under Plugin View, you will see a list of tabs under the lines that are labeled Blocklist and Filename - cShape, Level of Detail Listing, Items, Parts, and ObjectGraphNode. Click on the "Parts" tab.

G. You should now have a list of two to three items showing in the box below. This tells you what parts the mesh is expecting to be there. Write down the names of the mesh parts - you only need the part before the colon (the : symbol). So in this case, I have two parts, called "louis_ac01" and "louis_ac02" so I will write down those names.

Click for a larger version of this image:
http://www.modyourpanties.com/hosting/1712_080424081008flashingblue03-s.jpg (http://www.modyourpanties.com/hosting/1711_080424080334flashingblue03.jpg)

3. Add a placeholder for missing part(s):

Now that we know the name of the parts our mesh is expecting and how many parts it should have, we can add in any missing parts into the mesh file.

A. Look in the left pane, the Resource Tree.

B. In the list of items, you should see "Geometric Data Container (GMDC) (#)" - click on that item to get a list of the GMDCs (meshes) in the file.

C. Now, look in the right pane, the Resource List. This list will have changed when you clicked on the GMDC. You should only have GMDCs listed here. You may have one, or you may have more.

D. Click on the first GMDC in the list. If you only have one GMDC, click on the only GMDC you have.

E. You should still be in Plugin View from before.

F. Now, look at the list of included mesh parts. As expected, this mesh is missing a part - the only part we have listed is "louis_ac01" when it should also have "louis_ac02" as well. Because it's missing a part, it's flashing blue. We need to add in the missing part.

G. Click the Import button.

Click for a larger version of this image:
http://www.modyourpanties.com/hosting/1714_080424081950flashingblue04-s.jpg (http://www.modyourpanties.com/hosting/1713_080424081907flashingblue04.jpg)

You will now get a dialog box labeled "Import Mesh." Find the placeholder.obj file you downloaded at the start of this tutorial (found under the "What you will need" section), select it, and click Open.

Now you will get a dialog box that pops up labelled "Mesh Group Importer."

H. Over on the right, change the dropdown box labelled "Action" to "Rename"

I. Then, change the box below that to the name of your missing mesh part. In this case, my missing part is called "louis_ac02" so that is what I will call it. If you have more than one missing part, give it the name of the first missing part.

J. When you have renamed it, the area under "Importable Mesh Groups" should look like this... "placeholder - rename - (your missing group name)." Click OK to import the part.

Click for a larger version of this image:
http://www.modyourpanties.com/hosting/1716_080424083803flashingblue06-s.jpg (http://www.modyourpanties.com/hosting/1715_080424083749flashingblue06.jpg)

K. Now you should be back to the GMDC in Plugin View. Look in the Models list and you'll see that you now have the missing part in place, with the correct name.

L. Click the Commit button to commit your changes.

M. If you have more missing parts, repeat steps 3G through 3L above to import any further missing parts. Make sure to Commit when you are done.

N. If your mesh file has more GMDCs, repeat steps 3E through 3M above to fix all of the GMDCs in the file. Make sure to Commit when you are done.

Click for a larger version of this image:
http://www.modyourpanties.com/hosting/1719_080424084613flashingblue08-s.jpg (http://www.modyourpanties.com/images/080424084607-flashingblue08.jpg)

When you have finished editing all of the included GMDCs in the file, go to the File menu and choose Save to save the changes to your file.

4. Test in-game:

Go into the game, load a lot, and put your accessory on a sim using a mirror to Change Appearance.

Save the lot, exit to the neighborhood, and re-enter the lot. With any luck, your edited file should not be flashing blue.

If you still get flashing blue, or if the game crashes when you try to put the accessory on a sim, you likely messed up somewhere along the way. If this happens, go back to the folder with your edited mesh file. You will see that there are two files with the same name - one with a .package file extension (this is your edited file) and one with a .bak file extension (this is a backup made by SimPE). We only saved once at the very end so that the .bak file would be a copy of the unedited mesh, before you started trying to fix it. Delete the .package file and rename the .bak file to .package and then try again. With any luck though, your edited mesh file should work just fine.

[BlueBlood220]

Thanks for this, HP! I was getting so tired of the flashing blue everywhere as I use accessories quite frequently. But I ran into something I don't know how to get around.

I opened up a mesh that I know for sure flashes blue in game. I can't miss it because it's a huge scarf. It's definitely not missing anything, but quoting your post here, 'The proper way of making an accessory when you do not need all the groups is to make a small "placeholder" group in your mesh - that is, a single polygon named the same as the group(s) you are not using...' The lens part doesn't have any polygons, so I guess that's why it flashes blue anyway. Can I replace it with your placeholder somehow?

Edit: Nevermind, it's cool. I found the replace option in that dropdown box.

Edit again: I'm not sure if I would always be able to discern if a group is a placeholder or not or if all meshes really need a placeholder, like if they use all the groups for something, but if it has more than one polygon will that still break it? I have a mesh that I'm pretty sure flashes blue, but it's not missing any groups. The group that I would bet on as being a placeholder has more than one polygon though.

[Delphy]

A placeholder group doesn't always have to have one polygon. The key is basically that all groups referenced in the Scenegraph chain actually exist in the GMDC. Whether those groups have 1 poly or 100 doesn't really matter.

[HystericalParoxysm]

BlueBlood220 - If you can link me to the mesh you're having trouble with, I can take a look and tell ya what's going on with it for sure. :)

[BlueBlood220]

Well I've played a Sim that had an accessory on that mesh a few times and it never flashed blue. I think I may have been confusing it with another necklace mesh. *shame* xD

Thanks for the help though, you two. =)

[ScorpioMaurus]

Cyjon has created a hack that in my game takes the Vampire Fangs away so they don't flash. This way you can fix General Zoi's fangs and have real Vampires that don't flash. Version 1 works with all EP's through Seasons. If you have Bon Voyage, FreeTime or Apartment Life you must DL version 2. I have tested these under several different circumstances and it is working properly for me. However I understand for some people the fangs do show normally. Under my configuration the fangs do not show but it is not a problem thanks to General Zoi.

http://drupal.cyjon.net/node/96

[lauralaima]

ooh!
thank you forever HP! I thought until I saw this that these accesories flashing blue were only a problem of mine! thanks! now I can have elves! ;)

[fireflyastori]

Thanks so much! I was wondering why they would do that and I was scared that they would never be able to be used.

Thanks for the help!

[char_sama]

This is a great tut! I've been looking for a way to fix some things. But on the SimPE site, there is no actual link to the Managed DirectX 9.0 or anything of the sort. The link goes directly to the Main SimPE download, and the direct link goes nowhere.

Now that wouldn't bother me if I felt like downloading ALL of DX from Microsoft.

Is there any links anywhere that for sure ONLY have MDX? I'm not going to spend 2-4 hours downloading something I already have, only to get a small bit of functionality.

All I want to do is fix the same ears you fixed in this. *sigh*

And I wanted to ask- does anyone else have the problem where everything their vamps pick up turns blue? XD I even have blue babies, lol.

[HystericalParoxysm]

char_sama - The link on the SimPE download page for Managed DirectX is a direct link that only downloads that, not all of DirectX.

[char_sama]

As I was saying, when I click on the link for it on SimPE's site, it just goes to the main download for SimPE. The direct link option on the SourceForge.net was, until just a moment ago, not going anywhere. Now, I'll assume someone changed it just now, or it was some random error that killed itself about 12 times, b/c that's how many I tried it.

^__^;;

[AndyOSW]

Thanks, HP!

Had some trouble with some necklaces. The preview was okay, but in the game they flashed blue :-(. Now I have some work to fix it, but thank you again for showing me the way!

Andy

[Simsane]

Hi HP, just wanted to ask if this is the same method to fix windows that flash blue as well. There's been a couple of times where I downloaded a lot and everything but one particular window would be fine. What I've done in the past is to replace the window with one that didn't flash and then delete the "blue" window from my build mode catalog. But if this method would also fix windows, that would be wonderful. Oh, and thanks for taking the time to make these instructions in the first place.

ETA: Thanks HP. I already have the latest CEP already so I will continue doing what I've been doing. I do understand what you mean as I have used the Grand Trianon objects since they came out and understand "repository" techniques. Thank you for responding so quickly.

[HystericalParoxysm]

Simsane - That's usually due to a missing parent/master/repository file. For example, stuff like Numenor's WallWindows use one item to hold the recolours (parent/master/repository file) and the rest (child/slave files) get their recolours from it. That can also be due to some other issue with the files, or CEP related. This would not fix windows.

[LostSaggatarius]

thank you, but i have an easier way, delete the object and buy the exact same one, works for me

[pseudonymph24]

Thanks for the tut, HP. What if some of the things are unchecked under Models in the GMDC's Plugin View? Should they remain unchecked? For example, I'm trying to correct gloves...

The parts used were "frame" and "lens"...but in GMDC Plugin View, I saw a few "gloves" unchecked, so I imported the missing parts and then checked all the "gloves." Is that right?

[HystericalParoxysm]

LostSaggatarius - This is a permanent fix for any accessories flashing blue. If you delete them and re-get the same ones they'll just develop the issue again. This fixes it once and for good, forever.

pseudonymph24 - Checked or unchecked is irrelevant. As long as they're present, they should work fine.

[happy-ashy]

i dont understand ny of this!!

[Jake Lucas]

Hysterical, I downloaded a lot which had flashing terrain, would this tutorial fix my problem or is it a no win case and I should give up? lol :)

[HystericalParoxysm]

Jake Lucas - This ONLY relates to flashing blue accessories. Has nothing to do with flashing blue -anything- else.

[Kilani]

Thanks for the awesome tutorial. I went through my accessories last night and fixed all the ones that didn't work. It only took me about a half hour and is very easy to do.

I just have one problem.. one of the ones I downloaded didn't come with a mesh file. How do I found out which mesh it works from? It flashes blue in game and it's one of my favorites that I used to use all the time.

[HystericalParoxysm]

Kilani - Try going back to whereever you got it and seeing what mesh they say to download. If that fails you can try opening whatever files you suspect might be the mesh and looking for the right resources. Meshes will generally only have GMDC, GMND, SHPE, and CRES. Recolours tend to have a lot more stuff including 3DIRs, XMOLs, TXMTs, etc. so you can tell the difference right off looking at the contents.

[Kilani]

Oh haha, I feel like an idiot. I found the mesh file on their page. Sorry about that! I did this last night at 5am in the morning, so it figures I'd be a ditz at that time. I fixed it, thanks for smacking the idiot out of me ;]

The only one I'm still stuck on is this file:
http://www.modthesims2.com/showthread.php?t=242307

I can not for some reason get the necklace mesh to work. It has all the parts it should according to the tutorial, but still flashes blue in game.

It's supposed to have; frame & lens. I checked all GMDC and they have the same. Any idea why it still doesn't work?

[kitten111110]

ive fot a sailor moon accesories flashin blue or being left behind.

[Kilani]

Kitten- Did you try following the tutorial to fix it?

[Jake Lucas]

thank u 4 letting me know Hysterical :) I will accept defeat :( lol :P

[Izz35178]

Thanks for the great tutorial! It was a little intimidating just reading it, but once I cracked open SimPE it was so quick and easy. It's nice that its a change to the mesh, that way I don't have to mess with all the recolors. I loaded up an elf family with a bunch of jewelry and none of it was flashing. I was very pleased.

[Soul_For_Sale]

Thank you so much! I didn't even know there was a solution to this problem and I'd never have believed it to be this easy!

[hiiragi]

So then, since SimPE is not compatible with MAC, does that mean us MAC users are doomed to the temporary mirror fix? In my case, I am dying to use Ren's Elf Ears (That HP used in her lovely, and coherent tutorial) and got so frustrated with them floating and flashing above my Sims heads that I eventually deleted them....

Thank you for the tutorial, HystericalParoxysm, I appreciate the effort even if I am not able to use. If anybody is able to figure out how to fix this sans SimPE, I would love to hear it.

...or, if anybody just feels like fixing Ren's Elf Ears (2 & 3) and uploading them for a lonely MAC user, that would be awesome too, though of course not expected.

[cafegirl]

Just wanted to say thanks for providing this tutorial. It will be nice not having flashing accessories.

[fiatlux]

Thanks a lot! Your tutorial is really well articulated, so even a noob like me is able to understand every step without a problem.
I've just fixed some messed up accessory items and they finally work in game. No more flashing blue! Yay!

[drwho]

I am stuck on ship_painting.package and ralph.package. Can you help?

[HystericalParoxysm]

drwho - I have no idea what files those are. If you're having trouble with specific custom content, please link to where you got it and let me know exactly what is giving you trouble - what part of the tutorial you're stuck on with them.

[Citysim]

So far so good, I have noticed all my accessories either have the name of 'lens' or 'rim' that are missing, so my names are easy to remember.

Also realize, if a sim was previously wearing a flashing blue accessory before fixing it, they will still flash blue when you first go into the game, but simply unwearing them wearing them back on, fixes the flashing blue not temporary, but now permanently.

:up:

[Nessa_Belle087]

Does this also work with things like ground covering? Basically the whole lot flashes blue. this might be because I accidentally deleted the file for that ground covering, but i later redownloaded it but the lot still flashes blue. Do you know what I could do to fix it? I dont want to have to delete the lot! Thanks!

[nila.dulko]

Yay!!! Flashing accessories annoyed me so much I stopped playing with them and, waiting to find a tutorial for first time SimPE users to save them from uselessness. This tutorial is so easy to use; thank you so much for your help!

EDIT:
One more thing: I'm hoping you can answer a related question. I tried using this tutorial's method with PeggySims2's eyelashes (as accessories) and noticed that the SHPE file had two subsets, one named by peggy and the second file's subset name is 'lens'. In the GMDC file, two subsets exist, but both are labeled with the same name and no 'lens' subset is listed. I tried renaming the second subset to 'lens', but it didn't stop it from flashing in-game. Any suggestions for this situation would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, again!

[Alasdair]

I recently discovered this and have been hapily fixing my flashing accessories, but now I've come up against one I not sure how to fix. According to the parts list there should be 3 entries, but when I look at the GMDC it has 4 entries all named the same. Is there a way to fix it?

[cDV]

thank you very much for this awesome tutorial. now it's such fun to create accessoires again, thank you sooo much!!

but... :D
of course I got a question.
first: your tutorial isn't linked here http://linna.modthesims2.com/wiki.php?title=Game_Help:Flashing_Blue_Accessories

the real question:
I'm just trying to fix ren's animated earrings http://nene.modthesims2.com/download.php?t=216326 because I think I remember them causing trouble as well. but in the geometry data container list none of the models is selected, plus there exist 3x louis_ac01 and 6x louis_ac02, which would mean that all expected parts are present, but too many of them?
sorry I got no idea of meshing and how all of this works, but doesn't some part have to be selected?
I'll give the earrings a try in-game till I hear from you, I guess.

do you think it might be worth setting up a thread or attaching fixed meshes (according to the copyright, of course) for those who are either too lazy or simply can't use simpe, so all in all we can save time? :)

[minamy]

thank you for your tutorial and I hope I can put up with the defeat

[Maskelyne]

eh..... what?

[Maskelyne]

lawl, i don't know much about what said, but i read too lazy, and save time.
:bunny:

yes plox.

:D

thank you very much for this awesome tutorial. now it's such fun to create accessoires again, thank you sooo much!!

but... :D
of course I got a question.
first: your tutorial isn't linked here http://linna.modthesims2.com/wiki.php?title=Game_Help:Flashing_Blue_Accessories

the real question:
I'm just trying to fix ren's animated earrings http://nene.modthesims2.com/download.php?t=216326 because I think I remember them causing trouble as well. but in the geometry data container list none of the models is selected, plus there exist 3x louis_ac01 and 6x louis_ac02, which would mean that all expected parts are present, but too many of them?
sorry I got no idea of meshing and how all of this works, but doesn't some part have to be selected?
I'll give the earrings a try in-game till I hear from you, I guess.

do you think it might be worth setting up a thread or attaching fixed meshes (according to the copyright, of course) for those who are either too lazy or simply can't use simpe, so all in all we can save time? :)

[Sulphur]

I have these earrings which constantly flash blue. But, when I opened them in SimPE, I found only one SHPE file (that's not the problem), and in it, only one part listed (that's the problem). That part is, of course, included in Geometric Data Container (only one GMDC too). So, that means that the file has all the parts the mesh expects (as there's only one part, and that part isn't missing in GMDC). But still, the earrings flash blue! How could that be possible?
Btw, the earrings are Sue_Earrings_007 (http://www.xmsims.com/sims2/ehtm/accessories/accessories01.htm), the first star shaped pink ones.

[Ysabella]

I say thanks for this wonderful Tutorial.

This is Great HP :)

[minamy]

thankyou

[kisamore93]

The list of expected parts for the mesh I am trying to fix has two parts: lens and frame. In the list of the included mesh parts, I have lens and frame. What more can I do?

[Dawn_]

Hm, thank you, HP.
I've been seeing the link to this tutorial around for ages but it never occurred to me to fix anything since I never played Sims with accessories. Now that one of my main families has a Sim in it who occasionally wears glasses, this was an important (and easy) fix for me :)

Thank you again.

[M0rgaine]

I always avoided working with SimPe, and after having a quick look at the tutorial nearly gave up, but when I followed it step by step, I realized that it couldn't be more simple. After doing it once I fixed more meshes in no time - thanks to you and this dummy-proof tutorial! I have so much more fun now that this problem is solved in my game!
And I want to encourage everyone to follow this great tutorial, it's really easy!!

[allthatglitters]

Thank you fo explaining how to do this. I fixed the elf ears in my game. :) I do have a question, though. Do I have to keep SimPe installed on my computer, or can I uninstall it since I won't be using it again?

[klaw444]

hp where do i find the files you speak about for objects recoloured in bodyshop. in the projects folder the object that is flashing blue doesnt have shape and mesh files. what do i do? (it is a recolour of generalzoi's cape)

[Sulphur]

Thank you fo explaining how to do this. I fixed the elf ears in my game. :) I do have a question, though. Do I have to keep SimPe installed on my computer, or can I uninstall it since I won't be using it again? You can uninstall it freely :)

[HystericalParoxysm]

klaw444 - You make these changes on the actual mesh file, not recolours.

[klaw444]

Thanks.

[Odekai]

Zomg, thank you, thank you, THANK YOU for making this tutorial, and making it so easy to understand! =]

I have only one question. I can't tell if Ren's custom elf ear earrings are showing up completely...How can I explain? Hm...ok, I do everything on your tutorial, but when I click on the "Geometric Data Container (GMDC) (#)" of the first part for the earrings, there are more than one GMDC's listed below. The problem is that only the top file, louis_ac01, is checkmarked. (There are also more than one louis_ac01 GMDC's under it, but only the top one is checked) The other GMDC's are there, but left unchecked.

The part says it needs a louis_ac02, and I see some louis_ac02 GMDC's listed there, but only the louis_ac01 is checked. Should I checkmark one of the louis_ac02's? If so, which one? =\

I can put a screenshot up if I didn't do a good job explaining there. =P

EDIT: I just noticed that many of the parts in the earring have the GMDC's listed there, but not checked. Is that a problem?

[HystericalParoxysm]

Checkmarks are irrelevant. Don't worry about them - just what's listed. Pretend the checkmarks aren't even there. ;)

[Odekai]

Checkmarks are irrelevant. Don't worry about them - just what's listed. Pretend the checkmarks aren't even there. ;)
Oh, as long as they're there. Thank you! I fixed more than just the ears now, and so far everything is working. ^____^

:D You're the best, I can't thank you enough!

[Sulphur]

Is there any workaround with my earrings? kisamore93's question was also left unanswered...

[HystericalParoxysm]

Sulphur - Those earrings are definitely non-standard as the textures are in with the mesh. I know doing that with body meshes and suchlike can cause issues... They're really made, well, wrong by the creator.

You might be able to fix it by extracting the four mesh parts (GMDC, GMND, CRES, and SHPE) from the original file (right-click, extract) and saving them elsewhere. Then delete them from the original file (right-click, delete) and save. Create a new file (File - New) and in the resource list, right-click and Add. Select the four extracted parts whereever you saved them to, and it'll add them to the file. Save it as a new file separate from the recolour.

That's all I can think of.

[simenroute]

Thank you for the most clearly worded, easily followed explanation I've ever seen.

[taishi_nanami]

Thanks!!

with your guide I can now fixed my blue accessories :)

[HellhoundCerberus]

Hello, I'm very new to this modding business and I'm stuck on the very first step. Could you please provide me with more step-by-step instructions on how to open the file that I want to fix? I tried to open the file that I wanted to fix but the screen looks nothing like the one in the manual. Just so you know I am currently using v0.72 of SimPE.

Edit: Ahhhh, nevermind. I made the mistake of not opening the mesh file. My bad.

Edit: Now that I've fully understood the instructions I want to thank you for making available the instructions needed to remove those flashing blue eyesores.

[fnlemon]

I am having a problem with objects flashing blue. If someone could help me with it that would be great. I have gone through the tutorial and don't know what is missing to add to the placeholder.obj file. The objects in question are: A set of misc Punk/emo jewellery by Vxen. This is the link to the set (http://hideki.modthesims2.com/download.php?t=241678&c=1) and 3D Lashes recolors of mesh by rose (http://www.simsoverdrive.com/downloads/makeup.html) This is the link to the Mesh by Rose (http://rosesims2.net/sims2/Accessories/Accessories_10.htm (the mesh is on the top row third from the left is says 8 color eyelash) Thank you in advance.

[obsesssion]

Okay I really need help.. I went through this tutorial with the Ren's elf ears and did step by step exactly what was said, and my ears STILL flash blue, so there should of been no mess up since I did EXACTLY what was written. I REALLY want to use these ears but I can't stand the flashing blue butterfly effect. Can you please help me fix it or tell me (if I did) make a mistake?
Also, I DID go back a second and third time over the tutorial to make SURE I didn't make a mistake and I'm pretty certain I haven't but they still flash blue. Any help would be MUCH appreciated I thank you in advance!!

[hwayunhae]

Thank you for the tutorial. I was starting to go a little batty with the floating blue mp3 players and such whenever I load a new game.

side note:
I've been fixing messed up accessories for the last three hours, and all I have to say is "It's official, there is not a single accessory that I have seen from rose that doesn't need to be fixed. And rose has a LOT of accessories."

Would it be a bad idea to save my fellow download-junkies the hassle, and just upload a file of fixed rose accessory meshes once I finish going through and correcting these?

[Liza495]

Thanks a lot for this tute that I discovered when I re-downloaded generalzoi's vampire fangs as they were flashing blue. Like many others I stopped using accessories for my Sims, because it's truly annoying.

BTW I have recolours of generalzoi's pirate tricorn and they flashed blue. So I needed to fix generalzoi's mesh and now all is OK !

Somebody wrote that rosesims' accessories do flash blue. I fixed a few meshes. If interested, the mesh parts missing to add to the placeholder are each time : lens and rim.

It's the very first time I modified meshes, but I was a little confused on the explanations for the missing parts of a mesh. I needed to read several times. Also as I'm not used at all to handle tools for meshes, I thought I needed to download an extra programme to open the placerholder file.

Anyway thanks ! And if some who have time could fix more accessories meshes it'd be great. I think that a few jewels from peggy are also flashing blue like one pink feather necklace/earrings set.


Okay I really need help.. I went through this tutorial with the Ren's elf ears and did step by step exactly what was said, and my ears STILL flash blue, so there should of been no mess up since I did EXACTLY what was written. I REALLY want to use these ears but I can't stand the flashing blue butterfly effect. Can you please help me fix it or tell me (if I did) make a mistake?
Also, I DID go back a second and third time over the tutorial to make SURE I didn't make a mistake and I'm pretty certain I haven't but they still flash blue. Any help would be MUCH appreciated I thank you in advance!!

If that flashes still blue maybe you missed adding to the placeholder the missing parts of a few more GMDCs and maybe to click commit after having added each. I'd say that in this case it's better to redo the whole process and to not forget to click on Commit after each single change to validate before saving the whole modified mesh file.

[smuckmuffin]

I noticed that BuggyBooz's new shakerlicious kitchen set is flashing blue in my game, but I haven't heard it flashing blue in other people's. What could be happening?

[porcelain.pretty]

Thankies sooo much. You're a life saver!

[HystericalParoxysm]

smuckmuffin - That really doesn't relate to this, but I think her kitchen is tied to one of her previous sets - if you check her post, she should say which one, so you can download it. It's a repository set, so it requires some other files to get its textures from.

[RoyalT]

First of all, thank you for a wonderful, easy to follow tutorial.

Okay I read this entire post and I also have a question about eyelashes and extra files that was unanswered.

The rose eyelashes have 4 files that say "frame" in the GMDC and it says "lens" "frame" and "rim" in SHPE. So basically, the mesh needs 3 different files and instead has 4 of the same file. What does this mean? What do I do about it? Can I just delete the extra frame files and add lens and rim? Will that unravel the fabric of the universe?

Same thing with peggy eyelashes, it says it needs 2 different files and instead has 2 of the same file. I love eyelash accessories! Please help!

[HystericalParoxysm]

RoyalT - Leave any existing ones. Add a new one (or multiple new ones) named the same as any missing ones. Duplicates are fine - missing ones are not.

[RoyalT]

Thank you thank you thank you :)

[SahrMohtahn]

Thank you, much appreciated. :)

[Hayshak]

awesome!! My accessories work for approx. 1 hour Sim-time then they start flashing blue!! Weird eh? Im gonna follow this tutorial word for word!!!

[LadiMafia]

i am working on the prida glasses mesh..it list that i have two missing parts which are frame and lens..i am able to fix the frame but how do i fix the lens?

[Megan116]

Wow! Thanks a lot for making this tutorial. It always annoyed me very much. I thought that it's only my problem and something's wrong with my graphic card or my game.
Anyway, I'm upset that it won't fix my other (and even more annoying) problem with snow - when there is snow on the ground, at night it starts flashing blue! I've got the headache when I see it! I don't know what to do. I tried to 'throw out' all my downloads, download all the patches, reinstall the game, and it doesn't work. Maybe someone have had the same problem and could help me?

[IloveGarbage]

1 0f my chairs flashes blue...

[Amiciel]

I have maxis windows tht flash blue and i can't delete them or do anything because i live in an apartment, i sold some stuff which i could and bought the same back, but i can't sell the windows to remove the blue light, please help me...

[HystericalParoxysm]

This tutorial has nothing to do with ANYTHING flashing blue but accessories. Objects flashing blue are unrelated to this!

[Danaouli]

meshes and polygons and placeholders....it sounds so complicated....I wish i were a sim expert like you...=(

[turquoisesweetie]

I had began to think I'd just simply never get to use accessories again. :( This is great. Thank you to all involved in fixing this problem. :lovestruc :lovestruc Hooray! :)

[HystericalParoxysm]

Danaouli - It's actually -really- easy. I think you're getting stuck on terminology - the mesh file says "I have these two parts" - like a label on a box that says "Contents: Apples and Bananas" but then when the game actually goes and looks at what's in there, it's only got one part - the box just has Apples. So you take the placeholder - just a little piece of scrap paper - and write "Bananas" on it. The game looks in the box, sees some apples and a piece of paper that says Bananas, and goes, "Well, that's close enough, very well then," and everything works fine.

[aurian]

Would love to get my hands on the placeholderobj.rar file, as demusedsims.com is down, and fix my meshes.

Does anyone know if it's available elsewhere?

[Rissa]

Same here. Is there a way to get the placeholder file anywhere?

[SEPHIROTH664]

Ugh... Placeholder site is down, any chance somone can upload the file?

[Jackathyn]

EDIT2: Yuxi loaded it up on Mediafire.
http://www.mediafire.com/?izjmmdzdx2l

[SEPHIROTH664]

Thanks A LOT Jackathyn! :)

[Jackathyn]

Not a problem! :)

[gfitz]

EDIT2: Yuxi loaded it up on Mediafire.
http://www.mediafire.com/?izjmmdzdx2l

Thanks!!! :D

[Athena*Onyx]

EDIT2: Yuxi loaded it up on Mediafire.
http://www.mediafire.com/?izjmmdzdx2l

That's a text document. What do I have to do to make it rar?

[Miss_Tanya]

Thank you so much, I am going to try it now!

[ctsensenbaugh]

I have a cape and a hood flashing blue in game, found in the glasses accessory section. But when I open them in SimPE, they do not have SHPE or GDMC files associated. Did SimPE change the file names? I have 3DIR, BINX, CLST, TXMT, XMOL, STR#, and TXTR files, but no GDMC or SHPE listed in the tree. Am I being unobservant?

The hood and cape are from The Guild Masters "The Dark Project" collection, called the dark princess hood and the dark princess cape. They are attached.

[Quinctia]

A little late for a response to you, ctsensenbaugh, but it appears that there isn't a mesh in that archive that you uploaded. This fix is for the mesh of the accessory itself. Hunt down the meshes in your game and then try the fix.

[ctsensenbaugh]

now i feel very stupid indeed. Yes that wasn't the mesh file, and finding and correcting the actual mesh file was the key. Thank you for your reply I was able to fix them in my game.

[Kjsdx3]

HP. I love you. (= It annoyed the s*it out of me when it flashed blue! :)

[Amairani]

I'm so grateful for this tutorial, I was about to give up on accessories installed in my game and that would really be a pity as I need them all to give Sims the unique/unusual look. Thank you so much, HP. I'm still testing if Peggy's 3d lashes were fixed, but many other accessories work perfectly now.

[xxchelsea13xx]

Is there anyway someone can upload the placeholder obj. file. as a .rar file.?? It would be greatly appreciated. [:

[telefen]

I've read this & it sounds like I would try it cause, it's explained well. However, when I click on the object place holder link, it does not open the page. Anyways maybe it's just temporarily out of service. Thanks a lot for your hard work.

[HauntNightmare]

EDIT2: Yuxi loaded it up on Mediafire.
http://www.mediafire.com/?izjmmdzdx2l

OMGweloveyou D:!
And we love HP for this tutorial! :bunny:
Ohmay, I will survive!

@Edit
Thanks ScorpioMaurus too, I had the "blue fangs" problem and that package solved it!

[omgcakes]

<3333333333333333333333333 *star kiss* i had been meaning to look into that for months and i saw it linked when i logged in today. great, informative tutorial too! infinite thanks for greatly enhancing my quality of simulated life as always! ty ty ty ty ty ty ty ty ty ty ty ty ty ty ty ty ty ty ty

[jopats]

the link for "My Placeholder Obj File" doesn't work for me! :(

[jopats]

hey I need help... the "My Placeholder Obj File" link doesnt work for me :( I really want to get that glitch fixed.

[kontgat]

link doesn't work for the place holder :"(

[Sheada]

EDIT2: Yuxi loaded it up on Mediafire.
http://www.mediafire.com/?izjmmdzdx2l

It works fine for me oO

[telefen]

thanks a lot for this very good&easy to follow tutorial HP. :up: i just have a problem with that link to the place holder,it seems it's broken, so, where else I can get your place holder from? thanks very much. Ok nevermind I found it. Thanks anyhow :up:

[sai123104]

wait, im comfused.i have the flashing-blue problem, but the package has no SHPE? yes, i am looking under resource trees. i see no SHPE.

wrong package file? :help:

EDIT: i foudn the SHPe, i had wrong mesh file...now, i need the GMDC... i don't see it.

[SlyVenom]

Okay I am using Windows 7, Managed Direct X is depreciated so I can not get past step 3. I get an error message about installing managed direct X... :(
Is there another way to do this or can someone with a pre Windows 7 computer help me out?
I really want to use this hat, but if I can't fix it I wont.

[HylianWolf]

i keep having trouble with the flashing accessories, mainly ears, earrings, a belt with a sword and shield for link, and some hats, all objects created for zelda characters. is there something missing in the files or something? i have the CEP and im downloading it again because ive uninstalled the game and installed a new EP recently. its wierd because when i send the sim wearing the items to a mirror, everything is ok. when the same sim is later found outside (when im not playing it), all the items flash. can someone tell me whats going on?

[SelinaCat]

i keep having trouble with the flashing accessories, mainly ears, earrings, a belt with a sword and shield for link, and some hats, all objects created for zelda characters. is there something missing in the files or something? i have the CEP and im downloading it again because ive uninstalled the game and installed a new EP recently. its wierd because when i send the sim wearing the items to a mirror, everything is ok. when the same sim is later found outside (when im not playing it), all the items flash. can someone tell me whats going on?


HP had said that this was a quick fix for the problem but did not solve it completely. I'm about to give it a try to see if I can fix it! I wish there was a master list of fixed accessory meshes :( but I have windows 7 and I'm about to give it a try. I'll let you know how I get on!

[SelinaCat]

So, everything was going great until I tried to correct bloom's glove mesh. It doesn't have the right labels, but infact, the labels are different to what the mesh says it needs.

needs: lens and frame,
has: four named "gloves" what the heck am I supposed to do with that?! do I just add the two lens and frame place holders? what am I supposed to do about the whole "glove" label? mer..help! >.<

[sushigal007]

Thank you so much for this tutorial! I've managed to fix some things that had missing parts, hooray. However, I have one small problem - I'm going through all my accessory meshes right now, checking for missing bits, and I have a set of bunny ears I already know flash blue. However, the SHPE and GMDC only show frames. It doesn't seem to be looking for lens or rims or anything else I would expect to be mentioned. Will it hurt the mesh if go ahead and add a placeholder for lens anyway?

ETA: OK, this is weird. I went and fixed all the meshes I could find, and left the ears alone. I added just accessory meshes and their recolours to AnyGame to test them, and it's just one recolour of the bunny ears that flash blue, the rest seem fine.

[lilyandsnuggles2]

Do they flash in the Sims 3?

[BloomsBase]

If you want to fix those blue flashing accesoires you best delete the link to the missing meshgroups
They are located in a outfit/accesoire's propertyset(not the meshfile)
Click the file in the resource list and go to the CDF editor(plugin view)
At the bottom you find
numoverrides
override0shape
override0subset
override0resourcekeyidx

Delete the 3 override lines for the missing meshgroup and update the numoverrides
This is the correct way to do this but since you have to do this for every recolor it can be alot work
Also accesoires often have diffrent ages/genders wich all need to be updated.

this is very time consuming so you be better of by simply using a placeholder in the gmdc file

Another problem that can occur when deleting the overrides is that if the override you want to delete is listed above the ones you want to keep the order(linking) to the 3D ID reference files can be messed up
If each subset uses the same textures and material settings this aint a problem but some(like glasses) have diffrent settings
In other words:
If the lenses for instance are listed above the frame(in a glasses file) and you delete its overrides the subset of the frame will use the settings of the lenses(wich are transparant and often have no texturefile attached....you dont want that)
you then have to relink those again, another time consuming procedure...

Use a placeholder :)

[TheMuseSway]

-sigh- I still in love with LaPinks/icedmango old glasses. I found some of the original files from the graveyard. Maybe sometime soon I can try to fix them. THough I'm not good with SimPE. Ooops mistake it's LaPink meshes are from XMsims. I'm surprised she has not fixed them yet. :(

[Shan-Chan]

I am having the same problem and SelinaCat. I was trying to fix bloom's glove mesh as well but they all say glove! What am I supposed to do? I absolutely adore this mesh but the flashing blue is driving me bonkers!

[tommesha]

placeholder.obj still does not work.! :(

[VampireDiaries]

The link for the object file doesn't work. Is the site down or something? :help:

[VampireDiaries]

That's a text document. What do I have to do to make it rar?
You have to save the file instead of opening it with the notepad.

[Jemcrystal]

The link for the object file doesn't work. Is the site down or something? :help:

Where is the link to download this file?

[leesester]

http://www.modthesims.info/showpost.php?p=3110472&postcount=97

I have also updated the first post with a file link to MYP.

[Antibusdeath]

I've been fixing a few accessories tonight when I finally came to Peggy's beautiful feathered masks http://peggyzone.com/ObjectDetail.html?id=003161 This is what I found when I went to fix it. There are 20 Peggy files, not all are checked, and 1 hair file that isn't even listed under the SHPE files.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h203/Antibusdeath/PeggyMask.jpg

What should I do? Add as many replacement packages for 'lens' and 'hair' as the 'Peggy' files, or just add 'lens' files?

[Alexito7]

Hi!! I tried everything to fix the problem with this accessory: http://www.digitalperversion.net/gardenofshadows/index.php?topic=17620.0

I follow step-by-step this tutorial, but I got nothing, it is still blue in the game. I'd like someone could help because I don't know what to do. Please help me. Thanks in advance.

[venusprincess100]

Hi there. Thank you so much for the tutorial, i already fixed a lot of accessories with this tutorial and it worked, with the exception of a few files...
This are the files are still flashing blue:
- Zebra heart necklace by amandaskeefer, it's here: http://modthesims.info/download.php?t=245579
- Rose's earrings Roseaccessories_067, it's here: http://www.rosesims2.net/ (under accessories page 15)
- Rose's choker Roseaccessories_0061, it's here: http://www.rosesims2.net/ (under accessories page 13)
- Vxen 3dlashes, it's here: http://files.sims2graveyard.com/index.php?path=simsoverdrive%2Faccessories/

Can someone please help me fix this, or leting me know with it is still flashing blue.

[kitty cat]

Thankyou for the help :)

[zanesaaomgfan]

Well, this won't work. I'm trying to fix this cochlear implant and I can't find the Shape thing in Step B... :/

[Stormy_83]

thanks HP that helps alot

[Seidon]

This thread is worth keeping alive with all the combo packs of the sims 2 available today. Thanks for this. Easy to do and really helps.

[Iwa-Deidara101]

thanks really worked took me seconds to do this

before i looked it up on the net and found someone saying "take the item eg Custom Scarf off and save and quit,restart your computer and reload the game the blue flashing will not happen again"

This did not work so

Thanks

[SimJosh4848]

Another way to stop the accessories from flashing blue is this: when you're playing the game, unequip them, and then re-equip them. That works for me. : )

[HystericalParoxysm]

SimJosh - That's right in the first bit of the first post. The point of this is to fix it so you don't have to do that every time you play the game.

[RokuShi_lover]

I have this acessory, (a set of gills) that I got from one of those premade sims downloads, and since it didn't have a package, I used the start new project on Bodyshop, and it doesn't have a SHPE file. What do I do?

[mew62900]

This happened to a coffin I recolored and I kind of like the way it looks :giggler:


Oh and by the way, what on earth do the Increase Awesomeness and Add Bacon buttons do? :wtf:

[Dizzy-noodles]

Thanks this works great! :)