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Field Researcher
Original Poster
#1 Old 14th Oct 2014 at 12:23 AM Last edited by icu2richelo : 2nd Sep 2017 at 11:18 PM. Reason: Tester request
Default [Work In Progress] I built a house - should I upload it?




It's a fancy, darker themed home that I modeled after one of my favorite default houses that came with The Sims 3 Supernatural (only you can't add a 4th floor, so I had to improvise mostly). What do you guys think? Upload-worthy?

UPDATE: Please scroll down for a download link of a more recent version of this house to test it. I'm trying to make sure I've included the appropriate files in the zip! Thank you for your help.
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Instructor
#2 Old 14th Oct 2014 at 1:01 AM
The exterior looks interesting, but would you mind demonstrating the interior and floor plans to give us a better idea of how the house looks from all angles?
Pettifogging Legalist!
retired moderator
#3 Old 14th Oct 2014 at 1:03 AM
I like the basic shape of it, and also the colours =) -- only the little rooves on top of the "dormers" look a bit odd to me (I know roofing is a PITA in TS4 as soon as you build anything but bungalows =P .. I just think either the whole house would have a hipped roof, or the whole house would have a flat roof; the mixture with hipped ones *only* on the dormers is what it makes it look a bit odd)

But in order to upload you'd need to make inside / floorplan screenshots as well! Can you show some?

Also, can sims route properly through the side entrance? Where the porch leads directly off-lot I mean? I haven't had that in my game so far, so I don't know whether that works ..


(ETA: the above is not a queue moderator opinion, just a plain old regular opinion =)

Stuff for TS2 · TS3 · TS4 | Please do not PM me with technical questions – we have Create forums for that.

In the kingdom of the blind, do as the Romans do.
Field Researcher
Original Poster
#4 Old 14th Oct 2014 at 4:49 AM
Quote: Originally posted by plasticbox
only the little rooves on top of the "dormers" look a bit odd to me


I know, the problem is that you can't do the same architecture details with dormers in TS4, so I was experimenting with techniques to make stuff look legit from street-level. But yeah, they look a little silly. Perhaps a hipped room, more flattened, would look best on top of it all. I'll try that.

Quote: Originally posted by plasticbox
Also, can sims route properly through the side entrance? Where the porch leads directly off-lot I mean? I haven't had that in my game so far, so I don't know whether that works ..


Honestly, I didn't try that - I was trying to use as much of the width of the lot as possible, since the house is so large, so that other people would still be able to install it on a 30X20 lot, like this one. Perhaps I can delete one of the steps and just make it a closed-off porch.

I haven't furnished it yet, because building it was a PITA, to use plastic's wording... When you use the half-hipped roof segments to create a vertical roof that covers a whole floor, the game has a tendency to completely negate the walls inside. Trying to alter or wallpaper them leads to a "Wall does not exist" error. Funny thing is I have no idea at what point it does this, so I've had to reload a couple times just building the damn thing. Anyway, furnishing is next.

Edit: If you want, you can actually install this version of the house right now, I'm 'mrichelo' in the gallery. I plan to work on it some more, though.
Test Subject
#5 Old 15th Oct 2014 at 8:47 AM
Quote: Originally posted by icu2richelo




It's a fancy, darker themed home that I modeled after one of my favorite default houses that came with The Sims 3 Supernatural (only you can't add a 4th floor, so I had to improvise mostly). What do you guys think? Upload-worthy?


The house you created is really fansy and good.
Field Researcher
Original Poster
#6 Old 15th Oct 2014 at 8:50 AM Last edited by icu2richelo : 15th Oct 2014 at 9:06 AM.
I spent some more HOURS this evening perfecting the roof and making some small (read: huge) adjustments. All to find an error once I "Saved to Library." I think I finally discovered that's the cause of the wall negation bug - when you save your lot, for some reason it corrupts the current version, or at least it's corrupted mine.

Here are some shots of the outside (and inside, since I know you wanted to see!)

The last shot is the error I keep getting, which is going to make me redo the roofs... For the 50th time...











BTW, the half hipped roof segments I used to create the full-floor roof do not minimize so when using cut-away view, the roof is still up while the walls inside are down. Annoying. For this reason, the third floor is probably best accessed with the walls down. And ugh when I made the Third Floor, it did NOT have those roof segments invading into the house... They won't go away, no matter what I do. It's been bugging me since I started the house. UGH BUGS!
Pettifogging Legalist!
retired moderator
#7 Old 15th Oct 2014 at 9:49 AM
Regarding your saving issue, have you tried Save As instead of save? That's what I do habitually (since there is no indication what it will overwrite otherwise), and even though I am very familar with those "Wall no exist" and "Cannot generate Op" errors , I haven't had any problems with saving yet. Knock on wood, of course.

Other than that, I like that roof! =) And regarding the end bits sticking into rooms, there seems to be a threshold somewhere -- try making these roofs (the side ones) just *slightly* less steep, the indoor bits will probably go away. I think that results in the top edge of the room walls being just barely visible on the outside, but on your lot the edge of the top-most roof (the flat one) might cover that up anyway .. or maybe use one of those "bottom friezes" on the outside.

The floorplan looks cool to me, as well =) -- in case all of the tiny rooms are bathrooms, do you know they have less of a toilet fixation now in TS4? I get away with 2 baths for a 7-sim household in my game.

Stuff for TS2 · TS3 · TS4 | Please do not PM me with technical questions – we have Create forums for that.

In the kingdom of the blind, do as the Romans do.
Scholar
#8 Old 15th Oct 2014 at 11:58 AM
It looks great! Its styling seems very Italianate Victorian, so I'd suggest reinstating the dormers on the side and rear, as they were before, because the new hipped roof on the level above would make the roofing sections on the dormers look less awkward. But other than that you've come very close to creating an authentic historical home.
Field Researcher
Original Poster
#9 Old 16th Oct 2014 at 2:58 AM Last edited by icu2richelo : 16th Oct 2014 at 3:10 AM.
Thank you for your comments, they're much appreciated. I love the house so far, but the errors are making it a pain to work with.

Fergus' Mind, I rather like the new look of the windows in the roof, they're more subtle and framed much nicer than the awkward juxtaposition they would have if I made them more dormer-like again. This game needs a legitimate dormer tool or something.

EDIT: I found a photo of a gorgeous home that looks similar to this one, an Italianate Victorian as you suggest and I LOVE IT:


Had no idea that was an architectural style. I put this home together while I tried to memorize (unsuccessfully) how one of the default Maxis homes in TS3 looked. But, it looked nothing like the house does now

Plasticbox, I'm not having any issues with saves, it's when I click "Save Lot to Library" that I've noticed I get the "Wall Doesn't Exist" error. And I've noticed it's because of the roof pieces. The problem is, if this is the case, if I were to upload it to the website, Downloaders would have to delete the roof segments (and fix any additional wall segments that appear because of this) and then place them again. This would cause all sorts of issues, as you can imagine. Especially if they ever decide to save it to their library again!

I don't know if you can tell, but I'm rather frustrated with this error.

EDIT: There are 4 bathrooms in the house, 1 guest toilet on the First Floor, a Master bath and Guest Toilet on the Second Floor, and a Resident bath on the Third floor. I'm trying to keep a realistic layout in regards to bathrooms. The other tiny rooms are closets (which I never make, but thought it would be a nice touch in a historic home).

Also, about adjusting the roof - Making them shorter might fix the problem, but as you said the wall would show and the only way to cover that (since there is no wallpaper that can really hide it) is to add one of the trims as you suggest... But that made the upper section of the roof look too disjointed from the lower section and I didn't like it as much. Maybe we should just pester Maxis to get their act together and fix these bugs (because they'll totally address them...)
Pettifogging Legalist!
retired moderator
#10 Old 16th Oct 2014 at 3:22 AM Last edited by plasticbox : 16th Oct 2014 at 4:00 AM.
Quote: Originally posted by icu2richelo
Plasticbox, I'm not having any issues with saves, it's when I click "Save Lot to Library" that I've noticed I get the "Wall Doesn't Exist" error. And I've noticed it's because of the roof pieces. The problem is, if this is the case, if I were to upload it to the website, Downloaders would have to delete the roof segments (and fix any additional wall segments that appear because of this) and then place them again. This would cause all sorts of issues, as you can imagine. Especially if they ever decide to save it to their library again!


Yeah but saving the lot also has an option to save vs. save as (I didn't mean save games!). I'm not sure how it is worded exactly, but when saving a lot (to library) I get a confirmation thing every time, along the lines of "make this a new save or overwrite?". I always choose "new save" since it doesn't tell me WHAT it would overwrite otherwise.

Quote: Originally posted by icu2richelo
I don't know if you can tell, but I'm rather frustrated with this error.


Yeah it is extremely annoying. Has something to do with roof walls conflicting with normal walls.


Quote: Originally posted by icu2richelo
EDIT: There are 4 bathrooms in the house, 1 guest toilet on the First Floor, a Master bath and Guest Toilet on the Second Floor, and a Resident bath on the Third floor. I'm trying to keep a realistic layout in regards to bathrooms. The other tiny rooms are closets (which I never make, but thought it would be a nice touch in a historic home).


Oh I see! I mistook those for tiny bathrooms =).

About the roof stuff -- I think it can't hurt to pester. They do respond to the pestering, at least =).

ETA: tried to pester a little bit here .. not sure how much sense that makes since I have no idea where build mode bug reports actually go (and I have no clue about their food chain either, I don't remember who or what Holms is or does other than "has a Guru nickname" =P). But the more people post about it, the likelier they'll be aware of it if they aren't already.

Stuff for TS2 · TS3 · TS4 | Please do not PM me with technical questions – we have Create forums for that.

In the kingdom of the blind, do as the Romans do.
Pettifogging Legalist!
retired moderator
#11 Old 16th Oct 2014 at 11:00 PM
OK I think I have acheived maximum targeted pestering score now (this is a guy who introduced himself as being "specialised in build mode"). Thanks for providing the screenshots! =D (Please leave them where they are, just in case this does get passed on .. I hotlinked since I didn't have time to reupload anywhere).

By the way, I think I never commented on the actual question in the thread title? You should TOTALLY upload this, hopefully you'll be able to save it before you get sick and tired of it =).

Stuff for TS2 · TS3 · TS4 | Please do not PM me with technical questions – we have Create forums for that.

In the kingdom of the blind, do as the Romans do.
Field Researcher
Original Poster
#12 Old 17th Oct 2014 at 1:02 AM Last edited by icu2richelo : 17th Oct 2014 at 3:28 AM.
Very nice, Plasticbox and thanks for the pestering! Hopefully this issue will get noticed more. If they can patch this up soon, then maybe I'll be able to save this house! :D

EDIT: regardless, I plan to upload this home if I can find a work-around for this issue. I'll continue to mess with it, but in the meantime, would you mind testing the house right now? Just search mrichelo in the galler in-game and it should be "Vanderbilt Estate v2.0" - If you could let me know if you are experiencing the wall does not exist error in the attic (or anywhere) immediately upon placing the house, that would be great!

UPDATE: I added some additions this evening to make it look more authentic victorian! I originally intended this to be a cheap, old house... But, all the "old" style furniture is like the most expensive... *sigh* Anyway, here's the updated look:




P.S. - Guess who found a work-around for the ceiling bleed into the house? I just inched them down a notch, as you suggested Plasticbox, and just dealt with the black square trim and it doesn't look too bad. Also, after removing the roof segments, I was able to delete this mysterious wall that appeared on a corner and couldn't be deleted. As soon as I did that, with the new roof height the "Wall Does Not Exist" error was gone! *crosses fingers it never comes back*

Even after saving to library, the error was still gone! I think the issue was the roof height, since it was higher than the wall it was attached to. Methinks it turned the inside walls (or some of them) into roof walls, which can't be deleted as they don't register as real walls. Though, this caused an error that left a room on each of the lower floors with the same negation, which was messed up, honestly.

Anyway, problems seem to be averted *crosses fingers again* and I should be able to get this puppy furnished and ready for upload!
Pettifogging Legalist!
retired moderator
#13 Old 17th Oct 2014 at 7:53 AM
Good job figuring out the roof height thing! Getting rid of the "Wall no exist" errors, I mean. That roof trim also looks good I think -- I understand you don't want to be forced to use it, but it's not terribly disruptive in my eyes.

Regarding testing, I don't use the Gallery; but if you want anything tested, feel free to attach the lot to a post in this thread! It's OK to do that in Feedback, as long as you remove it again when you upload it for real.

Stuff for TS2 · TS3 · TS4 | Please do not PM me with technical questions – we have Create forums for that.

In the kingdom of the blind, do as the Romans do.
Field Researcher
Original Poster
#14 Old 17th Oct 2014 at 3:17 PM
Sounds good, Plasticbox. What's the best way to find the files to do that? There isn't exactly a designated Help section for Sims 4 yet, do you think you could point me in the right direction? Thanks
Pettifogging Legalist!
retired moderator
#15 Old 17th Oct 2014 at 3:43 PM
There is a TS4 Help! It's only not in the top menu .. it somehow evolved out of Discussion. http://www.modthesims.info/forumdisplay.php?f=691

But lot uploading (if that's what you were asking) is actually stickied in THIS forum =). http://www.modthesims.info/showthread.php?t=532723


I don't know when I'll be on the windows box again, so if anyone else can test, all the better.

Stuff for TS2 · TS3 · TS4 | Please do not PM me with technical questions – we have Create forums for that.

In the kingdom of the blind, do as the Romans do.
dodgy builder
#16 Old 17th Oct 2014 at 10:37 PM
I have noticed when I take out the gridlines in build with the G, I have problems placing lamps on the second floor of an 2 floor high room. I think the drag walls issue may be related to that and a confused game as on what floorlevel you're working on.
Field Researcher
Original Poster
#17 Old 19th Oct 2014 at 4:19 AM Last edited by icu2richelo : 2nd Sep 2017 at 11:16 PM.
Default Testers Wanted!
Quote: Originally posted by plasticbox
Regarding testing, I don't use the Gallery; but if you want anything tested, feel free to attach the lot to a post in this thread! It's OK to do that in Feedback, as long as you remove it again when you upload it for real.


Sounds good - Here's a test upload, based on the tutorial article you linked me to

Hopefully it shows up for you - If this is the latest version, there should be only a few furniture pieces placed. Just thought I'd test an upload to see if I got the right 8 files.

Thanks to anyone that tests this house for me!!

Directions: Download, unzip, and place all 8 (eight) files in your Tray folder!

UPDATE (9/2/17): I've removed the download for this home, as it was an old tester version and was unfinished.
Pettifogging Legalist!
retired moderator
#18 Old 24th Oct 2014 at 12:53 PM
OK, tested -- works fine and looks good in my game! =)

Two little hicups I noticed: you have frieze bits sticking out above your stairs indoor (are easy to delete), and one leftover column piece in the corner of that one room downstairs, see screenshots. (Ignore that column in the hallway/stairs (the dark wood one), that is a change that I made)

The roofing works great! Re. in-game playability/visibility I mean.
Screenshots

Stuff for TS2 · TS3 · TS4 | Please do not PM me with technical questions – we have Create forums for that.

In the kingdom of the blind, do as the Romans do.
Field Researcher
Original Poster
#19 Old 2nd Sep 2017 at 11:11 PM
I don't know if any of you all are still interested/following this thread as I know it has been like 3 years since I originally posted this. But, I got excited as I recently got the Vampire Game Pack and City Living. City Living added some cool old wallpapers and floors and the Vampire Pack added some much needed wall details that, when placed tastefully, help age things quite a bit. Get Together, which I've had for some time now, even has an awesome pillar to use on the corners of this house. To top it all off, I also found some excellent and much-needed custom content for the base-game windows I've used in this house via a creator named Mutske on The Sims Resource that allows placing the windows on 2-slot walls as opposed to just 1 slot walls, and vise versa for the window with shutters. I have placed the home in Midnight Hollow in the empty lot next to the "Cave of Bats," or whatever it's called and with all the additions and the cool lighting/fog effects in Midnight Hollow, it's just so much cooler looking than ever before. Here's a night shot of what I've come up with so far!

Test Subject
#20 Old 7th Sep 2017 at 11:13 PM
That looks really neat! I don't have the vampire pack yet so I am not familiar with it.
Test Subject
#21 Old 23rd Jan 2018 at 2:49 AM
Nice! Bonus points for sticking with it for all these years.
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