Homecrafter will not run anymore since NL - Solution inside

[WebbyMom]

As the subject says, since I installed NL, I cannot run Homecrafter. I have uninstalled and re-installed it several times to no avail. (All my hardward config's are up to or over recommended standards, so won't bore you with them.)

I do not have UNI, only Sims2 and NL, plus all relative Maxis patches. I have one hack (the wedding formal one), but this was happening way before I installed it, so that can't be the problem.

Other than that, I have new meshes and re-colored Maxis objects in-game, which didn't seem to bother Homecrafter before.

Since I got NL, and since this trouble started, I had to wipe my hard drive and re-install everything. Hoping that would end up being a fix as a side effect, I happily re-downloaded and installed Homecrafter.

Notta. *sigh*

The only thing that happens when I attempt to run it is that a text file and a .mdpd or some such file is created in the Homecrafter folder. :P (I'm not sure of that extension - I got mad and uninstalled and deleted it all last night! LOL)

I asked EA Games for help on their support site, but apparently they don't support Homecrafter and Bodyshop. :( So I'm hoping against hope that someone here can help me. I know I'm not the only one with the problem, as I asked on the BBS and one person responded saying they had the same troubles. No help came, though.

I've tried re-naming my downloads folder and making a new blank one, but that has no effect. I've tried re-starting the computer after re-installations, but that doesn't help.

I do not have any troubles with BodyShop, it runs just fine. Funny thing is, I am having trouble with SimPE and Wizards of SimPE (not asking for help on those here, just mentioning in case it may be related). They won't catalogue any of the game objects at all. So maybe I have some deeper troubles??

Other than that, the game is running extremely well and there are no weird bugs happening, so I'm really lost. Any suggestions will be appreciated.

Edit:

Please try all suggestions on this Wiki article before posting:
http://www.sims2wiki.info/wiki.php?title=Game_Help:Homecrafter

[amberandcarlos33]

I am having problems with Homecrafter Plus as well. I can't even load my application. I only downloaded it today and when I double click on the shortcut icon on my desktop, nothing happens. I also tried opening the file from the start menu and program files, again nothing. I believe I have all of the system requirements since (I am assuming) they match the system Requirements for the sims2 and the EP's. I also get the same text file and weird mdpd file extension when I try to open it and I to only have Sims2 and NL installed, not University. I am guessing that perhaps the Homecrafter Plus isn't compatible with NL or something. I will look into it further on the official site and snoop around and see if I can't help us both.

Good luck,
Amber

[amberandcarlos33]

Recently found this post in another forum here at ModtheSims2. http://www.modthesims2.com/showthread.php?t=103951&highlight=Homecrafter

I'm going to look into making custom floors/walls with SimPE since it works and am going to look for another program that does the similar to Homecrafter Plus. Those arrogant bastards. Grr!

[WebbyMom]

Aha, but I've found a fix just yesterday and it worked for me! It's a work-around, but hey, not a hard one. I just totally happened upon it over at the BBS from another user's post.

Right-click the HomeCrafter link, choose "Run as" and then just click "OK" with the pop-up that comes up. It worked for me. Starts up no problem now.

Funny that it ran before without UNI, but it only stopped once I installed NL. Very odd. Anyways, I hope that this works for you, too!

[amberandcarlos33]

FANTASTIC!!! I am so giddy that it works!! Woohoo! (well not simish woohoo, but ya know what I mean!) Thanks so much! I'll pass it on!

[plasticbox]

Right-click the HomeCrafter link, choose "Run as" ...

You just saved my day (I also have NL, no Uni). This works! Thank you so much! =)

[Aleesha]

Wow! Thank you so much!!! It's not open yet but the Task Manager says it runs :D Maybe I should give it some minutes to open^^

edit: but it says i don't have enough space on my drive... SUCKS i goddamn HAVE enough space!!!.......

[Ellatrue]

I tried the "run as" thing but it isn't working for me... could it be because I have an english game on a german computer? could it be that it can't find the right folders or something? I don't think I could handle using simPE....

[plasticbox]

I tried the "run as" thing but it isn't working for me... could it be because I have an english game on a german computer?

No -- at least, that can't be the only reason: I also run the game (english) on a german system, and for me it is working. ("system" = XP Pro)

[Steffieb]

I tried it, and it worked to start the homecrafter, but when I click on add new content, it doesn't show anything but the template. Also the thumbnails don't show any of my custom walls and floors or downloaded ones?

Any ideas?

[WebbyMom]

You know, Steffieb, I've been able to run it, and to change things, but not to save them/import them. :P So I'm guessing it's not the fix I thought it was going to be. (I've been meaning to get back here and post about it, but with Christmas prep going on, it's been low on my list of priorities. ;) Being as it came through my inbox today, though, I figured I'd pop by with that tidbit.)

[gonkski222]

I am also having problems running HomeCrafter since installing Nightlife. The "run-as" thing isn't working for me (I tried it before finding this post). If anyone finds a fix to this, please let us know!

[gonkski222]

I checked this out on the official EA games site, and it appears we are not the only ones with this problem. From what I read, HomeCrafter just doesn't work unless you have BOTH expansion packs.

However, one person used this as a work-around. I haven't tried it yet, but I'm throwing it out there for anyone who cares to try it. It relates to Windows XP, and people who work under the "Administrator" login.

"I created a new user account in XP and homecrafter worked just as it had before NIghtlife-- The files are saved into the new user's Sims2 Downloads folder and I can easily move them over to my main user's Sims2 Downloads folder."

[sesame9]

Hoover Dam I wished I would have read these posts prior to uninstalling and reinstalling, deleting, backing up blah blah. I Will try the new user thing thanks for helping me regain my sanity...

[WebbyMom]

However, one person used this as a work-around. I haven't tried it yet, but I'm throwing it out there for anyone who cares to try it. It relates to Windows XP, and people who work under the "Administrator" login.

"I created a new user account in XP and homecrafter worked just as it had before NIghtlife-- The files are saved into the new user's Sims2 Downloads folder and I can easily move them over to my main user's Sims2 Downloads folder."

It works!!!! :grouphug:

To be clear, with WinXP, create a new limited user account (i.e., non-administrator account), then run Sims2 NL once to create all the folders, etc. Then run HomeCrafter Plus, make something to test it out, and save it. And yes, it actually saved it this time!! Yeeee haaaa! :thumb: :yippee: :clap: :dance:

What I did next was go back into my usual (admin) account and created a shortcut to the limited account's Sims2 Downloads folder onto my desktop. That way I can click to open it, cut the completed projects out, then paste them into my admin account's Downloads folder.

Thanks so much for the great lead, dude! Appreciate it! :gjob:

[daysies]

WebbyMom - thanks for the information and your tests. I'll go ahead and sticky this for now until we can get a proper FAQ created.

[RealHogsFan]

I just wanted to post my results of the Homecrafter Issue with Night Life.

I just started up Homecrafter. I have TS2, Uni, NL & the Holiday Pack. I started up my HCP and when it hadn't started after a couple of mins, I brought up my Windows Task Manager to see if it was running. Sure enough it was there. so I walked away from my computer and did something else for about 15 mins. when I came back HCP was up and ready for me to create a wall, floor or ground cover. so i think the solution to everyones problem is to first make sure not to have RGiles "Frost-covered partically transparent tile" (http://www.modthesims2.com/showthread.php?t=34012&highlight=glass+tile+floor) in your downloads folder. He does mention in his post that it will cause problems in HCP. As quoted by RGiles: The 5th item in the zip file as a frost-covered partially transparent tile. I thought some of you might like it. However it DOES break compatibility with Homecrafters Plus. If you do not remove this tile from your downloads before you try to create or edit a floor tile in HCP, the program will crash. You know it could be causing problems with it starting up, who knows? but I did remember to remove it before i started HCP and mine started up just fine. I just wanted to point that out just in case. So try this solution out first: Remove RG's frosted tile floor (just for saftey measures), then start up HCP, wait a min or two and check Task Manager to make sure it's running, then walk away for about 15 or some mins (depending on how many floors, walls & ground cover files you have in your downloads folder) and do something else. come back and see if HCP is running and waiting for you to play with.

this is just a suggestion. Hope that it does solve alot of the HCP not starting up problems. Maybe all it needs is a little bit of patience from it's human.

p.s. i am running an administrator enabled windows xp desktop.

pss - as far as i can tell, HCP will not start up the program until after it has scanned your downloads folder for walls, floors, & ground cover, then it will show the program on the desktop and proceed as usual. It's just that the more files you have for it to open, the longer it is going to take to open.

I am going to first use Sims2Pack Clean Installer to make sure that all of my Walls, Floors, & Ground Cover files are sorted out into seperate folders, then I will talley up how many total I have, then I will time how long it takes for my HCP to start up and become ready for my pleasure. I'll post back my results, hopefully it will help in getting to the bottom of this issue.

EDIT: TEST RESULTS
I have 309 Floors, 95 Terrain Paints, & 1,229 Walls all totalled to 1,633 files.
HCP showed up in my Windows Task Manager immediately after I clicked on my startup link.
HCP Program Interface showed up in 4 minutes and 50 seconds after I clicked on my startup link.
HCP was fully usable in 5 minutes and 42 seconds after I clicked on my startup link.

I do hope that this helps everyone out in figuring out their problems with HCP starting up after installing NL.

[jaxad0127]

edit: but it says i don't have enough space on my drive... SUCKS i goddamn HAVE enough space!!!.......That'll happen if the export folder is readonly.

[shinelikestars]

I'm having a huge problem with homecrafter. I reinstalled it so it would run, and it did. I can do walls without any problems at all. However, all of the floors I've created don't seem to have a graphics file attached when in game. They look fine in HC, but when I open the game, they are there but "empty" black, instead of what they really are. Anyone have any suggestions for that???

P.S. I have both NL and Univ. Now all my beautiful floors are gone.

[RealHogsFan]

I'm having a huge problem with homecrafter. I reinstalled it so it would run, and it did. I can do walls without any problems at all. However, all of the floors I've created don't seem to have a graphics file attached when in game. They look fine in HC, but when I open the game, they are there but "empty" black, instead of what they really are. Anyone have any suggestions for that???

P.S. I have both NL and Univ. Now all my beautiful floors are gone.

oh that does not sound good at all. You know, i think someone asked a question like this about objects. There's also questions about this on the BBS at TS2.com but noone has replied to the issue, not even maxis. if i find anything on it, i'll make sure to let you know.

[sue_46]

I'm having a huge problem with homecrafter. I reinstalled it so it would run, and it did. I can do walls without any problems at all. However, all of the floors I've created don't seem to have a graphics file attached when in game. They look fine in HC, but when I open the game, they are there but "empty" black, instead of what they really are. Anyone have any suggestions for that???

P.S. I have both NL and Univ. Now all my beautiful floors are gone.


I am using coral Photo-paint to edit.. ( I have Uni but its uninstalled)
just run NL
I open the template that comes with HC and copy the bmp I want to use onto this,save it as whatever and open up HC using the run command
and it works .. tried it now with both walls and floors

Hope this helps in someway..

[Mirjam]

i've tried "run as" but then it says that the homcrafter plus is already runnning- and its not!
ps i have NL only

[jaxad0127]

Restart your computer and try again.

[Mirjam]

o, right,
THANX!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
:moose:

[Mirjam]

me, again
it's working but when i click "import to the game" it says:

there is not enought hard disc space to export selected textures.

why?
someone please help :confused:

:blink:

[jaxad0127]

Is your downloads folder readonly?

[Mirjam]

there are only package files in my downloads folder

[Mirjam]

yuhu... any sugestions? please i'm desperate

[jaxad0127]

Is the folder itself readonly?

[Mirjam]

yes it is...

[jaxad0127]

Thats your problem. Maxis has a weird way of complaining about things. If it can't create a new file, it says the disc is out of space, even though that might not be the problem. See if changing it helps.

[daysies]

Has anyone tested this with Open for Business?

[gonkski222]

Thanks so much for the great lead, dude! Appreciate it! :gjob:

You're very welcome. But I'm soooo not a dude! :female:

:p

[jaxad0127]

Has anyone tested this with Open for Business?Some one on the SimPE site reported a problem with Homecrafter after installing OfB. i directed them to this thread.

[electric]

Hiya Ive been reading this as my home crafter loaded, but crashed when i clicked the floor tool. I tried the 'run as' method and it worked.I have all the exps installed Open For Business. Im just adding more info that it happened with OFB not just NL.Its working fine so far.

[danafray]

What an absolute pain in the arse that is to find out. Thank god there were posts on here to read and find the solution to the problem. The 'run as' worked for me after spending almost an hour uninstalling and installing Homecrafter. There is nothing on the Exchange about this or what to do. Thanks to everyone here who contributed to these posts on this topic - it took me all of about 3 minutes to read these posts and solve my problem. Grrr.

[julianarosalia]

Ok, I don't have any problems running Homecrafter. But what I do have an issue with is when I try to access the Projects -> HomeCrafter Plus subdirectory folder to copy images that I've created to make walls, explorer crashes freezes up on me. I have to manually End Task to close the folder. This also happens when I try to save the file directly to the folder with Photoshop. Any clues on what could be wrong?

[HystericalParoxysm]

If you have a file with a bad/long/invalid name in that directory, you can run into that problem - I was having something similar happen, though not in relation to Homecrafter (Windows Explorer, Photoshop, or any other program looking in a certain directory would crash as soon as I tried to view the file contents). The solution I found was to delete the contents of the folder in a DOS prompt, though renaming the files to something that doesn't confuse your computer would probably work, too, if it's due to the same sort of issue.

[julianarosalia]

Thanks HP, I'll try to sort it out and post back later.

[jaxad0127]

Just so you know, file paths (includeing the drive and folders) shouldn't exceed 255 characters. And, you shouldn't have more than about 64 files on the root of any drive.

[julianarosalia]

HP, I moved the files out of the HomeCrafter folder thru DOS and the it's working fine now. Thanks so much for the help (don't know why I didn't think of doing that sooner, I have a degree in this stuff after all... silly geek can't seem to do tech support for myself ;)).

[juniorvindahl]

After installing OFB (and that is the only Ep I have) my HomeCrafter would not run, I did what everybody told me to do. And now it runs. Thank you for your help.
However, I now have a new problem: it does not load any other floors, walls or groundcovers than tose in the original game. Not any from OFB or any custom content. Does anybody have a clue as to what is wrong? Please help me.

[dos-x]

thanks for this and to Webbymom. i'll do this roundabout step and hopefully get this bloody thing working.

*grumble grumble*

:) thank you though!!

Im getting "Cannot open C:\Docs and sets\dosx\desktop\ts2homecrafterplus_install.exe" out of Winrar.

wait nvm. i may have done something..yes i unchecked the underbubble that says 'protect my computer'

another case of techie gone stupid.

[pikameta]

I appreciate all the help in this thread, but I have one more question... for the check if the imports/downloads folder is read-only which one do I need to check??

I have XP with "all users", "default user" and me and my husband in my docs & Settings folders. i've gone into every user and marked every EA folder that's called "downloads" as not read-only, but I still get the "not enough disk space" error. What am I still doing wrong?

TIA for the help!
:)

[jaxad0127]

Windows ignores that bit, so it may have not been unset.

[shinelikestars]

That's bizarre Mirjam, is your hard drive actually full? If it is, time to start deleting some things!

I finally figured out what the problem was with Homecrafter! It was those evil but lovely transparent tiles! Once I took all of the transparent tiles out of my game, I was able to restore all my floors!

[RealHogsFan]

I have all EPs except family fun and my homecrafter runs just fine and exports to my game just fine and what not. One problem you all might be having is if you have Numneors (i think i spelled that wrong) frosted floor tile in your downloads. He has warned in that thread that IT WILL cause problems with homecrafter. It is not ALL of the transparent tiles it's just the frosted one. I cannot remember the name of the file exactly cause i didn't put it in my game to begin with. But trying finding and removing that if you have it and see if that helps. As far as the not enough hard disc space, well that issue has been addressed, read through all the posts to this thread and you will find your answer.

[jupitersunrise]

I'm losing my head over this!

I have the base game and NL, and so I was having the same problem as the others, that when I double-clicked on the HCP icon, nothing happened. I tried the Run As solution, and then the program opened.

It worked fine up until I tried to export a wall to the game. Then I got the "not enough disk space" error. So, I checked my downloads folder and took off the Read Only checkmark--or else, I tried to--it seemed to apply the changes, but when I checked again, Read Only was still marked!

Then I thought, "Maybe I DO have those transparent floor tiles," because I wasn't sure whether or not I did. So I downloaded them to find out the filenames, and sure enough, they were in my Downloads folder. I closed HCP, I deleted the transparent floor tiles, and reloaded HCP.

Now, I can't even load a wall template--I immediately get the "not enough hard disk space" error! I even tried deleting a bunch of stuff from my computer and emptied the recycle bin, but I still got that message. I don't understand why I got further before I removed the transparent floor tiles!

Any ideas? I'm thinking the problem is that I can't un-Read Only my downloads folder... how do I fix that?

[jaxad0127]

It has been said many times and appearently, I'm going to have to say it again, Windows ignores that bit and so it won't (un)set it. Try move it to the desktop, opening and closing Bodyshop and copying the files back into the new folder.

[jupitersunrise]

It has been said many times and appearently, I'm going to have to say it again, Windows ignores that bit and so it won't (un)set it. Try move it to the desktop, opening and closing Bodyshop and copying the files back into the new folder.

Actually, that wasn't said once in this whole thread. In one comment you did say, "Windows ignores that bit, so it may have not been unset." And yeah, I got that--that was my exact problem. But there was no solution ever mentioned.

Thank you for your reply.

[jupitersunrise]

Anyway, I just tried what you suggested and it didn't work. I still can't make my downloads folder non-Read Only, and even if I create an entirely new folder in my Sims folder it automatically sets it to Read Only. I give up--I'll try the SimPE method instead.

[jaxad0127]

Actually, that wasn't said once in this whole thread.Maybe not this thread, but this forum and site.

[RealHogsFan]

jupiter, i'm sorry, i just really don't know what to tell you. I know that I run all the games except family fun and I can open my HCP just fine. Maybe you have something else that is causing the problems. Try just moving your downloads folder out all together and then attempting to run HCP and see if it runs and exports and what not. If it still does not work then maybe you should reinstall HCP and try again. Have you done a whole lot of altering of your core game files? That could be an issue. I do hope that my advice does help you, if it does not, i'm very sorry. When I had the issues that you are experiencing, I removed the frosted transparent floor tile and it worked just fine. It takes it some time to show up on my desktop due to the amount of walls, floors & ground cover in my folder, but it always starts up and I don't have any problems opening templates and exporting into the game. I suggest removing your entire downloads folder from the directory then trying to run HCP, you could possibly have another wall, floor or ground cover that is causing the problem. Please post back your findings if you do try my suggestion. I hope that it works.

p.s. if HCP does not run with an empty downloads folder, then most likely you will need to reinstall HCP, TS2 and any EP you have. After you remove your downloads folder and before you start up HCP, try restarting your computer.

[jaxad0127]

THe problem is the readonly bit, which Windows ignores, but Maxis doesn't. HCP finds it can't create a new file in the downloads folder and it assumes that the harddrive is full.

[HoweClan2]

Thank you, thank you, thank you all.

[IgnorantBliss]

Apparently the Homecrafter has been updated and should now be compatible with all expansions and "stuff packs". Get it at the official site (http://thesims2.ea.com/getcoolstuff/homecrafter.php).

[corinneb]

I don't know if this will help anyone, but I have been having the same problems (no hard disk space error). I tried everything that was suggested here with no luck. Finally I tried using the owner account for my computer, I was using my user account and not the owner account for the computer. When I first tried opening Homecrafter and saving, it still didn't save so I closed it. Then I reopened it and tried saving again, this time I noticed that the file it was extracting was from the owner account and not my user account. Point being it worked and saved. So if you are using a seprate account from the owner account on your computer, try using the owner account and working with Homecrafter there. If it doesn't work the first time, try again. Hopefully this all makes sense and was able to help some of you!

[Smgirl825]

Thank you soo much about that work around. This problem just started today with homecrafter.And I came here knowing that you guys share your tips when problems arise. Thanks! :duck: *quacks* *blows kisses* to who gave the run as tip

[Smgirl825]

Okay everybody I got a sure solution for you save all of your bmp files in:

C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Documents\EA Games\The Sims 2\Projects\HomeCrafter Plus\

depending on what you are making save it in the folder that it needs to be.
EX: Floors, walls ,ground textures.
And also when you start the program you still have to open the program by right-clicking and selecting run as..

[2Sim2Quit]

I just wanted to post my results of the Homecrafter Issue with Night Life.

I just started up Homecrafter. I have TS2, Uni, NL & the Holiday Pack. I started up my HCP and when it hadn't started after a couple of mins, I brought up my Windows Task Manager to see if it was running. Sure enough it was there. so I walked away from my computer and did something else for about 15 mins. when I came back HCP was up and ready for me to create a wall, floor or ground cover. so i think the solution to everyones problem is to first make sure not to have RGiles "Frost-covered partically transparent tile" (http://www.modthesims2.com/showthread.php?t=34012&highlight=glass+tile+floor) in your downloads folder. He does mention in his post that it will cause problems in HCP. As quoted by RGiles: You know it could be causing problems with it starting up, who knows? but I did remember to remove it before i started HCP and mine started up just fine. I just wanted to point that out just in case. So try this solution out first: Remove RG's frosted tile floor (just for saftey measures), then start up HCP, wait a min or two and check Task Manager to make sure it's running, then walk away for about 15 or some mins (depending on how many floors, walls & ground cover files you have in your downloads folder) and do something else. come back and see if HCP is running and waiting for you to play with.

this is just a suggestion. Hope that it does solve alot of the HCP not starting up problems. Maybe all it needs is a little bit of patience from it's human.

p.s. i am running an administrator enabled windows xp desktop.

pss - as far as i can tell, HCP will not start up the program until after it has scanned your downloads folder for walls, floors, & ground cover, then it will show the program on the desktop and proceed as usual. It's just that the more files you have for it to open, the longer it is going to take to open.

I am going to first use Sims2Pack Clean Installer to make sure that all of my Walls, Floors, & Ground Cover files are sorted out into seperate folders, then I will talley up how many total I have, then I will time how long it takes for my HCP to start up and become ready for my pleasure. I'll post back my results, hopefully it will help in getting to the bottom of this issue.

EDIT: TEST RESULTS
I have 309 Floors, 95 Terrain Paints, & 1,229 Walls all totalled to 1,633 files.
HCP showed up in my Windows Task Manager immediately after I clicked on my startup link.
HCP Program Interface showed up in 4 minutes and 50 seconds after I clicked on my startup link.
HCP was fully usable in 5 minutes and 42 seconds after I clicked on my startup link.

I do hope that this helps everyone out in figuring out their problems with HCP starting up after installing NL.


I just wanted to say a big THANK YOU for your input regarding those tiles. All it took was removing them, and I have not had a problem since. I certainly wish I had found your post about a million posts earlier, but that of course is not the point. Again, thank you! :rofl:

[teaguevm]

Looks like when you install the new Pets EP, this problem comes up again. I never had any difficulty when I installed Uni and NL. But, now - all that we are discussing here is happening to mine with the new Pets installed. I tried the 'Run as' and -as it says here - there is only the template.

I can go in under 'explore' and see all of my custom content in the folders. I even see the new stuff that I copied over and want to create. However, when I double click - nothing happens. And - when I run as - then none of the custom stuff is there.

Grrrrrr - And that is not a happy puppy from the game.....

So - what - is the moral of the story that you have to install EPs in pairs?

[megativity13]

Looks like when you install the new Pets EP, this problem comes up again. I never had any difficulty when I installed Uni and NL. But, now - all that we are discussing here is happening to mine with the new Pets installed. I tried the 'Run as' and -as it says here - there is only the template.

I can go in under 'explore' and see all of my custom content in the folders. I even see the new stuff that I copied over and want to create. However, when I double click - nothing happens. And - when I run as - then none of the custom stuff is there.

Grrrrrr - And that is not a happy puppy from the game.....

So - what - is the moral of the story that you have to install EPs in pairs?

I am having the same problem, teaguevm. Only I have OFB as well. All installed in the correct order and all patched. This is infuriating.

Another issue I've encountered is that when I tried the run as tip, (a few pieces of custom content loaded- which I believe were things that I downloaded when I only had the base game+uni.) My Projects>HomeCrafter Plus folder was empty. So I replaced those folders and restarted HCP. Tried to create a wall, but the Working Directory was empty. Tried to clone a wall, Working Directory still empty.

Is anyone else experiencing this problem with Pets installed?

:faceslap:

[izazu]

I am having this same problem with Homecrafter +

I try to open it and I get the hour glass for 5 secs

and then nothing happens...As if I did nothing at all...

Any help would be greatly appreciated .....

/Linda

[teaguevm]

Yep - that is what I have happen as well, izazu. I've tried going to EA Games for help, too. So far I have no real help from them, either.

[HystericalParoxysm]

There's a thread on similar issues (HC not working after Pets) over here too: http://www.modthesims2.com/showthread.php?t=198116

I had the same problem (try to open it, nothing happens) and got it working again. I posted with what worked to get it working for me on that there thread. ;)

[teaguevm]

Thanks HP! Working again! :)

[izazu]

Got mine to work also!
I uninstalled the Homecrafter I had and re-installed the new version!

All is ok now! Thanks!

[electric]

With mine (wont run) I clicked the run as and it works.Everything loads.but theres nothing in my projects folder.Completely empty,not even the homecrafter folder there.Its like it wasnt installed.But the program does run for me.I have installed Pets.

oh yeah... im installing homecrafter again so i hope it works.

[izazu]

That just might work for you, uninstalling and then re installing HomeCrafter+..And this way you are sure to get the newest version of Homecrafter too...

[XTS]

I'm getting exception errors, even with trying to reinstall :o
Not sure this is a battle I wanna fight lol

I moved my downloads folder to my desktop, made another one called the same.
I tried run as.. for both running it and reinstalling the other.
Nothing, no response aside from kicking out a file called TS2Uberkat (date here).txt

In the last one (trying to reinstall):

Exception module: C:\PROGRA~1\EAGAME~1\THESIM~2\HCBin\TS2HomeCrafterPlus.exe.
Exception address: 0x00402d27. Section:Offset: 0x01:0x00001d27.

Call stack:
(Debug information (.pdb files) appears to be absent).

(not sure what is relevant)

Also note that I tried to remove the file and reinstall (removed homecrafterplus.exe) and it told me it was missing or corrupt.

*sigh* all of this over wall boredom!
Suppose I'll wait to recreate something for now. I really can't see finding a fix for mine.

But thought I"d post just in case.
Thanks
**EDIT** I have all EPs on this computer, including Seasons.
Some reason I don't have family fun stuff on this one but I'm fixing to change that.

[XTS]

Good News!!!!

I installed family fun stuff.. Installed every patch at the site starting at the top
(hey, I was desperate! lol) and my HCP opened up.. Not right up of course but it's running!! :D Thank you guys for posting your solution possibilities.. I didn't have to mess with my downloads folder this time at all.. Just got patches.. I have no clue which patch helped or if I was having another issue before.. But I thank you much!

:D :D :D

*Xts*
ps.. My quote still holds true though lol

[cokeandvodka]

i've another suggestion for those who are having difficulty running homecrafter, especially trying to open up the floor section -
simply cut all the floor custom contents and paste it into a safe place for a backup, try rerunning the hc afterward. Then of course, replace the custom contents back into your downloads folder

I've had the same problem, most likely it was caused by the transparent floors but i fixed that with the above suggestion. :bunny:

[Meemo]

Aha, but I've found a fix just yesterday and it worked for me! It's a work-around, but hey, not a hard one. I just totally happened upon it over at the BBS from another user's post.

Right-click the HomeCrafter link, choose "Run as" and then just click "OK" with the pop-up that comes up. It worked for me. Starts up no problem now.

Funny that it ran before without UNI, but it only stopped once I installed NL. Very odd. Anyways, I hope that this works for you, too!

thanks so much for this - it worked for me too!! or so I thought.....

then got the disk full error - then realised I had an RGiles floor - goodness knows where that came from... couldn't see it in HCP so restarted game deleted it there... closed game ..run HCP (still had to run as...) still got the disk full error - so what are we saying here folks? is there no cure?

and yes my folder is read only and no I can't change it.. :cry:

oh I finally managed to uninstall HCP but it won't let me install it again so now I have no HCP at all...

[Patrik356b]

How big is the harddísc you have TS2 and Homecrafter installed on ?
__________________________________

I have almost all EP's and Stuffpacks...

But Homecrafter works for me...

[SIMCITIZEN4]

Hi there, I was just wondering whether there is an alternative editor to Homecrafter for making walls, floors and terrains as I am sick and tired of trying to make this program work. I have tried everything that has been suggested to no avail. I think EA sucks with its stand on "not supporting THEIR program. I wonder how quickly they will change their stance if we stop supporting them!!! Thumbs up to all you great sims program creators out there who create fantastic programs, give them to us for free and then still support them as well all for free. You guys (and gals) are the BEST!

[The Sorceress]

I have run in to the read only problem with HCP, could change the folder option but it got changed back to read only again.

Now if you are in the main account this doesn't occur but if you are using a user account it does, now this is how i changed it. You do need administrator rights, or else ask the person that has them. Hopes it works for others with this problem too

- go to the main Sims2 folder right click properties,
- click the security tab
- click the account that is the one you use and
- click modify
- tick the option "full controle"
- click accept than OK

Now you can change the read only option and it stays that way and you can finally save and use your HCP folders and sub folders. :)

[Dove Gem]

I am having the problem with HCP myself. I have Windows Vista home Premium. I tried run as administrator NOTHING,

If HCP won't work, what paint program can I use to make my walls and floors. What extension does it have to be ending with (exp: bmp, gif or jpg).

I would like some help if can, [email protected] if anyone can help

I've used HCP but that was when I have Windows XP but now I have Windows Vista Home Premium tho

HELPPPP :(

[sherambles]

I'm getting the no disk space error as well. I have tons of space on my pc. I am using the expansion Uni, Seasons, and NL. So I am not sure why it is doing this. I've tried everything; including reinstalling all of Sims2, reinstalling HomeCrafter, and using different accounts. I am the administrator of the pc and that doesn't seem to matter. (Btw, I have to right click and run as to open the program.)

[Nintai]

:cry:I didn't want to clog up this topic with more help request but I am at the end of my rope:cry:

At first I couldn't run the program at all. I started over at Game Help-->Homecrafter--->Bodyshop and Homecraft FAQ's (http://www.modthesims2.com/wiki.php?title=Game_Help:Homecrafter) where I first tried the Debug resolutions to no avail. Next, I went through a full reinstall of the homecrafter downloaded from EA AFTER I fully removed the program and restarted. Neither of those resolved the problem so I decided to try and hit the forums. Here in this topic I found the info about running as an admin on your machine which HAS ALLOWED me to run the program but I get the "there is not enough hard disk space to export the selected texture" error message when I try to export a texture. I am running on all expansions as an administrator with 49.9 GB of free space on Windows XP. I am having the problem unchecking the "read only" button. I tried to follow the info I found by The Sorceress about editing properties but when you go to my documents-->ea games-->Sims2 right click properties I don't get the security tab that was indicated to be there within this link (http://www.modthesims2.com/showthread.php?t=107222&c=1&ht=0&page=4&pp=25#startcomments). If anyone could provide input I would be extremely grateful. At this point I am willing to try any idea... though a full re-install of the sims and all expansions may be a little too much work for just the HomeCrafter. Thank you in advance for any help.

[Canoodle]

Maybe this can be of some help:
http://www.modthesims2.com/showthread.php?t=295024 Seems to have solved the Vista issue.

[Nintai]

Thank you very much Canoodle. IssaNet's solution worked on my first try. You are a lifesaver. There is no telling if I ever would have found that on my own. ^^; Also, thanks to everyone else who was brainstorming on this. I found a lot of good feedback on this error. It was that older version of the homecrafter that did it then... everyone else here having the same trouble head on over to the link Canoodle so graciously provided and scroll down to post #19.

[Nintai]

lmao! Well I am glad you were lost in the sims2tools area... I should probably wonder around there a bit too. Thanks again... I am going to go create those dang floors I have been wanting for 3 months and I owe it mostly to you.

[Canoodle]

You're welcome. I just happened upon it in the sims2tools area. What I was doing there, I have no idea! :p

[Osthrys]

So, I just downloaded HomeCrafter Plus. It all works fine, I can load, and everything. It's just that I'm getting that 'not enough hard disk space' thing, and I've tried everything that I've been told to try.
Of course, I eventually realized that the bin where you actually put you .BMP files you make is automatically put into a spot it wont work in. With Installation of it, it puts the .exe file to open it in the program files EA Games file, but the Ea Games folder with the files is under 'Documents and Settings', then 'All Users', then 'Shared Documents'. Porblem here is that Windows has the 'Documents and Settings' folder set to Read Only, and I tried unclicking that but it doesn't stick. It just keeps going back to read only when I try to access it.
So I get the hard disk error because the access folders are in a part of my computer that is locked as read only by Windows, and can not be changed.
There does not seem to be a way for me to move the access folders to another part of my copmuter, copying or moving doesn't do anything, it just creates a new set of the folders back in the same place.
Is their some way I can chnage where the HomeCrafter Plus get's the .BMP files from?
Thanks.

[we0905]

I've been looking for the solution to this problem all day. Thank you soooooo much!

we0905 :) :up:

[Mahouteki]

I had the problem with Homecrafter as well, and I followed the instructions on replacing the .exe and it seemed to work fine. I put in a couple of walls and they worked in my game... but... now I can't get Homecrafter to run again, it crashes immediately. I've tried complete uninstalls and reinstalls of it, and I can't get it to work again like it did the one time. There's no message about low memory or anything like that - just "The application has crashed. The application will now terminate." I've tried renaming my Downloads folder so it skips over it... it still crashes. Any ideas?

[mintcherry]

<unable to import any bmp files>

I am having a problem with Homecrafter Plus.
Since I got PETS, HCP didn't work. So I tried the "run as" thing and HCP ran.
But I didn't solve a problem.

Now, my HCP doesn't read bmp files in the directory-C:\Documents and Settings\Administrator\My Documents\EA Games\sims2\Projects\HomeCrafter plus\Walls(or Floors, ect...).
After When I click "Creat New Content", I can see only Template.bmp file.

I can't creat walls. It is bad.
Please help me.

[simsample]

Just to check- are there any BMP files in that folder? And were they there when you booted HCP?

[mintcherry]

Just to check- are there any BMP files in that folder? And were they there when you booted HCP?


Of course.
I always run HCP after including bmp files in the folder.

[simsample]

Have you tried reinstalling HCP since this has occurred? Check out wiki link in the first post.

[mintcherry]

I forgot to mention about what I did try.
I tried reinstalling HCP many times in conformity with the link. But it came to the same thing.
I can't understand why it ain't going right. It's keeping me up allnight for several days.

Anyway, thank you for your careness.
I hope that you or anyone will find the solution.
I really need help.

[EOlsen86]

I finally got homecrafter plus to come up by clicking on run as... but when I got to open my projects folder it empty! Can I create a folder like I had to do with the downloads or does it have to be put in there from the program? I'm not sure what to do.

[simsample]

EOlsen86, see your thread here:
http://www.modthesims2.com/showthread.php?p=2059884&posted=1#post2059884

[kitten111110]

i got HCP yesterday yet it will only load 1/3 of the way, i have tried all the wiki things and nothing, i have all expansions and stuff packs. i have windows Xp and have 3/5 hard drive space left any help?

[simsample]

Did you try with a clean set of userdata also?

[angieb]

I've just had problems running HCP (access violation, not enough space etc) I had to reinstall XP and everything else after my whole system crashed. I've read through a few of these threads and managed to get it working by right clicking on the shortcut, then properties, compatability, then learn more about program compatability look for and click on run compatability wizard, I set it to Windows 2000 and disabled visual themes, none of the custom content is showing (I only have a few custom files at the minute) but at least I've got it to work. I have some walls and floor's that I've made using simPe I will redo them using HCP and see what happens will let you know if this is a permanent fix. I have all of the expansions.

It will keep opening but say's not enough space to save wall files, I have 91% free. Will try the security tab. Other than that I will carry on using simPe and just view the walls In HCP to make sure they look okay.

Sim Echoes has a self extactor file that replaces the one in the HCBin click this link:

http://www.simechoes.org/sims2/sims2info/archive/maxian/homecrafter.html

Make sure you read the instructions before using. Works brilliantly all problems solved. Big thanks to Sim Echoes :D

[nanatoana]

Aha, but I've found a fix just yesterday and it worked for me! It's a work-around, but hey, not a hard one. I just totally happened upon it over at the BBS from another user's post.

Right-click the HomeCrafter link, choose "Run as" and then just click "OK" with the pop-up that comes up. It worked for me. Starts up no problem now.

Funny that it ran before without UNI, but it only stopped once I installed NL. Very odd. Anyways, I hope that this works for you, too!

This worked for me as well! I think it was Mishka (sp?) that first alerted us to the fix! :king: You guys rock!

[nanatoana]

Just to check- are there any BMP files in that folder? And were they there when you booted HCP?

I am kind of a noobie where this stuff is concerned, but I have a problem that I hope someone can tell me how to fix. I used the Use as....to open Homecrafter and it worked. However, when I went in to modify some walls that I have, they weren't there. Only the maxis walls were there, not the custom content I created a hundred years ago. Any suggestions? It's probably a really easy solution that my tired brain can't figure out:) Thanks in advance!

[angieb]

This worked for me as well! I think it was Mishka (sp?) that first alerted us to the fix! :king: You guys rock!

This didn't work for me, I think it depends on how many expansion packs you have installed, I tried all the suggestions and none of them of worked.

[mulchar]

(First, sorry for my bad English)
Yeah I was getting that "No space available" alert thingy but now ir works just fine.

When I created my first wall, the working directory is in D:\Documents and Settings\All users\Shared Documents\EA Games\The Sims 2\Projects NOT in my user's folder, and when I tried to imported it I got that error.

So I went to the "All Users" document and deleted the "EA Games" folder (Since my saved files are in my user's document). Then I opened HCP again WITH double click and it opened. When I tried to create my first wall and checked the working directory, it's in My User's document, and when I tried to import it, It succeed to import the file (FYI the folder IS the "Read Only" folder) and worked just fine in my game.

So, the point is, when you try the right click-run as theory, it will create the folder in the all user's document, that makes HCP doesn't work in (my) computer. Hope this helps :)

[SimGooferUpper]

I've had both homecrafter AND body shop for a few months. I have not been able to open it since oh, january 6th. Please post help at my guest book. http://thesims2.ea.com/mysimpage/pod.php

[SimGooferUpper]

I am having this same problem with Homecrafter +

I try to open it and I get the hour glass for 5 secs

and then nothing happens...As if I did nothing at all...

Any help would be greatly appreciated .....

/Linda

I am having THE SAME EXACT problem! :help:

[Deestar]

Does anyone have any idea what is going on when Homecrafter tells you that You don't have enough space on the hard drive to export the file to the game- I have a 500GB hard drive this should not be an issue.

[DollBox]

Ok I have tried all of the things people have suggested and I can't get this thing to even open. Does anyone know if it will just not work on Vista?

I am using Vista, and I suspect this may be my problem, because I have tried everything else. If this is the case then, does anyone know where I can find something Vista compatible, hopefuly they will release a new one with The Sims 3 for us Vista users :)

[clw8]

I also have the issue of not being able to export a file because of "not enough hard drive space", when in actuality, I have a lot of hard drive space, and the file is big as nothing......

What's up with that?

[tigerscc1]

i have vista ultimate and homecrafter plus vs 100988 copywrite 2004 :help: refuses to run and it saying in the memo that it needs a pdb file i tried all the stuff you have here and i even to compatibility to xpsp2 and clicked the box marked as run as administrator still nothing happends

[epicemz123]

Ive had problems with making custom flooring in HCP, i can load HCP up fine and i can make custom wall covering fine too, but when i click on the icon to make flooring a box comes up saying 'this aplication has crashed, this aplication will now terminate' any ideas?

[chatterboxM]

This still isn't working for me!! Why??

[LillianAllen]

Homecrafter AND Bodyshop won't work for me! I searched the whole site and did every single on of them still won't work!

[Inopportunist]

Well, I have Double Deluxe, Uni, OFB, and Fun with Pets running on Windows 7. This morning I opened HC for the first time and it loaded. I closed it right after because I didn't have my textures ready to create a new wallpaper. After that, I downloaded a few new wallpapers off of MTS and some other site. After installing them, I downloaded some textures and used PaintToolSai to edit them to use them for HC. Then, I went to enter HC and accidently hit BodyShop instead. I quickly hit HC after that, while BS was still loading and a message came up a few moments later that HC was already running. Thinking it was just conflicting with BS, I used the Task Manager to end the processes for BodyShop and make sure HC wasn't still running. Then I clicked on HC again and the message "The application has crashed..." popped up immediately. I restarted my computer and checked for any Sims 2 processes in Task Manager, didn't find any, and tried to start HC again. The same message came up again. Then I tried to "Run as Administrator" and the message came up yet again. I uninstalled HC and installed it again. The same message came up. I have removed all of the packages labled floor and wall from my downloads. I re-installed HC a third time and the same message popped up.

I was finally able to run HC after removing my Downloads folder entirely.