Only way to avoid it is by having a complete install via disks with a pre origin base disk, or through a steam purchase and install. If you have anything that requires download from origin you have no option on the 1.69

Is there any way to fix the glitched makeup? I just want to be able to use those ombre eyeshadows without having to deal with the annoying eyeshadow randomization that occurs with the other outfits.

Another option, I believe, after you’ve implemented the cheat above is to press shift and click on the mailbox. Then choose one or more of the friendship options. Turn the cheat off by typing false instead of true.

This is annoying. There is no water in the fishing areas in China. I don't even know where to even start trying to fix this.

Are there any custom EMPTY building shells? Like futuristic ones I could use for a custom alien world? Not apartments - Empty building shells.

you mean cc building shells or unfurnished lot with Maxis' own shells?

CC building shells. Empty cc building shells that I can place on a lot and build in, and look like futuristic buildings.

I have a weird issue. Whenever I want to audition at a local venue, the interaction string is always empty. Is there anyone else who experiences the same problem?

I get that too. My game is in English.

I've got to ask this. Are all the aliens in TS3 supposed to be elders? Or is it just some weirdness in my game? I never paid much attention before, but lately I've noticed all the ones that have been turning up on my lots have been getting on in years, some of them were using walking sticks. I can only suppose that even with warp drive it still takes half a life time to get to Earth, where they just potter about for a bit examining things and making notes. I hope they have plenty interesting things to occupy themselves with during the long voyage.

Not all, but most of the aliens I've seen have been elders, unless I make them myself.

I get elders and adults, both male and female.

Just to preface, I'm very stupid with computers. I want to edit the GraphicsRules.sgr file to improve my games performance but setting the levels higher scares me lol. I'm fine with a really ugly game, I just don't want to fry my computer. If I set the levels higher, will it put any strain on my computer?

I'd like to clarify the difference in performance vs quality. Or at least to me the way I understand based on NVidia's and other gaming lingo when discussing performance vs. quality.

Performance is when one is looking to have their game run better at the cost of lowering settings and the game looking less impressive. This is for those who are usually playing with minimum system requirements or less than. Also this usually causes a higher frames per second because of the more demanding options are set to either low or off. So smooth gameplay.

Quality is when one is looking, in some cases, to forsake performance meaning the gameplay may not be as smooth, lag-free, etc to achieve better looking graphics and/or other gaming features.

Balance is when one has the best of both worlds without sacrificing smooth gameplay but also still having a decent looking game. Usually not at maxed in-game settings but medium to high. Though it depends on the computer configuration and the game. Some games can be maxed out and still play exceptionally well.

If your computer cannot already handle TS3 playing with maxed settings with all you have installed without mods/cc with little to no issues, then forcing your computer to go beyond what it is capable of will usually cause issues later down the line or possibly sooner at a much faster rate. Anything that has to do with raising quality, will usually raise the workload and temperatures and it is not a good idea unless your computer is built to handle that kind of gaming. Otherwise, the accumulating damage may have you end up without a working computer at all.

PC gaming can be complex and it takes the user to be knowledgeable or at least learn how to properly take care of their computer for its longevity.

I feel I should know this after playing since 2009 but I don't think I've actually tried before.
I am at generation 10 of my Riverview legacy and want to play somewhere else now. However, I really like the look of my last generation and would like to save her as a sim file.
I don't want her long family tree and relations, just her look and traits. I can add those in CAS later again.
How do I do this?

Unless I am misunderstanding something here, all you need to do is bring the sim into CAS and save her. That is, create a Saved Sim out of her that can then be imposed upon another CAS sim at some future time within another game save.

Oh my.
This is what happens when you don't ever create a sim. I'm just bad at it and have no patience for it, so I always just download some or let the game create them with some additional help from various mods.

Thanks!

I have been developing and populating a previously empty town (Cottonwood Hills). I am creating families of my own, but at the same time the game has been creating an odd selection of bizarrely dressed families and moving into the various lots I've placed. It is my own fault for having so many medieval and Victorian costumes installed, and I don't mind moving them into CAS, improving their appearance a bit and dressing them properly: that's all part of the fun. But, although I have the satisfaction of seeing them about town looking more civilised in the outfits I gave them, I've noticed that the thumbnails that appear when I click on their houses in Edit Town mode don't appear to be updating: the sims still look the same motley shower they were before. Several days have passed and they still haven't updated. I tried deleting cache files before reloading the game, but that had no effect.

It's a trivial little detail, but it is irritating when everything else is working so well. Anybody got any idea how I can fix it?

A couple of possibilities... Clean your save, either with one of the save cleaners, or manually using s3pe. That deletes imgs, snaps (thumbnails), and icons. Also maybe deleting caches? Everything will regenerate, and current thumbnails made.

I tried using Save Cleaner, but that made no difference. The individual portraits that appear over lot in live mode, when sims are on the lot, appear to be okay, it's just the whole family thumbnails in edit town that are wrong. Well, so long as they appear okay in live mode I suppose it's just something I'll have to live with. Thanks anyway @LadySmoks.

EDIT: The only solution I've found is to move each of the families out, save them to the Library (where the thumbnail appears correctly) and then move that copy back into the house. It's a long winded way of going about it, and doesn't solve why it was happening in the first place, but it works.