I tried to post before but I am having trouble with the site tonight. Long story short, I got ALL my discs loaded up on a new Lenovo laptop but I am stuck on 800 x 600.
4g patch I can't get to work. Don't know if it is something I need or not. I tried several ways based on online suggestions. No change in my documents log file, plus the game looked the same.
Graphics Rules Maker also is not working. It recognizes my game and graphics card but nothing else. No "screen resolution" min and max on the main page and can not save files no matter what options I chose. Lowering the memory does nothing. Is Graphics Rules Maker not compatible with Intel Iris Xe?

Help!

p.s. the Sound quality is great.

Glad the sound is good!

Do you have the latest version (2.0.0) of Graphics Rules Maker, and if you do, have you selected the correct game? GRM also supports TS2 BodyShop, The Sims Stories and SimCity 4.

Yes, that is the version available on simsnetwork website as of April 29, 2020.

I tried adding the 4G and graphics rules maker with my viral protection off. The maker still did not have the resolution options. Also, still in 800 x 600 and no option to change in the game settings.

Can you please post a screenshot of what you see when you open GRM? I'm not really sure what would cause it to not display resolution settings.

Have you made sure the GRM is pointing toward your game, and/or the right set of GraphicRules/VideoCards files? Should be in you AL or M&G folder in the install files. Depending on game version or how/where you've installed it, that could be the issue.

I chose Sims 2 and Simcity 4 in case I ever want to try to get that game to work too. I don't have any of the other games and don't wish to have them so I unchecked the rest.

I have 4g stored in my documents folder in a file for Sims Tools. I used the Mansion & Gardens application starter in the TSBin.
I have the Graphics Rules Maker saved inside the TSBin folder of the Mansion & Gardens section.

I really thank you for helping me. I am not tech savvy, especially now that technology has advanced so much. I also suffer from chronic migraines which make me get confused easily. My brain does not work as well as it used to. But I am trying my best to learn.

EDIT: Came back in to say I can't install the securom removal too from the securom site. Does anyone know a safe alternative? I click the link but nothing happens.
Also, have others found it helpful to tell windows defender to make Graphics Rules Maker an exception? Trying to figure out how to do that if I need to.

Your screenshot shows that you have The Sims 2 BodyShop selected in the Game drop down menu. That’s why you do not see the resolution; BodyShop doesn’t support changing resolutions. You need to select The Sims 2 game itself in that menu, then you will be able to see the appropriate settings.

Yeh, wrong title there. That brought me a step close. Thank you for that. I have been battling a fall front headache. I tried to put honey in the fridge and milk in the pantry. haha. The front is coming in right now, so I am hoping tomorrow is a clearer head day.
I now have screen resolutions set to my laptop's. But it still won't save files. I tried their suggested settings as well as lowering the force texture memory all the way down to the 800s. Still not saving files. I am in Mansion & Gardens folder.

Could be Windows not letting you save the files in ProgramFiles without "proper authorization" (it's a common "bug"). Could also be why you can't get the 4GB patch to stick.

Try clicking the "save files..." button at the bottom and make it save the files elsewhere on your computer (desktop), then replace them manually. That should hopefully work.

(When you've made sure the game works fine, you can fix Bodyshop by copying the same files to the CSConfig folder, if need be).

For the 4GB patch, easiest workaround is to copy the EXE file to your desktop, apply the patch there, then move/replace the file back into the folder, clicking "yes" to the "do you admin-approve these changes?" Windows throws at you. Same with the Bodyshop EXE.

You need to launch GRM as Administrator to be able to make changes. Close it completely, right click on its icon, and select Run as Administrator.
As for settings, I recommend having these enabled:
- Disable texture memory estimate adjustment
- Enable driver’s memory manager
- High quality on Intel graphics
- Support VSync on Intel.

My recommendation is also to use a mod to fix Sim shadows instead of letting GRM disable them.

IT WORKED! I got it to save files. The games is much clearer and far less choppy when moving things around!

Now there are only 2 issues I am dealing with and I don't know if they are normal for laptops or not. I have only games on desktops.
1) There are 2 inch black sides on the screen. The game is filling top and bottom but not out to the sides. It makes for a smaller window to look at. Graphics Rules Maker recognized my screen size. I adjusted in game settings but when I went back in it was the same. Do I change my Graphics Settings in my laptop's display setting to go by Graphics Rules Maker?

2) The screen flickers very quickly but obviously every 3-4 seconds. I am photo-sensitive so I notice it and am sensitive to it. Any way to stop that?

I realized 4g patch might be working after all as it gave me the "OK" screen but I never noticed any difference. Then again, I didn't play long enough to have my game crash.

EDIT: Does Graphics Rules Maker create the .sgr BAK file in the config folder??? Can I Edit that to my specs? I saw a video and tried to follow it but I had TWO Graphics Rules files and one was .sgr Wondering if that is the Maker doing that? I could not edit in the Maker's preview section to then save files. I tried editing my regular Graphics file like the video, and many others noted doing that online as well. It didn't work. Just wondering about that .sgr BAK file.

the .Bak files are backup files of the original GR/VC files, just in case those are needed in a reset situation. You can keep those, they don't do anything when named like so, but can be good to have if you didn't backup the files before using the GRM. And yes, the GRM makes them automatically.

You're not really supposed to edit them since they're backup files of the original settings. If you ever need to reset the files to the original settings, you remove the ".bak" ending, which sets them back to being a ".sgr" file. Don't do it in the same folder with another GraphicRules file, though (you'll get Windows complaining there are files named the same, so you could end up overwriting files accidentally).

Only the .sgr files will actually work ingame. You don't have to worry about the .bak files causing any problems, and you don't need to edit them.

The .bak ending (and variants of it) isn't a valid file format, so the files don't do anything. It's sometimes used to make backups of older/other versions of files/programs alongside the original, working file, so you can store them together in the same place without the other versions causing any issues.

Thanks simmer22! It did take lots of searches to find that out. Hopefully the next person to search for this information will find it here and read what you wrote. So clearly understood.

It took a bit of reading and video watching these last few days. Why can't things be all in one place?! haha. With so many different steps and pieces of information.......

I FINALLY GOT MY GAME TO BE FULLSCREEN!!!! Also, no more flickering when moving around too! Its very clear, smooth AND has features I've never seen before on my el cheapo 12 year pc. There is a little window that pops up when a guest is at your postbox. Is there a way to disable that if I don't want it? It was a shock to see at first. Kinda cool. But not necessary for me in the long run. I never had it before!

So, how did I finally do it. First I uninstalled Graphics Rules Maker. It kept me in 800 x 600 and I could not edit the darn thing. I then followed these steps in This Video . Seriously, what's up with google searches not showing everything at first. I could've used this video much earlier. I already had 4g patch, left it alone. I ran the game with the .sgr edits done, and voila! I could change the screen size in game! Then I re-installed GRM for cleaning up the textures in the game. Next I changed shadows to medium to get rid of the black boxes. On my old pc I never had shadows for my sims, so I'm used to that. Finally, changing the Smooth Edges to "More" got rid of all that annoying flickering.

I did not know you could see the wind in the rain! On my dino pc it was just blue rain streaks falling down. It wasn't bad looking, to me at least. It's like a whole new game for me to experience now. I just have to get used to staring at my higher resolution laptop screen vs my old dino pc.

I could not have done any of this without any of YOU. I can't thank you all enough. You helped a disabled woman with chronic pain, including my darn migraines that have been acting up again. Also found out I need jaw surgery to fix both joints and possibly a hysterectomy. Now I have Sims 2 to help me during recovery!!! You have truly blessed me with you patience and kindness. May God Bless You Too!

The popup is the "window in window" or "picture in picture" or some such - it's one of the settings, can't remember exactly where it is (video/camera settings, maybe? I don't think it's in graphics), but that's roughly the name of it. Can be turned off.

I believe it is Picture in Picture Window, found in Camera Options.