Game Help:TS3 Finding Problem Custom Content - Revision history

Werismyki: /* Related Links */

2013-07-17T19:41:15Z

‎Related Links

Kiwi tea: Categories, sortkey

2012-09-20T15:05:21Z

Categories, sortkey

Werismyki: /* Sort Your Downloads */

2010-09-15T20:11:04Z

‎Sort Your Downloads

HystericalParoxysm at 12:15, 8 June 2010

2010-06-08T12:15:42Z

Werismyki: /* More Problems? */

2010-05-12T18:28:57Z

‎More Problems?

Werismyki: /* The 50% Method */

2010-05-07T22:31:56Z

‎The 50% Method

Werismyki: /* Test Unlikely Files */

2010-05-07T22:26:47Z

‎Test Unlikely Files

Werismyki: /* Search By Date */

2010-05-07T22:22:49Z

‎Search By Date

Werismyki: /* Sort By Date */

2010-05-07T22:21:20Z

‎Sort By Date

Werismyki: /* Important Note About Saving */

2010-05-07T22:19:17Z

‎Important Note About Saving

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 =Related Links=
 {{Sims3GameHelpHeader}}
 [[Category:Sims 3 Game Help|Custom]]
 [[Category:Sims 3 Technical Game Help|Custom]]

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 =Related Links=
 {{Sims3GameHelpHeader}}
-[[Category:Game Help]][[Category:Sims 3]]
+[[Category:Sims 3 Game Help|Custom]]

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 ===Sort Your Downloads===
-Also, you can sort out your Mods/Packages folder, so that you'll never have to do this again!  You'll want to keep any Hacks, Hacked Objects, Core Mods, Custom Careers, Tuning Mods, Script Mods, and Sliders separate from your main downloads.  You may also want to keep any Default Replacements separate, so you can easily switch those out if you decide you'd like to use a different one.
+Also, you can sort out your Mods/Packages folder, so that you'll never have to do this again!  You'll want to keep any Hacks, Hacked Objects, Core Mods, Custom Careers, Tuning Mods, Script Mods, and Sliders separate from your main downloads.  You may also want to keep any Default Replacements separate, so you can easily switch those out if you decide you'd like to use a different one.  Also see [[Game Help:TS3 Organizing Custom Content]]
 ===More Problems?===

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 =Finding Problem Custom Content=
-You're playing the game and something strange is happening. Maybe it's crashing, or perhaps it's not working quite as it should. You've read and tried the steps in [[Game Help:Sims 3 Loading Crashes|Loading Crashes Guide]] and you've removed your package files or mods folder, and you know the problem is a mod/package. But the trouble is, you have hundreds or thousands of files in the mods folder, how can you find out which one(s) are the problem?
+You're playing the game and something strange is happening. Maybe it's crashing, or perhaps it's not working quite as it should. You've read and tried the steps in [[Game Help:Sims 3 Game Problem|Game Problem guide]] and you've removed your package files or mods folder, and you know the problem is a mod/package. But the trouble is, you have hundreds or thousands of files in the mods folder, how can you find out which one(s) are the problem?
 Whether you have downloaded all your package files/mods into one folder or have separated and categorized them into subfolders, it can be tricky to figure out which file(s) is causing the problem when your game is acting strangely. There are many tools you can use for scanning your files, such as S3PE, Dashboard or Process Monitor, which is explained in the [[Game Help:Package File Lag|Package File Lag Guide]] which you should use before continuing this guide, if you haven't already done so.

← Older revision		Revision as of 18:28, 12 May 2010
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	If you find you keep getting problems, you may want to keep a separate folder in your Mods/Packages folder for new downloads - call it something like "Quarantine" or "Test"- then when you install new files, if you begin experiencing problems after installing new content, you can be reasonably sure the problem files are in the Quarantine or Test folder.		If you find you keep getting problems, you may want to keep a separate folder in your Mods/Packages folder for new downloads - call it something like "Quarantine" or "Test"- then when you install new files, if you begin experiencing problems after installing new content, you can be reasonably sure the problem files are in the Quarantine or Test folder.
−
−
−	~~{{MTS2ThankThread\|1109986}}~~

	=Contributor Credits=		=Contributor Credits=

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 If you have done all of the above and the problem still persists, even after removing recently-added files, tuning mods, core mods, script and object mods, and taking out the unlikely files to make sure they're not the problem, then you need to follow the below instructions to find where your problem file(s) may be located and remove it/them to fix your problem.
-This is a bit tedious, yes, and it does take quite a bit of time, but it's a lot better than deleting your whole Downloads folder or worse, going through your mods 1 at a time.
+This is a bit tedious, yes, and it does take quite a bit of time, but it's a lot better than deleting your whole Mods/Packages folder or worse, going through your mods 1 at a time.
 The 50% method works like this:
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 Once you have divided and divided and tested and tested, you should have one or more files which you suspect are bad.
-You should put ONLY those files you suspect into your Downloads folder to ensure that they are indeed the problem.  If they are, the problem will persist even with no other downloads.
+You should put ONLY those files you suspect into your Mods/Packages folder to ensure that they are indeed the problem.  If they are, the problem will persist even with no other package files present.
 Then, put back everything ELSE and test again, to make sure you didn't perhaps miss something.  If all is well, then you know you have found the problem file(s).
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 ===If You Saved===
-If, at any point, you had to save while sorting through your downloads, you should now restore the Neighborhoods folder that you backed up before you began this process, so all of the sims/lot contents that have reverted to defaults will go back to using your custom content...  You did back up like we told you to, didn't you?
+If, at any point, you had to save while sorting through your downloads, you should now restore the User Files folder that you backed up before you began this process, so all of the sims/lot contents that have reverted to defaults will go back to using your custom content...  You did back up like we told you to, didn't you?
 ===Sort Your Downloads===
-Also, you can sort out your downloads folder, so that you'll never have to do this again!  You'll want to keep any Hacks, Hacked Objects, Core Mods, Custom Careers, Tuning Mods, Script Mods, and Sliders separate from your main downloads.  You may also want to keep any Default Replacements separate, so you can easily switch those out if you decide you'd like to use a different one.
+Also, you can sort out your Mods/Packages folder, so that you'll never have to do this again!  You'll want to keep any Hacks, Hacked Objects, Core Mods, Custom Careers, Tuning Mods, Script Mods, and Sliders separate from your main downloads.  You may also want to keep any Default Replacements separate, so you can easily switch those out if you decide you'd like to use a different one.
 ===More Problems?===
-If you find you keep getting problems, you may want to keep a separate folder in your Downloads for new downloads - call it something like "Quarantine" or "Test"- then when you install new files, if you begin experiencing problems after installing new content, you can be reasonably sure the problem files are in the Quarantine or Test folder.
+If you find you keep getting problems, you may want to keep a separate folder in your Mods/Packages folder for new downloads - call it something like "Quarantine" or "Test"- then when you install new files, if you begin experiencing problems after installing new content, you can be reasonably sure the problem files are in the Quarantine or Test folder.

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 ==Test Unlikely Files==
-Once you get them sorted out, you should go ahead and remove everything else from your Downloads folder, and just test those files.  While they are normally safe, there can be a problem if one of them gets corrupted, so you should rule them out before you continue.  Take out everything but those unlikely files and test them on their own.
+Once you get them sorted out, you should go ahead and remove everything else from your Mods/Packages folder, and just test those files.  While they are normally safe, there can be a problem if one of them gets corrupted, so you should rule them out before you continue.  Take out everything but those unlikely files and test them on their own.
 =The 50% Method=

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 [[Image:Ts3searchbydate.jpg|right|300px]]
-If you keep multiple subfolders and you're not sure which ones have your newest files, search your Downloads folder for the most recently added files.<br>You can narrow things down if you know the approximate dates you might have installed something.
+If you separated your package files and keep multiple subfolders and you're not sure which ones have your newest files, search your Mods/Packages folder for the most recently added files.<br>You can narrow things down if you know the approximate dates you might have installed something.
-−
 ==Remove Most Likely Culprits==

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 ===Sort By Date===
 [[Image:Ts3sortbydate.jpg|right|300px]]
-If all of your files are just in Downloads, not in subfolders, the easiest method is to sort your Downloads folder by date.
+If all of your files are just in the Mods/Packages folder, not in subfolders, the easiest method is to sort your Downloads folder by date.
-Open your ''C:\Program Files\Electronic Arts\The Sims 3\Mods\Packages'' folder and sort by date as shown in the picture below.
+Open your ''C:\Program Files\Electronic Arts\The Sims 3\Mods\Packages'' folder and sort by date as shown in the picture to the right.
 <br clear=all />
 ===Search By Date===
 [[Image:Ts3searchbydate.jpg|right|300px]]

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 ==Important Note About Saving==
-Once you have removed your custom content, everything that was using custom content will look wrong - any sims with custom skins or hair will have default skins and hair.  Any objects in your sims' homes will disappear or revert to defaults - so where you might have had some plastic plants, you might suddenly have a cluster of statues, etc. Walls and floors using custom wallpapers and floor coverings will go bare, and any areas of ground that were using custom ground covers will flash blue.  If you save your game with your custom content removed, anything that has reverted will then stay that way.
+Once you have removed your custom content, everything that was using custom content will look wrong - any sims with custom skins or hair will have default skins and hair.  Any objects in your sims' homes will disappear or revert to defaults - so where you might have had some plastic plants, you might suddenly have a cluster of statues, etc. Walls and floors using custom wallpapers and floor coverings will go bare, and any areas of ground that were using custom ground covers will flash blue.  '''''If you save your game with your custom content removed, anything that has reverted will then stay that way.'''''
 That's why you backed up your stuff before you start - if you do have to save while testing for whatever reason, then you can restore your User Files folder and your sims and houses will be fine.