Game Help Talk:Organizing Custom Content

Where did the tons of well thought out information on how to actually organize the custom content from Frumph's original posts go? You can delete all of your content, that's fine, and you can even recommend others do the same. However, I thought that this was a modding community, that promoted custom content- both the creation and use of such? So some snarky heading titled "The Long Boring Way" that vaguely outlines a way for us to keep our CC but really recommends the use of Maxis defaults, on this site nonetheless, is not sufficient. If you are going to do a thing, at least please try and do it right.

I'd like to know where you think we are "recommending the use of maxis defaults" in this article? The fact of the matter is that the organisational methods are listed in the "Methods of organising" section - or perhaps you simply skipped over that bit? There really aren't that many ways of saying it - you either organise manually or you let a program help you, and thats what this article targets. As for the snarky title, I suggest you find something better to do with your time than complain about that, and I challenge you to find a better site with as much help and tutorials organised in a better fashion than this one. Just becuase you don't think something is "right" doesn't mean we should change it - remember that a lot of people simply don't know how to do it. If you want to suggest a better way of doing things, go ahead, but your tone and attitude suggest you think you are better than everybody else, so I doubt you will rise up to the challenge of doing so, as we and the staff have done. Have a nice day. Delphy 16:29, 20 May 2007 (CDT)

I'd also like to add that most of Frumph's recommendations WERE incorporated into the article. His recommendations basically boiled down to "go through every category in the game one by one and delete stuff you won't use and don't like or aren't good" but said in about 50 different ways, changing slightly for each category.

His article, while helpful, was very repetitive and not complete. There was really no reason to repeat the same "Again, if it's not a colour you like, not a style you'll use, poor quality, etc, delete it!" for every single category. If you've played the game and downloaded you know what custom content categories there are that you've downloaded into, and to delete stuff in them you don't want. You can do that without someone holding your hand telling you "Okay, now, go into elder female clothing and delete all the hot pink slutty outfits grandmas would never wear." The "Be Brutal" part is a summary of Frumph's original article, encompassing all the sentiments expressed in his recommendations, and I don't think anything major has been lost in condensing it into that.

Nothing says "use Maxis defaults" there whatsoever. The recommendation to delete all content is often the best one for people who have downloaded willy-nilly and have tons of crap that they can't organizing. It can take many extremely long boring hours deleting custom content that you don't want if you've accumulated a lot so in many cases it simply is quicker and easier to delete everything - and then start over, downloading better quality content and staying organized from the start. The rest of the recommendations merely suggest deleting custom content that does not measure up to whatever standard you use for your personal quality control, if you don't want to delete everything outright. Again, in no way does it say you must use just Maxis stuff... it's just way easier to start from a clean slate of stuff that doesn't suck, then build up better.

If you want to help, then help. Use your ability to comment here constructively, suggesting what could be added or changed to make things more functional for users. Much time is spent on considering the best way to present articles, and we have been making a truly massive effort to streamline, rewrite, and overhaul old FAQs to make them better than they were before. Help is appreciated, but snark without any attempt at actual suggestions and attempting to help make the site better for all is not. HystericalParoxysm 18:14, 20 May 2007 (CDT)

Question: Is it OK to rename custom content files after you have already used them in game? I.E. I have a file named 5f2feced_cf5482b3.package which contains a custom pair of red emo glasses. I have put the glasses on one character in game. Can I still rename that horrible filename to "red_emo_glasses.package"? Also, if possible, could we add this to the article? --Midnightparadox 10:26, 4 June 2007 (CDT)

Should I put the meshes in the same folder as the recolors? Just making sure. --Alexie 21:24, 2 January 2008 (CST)

Post BV

My friend, Odessa, and I spent 3 days trying to get an older house to load. Apparently, either BV or FT added the limit of one level of subfolders. Downloads/CreatorName (or whatever) is ok. Downloads/CreatorName/Dresses is not.

To Midnightparadox and Alexie

Midnightparadox: It's been ok to rename files before or after you've used them at least since OFB. I basically installed the game and the first 3 EPs within days, so I'm not sure exactly when this happened, but TSR's warning to never change the hex digits at the beginning of the file name is now pointless. I do know that the prerelease BodyShop absolutely forbade any file renaming at all.

Alexie: I keep everything in folders by creator and I've never had a problem with "finding" the meshes for a texture or the texture for a mesh. It's probably a good idea to keep them together so you can move them in and out of the game as a group, but that's just one way to organize.

A warning on "Be Brutal"

Since some creators are "elderizing" their adult clothing to get away from the droopy breasts and thighs, you want to be careful deleting the "slutty pink outfits that grandma would never wear." That outfit might be mom's favorite undies!