Modding Glossary

Here you'll find explanations of all the geeky terms people use.

Word ! Description
A 3D editor, used by some creators to make meshes.
In the game, these started as glasses, and can be worn by sims in addition to clothing, now we have jewelry, backpacks, hats and more.
A black and white graphic used to show which parts of a texture are visible or not, most often used in BodyShop creations.
A 3D editor, used by some creators to make meshes.
A 3D editor, used by some creators to make meshes.
A Maxis program to make sims and import clothes, hair, genetics and make up in the game.
3D term. Another word for Skeleton
Colour Package Enabler. This small file makes it possible to recolour objects that don't already have Maxis recolours.
Most new content is based on something that's already in the game. By cloning an object, you make a copy of it, to change the shape or the way it behaves. A recolour is NOT a clone.
DatGen | A program no longer being developed that allowed some functions similar to SimPE to edit game data.
3D term. The edge is the line connecting two vertices in a mesh.
3D term. Another word for Skeleton
3D term. Several faces make up a shape. For instance: the six sides of a cube are faces. It's these faces that you see in the game.
A unique code given to every object to distinguish it and make sure it doesn't override anything else.
A part of a mesh, some meshes are made of multiple parts for display or animation reasons.
A hack changes something about how the game behaves. It does not necessarily have to be a new object.
A Maxis program to import walls, floors and groundcovers in the game.
New content needs to be moulded into the right shape so the game can read it. When you import a texture or shape, you place it in a package, so the game can read it.
3D term. Another word for Skeleton
This term is used to stress that a recolour uses maxis meshes (i.e. stuff that came with the Sims2 or one of the expansion packs).
Anything with a new mesh, be it furniture or clothes, has a new 3D shape. Meshing involves making those new shapes in a 3D editor and putting them in the game.
Milkshape | A 3D editor, used by some creators to make meshes.
This is a broad term, meaning anything you do to change or add stuff to, in our case, the Sims2 game. All the things you find in the Downloads section are mods. Modding is the term used for making such mods.
the data used to change a mesh in game, i.e. most bodies have a fat morph
This term has two meanings. It is mostly used to mark any additions to the game that are not on sims themselves, i.e. furniture, windows, doors, columns, trees, etc. It can also be used as a type of file. See Wavefront Object.
A part of SimPE that automates much of the process involved in cloning or recoloring objects. Also known as OW.
Almost all custom content in the Sims2 are packages. A package should contain all the files the game needs to display your mod and make it work properly.
3D term. A polygon is the same as a face. See that entry.
3D term. This is a type of face. It is made up of four vertices.
A recolour of a chair or dress changes the colours, but not the shape. Recolouring involves making a new texture in a paint program and importing it in the game.
Another word for recolouring.
SimPE | This program is used by most creators to add content to the game
3D term. The internal structure (like a human skeleton) that is used by the animation routines to move the sim, and animated objects, such as dressers.
see recolouring. Most often used in reference to new clothing/skin creations.
The flat graphic that is wrapped around the mesh to give it color.
3D term. This is a type of face. It is made up of three vertices.
A user made add-on for Milkshape for editing meshes, specifically animated ones (bodies, hair, accessories)
Part of a mesh. It's a guide that describes how the flat graphic is wrapped around the 3D mesh.
3D term. A point in 3D space. Two vertices connected by a line and make up an edge.
A common format for a 3D file
A 3D editor, used by some creators to make meshes.

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