Difference between revisions of "Game Help:Maxis Content Manager"

Revision as of 06:25, 13 April 2007

Maxis' Content Manager Tool

Download it here: http://thesims2.ea.com/getcoolstuff/contentmanager.php

• The purpose of the Content Manager is to scan your Downloads, SavedSims, and Teleport folders.

• You can easily disable the items you don't want. It does not delete the file (but you can choose to do that instead); Instead it renames the file from .package to .packagedisabled. I find this helpful so I can move those files to a different folder for later sorting/deleting.

• There is a readme file that comes with the .zip so I highly recommend you reading that.

Couple pointers

• If you have a lot of downloads (like gigs and gigs like me), Content Manager will take an extremely long time to load so scan a little bit at a time. Or run Content Manager, grab a sandwich or some ice cream or coffee, make a phone call, and then come back in a few minutes.

• It will label MESHes accordingly. I think this is GREAT as it will help you see if you're missing a specific mesh to a hair style, clothing, body shape, or object

• Maxis items and hacks (game overrides) will show up in RED. (If you are familiar with Clean Installer, hacks and Maxis items show up in red, too.)

• If you are a Downloadaholic like me, Content Manager will help you organize your downloads. (Clean Installer does this, too.)

So what is the difference between Content Manager and Clean Installer? Which one is better?

You have to judge for yourself. Try out both utilities and see which one you're more comfortable with. Clean Installer is an installer for the most part. I think it handles installing custom content much better that Maxis' installer. The Maxis installer displays a message if you don't have the EP installed and Clean Installer bypasses it. It allows you to move files from folder to folder. It disables content and allows you to delete them, as well. Content Manager allows you to view more detail about the .package (and that might be helpful for some). It also correctly labels MESHes, which I find extremely handy for finding missing meshes.

If you are having problems running the Content manager, Click Here.

Content Manager Startup Error

If you get an error when trying to run the Content Manager, this solution was originally posted by EA support:

We suggest that you install the Custom Content Manager first before downloading any Custom Contents, but if you already have Custom Contents, this may be cause some conflicts upon installation.

Please try to re-download the installer for the Custom Content Manager to verify the integrity of the previous download. Also please try cleaning out your Temporary directory. Do not delete the folder itself, open the folder, select all of the contents, and then delete them. Often you will get an error that some of these files can't be deleted. This is usually because they are currently in use, so first let's end any program that would be using these temporary files.

• Hold down the Ctrl, Alt, and Delete keys at the same time
• Click the "Processes" tab.
• Click on the gray bar in the middle column that says User Name to sort by user name.
• Do NOT select anything for SYSTEM, LOCAL SERVICE, or NETWORK SERVICE.
• Click on anything besides EXPLORER and TASKMGR for this User Name or other user names.
• Click on END PROCESS
• Repeat these steps until only explorer.exe and taskmgr.exe are open for this user profile.

Note that some applications may take multiple times before closing. Don't worry that you are permanently changing your system configuration; these applications will return when you restart your system. Once this step has been completed, please proceed to the steps below.

Part 1

• Double click on "My Computer"
• Double click on the C: drive
• Double click on the "Windows" folder.
• Double click on the "Temp" folder.
• Hold the "CTRL" key and tap the "A" key to select all.
• Tap the "Delete" key on your keyboard and accept the "Are you sure you want to delete these files" prompt.

Part 2

• Click START --> Run
• Type in %TEMP% and press ENTER
• Hold the "CTRL" key and tap the "A" key to select all.
• Tap the "Delete" key on your keyboard and accept the "Are you sure you want to delete these files" prompt.