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My builds - Jude525

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  • MiaSkywalkerMiaSkywalker Posts: 3,436 Member
    Jude525 wrote: »
    Ugh!!!!! In the process of trying to clean out the problems I found attached to the resort file, something went wrong and the time/weather stone I use EVERY game EVERY day has disappeared and refuses to reinstall. It is a mod from MTS by cmomoney. I use it almost exclusively to keep the rain from falling every day in the spring and fall. I prefer it to turning rain off completely. Other mods are working, so I don't know what happened. But, I'll just deal with it. Everything else is working and I'm not up to a full reinstall. Oh well. Onward and upward.
    I would suggest using Nraas Tempest. With that you can set the percentages of days with sun, rain, snow, hail, whatever. (Although I simply turn off hail.) You can set the temperature ranges for morning, noon, evening, and night for each season. You can set what percentage of sunny days vs rain vs snow vs fog you will have in each season. I usually set summer for 20:1 of sun:rain, and spring/fall somewhat less. I also increase the temperatures (not the range; I increase the lower number) for fall and spring so my plants go dormant less frequently. (I would prefer not at all, but for some reason I can't stop that.)

    You can even set how many days/season there are holidays, which is really cool. In some of my worlds I set up winter to be 7 days long, and every day is Snowflake day. So a nice long winter vacation for the kids. :)

    I don't know what that weather stone is, but it seems to me that Nraas Tempest could do what you want, and maybe better.
  • Jude525Jude525 Posts: 1,696 Member
    edited May 2018
    Thank you, Rose. I found more problems yesterday, so I've decided to do a full reinstall. It's good to do from time to time anyway. so...... Guess what I'm doing the next couple days.
    aka Jude
    I own the store as of 1+7/17/17

    My Studio

    My build thread in the Creative Corner
  • MiaSkywalkerMiaSkywalker Posts: 3,436 Member
    edited May 2018
    Another suggestion :p : Don't do a reinstall, just rename your Sims 3 folder and let the game recreate it when you relaunch. Then copy back the .ebc files so you don't have to reinstall all your store stuff. CC is always carried either in .dbc (rather than .ebc) files, or are in package format. I would also suggest recopying the stuff from Installed Worlds, as well as your .ini file in the root. Um... can't think of any other folders you should copy, but there probably are some.

    You will probably need to reinstall any CC worlds you have... but maybe not. The last time I let my game create a clean install, all the CC worlds reinstalled automatically. I think they were in my actual game directory or something, which may allow those to bypass the reinstall rule.

    Chances are a full reinstall is completely unnecessary. Generally any corruption is only in the "The Sims 3" folder in your Documents directory.

    ETA: Oh, also copy your ccmerged file to the DCCache directory (I think?). Although if that file is the problem, you may need to download a copy from Nona's Sims.
  • Jude525Jude525 Posts: 1,696 Member
    @MiaSkywalker Yeah, I tried the usual "shortcut" re-installs. But I just couldn't get that mod item back into my game. I'd decided I could live without it, but when I tried to play a different saved game, I was missing store content as well. So I messed up the process somewhere.

    It doesn't hurt to do a clean install once in a while anyway. All my store content is downloaded and on my local drive.

    I don't have much CC that I use. So, this time around I'm going to try using the CC merge tool to keep all my CC in the Mods folder. This will also make it easy to do clean builds. I'll simply move the content out of the mods folder and leave the cache files alone. At least, that's the theory. I've never had any luck juggling the cache files. It always gets me into trouble.
    aka Jude
    I own the store as of 1+7/17/17

    My Studio

    My build thread in the Creative Corner
  • MiaSkywalkerMiaSkywalker Posts: 3,436 Member
    edited May 2018
    I think you're right to do that; it will make building without CC much easier, because it simply won't be there for you to select. :)

    Be careful about what order you do the store installs, and how big you let the files get. Ciane's thread gives some excellent information about that, and her spreadsheet is a godsend.

    Don't forget to copy your UserPresets file back, or any presets you've saved will be lost.
  • Jude525Jude525 Posts: 1,696 Member
    Jude525 wrote: »
    Ugh!!!!! In the process of trying to clean out the problems I found attached to the resort file, something went wrong and the time/weather stone I use EVERY game EVERY day has disappeared and refuses to reinstall. It is a mod from MTS by cmomoney. I use it almost exclusively to keep the rain from falling every day in the spring and fall. I prefer it to turning rain off completely. Other mods are working, so I don't know what happened. But, I'll just deal with it. Everything else is working and I'm not up to a full reinstall. Oh well. Onward and upward.
    I would suggest using Nraas Tempest. With that you can set the percentages of days with sun, rain, snow, hail, whatever. (Although I simply turn off hail.) You can set the temperature ranges for morning, noon, evening, and night for each season. You can set what percentage of sunny days vs rain vs snow vs fog you will have in each season. I usually set summer for 20:1 of sun:rain, and spring/fall somewhat less. I also increase the temperatures (not the range; I increase the lower number) for fall and spring so my plants go dormant less frequently. (I would prefer not at all, but for some reason I can't stop that.)

    You can even set how many days/season there are holidays, which is really cool. In some of my worlds I set up winter to be 7 days long, and every day is Snowflake day. So a nice long winter vacation for the kids. :)

    I don't know what that weather stone is, but it seems to me that Nraas Tempest could do what you want, and maybe better.

    I missed this the other day. This sounds awesome! I could set it up for a winter school vacation, then have the whole summer off. And I love the idea of stopping the dormancy of the plants at the end of spring. I hate how the day before summer can be a couple degrees above freezing. I will definitely check this out. Yet another NRaas goodie. Thanks.
    aka Jude
    I own the store as of 1+7/17/17

    My Studio

    My build thread in the Creative Corner
  • MiaSkywalkerMiaSkywalker Posts: 3,436 Member
    edited May 2018
    Jude525 wrote: »
    I missed this the other day. This sounds awesome! I could set it up for a winter school vacation, then have the whole summer off. And I love the idea of stopping the dormancy of the plants at the end of spring. I hate how the day before summer can be a couple degrees above freezing. I will definitely check this out. Yet another NRaas goodie. Thanks.
    I didn't grow up with summers off, so for me that never felt normal. I keep my kiddies in school for the summer (besides, it gives them more of a chance to get their grades up before graduating), then make a short winter, which they then get off so they can play in the snow every day. That seems equitable to me. :)

    It makes sense if you realize I set the season lengths to 21/28/14/7. I'm from SoCal, so to me those feel more like normal seasons. :)

    And a winter with every day Christmas? How awesome is that?

    Oh, and one great thing about it being a Nraas mod; you know it's pretty much going to play nice with everything else you have. If you do encounter a bug, and you report it, it usually gets squished pretty quickly.
  • Jude525Jude525 Posts: 1,696 Member
    I "accidentally" built my first castle with the The Complete Castle by Castle Kits, Inc. I was looking for a unique way to build a pet park within the walled city section of Monte Vista. A green park seemed inappropriate. So I wanted to wall in the grassy area. Somehow I got the idea of using the castle wall pieces. This got me looking into how they are used, because they don't just work.

    I found several tutorials, most of which turned out to be incomplete or just plain wrong. There were several examples of truly bad YouTube productions that totally lacked editing. People guessing how to place doors and windows, and some never succeeding. Yet they posted the videos anyway, as if they were helping people. They did show how to get the pieces to seam together. This requires having MoveObjectsOn enabled. But after watching hours of video I finally stumbled on the instructions of how to get doors, arches and windows to work, as well as how to decorate interiors. Not in a video, but a good old fashioned web page. (Don't remember where. I'm so bad about this.)

    You need to build the rooms first, then apply the castle walls/corners, then place doors and windows. Finally, the topmost pieces need to be placed without an interior wall. Oh, and the walls need to be facing in the right direction. There is an "inside" and an "outside" to most pieces. If anyone is actually looking to learn this, let me know and I'll be more precise.

    Anyway, my next post is one of my surprise builds, the cat jungle pet park. I just need to think of a cute name and grab some pictures.
    aka Jude
    I own the store as of 1+7/17/17

    My Studio

    My build thread in the Creative Corner
  • MiaSkywalkerMiaSkywalker Posts: 3,436 Member
    Yep. I use the castle pieces fairly often, but they do require MOO, and they do have to be applied rather late. Not so late that you have no idea what the place is going to look like, but late enough that the walls are already there, if you're going to want walls.

    It's tricky. And then you have to worry about routing, because if the wall pieces overlap something that you want to make functional, there can be problems. So you have to make extra sure to test everything, to make sure you won't get routing errors.
  • Jude525Jude525 Posts: 1,696 Member
    O M G. It's back!!! "Arezzo Bathroom CounterRight!"

    Don't worry, it isn't in anything that's been uploaded. But I went through all the trouble of installing CC Magic and, I thought, a clean install. I created a Configuration that was clear of all CC and created my latest build. Put it through Custard before posting it, and there it was. I am so frustrated. I have spent dozens of hours creating this build thinking I was finally completely in control of the content. I knew what packs were turned on, what store content was installed. And a piece of corrupt CC that I expunged from my system a year ago turns up. I mean, how? How does this even happen? I don't have the energy to even think about this right now. *sigh*
    aka Jude
    I own the store as of 1+7/17/17

    My Studio

    My build thread in the Creative Corner
  • Jude525Jude525 Posts: 1,696 Member
    edited August 2018
    Okay, file is cleaned, even if my computer isn't. So here is my 50s Style Ranch.

    There are two variants. One has a laundry room off the breakfast nook. The second is a slightly different configuration, with a second full bath and an attached garage. I was inspired by the way commercial house plans are offered with different configurations.

    With the garage: link Hosted on Sim File Share
    A 50s era ranch, furnished in period. 2 bedrooms with shared full bath. Open plan living includes breakfast nook and dining area. Study can be converted to 3rd bedroom. Full bath and laundry room off of bonus room on attached garage behind kitchen.
    Price furnished - §103,964 Unfurnished - §60,443

    YY5haKA.jpg

    And without: link Hosted on Sim File Share
    A 50s era ranch, furnished in period. 2 bedrooms with shared full bath. Open plan living includes breakfast nook and dining area. Study can be converted to 3rd bedroom. Spacious laundry room off breakfast nook.
    Price furnished - §87,993 Unfurnished - §46,212

    Q59Pidj.jpg?1

    This project is unique for several reasons. First, obviously, offering it in two variations.

    Second, I turned off all Expansion and Stuff packs. The build contains content from the base game and the store only. It depends heavily on the store's Mid-century Fantasy collection, using almost every piece at least once. It also uses several pieces from the Imperial Bedroom Zen set in the second bedroom. In post-war America, as feelings toward Japan began to be tempered, there was a rising interest in Japanese culture, so I thought it was appropriate to go with this option to give some variety to the design. This is not my first period build, since my 4 Alice Street build is also mid-century themed.

    Third, I have provided almost no landscaping. This house is intended to work similarly to a blueprint. Place it on a larger lot and work around it. It is built on a 30x30 lot, but that leaves little room to add anything. To use this practically, it needs to be placed on a larger lot. Choose a lot, use the positioning arrows, then add your own touches. Set it on the street and create a back garden. Set it back and extend the front walk and drive.

    If you want to take the "blueprint" concept a step further, use the in-game blueprint tool to place a pre-designed pool in the yard. Consider it a customization option from the builder.

    Oh, one warning!!! If you use the garage version, do not mess with the landscape level directly in front of the garage door or it may create a gap under the tiles. It won't have any effect on functionality, but I worked hard to get the ground as close to the level of the garage entrance as possible. If you extend the driveway, smooth the ground from the front out the the new area and it will be fine.

    I worked for hours trying to get the garage floor down to a level ground and steps inside the garage up to the house floor level. But I just couldn't get it to work without some very funky visuals where the levels shifted.

    And if you use the other version, you may want to even out or soften the rise where the garage door entrance was. I forgot to do that when I deleted the garage. Oops.

    Finally, laundry! I never use the laundry feature in game, but I know a lot of players love it. And this house just screamed for a laundry room. (Actually, it was in the blueprints.) Not to mention that the use of the the I Heart the 50s Laundry set was almost mandatory for this build. There is a hamper from the Imperial Bedroom Zen set that I opted not to include in the Japanese bedroom. I just don't like the design. But you may want to include it.

    So, here are the floorplans and some more pics. The pics for most of the house were taken in the garage version. Some pics of the variant are mixed in. Oh, the second bath was in the plans as a lavette, but I figured 2-3 bedrooms really needed a second bath if the space was available.

    Back of house. The "service" entrance is colored to blend in, while the back porch is trimmed in white to make it a feature.

    TAFnhA5.jpg

    NQ96znV.jpg

    Floorplans

    dchaQfU.jpg
    SiZqRvV.jpg

    yxQOV2N.jpg?1

    You enter the front foyer with the dining room to your right. The living room is directly ahead and to the left. Past the dining room is the open kitchen with a seated island, then past that is the breakfast nook. I realize that this is a lot of seating, but it is what the original blueprints called for. The breakfast nook seating is supposed to be built-ins, which gives a different effect. This was a compromise. The table and sideboard in the breakfast nook could be removed and replaced with skill objects, such as a piano or an easel, a chess board, etc.

    Foyer with dining to side
    7GEjhm8.jpg?2

    Dining room
    UD6iDIJ.jpg?2

    Kitchen
    vxqnNFa.jpg?2

    Breakfast nook with garage door
    OGDPlX3.jpg?2

    And with laundry door
    jfEd3YF.jpg?2

    View from living room into kitchen and breakfast nook
    GC4p9Rt.jpg?2

    The bedrooms, shared bath and study are all directly off of the living area.
    CrzsgZt.jpg?2

    Japanese bedroom
    LTWbb5f.jpg?1
    fCZnJvk.jpg?1

    Shared bath (yes, I have a fondness for pink bathrooms :p )
    eh4bki5.jpg?2

    50s bedroom
    KMeTTuW.jpg?2
    bgL3gIa.jpg?1

    Study
    XEJ3qJS.jpg?1
    q2V0h63.jpg?1

    The bonus room between the garage and back entry has cubbies for jackets, wet shoes, etc.
    MivpAjf.jpg?2

    The laundry room off the back entry
    i4AZttO.jpg?1

    The back bath
    hhmuGIV.jpg?1
    50HqzZz.jpg?1

    The garage
    pyUuklE.jpg?2
    vuuXIEb.jpg?2

    A cutaway showing the layout of the laundry room without the garage/rear entry
    jAbfOKf.jpg?4[spoiler/]

    In some ways this should have been my easiest build, but converting real world dimensions to Sim dimensions is always a challenge. And, honestly, selectively choosing items only from specific sets was downright tedious, even though I was very happy with the results. I also learned that covering an accent wall with a very busy pattern saves me from having to find wall decorations for that whole wall. That's a shortcut I'll be using again!

    I hope you all enjoy!
    Post edited by Jude525 on
    aka Jude
    I own the store as of 1+7/17/17

    My Studio

    My build thread in the Creative Corner
  • Jude525Jude525 Posts: 1,696 Member
    edited July 2018
    I've had to take the ranch house down. Even though I tested it three times in Custard, I still found the cabinet in a copy in my game. I think I remember something now about the file attaching itself during the upload process itself, so my testing the files may or may not have helped.

    If you downloaded it, delete it from your game. If I remember correctly, the counter will not effect your game if you do not access the lot. If anyone has already placed the lot in game, let me know and I'll let you know what to do from here. Well, this only applies if the copy from the Studio was corrupted. I honestly panicked and deleted them before downloading a copy to test. So, again, run it through Custard to see where it stands.

    I think at this point I am going to have to make a choice between building to share and using CC. I don't see any responsible way to do both.

    I think I will simply give up using CC, since sharing my builds is so much fun. But it will mean losing access to my own builds that use custom content, including my beloved 4 Alice Street project.

    I have run them through Custard and will post them on Sim File Share, since it seems that each time they pass through the game the file gets re-attached.
    aka Jude
    I own the store as of 1+7/17/17

    My Studio

    My build thread in the Creative Corner
  • HidehiHidehi Posts: 1,109 Member


    I am so sorry to read that you have so many problems with this blooming counter @Jude525 ! :'(

    Both versions of your 50s style Ranch look fabulous and I was just going to download the one with the garage to take a closer look in game .... such a shame you've had to take it down from the Exchange. I very much hope you'll be able to get rid of this troubling CC.

    Your idea of offering 2 versions and giving simmers the opportunity of different placements on a variety of lot sizes is brilliant by the way!

    Looking forward to the time you can upload the ranch again without the worry of spreading this viral counter :)

  • rosemowrosemow Posts: 163,519 Member
    I am sorry that you continue to have these issues :(
    Both versions of the Ranch are very nice! :) Very nice design of the exteriors! The garage is a nice touch in the first build. Very nice fromt porches! Nice sitting areas on the porch for Sims to enjoy resting there in the outdoors air. The layout of the interior of the homes look very nice! The colour and the wall and floor tiling in the bathrooms looks very nice. Very nice wall patterning in many of the rooms. It looks very nice that you have designed Japanese and 50’s themed bedrooms . They look very nice!
    They are very nice homes! :)
  • Jude525Jude525 Posts: 1,696 Member
    @Hidehi Thanks. I'm actually pretty impressed with the idea of the flexible placement myself! I think I've mentioned, I was inspired when I was browsing houseplans and saw how they would make suggestions about how to place the homes on lots and offered different build options. In this house the garage/bonus room was actually a master suite. Something I consider very forward thinking for the 50s.

    It did offer a garage option, attached on the other side of the laundry room. It also offered a bonus room to be built over the garage. But, I was motivated enough to offer THAT many options. :D

    I'm actually going to post clean versions to Sims File Share today. I was just so emotionally exhausted the other day that I had to walk away. I remembered that the counter attaches itself during the upload/share process in game. So the file can be cleaned with Custard and posted anywhere but the Sims 3 site. This does take away some of the frustration. (Though not all.)

    @rosemow Thank you for your usual kind words. Your comments always show that you actually have looked at the pics and observed the details of the build. Even stuff I don't mention. I love the porches, front and back. They are part of what drew me to this home. They are also why the house HAD to have a foundation. I tried building it on a level lot, to make the garage easier, but the porches lost too much of their charm.
    aka Jude
    I own the store as of 1+7/17/17

    My Studio

    My build thread in the Creative Corner
  • MiaSkywalkerMiaSkywalker Posts: 3,436 Member
    edited July 2018
    Jude525 wrote: »
    O M G. It's back!!! "Arezzo Bathroom CounterRight!"
    The next time this happens to you (and it probably will - there are many beautiful uploads on the Exchange with it, so if you forget to check with Custard even once, you can get it), there are two things you can try doing before exporting an upload that might allow any outgoing upload to be clean.
    1. Rename the file with the .dbc extension that is in your DCCache folder. .ebc files are store content; .dbc are custom content. This WILL include any CC worlds you've downloaded, even if those worlds don't have any CC in them themselves. I usually rename the extension to .dbcbackup, just so I know what it is.
    2. Delete all files in your DCBackup directory, other than the ccmerged file. I believe that even if you have CC in your game, it can only add CC to any outgoing upload if there is a file in your DCBackup directory telling your game what the file is.

    These things might not work with the Arezzo counter, because that item is so insidious. They are also not permanent solutions; if you use any custom worlds you won't want to lose your .dbc files. (I rarely have other CC in that file, since I convert any CC I download to .package format for easy removal.)

    Once you've reinstalled all your store content to a clean install, I would suggest backing up those .ebc files to a DVD for easy restoring if you ever need it later. I also don't have any idea why the DCBackup folder keeps repopulating itself. And yet I know it does, because I have to clear it out every few times I play, and I certainly don't add new CC every time I play. I DO download lots, however, and I guess that can do it.

    I've recently encountered the Arezzo counter in about half a dozen builds. I wish there were a way to flag a user's studio so that I would remember that I've encountered it in that studio before, but there isn't. About the only thing I can do is to neither rec nor favorite a build where I find it; otherwise I rec (and usually favorite) every build that I download.

    Another thing you can do, of course, is that when you run Custard on your file before you upload, strip the counter out of that file before you upload it. And I say "when", because you should always Custard check anything you plan to upload to your studio. :) Because that file is insidious, however, you should re-check the file with Custard after stripping out that counter, just to make certain that it's no longer there. This might NOT be sufficient with that counter (I have no idea if the game will replace it when you do the actual upload, since that item is so sticky), although it's certainly sufficient to remove any other CC from an upload.

    I have to say that I feel sorry for the original creator of that counter. I doubt that it was her fault that the item is so sticky, and she fixed her counter within a day or two of its creation. She has gained a very bad reputation from it, however, and that has got to be depressing.

    I like both of those ranch houses that you've done. While not the usual style that I play, they have nice curb appeal and a good layout. Sims will certainly like living in them.

    ETA: I'm with you on CC; I don't think I could live without some of the stuff I use regularly. (Like default skins, default eyes, and certain mods.) I never include CC in anything I upload to the Exchange, and when I'm creating builds for any exchange on the site, I use a CC free Sims 3 install. But for my own play - and builds that I make for my own use that I have no intention of sharing - I occasionally use quite a bit of CC. Most of the CC I use is from MTS, which downloads from .package files, which can't attach themselves to an upload. (And are easily removed if something turns out to be a problem.) That which doesn't download in .package format, I use Delphy's Multi Extractor to convert them to .package format, then delete the sims3pack file and use the package in my mods folder. I've never figured out an easy way to uninstall CC that has been installed in Sims3pack format, and if some CC turns out to be bad (or problematic in some manner), I want to be able to remove it without fuss. Have you ever tried using the Transmogrifier? It allows you to essentially create your own CC. :)
    Post edited by MiaSkywalker on
  • MpartMpart Posts: 115 Member
    I absolutely adore the house! I love the fact you went for something historic and the garage landscaping. That must have been insane doing. I would have noped out after the first hour or so.
    I'm sorry to hear about the counter that is causing so many problems. :'(
    t2W9HAW.png

    Mpart's Builds; Taking Requests (Indefinite Hiatus)
  • Jude525Jude525 Posts: 1,696 Member
    Oops, I never activated the links!!!!! Well, they are active now. Files are hosted on Sim File Share.
    aka Jude
    I own the store as of 1+7/17/17

    My Studio

    My build thread in the Creative Corner
  • Jude525Jude525 Posts: 1,696 Member
    @Mpart a very late thank you. I have not been on line much this month. And, yes, I actually almost chucked the whole idea a couple of times. And I will probably never do it again!
    aka Jude
    I own the store as of 1+7/17/17

    My Studio

    My build thread in the Creative Corner
  • Jude525Jude525 Posts: 1,696 Member
    edited August 2018
    @Auroraskies asked in another thread how I manage my tractor track on Grandpa's Grove. As is my nature, I got carried away with my answer and it became a mini-tutorial. So, instead of leaving it there I've decided to move it here and provide a link there. I felt that even using a spoiler wasn't enough to make it appropriate there.

    Tractor harvesting mini-tutorial
    The basic issue was how to maximize the value of the tractor and minimize the time spent on it. When using a tractor, it can be used to water, fertilize and harvest crops. Each of these requires a separate pass around the track. (You can avoid the watering pass by placing sprinklers throughout your garden.)

    But there is a limit to how many plants can be processed during a single pass of the tractor leaving from and returning to it's starting point. I have never tested to see what the limit is, nor found this number on the web. It is probably out there somewhere. If you exceed this many plants on your route, then you need to run the entire circuit again for each process to completely water/fertilize/harvest your crops.

    It begins with the first plant it encounters and works from there, stopping when it reaches its maximum. After that it simply drives the rest of the track without actually doing anything. In my experience, the track provided with the farm needs three passes for each process. Here, it harvests the green section, then you wait for it to return to the start, then it drives the green section without doing anything, harvests the yellow section, then returns without doing anything to the purple section. Finally, you run it again to drive uselessly past the first two sections to get the harvest from the purple section.

    wm7eJjR.jpg?1

    It needs to do this three times. That is a LOT of wasted play time and time from your Sim's day.

    Therefore, to be most efficient, you want a track that only covers as many plants as it can handle in one pass, reaching the end of its pass as soon as it is done. No time wasted simply riding the tractor back to the beginning.

    What I do is simplify the track and delete most duplicate crops, especially apple trees. There are SO many apple trees! I delete all the trees in red. Some to reduce time, some because the new track doesn't reach them. Add any new trees along the track. The crops I remove are from the gardens on either side of the house. The tractor has been moved to the side of the house, which I like better anyway. Most farmers don't leave the tractor out in front of the house for company to see.

    B253MM6.jpg?1

    Here is a longer single track option, with the tractor placed the same way. This has a nice aesthetic, but will result in a lot of wasted driving time. I would at least recommend deleting the trees in yellow. I suspect this would require two passes per function.

    QlPW3dE.jpg?1

    Here is a simple multi-track example, with a second tractor added onto the second track. You spend more time on the tractors, but the time is not wasted. It is useful if you want more crops, which I would plant anywhere along the path of the second track, maybe converting the rose bed for harvestables. And/or replacing the gazebo with another bed. If so, run the outer track first so that the inner tractor doesn't fill up from these beds.

    LeqCrby.jpg?1

    Then there are the "T" road sections. These place a bale of hay in the road. In play/live mode this hay can be clicked on and moved to any of the three points of the intersection, redirecting the tractor. In this way you can create one continuous track that is actually several routes. Here is an example, although not a very useful one. Just what can be done.

    I haven't used this at all myself. But could see where it could be useful on a different farm property. In the examples, notice the positions of the hay bales.

    F6ix6e0.jpg?1

    pAgkZTo.jpg?1

    In this example, the route goes around the back of the house.
    i3Zdwwj.jpg?1

    The validity of the track can only be tested in live/play mode. It can not be done in build mode. When testing for a valid track, the section that IS valid will be highlighted green, showing you at what point the error exists. This is an actual screen shot that has not been altered.

    0W3wZtR.jpg?1

    If you are having trouble getting your track to work, look for the section to be one square off place, as in this pic. In my experience it is the most common cause for an invalid track.

    heHlcn3.jpg

    So, that's all I know about tractor use and track building. This all assumes you have a relatively level property. I don't know the tolerances for hills. If you think of any questions, let me know. We can find the answers and post them here to make this more thorough.

    EDIT: After @Auroraskies reminded me, I decided to add that the tractor will not harvest from money trees. I'm not sure if they can be fertilized by it, but they can be watered.
    Post edited by Jude525 on
    aka Jude
    I own the store as of 1+7/17/17

    My Studio

    My build thread in the Creative Corner
  • rosemowrosemow Posts: 163,519 Member
    Your tutorial on managing the tractor track is very helpful! :) It will be great for simmers to read and take note of the helpful information and advice as they set up and use the tractor track.
  • rosemowrosemow Posts: 163,519 Member
    Hello
    I saw what you posted in mpart’s thread about using the tab key. I think that you may sometimes play sims 4? This is a video explaining about using tab key, which takes you into camera mode. It may help in both versions of the game

    https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=KNVB0_OWKCw
  • AuroraskiesAuroraskies Posts: 1,834 Member
    Great, thank you for the tutorial! I saw somewhere that Karritz (I cannot link or copy or refer) gave the tip to level the grounds first with the landscape tool and cover it with wood flooring (the free ones), to make sure that the ground is flat (before it is too late to change), and remove it once the track has been put in place.
    I did just that and got the track to work on the first try. I have a small oval (smallest), and plant inside of it and 4 squares outside of it, also a tip I saw somewhere. The computer needs to be good to handle a lot of plants (the game itself in all reality, EA's specifications are only for base game...), but I clear out the inventory of harvestables after each run, also a tip I read. My money trees stopped giving bags even though they were in 'harvest state', both when planted in the tractor track and in the store item "Swift Gro Gardening Station", put on the same lot. Maybe there is some conflict between the tractor and them.
    Planted long ago..roots go deep.. (sorry could not resist).
  • Jude525Jude525 Posts: 1,696 Member
    I meant to mention that the tractor can't harvest money trees. I've never noticed any problem with them being harvested "manually" on farms with the tractor though. And I've had the Swift Gro on that same farm, so not sure what happened there.

    As for the number of plants; I have a pretty powerful system, so I haven't run into any problems with a fully planted Grandpa's farm. When I bought my system a couple years ago, I threw a lot of money at it to make sure it could handle Sims 3, since it is primarily what I was buying it for. I'm glad that I had the opportunity at that time and have never regretted it. The good thing about playing a retired title is that I know the specs aren't going to change. If my system can handle it now, it will still be able to handle it three years from now.

    That is, as long as MS doesn't go messing with Windows 10 too much. My laptop warranty expires in January. At that point I'll be able to start playing with my system and I think I'm going to create a second boot drive with a full Sims install and keep that drive from any future online updates. After that, no matter what MS does, I'll have a compatible OS.
    aka Jude
    I own the store as of 1+7/17/17

    My Studio

    My build thread in the Creative Corner
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