Well, not sure where to start...
I've just registered and I wanted to say hi and thank you for all that very useful info; I would be completely lost if I hadn't found this awesome site.
In fact, I still feel completely lost, but at least there is hope that someday all this will make sense to me and it'll even feel easy.
I have never played the Sims, and in fact I don't even have the game yet. It all started downloading the free version of The Sims for Android a few weeks ago, and after enjoying the game so much I couldn't stop thinking "what will the full game feel like, then?".
Now I'm afraid nothing will stop me from becoming a devoted simmer. But there is so much to read and to learn that I feel a bit overwhelmed. I know it might sound silly to those long used to the game, but I'm sure some people will understand how it feels like.
A couple of weeks ago I found the Origin site where you can buy the game and expansions, but a few days later when I had finally decided about it (and persuaded hubby that he was not going to lose me in the Sims' world...) the prices had changed and now they're much more expensive than what I saw, so I've decided I'll wait a little for a good chance to buy them and meanwhile I'll try to learn about the game and decide what I will want to do once I start simming (I already have some ideas).
This forum seems to be a really nice and friendly place, so I hope to be around for a long time (though I usually read and stay silent; but maybe I'll need some help when I finally start playing).
Thank you again to all people who have shared time and effort to help; you've really made a wonderful job!