Tips for keeping your mods organized and avoiding conflicts

[Wench]

Thanks for a very detailed guide which also led me to your great blog

[ginny02]

Did someone had try the "tips for running dashboard on a mac" ?

Because I play on a mac and i have a error message when i do all the stuff in the terminal.... 
 -bash: mono: command not found

And i need to check all my CC so if someone can help me it would be great!!   

[NonaMena]

Did someone had try the "tips for running dashboard on a mac" ?

Because I play on a mac and i have a error message when i do all the stuff in the terminal.... 
 -bash: mono: command not found

And i need to check all my CC so if someone can help me it would be great!!   

Hi, ginny. Sorry for the slow response. I was hoping somebody that has a mac might come along and help.

Anyhow, this is a shot in the dark, but did you download and install Mono before opening the terminal?

[Berkana]

At first: Thanks a lot for the work you did here. I must confess that I don't know that much about
the theoretical side of The Sims and sometimes it is not easy to understand everything.

I read your thread and also the things you wrote in the other forums where you've posted, but...
well, I am not sure if the question I have is solved with all this and I if just didn't understand it right or not.
Sometimes I have problems to understand technical stuff written in English because I am no native speaker.

So what I would like to know is: I use the Dashboard to look for conflicts and corrupted files. There are often objects
where it says "..conflicts with" and then the ID of the item. For example: There is the "Simsina Barstool" with the
ID 123 and the "Simsina Bartable" where it says "Conflicts with 123". Does this mean these files really conflict
with each other and using both at the same time could cause trouble? All the files are in the DCBackup folder
in my game and know I don't know if I should delete them or not. When I try to let the Dashboard fix these files
it doesn't do anything (it says 0 fixed) and I don't know if that means there IS nothing to fix or if I do something wrong.

It would be great if you could help me because I wouldn't want to delete objects I like if it is not necessary. 

[NonaMena]

Glad you find the topic useful You said you've read other things I've posted. Have you read this one also? Understanding Mod and CC Conflicts with Delphy's Dashboard

If not, it might be helpful

About your question: No, the objects don't conflict with each other. It means they both come with the same resource that they both need. It's not a real conflict. The game will only load the resource once and both objects will use it just fine, and nothing bad will happen to your game. Also, you can just ignore the DCBackup in it's entirety. The files in the DCBackup are never loaded into the game. It serves mainly as a place for the game to look for CC when you export content to a sim3packs.

[Berkana]

*gnarf* Thank you very much for your reply. That means I deleted lots of things I liked for nothing. 
But I think it is not bad to delete some cc from time to time before it will be too much.

[NonaMena]

*gnarf* Thank you very much for your reply. That means I deleted lots of things I liked for nothing. 
But I think it is not bad to delete some cc from time to time before it will be too much.

I tend to try to delete cc regularly, otherwise I end up with lots of CC I don't even use!

[pepoluan]

If I may add to this helpful thread, some points I've learned:

• Before installing .sims3pack files, check it using CUSTARD tool for anything unseemly. At the least, you can see what other packages will be installed.
• I strongly recommend *NOT* using CC Magic for the installation of .sims3pack files for: Worlds, lots, sims, and cabinets & counters. For other kinds of CC, CC Magic is a godsend.
• To ensure that Sims 3 Dashboard catches all problems, change its "Scan Folder" to the "The Sims 3" folder (that is, the parent folder of "Mods", "Downloads", "DCCache", etc. Ensure that the "Downloads" and "DCBackup" folders are clean of .sims3pack and .package files, or Sims 3 Dashboard will complain of conflicts.
• Be careful with "Default Replacement" CCs, especially skintones. They will conflict with each other and make your custom sims to have black skin (as in "midnight black", not the African / African-american skin color). Use only one "default replacement" CC, or use "non-default" (ND) CCs and change the custom sims' skintone manually.
• When installing .sims3pack files, I always go with the following procedure:
  
  • Copy supporting CCs (e.g., ND skintones, hairs, patterns, etc.) to the Downloads folder. Except for .sims3pack files in the list of non-recommended above.
  • In CC Magic, click Refresh, and move the newly-found CCs in the "Default" set into a new set. I usually call the new set "Support: <CC name>"
  • In CC Magic, click "Clear Cache", click "Yes". After cleaning finished, click "Rebuild"
  • Check for Conflicts or Corruptions using Sims 3 Dashboard, fix them.
  • Install the .sims3pack using Sims 3 Launcher
  • Delete all .package files in the DCBackup folder
  • In CC Magic, again do "Refresh", delete packages in "Default" set, "Clear Cache / Yes", and "Rebuild"
  • Again check for Conflicts or Corruptions using Sims 3 Dashboard, and fix them.
  • Repeat the steps to install other .sims3pack files (I usually went on a "CC installation splurge" )
  • Finally, before playing, using the Sims 3 Dashboard, clean all caches *except* those starting with "WorldCaches".
  • Later on, if I find that everything is okay, and I love the CC, I will redistribute all the packages in the "Support: <CC Name>" set into my 'permanent' sets, e.g. "CAS", "Furni", "Clothes", etc., and delete the emptied set. Not necessary, but helps in reducing clutter

I hope my points above will be helpful.

[Lisa46]

I can vouch for the default replacement skin thing. My cousin downloaded one to my computer and all my sims' skintones went crazy.

[fivine]

@pepoluan  Thanks a lot, it s just what i needed.

Only thing missing in your very well-made walk-through, how do you manage the sims3pack which doesn't fit in the use of cc magic?

Worlds, lots , sims, cabinet and counters. What  would be the best way to be sure of the sanity/ no duplicate and right install?