Missing buildings :( (NOT missing props)

[U.F.F.E 1]

This happened to me after i was building some stuff in my industry city.

I took out the dat files wish contains all my residential and commercial buildings (made with dat packer) from the plugin folders, i did this because i didnt want a 1 km long list of things to plop when i wasnt using any of it anyway in my industry city.

Then after i was finish building industrial stuff, i wanted to go back to the residential/commercial city, and i put the dat files with all the residential/commercial stuff back into the plugin folder.

But now ALOT of the custom buildings are just gone :S (look at the pictures)

The missing building on this picture is the HK Admiralty Centre

This picture just prove that i dont miss the building, or any props, i found the building in the list and placed it to prove that i dont miss anything.

Just some more missing buildings (Residential)

More missing, the only reason why the buildings in the buttom of the picture are only there because i bulldozed all the missing buildings and some new ones grow up.

I can just bulldoze every missing thing and it WILL grow up again and be shown correctly, but that will sux so hard, so im asking if any1 out there knows a solution for my problem (to make all the missing buildings to be shown correctly).

[Robbert 0]

Had the same problem just days ago. I couldn't find a solution, but the empty lots will be replaced by normal ones over time... saves bulldozing

[U.F.F.E 1]

hm, i jsut let the game run in some simyears, but no changes, and alot of the buildings are plopped also, they wont just gow up again, the only good thing is that i can ask for details about the plopped buildings, but the growable onces just say empty lot.

damn

[CaptCity 4,804]

From your description, it sounds like you are using multiple .dat files that have been made by DatPacker. Did the city function normally before removing the packed file? I, too, had the issue of missing buildings when trying to use separate packed files for different purposes. After trying various things, I just assumed that the load order could be changed because of the renamed packed files. I put my original files back in and everything was OK after that. Although, I may have had to replop some of the lots. Just a thought...

[U.F.F.E 1]

i have 30 dat files, one for residential, one for high commercial, one for low commercial etc, one for water things, one for power things etc etc....but the city was completely working fine before, i also started the game without turning all the plugins into dat file, they still missing.

i was also thinking about load order and stuff, i have tried alot of things, now i just think i try to repair it all, damn it will take some hours

[CaptCity 4,804]

Yes, I feel your pain (truly). After dealing with this for a long time, I just decided to leave everything in the plugins and get used to the long menus. Was this the first time you ran the game without one of the packed files? Perhaps once the game is saved without the files, the only way to recover the lots is to replop or regrow them. I think there was some discussion of this at SC4Devotion (haven't checked in a while), if you're interested.

[U.F.F.E 1]

hmmmmmmmmmm, well, YES, i did open and save the city With Out the needed files!!! , Thats the reason i guess!

The reason why i did open and save the city was because i was making railroad lines in my industrial and had to end the line in the other city, i then ended the line in the city with missing buildings and saved, and when looking at the region view i saw a lot of brown boxes and was just thinking that they would disappear when i put the missing files back in the plugin folder.

Thx for making me aware of this CaptCity , i will NEVER do that again, and any1 who reads this: Dont do that!!

I guess there is no other solution other than repair it all, and i will do that and think how unlucky i was

[CaptCity 4,804]

Well, it was just a theory. I know DatPacking files works. I've used DatPacker planty of times. It was just when I was trying to create folders and use them at different times in different cities (plus the whole dependency thing) that I ran into this issue. Can't say for sure if it's a DatPacker issue or just made things too complicated for myself.

[normac 1]

This is a clear case of the prop pox. There is no known solution. There is a thread over at sc4devotion about it.

[CaptCity 4,804]

normac...

Possibly, but not necessarily. In my case above, once I got rid of the packed files and 'fixed' the city, I never had the problem return (knock on wood). In reading about the 'Prop Pox' and the DatPacker, I think the two are separate issues. 'Prop Pox' seems to be a much more random phenomena.

[Cockatoo 2,256]

The HK Admiralty Centre is one of my creations. In the first picture you posted it shows the Admiralty Centre with the two towers missing, they are both prop files. You're only seeing the model file (which is the base). Also all the props on that lot and some of the surrounding lots are missing. But when you plop it back in across the road, the props re-appear. Sounds like a classic case of prop-pox to me, props missing only in certain areas.

(And I know you haven't missed any files either because the prop and model files for the Admiralty Centre were merged together.)

CaptCity is right, you should never save a city without all the needed plugins, however I think it's probably doing this that has resulted in your prop-pox like problem and not the .DAT packer.

I've used the .DAT packer for nearly a year, and never had symptoms like this. I've got about 45 .dat files. I'm constantly adding to them, changing things and swapping them around. I think the key is that you just have to be careful with them... and never save without some of your plugins loaded.

[CaptCity 4,804]

Cockatoo-210893...

Allow me a related question - Have you ever built up a city with normal plugins, saved, exited, and then packed your plugins (without removing any), reloaded the same city and have everything return as before. As I mentioned, I've used DatPacker numerous times, but the times I've tried that is when I've had issues. When I've packed cities from scratch - no problems. Thanks...

[Cockatoo 2,256]

Yea, of course I've done that before. When I first used the Dat Ppacker, I just took my plugins straight from my plugins folder and compressed them into .dat files. I just continued playing old and new cities with no problems at all, and I think this is what most people do.

I still don't think the Dat Packer is the root of U.F.F.E's problems though. Even the Maxis props are missing, how could the Dat Packer effect those. I still say prop pox or something related.

[CaptCity 4,804]

Agreed... and I don't think it was a DatPacker issue in my case, and maybe U.F.F.E's (if you read this). I think it was more a case of what I was trying to do with it at the time and somehow botched it up.

[NetPCDoc 1]

Hello All,

First - saving without the proper plugins is a very BAD idea.

Quick thought - would changing the graphic settings have any affect?

That is would setting - say city details - to high, and giving the game enough time to redraw the area(s) in question - bring back any of the missing details?

In my experience - when a plugin is not over-riding the EA/Maxis content - this will (given enough time for my slow computer to redraw these highly detailed areas) bring back these details.

-NetPCDoc

No detail is too small to be micromanaged.

[U.F.F.E 1]

It wasnt the dat packers fault, it was when i saved without proper plugins that everything got messed up.

and no, i havent tried changing the gfx details, im already almost done rebuilding it all, and well, something got cooler to look at, but i miss the way the houses was standing.