Parking lot help for a n00b...

[masochist 111]

O. K., so I read all the stickies, I searched and found that many people have had this problem before, but none of them seem to have quite the same one, so I am (hesitently) posting this as a final plea, in hopes that someone can help me...

I have Sim City 4 Deluxe.  I downloaded many files from this site, and I have the update patch.  But one of these files has replaced my parking lots with grass yards.  But here's the problem: it's not just the parking lots from the downloaded building files (I haven't placed any of them yet), it's ALL of my parking lots...ones from buildings that occur naturally.  They have trees, topiaries, hedges, and are even in different up-keep states depending on the wealth of the buildings (high wealth looks better than medium wealth, etc.), and cars parked on top of them.  So does anyone know what files are known to cause this so I can get rid of them?  I can give a file list if needed.  Thanks in advance for putting up with this, I know it's probably been covered somewhere on this site...p.s., this is my very first post!

[ephorex_77 0]

Umm...just before we begin, how many files do you have??

I can't really help because I don't use the STEX anymore or even play the game, but is going through them manually a viable option??

Btw, you made two exact same threads.

[masochist 111]

Well...I downloaded 81 items from the site, and some of them (almost all of them, in fact) have more than one file in the zip pack...and yeah, I can take them out of the plugins folder, and I've already tried with the more obvious possible files, but I'm afraid to do it with some other ones that seem suspicious because there are so many files that are dependent on so many other files...so I'm all frustrated and desperate...

[Bones1 96]

If you've been downloading stuff at random, and not checking out what kind of stats the buildings have (which certainly seems to be the case, since you don't even know what screwed up your parking lots), then you're in big trouble.

Many of the BATs here (and elsewhere) have horribly messed up stats. They can seriously wreck the game.

 

Never download and install something blindly. Use SC4Tool or Reader to check to see what the BAT really does. In many (most?) cases, the authors don't have a clue what stats to use, and often don't know or care that their BAT can break the game.

 

The best thing you can do is completely zap your plugin folder, and start over from scratch. Install one BAT at a time (after checking to see what it does).

[soldyne 111]

just to temper Bones reply with a little info, there are some BATers that do know and care about the files they upload on the STEX.  pretty much anything from PEG, Simgoober, Dusktrooper, Gascooker, BSC, and to some extent NDEX (and few select others) are usually safe.

 

as for the parking garage problem I hate to say it but you are going to have to start all over again with your downloads.  clear out your plugins folder and start up the game.  make a new quick city and make sure things are working ok.  then, slowly, little by little re install all your plugins (you may have to redownload the .zips if you dont still have them) but this time try to keep your plugins folder organized by using subfolders.

 

I like to organize by lot type and sub organize by creator.  this way, if you have a problem with a particular lot or BAT you can find it really quick and delete it.  trust me, 80 plugins is nothing.  If you are like other people here on Simtropolis (myself included) you will end up with hundreds of plugins and organization is the only way to keep it all straight.  I have over 1GB of plugins myself (I'm addicted to the STEX!)

 

I know it sounds like a pain but you will thank us when it is done.  good luck.

[toxicpiano 125]

Date: 12/21/2005 4:55:52 PM Author: soldyne

 (I'm addicted to the STEX!)

quote>

isnt everyone!?

[masochist 111]

All right, I'm back...sorry about the absence, but I hope every one had a great Christmas!  Anyways, decided to post an update about this problem of mine.  I took everything out of the plugins folder, so there is nothing in the plugins folder, city detail is high, but I still have no parking lots...garages are fine, it's just the lots and the driveways.  In residential, they're grass; in commercial, they're either grass or plazas; in industrial, they're grey squares.  I really have no idea why this bothers me so much, but it does...it might have something to do with that update patch from Maxis, some people have said.  I'm desperate, please, someone save the asphalt!

[yayaville 0]

Just a random idea, but there are two plugin folders. Most of the stuff goes in the my documents\SC4\plugins folder, but there is also a C:\Program Files\Maxis\Sim City 4 Deluxe\Plugins folder. Any chance that something was installed in that one?

Just be sure you leave in the four original files called background_3d0.png through background_3d3.png.