Strange bug and crash (probably plugin)

[TheDUBSpeedArts 3]

This is most likely caused by a plugin, but I don't know which. Attempting to remove individual plugins between startups has not yielded results.

On startup, I am greeted by an empty region with no cities, no text anywhere (even the menus), and a constantly vibrating screen. The region list is empty, and attempting to create a new one crashes the game. New folders have been created in the regions folder bearing the name timbuktu with increasingly higher numbers. The game also skips all intros except the Maxis and SimCity 4 splash screens.

MacBook Pro, OSX El Capitan, SC4 Steam version.

 

 

 

[Raymond7cn 6,772]

Hi TheDUBSpeedArts, I had no experience in this issue, May I suggest that how about copy all of your plugins to a safe place, and then testing them, you can restore half of them first and see what happened, Hope it helps, Likewise you can wait for other experts in simtropolis. Thank you.

Best Regards,

-- Raymond

[gwada971 1,891]

Hi @TheDUBSpeedArts I read at one time that the Steam version had a limitation on the number of files for maps.

Maybe try removing some maps from the Regions folder and see what happens.

Kinds regards

[Cyclone Boom 16,912]

8 hours ago, TheDUBSpeedArts said:

On startup, I am greeted by an empty region with no cities, no text anywhere (even the menus), and a constantly vibrating screen.

In addition to the advice above from Raymond and gwada, it sounds like your issue might be similar to that which was posted in this topic the other day.

As follows:

Check the useful post @c4bl3fl4m3 made there for some info, including in the linked resource FAQ topic. Using the mentioned JDatPacker tool is a viable method of compressing content on Mac, and this is a cross-platform Java tool which can be run on Windows, Mac, or Linux systems. The idea then is to work around the files limit for the Mac version and to have a mirrored copy of your Plugins stored outside the loading folder. This then allows changes to be made and with re-packing as needed.

(Note: There was nothing wrong asking in the Bugs & Tech forum, but I've moved us over to SC4 Mac Users since it's particularly relevant for this technical issue. )

[c4bl3fl4m3 405]

Mac user here. Yup, this is classic, textbook "too many files & folders" Mac bug behavior. To the point that I'd recommend we Star this post so people know what the Mac "too many files/folders" bug looks like. (I'll link to it from my post as well.) My system does the EXACT same thing. (For posterity, I'm also using a MacBook Pro, but I'm on Mojave & have the Aspyr/App Store version.)

Really, any kind of weird load issues or slowdown issues, the first thing to try is compressing all your files (and make a backup folder!), and then if it doesn't work, try removing individual plugins from there. The only time I'd try individual plugins first is if it worked absolutely fine one time, then you added 1 plugin (instead of a bunch) and then it suddenly did stuff more like crashing to desktop (CTD).

(FWIW, after you fix the bug, you can remove all of those extra weird Timbuktu regions it created. (Or, heck, keep one and develop it!))

Oh, and thanks for describing it so very well! With credit, I'm going to use your description in a guide to Mac bugs & crashes, if that's okay with you, @TheDUBSpeedArts.

[TheDUBSpeedArts 3]

Thanks for the assistance, compressed a whole lot of files with the Dat tool. The bug is still there - painfully slow game and crashing - but at least the game is playable now. Will keep compressing files and see the results.

[c4bl3fl4m3 405]

On 1/21/2020 at 9:35 AM, TheDUBSpeedArts said:

Thanks for the assistance, compressed a whole lot of files with the Dat tool. The bug is still there - painfully slow game and crashing - but at least the game is playable now. Will keep compressing files and see the results.

Out of curiosity, were you able to totally fix the bug?

[Robert Meraglia 0]

Hello,

I am also experiencing  CTD (crash to desktop) when loading a map. It can be any map in any region. I currently have NAM "Network Addon Mod" and "z___NAM" installed. This has been working fine for the last 2 years (it looks like I installed it in 2018). I did try to download additional mods that needed per-requisites and were affecting textures. I am using a mac (version Sierra 10.12.6) and have read that might be a no-no.

This being said, I notice that if I remove the z___NAM folder from the plugin folder, the game will load and work. But once I put in the "z___NAM" folder back into the plugins the game will crash when loading a map.

This sucks because I was using the HSR (high-speed rail) system and Ninja stations throughout my region. When I remove the "z___NAM" file I no longer have these options. Currently these are the only two folders I have within my plugins.

 

I also want to add that I have seen there is a folder limit within the plugins folder of potentially 200? , however, after getting info on the Network Addon Mod folder I see:

661,733,287 bytes (662.4 MB on disk) for 388 items.

Am I calculating this correctly?

When I add the additional z___NAM folder I get the crash, the specs being:

39,891,155 bytes (40.2 MB on disk) for 151 items

 

Wondering if anyone else is getting this issue or have we identified the plugin that is crashing? I am almost positive it exists in the z___NAM folder, but like I said, since 2018 I was using this just fine, with all the folders left intact.

 

Wondering if anything changed or anyone else's thoughts. Thanks.

[CorinaMarie 29,615]

@Robert Meraglia

It sounds like your game got updated to the 64 bit version which introduces another set of problems.

1. Start reading at this post in the NAM 36 Crashes on Mac thread.
2. The NAM related problems have been resolved, but you'll need the next version of NAM. See NAM 37 Release Candidate - General Information
3. The too many plugins is also an issue for Macs. Read APPENDIX Item A in the NAM - Mac OS X Installation Guide.

Now, I'm not a Mac user myself, but this info is gathered from threads I've read.

P.S. I noticed you also posted the same in another thread. To avoid some peeps replying here and some there, I'll go ahead and lock that thread to keep any replies here in one place.