STEX Code of Conduct

[Zelgadis 638]

The full code will be listed in the second post. For now, I'd like to take this opportunity to highlight a few things.

For all those new to ST and eager to share Skylines creations, welcome! The purpose of this post is primarily to point out that while we are dedicated to helping the community share all aspects of creativity and custom creations for all city-building games, there are some things that everyone should keep in mind about the Simtropolis Exchange. 

 

1. Original or permission-given work only on the STEX. If you didn't make it, you can't put it on the STEX unless you have explicit permission from the original creator. Exceptions can be granted under extenuating circumstances. Please consult the staff with details about your specific situation if you believe you may qualify. If you use a different username on, for example, Steam Workshop, be sure to say so in your upload description.
    
2. All STEX uploads must be accompanied by a meaningful, detailed description and an in-game picture of the creation, if applicable. Tell us in detail what the mod/building does. Does it make garbage? Does it make pollution? How much? Are there any known issues?
    
3. STEX uploads must be in an archive file, such as .zip.

 

For further questions, please send a message to anyone in our STEX moderator team:

• SimCoug
• Jasoncw
• Samerton

Or an administrator.

 

Enjoy making and sharing your creations!

[Zelgadis 638]

And here is the full STEX rule set.  

 

1. Do not pirate anything on the Simtropolis Exchange and do not upload plagiarized creations to the STEX. Simtropolis Lot/B.A.T./mod/map/etc. makers put hard work into their files. Do not upload them onto another site and call them your own. Ask for Permission from the author.

 

Also, do not upload a BAT, lot, or mod that was made by someone else without permission. Doing so is a bannable offense. If you re-lot someone else's creation, you MUST give credit to the original creator and link to the original file as a dependency. If the model is used from a free service like Sketchup or Google Warehouse, you still have to state where you got it.

 

2. Look, Comment and Rate. When looking at a lot/map/B.A.T./etc. please comment on it. The comment tells the Author that is work is good or needs improvement

 

3. Be polite. If the lot/map/B.A.T./etc. isn't very good don't say "Man that is a piece of crap...what a waste of STEX place." This can discourage a rookie and we want to encourage people to learn and improve. Use constructive criticism. Say something like "It's ok but needs more props to provide some detail. Good for your first try."

 

Rookies aren't instantly awesome. Just because their work isn't at the level of some of our more experienced people does not mean they are no good. Everyone starts somewhere and just because the some people have progressed to new levels does not mean that newbies will start on these levels. Do not leave comments saying a rookie isn't as good as a more experienced person.

 

4. Do not do "First to comment!" comments. Such comments are spam if they do not actually comment the file itself. Commenting is not a race. You will not get an award if you comment first.

 

5. Don't bring politics or religion up when commenting. If you do not approve of the content of a map/lot/B.A.T./etc. comment on just the quality, your personal judgment on the content. Instead of saying "This just wrong. This should be removed from STEX." Say something like "This lot is well detailed but I don't quite care for the use."

 

6. Don't Abuse the Rating System. Rate the quality of the map/lot/B.A.T./etc, not your personal judgment on the content or on the author. This isn't a popularity contest for your friends or a way to take a stab at someone you don't like. Ratings are supposed to reflect on quality. Keep in mind that we are here to improve our enjoyment of a game, not to fling arrows at each other.

 

7. Do not Upload Cities or Items from The Sims Games. We do not have the bandwidth to handle cities, which are very large files and Sims 2 items are beyond the scope of this site.

 

8. Do not exceed the 25Mb limit for B.A.T.s, Lots or Mods. If you feel you need to exceed the limit, PM Dirk about it for permission to upload it.

 

9. Do not use rude language or profanities when commenting. This is a bannable offence. Do not risk your access to STEX. Keep it clean.

 

10. All STEX uploads MUST be accompanied by an in-game picture and meaningful description. The in-game picture must be taken from the game. Exceptions are made when the nature of the upload, such as certain kinds of mods, preclude an in-game screenshot. Uploaders also must do their best to provide details of the upload, such as what it is, what it does, growable or ploppable, what menu it goes in, landmark effects, garbage production, or anything else that a downloader would like to know before attempting to use your creation.

 

 

11. Be sure to follow the instructions of STEX moderators. When a moderator states in the comments to refrain from further commenting, then don't comment. Simple as that.

[iviaarten 533]

For the custom buildings, could it be possible to make the poly count a part of the required information?

I wouldn't like it if I downloaded a couple of small homes, and have my game bogged down because they're 10k polygons each.

[Cyclone Boom 16,852]

For the custom buildings, could it be possible to make the poly count a part of the required information?

I wouldn't like it if I downloaded a couple of small homes, and have my game bogged down because they're 10k polygons each.

 

That's an interesting idea. As it impacts game performance, I'm sure it's something which could be considered.

[Cool_Z 1,547]

I realize my topic in the modding section talks about that same thing.

 

The maps size could be a good indication too (will greatly change the file size and impact the performance too... you can build with 2048* maps... but also 512 (or maybe smaller);

 

The presence or not of a custom LOD (will change the ingame aspect when zoomed out, I experienced the "auto lod" a few hours ago... works but looks very *meh*

[TPB 562]

Just want to say I think these rules are not being enforced. There are way too many uploads being made that contain just 1 line of text, like "This is the first map I made, Enjoy." No info on anything else, size, presence of connections, resources, whether its a 25tile optimized or not, etc etc etc. Same goes for many other uploads.  It'd be nice seeing some sort of action being taken to make sure the rules are being respected, otherwise they are sort of pointless.

 

Furthermore, I just want to point out that it is possible to rate your own item on the Stex.. I'm sure this is not intended?

[blunder 1,079]

Just want to say I think these rules are not being enforced. There are way too many uploads being made that contain just 1 line of text, like "This is the first map I made, Enjoy." No info on anything else, size, presence of connections, resources, whether its a 25tile optimized or not, etc etc etc. Same goes for many other uploads.  It'd be nice seeing some sort of action being taken to make sure the rules are being respected, otherwise they are sort of pointless.

 

Flag it.  If you don't flag it the mods might miss it.

[Cool_Z 1,547]

Maybe a bit extreme... but why don't we require a picture of the lod ??