- Randomizer? You mean when the game creates random sims? No but if you have modified simmies in your sim bin in CAS, it will take them into account.
- Yes, even downloaded sims will use your default skin, if you don't have the non-default one.
- The name of the non-default skin usually reads in the skin bar. See here (4th pic)... http://www.modthesims.info/download.php?t=389488
- I'm not a mesher but I belive the crease has to do with the mesh. Like Fresh-Prince's vest top causes that kind of crease and one of Lapiz Lazuli's hair did it, as well, before he fix it.

You know how everytime you install new EP you get that EP's launcher shortcut thing. Is it okay to delete these and just keep the base games launcher?

Thanks for the clarification, @varpunen!

It's all been a bit of a mystery to me.

Well, they're basically just shortcuts which can be recreated, so I don't see why deleting them would cause problems. But you might need the newest one to use the launcher properly, though. You could test if the base game launcher works alone because I've always used the newest one.

I agree about the shortcuts. No harm in deleting them, and should be easy enough to recreate if you ever want them back
As for the launcher, does TS3 not use the same launcher regardless of which EPs you ave installed? Even uses the same .exe (TSW.exe I think???)
But then I'm using all Origin copies and have to launch through there anyway, so maybe it's different for me.

I am using just the base game launcher. Hence I'm asking. So it doesn't matter which launcher I'm using and can just delete the "extra" ones?

I suppose so, since the base game launcher works. They're just shortcuts and if you need them again, you should be able to just go to each EP's folder and create new ones. I can see no reason why they would be crusial to gameplay but I cannot be 100% sure, since I've never deleted any of them. I just stored them all in a folder into another drive. It's not like they take a lot space anyway.

Personally, I chalk that up to what I call my fandom curse, in that I always seem to end up liking background, obscure, and/or unpopular characters and pairings in things I get into. Sims 3 just follows that trend for me.

Honestly, though, I think those of us who are fond of premades are a minority amongst simmers as it is, and among those who do, it's the more prominent families that have also been featured in TS1 and/or TS2 that get the most attention.

You can delete the shortcuts without issue.
If you create a new shortcut from TS3W.exe then it will bypass the launcher when you start your game.
To continue using the Launcher when you start your game I think it is the Sims3LauncherW.exe file you need to create a shortcut from.
You could do both. That way you only have to start up the Launcher when you need it.

Thanks. I always wondered about those icons. I've usually created a folder named Unused Icons and threw them all in there. Glad I can turf that off my desktop now.

@XXS
Buy mode>Electronics>Miscellaneous

ok so every once in awhile I see someones story where the sim goes into a futuristic tubey thingy and gets frozen in time? it looks like something from into the future, but I can't find it in the guides. what is it called, and where can I get my hands on one? thank you

My Sims can't use objects placed on a counter when that counter is under a cabinet. I don't think this is normal. And if not normal, anyone knows what (EP, SP, patch) broke it?

I used to make kitchens with cabinets all the time before (I was running all EPs up to LN - that is the "before" I'm implying) and never noticed this strange behavior.

It is not normal, agreed, but I don't think that I have this problem. Is it all objects or only some and does it happen to all cabinets or only some?

Well, it is a cabinet from an EP, the one from ITF, that fits over the fridge. Not CC or something. And it is in the corner, L-shaped. But this happens even if they are not in the corner.

ETA: All cabinets are subject to this - just to be clear.
I think I'm just going to change their footprints. But it bugs me. It only just started happening lately. As if it was something I did. And I didn't do anything.

Hm, I think that I read this after the release of ITF that this cabinet is bugged, but the other cabinets should all be okay normally. I do remember now, however, that after starting a fresh game in a custom world that I had to replace all counters in the pre-made houses because something made them unusable. The game even complained that I couldn't prepare an Autumn Salad without an empty or unused working surface. But replacing them all with new versions did fix the problem.

It is a custom world, but the cabinet in question was put there by me, after the world had been already played for a time.

Anyway, I'm checking their FTPTs, and they don't seem to have the intersection allowed on them, not with Sims, nor other objects - at least those I checked. They should behave like paintings, right? Like a wall hanging, that is - Sims should be able to route through a tile on which a cabinet is placed?

I'm already in S3PE, changing their settings so I can't check if they would work if simply replaced. Damn my impatience...

OK, please bear with me, but I'm just not getting it. I've never bought another lot for a family I played.

I bought an extra lot for my family, farfalle's nona apartments.

The idea is to have the oldest daughter and her IF be students (I have a homeworld university) and live there but don't pay rent.

How do I have them move there but not the rest of the family? Can they still have a third room mate?

Or will I have to move them out of the household and then pay rent to their papa?

Just send them over there to live. Now, one problem is when they return "home" from wherever, they'll end up at the primary lot, and you'll have to redirect them to the apartment lot, but so long as you assign them beds, they'll know where to sleep. You can assign the roommate a bed over there, but you won't be able to control the roommate's location as to house "preference" so they might wander over to your primary lot for stuff to do or eat.

If you move them out, then obviously you won't be able to control them unless you keep switching households. Still, owning more than one house and spreading the family out and maintaining control of them can be done, but it's kludgy at best.

Thanks! So, it is actually normal what happened when I did this originally. It does sound kludgy. clutchy? crutchy? Sorry, this second-language speaker is not familiar with this particular one.

I do want to keep controlling them all. I am anticipating a somewhat stressful period in my legacy family but I guess it will change once the parents are dead.

Kludgy as kind of cobbled together. It really isn't designed to allow you to control separate households, but if you're willing to put the effort in, you can sort of make it work. Of course, once the parents die, you can bring them all back under one roof if you wish.

Remember, the "vacation house" ability came with IP, and the idea was to take the family to their vacation spot/house boat on weekends and whatnot. So it was designed with keeping all the household members pretty much together. Now you're adding in the roommate ability that came with Uni allowing you to assign beds and add roomies. None of this was ever specifically designed to work together, so the fact you can make it happen at all is a nice "bonus" effect for your game play to expand with.