Locking computers like doors? [ Edited ]

[fischdeo]

Hello!

I'm sorry if this has been asked before, I haven't been able to find anything about it on the forums yet (I've spent the past months lurking; still a newbie ) and I've been asking myself this for quite some time:

Is there currently any way to control what sims are able to use a certain computer / tablet / drawing pad besides putting them in locked rooms? Or will there be one in the future?

Right now I tend to put those types of objects in rooms with doors and lock them for everyone except the sims I want to be able to use them. However, I feel like this is a bit of a clunky workaround; I would prefer to let other sims enter those rooms and use the other objects in them. I would also like to be able to leave a computer / console / instrument etc. in the living room or an open plan house without having every guest make a beeline for it as soon as my sim so much as acknowledges their existence. 

I really don't want to use any mods or CC, mostly because I managed to break all my Sims 2 savegames by installing too many of them a few years back. Never again, haha

...btw, sorry for my English, not a native speaker. ^^'

Edit: Fixed a grammar mistake

[stbnchristine · Accepted solution]

I agree on the mods not being the answer. Even if you find one that works every new pack includes a new computer interaction and then boom my sims are running for the computers over any other fun thing to do. 

Locked doors work well for sims who have private studies or use computers in their bedroom. Another, also clunky, option I have found most useful is to pop into buy mode and move the chair back one click and then turn it and nudge it back to the desk. The chair appears to be just pushed away and keeps Sims from sitting and using the computer. It doesn’t take up too much room and looks nice in your rooms. You can still access it to order things. If you want to have a sim sit there. Just go to buy mode and fix the chair. 

[stbnchristine · Accepted solution]

I agree on the mods not being the answer. Even if you find one that works every new pack includes a new computer interaction and then boom my sims are running for the computers over any other fun thing to do. 

Locked doors work well for sims who have private studies or use computers in their bedroom. Another, also clunky, option I have found most useful is to pop into buy mode and move the chair back one click and then turn it and nudge it back to the desk. The chair appears to be just pushed away and keeps Sims from sitting and using the computer. It doesn’t take up too much room and looks nice in your rooms. You can still access it to order things. If you want to have a sim sit there. Just go to buy mode and fix the chair. 

[fischdeo]

Thank you! Love the chair trick, that's probably gonna be my standard workaround for now 

I really wish there was some kind of option to "set a password" or something in the game though. Maybe we'll get a social etiquette GP one day lol. At this point I might actually be desperate enough to buy it :'D

[ZekhAstram]

Exactly that

There's not much that I find more annoying than inviting someone or having people come over that immediately rush to any computer in the house to go play games or browse the internet, it's super inappropriate IRL and it's even more stupid in the game. In real life these situations would be avoided by setting a password on the computer, so why don't we just create the option to set a password or "lock computer" action on these items ?

[PugLove888]

@ZekhAstram, @fischdeo , & @stbnchristine ,  it was just announced on the Discover University Livestream that computers will be able to be locked for specific Sims!  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-t_HIAaMKZU&feature=youtu.be&t=240 This was mentioned at about the 18 min and 20 second mark in the video! 

[fischdeo]

YEEEEES! Thank you for sharing, @PugLove888!
I hope it's not just for laptops, it kinda sounded like that. Either way, I'm excited!

[PugLove888]

@fischdeo, while I thought about that as well, I don't think that would be the case.  The computers in the dorms have to be draggable from your Sim's personal inventory since we can't access Build/Buy Mode without a cheat, so they could only show laptops.  But if you can have roomates in regular (non-dorm) housing, where you can access Build/Buy Mode, then you can have regular computers and would still need to lock your computer from your roomates or from party-goers!