is it okay to download items from TSR?

[ilaaayx]

Hey guys! I have the original game of the Sims 3 with lots of expansion packs and I would like to download items from TSR but I don't know if it does any harm to the original game. Can you inform me about it? Should I download it or not? Thanks a lot.

[puzzlezaddict · Accepted solution]

@ilaaayx  Custom content and third-party creations (sims, builds, etc.) are installed into your Sims 3 game folder in Documents\Electronic Arts, not into the game's program files.  So adding them won't damage your install, just potentially your game folder.  This folder can be easily recreated—just pull the old one out of Documents\EA, and a new one will spawn the next time you launch the game.  Then you can add the content you want to keep from your old folder into your new one, and leave behind any corrupt files.

Of course, it's annoying to need to rebuild your game folder.  And if you used some corrupt custom content in a save, there's always a risk (small, but not zero) that the save itself could be corrupted, especially if you don't notice the problem right away.  It's usually but not always possible to recover your save at this point, although you could load a backup save instead.

There are several ways to protect yourself when adding downloaded content, but the safest is to install it into a clean game folder first.   Remove your existing game folder, open the launcher to spawn a new one, and install the items there instead.  If you're installing cc items (clothing, hair, furniture, etc.), you can test them in-game to make sure they don't glitch the sims.  If you're installing a build or some sims, you can check the launcher once they're installed to make sure that no unwanted cc was installed with them.

There's no guarantee that everything is safe, but there are plenty of trusted creators whose cc has been tested and used successfully for years.  There are builders and sims creators who never use cc, and who make sure their uploads are always clean.  So if you pick your creators carefully, and you test everything yourself, you'll almost certainly be fine.  Keep a backup copy of your game folder before you install anything, and you won't have to worry; any time there's a problem, you can trash the newer folder and put the old one back like nothing ever happened.

[puzzlezaddict · Accepted solution]

@ilaaayx  Custom content and third-party creations (sims, builds, etc.) are installed into your Sims 3 game folder in Documents\Electronic Arts, not into the game's program files.  So adding them won't damage your install, just potentially your game folder.  This folder can be easily recreated—just pull the old one out of Documents\EA, and a new one will spawn the next time you launch the game.  Then you can add the content you want to keep from your old folder into your new one, and leave behind any corrupt files.

Of course, it's annoying to need to rebuild your game folder.  And if you used some corrupt custom content in a save, there's always a risk (small, but not zero) that the save itself could be corrupted, especially if you don't notice the problem right away.  It's usually but not always possible to recover your save at this point, although you could load a backup save instead.

There are several ways to protect yourself when adding downloaded content, but the safest is to install it into a clean game folder first.   Remove your existing game folder, open the launcher to spawn a new one, and install the items there instead.  If you're installing cc items (clothing, hair, furniture, etc.), you can test them in-game to make sure they don't glitch the sims.  If you're installing a build or some sims, you can check the launcher once they're installed to make sure that no unwanted cc was installed with them.

There's no guarantee that everything is safe, but there are plenty of trusted creators whose cc has been tested and used successfully for years.  There are builders and sims creators who never use cc, and who make sure their uploads are always clean.  So if you pick your creators carefully, and you test everything yourself, you'll almost certainly be fine.  Keep a backup copy of your game folder before you install anything, and you won't have to worry; any time there's a problem, you can trash the newer folder and put the old one back like nothing ever happened.