Welcome Tae the SECOND FAQ page!

Here you will find the PC owners' manual to destressing from the problems of being a Simmer. Gratefully gleaned over years of gleaning and reading and so on and so forth...

They are meant not as a gospel on PC simming as I am not a PC user but as a support to those who seek more knowledge and the possibility to download for future reference some basic tips and some essential files.

I give you the PC FAQ!

AUTO.EXEC.NT Files

This is a problem a lot of folk are encountering. Please do not be alarmed and rest assured it is not something wrong with your game- it is in fact a PC problem.

The OFFICIAL (and only maker recommended) solution is here: http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb%3Ben-us%3B324767 (click to be taken to Microsoft!).

But I can offer you the two files they recommend you are supposed to create and copy and paste to your Windows\System32. These are downloadable below and can be added to your System32 without you needing to create them yourself (after you use XP's extractor to "unzip" them):

Download Autoexec.nt & Config.nt HERE

Uninstalling the Maxis Way

Here it is- the definitive (if not brief) way to uninstall The Sims so you can reinstall!!! This tutorial was originally written by the great Maxis Producer and added to by Sheytana of Sims BBS- two people who knew where it was at. I simplified it a bit, added some detail here and there, and tested it. It works!

Download Uninstall here

The "Shadow Sim" Cure

Here is what Devin5 from the Maxis BBS says about Sims which end up being black shadows or "silhouettes":

It sounds like one or more of the files within your "Lights" folder is missing, or corrupted. Look in your "Lights" folder, which is located inside your "The Sims", "GameData" folder. There should be two files in here; "ambient.txt", and "stdlight.lgt".

First try replacing the "ambient.txt" file to see if that fixes your problem.

To replace the "ambient.txt" file, create a new plain text document on your "Desktop" by right-clicking and selecting "New", and then "Notepad File". Within this file, type in the below exactly;

100
100
100

Note: Whether or not it matters, I'm not sure, however don't press "Enter" on your keyboard after typing that last "100", leave the cursor blinking after it instead.

Now go to "File", and then to "Save As". Save it as; ambient.txt

Make sure the filetype is ".txt" (text). Now place this in your "Lights" folder and replace the existing file.

Test the game to see if your problem has been fixed.

If your Sims are still all "shadow" figures, you may need to deal with "stdlight.lgt" file. You should be able to insert the disk of the most recently installed Expansion Pack [by order of release] and choose "More Info", "Reinstall", to replace the file. No game data will be lost.

And here is the downloadable version of both files!

The Goths FAM File

Here is the original Goth_5.FAM file for download in case yours has corrupted or gone AWOL. Enjoy their antics for a while longer!

Download FAM File here