Crashes to desk top in SC4

[bwhitejr]

I am not sure if this question has been answered before. If so, please direct me.

A little background:

I have two SimCity 4 games, one the CD disks which I purchased many years ago and which will no longer install, and the second a download from the EA Web Site. I have installed the download (done automatically when downloaded). I think it has the various updates which I originally had to download and install from the Maxis Site.

I have my plugins on a separate physical and logical drive from Windows XP Pro, and from the game. When I reinstalled Sim City, it picked up the various plugins which are in the documents folder (which is on the separate drive--I don't lose when the system crashes and requires reinstall).

I have installed the lattest NAM files. When I play the game, sometimes everything is okay and I have no problems. At other times, after trying to place a road, the game crashes to desktop. This is happening with the NAM and the older Maxis roads. (Where they replaced in the NAM?) It is also happening sometimes when I try to open a City or sometimes I have no problem and the city plays fine.

Does anyone have any suggestions on what could be wrong, what I can do, what files need to be (re)installed or obtained?

[j-dub]

The most common cause of crashing (CTD) when it comes to roads is hovering a puzzle piece over TE (transit enabled) lots. (bus stops, train/tram stations, toll booths, culdesacs, switch points, no trucks, parking lots, commercial/civic access, SAM stopper)

Despite those risks, they still are used, especially since custom toll booths were made for NWM and RHW. These days though, I tend to avoid the TE, because of the crash risk. There always is the issue crashing is caused by something else, like some conflicting plugin, especially when it comes to crashing during loading screens.

There is a chance, the region got corrupted some how. When I built in airport in this one city, this one tile of land, just was so interrupted, that every time I clicked that spot with something, it just crashed. I since have replaced that city though.

One more thing, do not save right when the game is crashing, the save file will be corrupted. That definitely will crash during loading the next time you attempt to enter the infected city tile.

There always is the option to play the infected city and hold up a digital camera to the screen to film where, when and how it crashes, that might help diagnosing the cause of the CTD.

[bwhitejr]

Thanks for your response.

I have tried saving more frequently so it is possible I've corrupted the city. Is there a way to uncorrupted?  I've loaded a city then saved it before anything else is done and that seems to resolve that problem. Sometimes I've found a city disappear in the region view but appear when I try loading it, then when I save it, it reappears in the Region View again.

One the NAM issue, I've been trying in one city to run a road, and when I release the mouse, the game crashes. Do you think that if (as I mentioned above) I try doing something different, then save, I may "uncorrupted" the City? 

Another, related question about disappearing cities, is there any way to know which named City belongs to which blank City? I have a duplicate file of regions with city tiles but they are numbered like "City--New City(#3).sc4" and when a City is saved on that file, the name of the city appears and the location disappears. If I knew which named City replaces which blank city, I could replace the corrupt City with the previous blank city.

thanks,
Bill