How to Replace This Maxis Building

[deecee]

hello all - don't laugh at my horrible attempt at adding stuff to a picture - i did it to save my sanity!  i hate hate hate the buildings the aforementioned arrows are pointing toward - is there a way to replace those buildings with something i can actually tolerate?  please let me know and thanks!  i think they're called comfort arms or something horrid like that.  DeeCee

[dragonshardz]

Um...download some custom content, destroy the buildings you don't like, and let new ones grow?

[WC_EEND]

or use the BSC MAxis Bocker (note that this will block ALL Maxis buildings)

[clearlypowa]

Agree with the 2 others messages, but it seems that u have only euro buildings available (choose the 4 types of buildings to make more diversity)

[thingfishs]

There are a range of options with varying capabilities, have a look and a play. I can't recommend any in particular because so far none of the two or three that I've tried have worked, but they seem to work for plenty of people. A comment I saw the other day suggested it may have something to do with having CAM installed. Any further thoughts on this anyone, are any of them CAM proof.

I think clearlypowa must be right about the tileset, certainly I've never seen any SC4 city look so repetitive, even without any plugins.

BSC
http://sc4devotion.com/csxlex/lex_filedesc.php?lotGET=897

Dusktrooper
http://www.simtropolis.com/stex/index.cfm?id=16393

Dhamp V1
http://www.simphoni.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=12694

Dhamp V2
http://www.simphoni.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=13711

[deecee]

yes - i did in fact have only the euro tileset on.  i think i downloaded something and it only grew in euro so i turned everything else off and forgot to turn them back on.   

but is there a way to replace a maxis building with something else - another maxis building or a custom download?  let me know and thanks for the replies!  DeeCee

[xxdita]

The BSC No Maxis Mod works perfectly well with CAM, as long as it is installed into a folder that loads after CAM does. I would suggest installing it into a folder named zz_BSC No Maxis. I'll have to take a look at the others before I can definitively say they'll work or not, but I do know the BSC No Maxis works just fine. 

deecee, until you have enough Custom Content, you're going to get a lot of repitious Maxis lots. There are plenty of mid-stage buildings available on the LEX. Try adding some BSC or SFBT buildings to break up the monotany.

[deecee]

The BSC No Maxis Mod works perfectly well with CAM, as long as it is installed into a folder that loads after CAM does. I would suggest installing it into a folder named zz_BSC No Maxis. I'll have to take a look at the others before I can definitively say they'll work or not, but I do know the BSC No Maxis works just fine. 

deecee, until you have enough Custom Content, you're going to get a lot of repitious Maxis lots. There are plenty of mid-stage buildings available on the LEX. Try adding some BSC or SFBT buildings to break up the monotany.

hey there xxdita - thanks for getting back to me.  i have downloaed a bunch of custom mid-stage stuff from the lext but it doesn't grow - these ugly maxis buildings do!  i have the troy rowhouses, the baltimore duplex rowhouses, low wealth apt set, sfbt cam pre-fabs, ny city rowhouse set - i mean i could go on and on i have downloaded so much stuff.  matter of fact, i datpack and i removed the highrise lots out so when i get a brown box i just datpack the model in - that's how much midrange stuff i downloaded that i didn't want to bog down my game with stuff i knew i wans't going to need.  so

1) if i do the bsc no maxis my custom stuff will HAVE to grow right? i have visions of super high demand and complaints for housing and comm zoining.....2) the midrange stuff - any other suggestions? and should i pimx the midrange stuff even if they're less than stage 8? and lastly: if i do pimx them, none of those changes would effect growth would they?

let me know and thanks again, DeeCee

[xxdita]

Well, if you've only been allowing the Euro Tileset, then switching to Build All Styles At Once, or change styles every few years will give you better variety.

To answer your other questions:
1) Yes, the BSC No Maxis Mod will force CC to grow, provided you have enough of it to supply all the stages. If you're missing CC for any stage along the way, you may run into problems.
2)Do a Power Search on the LEX, and select Residential - Medium in the LEX Category. This will give you a huge selection of lots. Almost everything on the LEX has been updated with PIMX, so there's no need to do it again. If you're downloading from other exchanges, then yes, I would recommend updating the buildings & lots with PIMX.
3) Actually, yes. Any changes you make will effect growth. This is why using as precise a filling degree as possible is extremely important. But, as you play, if there's a building you think grows too much, or not enough, you can adjust the filling degree a bit, to make it grow as you want it to. A higher filling degree will provide more capacity, so the building should grow more, on the same stage lot. Just make sure that PIMX doesn't update the lot to a higher stage than you want it to be. Note: This only applies for personal use, not for content you intend to share with the community.

[xxdita]

Also, aside from the BSC No Maxis Mod, none of the others thingfishs mentioned earlier are compatible with CAM. Read here for more on why. And the BSC No Maxis Mod will only work if it is installed to load after CAM, as I mentioned.

[thingfishs]

thanks for that info xxdita

[deecee]

Well, if you've only been allowing the Euro Tileset, then switching to Build All Styles At Once, or change styles every few years will give you better variety.

To answer your other questions:
1) Yes, the BSC No Maxis Mod will force CC to grow, provided you have enough of it to supply all the stages. If you're missing CC for any stage along the way, you may run into problems.
2)Do a Power Search on the LEX, and select Residential - Medium in the LEX Category. This will give you a huge selection of lots. Almost everything on the LEX has been updated with PIMX, so there's no need to do it again. If you're downloading from other exchanges, then yes, I would recommend updating the buildings & lots with PIMX.
3) Actually, yes. Any changes you make will effect growth. This is why using as precise a filling degree as possible is extremely important. But, as you play, if there's a building you think grows too much, or not enough, you can adjust the filling degree a bit, to make it grow as you want it to. A higher filling degree will provide more capacity, so the building should grow more, on the same stage lot. Just make sure that PIMX doesn't update the lot to a higher stage than you want it to be. Note: This only applies for personal use, not for content you intend to share with the community.

Okay - using "build all at once" tileset - as i play will hopefully get more variety

1)  i'm going to make sure i have enough cc and then maybe install the bsc no maxis mod

2)  did the search u recommended and i have all the stuff that i like already.  i've downloaded some stuff from other sites and have used the pimx tool on them but have tried to find things that are already campatible.  all this makes me think there's something else going on, some other reason my cc won't grow.  let me ask you this - are maxis buildings the default that will grow - if you don't have any maxis blockers installed, do maxis buildings automatically grow first before cc??  do they then upgrade to cc or what triggers cc to grow?  whatever it is, i think mine is sick!

3) understand.  and i never upload things - i can't make things and have no real desire to learn.  i'm just happy to have the basic knowledge to get non-cam stuff campatible for my person use. 

thanks for getting back to me.  DeeCee

[xxdita]

Really the game doesn't know the difference between Maxis and custom content. So theoretically, every lot you've installed should have an equal chance of growing in each stage. However, if two buildings of the same lot size in the same stage have different capacities, then the one with the larger capacity is typically chosen to grow. This is the main reason that it's almost imperitive that any nonCAMpatible lots are remodded with PIMX, to give them proper capacities, and other building stats.

I often take it for granted, but you are using CAM, correct?

[deecee]

I often take it for granted, but you are using CAM, correct?

Yes lol - that made me smile.  have a good day and thanks for the info.  DeeCee