Well it wasn’t just me, to be fair. I would have never been able to without @fireflowersims help and HugeLunatics trust in both of us. Thank you to both of them for their work and thank you @teaaddictyt for reaching out and doing the more public communication.
I’m super happy I got the chance to work to fix it. It wasn’t an easy undertaking. It seemed like every little thing would cause more errors, I fixed one and another thing broke. But now it seems stable, finally.
A lot of technical stuff below the cut, beware.
Fixing such an old forum is not easy. Documentation is rather sparse because the framework it runs on is old. There is however a more modern version, but updating is difficult. Here was the issue for the forum - upgrading failed.
A website (usually) consists of two different parts: 1 - The files. They contain the code, scripts, designs, images, attachment, profile pictures etc. 2 - The database. The database connects all the different parts and tells the website where to find something. Everything gets stored in tables, assigned IDs and given values. Everything written, each post and topic is also stored in the database. So without the database the whole page would be useless.
It was clear from the beginning that the database was the culprit for the failed upgrades. I got an earlier backup from HL and started working.
I set up a local environment with two versions of XAMPP. One running on php 7.4 (the last version having compatibility for the forum framework version and the upgrade script to the recent version) and the other on a modern 8.3, which was the same as the version the server @fireflowersims set up for GOS.
I ran the upgrade script (which consists of 4 separate parts) on the old backup and ran into errors right away. The script would just outright crash on me, most often without a log or message. The (local) server would just stop responding. My original plan had been to upgrade to version 2.0 first, then 2.1, since it was the recommended order. However the database backup had already been partly upgraded to 2.1. That was the reason my upgrade script failed. Reversing those changes could have been a possibility but extremely time intensive.
(This is the frontpage of the upgrader. I stared at it so much. Like you can see it has a ton of steps)
Instead I asked for the current database and HL provided it to me. This one was already further along on the upgrade and I could see the error HL had run into before handing over. I had to look at the upgrade scripts and source php files to diagnose what the framework was expecting - and failing - to find in the database.
That’s where I found the main culprit for *most* of the errors: Time tables. The framework saves every action that a user does in a log, a long table with the action, an id and a date. This was where everything had gotten wrong. The upgrader expected to see one column for the date, named *day*, while the current table had a different column for day, month and year. I tried fixing the table at first but that didn’t seem to work, so I completely deleted the table and created a new empty one myself. (By now I think the issue stems from forgetting to uninstall certain packages before upgrading, more on that later)
That was possible because the log actually doesn’t hold relevant information for the forum to work. It just records each step, probably for moderation purposes. Once I had done that step the upgrade script was finally able to proceed.
There were a few more errors where I had to look at what the script was doing, find the corresponding code in the sources and edit the database myself. Thankfully the code is relatively well commented and named, so I was able to find what I needed.
Finally I got the upgrade script to run to the end and I was actually able to open the forums (local) page. I hadn’t been able to for now so it was a first. But a lot of stuff was still missing, like all the topics. I could see that the posts were back, but not sorted correctly.
The fix was simple but annoying. The forum framework comes with a repair_setting.php file which I had run several times to fix all the paths, but apparently it didn’t fix *all* of them. So back to the database I went, ran some queries and fixed them myself.
Then the forum finally worked again!
(This is what the forum looked like when I first opened it. It ONLY had recent posts)
(The working local forum, no files yet with the default theme. Seems wrong to look at GOS without the dark theme, right?)
There were still a few things I needed to fix but the database seemed to work fine now. I had never done so many queries in my life. I know SQL, and had to fix databases before but not this intensely. So I guessed I learned something new haha.
Next was the exciting step to upload my clean install to the server. @fireflowersims and I had some directory issues, but I was able to fix them manually once again.
Then I had to take a look at the files which mostly consist of avatars and attachments. They didn’t work at all once moved to the clean install. Once again I took a look at the code and realized that the upgrade script would have changed those files as well, but because I ran it on a clean install it didn’t actually do this step.
I didn’t want to run the upgrade script again, worried that it would mess up a now working database. Instead I wrote a script myself that sorted through all the attachments, looked for the IDs of the avatars from the database so it could move and rename them.
Last were the attachments. This was an easier fix. They just had to be given the ending .dat. @fireflowersims ran a command through the console and then the attachments worked too!
We were getting closer!
Next was the theme. The old theme didn’t work on the modern framework anymore so @fireflowersims looked for a new one which I customized with CSS, trying to get it closer to the way the forum looked before. I think it turned out quite alright, hope you guys think so too!
(Trying to find out what CSS class addresses what? Make everything red and green!)
(All the spider webs)
Next was packages, or mods, to the framework. Fire and I encountered some hiccups here too, since there were some leftovers in the database. The packages hadn’t been properly deinstalled before running the upgrade script, which was another source of the errors. I tried fixing them manually but one of the packages would continue to just break the site no matter what I tried, so we settled for an alternative.
Some more work was put into SSL and making the forum secure. Once again some settings seemed to just break the page and each time I had to go back in the database and manually fix what had gone wrong. It was tedious but by now I knew my way around quite well.
@fireflowersims handled a lot of the server administrative work and DNS settings. I know very little about that part so having @fireflowersims there was great and they made sure the page is reachable at the correct address.
So yeah, I hope the site stays online for a long time now. It’s such a big part of our community and communities history. I used to download so much from there when I was younger. I wanted to give back to the community I love so much. That was the reason I spent many many hours digging through code and old forum threads.
should people @ you if we find the original download links to CC that were uploaded to GOS/s2a before the shutdown? do they count as unavailable cc? just wondering
Hello yolkema! I was just about to make a post about this, hope you don't mind me using your ask :-)
I'm aware of the GOS/S2A situation and I've been lurking. I wanted to see how it all turned out before making a post about it. @teaaddictyt shared an update where she explained that GOS/S2A aren't dead just yet, people are working on getting it up again. I've also reached out to @liquidsims if this is something they would perhaps be able to "mirror" like the old ts2 sites they have done before (if all else fails).
In the meantime, @simnostalgia scraped GOS back in 2023 and you can find it here. I also found this sfs link on reddit. There's also the mediafryer archive. For links, you can plop them into wayback, a lot of links has been saved but not all ofc. I've already stumbled upon some links not archived. To answer your question, yes, feel free to share the links you find!
I've seen people post some links etc already, and I will probably reblog those, and until GOS/S2A are up and running again, I will reply to asks looking for GOS/S2A content. But pleeeease include links* if you have them! Even if wayback hasn't archived it. And if the creator is still active, reach out to them first.
*It makes it so much easier for me, it's already hard enough as it is with Google's fucking (sorry) AI shit. If anyone has any recommendations for working image-search and search engines, please enlighten me.
Also, packrat turns 10 today! I was planning on celebrating with something, but it feels kind of odd doing that right now. But nevertheless, happy birthday to packrat! 🎉
I managed to make something in time for the GOS theme! Check it out, I hope you like it! :D
edit:oops of course I put the wrong psd in the simfileshare folder gimme a sec lol
edit edit: ok replaced it with the right one!!
edit edit edit: omg the theme was march and april not may and i didn't even make it in time... -_- lol
EDIT: OCTOBER 2023
added some new recolors into the orig simsfileshare link and a swatch is included!
i hope im wrong and there's some way we can come together to get gos and s2a back online and/or recover all the content, but just in case here is the PSD and mapping "guide" (i mean its a hot mess bc the mapping is crazy but maybe its helpful for someone lmao) that were originally only linked to in my GOS post
psd and mapping image:
http://www.simfileshare.net/download/3897918/
the actual recolors are in the SFS folder i shared in the post above but just repeating it here: http://www.simfileshare.net/download/3897917/
here are the swatches of the recolors that are included
You may know how sinks get wiped from counters if you put some clutter in their corner slots (usually with moveobjects) and went to Live mode. I fixed that!
pinterest sucks so much and apparently just implemented some aspect ratio requirement that pics you pin have to be square, so it is now basically impossible to pin anything (like from tsr or basically any other ts2 cc website) unless you are a bot or a dropshipper or a dropshipper's bot pinning square advertising pics from insta lol kill me
just wanted to add some old wallpapers from tsr to my pinterest and what do you mean it suddenly can't pin ANY picture unless i make a freaking square screenshot of it myself
I've always hated how the camera jumps up and down when playing tall and slim buildings. Turns out, it's really easy to fix! It’ll take you less than a minute. All the details under the cut.
All it takes is opening the LiveCamera.txt file in your Documents>Cameras folder with a text editor and changing these two parameters near the bottom to a higher value. Doesn’t matter if you're using a custom camera mod or not. Those parameters should be there. I have set mine like this (remember to save a backup just in case you don't like these changes).
It might seem a bit extreme, but I still think it’s fine.
-The top parameter, floorheightsamplerange, handles how much the floors “extend out”, so the camera object can stand on it mid-air. The higher it is, the further the floor will extend. This will make it so your camera will be able to stick to the floor you’re on, even if you pan away from the building. No more annoying jumps up and down!
-The parameter below that, floorheightsampleinnerrange, handles the transition between sticking to the current floor and dropping to the ground level once it goes past the edge. The higher it is, the smoothest the fall will be.
I’ll note though that the behaviour of these parameters might not be 100% accurate with how the game actually works, but from what I tested I think it’s pretty close as an explanation. If someone knows better how this Live Camera works, please let me know and I’ll try my best to correct any inaccuracies.
Save the .txt file and check how it works in game. It might feel weird at first, but personally I find it so much smoother and easier to handle. If you’re not happy with these values, close the game and edit those parameters until you find your sweet spot. Unfortunately, you will have to close and open the game every time you change it to check how it works.
There’s so many cool Custom Camera mods out there that I thought it’s probably better to just show how to edit those 2 parameters than editing and reuploading all of them.
So yeah, that’s it. Now you can play those tall lots without getting a headache. Go ahead and send your college simmies to that hideous Sim State Tower with a hot tub on top of it. Now you’ll be able to see what’s going on up there.
ohhhh myyy GODDDDDD i need to try this
maybe i'll be able to stop editing out 3 second clips of video where the camera is just crazy jumping up and down
OMFGGGGGG..........i realized why all the sound on my s3 videos i filmed is bad...besides my old mic becoming a bit janky...........
because i finally noticed that at some point in the last year windows decided that every time i connect my bluetooth headphones it should turn the computer volume to 50....i usually have it set to like 25...so i would have all my settings the same and take a break etc, then reconnect my headphones and it would blast the volume up but i just wouldn't notice somehow...then it would set off a chain reaction where the game volume + the audio of me speaking is peaking even tho each track separately doesn't peak and im talking way louder cuz i can't hear myself cuz of the game volume. I would record a clip and listen back like oh ok cool that sounds fine and good volume because the computer was on 50! ohhh my GOD IM SO ANNOYEDDDDDD. luckily the sound in the remaining bad-sound-episodes isn't nearly as bad as the really-bad-sound-episode i was ranting about for the last million years, but im frustrated i didn't notice because its so stupiddd!!!!! AHH!!!!
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ts2 wcif
does anybody have these? looks like psychosims urban walls on bb nooks and niches but its from simpearls (rip) in 2016 and i can't find it in any simpearls backups that i can tell
me every time i'm cleaning out cc: i def don't use these walls for sure, i am in the clear to delete these. i don't think i have EVER even used them!!!
me visiting every lot and seeing they all now have unfinished walls: 😮
thank you for tagging me @grilledcheese-aspiration ! i sadly had barely any screenshots from this year that weren't too spoilery for upcoming videos but i found some (and some of them i posted already ee!)(and i dont even have 25!!)
here's hoping that i will have more screenshots and videos for this new year :))
ok i didn't think this would take me this long but just in time i have my annual holiday video and also a lot download!!
check it out, let me know what you think! happy holidays, happy new year, thanks for always having fun celebrating our favorite game!
⭐⭐⭐REQUIRED⭐⭐⭐
numenor's no cutaway wall at MTS - you must download/install this in your game otherwise walls will be missing!
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
The CC is packaged with the lot, and I put any required master files on the front lawn.
INCLUDED:
-Lowered mesh defaults for the sim greek letters by HugeLunatic. If you don't have these defaults the letters will be higher than in my build.
-Lowered mesh defaults for paintings Route 66 and Nature's Perfection by HugeLunatic. If you don't have them paintings will be higher than in my build.
-I included a folder for all of the MAXIS RECOLORS because those do not package with lots so they will not install into your game through clean installer. I separated them into different folders to make it easier to browse, just drag all of the files into your downloads if you want all of the recolors I used on the lot.
-I included my toy store recolors that I made for my entry in the ts2 advent this year! If you already have them, just don't include the folder called "MY ADVENT GIFTS."
NECESSARY CEPs:
You might already have these but if not, here are the CEP's required for some of the maxis recolors in this build:
- Ektorp sofa in reading room! requires HL's CEP to repo the Ikea sofas
-Ribba painting recolor in reading room! requires HL's Ikea painting CEP-Sheep&sheep painting recolor in reading room! requires HL's CEP
RELEVANT DEFAULTS:
Things not included because they are texture defaults but here are links to some of the main ones. In general I use many cluedo defaults so be sure to check those out if you want to have the build look exactly like in my game!
-Shasta's cluedo default for the OFB euro shelves/display
-Shasta's cluedo default for the base game toy box
- Cluedo default for M&G column fence
- Pineappleforest's drafting table default
-HugeLunatic's community phone default
-shasta's yeti chalet default of UNI lockers
-cluedo default for retratech dining chair
CC NOT INCLUDED:
-polaroid camera is from epi and PF's camera overhaul
-kids easel is from Painting Preferences set by fracturedmoonlight
-costume trunk by purple hat projects at mts
-animated freezer bunny snowglobes by limonaire
PHEW!! thank you for your patience.
Lot is zoned community, never occupied, cleaned with chris hatch's lot compressor.
DOWNLOAD SFS / BOX
i hope someone can enjoy this little shop and studio! happy holidays!
edit: forgot to add here is a pic of the lot in cc free neighborhood :)
i come bearing gifts for your sim kids and kids-at-heart!
18 recolors of the dala horse from freetime, 8 recolors of the base game teddy bear, and 2 gingham recolors of the tres rug from k&b stuff!
⭐ DOWNLOAD SFS \ BOX
more pics and info under the cut!
here is a pic of all the recolors the set comes with!
- you get various color combos of the my little pony horse, and I used @pforestsims shine removal kit to give them a matte plastic finish.
- some of the little booty symbols are just random ones i drew, and some are from the game icons like the peace sign and bff symbol
-you get a red gingham and a light blue gingham recolor of the tres rug to kind of look like a vinyl mat maybe for a kitchen/craft room/retail space etc.
-you also get four cute teddy bears who have glasses that match their overalls. now your little sim kids with glasses can have a bear to match!
- then you get two super kooky hippie bears with colored sunglasses, and two cute little tie dye bears without glasses at all!
- the bears have dirty/worn states (theoretically, i must admit i didn't take the time to see it for myself and you apparently can't shift click to set a teddy bear worn the way you can set a toilet to be dirty etc.)
i hope you like everything! i had a lot of fun making them, and thanks to @angelapleasant for organizing the advent!!
i should also have another surprise coming your way very soon hopefully later tonight or tmrw....👀
⭐ DOWNLOAD SFS \ BOX
compressorized, labeled swatches included
credits for textures i nabbed/edited/used as base: nrjsims teddy bear retextures, liz at mts watermelon bedroom teddy bear, fanseelamb at mts leather clad teddy bear, tie dye shirts are from the maxis am uni outfit, little tassle on pink bear is from maxis uni af hippie outfit
the episode sound i was editing in my last post complaining about editing is still being edited (say edit again!!). and its so so bad that i think i have to overcome the sunk cost and just rerecord all of my audio...i wish i had done that a month ago instead of wasting so much time trying to fix it!!
idk what happened..i think i accidentally recorded with my window open...with the mic also too low...and sitting too close to it...so i have to pump the volume up so it can be heard, but then the noise is way worse...but when i clear out the noise i'm left with horrible echoey resonance from recording with the window/door open...and i had a cold and was vocal frying hella bad....and have learned that vocal fry voice waveforms are like not normal and are impossible to clean errors out of...so when i i try to clear out the resonant pitches there isn't any good audio left....and literally someone was outside my house with a megaphone or PA system being hella loud in the bg sounding like charlie brown's teacher...and there were tons of motorcyclists AND a jackhammer LMAO ;______; i know all i do on here is complain about editing but i just have to yell this into the void!!
kaledo-art
yousharknotpass
vaporwave
pixelskylines
