Insimenator.org

I was looking at requests. some of mine, some belonging to  other people and I came upon a lot that gone a long time with out any one doing them.  theres a super cool request up from  August 04, 2008! and it ticked me off that some one had to wait such a long time, and they are STILL waiting!  requests come here to be ignored. dreams come here to die. no one cares about the people who don't have mesh making programs. 
And I want to know a few things

how many people even use this web site ?
how offten?
and of those who use it how many have meshing skills?
and of those with skills how many have time?
what kinds of projects motivate you?
what would help a request have better odds of getting attention? 
how long does it take to make a new mesh?
what ideas are simply too complex to use?
can 3D objects created for non-sims2 reasons (like other games and artwork)  be  converted in to sims2 objects? 
can sims1 or sims city 4 meshes be turned in to sims2 objects?
is there any thing at all that can motivate some one to make requests sooner? faster? and for the people who have good ideas?
why don't people bother to respond to topics even if its a rejection comment? 
who are the most willing request takers?
can you give me any tips that would make me feel like its actuly worth it to keep posting requests?

It's simple. People do requests on a voluntary basis.  People will volunteer to fulfill requests when it is within their skill set, they have time, and they feel benevolent.  People that make requests aren't always realistic in the requests they make because they aren't knowledgeable on what limitations the game places on creators.

That being said, it's not difficult at all to do recolors.  Just find the mesh you want to work with and give it a shot.  Or load up Homecrafter and recolor some floors and walls to your tastes rather than the often offbeat and ugly EA options.

Modding and meshing are more difficult. Both require patience and perseverance.  But if you enjoy it and have the talent for either of those, you can be a great asset to the community.

I've said it before, and I will say it again: People do projects based on if they have time, if they think it's interesting and if they feel like it. There are other considerations, as well, such as will an item need modding to be able to function? Will they have to learn how to do the modding or will it be something they can already handle? Will they be allowed to work on said object in peace, or will they have to put up with someone trying to light a fire under their rear end in order to get them to complete it now, now, NOW?!

I know creators that no longer take requests for items because of all the abuse they've  have to put up with when they agree to do something. The constant emails, PMs, posts, etc. pestering them about the progress of said object. They get burned out by the few that are inconsiderate and rude, plain and simple. It's a hobby for them and not something they're going to put up with being hassled over, which is why they won't take requests any more.

If you can learn how to do the meshing and recolouring when no one will do your requests, that can be a boon to you and the community if you decide to share your stuff. Getting angry because things don't get done when you want them doesn't help your cause, it only keeps people from wishing to aid you in obtaining the content you want. Like it's been said before, it's a hobby. People do it to relax. If pressure from other people to produce things make it cease to be relaxing and enjoyable, they just won't do it any more and that's a loss.

Well ancient has pretty much said it all in a nutshell. I remember responding to a couple of your WCIF requests and, if you're looking for honesty, "I'm entitled" attitude can put people off. We offer the requests and WCIF sections as a courtesty, not because you are owed them, and those people who try to help out deserved courtesy and thanks for spending their free time hunting down or making objects for people. If you find your requests are going unanswered while others are being fullfilled, then perhaps it's time for you to change your approach.

what Im trying to find out is

what kind of requests are  realistic i?

 what are limitations the game places on creators?

what kinds of requests would make a request sound interesting to the creator? 

Also while its true that a creator's feelings are important, the feelings of the requester are important too.  I use my sims to tell stories and I want the best possible porops, cloths, and objects for my sims.  Body shop only takes me so far.
When I make a story or a family and I find my self needing a submarine or a large Alien riding animal or a certin kind of hat or hair mesh, I would realy like that thing made in week maybe 2, if it took sevral months or over a year to amke a mesh I would wounder what was taking so long.
if a Mesh was unmake I would want to know why.

So thats why Im also trying to learn what are the realistic exspectaions of a mesh?

would it be easier for me to say "make me a cube? or clone an item and change its catigory and use?" or do mesh creators enjoy making things with legs and arms and a face and moving parts? 

 

also this thread is about my requests being unanswered while NO ONES  are being fulfilled.

its not just my requests, every request I have looked at becouse "OMG thats so cool I want it too!" has also gone ignored.

and I want to know if your anti-sci-fi and only do realistic objects or if sci-fi meshes are too complex to make or if artists  don't read a request after its more then 30 days old or what now? 

If you need that much content in that short of a time, you'd be best off finding some tutorials and a meshing program and making it yourself. People have jobs and lives that need to be taken care of before any hobby stuff. We don't ignore requests on principal, sometimes they don't get taken care of because it's not something a creator feels like taking on. We don't even have to have that section at all, it's there as a courtesy. Same with the WCIF section.

Just keep this in mind: when people keep seeing the same names asking for stuff they tend to skip it because they get burned out. There are people that will search the net high and low to find what they're needing and use this site's WCIF as a last ditch effort to get that hard to find item. Often, they are rewarded with someone being able to help. Then again, there are people that come here first off and don't bother trying to search for themselves, because our users are so very wonderful at finding that exact thing they're craving for their game. Or, you have the people that come here demanding that something be produced, no matter what the people lending a hand have to stop doing in order to find or fabricate it. Which one of these types are you?

and the great and all powerful paden and caffeinatedjoy have truly spoken. ;D

Valid point for a caring community.





Some of your questions can be answered by pouring through faq and reading the how-to sections.  That is not a rude response, just a matter of fact. 
These:


 ...fall into that category.  There are no short pat answers to those queries the best response is read the threads.  That isn't the most popular answer but if you really want to understand for yourself it is the most honest one.


As a newbie myself I sympathize with some of the frustration you may feel—check out the requests...my name is among them several times.
Some requests show that people haven't read the FAQ's and frankly questions that have been answered ad nauseum don't gain a lot of attention. That's understandable as clearly someone dedicated their free time to making up that handy list.  It is there because someone cared to help.


That might seem reasonable to you but rl comes first.  I can't say it better then Paden, Joy or others have answered you already on this. This is a sharing community not a demand & supply one.  You can't say "Hey could you do me a favor?" &  Whoa, what's the deal it should be done already!"  If it were me helping or modding for you and you said that, I'd tell you I have a life if I bothered to answer you at all.  It is that type of entitlement feel that some requestors have that lead creators to stop taking mod requests.


It's also good to bear in mind that questions stay even though requesters have moved on after finding the answer or a satisfactory replacement.  I came back and updated a few of my questions after I found the answers (to help others) or when I received a response no matter how long it took. That's my small contribution to the community. Every requester doesn't do that.  So in reality you have no idea how many requests were/weren't satisfied because not everyone says thanks or edits with status updates.

I still have requests put in months ago that I check back for but while I'm excited to have them I recognize and respect the time and lives of the creators; and as I wait I read and learn for myself. I think it's great you asked these questions because many are curious to know but dont have the guts to ask.  I hope you appreciate and respect the honest answers given. 

I’m going to go hug a kitten now 1angel

One thing to consider, if custom content can't be made in the time frame you need, is to start thinking out of the box.  "Greenscreen" your characters and put them on a pirate ship standing next to Jack Sparrow through the magic of Photoshop.  Use screen caps from other games that have the things you want.  There's no rule that says a Sims story has to be only Sims.  If you have to limit yourself to Sims in-game pictures, then find out what is available before you start the story and create your story that makes use of what's available.

thats actually a good idea and a useful one. I just feel so dishonest photoshopping my sims. 

but my topic is better sumerised as

if your a creator tell me what is easy and hard for you personally to do so I can think of a way to make my requests more fun for you personally as an individual. 

I can read FAQs but I don't know if they'll have personal Opinions.

like if I made meshes I would only do star wars, star trek, anime, sci0fi, dragons, mythology, fantasy stuff like that.  I wouldn't take requests to do sports or popular rock stars or any thing I don't know.  and I wouldn't take requests to do t-shirt recolors. 

I want to know the names of creators who were kids in the 80s and are huge sci-fi geaks and who are Otaku for anime.
I don't think some one who thinks Sci-fi sucks and who knows nothing about it would have fun  doing some kind of Sci-fi item  and Im worried that my requests might be for things that the comunity has no interest in doing. 

what kind of threads would help me find out what each individual person is interested in so I can ask for things people enjoy and not ask for things people hate?

i think everybody has just nailed it and they are also right.it's not that they hate them real life and family comes first  the creators world and also ours do not make the sims2 the center of our lives real life and family comes first above anything else. :D

There are so many creators out there with so many different levels of experience, the answer to that question could fill up pages. Even if you have no interest in making your own CC, read the tutorials out there, because that will give you a good idea of how the game works and what is possible and what isn't. It will also give you a good idea of what takes more work and what's just a simple alteration. 


True, but FAQs and tutorials will give you valuable instruction you can use. And everyone who writes an FAQ will inject a bit of personal opinion. :)


And, therefore, you would overlook the requests that didn't interest you, no matter how much someone tried to make it an entincing project for everyone, right? So that answers questions number one. You can't make it more entincing for everyone.  


Again, the list is long. This page is your friend (http://www.sims2wiki.info/wiki.php?title=Content_Lists). There is literally so much sci-fi/fantasy cc out there it's unreal. 


This is basically the same thing as question one, just worded differently.






[/quote]

Just because your request might leave unanswered, doesn't mean there isn't scifi lovers in this forum. I personally am a Trekkie and I love Star Wars, always have. At one point I requested hair for Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon too, if I remember correctly. When no one came to the rescue - so to speak - I didn't get annoyed or made demands... I learned to do them myself.

There's nothing dishonest in photoshopping and what comes to the threads... demands are never good, as the others already stated. I saw your new hair request thread and it's was fine until this:

"Any how since Im running an other request unanswered I would like to at least know when people read this thread and if they intend to do it or not. I don't like waiting with out knowing."

That's one form of demand. You should have just ended with that thank you and not demand.  :-\

thank you sierra you made a good and valid point. ;D

Let me tell you a story.

When the wing accessories first came a few years ago, the only ones you could get were open, as if in flight. I looked for a pair that were folded so I could switch between the two for picture purposes. When I didn't find them, I posted a request on a few different boards for them. After a month my requests had been replied with people seconding and thirding the need for folded wings, but it took almost a year for the first folded wing accessory to make it's appearance, and oh, was I ever happy! Sure, it can be a bit frustrating, but you can guarantee that if I, or anyone, had come back demanding to know when and if it would be done and by who, I would have been told point blank to take a long walk off of a short pier. I looked into what it would take to figure out how to do it myself, and decided that it was just a bit to far out of my reach (still is..I'm a baaaby creator). I had to be creative and work around what was available. Photoshop became my best friend. Necessity is, indeed, the mother of invention.

Okay, so I answered your similar message on ss2, and after reading this I must answer.

I am a creator. I create Celebrity Sims. I am also a grandmother, which also makes me a mother.  Thus, Real Life. One of my kids is 11, the other one is 21.  We also have a HUGE family, with lots of drama that also goes in there as well!

Recently my computer has gone fried because of a lightening storm, so I am not able to get in here as much as I would like to.

When I Was able, I was up to my eyeballs in requests. Now I'm good (semi-compared to some of these awesome creators!), but I'm Not quick! I want it done well.  I have waded through all those requests, and Have done a few that hadn't been done before.  Some celebs or real people refuse to be done--that is, they are a mite harder because the Bodyshop couldn't do THAT nose or whatever.....this is what we're up against. We're not sure of what is going to be tough to make until you ask for it.

When we ask you to learn the mesh craft, it is because the community needs More meshers. They simply cannot keep up with the demands put on them....or they just don't know How to do that certain part you need.....Most of us have found something we needed; and just found a way to make it ourselves.

I do hope this answers your questions. And in the future you will be kinder to those you want something from. Add a little patience to that request, then a little more, then a little more patience. If you demand it, or get nasty, you will wait that much longer for your request.
(http://i257.photobucket.com/albums/hh239/Skye61/ATT111.jpg)
 (Breaktime! Whew! That was one tough sim!)
Sincerely,
Skye

I see my kitty isn't the only one that uses a keyboard for a chaise lounge...   1dreamy 1titter (pardon the interruption)   ...advice continues

Kay you're more advanced than me—I haven't even found body shop yet  :-[  1dunno  :-[ 1whistle.




ETA: Yep totally serious,  1giggle  Thanks a bunch for the info Skye. I really appreciate that answer to my duncey question.

 I never asked before because:
1. I was busy playing (new to the game) 2. I haven't a clue what it does (too busy simming 1yahoo)     & 3. too lulzily embarrassed  :-[ 1DOH(yes I conjugated lulz) to ask.
& finally I'll add #4 just for good measure:

I figured it was something I hadn't looked up or read.  I really do read threads and search and didn't want to waste anyone's time with an "i'm curious but havent searched enough (or at all really) type of question.  Which is why I seriously do thank you for thanking time to answer.  I really don't want to encourage anyone to be lazy but think this is an excellent example of how sometimes people do take the time to answer even embarrassingly silly questions that noobs like me didn't know.

On that note I think good advice would also be to read questions similar to your own as well as the FAQ's.  On occasion when I haven't received a response I've found the exact answer I needed in someone else's question/thread.

In answer to your question about who makes what or who might be interested in making something, the best answer I think anyone can give you is to look at what they've done.  There are several creators that have made the build and bodyshop items necessary for a sci-fi world, fantasy world, medieval world and superhero world.  I know there's some videos on YouTube where a simmer recreated parts of the movie, The Titanic.  There's speeders from Star Wars out there.  There's flying saucers.  There's space shuttles similar to Star Trek shuttles.  There's tutorials for making what approximates a curved roof.

Do you need an interior of everything or just specific compartments?  Do you need a complete exterior or just enough of an exterior to suggest the whole thing is there?  Once you find the little pieces, can you put them all together to suggest the big seemingly impossible whole?

Again, browse the web to see who makes what and make note of things that you can use to create the visual effects of what you want.

Seriously?
You can find it this way: Start, then EA Games, then find your latest game, and you'll find Bodyshop right under that one!
hugs,
Skye

I've avoided saying this, but it just keeps popping back into my head. 

At one time I tried to do as many sim requests as I could and help out in the Help sections on every thread.  The more I did, the more people would come back and be disrespectful to me and what I do.  I saw that happening to others who freely gave their time to help someone make their game they way they wanted it.  It no longer was fun or rewarding for me so I stopped. 

I started modding because I couldn't find any game mods that made it harder to achieve the LTWs.  I would get bored as soon as a family got 10k in the household budget, mommy and daddy both achieving permaplat status, blah blah blah.  So I learned what I needed to to make my own mods or modify someone else's mods that enabled me to play my game.  The only requests I'll consider is for a mod that would fit into my game play.

I regularly look at the mod requests here to see if there's something I'd be interested in doing.  I see some requests that I could do, but don't fit my game, so I pass them by.  I see some ridiculous requests that can't be done and everyone jumping on the "me too" band wagon.  But it doesn't matter how many people think it is a great idea, it's just not possible from my point of view and many other modders point's of view.  I've learned it does no good to tell people it's not possible, so I've stopped telling them. 

One of the nice things about this site is Squinge has a request section here for mods.  One of the bad things about this site is Squinge has a request section.  If some thing is requested in that section, Squinge may do it or he may never get around to it.  But just by it being in that section, the few modders that come by here won't even look at it.  Some creators also have or had request sections.  But if the request doesn't fit them, it just hangs there and nothing gets done.  But if you have a creator in mind that has done the type of objects/recolors/mods/whatever and you think what you want fits their style, ask in their request thread or with PMs or in the general requests threads with a PM asking them to take a look at the request.

ok, I'm rambling more than anything now...that's all folks.

@ DaSpecial1 I'll help you body shop but  Im not going to upload any thing for you unless you tell me the artit's name of the mesh you want recolored, show me that the artist said it was ok to recolor the mesh and tell me how to upload the mesh.  this is why I don't upload any thing, I can't remember who made what meshes and don't know how to refind the artist to ask if I can upload there work. other things I make I know the artists wishes and there for I can not reupload there work.

but I can link you to what I remember and teach you how to Body shop. 

as for the rest of you all I want is for you to spot

My name is (name)
I like to make meshes of (name)
I have (time) hours of free time
I am/ am not taking requests right now

when you see a request say if you'll do it or not
if a request can't be done say why

Im not asking for any thing else.  Also some posts Im reading were highly helpfull and I'll take that advice. other posts, misunderstood all or part of what I said but I dont want to start arguments.


I do have a new question, how do I keep track of what artist made what meshes?   if I made folders would the game know how to open my made up folders and how to find the downloads if I filled the EA games: sims 2: downloads folder with all kinds of new made up folders?

and how do I ID the names of artists who make meshes?  some people sighn there work, other's don't  how do I find out who posted what?

and how many websites would let me upload my sims files any how?

Sims2pack clean installer will list them for you. http://sims2pack.modthesims2.com/index.php?page=3

and yes all my CC is clearly labeled in subfolders.  Huge advantage if you have a glitch or problem with CC and need to locate the conflicting file.

Ty for the offer :) see you're a creator already! ;). Finding body shop is great for now though thanks I'm just enjoying playing the game.

clean installer finds out who made a mesh after its in the downloads folder and the zip or rar file has been deleted? 

any how like the other guy said finding body shop means using the version from the most resentr EP
the start up Icon is right along the same menue as the game's start up icon. 

once there you want to folow the menues and do things  I'll screen shot for you if you PM me,
then have a paint program of some kind ready for the recoloring step.

body shop confuses me way less then SimsPE I need a SimsPE lesson that is more simplified then the tutorials. 

if you have a huge Download collection Body shop may take several minuets top open.  So dont rush back here with "my body shop won't work"

some frequent body shop problems are
1. wrong version being used
2. you didn't give it time to oppen yet
3. you have cash files laying about.

I always delete my cash or what ever technical name they have, files before running my game.
some day I may screen shot all these thingamagigs and learn the proper names .

any how my PMs always here for you .


to ancienthighway Im looking for things I think are not out there. I have looked on Sims wiki and modthesims 2 and a small handful of WCIF threads, download sites, etc I think what I want has not been created before.   and Im looking for all kinds of things like a Fly head, I modded one but I wanted feedback on its quality and never got it, and I want the top half of a sub since the botum half wouldn't be shown since it would be under water, but I want entire complete objects when it comes to  sci-fi animals. I also have a number of requests for changing a mesh that exists so it applies to all ages and all genderes   I also have a lot of signs I want created  but I think I found some one to do those I need to wait yet.  also this other person whos helping me cant find a good palce to upload her work so I need a suggestion.  over all I have several 100 thing I want some are  requests for the same things other people made and I wanted to know what other peoples requests were also passed over.

See, this is what you just don't seem to uderstand. You can ask for something, but you have NO RIGHT to demand that everyone who reads it answer with a yes or no.

If you really want to track all the artists and what they make, then that's your job, not ours. I've answered that too, and you've been given other suggestions here about that. This is exactly the 'high maintenance/I'm entitled' attitude I'm talking about. Look around. If you see an artist that makes stuff of the theme you like, make a note of it. A person's free time can vary from day to day. I know mine does and half the time I don't know how much time I'm going to have to spend on my 'free time' stuff. Personally, I think a person's free time is no one's business but theirs. Just because they have that time, doesn't mean they're going to spend on your requests.

There's a big difference between demanding and requesting. Your posts are filled with "I want" and that is a far cry from asking. It's unreasonable for you to expect every mesher on this site to come to you to report. You can see for yourself what they do.

As for keeping track of who made what, you can create subfolders in your Downloads folder. So you can have a Subfolder for clothing, and then within that folder have it organized into further subfolders by artist. As long as you have NL, your game will be fine. To help you remember what's what when you're downloading things, create a folder on your desktop (or wherever you download your files to) and label it with the artist's name. So if you see a bunch of stuff here from, say, BlooM, create a folder called "BlooM" on your desktop and download all of the files you like into there. Then, you can make a subfolder in your Downloads called "BlooM" or a subfolder called "Clothing" that has a folder within it called "BlooM". Your install path would then be EA Games/Sims 2/Downloads/Clothing/BlooM.

I have a flash drive with back ups of all the files I've downloaded. I also download a picture of the item and stick them both in a file, so I can easily identify something if I need to.

There are many bodyshop tutorials, both on this site and MTS2.  I've used the tuts from both sites and they are easy to follow.   Some give tips on creating sims others on how to recolor clothing. 

Ty again you've been more than helpful Kay :).   But really I'd never ask until I search first.  Bodyshop just hadn't peaked my interest yet; I was only slightly curious.  Thx Roxy.

No worries, I don't want to lose the focus of this thread.  Another problem is that series questions are often better placed in separate threads so I try not to stray too far off topic.

As far as a place to upload the things that are ready for you, there are several options possible.  Do a Google search for filesharing and you'll have a number of sites pop up that allow you to upload your work and a "code" to download it.  This is great for a creator to get their creations to you if it's not to be shared with anyone else.

If you think the things you have created are share worthy, IS has the community downloads section, and if you have enough material and expect to continue creating, you could ask for your own section.  An alternative would be to make your own website.  Freewebs.com offers free web hosting.   There are other free hosting sites available.  You could get onto a blog site and put your downloads there.  Even MySpace or FacePage.

Im trying not to demand,if it came off that way sory, its a question that I could ask on other websites with out offending any one, Im used to people agreeing quickly to that kind of question.  its just Im telling you what helps me.

as for ancienthighway's suggestions, I want to share but want to learn  weather or not I would be aloud to post what I made since I don't know who owns the meshes I used or if my Sims are even good looking or if Im aloud to post sims based on copywriter subjects.   I need a lot more resurch.  any how Im going to start looking up threads and FAQs

if people feel like answering questions the way I asked them to fine, if not I'll find my answers in the way your demanding. 

If you have recolors that you don't remember where the mesh came from, WCIF is a great place to ask.  Post your recolor, ask, and check out the results.

You're basically expecting us to treat you like someone special, give you special attention, while everyone else are patiently waiting with their requests. When you post something, we should be standing ready in line to give you response. I love to create stuff for the game but this type of attitude makes me skip a request faster than a roadrunner. :-\

If I make a reguest and get no answers, then I know that either no one is interested or the item in question is not possible to do. Period. I do not need to know why.

You know, I think this thread has run it's course.

Kaykeyser, please start looking at the fullfillment of requests and WCIF questions as the priviledge it is, and you'll find yourself getting more response. We certainly don't mind helping people find things, but you have to be willing to meet us half way and show some flexibility and understanding.