Seasons patch won't install, and Seasons won't uninstall - SOLVED

[Kyna]

The Seasons patch won't install for me.  I get the message: Error during update installation.  You may need to install and reinstall The Sims2 Seasons.

OK ... so I click on the "uninstall Seasons" shortcut, and nothing happens.  I navigate to the folder the uninstall program is in, and try to run it from there.  Nothing happens.  I open Control Panel and go to Add/Remove software and try to uninstall from there.  Nothing happens.

I figure I must have had a glitchy install when I installed Seasons.  Can anyone tell me how I can uninstall it, so that I can reinstall it to patch it? 

I suspect that this will involve editing the regisry.  I have only ever used Regedit once.  My knowledge of registry editing is at the level where I realise that I know bugger-all about registry editing and should therefore leave it alone unless following clear instructions.

EDIT: to fix a typo

[Berg]

Here, article on MTS2. Written in words even a slightly retarded monkey (=me) could understand...

[Kyna]

Thanks for the help Berg, but that article is about uninstalling the game and all the EPs & SPs.  I'd prefer not to do the dance of the discs reinstalling all of them.  The stack of 8 gameboxes on my desk looks pretty daunting (TS2 + 5 EPs + 2 SPs)

I just want to uninstall Seasons & reinstall it so I can patch the damn thing.  Right now I'm thinking that if I have to uninstall and reinstall the whole lot, then I won't bother to patch.  The game still runs fine for me, I just can't patch it.

[Sagana]

I'm not installing this patch until Pescado tells us why it's so big, even if the answer is they had to include a bunch of really huge sound files in an already overly bloated code mess. Hopefully he still will. 3 things, *big* patch, what? It doesn't fix much anyways - there'll hopefully be a better one along that... uh includes the pets fixes, I hope.

[gjam]

Thanks for the help Berg, but that article is about uninstalling the game and all the EPs & SPs. 

Yes, but...  If you read on down, it shows how to do a manual uninstall on an EP when the uninstaller doesn't work. 

[Venusy]

I'm not installing this patch until Pescado tells us why it's so big, even if the answer is they had to include a bunch of really huge sound files in an already overly bloated code mess. Hopefully he still will. 3 things, *big* patch, what? It doesn't fix much anyways - there'll hopefully be a better one along that... uh includes the pets fixes, I hope.

TSBin\Sims2EP5.exe
CSBin\PackageInstaller.exe
CSBin\TS2BodyShop.exe
TSData\Res\ContentRegistry
TSData\Res\Sound\Misc.package
TSData\Res\Objects\objects.package
TSData\Res\UI\ui.package
TSData\Res\Overrides\HolidayNewYearsPartyPhoneCall_Override.package
TSData\Res\GlobalLots\YACAS!.package
TSData\Res\ObjectScripts\ObjectScripts.package
TSData\Res\Config\Graphics Rules.sgr

[prattle]

I'm not installing this patch until Pescado tells us why it's so big, even if the answer is they had to include a bunch of really huge sound files in an already overly bloated code mess. Hopefully he still will. 3 things, *big* patch, what? It doesn't fix much anyways - there'll hopefully be a better one along that... uh includes the pets fixes, I hope.

TSBin\Sims2EP5.exe
CSBin\PackageInstaller.exe
CSBin\TS2BodyShop.exe
TSData\Res\ContentRegistry
TSData\Res\Sound\Misc.package
TSData\Res\Objects\objects.package
TSData\Res\UI\ui.package
TSData\Res\Overrides\HolidayNewYearsPartyPhoneCall_Override.package
TSData\Res\GlobalLots\YACAS!.package
TSData\Res\ObjectScripts\ObjectScripts.package
TSData\Res\Config\Graphics Rules.sgr

Hmm... that explains why some people on the BBS were saying that they had modified Graphics Rules.sgr and the Seasons patch wouldn't install because of it. Why you would mess with that file is lost on me, though.

[Kyna]

I wonder if that's why I couldn't patch?

I edited my graphicsrules.sgr file so that I could play in higher than 800x600 resolution.  But that doesn't explain why I can't uninstall.

[jsalemi]

Hmm... that explains why some people on the BBS were saying that they had modified Graphics Rules.sgr and the Seasons patch wouldn't install because of it. Why you would mess with that file is lost on me, though.

The BBS itself has instructions on modifying that file so you can play TS2 in full widescreen mode, which isn't a mode natively supported by the default graphic rules.sgr.  I had to do it on my laptop to play in 1680 x 1050 without weird stretching or compressing of the sims.

[witch]

The BBS itself has instructions on modifying that file so you can play TS2 in full widescreen mode, which isn't a mode natively supported by the default graphic rules.sgr.  I had to do it on my laptop to play in 1680 x 1050 without weird stretching or compressing of the sims.

AH HA!!!

Now to fortify myself for a trip through the BBS to find out how. The things I do for my sims.

[jsalemi]

Now to fortify myself for a trip through the BBS to find out how. The things I do for my sims.

I happen to be on my laptop, so I'll save you the effort.   Near the bottom of the graphic rules.sgr file, you'll find this section:

option ScreenModeResolution
   setting $Low
      uintProp maxResWidth      800
      uintProp maxResHeight     600
      uintProp defaultResWidth  800
      uintProp defaultResHeight 600

   setting $MediumButDefaultLow
      uintProp maxResWidth      1280
      uintProp maxResHeight     1024
      uintProp defaultResWidth  800
      uintProp defaultResHeight 600

   setting $Medium
      uintProp maxResWidth      1280
      uintProp maxResHeight     1024
      uintProp defaultResWidth  1024
      uintProp defaultResHeight 768

   setting $High
      uintProp maxResWidth      1680
      uintProp maxResHeight     1050
      uintProp defaultResWidth  1680
      uintProp defaultResHeight 1050

end


Edit the 'setting $High' to whatever resolution your widescreen is set to, and it'll appear in the list in the game. This also works (sometimes) for situations where the game doesn't recognize the highest setting on your video card for whatever reason.

[witch]

U ROCK JOE!

Thanks, I'll fix that. I notice Brynne said the same thing about the sims on her laptop, wonder if she knows about this now? I've just been playing with Skype and my new webcam on the laptop, so I'll try this later. (Off to town shortly to do more essential shopping, like extra network cables and wireless internet transmitter thingies.  ) I LOVE new techtoys. And the laptop's so much snappier now I've 'down'graded from Vista to XP.

[Faizah]

For lower video cards, edit it into the 'Low' settings -- this is something I've had to do, because for some crazy-stupid reason my computer stretches 800x600 out until it is wider than my monitor. But that was the only resolution the game would let me use.

[Kyna]

I solved both my issues.

I replaced the graphics rules.sgr file with the one from compressed.zip on the 2nd CD.  That allowed me to install the patch.  Apparently it's all over the BBS that you need to restore this file if you've edited it before you patch, but since I never go there ...

I'd like to say thanks to Venusy and Prattle for letting me know that graphics rules.sgr had been changed in the patch and that people who had altered the file were having problems patching.  BAA to both of you

The second problem, about uninstalling, was solved when I put the 1st CD back in the drive to play the game (this was the first time it had been out of the drive since I installed the game a few weeks ago).  It wanted to install Seasons.  I guess the game didn't finish installing it when I installed.  So I'm going to finish installing it later, and then I'll be able to uninstall if I need to when the promised second patch arrives.

I've been running the patched version of the game for a couple of hours now, and haven't noticed any problems with the patch yet.

[witch]

The graphics rules has allowed me to see the sims in a wide-screen resolution - so I'm happy. It didn't work at first - I got caught out with the .txt that notepad added on the end of the filename, but once I sorted that, all was well.

I've already patched Seasons so hopefully won't have to remember I've modified it.