S.O.S. - Can you safely delete a family that's never been out of the bin?

[Hook]

Sim-binned families tend to be the number one reason I see the stupid message, "You can't call someone who doesn't have a phone!". I feel like using testingcheats to give them cellphones when they walk by, just so I can use them for something.

If you don't want to cheat, next time your Sim is on a community lot, buy an extra cell phone or two.  Then when the offending binSim passes by, give it to them as a gift.  Even better if it's Winter, as you probably have a want to Give Gift anyway.

Hook

[akatarli]

So is there anything you can do to save the neighborhood if you've already deleted a family out of the bin? I've been playing for awhile since this has happened and haven't had any problems (knock on wood).

[J. M. Pescado]

The Lot Debugger includes a fallback mode to cleanse memories of Unlinked sims that you stupidly deleted from the sim-bin. If it is able to locate the deleted UNLINKED sim, you can do a cleansing again and then follow the rest of Deleted II.

[Sivany]

So just to be clear, do you mean that sims you deleted from the sim bin should appear under Prep Sim For Delete>UNLINKED providing the debugger can find them? It's just that all sims I use deleted 2 on go into the UNLINKED category after I click to delete them, I thought that meant they had disappeared from everyone's memories.

[TaWanda]

I imagine those of you who understand all this are getting fed up explaining it.  I tend to put it like this....

When you created the family, the game created all sorts of bits and pieces of data about the sims and the family and stored info in a number of different places in the neighborhood package and character files.  While the sims are sitting in the simbin, the game creates more bits of data about them.  The maxis deleting tool doesn't find and delete all of the bits.  Why take a chance on one of these bits of stray data biting you on the ass later?  Don't sweat the detail, just use the nice safe tool Pescado made for us.  Those of us who got the Tshirt for messing up our hoods by deleting sims and cleaning up badly, don't recommend that route to others!

Hmmm...so if I'm playing around in CAS and creating lots of families that are not saved, or I only save one or two of the sims I created,  am I generating a bunch of useless bits and pieces of data to clutter up my game? Or am I okay because I don't save them? Is this anything to worry about?

[angelyne]

The sims is only created when you actually save the family.

[TaWanda]

I just wanted to be sure about that, having enough other issues with my game right now, so thank you angelyne!