How to use CC Magic.
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How to use CC Magic.
Hello everyone,
Found CC Magic confusing and complicated? No problem! This guide, written in simple and explicit language, willl show you how to apply CC Magic "in Real Life" .
How do I install CC Magic?
If you do not know how to install CC Magic, please take a look at this guide: https://www.games4theworld.club/t7029-the-sims-3-cc-please-make-sure-your-game-has-the-latest-software-updates-and-try-again-error-s-100-solution . make sure you have a Mod The Sims member account or you won't be able to download anything.
You can either manually install CC Magic, or install it with their setup file:
To run CC Magic, go to the folder where you have extracted/installed CC Magic to and double-click CCMagic.exe.
What can I do if CC Magic crashes?
If CC Magic crashes, you can locate the log files and determine what is the cause of the crash. The log file is located in My Documents\Electronic Arts\CC Magic\Logs.
Click on any of the logs, and have a look at the log.
Here, I will show you all 2 common causes of CC Magic crashes:
1. If you notice something like this in the log:
The lack of any of the following has caused the inability of loading 'System.Data.SQLite.dll', causing CC Magic to crash:
2. If you notice something like this in the log:
XXXX.sims3pack is corrupted and should be removed.
If you have any other problems, feel free to post a new topic in The Sims (3) Download Support (PC) or
The Sims (3) in-game problems.
What are the basic functions of CC Magic?
Importing sims3packs and packages
Before illustrating them, I would like to tell you how to make the sims3packs and packages you are about to install appear in CC Magic Panel.
Sims3packs:
Place all of the sims3packs in either
1. Documents\Electronic Arts\The Sims 3\Downloads; or
2. Documents\Electronic Arts\CC Magic\Content\Sims3Packs
After that, click the "Refresh" button on CC Magic:
Packages:
Place all of the packages in Documents\Electronic Arts\CC Magic\Content\Packages
After that, click the "Refresh" button on CC Magic:
There are a few points you need to note:
1. Mods can be merged, but you SHOULD NOT merge mods. Mods need updating after a newer patch is released.However, since EA claimed that 1.66 patch is the last patch, you might want to consider merging mods that are trustworthy and liable.
2. Neighbourhoods/Worlds CANNOT be merged. You have to install them via the launcher.
Merging Sims3packs and Packages
To merge sims3packs and packages, simply click the "Rebuild" button.
Running The Sims 3
You can run the game with certain configurations (which will be discussed later) via CC Magic by clicking on the "Play (Name of Configurations)" button.
Clearing Cache
After clicking the "Clear Cache" button, all of the following caches in (My Documents\Electronic Arts\The Sims 3) will be deleted:
You can always use this function to delete the caches, so as to enhance the stability of the game.
Are there any other advanced functions to put CC Magic to practice?
Sets
What are Sets?
Sets are basically an organisation tool for categorizing and organising your Custom Content.
Adding and Removing Sets
Adding a set: To add a set, first click on the set where you want to add a "sub-set" to and click the "Add" button under the "Set" tab.
Removing a set: To remove a set, click on the set you want to remove and click the "Remove" button under the "Set" tab.
Set Management
Enabling or Disabling Custom Content
You can enable or disable individual sims3packs, packages and sets so that they appear/do not appear in the game. To enable/disable individual packages and sims3packs, simply check/uncheck the box "Enabled":
Configurations
To enable/disable sets, go to Configurations:
Under this tab, you will see the following:
The rest are pretty self-explanatory.
You can double-click sets to move them from the category "Disabled Sets" to the category "Enabled Sets", and vice versa. You will see a set of buttons in the middle of 2 cateories:
: allows you to move all sets in "Disable Sets" to "Enabled Sets".
: allows you to move a selected set from the category "Disabled Sets" to the category "Enabled Sets".
: allows you to move a selected set from the category "Enabled Sets" to the category "Disabled Sets".
: allows you to move all sets in "Enabled Sets" to "Disabled Sets".
Configuration Management
CC Magic allows you to have more than one configuration, so that you can portray any stories you want, and lessen the burden on your computer to load Custom Content:
Similar to Sets, you are allowed to add/remove a configuration. Give a name and description to the new configuration. And you can configure which set you want to enable.
What is the use of configurations?
Configurations are typically useful when you have tons of Custom Content and they are all arranged in different themes/sets.
Remember I have mentioned the button "Play"?
As you can see, this button consists of a drop down menu, which is a menu for selecting different configurations! That way, you can play the game with different configurations!
Collections
What are collections?
Collections are an alternative way of organising Custom Content. Collections appear in Buy Mode, under the "Collections" tab:
Under this tab, all of the user-made collections and the collections regarding The Sims 3 expansion packs are showcased, so that you can find all the items for every single expansion pack and Custom Content arranged by users without searching for them (which might be misplaced as well).
You can now create your own collections in CC Magic!
Organising your collection
You cannot remove the collection by just selecting the ones you want to remove and hit the button "Remove"! You can only remove a collection manually or remove a collection in the game.
To remove a collection manually:
1. Open the folder (My) Documents\Electronic Arts\The Sims 3\Collections\User:
Find them hard to be sorted out because they are unrecognisable?
To identify what collection you want to delete, click "Date Modified". Clicking so will let the computer arrange them in the order of time (with the latest being the "toppest" one), which makes them easier for identification.
2. Click "Refresh" button in CC Magic panel.
This will force CC Magic to arrange the collections according to the date of creation. The latest one should be on top of all other collections.
3. Since the collections are accordingly arranged (in both the folder and CC Magic), you can relate one collection to the other and delete the ones you do not want.
How can I add Custom Content to a collection?
To add Custom Content to a collection, click the tab "Sets".
On the top right corner, you will see a drop down menu for collection. All of the items in a set can only be categorised in one collection. You cannot make some of the items in a set appear in one collection, while the remaining ones in the same set appear in another collection. I personally believe this is the only flaw of CC Magic .
Options
Now you have mastered nearly all of the functions of CC Magic. Let us move on to the Options tab:
Game Exe Override: This option allows you to open a custom game launcher (such as an FPS limiter). You can disregard this if you do not have one.
Force Resource Compression: As the title says, this function allows you to compress Custom Content in a more effective way. Enabling this will drastically reduce the size of the merged package, but it will take more time than usual.
Additional Resource.cfg Entries: Not sure about this one...
NOTE: Making any changes to CC Magic requires you to "Rebuild". Adding/removing any simspacks/packages to CC Magic requires you to "Refresh"! Bear this in mind!
Any suggestions for improving this tutorial are welcome!
Special thanks to: Angel1437 (Her profile: https://games4theworld.forumotion.com/u19949).
DO NOT POST ANY QUESTIONS OR PROBLEMS IN THIS TOPIC. INSTEAD, PLEASE OPEN A NEW TOPIC IN THE APPROPRIATE FORUM-SECTION, EITHER "THE SIMS 3 DOWNLOADS SUPPORT" OR "THE SIMS 3 IN-GAME SUPPORT"! THANK-YOU-NOTES CAN BE POSTED IN THE SECTION WITH THE SAME NAME.
Note that any and all questions posted under this thread, will be deleted without any explanation or advance warning. We have the Forum sections dedicated to Support purposes, for a reason.
Found CC Magic confusing and complicated? No problem! This guide, written in simple and explicit language, willl show you how to apply CC Magic "in Real Life" .
How do I install CC Magic?
If you do not know how to install CC Magic, please take a look at this guide: https://www.games4theworld.club/t7029-the-sims-3-cc-please-make-sure-your-game-has-the-latest-software-updates-and-try-again-error-s-100-solution . make sure you have a Mod The Sims member account or you won't be able to download anything.
You can either manually install CC Magic, or install it with their setup file:
- To install with the setup, download this zip: CCMagic_2942_Setup.zip (Mirror link), extract it, run the setup extracted and follow the on-screen instructions.
- To install manually, download this zip: ZIP (Mirror) and create a new folder anywhere of your computer and name it "CC Magic". Extract it to that folder and you are done!
To run CC Magic, go to the folder where you have extracted/installed CC Magic to and double-click CCMagic.exe.
What can I do if CC Magic crashes?
If CC Magic crashes, you can locate the log files and determine what is the cause of the crash. The log file is located in My Documents\Electronic Arts\CC Magic\Logs.
Click on any of the logs, and have a look at the log.
Here, I will show you all 2 common causes of CC Magic crashes:
1. If you notice something like this in the log:
- Code:
2014-01-17 23:24:38Z| Fatal | [CCMagic.App] -- Unhandled ExceptionSystem.IO.FileNotFoundException: Could not load file or assembly 'System.Data.SQLite.dll' or one of its dependencies. The specified module could not be found.File name: 'System.Data.SQLite.dll'
The lack of any of the following has caused the inability of loading 'System.Data.SQLite.dll', causing CC Magic to crash:
- the .NET Framework V4.0
- the Visual C++ runtime for 32 bit (required for all computers)
- the Visual C++ runtime for 64 bit (required for all computers)
2. If you notice something like this in the log:
- Code:
2014-01-11 19:31:26Z| Debug | [CCMagic.Core.Database.PKGManager] -- ExtractAndProcessTS3Pack C:\Users\Owner\Documents\Electronic Arts\The Sims 3\Downloads\XXXX.sims3pack
XXXX.sims3pack is corrupted and should be removed.
If you have any other problems, feel free to post a new topic in The Sims (3) Download Support (PC) or
The Sims (3) in-game problems.
What are the basic functions of CC Magic?
Importing sims3packs and packages
Before illustrating them, I would like to tell you how to make the sims3packs and packages you are about to install appear in CC Magic Panel.
Sims3packs:
Place all of the sims3packs in either
1. Documents\Electronic Arts\The Sims 3\Downloads; or
2. Documents\Electronic Arts\CC Magic\Content\Sims3Packs
After that, click the "Refresh" button on CC Magic:
Packages:
Place all of the packages in Documents\Electronic Arts\CC Magic\Content\Packages
After that, click the "Refresh" button on CC Magic:
There are a few points you need to note:
1. Mods can be merged, but you SHOULD NOT merge mods. Mods need updating after a newer patch is released.
2. Neighbourhoods/Worlds CANNOT be merged. You have to install them via the launcher.
Merging Sims3packs and Packages
To merge sims3packs and packages, simply click the "Rebuild" button.
Running The Sims 3
You can run the game with certain configurations (which will be discussed later) via CC Magic by clicking on the "Play (Name of Configurations)" button.
Clearing Cache
After clicking the "Clear Cache" button, all of the following caches in (My Documents\Electronic Arts\The Sims 3) will be deleted:
- CasPartCache.package (Create-A-Household Cache)
- compositorCache.package (Buy/Build Mode Cache)
- scriptCache.package (Custom Content and Mod Cache)
- simCompositorCache.package (New Sims and Skin Cache)
You can always use this function to delete the caches, so as to enhance the stability of the game.
Are there any other advanced functions to put CC Magic to practice?
Sets
What are Sets?
Sets are basically an organisation tool for categorizing and organising your Custom Content.
Adding and Removing Sets
Adding a set: To add a set, first click on the set where you want to add a "sub-set" to and click the "Add" button under the "Set" tab.
Removing a set: To remove a set, click on the set you want to remove and click the "Remove" button under the "Set" tab.
Set Management
Enabling or Disabling Custom Content
You can enable or disable individual sims3packs, packages and sets so that they appear/do not appear in the game. To enable/disable individual packages and sims3packs, simply check/uncheck the box "Enabled":
Configurations
To enable/disable sets, go to Configurations:
Under this tab, you will see the following:
The rest are pretty self-explanatory.
You can double-click sets to move them from the category "Disabled Sets" to the category "Enabled Sets", and vice versa. You will see a set of buttons in the middle of 2 cateories:
: allows you to move all sets in "Disable Sets" to "Enabled Sets".
: allows you to move a selected set from the category "Disabled Sets" to the category "Enabled Sets".
: allows you to move a selected set from the category "Enabled Sets" to the category "Disabled Sets".
: allows you to move all sets in "Enabled Sets" to "Disabled Sets".
Configuration Management
CC Magic allows you to have more than one configuration, so that you can portray any stories you want, and lessen the burden on your computer to load Custom Content:
Similar to Sets, you are allowed to add/remove a configuration. Give a name and description to the new configuration. And you can configure which set you want to enable.
What is the use of configurations?
Configurations are typically useful when you have tons of Custom Content and they are all arranged in different themes/sets.
Remember I have mentioned the button "Play"?
As you can see, this button consists of a drop down menu, which is a menu for selecting different configurations! That way, you can play the game with different configurations!
Collections
What are collections?
Collections are an alternative way of organising Custom Content. Collections appear in Buy Mode, under the "Collections" tab:
Under this tab, all of the user-made collections and the collections regarding The Sims 3 expansion packs are showcased, so that you can find all the items for every single expansion pack and Custom Content arranged by users without searching for them (which might be misplaced as well).
You can now create your own collections in CC Magic!
Organising your collection
You cannot remove the collection by just selecting the ones you want to remove and hit the button "Remove"! You can only remove a collection manually or remove a collection in the game.
To remove a collection manually:
1. Open the folder (My) Documents\Electronic Arts\The Sims 3\Collections\User:
Find them hard to be sorted out because they are unrecognisable?
To identify what collection you want to delete, click "Date Modified". Clicking so will let the computer arrange them in the order of time (with the latest being the "toppest" one), which makes them easier for identification.
2. Click "Refresh" button in CC Magic panel.
This will force CC Magic to arrange the collections according to the date of creation. The latest one should be on top of all other collections.
3. Since the collections are accordingly arranged (in both the folder and CC Magic), you can relate one collection to the other and delete the ones you do not want.
How can I add Custom Content to a collection?
To add Custom Content to a collection, click the tab "Sets".
On the top right corner, you will see a drop down menu for collection. All of the items in a set can only be categorised in one collection. You cannot make some of the items in a set appear in one collection, while the remaining ones in the same set appear in another collection. I personally believe this is the only flaw of CC Magic .
Options
Now you have mastered nearly all of the functions of CC Magic. Let us move on to the Options tab:
Game Exe Override: This option allows you to open a custom game launcher (such as an FPS limiter). You can disregard this if you do not have one.
Force Resource Compression: As the title says, this function allows you to compress Custom Content in a more effective way. Enabling this will drastically reduce the size of the merged package, but it will take more time than usual.
Additional Resource.cfg Entries: Not sure about this one...
NOTE: Making any changes to CC Magic requires you to "Rebuild". Adding/removing any simspacks/packages to CC Magic requires you to "Refresh"! Bear this in mind!
Any suggestions for improving this tutorial are welcome!
Special thanks to: Angel1437 (Her profile: https://games4theworld.forumotion.com/u19949).
DO NOT POST ANY QUESTIONS OR PROBLEMS IN THIS TOPIC. INSTEAD, PLEASE OPEN A NEW TOPIC IN THE APPROPRIATE FORUM-SECTION, EITHER "THE SIMS 3 DOWNLOADS SUPPORT" OR "THE SIMS 3 IN-GAME SUPPORT"! THANK-YOU-NOTES CAN BE POSTED IN THE SECTION WITH THE SAME NAME.
Note that any and all questions posted under this thread, will be deleted without any explanation or advance warning. We have the Forum sections dedicated to Support purposes, for a reason.
J.T.- G4TW RETIRED Helper / VIP
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Re: How to use CC Magic.
Thank you very much, and I got to say this. LOVE your "The Walking Dead" avatar. I love that show. I am a "zombie flick" nut anyways! lol
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Re: How to use CC Magic.
Confucious wrote:(...) and I got to say this. LOVE your "The Walking Dead" avatar.
Glad you found the guide helpful! The original poster (who you were referring to) hasn't been active on this Forum in nearly half a decade, however. Nonetheless, I'm still sure if he would appreciate the compliment.
The_gh0stm4n- G4TW RETIRED Forum Gatekeeper
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Re: How to use CC Magic.
The_gh0stm4n wrote:Confucious wrote:(...) and I got to say this. LOVE your "The Walking Dead" avatar.
Glad you found the guide helpful! The original poster (who you were referring to) hasn't been active on this Forum in nearly half a decade, however. Nonetheless, I'm still sure if he would appreciate the compliment.
I was gone half decade I think. Health N money. Such is life? lol I returned, and "tried" to reinstall a few "official EA titles" I got mad fast, PC &PS3, and came back here to get my Sims 3 stuff! lol Thanks again to all of yah.
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