So... you have a shiny new Sim you want to upload to the Exchange? Cool. But hold the wagon for a second. A lot of people upload Sims with unnecessary content, annoying descriptions, and beg for high ratings. Good grief! What would Emily Post say?

  1. Cut it out with extraneous custom content already!

    No, I'm not talking about that awesome new dress that you're wanting to upload. I'm talking about superfluous extras like eyes, makeup, hair, and skintones.

    Each piece of custom content gets uploaded along with your Sim. Maxis-made content does not. The more custom content you tack onto your Sim, the bigger the file size. The worst offenders here are skintones, which can pad the file size to 4+ megabytes. That may not seem like a big deal when you've got a 50 gigabyte harddrive and a high-speed connection, but roughly half of TS2 players online are using a dial-up connection.

    So, if you're uploading a Sim for the clothes, try to use Maxis-made eyes, cosmetics, hair, and especially skin. Chances are good that the people downloading your designer bathing suit couldn't care less about your "golden tan."

    Also, it it really necessary that the 483,278th violet eye color be added to the Exchange? Do people really need 893,38 peach lipsticks in their game? I didn't think so.


  2. Try to write better descriptions.

    I've seen good descriptions, and I've seen bad descriptions. Here are some examples of what the bad ones look like:

    The Mary Sue Description...

    "Serena is the most beautiful and popular teen in Sim City. A straight-A student, she's the captain of the cheerleading squad and all the boys want to go out with her. She is wearing a pink and blue designer outfit and designer cosmetics by (insert designer here).

    The Lazy Description...

    "her nmae is serena nad shes very pritty plz dwnlaod nad rate 5*"

    The ALL-CAPS Description...

    "SERENA IS MY SIM. SHE'S VERY PRETTY. PLEASE RATE 5*."


    Well, class, did you take notes?

    The first description is likely to make people want to hurl. There's nothing that turns people off like telling them how perfect and wonderful your Sim is.

    The second description was very badly spelled and had little information. Also, it asks the user to rate the download five stars. How tacky.

    The third description was also lacking detail and was breaking one of the most common rules of netiquette known to mankind: Do Not Write in All Caps.

    Here's what a good description might look like...

    "Serena is a young Sim who enjoys going out and watching sports. Today she's wearing a blue and pink outfit by (insert designer here)."


  3. Don't upload the same Sim more than once!

    Although it may be tempting to upload your favorite Sim with blue hair, purple hair, blue hair and green eyes, blue hair and blue eyes, purple hair and brown eyes, etc., it's a complete waste of Maxis' space. Remember, when people download your Sim, they can easily customize it to suit their needs. Rather than upload one Sim with different hairstyles, try making a few different Sims with unique looks. It adds variety to your downloads.

    And while we're talking about faces, why not customize the Sim's face a bit? Most Sims on the Exchange use the pre-made faces, resulting in a flood of clones. It doesn't take long to customize your face, and it's a great way to add some uniqueness to your Sim without padding the file size.



  4. My Favorite Quirks

    Here are some oddities that appeal to me...