The reason for this re-install came from a malfunctioning CD/ DVD burning program. Most likely, the problem resulted from issues with the SecuRom, installed with Sims 2 Bon Voyage. I don’t know that for sure, because I am by no means a computer guru. I do know, however, after the reinstall, the CD/ DVD burning program worked just fine. You can read more about SecuRom here and here. Remember to be careful with all of these instructions, as this is what I do, and depending on your own operating system, these instructions may or may not work for you. I’m assembling this list as a reminder for myself, in the event I need to reboot my system again. I recommend you do the same, on WordPress or a similar free blog.
I am operating a Windows Vista system.
1. Save everything. Do backups of your sims games. I usually just compress the downloads and neighborhood files (with WINRAR), then burn to a disk, and it works for me. This time I tried compressing the whole “Sims 2″ folder and burning it, so we’ll see how that works. Do backups of any important documents. Make sure you have installation disks available for all important computer programs.
2. Reboot entire drive with installation disk. Put the disk into your disk drive, and restart the computer. You may have to select F12 to go to the boot menu. Select boot from disk drive. This wipes everything off your computer. Make sure you have a couple of hours available when you begin the installation. When your computer is restarted, it will prompt you to set up a user account. I set all the accounts up at one time. My computer is set up with three accounts: Myself, my BF, and a separate account for the Sims. I really like having a separate account, as the game runs so much more quickly and smoothly.
3. Next open up the control panel, then click “uninstall a program.” At this point, I get rid of any programs I don’t want, like the Yahoo! toolbar that was automatically installed on my computer. Just remember, if you don’t know what a program is, DON’T uninstall it! Do some research before randomly uninstalling programs on your computer.
4. Then click “turn Windows features on/ off” from the remove programs box. Uncheck the box for any unnecessary programs, in my case the PC Tablet functions and Windows Meeting Space.
5. Reinstall any speakers, printers, or other auxilliary devices as needed using the manufacturer’s instructions. I always forget about my speakers. With every reboot, I need to unplug and replug in my speaker cord, the click front speaker out.
6. Update all device drivers by going to the control panel, clicking system and maintenance, then clicking update device drivers under the device manager heading. My video and audio drivers both needed updating.
7. OK! Now your computer is ready to go, your user accounts are set up and all of your auxilliary devices are running. Now it’s time to start downloading programs. Here’s my list, which may or may not be of any use to you:
Open Office
Adaware free version
Itunes
Flickr uploader
GIMP
WinRAR
8. Finally, time to install your Sims 2 game and any EP’s. First, I highly recommend a no cd crack code to avoid the installation of Securom on your hard drive. For more info on Securom, see the links at the beginning of this article. I had attempted, with Bon Voyage, to rid myself of Securom once it was installed and was terribly unsuccessful. And then my DVD burner stopped working. So, this time, I decided to avoid Securom the easy way: Simply install all Sims 2 games and NEVER RUN THEM. Once you have installed everything, find the no cd crack code for your latest version (many are referenced in the MATY thread), and replace your .exe file with the crack code. Instructions for that are also in the first post of the MATY thread. This worked great for me, hopefully it will work for you too.
