Simple suggestion for improved performance

[dpgillam]

Since the beginning of computers, there has been one tried and true way to massively improve performance. Clean up and delete the trash. The less BS clogging your resources, the more resources you have for other tasks.

 

At least half the mods in Skyrim alone (and thats some 48K mods, iirc) are several years out of date, broken, and made by authors who have left or been banned from the Nexus community.

 

As I said, thats just for Skyrim. How many more for Oblivion, Fall Out (whatever) and so on? How many gigs of memory, and basic daily maintenance of servers is being wasted to essentially keep a pristine looking junk-yard? Given that no one is allowed to fix these wrecks, and the authors wont, this garbage serves no purpose. So why waste money and resources?

[micalov]

Who is to say what is "garbage" etc? most things ppl claim are broke are usually user error.

 

Also just because a mod has not been updated in X amount of time does not mean it automatically is "broken" or "out of date"

[JimboUK]

During Morrowinds heyday there were a large number of sites hosting Morrowind mods, then one by one they vanished, countless mods were lost forever, some fantastic ones among them, no one wants to see that happen again.

 

Who is to say what is "garbage" etc? most things ppl claim are broke are usually user error.

 

Also just because a mod has not been updated in X amount of time does not mean it automatically is "broken" or "out of date"

 

I don't understand why people think mods should be constantly updated, numerous good mods have ended up being train wrecks because the modder didn't know when to stop.

[Oubliette]

I agree, constant updates are not a sign of a mod's general health. They're a sign that there's serious problems with the mod. One of Morrowind modding's best features is that modders worked hard to release completed and stable mods and then make sure that they were uploaded in multiple locations so that when the site shut downs started, there were backups available. Even that much "maintenance" was a pain in their collective behinds to keep up with.

 

This constant updating of what should be a stable release only introduces a multiplying level of potential problems it does not indicate a mod's desirability or general health. In fact if it's a mod that has no really good reason for updating and it does often I find it a deterrent to downloading.

 

As for what's worthwhile and what's not, that's not really any of our calls to make. What people want in their game and what people want to share is up to them. If we start trying to cherry pick just what we think is worthwhile pretty soon this place would be a walled garden with very small amount of overgrown and delicate hot house roses instead of the vibrant ecosystem it currently is.

Edited January 6, 2016 by Oubliette

[dpgillam]

"Garbage" - a mod that hasnt worked properly for months to years, for pretty much anyone. Neither manual installers NOR auto installers can get it to function

There are endless reasons for this, and claiming "User error" is the whining of lazy authors.

 

"Too out of date" - When the mod in question is dependent on

A) out-dated versions of Skyrim that are no longer compatible with the current functions

B) mods that no longer exist (for a variety of reasons)

C) mods that were reworked and no longer compatible

 

"broken" - more than half the comments section is filled with bug reports, errors, and complaints of parts NOT WORKING

 

 

One of Morrowind modding's best features is that modders worked hard to release completed and stable mods

And I would agree with you, if these mods were completed. But they arent, and few ever will be.

 

Im not speaking of mods like Shenks thievery overhaul (#10336) which, in spite of being 4 years old is finished, solid, and works perfectly.

 

But look at Lost colony of Akavir (#25426) that has been inactive for 2 years; unfinished and unstable. But at least the author is still in the community, having checked in just a week ago.

Dragon717 made 2 mods, both of Tifa from FF7. He left the community back in 2012, according to his page (yet his mods were somehow updated in 2013. how odd) His mods are dead (*he wont be back to work on them) and broken (they do not work properly, nor are they stable). Why keep them?

 

 

This constant updating of what should be a stable release only introduces a multiplying level of potential problems it does not indicate a mod's desirability or general health.

In general, I would agree. A stable, working mod from December of 2011 would need to be updated when

A) the CK came out

B) for each DLC

C) to stay compatible with any changes made to Dependent files.

 

we're discussing mods that arent/werent stable/finished.

[JimboUK]

Broken mods can be fixed by competent users or some users don't mind buggy mods, dealing with bugs is part of modding. Who would check these mods? surely you don't expect the staff or anyone else to start installing potentially game breaking mods into thier games? anyway there are tens of thousand of mods on this site, they can't all be checked. You can't really go by user comments because so many of them haven't got a clue, they blame the last mod they installed for all their woes. Monster Wars for New Vegas is a perfect example of users blaming the author for problems of their own making, it's a very intensive mod and can cause crashes in games that are already at breaking point, these clowns who think they can install half the Nexus into their games and then run it on a potato are very quick to blame the author and on this mod many did.

[Thandal]

The Number One Rule in modding is: "Caveat Lusor" (Player Beware). Mods aren't professional programs, they're freeware offered by people who enjoy games and tinkering with games. If you're not willing to do the same, perhaps you shouldn't use mods.

 

As has already been noted, one man's garbage is another man's treasure. And one "bad" mod can inspire someone else who wanted to use it to "do it right!"

[bben46]

We see it all the time "Your mod broke my game!" Nope, you broke your game. That mod didn't install itself. It had help. :whistling:

[dpgillam]

We see it all the time "Your mod broke my game!" Nope, you broke your game. That mod didn't install itself. It had help. :whistling:

Ah yes, the resounding cry of the arrogant modder: "I did what even Bethesda couldnt, and made skyrim stable and unbuggy. All errors are user's fault, not my mod!!! *sticks fingers in ears* la la la, Im not listening."

 

As a fellow modder, I realize how much pure horsesh!t that is. The game itself was dropped because the PROFESSIONALS couldnt get it to run right, consistently. Entirely unrelated things can be altered unkowingly by a modder, by accident. But "its the user's fault" Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight :rolleyes:

 

 

Broken mods can be fixed by competent users

But not posted without Author's permission, which, as I pointed out, for the mods I consider "garbage", cannot be obtained.

 

Who would check these mods? surely you don't expect the staff or anyone else to start installing potentially game breaking mods into thier games? anyway there are tens of thousand of mods on this site, they can't all be checked. You can't really go by user comments because so many of them haven't got a clue, they blame the last mod they installed for all their woes. Monster Wars for New Vegas is a perfect example of users blaming the author for problems of their own making, it's a very intensive mod and can cause crashes in games that are already at breaking point, these clowns who think they can install half the Nexus into their games and then run it on a potato are very quick to blame the author and on this mod many did.

Yes, the users can say whats "garbage", as in: broken and the author has either declared the mod dead, or has left it broken for over a year, or the author has left the community entirely.

 

As for your complaint that users are too stupid to know whats defective, see above.

 

Personally, I believe all mods should use Insanity Sorrows "modder's will" where if you disappear for more than (IS says 6 months, but I would generally say a year) your mod goes to a group fthat encourages cooperation and fair use.

 

 

A perfect example would be my "Tracked list"; I was cleaning out the files, and found that fully half the files I had been tracking (and forgot about) are either deleted from the nexus entirely, hidden, or modders declared them dead. The only ones actually removed are the ones authors deleted. Even the ones from authors banned were left up.