MO and Step - uninstall remove mod

[stepwanw]

Hello,

 

the question is simple but I couldn't find explicit notes on it in MO Guide: just going through the step 2.2.7 core routine and while installing the various Book of Silence files according to https://wiki.step-project.com/Book_of_Silence I guess I made the mistake for taking the custom install recommendations (s. wiki) with no explicit sub-choice as meaning *none*. Long story short, I stopped after two BoS-files installed to re-install them. Therefore I first unchecked the boxes in MO left panel and then removed them one after the other ('remove installed'). - No other mods had been/ have been installed after that so I will merely choose the mods from the install list again and install them. is that right? I ask as there seemed to be two alternatives (`re-install', 'overwrite') and in the case of the 2.2.7 install order, well, order matters.

 

by the way, thanks dethneko11 for the youtube guides. Helped a lot. Cheers

[wolverine2710]

Not totally sure what you did but after using 'remove mod' in the left plane for both BOS mods everything should be clean and you can install Bos again. The thread 'Installing mods with MO, merge, replace or rename?' contains some good information by Tannin himself as well.

 

Note: As you know with MO you can easily change the install order of mods in the left pane. Aside from the MO guide (I assume you mean the MO wiki) there is also lots of information here in this forum, especially the sub forums 'Answers - Mod Organizer Support' and 'Mod Organizer - Key Threads for Wiki'.

[stepwanw]

Thank you for your answer. I guess I have a nack towards being too considerate there. - To pick up what you said: "As you know with MO you can easily change the install order of the mods in the left pane." - Well, I don't quite get the difference between installation and activation order: The downloads appear on the right pane and after installation they appear on the left pane in the order they were installed. - So if I switch around the files IN THE LEFT PANE doesn't that change activation/enabling order instead of install-order?

I guess the difficulty lies somewhere with MO being a virtual machine - but even with the step guide 2.2.7, when it said: stick to this list for the order of installation: 2 E, F, etc. ..., I wondered whether this meant the actual acts of installing one mod after the other had to be done that way (thus I did it), or merely the listing and enabling/activating of the mods in the left panel had to be in that specific order.

 

Unfortunately there's trouble with GSoDs and a new graphics card (R9280x Windforce OC). In all games I tested so far (Far Cry 3, Skyrim) GSoDs come up rather soon together with freezes and even BSoD - with Skyrim unmodded actually I didn't experience that but played just for a few minutes. But I don't think it's mod-related as the GPU should handle Skyrim 2.2.7 core-modded I suppose.

[wolverine2710]

You seem to have missed the priorities tab in the MO wiki. I think its described rather clear there. If not please tell me what is not clear and I will try to update that tab in the near future. "MO being a virtual machine", that is not true it uses a virtual filing sytem. But as far as a program like Skyrim started from MO is concerned it just thinks it is using the regular filing system. The VFS is described in the advanced tab of the MO wiki. I also encourage you to watch the 5+ videos by Deatneko11 and bridger (resources tab in MO wiki). With MO it does not matter in which order you install mods IF at the end before starting Skyrim the installer order in the left pane is the same as dictated by MO. I've done that in the past because some large mods took a long time to download and I just continued with the mods I had already downloaded.

[stepwanw]

Thanks, what you wrote last is what I was just referring to. Quote:

"With MO it does not matter in which order you install mods IF at the end before starting Skyrim the installer order in the left pane is the same as dictated by MO." - In the MO-wiki guide I now found this explicitly under the 'overwrite' section: [i highlight the most relevant sentence in '#...#'. Quote:

"The Meaning of Overwrite Has Precedance

This is a term Tannin used for a feature that only Mod Organizer has, all other Mod Managers have two main Orders that define Mod Priorities Load Order which is what BOSS (Bethesda Order Sorting Software In my opinion a much better name than Better Oblivion Sorting Software) Sorts. This is the same for all Mod Managers including Mod Organizer. #Install Order which is the order mods are installed in the Mod Manager, Uniquely this Does Not Apply to Mod Organizer. Mod Organizer has the ability to change this Precedence or Priority override this is what is commonly called a Mod Conflict where whatever is installed last wins the conflict (you can change this with other managers but only when installing the Mod) with Mod Organizer this is easily changed by using Drag and Drop in your Profile and is indicated by the Priority Column Number with highest number winning the conflict and the Overwrite Folder is automatically always the highest Priority Column Number.#"

- the priorities tab (s. MO Guide) describes that function but does not state it as straighforwardly. Just don't judge me for being too overzealous here for what that boils down to I'll describe in a sec:

 

If "Install Order [...] Uniquely [.] Does Not Apply to Mod Organizer", i.e. it has very little relevance to it compared to other Mod Managers, then what is really relevant to MO is the ordering of the Mod-loading (/enabling/activation) according to priority (as indicated on the UI: left pane/priority number).

 

Now, let me pick up your wording in the above and relate that to the step 2.2.7 guide and then to my Step-experience: Quote:

"With MO it does not matter in which order you install mods IF at the end before starting Skyrim the installer order in the left pane is the same as dictated by MO."

You speak of the order (in which you for example double-click on downloads in the right-hand pane of MO) as the 'order in which you install mods'. Fair enough. But at the same time you speak of the Load-Order (e.g. in the left hand pane) as the "installer order". You'll agree that's ambiguous.

Now apart from your comment it's just that ambiguity which very much influenced my experience with the step 2.2.7 procedure (using MO). For, never having used MO before, I got the impression that install order didn't really matter (and that it was rather activation/load-order as seen on the l.h.pane what it was about.)

On the other hand I sticked to the 2.2.7 procedure (https://wiki.step-project.com/STEP:2.2.7) as advised. And there I read repeatedly:

"Install mods in the order that they are presented in the following tables in order to achieve an aesthetically and mechanically well-vetted result." (under 'Final Notes')

"Mods should be installed in the order that they are listed to ensure that mods further down the list overwrite those occurring before them. This is necessary to ensure the desired in-game effect." ('Notice' before List of Mods.)

 

How does a newbie proceed then? Well, he or she downloads and installs the mods one after the other as suggested. And that might take a day or two... with quite some 'uhhh, did I double click that too early moments' (see Thread-title). MO makes it a lot easier/comfortable as it allows you to ignore install order and just concentrate on the LOAD-Order (left hand column) that can be easily arranged (drag&drop).

 

Isn't this a big advantage of MO? Above you provide the best example for the user-friendliness it provides: "I've done that in the past because some large mods took a long time to download and I just continued with the mods I had already downloaded." But why veil this in the step 2.2.7 guide? From that experience I would suggest: Just put as an aside to sentences like

"Mods should be installed in the order that they are listed to ensure that mods further down the list overwrite those occurring before them" (2.2.7 guide)

 

that "Mod Organizer allows you for the most part (sections 2.D to 2.M) to ignore this order while you're installing the mods. After installation please consider this order binding while setting up the Load-Order via MO drag&drop. Details: [Linking up to MO-Wiki-page: https://wiki.step-project.com/Guide:Mod_Organizer#Priorities to which as an introduction the sentences under the heading: 'overwrite has precedence' in the overwrite-section may fit very well.]

 

(Can save you some hours while waiting over night for SRO to download...). Best

 

s.