I had NO clue.
At all.
I didn't know where to save it, or what to do with it when I had it lurking on my pc.
I figured it out eventually of course (and promptly went on an insane download binge
).Anyway, here is a simple (illustrated) how to download guide:
There are three main types of file that we are interested in for ZT downloads.
.ZIP
.ZTD
.dll
Zip files are compressed data files (imagine them as suitcases)
ZTD and dll files are the data files for your game (the luggage)
Now as with all good holidays you carry your luggage in the suitcase while you travel (or download), and when you get to the hotel (or in this case your PC) you place your socks in one drawer (or folder) and your shirts in another.
With me so far? Then here we go...
#1 Get on the internet (easy so far isn't it?).
#2 Find a really cool ZT site (like this one) and find their download directory.
#3 Mooch your way through the downloads and find one you like. For this example I'm going to use the really incredible Fall Trees created by Sundance:
#4 Click on the link, and then hit Save Target As:
#5 Save the file somewhere "safe" and easy to find on your computer. I tend to drop mine into the Documents folder where it's not in the way of anything
#6 Click save and Voila! in moments you have the file sitting on your computer
Congratulations. You're half-way there
Now comes the clever bit.
You need to move the file into the right place for the game to be able to use it...
#7 First you need to locate the Zoo Tycoon game folder on your PC. Depending on how you installed it it should be located somewhere like this:
My Computer
C:
Program Files
Microsoft Games
Zoo Tycoon
#8 Click on your ZTD file and select move then select the destination.
ZTD files should be dropped into the Updates folder in the Zoo Tycoon folder (unless otherwise stated)
Be carefull that you don't drop them in the wrong place.
Guess what?
That's it!
Close all the windows, start up your game and the new object should show up in your menu (in this case the foliage menu).
Easy isn't it?
Now let's tackle a Zip file...
In this case I've selected the Dessert Terrarrium as my example
#1 follow the same process for downloading the file onto your computer.
So far so good right?
Now what do you do with it?
Well, you need to unpack the suitcase. For this you need a program called Win-zip, which is readily availabe on the internet. If you don't already have a copy just dowload an evaluation version from here.
#2 Double-click on the zip file and then select Extract from the menu. You can see that there are TWO files in the zip file (a ZTD and a dll).
#3 Chose where you want the files to be placed (un-packing the suitcase). In this case I used my Documents again.
#4 Ok. Now you have TWO files to deal with. The ZTD goes into your Updates folder (see above) and the dll file goes into the MAIN ZooTycoon folder (illustrated by the red pointy arrow thingy).
Move the files.
Fire up your game and enjoy.
Congratulations you are now an expert in the art of downloading new game content
A few good notes:
Make sure that the object you are going to use is compatible with the version of ZT you are running.
SOME user created objects will not work in the a different version of the game and may cause it to crash (or create really freaky effects with guests and animals!).
Only add one or two files at a time. Some user created stuff has compatibility issues when used in combination with other things (this IS rare though). So it always pays to just try a few new things and then run your game and see what happens.
If you only added a couple of files it makes the job of removing an offending file SO much easier (trust me I learned this the hard way!).
The MOST important thing to remember is...have fun!
