GrantSP

The INIs created from spINI, did you move those into the folder matching the current active profile? Since I can't think of anything other than a rogue INI setting (assuming you have installed just the mods in STEP) there really isn't anything else it might be. Remember MO does not use the INIs in the "My Documents".

I'm doing a bit of fiddling with Merge Plugins Standalone as I'm installing this guide, again, and I reckon the total plugin number can be drastically reduced. It truly is an easy to use and effective tool. All the Advanced Recon mods could probably be merged into just one as could JIP's mods, possibly the entire UI section. If that is true then the entire process of setting up the UI will be streamlined. We could probably move the MCM install up to just after DarnUI, as it makes more sense there.

This path: I:\SteamLibrary\steamapps\common\Skyrim\Data\, is it on a physical drive in your system or is it a NAS or some other type of remote drive accessed via software? If it is just another drive in your system then there should be no need to re-install Steam and your games, that won't be an UAC folder under control by Windows. On the other hand if it is a NAS drive then moving your Steam install to one physically attached would help. The only thing I can think of is the User account folders that xEdit is looking for are Admin restricted and you are running MO, and hence xEdit, from one with lower privileges, which is why I asked about the name. Usually Windows accounts are named after the account used to logon to Windows on each startup and this account just looks... odd. If you can make sure that Steam, Skyrim, MO and xEdit are all installed and run from the same level account then that will eliminate that as an issue.

That would be @GSDFan (as in German Shepherd Dog fan)

In setting up Merge Plugins for multiple games I find I cannot enter my username in additional installs since the check returns the name in use. How can I install Merge Plugins for multiple games so that ALL will use the same name?

Any HUD mod that you add will be fine if you follow the UIO instructions. Since it is a NVSE plugin the order shouldn't matter at all, it will automatically 'see' all the installed HUD mod menus and adjust as needed. Any differences to that will be explained in the guide or the UIO page. Most mods are fairly safe to update as we go since, as you mention, MO has removed the problem of over-writing assets. The most pressing issue would be any merged mods or bashed patches that rely on, or were created from, out-of-date mods, these will obviously need re-doing, but that goes without saying.

Sometimes little snippets of interesting things just fall into my lap when I'm browsing in the morning. Here is a small comic from an artist in Deviantart that will surely resonate with all the Skyrim players.

Thanks @Mator. I guess the similarities in the UI prompted the question more than the functionality. Now that it is stated clearly what each tool does, and doesn't do, there should be no further confusion.

@Mator I'm a little confused. Isn't the functionality of Smash essentially the same as that of Merge Plugins with the exception that that tool also merges the assets used? If that is the case what is the benefit you see of having two distinct tools when perhaps just one could suffice? Keep in mind my opening sentence.

To clarify, xEdit loads your mod list from MO and you are able to edit files, ie. you performed a successful clean on Update.esm? In your PATHs where "Owner" is specified, that is the name of the account you use to login to Windows? You haven't removed the real name for the sake of posting here? If it is, that's the assumption I'm going with, for whatever reason xEdit is being refused access to that account's folders and can't write to the 'Plugins.tes5viewsettings' file. Can you set up exemptions for MO in your AV software or disable it? As for the missing INI. You can run Skyrim with MO managing the mods installed? If you have created a profile in MO the correct INIs from "My Documents" will have been copied across so xEdit too will see those. The internal message about the location being: "C:\Users\Owner\Documents\My Games\Skyrim\Skyrim.ini" is just because MO has tricked xEdit into seeing them there, they are actually the ones in the profile folder named the same as that shown in the MO left-hand pane.

No you have to create new ones and the entire Bethsoft forum is going to be archived. At least that's my understanding.

The way you have sorted is fine. As for the installer, if you d/l it only recently then you might have a broken installer. @TechAngel is currently examining an issue and this may require you grabbing that file again.

Welcome to STEP @Zombo SKSE isn't a mod in the same sense as all the other mods used in modding, so it really doesn't matter where it goes. For the sake of ease, placing it at 0 is fine and will work perfectly. Placing it last will also work but it might look odd to the user in the list of mods. This works in this manner because SKSE is a DLL and has no bearing on the actuall plugins (esm/esp) that the game loads. All DLLs are loaded first regardless of their position. @Nebulous has already explained the 'scripts' positioning. (ninja'd)

Were those changes made to the default unedited INIs created by Skyrim, because there seem to be a few discrepancies in them compared to mine?

The handling of 'nxm' links must first be initialised by your browser, which is why the instructions advise to click the "browse Nexus" button. If your browser refused to handle those protocols then it isn't an MO issue. MO is only being called by your browser to handle them. If you had previously used NMM the browser would be first sending them to that application, if nothing at first was set, upon the first instance one of those links was clicked, the browser should provide a response asking what you want to do with them. To set your mind at ease, there is no relation to 'nxm' links and anything in the MO code, other than MO being used as the application that handles them. Your browser is the thing that makes that call, if it doesn't provide feedback on what to do then you will need to check your browser settings. This is now a moot point since you now are able to handle those links.

No. I would assume all that installing NMM is doing is telling Windows about the nxm protocol so when your browser finds one there is already a registry entry for it. I can assure you there is absolutely no need to install NMM to handle those.

Do you mind providing that link? Whoever suggested you need NMM to get Nexus links working needs to be set straight. Nexus forums were the ones that designed the 'nxm' protocol and it has nothing to do with NMM. Any program can open them as long as they know what to do with them.

Can you make a vanilla profile in MO and go through the carriage ride again with no mods installed? I have the exact opposite effect to you. My 'eye level' appears too high, IMO, even when I choose a small character I feel like I'm towering over the others. Just for clarity could post your INIs here in spoiler tags so we can compare them. Make sure you use the correct ones from the active profile, not those in 'My Documents'.

Thanks, I'll defer to your greater knowledge.

That's a good point. Didn't even bother to read the feature list until you mentioned this. Afterall, it's from @kryptopyr, it must be good. Might pay us to load this and NARC & USLEEP and see what overlaps there are. Didn't the USLEEP team make farm animals not report crime in the later versions, before the combined plugin that is? EDIT: NARC covers far more factions than this and should be used as well. Only "creature, prey,predator,hunter& dog" factions are covered here, NARC expands on these and adds in everything else, including the changes in USLEEP.

Wow, there sure are a few mods that seem to have slipped under the radar!

So what you really want to know is what is wrong with your save, not how to install those mods. Just for the sake of argument, start a new game with the HUD mods installed and see what happens, if all is well then we can move onto the saved game. Straight away though if you are getting this message ingame, MO has done what it is supposed to and passed all the information to the game. Somehow I think the issue lies on that save though. How can ANY save not have Skyrim, Update or the DLCs loaded? That is the game, if they are missing then the game is broken.

I'm sorry I have nothing more to add. Perhaps you can post this as an issue on the GitHub? @Tannin is in active development of MO version 2 but he spends more time there than here. He will have more insight.

How weird, I find myself elaborating on an implication in the instructions a week after I said we should avoid implications in the instructions. :O_o: Clearly these instructions are not worded in such a way as to avoid confusion, and possibly an improvement is needed, how is the tricky part. Let's just examine it is as I read it. If the modder is going for a STEP Extended install, or a STEP part-Extended install, STEP Core is part of the Extended installation. So looking at the list of mods that are provided by each patch you will notice overlap of Core & Extended. Since EBT is part of the list in the Extended patch the modder has already made the choice to go 'Extended' and therefore the Extended patch is being described. Core (patch) no longer has any bearing on the installation. I'm more than happy to have those that created the patches to say I'm in error, if I am. Short version: If you are in the process of choosing any mods that are or aren't to be included from the Extended section, Core patch is no longer a valid choice for you, Extended patch is what you should be focused on.

I can't recall seeing torches immediately go out when using SM's DLT. Though I can see the physics behind them doing so: less air flow to the lit surface. Nice addition though, who doesn't like MCM menus?