So, I have some owned community lots, not because I want a business, but because I want someone there when sims visit, like the librarian owns the library so she'll always hang around there and the lifeguard owns the public pool, but they act so useless when others visit while they are not active. The librarian stands around the yard sighing and thinking about selling and the lifeguard goes into motive distress but does nothing even though everyone else on the lot is fully satisfied and happy to stay all night.

I can make them selectable, but even then, they are not very cooperative.

I'd like a fix so that they, at least, keep their motives steady or satisfy them themselves as they normally would. I've had good experience with Need Freak but I'd need it to do something different with the owner than with the crowd. Is there a motive defender for a single sim? Ideally, they'd behave like NPCs tidying up and such. I'm open to any workarounds, mods, etc. I guess I'd also be open to actually having an NPC there (like a butler, not like a statue of a cashier) instead of playables if that were possible. WCIF something like this?

Did you assign them to a task? Like with the librarian, take them to the business and tell them to restock or tidy up. Or if you have the cash register that looks like a library scanner tell them to work the 'till'. They are more likely to go and do those things when you take other sims. Bit hard with the lifeguard. I would simply top up his motives and make him sit on a lifeguard chair.
I would use the simblender, but this mod looks handy for motives too. http://modthesims.info/download.php?t=184957

Pescado's "Business Runs You" will allow you to assign a function to a community lot's owner for when you're visiting that lot with some other playable sim. It looks like a big red communist hammer & sickle logo and hangs on a wall like a painting. The readme file isn't terribly helpful. Pescado said in this support thread that he thought the thing was self-explanatory and didn't really need much description. The version currently linked to is the latest up-to-date one and shouldn't have the bugs in it that are mentioned in some of the posts on that page.

http://www.moreawesomethanyou.com/s...pic,3884.0.html

For what you want to use it for, you probably will not need all the supporting hacks listed. Here's a screenshot showing all the available assignments for an "Unmanned Owner". I've set Malcolm to be a salesperson when I visit this store with another playable. For what you want, I guess you might try "no task."

Oh yes, I forgot about that. Here is the invisible recolour http://www.moreawesomethanyou.com/s...pic,6749.0.html

@joandsarah77 and @RoxEllen1965, thank you both. I've been testing these two suggestions in various ways off and on through the day. They seem to be leading in the right direction, but, alas, don't work well as is.

The motive control is useful and the perfect shape for the pool as it's a life preserver (and a fun bit of history as it seems to have been HystericalParoxysm's first upload here - very cool), but it doesn't seem to have any real effect of controlling autonomous behavior, mostly because it just sets the motives but doesn't "defend" them the way BO's does, so they just rise again as normal.

The businessrunsyou, unfortunately, only offers the option of janitor on these lots (I assume that's because there are no NPC generating objects). That would be ok if the janitor did more, but it seems to only care about toilets, not all the trash and dishes people leave about. I'm still exploring.

I can't tell what the difference is between "unassigning" the job and "no task," and I haven't found a way to access what the janitor does to see if it could be easily enhanced. Any ideas on these or another idea? Oddly, no matter what settings on these I use, the lifeguard seems to have tired of standing around and now socializes and swims. I have no idea why, but that's better than before.

I did accomplish a few fun things. The unpleasant red hammer/sickle is now the solar panel on the roof. Given that changing that was so easy, I also changed my batbox into a nice vase that I've never used before, and the giant gray eye that controls baby care into the giant teddy in the pink shirt with the heart on it. A job well done that. My sims with taste should appreciate it.

I also tweaked the diving board so that sims who are scared to dive would stop changing out of their swimsuits (VC forces swimwear so NO ONE else is wearing everyday - this was really silly) and I enabled the Kick Backyard Lounger for visitors so the pool visitors are a bit happier with that as well. @iCad, did you ever get the pool slide to be autonomous? Any tips? I've fussed with it a bit more, but I can't get anywhere with it. They never go near it even with the advertising through the roof.

I had tweaked the library yesterday so that, finally, sims come in, grab a book, and sit down to read without my interference, so that part's working well.

You might like to use the autonomy controller by Pescado. This enables 'make selectable' and 'unselectable' on every sims pie menu. Just don't set that on sims who should not be selectable like crumlebutt or when they are a lone sim on a home lot-I did that once and had to reload.

Is it just selectablity? I can already make them selectable with InSim. Pescado's hacks tend to cut down on autonomy as I think this one does, too. I'm wanting more autonomy for all sims, selected or not. Or maybe I'm not understanding the idea?

Autonomycontrol is about making certain objects non autonomous, it's got nothing to do with selectability and I'm sure Pescado would never make something that would allow you to make Mrs Crumplebottom selectable.

I tend to make almost everything autonomous. My goal is always to design lots and play so that the sims run everything with very minimal input from me. For me, it's a sort of puzzle to find ways to design lots and relationships and personalities so they work on their own, in their own little world.

I use autonomy control if I have a computer in a bedroom that I want only the bedroom's owner to use, so other sims don't come in to play it and wake them.