@darkdrea Just to be clear, you can use the store, and upload items to the exchange, while you're not actively playing. In fact, buying from the store is more reliable when you do it through the store's website (store.thesims3.com) rather than in-game. The item(s) will download into your launcher, and then you can install them from there. The same principle applies to downloading through the exchange. I believe you can also upload with only the launcher open, but in truth I've never uploaded anything, so I haven't seen how it's suppose to work.
It sounds like you're on patch 1.69 and therefore have an Origin-controlled install. If some of your packs aren't showing in the launcher, or aren't checked off when you press play, you may not be able to load saved games that used those packs. This is true whether or not you're logged into the launcher. It's occasionally necessary to go through the list of packs and uncheck and recheck all of them, as sometimes the launcher doesn't "remember" your previous selection.
