The Net Power 1997 April

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Privateer 2: The Darkening DEMO PCCD ------------------------------------ (C) 1996, Origin Systems, Inc. This document may not, in whole or part, be copied, photocopied, reproduced, translated, or reduced to any electronic medium or machine readable form without prior consent, in writing, from Origin Systems, Inc. Origin Systems, Inc. believes the information contained in this document is accurate and reliable. Origin Systems, Inc. reserves the right to update this manual at any time and without notice. To find out the latest information about Privateer 2: The Darkening, check out our Internet Web site http://www.origin.ea.com/. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- This file has been provided as a supplement to any documentation for Privateer 2: The Darkening. It details last minute information as well as the most common questions and answers. To print a hardcopy of this file, at the DOS prompt, change to the drive of your CD-ROM drive (i.e. "D:") and type : PRINT README.TXT [ENTER] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- README.TXT Table of Contents 1.0 System Requirements 2.0 Playing the Game 3.0 Shortcut/Boot Disk Configuration 3.1 The Bootdisk Maker 4.0 Installation Program 5.0 Performance 5.1 Video Performance 5.2 CD-ROM Performance 5.3 Joystick Calibration 6.0 Troubleshooting 6.1 General Information 6.2 Questions and Answers 6.3 Known Problems & Error Messages 7.0 Sound Card Issues 8.0 DOS Drivers and Manufacturers List 9.0 Miscellaneous 9.1 Windows 95 9.2 Disk Compression 10.0 Origin Customer Service/Technical Support ---------------------------------------------------------------------- [1.0] System Requirements Privateer 2: The Darkening CD-ROM system requirements (which are absolutely needed to play the game) : Pentium 75 Processor or higher 8 MB of RAM (7 MB of XMS) 400 K Conventional Memory MS-DOS 5.0 and up Double Speed CD-ROM Drive (300,000 bytes/second transfer rate) Local Bus Video Card 100% Microsoft compatible mouse 40 MB of free hard disk space Sound Blaster, Ensoniq Soundscape, Media Vision Pro Audio Spectrum, Gravis Ultrasound or 100% compatible sound card. System Recommendation - Optimal : Intel Pentium 120 MHz or higher 16 MB of RAM (15 MB of XMS) 500K Conventional Memory Quad Speed or CD-ROM Drive (600,000 bytes/second transfer rate) PCI SVGA video card 100% Microsoft compatible mouse 40 MB of free hard disk space Sound Blaster, Ensoniq Soundscape, Media Vision Pro Audio Spectrum, Gravis Ultrasound or 100% compatible sound card. Two button Joystick ---------------------------------------------------------------------- [2.0] Playing the Game You should only need a few pointers in order to enjoy the demo. Each time you run the game, you will watch several movies, then see the first planet Customs screen. At this point, you have the option of taking off, or exiting to Transit, which will allow you to visit Joe the Bartender at Sinner's Inn. Helpful Planetary Commands : [ESC] : Bypass Current Movie [ALT-X] : Exit the Demo Once spaceflight is accessed, press [ALT-H]. This will bring up a list of all the commands for spaceflight. A few helpful commands are listed below : [ALT-H] : Access Help Screen [ALT-N] : Access Navigation Map [J] : Activate Jump Engine [W] : Target Closest Enemy [TAB] : Afterburner [ALT-R] : Toggle Radar Types [ENTER] : Fire Missile [ALT-D] : Access Diary [ALT-O] : Access Options Screen Happy Gaming! ---------------------------------------------------------------------- [3.0] Boot Disk Configuration If you are having trouble running Privateer 2: The Darkening, almost all problems can be solved by making a boot disk. Regardless of the total amount of RAM and/or conventional memory, processor speed/power, etc., the boot disk will set up your computer specifically to run Privateer 2: The Darkening. Expanded Memory Managers (EMM386, QEMM386, 386MAX, NETROOM, etc.) are not needed and if configured incorrectly, will often conflict with The Darkening's protected mode memory manager. [3.1] Boot Disk Instructions If you have DOS, it is recommended that you create a floppy boot disk for Privateer 2: The Darkening. If you have a blank floppy disk for your A: drive, the program BOOTDISK.EXE can be used to assist you. BOOTDISK.EXE examines your hard drive CONFIG.SYS and AUTOEXEC.BAT and determines the best configuration for running Privateer 2: The Darkening. All you have to do is put a blank floppy in the drive, type BOOTDISK at the CD-ROM drive prompt, and press [ENTER]. Once the boot disk is finished, simply reboot your machine with that disk in the A: drive. To play Privateer 2, boot your machine with the boot disk in drive A:. To return to your previous configuration, boot the machine without the boot disk. It's that easy! To make a boot disk for Privateer 2: The Darkening manually, please use the following instructions : 1) Place a blank disk in drive A: 2) Type C: and press [ENTER] 3) Type FORMAT A: /S and press [ENTER] 4) Type A: and press [ENTER] 5) Type COPY C:\CONFIG.SYS and press [ENTER] 6) Type COPY C:\AUTOEXEC.BAT and press [ENTER] 7) Type EDIT A:\CONFIG.SYS and press [ENTER] 8) Different computers have different sound cards, CD-ROM drives, etc. Therefore, after the first 5 lines, we cannot list out the exact lines needed. However, the original lines from your hard disk CONFIG.SYS will be there, and you can try to make sure lines of the CONFIG.SYS on the boot disk read somewhat like the following : DEVICE=C:\DOS\HIMEM.SYS DOS=HIGH FILES=50 BUFFERS=50 SHELL=C:\DOS\COMMAND.COM C:\DOS\ /P DEVICE=C:\<path>\<possible sound card drivers> DEVICE=C:\<path>\<CD-ROM drivers> DEVICE=C:\<path>\<possible mouse driver> Lines to remove from the CONFIG.SYS of the boot disk : DEVICE=C:\DOS\EMM386.EXE ... DEVICE=C:\WINDOWS\EMM386.EXE ... DEVICE=C:\WINDOWS\IFSHLP.SYS DEVICE=C:\DOS\SMARTDRV.EXE ... DEVICE=C:\DOS\POWER.EXE ... 9) After you are finished with the CONFIG.SYS, press [ALT-F], then [X], then [Y]. You should return to the A: prompt. 10) Type EDIT A:\AUTOEXEC.BAT and press [ENTER] 11) Again, since different computers have different sound cards, CD-ROM drives, etc., we cannot list out the exact lines needed for the AUTOEXEC.BAT file. However, the original lines from your hard disk AUTOEXEC.BAT will be there, and you can try to make sure lines of the AUTOEXEC.BAT on the boot disk read somewhat like the following : @ECHO OFF PROMPT $p$g PATH C:\DOS C:\<path>\MSCDEX.EXE ... <possible sound lines (SET BLASTER=, SET SOUND=, etc.)> <possible mouse driver lines (C:\DOS\MOUSE, etc.)> Lines to remove from the AUTOEXEC.BAT of the boot disk : C:\DOS\SHARE.EXE ... C:\DOS\SMARTDRV.EXE ... C:\WINDOWS\SMARTDRV.EXE ... 12) After you are finished with the CONFIG.SYS, press [ALT-F], then [X], then [Y]. You should return to the A: prompt. 13) Reboot your computer with the new boot disk. You may now try to install/run the game! ---------------------------------------------------------------------- [4.0] Installation Program Before you can run Privateer 2: The Darkening, you will have to run its installation program. This program allows you to setup your sound card, set the save game directory, and select your control device. To begin the installation switch to your CD-ROM drive (for example, if your CD-ROM drive is the "D" drive, you would type D: and hit [ENTER] and then type INSTALL. If you need to change your sound settings you must run the SETSOUND program from your hard drive directory. When you run the installation program, you can set four different options: The sound card, the music card, the destination directory, and the control type. You should first choose your Sound Card. Click on the arrow next to Sound Card and you will be presented with a list of different sound cards. You can scroll through the options by clicking on the up and down arrows on the selector. When you have chosen your card, click on OK. At this point you will be given the option to have the card detected automatically or manually. In most cases, you should just be able to click on AUTODETECT to set up your sound card. Otherwise, you must click MANUAL and enter the base address of your card. After choosing the sound card, you can click on the PRESS TO TEST SOUND option. If you hear an explosion, then you have successfully chosen the sound card. You can repeat the sound test as necessary. Next, you should select the Music card in the same way you chose the Sound card. When you test the music, you will hear repeating drums. You can change the destination directory by clicking on the arrow next to DIRECTORY. The destination directory is the location to which the game will install. The default directory is C:\DARK. You can select another directory by typing in another 8 letter directory name when prompted. To change the drive you wish to install to, backspace over the entire path name and type the new destination directory. Finally, you can change the control type. When you run the installer for the first time, the mouse will be the default controller. If you wish to use a joystick, you should use the selector (remember to click on the up and down arrows) to highlight joystick. If you have a CH Products throttle, select Joystick/Throttle. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- [5.0] Performance -- What kind of performance should I expect? Space flight depends HEAVILY upon the CPU speed of your system. But this will only work up to a certain point as defined by the speed of your video. For example, a Pentium computer with an ISA video card will bottleneck due to the slow video card performance. Remember : A local bus video card is required. -- How do I improve my computer's CPU speed? A) Ensure that you have your Internal and External Cache enabled for your CPU. Contact your computer manufacturer to investigate these settings further. B) Upgrading your CPU and motherboard is the only other way to improve this performance. Some of today's systems have included the use of ZIF Sockets that make CPU chip upgrades easier. Doubling your clock speed may be as simple as putting in a new CPU. Contact your computer manufacturer for details about your specific system and its possibilities for upgrade. [5.1] Video Performance The game runs in SVGA 640x480 256 color mode. You must have a VESA driver installed or included on your video card. If your video card does not support the VESA standard, then the game will not run. -- What kind of performance should I expect? Space flight AND Movies depend heavily upon the speed of your video. As mentioned in the CPU section, the processor speed can only take you so far. After that, the video speed will carry the rest of the load. -- How do I improve my frame rate? The system architecture of your computer greatly affects the overall performance of any video card. For most ISA customers, the best increase in video performance will be to upgrade to a new motherboard with VLB or PCI architecture. For increases within a particular type of architecture, research each video card for its DOS performance and rating by nationally recognized benchmarks or publications. NOTE : Windows accelerator cards which feature enhanced Windows video speeds MAY NOT provide the same type of performance in DOS. Check your local retailer or video card manufacturer for more information about these performance ratings. [5.2] CD-ROM Performance -- What kind of performance should I expect? The speed of your CD-ROM determines the load times for movies and missions. As you would expect, the faster the drive means less time waiting, and shorter load times. -- How do I my increase my CD-ROM speed? Short of buying a new CD-ROM drive, there is not much that can be done to improve the transfer rate of a CD-ROM drive to help Privateer 2: The Darkening perform faster. However, if you notice that the transfer rate of the CD-ROM drive is not what you expect, then it could be attributed to a couple of problems. It is most probable that your CD-ROM software drivers may not be communicating with the CD-ROM drive properly. It is very important that you have the latest driver for your CD-ROM drive. Pausing during movies, slow CD access/load times and CDR-101 error messages (not being able to access the CD) may all be the result of the use of an outdated driver. Contact your CD-ROM drive or Multimedia Kit manufacturer to see if you have the latest CD-ROM driver. Users of SCSI controller cards should call their controller card manufacturers to ensure that their software fully supports the specific CD-ROM drive by model number. [5.3] Joystick Calibration If you selected Joystick or Joystick/Throttle for your control device then you will be asked to calibrate your joystick. Follow the on-screen instructions to calibrate the joystick. As you move the joystick around, the yellow rectangle will decrease in size. Once initially calibrated, a circular cursor SHOULD appear in the center of the yellow square. If your cursor flickers between positions or jumps unexpectedly from one location to another as you move it, then your joystick as not calibrated properly for one of the following possible reasons : 1) Joystick Port Conflict: Two active joystick ports on the same system will confuse the calibration routine and produce erroneous data. SOLUTION: Possible locations for joystick/game ports can be found on either a) the sound card, b) the i/o serial card (where your mouse might be plugged into) or c) a separate gamecard (usually speed-adjustable). Only one of the ports can be active. Check the respective manufacturer's documentation to find out what settings need to be made to disable one or more of the conflicting ports. 2) Poor Initial Calibration: Click on exit and then try to recalibrate. 3) Machine Speed Conflict: Some gameports cannot handle the speed of some computers, especially Pentiums. As a result, the calibration information returned to the software routine is inaccurate. SOLUTION: Your system may benefit from the purchase of a speed- adjustable gamecard. These gamecards allow the user to adjust the rate at which the joystick calibration can actually speak to the joystick hardware. Some of the tested gamecards include the Thrustmaster ACM, the Gravis Eliminator, the Kraft Game Card and the CH Gamecard 3. 4) Bad Joystick Hardware: Unfortunately, some joystick hardware gives out after repeated usage. If you have checked the other 3 possibilities and you still have trouble calibrating, try attaching another joystick from a friend's computer. This may help you pinpoint the problem. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- [6.0] Troubleshooting If the game crashes inexplicably or there are sound and video glitches, it is probably the result of an invalid configuration. Try making a boot disk and start again. The problem may not reoccur. If it does, consult the following section. You may have outdated CD-ROM device drivers or your hardware may have loose cables, bad SCSI termination or some other problem. If the CD-ROM appears undamaged, check your hardware and/or contact the manufacturer of your CD-ROM drive to obtain the latest software device drivers and/or hardware fixes. [6.1] General Info Here are some things to check : 1) Set up a BOOT DISK! 2) Make sure your VESA driver is current and up to date. 3) You have a clean hard disk with at least 40MB of free space. If you are using disk compression, make certain to install onto an uncompressed part of the hard drive. 4) Check sound card settings and compatibility. 5) Make sure your CPU is 100% Intel compatible. 6) The MSCDEX driver can have unpredictable behavior. If it is loaded high OR if the /E parameter is used, its behavior generally becomes much worse. 7) SCANDISK and DEFRAG your hard drives regularly. Consult your DOS or Windows 95 manuals for instructions on using these utilities. [6.2] Questions and Answers Q : How do I run the install program to change my configuration? A : There is no way to re-run the install program after installation. You can adjust your Soundcard settings from the hard drive by typing : SETSOUND while in the C:\DARK directory. Q : Will I get any benefit from using a disk cache, such as SMARTDRIVE? A : If you have lower than 16 MB of RAM, it is recommended that you remove any disk caching software. The game will in fact, run slower with it. The disk cache also uses memory that may keep you from running the game. However, if you have more than 16 MB of RAM, you may want to allocate an amount over the first 16 MB to SMARTDRIVE, the disk caching software that comes with MS-DOS 5.0 and up. For SMARTDRV.EXE that comes with MS-DOS 6.20 and up, by default, SMARTDRIVE caches CD-ROM drives. You will want to disable this feature when playing Privateer 2: The Darkening. For example, if you have 24 MB of RAM and the letter of your CD-ROM drive is "D:", you may want to include the following line in your AUTOEXEC.BAT file on the boot disk : C:\DOS\SMARTDRV.EXE 4096 D- +--------------------------------------------------------+ | NOTE : Do NOT install the game with SMARTDRIVE loaded! | +--------------------------------------------------------+ Q: Why do my movies start and stop? A: The movies pause because data is not being transferred from the CD-ROM drive to our game at a sustained rate. Make sure your CD-ROM driver is up to date. You will need to contact your CD-ROM drive manufacturer to see if you have the latest version. You can check the list of problem CD-ROM drivers at the end of this file to see if your driver needs to be updated. [6.3] Known Problems & Error Messages Error message : "Error opening file..." Problem : You do not have enough Files and/or Buffers. Solution : Make a floppy boot disk/shortcut and the problem should go away. Error message : "Not enough mem to install the game" Problem : You do not have enough XMS memory to run Privateer 2. Solution : You will need at least 7104K of XMS memory. Make a floppy boot disk and the problem should go away. Error message : "File is to small to estimate stream speed" Problem : Privateer 2 has encountered a bad CD read. Solution : Clean the CD using a lint free cloth and the problem should go away. Error message : "Error! Initing Inflation" Problem : Game has detected an error in one of the savegame files. Solution : Reload the savegame, or try a different savegame. Problem : Lockups During opening movie, [ESC] takes you further into the game. Solution : You have chosen the incorrect sound card settings or have an IRQ or DMA conflict with your sound card and another device in your system. Verify your sound card settings are "conflict free" and run the SETSOUND program. * If the game appears to lock at a black screen at the start of the game, try pressing [ESC]. If you continue to the beginning of the next movie, your sound card settings are incorrect. Run SETSOUND from the installed directory. Problem : Lockup/Problems at the joystick calibration screen Solution : 1) Make sure you have only one joystick port active. If you do not, you may have a joystick port conflict. Resolve and retry. 2) Remove the joystick completely and install the game. Plug in the joystick after the game has been installed and calibrate from within the game. 3) Try another joystick. 4) If you have more than one joystick port, disable the current joystick port and use the second joystick port and retry. 5) Disable all open joystick ports and try using a speed adjustable gamecard. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- [7.0] Sound Card Issues For Digital FX, the game supports the Sound Blaster (and 100% Sound Blaster compatibles), Sound Blaster Pro, Sound Blaster 16, Sound Blaster AWE 32, Pro Audio Spectrum, Ensoniq Soundscape, and Gravis Ultrasound. NOTE : All sound cards are to be used in their NATIVE MODE only. For example, the Ensoniq Soundscape emulates the Sound Blaster. Yet for Digital FX, choose Ensoniq Soundscape rather than Sound Blaster/Compatibles. The install program chooses the default settings of the sound card defined by the manufacturer. Some sound cards which emulate other sound cards may not work with Privateer 2: The Darkening. If you are using a sound card which is not listed as a choice in the installation program, please consult your sound card manufacturer to see about getting your sound card to properly emulate one of the sound cards listed. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- [8.0] DOS Drivers and Manufacturers List Privateer 2: The Darkening is a DOS based game. The game will work on Windows 95 machines in a DOS shortcut that reboots the system in MS-DOS mode. Since the game is native to DOS, you will need DOS based drivers for your CD-ROM, sound card and mouse. These drivers are normally loaded onto new computers. In some cases, however, you may need to contact your hardware or system manufacturer to obtain the drivers you need to run the game. Consult the documentation that shipped with your computer system. Below is a list of contacts for several popular manufacturers. If you have a computer from one of the manufacturers below, and do not have DOS drivers, please contact them to obtain those drivers. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Company Phone Number Web Address ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Dell 1-800-624-9896 www.us.dell.com Compaq 1-800-652-6672 www.compaq.com Gateway 1-800-846-2301 www.gw2k.com Packard Bell 1-800-598-3000 www.packardbell.com Micron 1-800-877-8856 www.mei.micron.com IBM 1-800-426-7255 www.ibm.com NEC 1-800-632-4554 www.nec.com Acer 1-800-445-6495 www.acer.com Hewlett Packard 1-800-243-9812 www.hp.com AST 1-800-727-1278 www.ast.com ---------------------------------------------------------------------- [9.0] Miscellaneous [9.1] Windows 95 NOTE: When creating a DOS reboot icon for Privateer 2: The Darkening you will need to have your MS-DOS Real-mode drivers available for your system hardware. These drivers are necessary for your all of your peripherals to function correctly when rebooting into a DOS environment. If your computer came with Windows 95 pre-installed, these drivers may not be readily available. Follow the directions in the Install guide on making a DOS reboot in Windows 95. If you are unable to find certain drivers, consult your computer's documentation for information on how to enable the MS-DOS Real-mode drivers. Q: Can Privateer 2: The Darkening run in a Windows 95 window? Can I use Windows 95 DOS mode instead of a DOS reboot? A: No. It is NOT possible for Privateer 2: The Darkening to run within a Windows 95 window. You must reboot to MS-DOS mode to play the game. [9.2] Disk Compression We strongly recommend that you install Privateer 2: The Darkening onto an uncompressed portion of your hard drive. Privateer 2 will not function properly on a compressed drive. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- [10.0] Origin Customer Service/Technical Support If you would like to contact Origin Technical Support, please call 512-434-HELP (4357) M-F 9:00am to 1:00 pm, 2:00pm to 5:00 pm. Internet : support@origin.ea.com Internet Web site : http://www.ea.com/origin.html AOL : Mail to ORIGINCS When you call, your problem can be resolved much faster if you have the following information : * The EXACT error message displayed (very important!) * A copy of your CONFIG.SYS and AUTOEXEC.BAT files * A detailed list of the hardware and who the manufacturer is * The results of a MEM /C statement * Information on your sound card including the manufacturer and settings * Information on your video card and the manufacturer * Any information you feel would be helpful ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Enjoy The Game! -END OF FILE-