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- Copysoft - SKUNNY KART
- Trouble Shooting Guide
- -------------------------------
-
- This game requires a 100% IBM compatible computer equipped with
- 4MB of memory and a VGA card. Your version of DOS must be at least
- version 3.0 or later.
-
- The game must be run under DOS and NOT under WINDOWS!
-
- This program has been tested for many hours and has gone through strict
- quality checks but because of the diversity of hardware and software
- combinations that exist with PC's there may be problems that we could
- not possibly test for. Here is a list of the most common problems that
- may occur.
-
- We strongly recommend that you use joysticks to play SKUNNY KART and
- it will be easier to play with a Gravis Game Pad (similar to NINTENDO's
- joysticks).
-
- Since SKUNNY KART is a two player game, you can connect two joysticks and
- the program will detect them (see information at the end of this document).
-
-
- MEMORY RELATED PROBLEMS
- -----------------------
-
- Q. When I execute the game the program tells me that there is insufficient
- memory or give a FATAL ERROR 9874.
- A. This program requires 4MB of memory to run.
-
- If you have that memory, you should remove some lines in your CONFIG.SYS
- file that reserve that memory when the computer start.
-
- The minimum CONFIG.SYS required must contain the following lines:
-
- FILES=20
- BUFFERS=20
-
- A good CONFIG.SYS that will run the game and WINDOWS can be:
-
- device=himem.sys
- device=emm386.exe noems
- dos=high,umb
- buffers= 30
- files= 20
-
- However, this CONFIG.SYS will cause the game to run slower. We
- recommend using the 2 line CONFIG.SYS if you have a slow machine.
-
-
- CALL YOUR LOCAL COMPUTER DEALER FOR ASSISTANCE.
-
-
- GAME STOPS WORKING, BEHAVES ERRATIC OR IS SLOW
- ----------------------------------------------
-
- Q. When I start the game it "locks" after the message "FM SOUND CHIP
- DETECTED".
- A. This is typically a hardware address conflict. You probably have
- a network card with address 360h and there is a conflict with
- the SOUNDBLASTER FM chip. Change the address of your network card.
-
- Q. When I run the game it "locks" up.
- A. The most common causes of this are :-
-
- 1. You do not have the correct files or files are missing that are
- needed to run the game. You will need to compare the distribution
- file (FILES.LIS) with the actual files in the directory.
-
- 2. If you have a SOUND BLASTER or compatible card and the program
- cannot detect it, or is not using it, this can lead to a "lock up".
- Please refer to SOUND RELATED problems in this document.
-
- Q. The game tells me that my machine is very slow.
- A. Try to activate your TURBO button on the front panel of the computer
- or make sure CACHE is activated (SETUP of the computer).
-
- Q. The game runs slowly.
- A. All the games have been written using the fastest method available.
- Our games support 256 color VGA and some use advanced "Parallax" scrolling
- and larger than normal sprites. For this reason your computer must be
- a 386 or above. Old VGA cards can also be slow and were not designed for
- todays modern applications. Some 386SX computers are actually slower than
- 286 based machines! This is because graphic based programs need to move
- large amounts of data in a very short time and some SX based processors
- take longer to process these type of loops than a 286 would. It seems
- a crazy situation but we have had direct experience with this.
-
- You can also go into SETUP from the games main menu and change the
- VGA7 RESOLUTION to LOWRES for faster game speed.
-
- You can change the GAME SPEED parameter in the setup menu. The default is
- 50%. If you increase the game speed, you will be able to see the difference
- ONLY if your machine has enough processor power (fast 386 or 486)!
-
- JOYSTICK PROBLEMS
- -----------------
-
- Don't forget that if you have a joystick port in your PC, you MUST
- disable the joystick port on your SOUNDBLASTER card (the jumper JYEN must
- be open - please consult your SB manual)!
-
- NB: However, on a 486 DX2 clone, we had to close the jumper JYEN on a
- SOUNDBLASTER PRO to detect both joysticks!
-
- Q. I have set the JOYSTICK option but the character "drifts" on the screen.
-
- A. The game requires you to "CALIBRATE" your joystick and you have not
- followed this procedure correctly or you have changed the joystick
- or altered the speed of your machine since you last calibrated. Some
- joysticks have "trim" controls and these may have moved after you
- calibrated. As a final measure check that the stick is fully connected.
-
- If you experience any problem with your joystick, it is a quick and
- simple procedure to calibrate it using our built in program.
-
- Here are a few tips to help you calibrate correctly.
-
- 1. Choose JOYSTICK from the SETUP/ CONTROL PLAYER option if this
- option is on KEYBOARD. If the option is already JOYSTICK, reset it
- to KEYBOARD and then to JOYSTICK again (with left and right keys).
- This will force the program to calibrate when you exit the SETUP
- (Return or Esc).
- 2. Ensure that any AUTO FIRE capability is SWITCHED OFF
- 3. Follow the prompts and make sure that when pressing the FIRE
- button you press the button when you are requested to do so.
- 4. If your machine has a TURBO facility then note the state of
- this switch.
-
- These settings are saved to disk so you do not need to set them
- every time you play the game.
-
- Q. The menus selector is moving automatically.
-
- A. This problem is similar to the previous one. You must first
- quit the game then at the DOS prompt you can type:
-
- DEL SKUNNYK.SUP
-
- This will delete the SETUP and reset the controls to default values
- (KEYBOARD). You can now reload the program and change CONTROL PLAYER
- from the SETUP menu to JOYSTICK.
-
- Make sure the TURBO button on you computer is ON.
-
- Q. The game detect the joystick but I cannot calibrate it.
- A. The cause is probably that another device is using a port address
- near 200h (201h is the joystick port). Change the address of that
- device to solve the problem.
-
- SOUND RELATED PROBLEMS
- ----------------------
-
- The game supports the ADLIB and SOUND BLASTER standards as well as
- providing support for the internal speaker. The SOUND BLASTER provides
- an additional function to allow "DIGITAL voice capability". Any problems
- that may arise will have to do mainly with this voice capability. Incorrect
- settings can cause your computer to "lock" up.
-
- Note: The game will run perfectly in Soundblaster emulation with
- the Pro-Audio-Spectrum card (PAS) but not with the Gravis
- Ultrasound (GUS). We have contacted Gravis to try to find
- a solution with them, it seems that SBOS (GUS SB emulation program)
- is in conflict with the dos extender of Skunny Kart.
-
- Q. I receive the message "BLASTER environment variable not found."
- A. The game searches the DOS environment for a variable called BLASTER.
- If the variable is present, the game will use the parameters to
- configure your SOUNDBLASTER. If the variable is not present, the game
- will try to detect the interrupt but this method is not very reliable and
- can crash your computer (You will have to reboot).
-
- So we suggest that you add the variable by typing the following command
- at the DOS prompt (C:\>):
-
- SET BLASTER=A220 I7
-
- This command will setup the soundblaster for DSP address 220h and IRQ 7
- (or any other value you specify). The program will only work with
- interrupts 2, 5 and 7.
-
- The game only support DMA channel 1!
-
- Q. I receive the message "Impossible to initialize Sound Blaster..."
- A. The DOS environment variable BLASTER has been found but the
- game cannot initialize the SOUNDBLASTER with the specified values
- for the interrupt and DSP address. Check these values and try again.
-
- Q. I have the SOUND BLASTER option set but when I am playing the game
- the program "locks"
- A. Again this means that the SOUND BLASTER may have been detected but
- the IRQ and BASE IO address settings are still incorrect or there is
- a conflict with some hardware or software. Refer to your technical
- information on your sound card to determine how to find these two
- numbers.
-
- Q. The autodetection does not report the interrupt number properly.
- A. Reset your computer and retry, if it does not work, read the next
- paragraph. Remember, ONLY interrupts 2, 5 and 7 are accepted by
- the game.
-
- Q. The autodetection does not report the interrupt number properly.
- A. We have experienced this problem with a SB16 card. Remove the
- line SBCONFIG /S from your AUTOEXEC.BAT and it will work. This
- program seems to conflict with the interrupt detection program (even
- with TESTSB16 from Creative Labs!!).
-
- The best solution to avoid such problems is to use the BLASTER
- environment variable!
-
- Q. On a COMPAQ 486-66 the music works but I cannot hear sound effects.
- A. The sound card delivered with the compaq (onboard) seems to be an
- ADLIB compatible card and not a SOUNDBLASTER. You will have to
- set the SOUNDEFFECTS to BEEPER (SETUP from the main menu).
-
-
- IMPORTANT
- ---------
-
- This game supports cards that ARE 100% Compatible with the
- Sound Blaster. If you are sure that the settings are correct and
- the program still refuses to recognize the card then it is most likely
- that the card is not 100% compatible!.
-
- We hope that these notes will clear up any problem you may encounter.
- If this is not the case then please contact your nearest COPYSOFT
- dealer and he will either handle the query himself or pass the
- information on to us.
-
-
- DUAL JOYSTICK CABLE SCHEMATIC
- -----------------------------
-
- To connect two joysticks you only need one joystick port! You can
- find, in every good computer shop, a dual joystick connector which
- is a very simple cable with one male joystick connector at one side
- and two female connectors at the other side. You can also build one
- yourself, the schematic is as follows:
-
-
- Female A
-
- 8
- 15
- 7 ──────── 7A
- 14
- 6 ──────── 6A
- 13
- 5
- 12
- 4 ──────── 4A
- 8 11
- 9 ──────── 1B 3 ──────── 3A
- 7 ─────── 7A 10
- 10 ─────── 2B 2 ──────── 2A
- Male PC 6 ─────── 6A 9
- 11 ─────── 3B 1 ──────── 1A
- 5 ─────── 4B
- 12
- 4 ─────── 4A Female B
- 13 ─────── 5B
- 3 ─────── 3A 8
- 14 ─────── 6B 15
- 2 ─────── 2A 7 ──────── 6B
- 15 14
- 1 ─────── 1A 6 ──────── 5B
- 13
- 5
- 12
- 4 ──────── 4B
- 11
- 3 ──────── 3B
- 10
- 2 ──────── 2B
- 9
- 1 ──────── 1B
-
-
- Document (C) EDISYS 1993,1994
-
- SOUND BLASTER is a registered trademark of Creative Labs Inc.
- GRAVIS Gamepad is a trademark of GRAVIS.
- ADLIB is a registered trademark of Adlib Inc.
- IBM is a registered trademark of International Business Machines.