Originally posted by Schadenfreude It is, actually, there.

Well, that's not what I got. WBM gave me nada.

Always good to follow email domains, Google email addresses, go back to the root domain for the site, etc.

What's that Schadenfreude? You say you're volunteering for this task? for any and all missing Web info?

Why that's so generous of you! It's surely appreciated!
*shakes Schadenfreude hand firmly, then immediately leaves the room so as to not hear any protests*

*heh*

Originally posted by Tamerlin Exactly! The shortest move to the border of the screen brings me at the other side of the map...

Bah. Steel Panthers, Steel Panthers II, Steel Panthers III, Panzer General, Fantasy General, etc... etc...

Seems to be an issue related to the GeForce2 MX cards, the problem has been solved with MOUSE2KV.

But only if that tool co-operates with everything else being run.

I would like to test DosBox but I have not found a manual or tutorial to learn how to use it, actually I don't know how to configure it for a game.

Actually it's rather simple. Even though it's an actual PC emulator, operation is more like a "wrapper", IOW you direct it to towards your real hardware for CD-ROM's and hard drives.

So, if your game is in C:\SP and your CD-ROM is D:

You would startup DosBox, then type (in DosBox) MOUNT C C:\
which makes C accessible as C:\

You then mount D: as a CD-ROM device, MOUNT D D:\ -t cdrom

The first letter is the "assigned" letter and the second is the actual location. That comes in very handy for games that demand to be run on C:, but you don't want them there.

Basically, after assigning devices, you treat it as the command prompt on a DOS machine.

You would probably want to make it full-screen before you start and play with the cycles settings to get best operation.

The latest DOSBox version seems to have get rid off of the need to mount a driver (hmmm, not sure at all), the problem is I don't know how to configure the software. But this I will learn through time... and through the VOGONS' threads.

I have some troubles to understand how someone can release a software without a manual or tutorial, it is like publishing a game with the maps and the counters but without the rules.

Thanks for your help anyway. 😉

Nicht Sehr Gut wrote:

Well, that's not what I got. WBM gave me nada.

Step 1. Go to http://www.archive.org
Step 2. In first text entry box, enter http://www.minnemacs.com/manyhighways/sandbox/xp.html
Step 3. Currently, it should report:

1Searched for [url]http://www.minnemacs.com/manyhighways/sandbox/xp.html[/url]
2 4 Results
3* denotes when site was updated.
4Search Results for Jan 01, 1996 - Sep 05, 2003  
5Jun 03, 2002 *
6Aug 09, 2002
7Dec 14, 2002
8Feb 12, 2003 *

The Feb 12 entry tries to redirect to a new page -> http://web.archive.org/web/20030402094647/htt … sandbox/xp.html

The Jun 03 entry goes to the old URL we have.

You may have receved an error message like "Failed" something or other or "Server" something or other. These usually do not mean that they do not have the pages, but are having problems locating or serving them up (demand). Not a 404 but a 500 problem. Or something like that. When you receive those error messages, try again later.

What's that Schadenfreude? You say you're volunteering for this task? for any and all missing Web info? Why that's so generous […]
Show full quote

What's that Schadenfreude? You say you're volunteering for this task? for any and all missing Web info?

Why that's so generous of you! It's surely appreciated!
*shakes Schadenfreude hand firmly, then immediately leaves the room so as to not hear any protests*

*heh*

Like Stiletto! 😎

But seriously, no I am not volunteering. But I am sorta good at it.

Originally posted by Tamerlin The latest DOSBox version seems to have get rid off of the need to mount a driver (hmmm, not sure at all)

Tamerlin, you are killing me here. That's not a problem...it's a feature. If you don't do it that way you have to re-install your programs to a "virtual drive" (like Bochs or "Virtual PC"). Those waste space, run slower, and make it a general pain (you have to constantly deal with moving files between a virtual drive and your real drive).

, the problem is I don't know how to configure the software.

?!? Dude. What are you talking about? What I said pretty much sums up everything. Once you mount the drive and the CD you want you treat it just like a standard DOS prompt. You go to the game directory, run SETSOUND (or whatever setup program the game uses) to set the audio to basic SoundBlaster (using the same basic settings as VDMSound: Address of 0x220, IRQ of 7, DMA of 1), then run START.BAT (or whatever the startup program is...).

For a guy who has tangled with the intricacies of SPEEDSET and MOUSE2KV, this is nothing. Since DosBox is an actual PC emulator, the programs it runs won't flake out due to your specific hardware like your GeForce2 (IOW, if the mouse behaves on mine, it should behave on yours...).

I have some troubles to understand how someone can release a software without a manual

*gak*
Dude. You really are killing me. It comes with a ReadMe. That's enough for basic operation. The only reason the ReadMe should bewilder you is if you have no familiarity with the command prompt and it's use at all.

...or tutorial, it is like publishing a game with the maps and the counters but without the rules.

*smashes head against the wall*
*recoils in pain*
It's a free PC emulator that works......that's how they can release it. It's not like other PC applications that use up huge resources and come with a few hundred megabytes of help files.

Thanks for your help anyway.

!?What!? You're giving up? Tamerlin, do NOT do this to me. I dug these up and wasted a good chunk of time trying troubleshoot them. You give up on me now and I swear I'm gonna staple a cat to a tree...or something.

Look. Give me your game directory locations and names and the letter ID of your CD-ROM and I can give you the exact commands you need. We can even set them up to run in an automated batch file so you don't even have to type anything.

Originally posted by Schadenfreude Step 3. Currently, it should report:

Except that it didn't for me...and still doesn't.

Like Stiletto!
But seriously, no I am not volunteering. But I am sorta good at it.

Again, thanks for volunteering. We can't rightly call you Stiletto...hrrmm how about Stiletto2? Genius, yes, I know.

Anyway, Your first project is to dig up http://www.Sierra-Quest.com and see if you can find info on why it went down and if it reopened anywhere else under a new name...etc...

*salutes and runs away*

Nicht Sehr Gut wrote:

Tamerlin, you are killing me here. That's not a problem...it's a feature. If you don't do it that way you have to re-install your programs to a "virtual drive" (like Bochs or "Virtual PC"). Those waste space, run slower, and make it a general pain (you have to constantly deal with moving files between a virtual drive and your real drive).

As I wrote it, it seemed to get rid off this feature, it is not actually.

?!? Dude. What are you talking about? What I said pretty much sums up everything. Once you mount the drive and the CD you want you treat it just like a standard DOS prompt. You go to the game directory, run SETSOUND (or whatever setup program the game uses) to set the audio to basic SoundBlaster (using the same basic settings as VDMSound: Address of 0x220, IRQ of 7, DMA of 1), then run START.BAT (or whatever the startup program is...).

The problem is I have invalid command replies to my commands... I am not skilled at all with DOS. 🙁

For a guy whose tangled with the intricacies of SPEEDSET and MOUSE2KV, this is nothing. Since DosBox is an actual PC emulator, the programs it runs won't flake out due to your specific hardware like your GeForce2 (IOW, if the mouse behaves on mine, it should behave on yours...).

I hope so but I think there is a specific problem with the GeForce2 MX serie, I will tell you... if I can use DOSBox.

Dude. You really are killing me. It comes with a ReadMe. That's enough for basic operation. The only reason the ReadMe should bewilder you is if you have no familiarity with the command prompt and it's use at all.

You are right, though I understand its use I have no familiarity with the command prompt. 🙁

And the ReadMe is... well... cryptic.

It's a free PC emulator that works......that's how they can release it. It's not like other PC applications that use up huge resources and come with a few hundred megabytes of help files.

I understand, but a few pages written for those who don't have a degree in computer science would be appreciated. 😉

!?What!? You're giving up? Tamerlin, do NOT do this to me. I dug these up and wasted a good chunk of time trying troubleshoot them. You give up on me now and I swear I'm gonna staple a cat to a tree...or something.

No I am not giving up but I need a break after many unsuccessful attempt at launching a game with DOSBox. They are running fine with VDMSound but the three original Steel Panthers are running too fast, that's why I would like to test at least one of them with DOSBox.

Look. Give me your game directory locations and names and the letter ID of your CD-ROM and I can give you the exact commands you need. We can even set them up to run in an automated batch file so you don't even have to type anything.

Thank you very much for your help.

Steel Panthers Directory: D:\STEEL
CD-ROM: E:\

By the way, as far as I remember pure DOS games can't be run with VDMSound, is it also the case with DOSBox?

Originally posted by Tamerlin As I wrote it, it seemed to get rid off this feature, it is not actually.

?? Translation? I honestly don't understand this.

The problem is I have invalid command replies to my commands... I am not skilled at all with DOS.

*shakes head*

You are right, though I understand its use I have no familiarity with the command prompt. 🙁

And the ReadMe is... well... cryptic.

A basic guide is here, but 90% of it is summed up here.

I understand, but a few pages written for those who don't have a degree in computer science would be appreciated.

*stares at monitor*
Trust me, this doesn't require a degree. I don't have any degrees.

*tangent*
Although I did get a B in a computer science course at a local community college without reading from the book...and I've had a lot of training, but no degree. Which by the way seems to be everyone's excuse to not hire me, despite the opposite complaint from some recent college graduates who have degrees but can't seem to get hired because they lack experience.
*end tangent*

BTW, I've noticed that if you load up the ReadMe in Notepad, all of it's spacing and text arrangement is hosed. Load it up in some other Text Editor (WordPad, EditPad, whatever,...) and it will display properly.

No I am not giving up but I need a break after many unsuccessful attempt at launching a game with DOSBox.

Okely-dokely. You have the CVS version, right? that's the one I was talking about. If not go to http://files.pixelz.org/dev/dosbox/ and grab it from there (ignore the debug version). Unzip it to a place that you would want it to say permanently (actually, it doesn't need to be "installed" and can be run anywhere, but you want a consistent easy-to-remember location for the future). Once you've found a good home for it, proceed on...

Startup DOSBox , now in the command prompt by the Z:, type config -writeconf dosbox.conf. Two things to remember here, this step isn't needed for actual operation, but allows for all kinds of custom tweaking which is what you want. It creates a file called dosbox.conf in your DosBox directory and it will be loaded from now on when you start DosBox.

Go ahead and quit DosBox. Double-click on the dosbox.conf file and it should pop up with a "What do I use with this file?", select Notepad. That will make editing it easier in the future (just double-click). One change you probably want to make right now is KEEPSMALL setting, it's under the [Render] section near the top of the file. Change it from false to true (this causes 320x200 games to double in size, but it gobbles up a lot of CPU power). Close and save the file.

Steel Panthers Directory: D:\STEEL
CD-ROM: E:\

Ok, I presume this the SP1 directory? If not, you'll have to "CD" to the proper sub-directory.

Start up DosBox again , now in the command prompt by the Z:, type MOUNT D D:\ and press the Enter key.
Now type MOUNT E E:\ -t cdrom and it should come back with a message that it was mount as a CD-ROM (as opposed to the standard method mounting a directory).

Type D: and press your Enter key (now you're on your D: drive).

Type CD STEEL (now you're in your steel panthers directory).

If this is where the actual game is type setsound and choose the basic SoundBlaster (autodetect), save and quit. Go ahead and make the command prompt full-screen (ALT+ENTER), then type in steel.exe %1 %2 %3 %4 or whatever you use to start up the game.
NOTE: If you are using a batch file, make sure it doesn't contain any custom tools like NOLFB, SPEEDSET, MOUSE2KV, UNIVBE etc... just the basic command you need to start the game (like steel.exe %1 %2 %3 %4).

If it appears to have locked up, give it a minute to be sure it isn't still "thinking". You could also try adjusting cycles, but the original games processor requirements (486) mean you're probably already maxing out your CPU.

By the way, as far as I remember pure DOS games can't be run with VDMSound, is it also the case with DOSBox?

Actually DosBox prefers "pure" games (and that's all the official release will run), but VDMSound can run pretty much anything that can be run in NT. BTW, that reminds me of something that I should've caught right at the start. SPEEDSET is only for "pure" games. As the author himself says:
showthread.php?threadid=565&highlight=speedset+protected

Oopsie.

Thanks Nicht Sehr Gut, I will try to set up DOSBox with your guidelines as soon as I can (probably not before monday). 😉