++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ This is the Night Trap PC Help File for version B3.0 Copyright Digital Pictures, Inc. 1995 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ ====================================================================== This file contains information that supliments the instruction booklet. In Addition, you can get even more up to date information at: Digital Pictures Technical Support: (415) 345-0445 Visit our website at: http://www.digipix.com ====================================================================== Quick Tips: ====================================================================== Under Windpws 95, if you have a CD ROM that does not support Autoplay, please click on launcher.exe. -------------------------------------------------------------------- After triggering a trap, it takes a short time for the signal to get through the security system to the trap. If you switch to a new room too quickly, the trap won't activate. If you wait to switch rooms until you see the trap start to move, you won't be bothered by this problem. The Martins have complained about this to the contractor, Russell and Oliver, but it hasn't been fixed yet. -------------------------------------------------------------------- When you save a game it is put in the file C:\DIGIPIX\NIGHTRAP.SVG. When you restore a game this file is also used. Using DOS or Windows 95, you may rename this file. Additionally the Night Trap game program (NT.EXE) will take a "/R" (for Restore) command line argument and a file name. In these examples, the CD-ROM with a Night Trap disc is assumed to be drive D:. Using these features makes restoring a game on disc 2 easier. Suppose you have saved a game that is in the second disc. You can put the second disc in the CD-ROM drive and at the DOS prompt type: C:>D: D:>NT R This will restore the saved game without asking for disc 1. To save several different games, first, save a game and quit. Second, in DOS, rename the saved game file with a DOS command like this: D:>RENAME C:\DIGIPIX\NIGHTRAP.SVG GAME1.SVG (Where "GAME1" is a name you choose) Now you can restart the saved game with the DOS command: D:>NT R C:\DIGIPIX\GAME1.SVG ======================================================================= Known Problems and Solutions: ====================================================================== Game doesn't work with QDPMI.SYS and freezes soon after displaying the title screen. -------------------------------------------------------------------- QDPMI.SYS (from QEMM) and other virtual memory managers, other than the virtual memory manager included in Windows 95, do not permit Night Trap to run properly. Please add a REM followed by a space to the beginning of these lines from your CONFIG.SYS, if you are still using one of these pieces of old software. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Game doesn't work with some EMM386 command line. -------------------------------------------------------------------- The EMM386 that came with MS-DOS 6.0 has various bugs. If possible, comment out the EMM386 line from your system. With DOS 6.0 to 6.22, if you specify the command line for EMM386 as something like "EMM386 1024 RAM" then Night Trap thinks that the amount of memory available is the amount of Expanded memory in this command line. Edit your CONFIG.SYS to either: a) Don't use EMM386 b) use EMM386 with no parameters c) EMM386 8192 RAM (if you have enough memory) d) EMM386 3000 RAM We normally use Extended memory, but when EMM386 6.0 is running we use expanded memory. More memory is preferred because certain video sequences are not shown on a 4 meg system. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Game doesn't work. DIAG mistakenly reports your computer has a speed of '0 MIPS'. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Timer 2 is not working on your computer. Solution: try "NT f" instead of "NT" on the command line. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Ugly color flickering during video sequences. -------------------------------------------------------------------- If the program flickers when running in MS-DOS, type "NT f" instead of "NT" on the command line to run the game. (F stands for "flickerfree"). -------------------------------------------------------------------- Keyboard freeze (seen on Zenith brand computer). -------------------------------------------------------------------- Symptom: the program is running, but the keyboard stops responding. From DOS, use the command "NT k" (K stands for keyboard) instead of "NT" to run the game. You may combine 'k' with other options (e.g. "NT k f" or "NT f k"). ====================================================================== Windows 95 Problems: ====================================================================== The program may run poorly under Windows 95: conversely, it may run with video flicker under DOS. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Solution: Try running in the other mode. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Windows 95 displays the blue "Error reading CD" screen during gameplay. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Solution: Follow the directions on the screen. Make sure the right disc is in the drive and hit RETURN. -------------------------------------------------------------------- With some CD ROM drivers, Windows 95 displays the blue "Error reading CD" screen when you are trying to switch disks and when Night Trap has ejected the disc. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Solution: Press escape. The blue screen is superfluous. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Windows 95 gives you the "Unable to load .DLL" message instead of launching the game when you insert the disc or double click on the disc icon. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Solution: Open the disc by clicking with the RIGHT MOUSE button, and double click on "NT.PIF". This will run the game, skipping autoplay. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Windows 95 does not automatically run the game. Clicking on the disc opens it. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Solution: Click on the "launcher" icon. If that fails, click on "NT.PIF". -------------------------------------------------------------------- "Run in DOS" does not work... no mouse is present or the program immediately returns to Windows 95 after launch. -------------------------------------------------------------------- It is often difficult to get the "Run in DOS" option to work: A Windows 95 computer may no longer be loading MSCDEX, or a mouse, or neccessary device drivers for your DOS session. To make "Run in DOS" work (if it doesn't): The lines Windows 95 commented out of your AUTOEXEC.BAT and CONFIG.SYS will be REM'd out- they also will appear in AUTOEXEC.DOS and CONFIG.DOS. Either: 1) Edit AUTOEXEC.BAT and CONFIG.SYS and put them back or 2) Set up your computer for multi boot so you have the option of using your old or your new drivers. 3) Call Customer Support at (415) 345-0445. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Sound Problems: run SETUP if you have any problems, even glitching or echoes. -------------------------------------------------------------------- 1) Some sound cards (for example, Gravis) require a higher interrupt rate to operate from a DOS box. Windows 95 may interfere with the operation of these cards. You must check the "run in DOS" box on the launcher and run in "Dos compatibility mode" if using Windows 95. ------------------------------------------------------------------ 2) Certain Sound Cards, such as the Diamond SonicLX card and the MediaMagic soundcard, can be configured using a utility that comes with the card to be a SoundBlaster or a Windows Sound System card. The utility is variously named ISPINIT.EXE or SONIC.EXE. The program cannot autodetect these cards when they are configured in SoundBlaster mode. Furthermore, if configured as Sound Blaster, you can only run the program once between reboots. The second run will fail. Please configure these sound cards in Microsoft Mode using the utility, type setup, and specify that you are using a Microsoft Sound card, -OR- Note the IRQ, Port, and other information for the SoundBlaster configuration. Type NT ask, and specify an old sound blaster. Enter the port and IRQ, and note that the program will only run once. -------------------------------------------------------------------- If none of the programs run at all (you get DOS4GWPro Errors) try running the PMINFO32 or RMINFO programs in the SETUP directory. These may help explain to customer service what the problem is. -------------------------------------------------------------------- You find it necessary to use one configuration for Night Trap and a different configuration for some other frequently used program. -------------------------------------------------------------------- You can use features of DOS and Windows 95 to make this easier. If you use DOS 6.0 or later, you can set up alternate boot configurations. You can also get alternate boot configurations by adjusting the BootGui=1 to BootGui=0 in msdos.sys under Windows 95, and then making sure the AUTOEXEC.BAT runs "win" to launch Windows 95 or not. If you use Windows 95, you can copy the PIF files from the CD onto your hard drive, alter the command lines and the .pif in their properties method. (Note you must uncheck "read only" to make changes. -------------------------------------------------------------------- The DIAG program gives various measures of the performance of your system that effect the quality of the game. Here is some information about typical values. -------------------------------------------------------------------- The average 25 Mghz 486 system performs at 15 MIPS. A typical Pentium registers at 140 MIPS (138 MIPS under Windows 95). An SVGA speed of less than 1,000 K per second is very slow. Some fast computers, when given the wrong kind of video card, perform abysmally in this category. A video card that performs speedily on a slow machine may perform WORSE on a fast machine! A typical 25Mghz 486 performs SVGA at about 4,500 K per second; a typical Pentium performs at 10,650 K per second. A 2X CD drive should get at least 290K per second, or your drive, or the disc, is defective or needs cleaning. You might try inserting different discs while diag is running to see which it is in this case. Since Windows 95 has virtual memory, the amount of extended memory reported will often be very large, usually larger than the physical memory. Also under Windows 95, the percentage of time spent reading the CD is unreliably reported. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- --- Gil Colgate and Steve Russell ================ End of Night Trap readme.txt =====================