The Ultimate Einstein CD-ROM Read Me File Copyright 1995 Byron Preiss Multimedia Company, Inc. Be sure to access the View Me file for a video introduction to The Ultimate Einstein CD-ROM. If you've installed The Ultimate Einstein, you can double-click the icon for the "Einstein View Me" in the BPMC Program Group. To read this file on-screen, use the Page Down and Page Up keys. You can also print the file by choosing the Print command from the File menu in any Windows word processing program. This Read Me file contains important information on the following topics: 1. Problems Setting Up The Ultimate Einstein Orchid ProDesigner II VGA Video Driver problems Installing on non-Windows Program Manager systems 2. Problems Running The Ultimate Einstein General Protection Faults Reinstalling The Ultimate Einstein Right mouse button not supported Space bar not supported 3. Running in Low Memory or Running Slowly Running successfully in low memory Improving performance with SmartDrive 4. Skipping the Introduction 5. Quitting The Ultimate Einstein 6. CD-ROM Problems Problems finding the CD-ROM drive Errors reading from the CD-ROM drive CD-ROM drives that require a swap file 7. Video Display Problems The Ultimate Einstein requires 256-color mode The Ultimate Einstein looks best at 640x480 Video driver problems Screen savers not recommended Turning off Microsoft Office Manager Problems with ATI Mach Drivers Problems with ATI Ultra Crystal Drivers Problems with Cirrus Logic Drivers Problems with Dell S3 Drivers Problems with Mitac MVA Drivers Problems with Genoa VGA Drivers Obtaining updated drivers Recommended video cards 8. Audio Problems Conflicts with other applications Audio driver problems Sounds play, but not very well Sound does not play at all Problems with Media Vision cards Problems with Ensoniq Soundscape cards Problems with WAV files under Windows Recommended sound cards 9. Credits The Ultimate Einstein credits Byron Preiss Multimedia Company masthead ******************************************************************* 1. Problems Setting Up The Ultimate Einstein ******************************************************************* Orchid ProDesigner II VGA Video Driver problems If you are using an older Orchid ProDesigner II VGA video driver, Setup may fail. Contact the manufacturer or your dealer to obtain an updated driver. Installing on non-Windows Program Manager systems Most Tandy Sensations use WinMate as their default desktop shell. WinMate may cause a conflict with the setup procedure and needs to be disabled by changing the shell= line in the SYSTEM.INI file to read as follows: shell=progman.exe To change the shell= line in the SYSTEM.INI file: 1. From the Windows Accessories group, run Notepad. 2. Open the SYSTEM.INI file and comment out the shell= line in the [boot] section by typing a semicolon (;) at the beginning of the shell= line. This is the line that is loading the Tandy WinMate shell. 3. Create a new line under the commented shell= line that reads: shell=progman.exe 4. After saving the changes to the SYSTEM.INI file, exit and restart Windows. The WinMate shell will now be disabled and your shell will now be Program Manager. 5. Run The Ultimate Einstein Setup. Upon completion of The Ultimate Einstein Setup, you can change your shell back to the WinMate desktop, if so desired: 1. Edit the SYSTEM.INI file again by commenting out the "shell=progman.exe" line (adding a semicolon (;) to the beginning of the shell=progman.exe line). 2. Remove the semicolon (;) in front of the previously commented "shell=" line that loads WinMate. ***************************************************************** 2. Problems Running The Ultimate Einstein ***************************************************************** General Protection Faults When trying to run The Ultimate Einstein, if a General Protection Fault occurs, quit and restart Windows. In many cases, the problem will not occur again. General Protection Faults may occur if you have less than 8MB RAM or experience a conflict with particular software or hardware on your system. A frequent cause of General Protection Faults is the use of outdated video drivers. Check to make sure you are using the latest video drivers available from your computer or video card manufacturer. Or, try installing the SVGA drivers that ship with Windows 3.11 and Windows for Workgroups. See section 7, Video Display Problems, for more information. Reinstalling The Ultimate Einstein If you change the drive letter of your CD-ROM or experience unusual problems when running the game, you should reinstall The Ultimate Einstein. If you should need to reinstall The Ultimate Einstein, you should do so without deleting The Ultimate Einstein Program Group. Simply run the installer (see User's Guide for instructions). Right mouse button not supported The Ultimate Einstein does not support the use of the right mouse button or the center mouse button (on a three-button mouse). Users should avoid pressing the right mouse button as doing so can cause a General Protection Fault in certain cases. The Ultimate Einstein also does not support special software that assigns custom functions to clicking the right or center mouse button. These functions should not be used while playing The Ultimate Einstein. ***************************************************************** 3. Running In Low Memory or Running Slowly ***************************************************************** Running successfully in low memory The Ultimate Einstein uses your computer's system memory to display pictures and play sounds. If you find that The Ultimate Einstein runs slowly or if you encounter out-of-memory errors, The Ultimate Einstein probably does not have enough memory. Consider doing the following to improve your computer's performance: 1. Close all unnecessary applications. 2. Run Windows without network support by typing "win /n" at the DOS prompt. 3. Determine how much memory your computer has available by typing "mem" and pressing ENTER at the DOS prompt. You need a minimum of 8MB of total memory to use The Ultimate Einstein. If you do not have at least 8MB of memory, you may not be able to run The Ultimate Einstein until you add more memory. 4. If you are using Windows 3.1, we strongly suggest that you run Windows in Enhanced mode while playing The Ultimate Einstein in order to improve performance. To see if you are running Windows in Enhanced mode, from the Program Manager Help menu choose About Program Manager (or from the File Manager Help menu choose About File Manager). In the bottom section of the dialog box, you should see the phrase "386 Enhanced Mode." If you do not see this phrase, you can force Windows to run in Enhanced mode by typing WIN/3 or WIN/E at the DOS prompt when launching Windows. Windows for Workgroups always runs in Enhanced mode and no message is displayed in the About dialog box. 5. If you are running Windows in Enhanced mode, set up a permanent Windows swap file (virtual memory) on your hard disk. See your Windows User's Guide for more information. 7. Defragment ("clean up") your hard disk by running a defragmentation program (MS-DOS 6.2 and above includes the program "defrag"). Improving performance with SmartDrive Make sure you have SmartDrive 5.0 and MSCDEX 2.23. This new version of SmartDrive can cache data being read from the CD-ROM drive, greatly improving performance. Make sure smartdrv is after MSCDEX in your Autoexec.bat. For information on the current SmartDrive settings type "smartdrv" at the DOS prompt. For help with SmartDrive type "smartdrv /?" at the DOS prompt or consult your DOS User's Guide. ***************************************************************** 4. Skipping the Introduction ***************************************************************** To skip the Introduction, click the mouse button any time while it is playing. It is not necessary to click rapidly. To view the Introduction again, quit and restart The Ultimate Einstein from Windows. ***************************************************************** 5. Quitting The Ultimate Einstein ***************************************************************** Quitting rapidly From the "Controls" panel on the right side of the frame, click the Quit button. ***************************************************************** 6. CD-ROM Problems ***************************************************************** Problems finding the CD-ROM drive Make sure that The Ultimate Einstein program is looking for the compact disc on the correct drive. Check to see if the drive letter for your CD-ROM drive has changed. You can use the Windows File Manager to determine which drive letter is assigned to the CD-ROM drive. The Select Drive command in the Disk menu will say "CD-ROM" next to the CD-ROM drive letter. Do not remove The Ultimate Einstein compact disc from your CD- ROM while the program is running. If The Ultimate Einstein program cannot find the data files that it needs from the compact disc, you will see a message that tells you that your computer cannot read from the drive letter of your CD-ROM. Errors reading from the CD-ROM drive If The Ultimate Einstein is unable to read compact disc data properly, you may see a message that tells you that your computer cannot read from the drive letter of your CD-ROM. If you have an external CD-ROM drive, make sure the drive is connected to your computer, plugged in, and turned on. If you still see the error message after checking the points above, check the documentation that came with your CD-ROM drive or contact the company that supplied the drive. Make sure that your CD-ROM drive is MPC2-compatible. An MPC2- compatible drive "has an average seek time of less than one second and can transfer data from the compact disc at 300k per second while using less than 40% of the CPU bandwidth." Check the documentation that came with your CD-ROM drive to make sure it meets these requirements. An incompatible CD-ROM drive will slow down the performance of The Ultimate Einstein. CD-ROM drives that require a swap file Some CD-ROM drives require a swap file (virtual memory) to be active in order to function properly, even if your computer has 8MB or more of RAM as is required to run The Ultimate Einstein. Check the user's guide that came with your CD-ROM. If you encounter this problem, set up a permanent Windows swap file on your hard disk. See your Windows User's Guide for more information. ***************************************************************** 7. Video Display Problems ***************************************************************** The Ultimate Einstein requires 256-color mode The Ultimate Einstein is an 8-bit, 256-color application. In order to view The Ultimate Einstein properly, you need a video card which supports at least 256 colors in 640x480 resolution. The Ultimate Einstein requires you run in 256 color mode. If you are not in 256-color mode, a warning dialog will appear when you launch The Ultimate Einstein telling you to correct the problem, exit and restart Windows. If your computer is running in 16-color mode, or in high-color modes greater than 256 colors, and your video card will support 256 colors in at least 640x480 resolution, you should run Windows Setup* to change the screen driver to see The Ultimate Einstein at 256 (8-bit) colors. Check your Windows documentation for information on changing video drivers. Cursor flash Under some configurations, when a video finishes in the "Einstein In His Time" section, the pointer will rapidly alternate between the hourglass and the arrow. Click as you normally would, and the pointer will resume its usual behavior. The Ultimate Einstein looks best at 640x480 resolution If The Ultimate Einstein is too small on your screen, you are probably running in a resolution greater than 640x480. To make The Ultimate Einstein as large as possible on your screen, run Windows Setup* and change your video driver to run in 640x480 resolution with 256 colors. You will then need to restart Windows. The next time you launch The Ultimate Einstein it will be the desired size on your screen. * NOTE: Some Video cards have a separate program you may have to run to change the display mode. See your video card user's manual to check how to change your display resolutions. Video driver problems The Ultimate Einstein may encounter display problems when using accelerated video drivers, video drivers with more than 256 colors, or high resolution video drivers. Make sure you are using the most recent video drivers available for Windows from your video card manufacturer. To find out what video driver you are using, go to the Windows Program Manager Main group window and double-click the Windows Setup icon. To the right of "Display" you will see the name of the video driver currently in use. Make sure you are using the most recent Windows video drivers for your video card. Contact the manufacturer of your video card to determine if newer Windows video drivers are available. Screen Savers not recommended If you are using a screen saver of any kind, it should not activate while The Ultimate Einstein is running in the foreground. However, if you experience any conflicts with screen saver programs, it is best to turn them off while playing The Ultimate Einstein. Turning off Microsoft Office Manager If you have Microsoft Office installed (either the standard or the professional version), you should disable the Microsoft Office Manager (MOM) toolbar while running The Ultimate Einstein. The presence of the toolbar in The Ultimate Einstein can cause colors to be distorted. Check your Microsoft Office documentation for information on how to temporarily disable the Microsoft Office Manager toolbar. Problems with ATI Ultra Crystal Drivers The ATI ULTRA CRYSTAL driver will allow you to select a 256-color 1024x768 display for a video card that has 512K of memory. However, 512K of memory will not support 256 colors at this resolution. Because The Ultimate Einstein requires 256 colors to run properly, you must select a driver that will support a 256-color display. You must also make sure the video driver is compatible with your specific video card. For details on selecting an appropriate driver, see your ATI documentation or contact ATI technical support. A 256-color SVGA driver is included with Windows for Workgroups. For details on installing this driver, see your Windows for Workgroups documentation. For information about ATI video cards, contact ATI Technical Support at (416) 756-0711. Problems with Cirrus Logic Drivers If you are using a Cirrus Logic video card, you may encounter a General Protection Fault when starting The Ultimate Einstein in 256 color mode. Make sure you are using the newest driver. If upgrading the driver does not fix the problem try running in 64k color mode or using the SVGA drivers available with Windows 3.11 and Windows for Workgroups and on the Microsoft Download Service at (206) 936-MSDL. For more information on the latest Cirrus Logic drivers, you can contact Cirrus Logic at (510) 623-8300, or connect to the Cirrus Logic bulletin board service (BBS) at (510) 440-9080. Problems with Dell S3 Drivers, versions 1.3 and 1.3a If you have a Dell computer with S3 video and are using the Dell S3 video drivers version 1.3 or 1.3a, you should install the latest driver. For details on installing this driver, contact Dell. Problems with Mitac MVA Drivers If you have a Mitac MVA-CL5428-1MV video card with R00 drivers (CL-GD5428), you may encounter a General Protection Fault when starting The Ultimate Einstein in 256 color mode. Make sure you are using the newest driver. If upgrading the driver does not fix the problem, try running in 64k color mode or using SVGA drivers available with Windows 3.11 and Windows for Workgroups and on the Microsoft Download Service at (206) 936-MSDL. Problems with Genoa VGA Drivers If you have a Genoa VGA 24 8500VL video card with v1.45 drivers (CL-GD-5426) , you may encounter a General Protection Fault when starting The Ultimate Einstein in 256 color mode. Make sure you are using the newest driver. If upgrading the driver does not fix the problem, try using SVGA drivers available with Windows 3.11 and Windows for Workgroups and on the Microsoft Download Service at (206) 936-MSDL. Obtaining updated drivers Make sure you are using the most recent Windows video drivers for your video card. Contact the manufacturer of your video card to determine if newer Windows video drivers are available. Recommended video cards The following video cards have been tested and give good results with The Ultimate Einstein: Video card Type Date Rev Notes Actix ProStar VL VLB 8/18/93 1.42 Note 4 ATI Graphics Ultra ISA 3/19/93 2.3 ATI Graphics Ultra Plus ISA 4/25/94 2.3 ATI Graphics Ultra Pro VLB 4/25/94 2.3 ATI Graphics Ultra Pro ISA 4/25/94 2.3 ATI Graphics Wonder VLB 3/19/93 2.3 ATI Graphics Xpression VLB 6/13/94 1.1 Note 1 Blackship Color DesignerA3 VLB 7/8/93 1.32 Compaq QVision 1024/I ISA 1/18/94 7.40 Diamond Speed Star Pro ISA 2/17/94 1.08 Diamond Speed Star VGA 4/14/92 Diamond Stealth 24 VLB 6/3/94 3.00 Diamond Stealth Pro VLB 10/6/93 Diamond Viper PCI 9/27/93 3.01 Recommended Diamond Viper VLB 9/17/93 2.01 Elite Group GD5426/28 VLB 8/18/93 1.32b ELSA Winner2000 Pro PCI 6/23/94 1.22 Genoa Windows VLB 8/8/93 1.7 Headland Video 7 VGA 5/15/92 3.10 Hercules Dynamite Pro ISA 12/1/93 2.10 Note 5 Hercules Dynamite Pro VLB 12/1/93 3.00 Hercules Graphite Power ISA 4/6/94 2.10 Hercules Graphite Pro VLB 12/29/93 2.21 Note 2 IBM XGA-2 MCA 11/12/93 2.11 Note 3 IBM XGA Display MCA 11/12/93 2.11 Note 3 Matrox MGA Power Graphics PCI 3/28/93 1.42 Media Vision ProGraphics 1280 VLB 9/15/93 1.01 Media Vision ProGraphics 1024 VLB 4/15/94 1.5 Mitac MVA-CL5428-1MB VLB 3/15/94 V1.43 Number Nine 9GXe Level 10 ISA 2/9/94 V3.11 Note 6 Number Nine 9GXe Level 11 VLB 2/9/94 3.10.061 Notes 6, 7 Number Nine 9GXe Level 14 VLB 4/7/94 3.15 Note 6 Number Nine 9GXE64 VLB 6/22/94 1.19.04 Recommended Orchid Celsius VLB 10/1/93 1.32 Recommended Orchid Fahrenheit 1280 ISA 8/10/92 3.0 Orchid Fahrenheit 1280 Plus VLB 3/1/94 rel 7 Note 8 Orchid Fahrenheit VA VLB 4/29/93 5.01 Orchid Kelvin 64 PCI 3/14/94 1.1 Orchid Kelvin 64 VLB 2/23/94 1.21 Orchid ProDesigner IIS ISA 3/1/92 2.0 Paradise WD90c33 VLB 6/28/93 1.2 RasterOps PaintBoard PC ISA 3/25/93 3.10 Note 2 Spider Black Widow VLB 1/20/94 Recommended Standard 1Mb-24X ISA 3/19/93 1.30 STB Horizon VL Pro VLB 6/29/93 1.3 STB Lightspeed PCI 12/1/93 1.1 STB Pegasus VLB 11/29/93 1.3 Trident 8900C ISA 9/23/92 3.10 Trident 9000C ISA 7/8/93 VC4.5 TrueVision Bravado 8 ISA 1/15/92 Note 1: Set DeviceBitmaps=OFF in the Windows SYSTEM.INI file [MACH] section after card software installation if using this driver version. Note 2: Use in 256 color mode only. Note 3: This card does not draw extremely wide arcs properly. Note 4: Driver version 1.53 sometimes freezes when playing certain Director transitions. Driver version 1.42 is recommended. Note 5: Does not always properly display QuickTime digital video in 16-bit (thousands) and 24-bit (millions). Note 6: Sound break-up or distortion may occur during complex transitions. Note 7: The cursor sometimes disappears when using a large virtual desktop. Note 8: Video snow appears during some palette transitions. ***************************************************************** 8. Audio Problems ***************************************************************** Conflicts with other applications Audio problems can have many causes. Other applications that play sounds may interrupt sounds in The Ultimate Einstein, because your computer cannot play two sounds simultaneously. This is generally a temporary clash that will resolve itself. However, a few applications that play sounds, such as some screen savers, may remove audio capability from all other Windows applications. If you suspect you have such an application, turn it off or do not run it while running The Ultimate Einstein. Audio driver problems If you experience problems with audio, you may need to upgrade your audio card driver. Contact the manufacturer of your audio card (see section 8 for contact information) to find out how to obtain a new driver. Sounds play, but not very well Sounds that are distorted or "fuzzy" have several possible causes. The most likely one is simply that your speakers are not of high quality. It is also possible that the software settings on your sound card are causing distortion. For example, if the sound card volume or "WAVE file input" is set to near its maximum, it will produce amplification distortion, just as it would on a stereo system. To find out how to change your sound card settings, check the documentation that came with your sound card. Your CD-ROM drive should be MPC2-compatible. An MPC2-compatible drive "has an average seek time of less than one second and can transfer data from the compact disc at 300k per second while using less than 40% of the CPU bandwidth." Check the documentation that came with your CD-ROM drive to make sure it meets these requirements. An incompatible CD-ROM drive may work but give lower- quality sound or cause the sound to be interrupted while playing Sound does not play at all If you don't hear any sounds, make sure that the volume for your speakers is set to an audible level, and the sound level is set to 5 or higher in The Ultimate Einstein (see user's guide for how to do this). If the volume is set to an audible level and you still hear no sounds at all, something may be wrong with your sound card setup. Check to see that the driver is installed correctly and, if necessary, reinstall it. Refer to the documentation that came with your sound card for more information on installing audio drivers Please note that The Ultimate Einstein requires an MPC- compatible sound card to be installed and is not intended to run with drivers which use the PC internal speaker, such as the unsupported "PC Speaker" driver. Such a driver will in most cases not play any sounds, and if the driver setup option "Enable Interrupts" is not checked, your system may crash. If you have both a sound card and the PC Speaker driver installed, it is preferable to un-install the PC Speaker driver. Problems with Media Vision cards A small number of Media Vision sound card drivers (Pro Audio Spectrum cards) may cause problems. If you have a Media Vision card and do not hear speech but do hear music, you may need to upgrade your driver. Contact Media Vision Technical Support to find out how to obtain a new driver. Problems with Ensoniq Soundscape cards Some of the Ensoniq Soundscape cards will not play sounds with some older Windows drivers. Contact Ensoniq Technical Support to find out how to obtain a new or updated driver. Recommended sound cards The following sound cards have been tested and are compatible with The Ultimate Einstein: Compaq Business Audio Creative Labs Sound Blaster Creative Labs Sound Blaster Pro Creative Labs Sound Blaster 16 Creative Labs Sound Blaster AWE32 Gateway 2000 IBM M-Audio (with Driver version 1.3 - Note 1) MediaVision ProAudio Spectrum MediaVision ProAudio Spectrum 16 MediaVision ProAudio Spectrum 16 Pro Microsoft SoundSystem Version 1 Microsoft SoundSystem Version 2 Orchid SoundWave 32 Reveal Forte 16 Roland Rap-10 Note 1: IBM computers that have the M-Audio sound card should use driver version 1.3 or higher for best results. Older versions of this driver do not play some sounds in The Ultimate Einstein. The version 1.3 driver does not pass the 16-bit sounds test for The Ultimate Einstein. Testing revealed that 8 bit sounds are corrupted when played after a 16-bit sound. ***************************************************************** 9. Credits ***************************************************************** A Byron Preiss Production Eric Breitbard >>> Producer Jessica Perry >>> Interface Designer Esther Hwang >>> Project Technical Director David Fox >>> Software Designer Jeff Hixson >>> Art Director Tim Nolan >>> Executive Producer John Mayo-Smith >>> Technical Director EDITORIAL Dr. Donald Goldsmith >>> Physics Consultant David Brown >>> Assistant Producer for "Einstein In His Time" Margaret Frey and David Grossman >>> Simulation Animators Ann Amelia Flynn >>> Production Associate Vanessa Heau >>> Production Associate Jose Ortega >>> Illustrator John Szinger >>> Simulation Design Consultant ART PRODUCTION/DESIGN Saba Ghazi-Ameen Thea Kearny Natalie Moore Susan Now Laura Rodil Chris Burke >>> Sound Effects Artist & Audio Engineer Phil Phisterer at Blaze Productions >>> Digital Video Engineer Richard Wach at Sound Patrol >>> Music Researcher & Audio Engineer PRODUCTION ASSISTANTS Antonio Cruz Joycelyn Hsung Pauline Oosterhoff Alissa White "ENCOUNTER WITH EINSTEIN" VIDEO TEAM Larry Raiken as Albert Einstein Makeup by Jillayne Stockland Casting by Judy Henderson Associates Taped at Manhattan Center Studios Production Assistant >>> Melissa Davis TESTERS Gina Caroddo >>> Quality Assurance Manager Alan Wong >>> Manager of Technical Testing Marcos Mendell Marty Lichtman Robin Pitre Daniel Tunick Talia Young SPECIAL THANKS George Agudow, Dr. Francis Chen, David Curtis, Richard Davidson, Jennifer Hengen, Janet Kirker, Dr. Edwin Taylor Byron Preiss Multimedia Company, Inc. Byron Preiss >>> President James R. Dellomo >>> Chief Financial Officer John Mayo-Smith >>> Technical Director Jackie Snyder >>> Marketing Director Tim Nolan >>> Director, Digital Bauhaus Founded in 1992, Byron Preiss Multimedia Company develops and publishes a wide range of interactive multimedia software under several imprints. The Ultimate Einstein appears under the Digital Bauhaus imprint. Other Byron Preiss Multimedia discs appearing under the Digital Bauhaus imprint are The Ultimate Frank Lloyd Wright, Scientific American Library's The Planets, and American Heritage: The Civil War. Copyright 1995 Byron Preiss Multimedia. All rights reserved. Digital Bauhaus Multimedia is a trademark of Byron Preiss Multimedia Made with Macromedia Director. Macromedia and Director are registered trademarks of Macromedia Corporation. Windows, Windows 95 and Microsoft are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation. Intel and Indeo are registered trademarks of Intel Corporation. Einstein: The Life and Times, by Ronald Clark (New York: Avon, 1972); Ideas and Opinions, by Albert Einstein (New York: Crown Publishers, Inc., 1982, 1954); Autobiographical Notes, by Albert Einstein (published in Albert Einstein: Philosopher-Scientist. La Salle, IL: The Library of Living Philosophers, Inc. [and Open Court], 1941, 1951, 1969, 1970).