****************************************************************** Compton's Interactive Encyclopedia of American History(tm) Version 1.00 March 3, 1995 ****************************************************************** This file contains information that was not available at the time the user's guide was printed, as well as other important information to help you successfully use your product. If you are uncertain how to make a recommended change, refer to the user's guides that came with your computer system. Pre-Installation Notes 1) Disk Compression: If you are using a disk compression utility, the available hard disk space reported by the installation program might not be accurate. Disk compression utilities can only estimate available hard disk space. If the installation process is not successful, you might need to free additional hard disk space. 2) Network Installation: Your product does not support network use. 3) Installation Instructions: It is highly recommended that you exit all applications before installing your product. Other programs and drivers running on your computer could interfere with the installation process. Run SETUP.EXE from your file manager to install. Technical Support Issues and Answers CopyList Failed error in installation ------------------------------------- Disable the Video For Windows check box in the install dialog box and try installing again. Software applications install Video For Windows differently. The installation might fail if installed over a previous Video For Windows 1.1. Script Error in installation ---------------------------- Disable the Video For Windows check box in the install dialog box and try installing again. General Protection Faults and Application Errors ------------------------------------------------ These types of errors are frequently due to video driver incompatibility or incompatibilities with other drivers in your system. One of the following suggestions might solve the problem: - Make sure your system meets the minimum requirements listed on the package. - Change the number of colors and/or resolution of your monitor, then start your product again. Be sure to follow the instructions provided by your video system manufacturer to properly accomplish this. - Reinstall your sound card software, then re-install your product. Be sure to follow the instructions provided by your sound system manufacturer to properly accomplish this. This product has been successfully tested with a wide variety of hardware and peripheral equipment. Microsoft Windows(tm) is a device-independent operating system. Your product is designed for compatibility with any Windows(tm) compliant hardware item. Problems with sound cards, video displays and printers are most often the result of problems in the device drivers or configurations of the various items of hardware. Disk Full Errors ---------------- If you encounter these errors while installing or using your product, delete unnecessary files to increase space on your hard disk drive. Printing Errors --------------- Should you see unacceptable poor print results, try lowering the resolution in Print Manager to 150 dots per inch. Read errors and long delays --------------------------- Defective CD-ROM discs are very rare. Make sure your disc is clean and free of scratches and fingerprints if you are experiencing problems like "Can't Read from Drive" or long delays. If you suspect that your disc may be defective, follow this procedure to be sure: 1) Make sure your disc has been cleaned, and is free of scratches. Even though your disc may appear clean, there can be a layer or film present that was deposited while your disc was in the package. Clean your disc with any commercial CD-ROM cleaner, or gently wash it with mild detergent and dry with a soft cloth (NOT PAPER!). 2) Make sure your MSCDEX command line (in AUTOEXEC.BAT)has an /M:20 parameter. Our experience has shown that although increasing the buffer space for MSCDEX carries a free memory penalty, it improves data throughput on most CD-ROM's. 3) Make sure your SMARTDRV.EXE command line (in AUTOEXEC.BAT) has /x and /u switches if you use DOS 6.0 or later. Disc Caching through SMARTDRV can interfere with proper performance of your product. 4) Use the TREE /F command from DOS to display a complete directory tree from the CD-ROM. For example use TREE /F E:\ if your CD-ROM is drive E:. The directory tree should scroll by smoothly and end on the last file in the \WIN directory. 5) Copy files from the \WIN directory on the CD-ROM to a temporary directory on your hard disk. There should be no errors copying files. If you are sure that the conditions in steps 1-3 are set, and either step 4 or 5 fail, then contact Compton's Technical Support for assistance. GDI Read Errors and Virtual Memory ---------------------------------- If you should receive a "GDI Read Error" in Windows(tm) this indicates that you are experiencing a low memory condition. Try exiting any programs running in background. Performance will be improved by increasing the virtual memory setting to the maximum recommended size (at least 10 MB) and setting the type to permanent. Slow Response ------------- In addition to the above steps, we recommend that users who are running SMARTDRV.EXE from DOS versions 6.0 and later set the cache size for Windows(tm) at 512K bytes or smaller. See step 3 under Read Errors above for more information about SMARTDRV configuration. Please use HELP SMARTDRV in DOS for more information about this. On lower-end systems (like 386SX's) the start up time may approach three minutes. This is normal, and directly related to the processing power of your computer. Restart failure or crash ------------------------ Occasionally, users will experience an error message or system lockup when Windows(tm) attempts to restart after installation of your product. If this occurs, add a D=64 parameter to your EMM386 command line in CONFIG.SYS. Please use HELP EMM386.EXE in DOS for more information about this. Sound breakup or distortion --------------------------- If the sound breaks up when using your product, it may be a DMA conflict. If your sound card supports usage of HIGH DMA and LOW DMA, set these values to the same number, and reboot your system. If high and low DMA are not supported, try changing to a different DMA channel. Please see your sound card documentation for more information on how to accomplish this. Vertical Lines in InfoPilot display ----------------------------------- On some video cards, vertical lines can be seen in the InfoPilot display. This problem is corrected by changing the number of colors used or the resolution of the display. GPF in TABLEAU.DLL ------------------ One video card tested caused this error when the product initializes. If you experience this error, change the setting for number of colors to 64K and try again. Low Memory Conditions --------------------- Your product is able to detect and re-configure itself to deal with low memory situations at run time. You may experience the following if you have a lower than average available memory condition present: 1) The opening music does not play. 2) The opening "splash" screen may not appear. 3) A "Low Memory" warning dialog box may appear. These conditions are as designed, and allow your product to be useful when your available memory for Windows(tm) is low.