The Soundblaster Multimedia Experience 3/The Soundblaster Multimedia Experience Vol 3.iso/__data/raptor.txt

Text File | 1994-04-05 | 21KB | 388 lines

    ░░▒▒▓▓██ RAPTOR: CALL OF THE SHADOWS ON-DISK TECHNICAL SUPPORT ██▓▓▒▒░░

                        Copyright 1994 - Cygnus Studios
                   Distributed by Apogee Software Productions
        P.O. Box 496389 ■ Garland, TX 75049 ■ Hints line: [phone]


                            ========================
                            BEFORE RUNNING THIS GAME
                            ========================

■ This game is not designed to be run under MicroSoft Windows.  Windows takes
  up far too many system resources that our programs require for efficient and
  proper operation.  When running this program, DO NOT LAUNCH FROM WINDOWS.
  Run it directly from DOS.  If you are in the Windows environment, quit
  Windows and then run the program.  (NOTE: Using the MS/DOS Icon does not exit
  you from Windows.  That is a shell from Windows. You need to completely close
  down the Program Manager to totally exit from Windows.  To test this, type
  the word exit.  If nothing happens, then you're at the DOS prompt.  If you
  return to Windows, then you were only shelled.)

■ Any kind of menu program such as Dos Shell will most likely cause problems.
  We recommend running our programs completely from the DOS prompt.  To test
  this, enter the word "exit".  If nothing at all happens, then you are
  completely at the dos prompt, and not "shelled" from anything else.  If you
  type exit, and return to another program (such as Windows or the MS/DOS
  Shell), then you need to completely exit the program that you returned to
  before attempting to run Raptor.

■ Raptor is a protected mode game, which means that it doesn't really care
  about how much conventional memory you have, it looks at your TOTAL memory.
  However, Raptor requires a minimum of 2 meg of memory, but 4 megs is really
  recommended.  Read further on in this file for a more detailed explanation
  of what a protected mode program is.

■ Raptor: Call of the Shadows requires MS/DOS 5.0 or greater.  It also requires
  a 386 computer with a minimum of 2 megabytes of memory.  However, 4 megabytes
  of memory are recommended.  A sound card is also highly recommended.


                              ====================
                              RAPTOR DETAILED HELP
                              ====================

■ If you get an error running the game that says "LoadFile: Open Failed!", this
  means you do not have enough files and buffers defined in your CONFIG.SYS
  file.  You will need to edit your CONFIG.SYS and AUTOEXEC.BAT files to have a
  value of 20 (each) for the FILES and BUFFERS commands.  (Please see your DOS
  manual if you are unaware or are unsure on how to edit this file.)

  If, for some reason, you have a really high number of save game files in
  your Raptor directory, this may also cause the game to crash, even if you do
  have enough files and buffers defined.  Raptor requires a file handle for
  each game file, some overhead, and for each save game file that exists.
  Under most normal setups, the default value is enough, but if you find that
  the game is crashing, try removing some of your save games, or increase the
  FILES and BUFFERS statements to something that is higher than 20.

■ If you are running a Compaq computer, and the game tells you that you do not
  have a VGA card, and you know for a fact that you do, or you experience
  lockups, this is what you'll need to do.  You'll need to contact Compaq for
  an update.  The reason for this is that Compaq has some video cards that do
  not conform to all proper detection methods.  There is a device driver
  available from Compaq that will fix this problem.  The driver's name is
  FINDVGA.SYS.  Compaq does have this file available for download on their BBS
  with the filename SP0117.ZIP.

■ If you have a Gravis GamePad, and your controller is acting as if some of the
  buttons aren't being pressed, it's most likely because you have your GamePad
  incorrectly set.

  If you're playing with the buttons on the right side, the switch on the top
  needs to be pushed to the left, and the switch on the bottom needs to be
  pushed to the right.  If you're playing with the buttons on the left side,
  then the switch on the top needs to be pushed to the right, and the button on
  the bottom needs to be pushed towards the left.  Please see figure 3 in your
  Gravis GamePad manual for more information, and some visual instructions on
  how to do this.

  Also, you should make sure that the controller card you have is capable of
  supporting a joystick with more than 2 buttons.  The Gravis GamePad is
  technically a joystick, and not all joystick controllers can handle the input
  that the GamePad is giving them.  There is no support for the fourth button
  in Raptor, but there is for the third button, and this qualifies the Gravis
  GamePad in this case as a 4 button controller.  Check the manual for whatever
  card you're plugging the GamePad into to make sure that it can handle more
  than 2 buttons of input.

■ If you notice the game running slowly on your system, here are a few
  suggestions on improving game performance.

  » Disable your disk cache.  Raptor does its own internal caching, and
    sometimes external caches such as SmartDrive can get in the way, and slow
    things down.

  » Disable your upper memory manager (QEMM, 386Max, EMM386, etc).  Since
    Raptor is a protected mode game, the services of these programs are not
    needed.  If you only have 2 meg of ram, this may be necessary to get your
    game to run in the first place.

  » Change from High graphic detail to low graphic detail.  This sacrifices
    a small amount of video quality in the game play screen, but gains speed.

  » If you are using a sound card, try reducing the amount of digital channels
    in the setup program.  Some system configurations and some sound cards have
    problems with having Raptor set for higher than 4 digital channels.


                       =================================
                       ATTENTION GRAVIS ULTRASOUND USERS
                       =================================

   (The information in this section applies only to Gravis Ultrasound owners,
         it does not apply to any other sound card supported in Raptor)

If you are playing the game, and experience slowdowns in the music during heavy
action, you'll need to reduce the number of digital channels to less than 4.
The reason for this is because the GUS card cannot handle the amount of
information being fed from the game, and the music and game will slow down.
The Gravis UltraSound uses a sound mixing routine that is different from any
other sound card.  Because of this, it is incapable of keeping up with the
information that the game is feeding it; hence the slowdowns.  If you pick a
channel setting below 4, then you should no longer experience the slowdowns.
If you do select a setting less than 4, you will no longer hear gunfire.  The
gunfire is the usual culprit of the slowdowns.  Increasing the amount of memory
on your GUS card may sometimes help the problem, but this is not a guaranteed
solution for the problem.

Some computers during the testing period would sometimes lock up after extended
periods of play.  This is usually caused by a combination of things: first,
the overload of sound mentioned in the previous paragraph, and second, a lack
of memory.  Raptor requires a minimum of 2 megs of memory in order to run, but
we really recommend 4 megs (or more).  Giving your computer more memory can
help.  To do this try disabling your memory manager (QEMM, EMM386, Netroom,
Fnordmem486, etc).

If you are running a compressed drive such as DoubleSpace or Stacker, this can
also cause problems.  If you are running with a GUS and a compressed drive, and
the above solutions do not work, try this. Move Raptor to an uncompressed
portion of your hard drive, and do not load your compressed disk driver in your
config.sys and/or autoexec.bat files.  That should also help.  It may be
possible to totally bypass the driver during the boot-up process (depending on
which version of DOS, and which driver you're running).  See your manuals for
information on how to boot without your driver (if possible).

Picking a digital channel setting higher than 4 on a Gravis UltraSound card is
not recommended.  Some of our testers can run it that way; others could not.
Unfortunately, we were not able to fully resolve this issue, and it was the
sole issue delaying the release of the game.  A decision was made to release
the game as is, since it works for the majority of our testers.  We hope to
have this issue resolved in a future release of the game.


                          ============================
                          HOW TO USE THE SETUP PROGRAM
                          ============================

Before you run Raptor, you must run the setup program.  This is a separate
program that cannot be called from within Raptor; so all changes must be made
outside the game.  This program lets you select what type of controller you
wish to use to play the game, and what sound card, etc.

When you run the setup program for the first time, you will automatically be
taken through all the options in the setup program.  Once you setup the game,
and save your settings to disk, any further uses of the setup program will
require you to pick each option you wish to choose manually.

The setup program saves its settings to a file called "SETUP.INI" in whatever
directory the SETUP.EXE file is run from.  If you delete this file (SETUP.INI),
the setup program will think you're running the game for the first time, and
will take you through all the settings.  SETUP.INI is an ASCII text file, and
can be edited with any text editor, but we *STRONGLY* recommend that you do not
do that, and only use the SETUP.EXE program to change your settings.  Unless
you know precisely what you're doing, you can corrupt your copy of Raptor if
you incorrectly set something in the SETUP.INI file.

Here is a brief explanation of all the options in the setup program for Raptor.

■ Select Music Card  » Pick which sound card (if any) you wish to use to
                       hear the background music from.
■ Select Sound FX    » Pick which sound card (if any) you wish to use to
                       hear the game's sound effects from.
■ Select Controller  » Pick which method you wish to play the game from.
                       (Joystick, Mouse, or Keyboard)
■ Controller Config  » Select Options for your selected controller.
■ Save Settings      » Save your selected settings and quit back to DOS.

Of these, the Controller Configuration option is the only one that has further
sub-options.  The Controller Configuration lets you assign such things as
different keys for keyboard operations, or mice buttons, etc.  The keys you
need to press for all these options are on-screen in the setup program.

Note to Mice Owners: This game supports three button mice.  If you only have a
two button mouse, the option for third button is meaningless.  You can select
it, but it will do nothing.  The option you would assign to button three (by
default is a MegaBomb) will need to be controlled by the keyboard.

Once you've made all your selections, you should select "SAVE OPTIONS".  This
will save all your settings, and you'll be ready to play Raptor!  If you ever
wish to change any of your options for any reason, you'll need to rerun the
setup program.


                         ==============================
                         RAPTOR COMMAND LINE PARAMETERS
                         ==============================

 There are no command line options in Raptor.  Please see the use of the setup
            program to change any options you might wish to change.


                      ====================================
                      HOW TO GET RAPTOR RUNNING UNDER OS/2
                      ====================================

Apogee recommends running this game under DOS only.  However, we have managed
to get the game running under our OS/2 v2.1 test machine, and these settings
should work for you.  Make the following changes to the default settings for
a program object:

AUDIO_ADAPTER_SHARING=Required
DOS_BACKGROUND_EXECUTION=OFF
DOS_HIGH=OFF
DOS_UMB=OFF
DPMI_MEMORY_LIMIT=8
EMS_FRAME_LOCATION=NONE
EMS_LOW_OS_MAP_REGION=0
EMS_MEMORY_LIMIT=0
HW_TIMER=ON
IDLE_SENSITIVITY=100
INT_DURING_IO=ON
KBD_ALTHOME_BYPASS=ON
MOUSE_EXCLUSIVE_ACCESS=ON
VIDEO_8514A_XGA_IOTRAP=OFF
VIDEO_ONDEMAND_MEMORY=OFF
VIDEO_RETRACE_EMULATION=OFF
VIDEO_ROM_EMULATION=OFF
XMS_HANDLES=0
XMS_MEMORY_LIMIT=5120

These settings are not officially supported by Apogee.  Your mileage may vary.
Thanks to Lee Jackson of Apogee Tech Support for the OS/2 settings.


                            =======================
                            WHAT IS PROTECTED MODE?
                            =======================

As promised earlier in this document, here is an explanation of Protected mode.
This information is not necessary to get the game running, but it's included as
background information for the curious.

Historically, DOS programs have always required that you run them in the first
640k of ram.  This was a limitation imposed on DOS back when v1.0 was the only
thing around.  For compatibility's sake, this is the way things have remained.
Any memory above 640k could only be used for data storage, not for program
execution.  That's why you always saw those dreaded "Out of Memory" messages.

As time went on, certain programs, (and later DOS itself) gained the ability to
load part of themselves "high", leaving more conventional (the first 640k) of
memory available.  You still had the limitation of the 640k barrier, but some
more breathing room was made by these memory advances.

More recently, advances were made in memory management so that programs could
run in protected mode.  Protected mode is a special way of programming so that
your program doesn't have the 640k barrier.  Depending on how the program is
written, the entire thing is in protected mode, or it requires the use of a DOS
"Extender" to run that way.  Raptor is such a program.  Raptor uses a DOS
extender to access much more memory than it would have been able to if it were
written the old way.  A game of this complexity would have never been able to
have been written if the old 640k barrier method of programming was used.

Well, you might be asking, what about my older programs?  Can't I just use a
DOS extender, and have that run something like "Wolfenstein 3D", and never get
those out of memory errors?  Well, it's not as simple as that.  If a program is
using a DOS extender, it has to be written a special way.  A DOS extender isn't
just a magic wand that you can use to wipe away your memory problems for
non-protected mode programs.  The program has to be written a special way to
make use of the DOS extender.

To summarize, Protected mode (sometimes referred to as "flat memory") is a way
for a DOS program (either by itself, or through the use of a DOS extender) to
access more than just the first 640k of memory for program execution.  Because
of this, more complex programs (such as Raptor) are able to be written.  If
using the old 640k barrier method (sometimes referred to as "segmented
memory"), this type of program would not have been possible.

If you're still confused, don't worry about it.  As I said above, this
information is not necessary for the proper play of Raptor.  It's in here for
background information only.  If you're still inclined, check out some DOS
programming books available at your library or a book store.  They have far
more verbose explanations of this than would be possible in this document.


                           ==========================
                           THANKS TO THE BETA TESTERS
                           ==========================

Apogee wishes to extend a heartfelt thanks to the Apogee Beta Team.  Without
them, it would be far more difficult to produce the quality games we do within
a reasonable amount of time.  Thanks guys (and Gals).  Here is a list of the
people involved.   The few.  The Proud.  The Raptor Beta Squadron!

Test Pilot         Call Sign            Test Pilot          Call Sign
─────────-         ────────-            ─────────-          ─────────-
Brad Arnold        "Honemaster"        │Lee Jackson         "Fnord"
Todd Aubin         "Sly Fox"           │Hank Leukart        "Covox"/"Baxter"
Mike Bartelt       "Sandman"           │Jim Lietzan         "Hoosier"
Jason Blochowiak   "Blockhead"         │Ken Mayer           "Hirsch"
Neil Bonner        "T-Rex"             │Wayne Millard       "Believer"
Glenn Brensinger   "Doc Shadow"        │Scott Miller        "Kid Kroz"
Douglas Brewer     "GrayBeard"         │Penny Plant         "Gunnin' Granny"
George Broussard   "SharkMan"          │Adam Pedersen       "Amazing Gumby"
Mike Chavez        "Lostboy"           │Brian Prinner       "Viking"
Todd Crawford      "Biggs Darklighter" │Steve Quarrella     "Dopefish"
Daniel Creeron     "Cupelix"           │Jeff Rausch         "Phoenix"
Scott Darling      "Creator"           │Dennis Rivard       "Wedge"
Brian Dhatt        "Grendel"           │Neil Rubenking      "MOMMEEEEEE!"
Jason Ewasiuk      "Arch Mage"         │Keith Schuler       "Dagger"
Bryan D. Gilchrist "Phantom"           │Joseph Selinske     "Wolverine"
Kevin Green        "Asdfghjkl;"        │Joe Siegler         "Johnny Blade"
Terry Herrin       "Deathstar"         │Andrew Stegman      "Socrates"
Greg Hively        "DocNsanE"          │Glenn Thorn         "Spam Eggs & Spam"
Doug Howell        "Flash"             │Gary Weinfurther    "Hari Kari"
Robert Hunley      "MicroPilot"        │Chris White         "Hudson"


                          ============================
                          CONTACTING TECHNICAL SUPPORT
                          ============================

Apogee thanks you very much for playing our games.  Customer satisfaction is a
high priority of Apogee's, and we strive to please everyone.  Our Technical
Support staff is available to assist all of our customers in solving any
technical problems that may be experienced.  Our Technical Support Department
is available to answer your questions Monday through Friday during the hours of
8:00 A.M. to 6:00 P.M. Central Standard Time.  The phone number for the Tech
Support Department is [phone].

However, the voice line isn't your only channel of contact.  We are also
reachable via a fax machine at [phone], (24 Hours a Day) or you can
write to us.  Our mailing address is:

Apogee Software
POB 496389
Garland, TX 75049-6389
United States of America

Apogee Technical Support can also be contacted via a variety of electronic
medium.  Several major online services are monitored, and Apogee's E-Mail
addresses are listed below.   Also, a variety of Bulletin Board networks are
monitored as well, and those are also listed.

If you do contact our Technical Support department, please be at your computer,
and have it ready for assistance.  If you can't be at your computer, please
have printouts of the following things available, so that we may assist you
better.  It may be possible do provide technical support without these things,
but it will be much more difficult.

The needed files are CONFIG.SYS & AUTOEXEC.BAT, plus what happens when you
execute the "MEM /C" command (or just MEM if you get an error using MEM /C).

■ Major Online Services

Internet       -> [e-mail]  CompuServe     -> 74200,553
America Online -> APOGEE                  GEnie          -> APOGEE
Delphi         -> APOGEE                  NVN            -> APOGEE
Prodigy        -> CXVP94A                 Portal         -> COMING SOON

See the appropriate instructions for these various services on how to send
private mail to these addresses.

■ Bulletin Board Networks

There are several BBS networks that are monitored for Apogee messages.  Our
Online Support Representative monitors all of the following BBS networks.

Fidonet, Relaynet (Rime), Intelec, Ilink, U'NI-Net, Smartnet, & City2City.
All of these BBS networks have Games, Shareware, and Apogee conferences.

Fidonet       -> 1:124/9006              Rime            -> APOGEE (or 1674)

And of course, we can be reached on Software Creations, the Apogee BBS.
Software Creations can be reached by calling 1-508-368-7036.   Apogee games are
uploaded to Software Creations FIRST, before anywhere else in the world!!

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