Hardcore Gamer Resource Kit

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Text File | 1995-10-27 | 45KB | 736 lines

POWERHOUSE Ver 1.1 June 3rd 1995 Thankyou For Upgrading Your Software. TABLE OF CONTENTS -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 1. About this document. 2. Installing your Patch. 3. What Does it do? 4. Additional Gameplay help. 5. Trouble shooting steps. 6. Technical Support -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 1.) About this Document This document will show you how to setup the patchdisk and install it onto your system. It will explain what fixes were made and how to avoid future trouble. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 2.) Installing your Patch. a. Place the patchdisk into either the 'A' or 'B' Drive. b. From the Program manager c. Select the pull-down menu "FILE" d. Select the "RUN" option e. Type "A:\Setup.exe" or "B:\Setup.exe" f. Follow the prompts -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 3.) What Does it do? This patch will update PowerHouse to version 1.1. In this version, A game length option will give you a choice, in years, of the length of the game. This gives you the ability to control the time you are given to play. You are given the choices of 20, 40, 60, 80, or 100 years. The following Error Messages are fixed: General Protection Faults: Power caused a general protection fault in POWER.EXE Power caused a general protection fault in USER.EXE Errors with Pipes are now fixed. Pipes can be removed without causing errors. Pallate Issues In Windows 95 have been addressed. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 4.) Additional Gameplay help As described in the manual, you can turn the ENN video segments off if you find them distracting. If they are off you will still get necessary information - but via quicker, still-pictures. You can switch ENN off, on, or set it to "MIX". This setting will play full ENN video for occasional news stories only, and will usually give you a static picture. For the toughest challenge, set difficulty to "Hardest" from the 'Set The Challenge' box, and/or give yourself less starting cash. Difficulty level affects the cleverness of the AI players, and sets whether you first, second, third or fourth each turn. There is a display toward the bottom right of the main screen (just under the spinning E-mail 'e'). It serves as a rough guide to how well the four PowerHouses are doing, in three different areas. These areas are: current cash, energy supplied and environmental damage caused. Switch between these 3 areas by clicking on the icon to the left of the horizontal bar chart. The bar chart now displays performance levels of all PowerHouses in the area chosen. The number to the right of the chart is your standing in the chosen area. Sometimes you might make more energy in a territory than you can sell there. If so, you can move the excess energy to other territories using Transformers. Build a chain of Transformers between any square in the destination territory, and a square in the excess production territory. Transformers have a range of 5 - they will take energy from production sites or other Transformers, so long as these are five or less squares away. Each Transformer in the chain, even the first one, loses a percentage of its input, so make your chain with as few Transformers as possible. At tech level 1, you lose 23% at every Transformer. Each transformer has a capacity too. Again at tech level one, a Transformer site will only take in 60 units of energy per Transformer rig on that square. The Energy Needs screen shows the amount of energy lost to Transformers: This figure includes both through efficiency loss along the chain, and loss where more energy is sent to a transformer site than it has capacity for. Note: the 'Energy sold via Transformers' figure means the amount taken from this territory, and sold elsewhere. The 'Energy brought by Transformers' means the amount taken from other territories, and sold in this one. You can see your networks in detail by using the Power Network overlay option. This shows all your Transformers, connected by yellow lines. Green dots shows where your network ends, red dots show Transformers which pass energy on. Excess energy will be picked up and moved along the network until it reaches a Transformer which is sitting in a territory with unmet need. Then it will be sold, even if it hasn't reached the end of your network. Use the Utility Sites Report to check up on your Transformers. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 5.) Troubleshooting Steps NOTE: Before you begin troubleshooting, we strongly recommend completing steps 1 through 3 before doing anything else. This will help insure that the game is installed under an optimal environment and eliminate many basic problems. Corrupted or bad installations can cause a variety of problems; it is best to eliminate this possibility before you begin additional troubleshooting steps. The following steps can be used on any Sierra On-Line's Family Product unless otherwise indicated. 1.) Check for Corrupt Files or Other problems on the hard drive: Before you do anything else, run one of the following DOS Commands (listed below) on the hard drive where the game is installed. These commands will check for lost allocation units, corrupted files, cross-linked files, and other disk errors which can corrupt files and/or the game's installation. These commands will also correct the errors they find. For more information on these commands consult your DOS manual. CHKDSK /F <Enter> (This command is for users running MS-DOS 6.0 or earlier) SCANDISK <Enter> (This command is for users running MS-DOS 6.2 or higher) 2.) Check hard disk space: Run the CHKDSK command (regardless of the DOS version you are using) and check the available hard disk space ("Bytes Available on Disk"). Make sure you have sufficient space on the hard drive to install the game. Games installed on a compressed hard drive will need twice as much compressed disk space. (Example: If you use any disk compression, and you wish to install a game that requires 10 MB of disk space, be sure you have AT LEAST 20 MB of space available, preferably 25 MB to allow a safe margin.) After installation, it is best to have at least 3 MB of disk space available (roughly 5 under a compressed environment). 3.) Re-install the program: After completing the above steps, it is a good idea to install the game. Delete all files and sub directories for the game from the hard drive. It is highly recommended that you boot up with a basic boot disk prior to re-installing the game. This will help insure that no memory resident programs (especially virus checkers) will interfere with the game's installation. 4.) Manually install the program (Some Programs): Try a manual installation if all else fails. The instructions are available in the README file of many of the newer products, on the Sierra On-Line's BBS, or available by fax from Technical Support. NOTE: not all products can be manually installed. 5.) Check Available Memory: A) DOS Programs: Games require different types and amounts of memory. If you ever receive an error messages from a DOS program like "Out of Hunk", "Out of Heap Space", or a report of insufficient memory, then you will need to free up more memory to play the game. You can check to see how much memory you have available and how it is configured by typing MEM (then press ENTER) at your DOS prompt. Make sure that your system's memory is configured to provide enough memory for the game to function properly. If it is not, or you have encountered any of the above messages we recommend creating a boot disk for the game. B) Windows Programs: You can check available memory in Windows by selecting HELP from the Program Manager, then choose "About Program Manager". You will see a Dialog box containing the amount of memory in Windows. Also, check the size of your Windows Swap file and consult the section IIb "Configuring Windows for Sierra On-Line's Programs" for complete instructions on checking and establishing a Swap file. A boot disk can also help with memory problems under Windows, which takes us to our next suggestion.... 6.) Make a boot disk! The boot disk is an important troubleshooting step. Along with freeing up more memory, using a boot disk creates a clean environment that helps to isolate potential conflicts. We also recommend using boot disks for Windows. Many of our current DOS games have an automatic boot disk maker you can access by running the INSTALL program and choosing "Make a Bootable Floppy Disk" from the menu. You will need a high density disk that fits in your A: drive. The boot disk is an important trouble shooting step. Along with freeing up more memory, using a boot disk creates a clean environment that helps to isolate potential conflicts. We also recommend using boot disks for Windows. We have a disk named BDALL which contains a boot disk creator program. You can also download this file from our BBS at (206) 644-0112, or you can call Technical Support at (206) 644-4343 and request the disk be sent to you. 7.) Sound Card Problems: Configuring your sound card and the game's sound drivers correctly is important. If the sound card is not configured properly, or an incorrect driver or setting is chosen when your Sierra program is installed, your game may lock-up or give you error messages. Consult section III, General Sound Card Troubleshooting Steps for a list of steps to help resolve Sound Card problems. 8.) Mouse Drivers (DOS programs only): Sometimes incompatible mouse drivers can cause graphics distortion, lock-ups and other problems. If the game you are using does not require a mouse, create a boot disk and REM out the Mouse line in either the CONFIG.SYS or AUTOEXEC.BAT file on the boot disk. Otherwise, use a different mouse driver or contact the mouse manufacturer for more troubleshooting information. II. Configuring Windows for Sierra On-Line's Games Sometimes you may need to make changes or adjust your Windows configuration in order to run your Sierra programs. This document contains steps for three of the most common Windows Setup issues that are encountered by our customers: Changing Video Drivers, Setting up a Swap file, and Setting up the MIDI Mapper. IIa. Changing Video Drivers IMPORTANT NOTE: While we can tell you HOW to change your video driver, we cannot determine the appropriate driver for the specific brand and model of video card you have installed in your computer. When selecting a video driver, you must select a video driver specific to the video card installed in your computer. Please refer to documentation that came with your specific video card installed in your system. Most Sierra On-Line and Brightstar Windows programs require 256 colors. While most video cards are capable of displaying 256 colors, Windows must be setup to use a 256 color display driver (Windows default is 16-color). If you are running Windows with a 16 color driver and you try to run one of our games that requires 256 color graphics, you will most likely receive the error message "Your current Display Driver is not supported by this game." Additionally, running a high color driver, like 32,000 colors or more, can sometimes generate a similar error message, or cause graphics distortion or lockups. It is for this reason that we recommend running Windows with a 256-color driver for optimal results with Sierra On-Line's Windows programs. Below is a step by step set of instructions for changing your video driver in Windows. Most often, when you purchase a new video card, the Windows drivers will be included on floppy disks. If the video card came pre-installed with an entire computer system, the drivers should have been installed for you by the hardware manufacturer, or included on floppy disks. If you choose an incorrect video driver when changing drivers, Windows may not boot. Should this happen, don't panic. You can restore your previous video driver by running the SETUP program from the WINDOWS directory, in DOS. (Just go to your C:\WINDOWS directory when you are in DOS and type SETUP, then press ENTER). From within the PROGRAM MANAGER: 1.) Double-click the MAIN program group icon. 2.) Double-click the WINDOWS SETUP icon. 3.) You will see a dialog box with "Display" "Keyboard", "Mouse", and "Network". 4.) On the menu bar, click on OPTIONS..., then go down to CHANGE SYSTEM SETTINGS. 5.) You will see another dialog box, similar to the previous one. Click on the down arrow to the right of "Display". You will get a list of Video drivers available to you. You can use the scroll bar to scroll up and down the list of drivers. Select a 256 color driver appropriate for your video card. If you are installing the driver from floppy disks or some other source, choose "Other Display", and you will be instructed to type a path to the driver, or to insert the disk with the drivers into your floppy drive. If you have any problems changing your video driver or need more information, consult your Windows documentation, or contact the hardware or video card manufacturer. Additionally, if you do not have the appropriate video drivers available to you, you will need to contact the hardware or video card manufacturer to obtain them. IIb. Setting up a Windows Swap file (Virtual Memory) Virtual Memory, also referred to as a Swap file, is essentially hard disk space that is used as memory. If you have a computer with 8 MB of RAM, and a 4 MB Swap file, Windows treats that as 12 MB RAM. Sometimes if you do not have enough Extended memory available to run a Windows program, Windows may be able to use Virtual Memory instead. Some Sierra programs require a small amount of Virtual memory in order to run properly. If you are experiencing "Insufficient Memory" messages in Windows, then it would be a good idea to check your Virtual Memory. (We also recommend a Windows boot disk for these problems as well.) We typically recommend a Swap file of around 4096k. To check and set up your Virtual Memory (Swap file): From within the PROGRAM MANAGER: 1.) Double-click the MAIN program group icon. 2.) Double-click the Control Panel icon. 3.) Double-click the 386 ENHANCED Icon. 4.) You will see a dialog box. Click on the button "Virtual Memory". This will bring up a second dialog box that will tell you the size, type (permanent or temporary), and the drive your Swap file is located on. To change the drive that the Swap file is located on, or the Type of Swap file being used, you can click on the arrow next to those options to view your other choices. You will also see the following information listed: Space Available (the amount of hard drive space available for use as a Swap file), Maximum Size (the largest size of Swap file available), Recommended Maximum Size (The largest setting of Swap file Windows will allow you to use), and New Size (You can specify the size of the Swap file by typing it into this box). 5.) IF you wish to change the size of your Swap file, you can type the size in the New Size box. Then click on OK. Windows will ask you if you are sure you wish to make changes. Click on "Yes". You will then need to restart Windows for your change to take effect. Again, we typically recommend using a permanent Swap file at least 4096k in size. A permanent swap file is best because it gives the fastest access time, but a Temporary Swap File doesn't use any hard drive space when you are not using Windows. After you make the swap file, you will be asked to restart Windows. Choose restart then start your Windows program. For further information on Swap Files, please consult your Windows documentation. NOTE: You cannot use compressed disk space as a Swap file. If you use disk compression, you can only establish a Swap file on either the non-compressed host drive, or another non-compressed hard drive. Creating or increasing the size of the swap file will take up hard drive space. IIc. Setting Up Your MIDI Mapper Since Sierra On-Line uses MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) music, in order to hear music in our games you must have your MIDI Mapper set up correctly. Normally, this is done when you install your sound card software, but many sound cards will default to an incorrect MIDI Setup. The instructions below are for setting up the MIDI Mapper for a standard FM sound card like a Soundblaster (Classic 8-bit, Pro and 16-bit varieties), Pro-Audio Spectrum, and other similar sound cards. These instructions will work for nearly all sound cards, though if you have a more advanced sound card like a Gravis Ultrasound, Sound cards using Wave table Synthesis, or a Roland MT32, RAP 10 or Sound Canvas, the set up instructions below will not provide the optimal MIDI configuration to take advantage of the advanced hardware. Please contact the hardware/sound card manufacturer if you need additional help configuring you MIDI Mapper for one of these more advanced sound modules. NOTE: When you install a Sierra Windows game, make sure you choose BASE level if you are prompted for a "Base" or "Extended". The Extended setting is strictly for users with MIDI devices like the Roland MT32 installed in their systems. From within PROGRAM MANAGER: 1.) Double-click your MAIN group. 2.) Double-click the CONTROL PANEL Icon. 3.) Double-click the MIDI MAPPER icon. NOTE: If you do not have this icon, go back to the CONTROL PANEL, and Double-click the DRIVERS section. Click on the "Add" button, and in the list of drivers presented to you highlight the MIDI MAPPER selection and click on OK. After the driver is installed, you will need to restart Windows and start at step 1 above. 4.) You will get a dialog box. Click on the NEW Button. 5.) Type in a name (any name will do), then click on the OK Button. 6.) Now you will get the MIDI SETUP screen. Find the Port Name Column, and go down it until you reach the box for channel 13. Click on the box, then click on the arrow and you should get a list of drivers. 7.) Select the driver that has "FM Synthesis" in it. The name may vary depending on the sound card you have, but some examples are "Voyetra SuperSapi FM Driver", "Yamaha OPL-3 FM Synthesizer", "SBP FM Synth". 8.) Repeat steps 7 and 8 for Channels 14, 15 and 16. 9.) Click on OK, and when the computer asks you if you want to save the setting, choose yes. 10.) Close the MIDI MAPPER. Additional Note: Always make sure you have the proper Drivers installed for your sound card, as well as the following standard Windows drivers: Timer, MIDI Mapper, [mci] CD Audio, [mci] Sound, and [mci] MIDI Sequencer. If these are not present, you can add them following the steps below: Again, from the CONTROL PANEL: 1.) Double-click the DRIVERS icon. 2.) You will get a list of drivers presented in a dialog box. Click on the ADD button. 3.) Select the driver you wish to add (Timer, MIDI Mapper, [MCI] CD Audio, Sound, or MIDI Sequencer) 4.) Click on OK. If you are asked to use the Current driver or a New one, click on Current. You may be asked to insert a Windows disk to install the driver from. Follow the instructions on screen. 5.) Once new drivers are installed, you will need to re-start Windows. If you have any difficulty installing the drivers, or need additional help with Windows, please contact Microsoft or your authorized hardware manufacturer. Finally, it's usually a good idea to have the latest sound drivers available for your sound card. You can contact the Sound card manufacturer to obtain the most current drivers. IId. Sierra On-Line's Troubleshooting Steps: General Protection Faults General Protection Faults are Windows errors that are typically caused by a memory conflict between one or more drivers or programs. Another type of error similar to a General Protection fault is a System Integrity Violation, caused by an MS-DOS program running Windows. NOTE: Sierra On-Line does not support running our DOS programs through Windows. If a Sierra DOS program causes any error messages or a System Integrity Violation, we recommend that you run that program in DOS. Before You Start Before you begin troubleshooting General Protection Faults, you must have a basic boot disk for your system. Boot disk instructions are available from FAX (document #2470). A file called BDALL, which contains a boot disk creator utility and a complete set of boot disk instructions for a variety of systems, is also available. This file can be downloaded from our BBS at 206-644-0112, or you can contact us in Technical Support from FAX at 206-644-7697 or phone at 206-644-4343 and have the disk sent to you. Finally, you will want a backup copy of your WIN.INI and SYSTEM.INI files on this disk. Copy them to the boot disk using the following commands: COPY C:\WINDOWS\WIN.INI A: <ENTER> COPY C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM.INI A: <ENTER> (NOTE: If your Windows directory is on another drive, use the letter of that drive instead of C:. Troubleshooting Steps 1.) First, correct any and all FAT table errors and lost allocation units by running SCANDISK or CHKDSK. Refer to Section I. General Troubleshooting Techniques for DOS and Windows programs, and read the instructions for Step 1 if you need additional information. 2.) Make sure your Windows System Resources are over 60 percent. You can check this by going to the HELP menu in Program Manager, and choosing About Program Manager. If resources are below 60 percent, close any and all other Windows applications before continuing to the next step. 3.) Check the DOS version you are using. If you are using an OEM DOS version, such as IBM DOS or Compaq DOS, those should only be run on their respective OEM computer systems. (However, the Microsoft's DOS 5 and DOS 6 upgrades will work on all machines.) 4.) Run Windows in Standard Mode (Not available in Windows for Workgroups 3.11). You can run Windows in Standard mode by typing WIN /S and then pressing ENTER. If the GP fault occurs in Standard Mode and Enhanced Mode Windows, the problem could be a corrupted file or conflict between Windows and a hardware device. 5.) Run Windows without using your WIN.INI file. The best way to do this is to rename the WIN.INI file to something else. You can do this by going to DOS, then to your WINDOWS directory. Then type: REN WIN.INI WIN.OLD <ENTER> If running Windows without the WIN.INI file active corrects the problem, make sure the LOAD= and the RUN= lines in the [WINDOWS] section of the WIN.INI are blank, or insert a semi-colon (;) at the beginning of each line. (You can edit the WIN.INI with a text editor program like Windows Notepad.) This will prevent any other Windows software from loading. If this fails to correct the problem, Sierra On-Line recommends calling either MICROSOFT, or if you received your DOS/WINDOWS software with your computer system, you will need to contact the hardware manufacturer. They should be able to help you isolate the conflict between your WIN.INI file and your SIERRA program. 6.) Reinstall your Sierra Windows program, or the program that causes the GPF. Sometimes corrupted files and drivers (especially sound and/or video drivers in the case of Sierra On-Line Software) can cause GP faults, and re-installing them may correct the problem. Often times, updating to the latest available versions of these drivers will correct problems as well. Contact the software manufacturer if you need assistance re-installing and/or updating drivers. 7.) Eliminate any memory-resident software. Close any and all other applications, make sure the STARTUP group is empty, and disable any and all screen savers (including the standard Windows screen saver) and shell replacement programs like Norton Desktop for Windows, PC Tools, etc. Also, don't run Windows from a menu program like DOS Shell or similar programs. 8.) To check for a Video driver conflict, change your Video driver to "VGA". A number of Video Drivers from third party vendors will conflict with some Sierra Windows programs. IMPORTANT NOTE: If your SIERRA ON-LINE program requires a 256 color driver, use Microsoft's "SVGA" (640 by 480, 256 color) driver if you have it available. If you do not have this driver available, use another driver for your video card and see if it makes a difference. You can contact Microsoft's BBS to obtain the driver from them. 9.) Check for other possible conflicts with other, third-party software drivers. Edit your SYSTEM.INI file and temporarily comment out any and all third party drivers, e.g. Adobe Type Manager, third party printer drivers, Bitstream, etc. You can use Windows Notepad to edit the SYSTEM.INI file, and insert a semi-colon (;) at the beginning of each line that loads a third party driver. In your SYSTEM.INI file, the [BOOT] section should be set to a standard Windows default, which is listed below: shell=progman.exe system.drv=system.drv keyboard.drv=keyboard.drv mouse.drv=mouse.drv display.drv=vga.drv comm.drv=comm.drv sound.drv=mmsound.drv 10.) Eliminate potential conflicts in DOS by creating a basic boot disk that loads only those drivers necessary to start your system and Windows. A minimum boot configuration is listed below: AUTOEXEC.BAT CONFIG.SYS __________________________ _________________________ Path=c:\;c:\DOS;c:\windows Files=50 Prompt $p$g Buffers=30 Set temp=C:\ Device=c:\DOS\himem.sys Stacks=9,256 Device=c:\windows\ifshlp.sys (WFW 3.11 ONLY) Depending on your particular systems, the files above may not be sufficient for your system to boot normally. If you need additional assistance creating a boot disk, see section I.6. If creating a boot disk corrects the problem, then your GP fault is caused by one of the memory resident DOS programs or Windows drivers that your system loads. This list is by no means exhaustive, but it does represent the most common solutions to General Protection Faults encountered with Sierra Windows Software. For additional assistance, you may wish to contact Microsoft or your Hardware dealer (if Windows came pre-installed on your computer). III. General Sound Card Troubleshooting Steps Due to the tremendous number of sound cards and drivers available today, it can often be difficult getting a sound card and a game's sound driver to work together correctly. Sierra On-Line has composed the following list of Sound Card troubleshooting steps to help resolve the most common problems experienced configuring a sound card to work correctly with a game (and vice-versa). Please note that we cannot possibly know everything about your specific sound card, it's drivers, set up requirements, or the related software that is packaged with it. Therefore, if you have any questions as to how to change the settings, re configure, or otherwise manipulate your sound card, please refer to your sound card's documentation or consult your sound card's manufacturer. Sound Card-Common Symptoms 1.) Lockups. Often times a DOS or Windows program will lock up the system if there is a sound card conflict. Often, the game will still appear to be playing normally -- you will be able to move the mouse, the background music will be playing, and you may even be able to access the Save/Restore functions. However, the mouse pointer will remain a "wait" cursor and all action in the game will effectively stop. Other times, even the mouse pointer will freeze (A "hard" lock up), and the sound card may become stuck on one continuous note. Occasionally this might even force the system to re-boot itself. 2.) No music and/or Sound effects. Sometimes you may hear music, but no speech or sound effects, or vice-versa. 3.) Distorted or garbled music or sound effects, possibly with crackling noises. 4.) Repeating or "broken record" type sound. Sometimes this will manifest itself in the form of one continuous, long musical note as well. 5.) DOS Error Messages: "Unable to initialize your audio hardware" "Unable to initialize your music hardware" 6.) WINDOWS Error Messages: "Wave Out Open Error" "Panic: Use Capabilities Function..." "Sound Device already in use by another application". Sound Card Troubleshooting Steps (DOS\WINDOWS): First and foremost, make sure you choose the appropriate sound drivers or sound choices when you install the game ! Don't always trust the default values, because sometimes installation programs will incorrectly detect your hardware. For example, if you have a standard Soundblaster, Soundblaster Pro or Soundblaster 16, and the game's installation program detects "Roland MT32", this isn't going to work. Sometimes choosing the correct driver can be tricky, but for most sound cards, selecting "Soundblaster/Ad-lib" for the music selection and "Soundblaster" for the Audio/Speech selection (if there is an Audio/Speech selection -- not all games will have one) is the best place to start if you do not see a driver listed for your specific sound card. If you experience problems with these selections, use some of the others -- it can't hurt. For Windows programs, if you are given a choice of selecting "Base" or "Extended", start with Base level. (DOS/WINDOWS): Check the DMA and IRQ settings for your sound card. Generally speaking, we recommend using DMA 1 and IRQ 5, I/O address 220 for best results. However, as a general rule, our DOS games will support DMA channels 1 and 3, and IRQ settings of 3, 5 and 7. If you are experiencing any of the previously mentioned problems, change the DMA and/or IRQ setting for your sound card and see if that works. Use our recommended settings if possible. (DOS/WINDOWS): If you are not hearing any music or sound, try the steps above. You should also run the mixer program for your sound card and turn up the music and sound effects volume levels. If you are having the problem under DOS, run the DOS-based mixer, if the problem is under Windows, run the Windows-based mixer program. Sometimes not hearing music or sound effects is just due to the volume levels that the sound card is set to. (DOS/WINDOWS): Running DOS-based games in Windows generally will not work. Symptoms include repeating sounds, no sound or music, or other error messages like "DMA Buffer Size is Too Small....". For best results, we recommend running DOS-based games in DOS. (DOS): Try new drivers ! For DOS-based games, it never hurts to check with Sierra On-Line Technical Support, CompuServe, AOL or our BBS to see if there are any updated sound drivers for some games. We can mail these drivers out free of charge. (WINDOWS) Make sure the MIDI Mapper is set up correctly. For a complete set of instructions on setting up the MIDI Mapper for standard sound cards, refer back to SECTION IIC: Setting Up Your MIDI Mapper. (WINDOWS): Always make sure you have the proper Drivers installed for your sound card, as well as the following standard Windows drivers: Timer, MIDI Mapper, [mci] CD Audio, [mci] Sound, and [mci] MIDI Sequencer. Also, it's usually a good idea to have the latest sound drivers available for your sound card. You can contact the sound card manufacturer to obtain the most current drivers. If you need help installing any of these, please refer to SECTION IIC: Setting Up Your MIDI Mapper. (WINDOWS): Some Windows sound enhancement programs or screen savers can conflict with games if they are running at the same time. Often, they produce error messages like "Wave Out Open Error" or "Panic: Use Capabilities Function...". Some examples of programs that can produce these types of errors are "Afterdark", "Wired for Sound", "Icon Hear-it" or "Icon Do-it", and "Microsoft Windows Sound Bits." 6.) Technical Support STILL EXPERIENCING PROBLEMS? If you continue to experience any problems, or if you have any questions concerning any of the above steps, our Technical Support Team will be more than happy to assist you. Please call (206) 644-4343 between 8:15 a.m. and 4:45 p.m., Pacific Standard Time, Monday through Friday, We can be reached by Fax at (206) 644-7697, or by mail at the following address: Sierra On-Line P.O. BOX 85006 Bellevue, WA 98015-8506 Attention: Technical Support You can also reach our Technical Support Team on one of the following services: Internet E-Mail support@sierra.com Sierra Web site http://www.sierra.com Sierra BBS (206) 644-0112 (settings 8, N, & 1, up to 57,600 baud [14.4 + Compression]) Compuserve Go: Sierra America's Online Keyword: Sierra Please outline the problems along with the specific information about your computer system, and we will gladly respond to your letter, Fax, or BBS message as soon as possible. When contacting us by Fax, or BBS please allow 24-48 hours for turnaround. During weekends or holidays, there may be some delays. To better serve our European customers with technical problems and disk replacements, Sierra U.K Customer Support or Coktel Customer Support can be reached at the following address: Sierra On-Line Limited Coktel Vision Unit 2, Theale Technology Centre, Parc Tertiaire de Meudon Station Road Immeuble "Le Newton" Theale, Berkshire RG7 4AA 25 rue Jeanne Braconnier United Kingdom 92366 Meudon La ForΩt Cedex [44] 1-734-303171 France Main: (33) 1-46-01-4650 Sierra Technical Support provides this documentation as a reference to Sierra customers using Sierra software products. Sierra Technical Support makes reasonable efforts to ensure that the information contained in this documentation is accurate. However, Sierra makes no warranty, either express or implied, as to the accuracy, effectiveness, or completeness of the information contained in this documentation. SIERRA ON-LINE, INC. DOES NOT WARRANTY OR PROMISE THAT THE INFORMATION HEREIN WILL WORK WITH ANY OR ALL COMPUTER SYSTEMS. SIERRA DOES NOT ASSUME ANY LIABILITY, EITHER INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL, FOR THE USE OF THE INFORMATION HEREIN, INCLUDING ANY AND ALL DAMAGE TO OR LOST USE OF COMPUTER HARDWARE OR SOFTWARE PRODUCTS, LOSS OF WARRANTIES, OR LOST DATA BY THE CUSTOMER OR ANY THIRD PARTY. NO ORAL OR WRITTEN INFORMATION OR ADVICE GIVEN BY SIERRA, ITS EMPLOYEES, DISTRIBUTORS, DEALER OR AGENTS SHALL CHANGE THE RESTRICTION OF LIABILITY OR CREATE ANY NEW WARRANTIES. IN NO CASE SHALL SIERRA'S LIABILITY EXCEED THE PURCHASE PRICE OF THE SIERRA SOFTWARE PRODUCT. Thankyou for Playing Sierra Games.