°°±±²²ÛÛ HOCUS POCUS ON-DISK TECHNICAL SUPPORT ÛÛ²²±±°° Copyright 1994 Apogee Software Ltd. P.O. Box 496389 þ Garland, TX 75049 þ Hints line: (214) 278-5655 Game designed by Mike Voss =================== SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS =================== þ Hocus Pocus requires a 386SX computer or higher. Hocus Pocus will not run on a 286 or less computer. Hocus Pocus requires a VGA graphics card with at least 256k of video memory (this is not the same as conventional memory, this is video memory. Check your video card's manual to make sure of how much video memory you have). The game also requires that you have 580k of conventional memory available. Hocus Pocus does not use either extended or expanded memory; only conventional memory. ======================== BEFORE RUNNING THIS GAME ======================== þ 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.) We have had reports of customers completely ruining their systems by running our games from Windows, and we STRONGLY RECOMMEND that you not attempt this. þ 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 Hocus Pocus. ================================= 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 Hocus Pocus. If you do not have a GUS card, you can skip this section. þ In order to play Hocus Pocus on a Gravis UltraSound card, it is required that you load the UltraMid TSR that comes with your Gravis Sound Card. If it did not, or you no longer have it, Apogee has gotten permission from Gravis to distribute this, and it is enclosed along with this game. When you run the setup program, and select the Gravis UltraSound for your music and sound effects, you will be told to run the HOCUSG command. This is a batch file. This batch file will automatically load the UltraMid TSR for you, and then unload it when you're done playing the game. All files that are needed to play the game with a Gravis UltraSound are included with the Hocus Pocus package as it originally left Apogee Software. Furthermore, GUS owners will have a slightly different method of executing the game. Please read the next section on how to use the setup program for the exact steps. ============================ HOW TO USE THE SETUP PROGRAM ============================ Before you run Hocus Pocus, you must run the setup program. This is a separate program that cannot be called from within Hocus Pocus; 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. The setup program saves its settings to a file called "HOCUS.SAV" in whatever directory the SETUP.EXE file is run from. If you delete this file (HOCUS.SAV), all your settings will be deleted, and you will need to run the SETUP program over again in order to play the game. HOCUS.SAV is a binary file, that is readable only by the game and the setup program. It cannot be edited directly, and any changes you would need to make to this file need to be made from running the setup program. Here is a brief explanation of all the options in the setup program for Hocus Pocus. þ Select Music Card ¯ Pick which sound card (if any) you wish to use to hear the background music from. þ Select Sound FX ¯ Pick which sound card (if any) you wish to use to hear the game's sound effects from. þ Select Controller ¯ Pick which method you wish to play the game from. (Joystick, Mouse, or Keyboard) þ Controller Config ¯ Select Options for your selected controller. þ Save Settings ¯ Save your selected settings and quit back to DOS. Once you've made all your selections, you should select "SAVE SETTINGS". This will save all your settings, and you'll be ready to play Hocus Pocus! When you save your settings, you will be told by the setup program what command you need to type in order to run the game. Gravis UltraSound owners will need to enter the HOCUSG command to play the game, and all other sound card owners will need to run the HOCUS command. Don't worry about forgetting these commands, the setup program will remind you. If you ever wish to change any of your options for any reason, you'll need to rerun the setup program. ========================= HOCUS POCUS DETAILED HELP ========================= þ Hocus Pocus REQUIRES 580k bytes of free conventional memory in order to execute properly. If you run the game, and get an error that says you do not have enough memory to run the game, please see the section on "How do I make more memory available?" later on in this document for more help in resolving this issue. If, however, you are running DR-DOS, then there is a separate issue to be addressed. DR-DOS preallocates 64k of conventional memory to any .EXE file that it believes to be compressed. Since the Main Hocus Pocus executable file *IS* compressed, DR-DOS is allocating 64k of conventional memory from whatever you have to begin with, almost certainly leaving you with insufficient memory in order to play the game. There is a fix for this available from Novell. You need to contact Novell and obtain "DR-DOS Patch 326". This will optionally allow you to eliminate the preallocation that DR-DOS is doing. This patch is available in several places online as well. þ Software Creations BBS -> 1-508-368-7036 with filename DRDOS326.ZIP þ Novell BBS -> 1-408-649-3443 with filename PATCH326.ZIP þ Internet -> Email "drdos@novell.com" þ CompuServe -> GO NOVLIB, File Area 12, Filename PAT326.EXE þ America Online -> Do keyword search for "DR-DOS", and get filename PAT326.ZIP. þ If you are having lockup problems, or sound problems, check your computer's settings and your sound card's settings, and make sure that they match precisely to what you've specified in the setup program that came with Hocus Pocus. If these settings are incorrect, then it would explain lockups. If you are using a Sound Blaster, or a Sound Blaster compatible sound card for your sound effects, it's possible you have a DMA conflict. To check this, turn your digitized sounds off. If the game plays w/o locking up, then you most likely have a DMA conflict. You'd need to check and make sure if you have the SET BLASTER line in your AUTOEXEC.BAT file. This is what a proper SET BLASTER line looks like. This is an example, and isn't exactly what you need to put in your system, make sure to read this whole section. SET BLASTER=A220 I5 D1 T3 | | | | | | | | | | | |______ Type of Card | | | | |_________ DMA Channel | | | |___________ Interrupt | | |________________ Port Address | |_______________________ Environment Variable |____________________________ DOS Command Now, these may not (most likely not) be the same for your sound card, because the Port Address, Interrupt and DMA Channel can be set by adjusting "jumpers" on your sound board. Some newer cards have this information controlled by software, please consult your sound card's manual for more information on how to set such things as port address, and other sound card related settings. For PORT ADDRESS, it's almost ALWAYS 220. That seems to be the default for most sound cards out there, and unless you know you've switched it away from 220, it's a safe bet it's still there. The INTERRUPT is something that varies from system to system. IRQ2 is valid variable here, but 2 is not recommended, since most of the people I've run into that use IRQ2 tend to have lots of conflicts. That's not to say it won't run, it will, but I've run into more problems with IRQ2 than with any other IRQ. The DMA CHANNEL is one that causes some people problems. By default, this is almost always set at 1. Unless you have a specific need to change this, it's probably still at 1. If you're running into lockups using digitized sounds with Apogee games, this is probably where your problem lies. If you get lockups with an Apogee game that has digitized sounds, and this variable is correct, try turning off the digitized sounds, and if the game plays right, you probably have a DMA conflict. Adjust the DMA channel on your sound card, then reflect said change in this variable in the SET BLASTER line. The TYPE OF CARD is something that is fairly easy to check out. If you're running a non-Creative Labs sound card, then you want this to either be 1 or 3, depending on which card it is. It's usually 1. For a genuine Sound Blaster card, it's one of these... 1 or 3 for a plain Sound Blaster. 2 or 4 for a Sound Blaster Pro, or a 6 for a Sound Blaster 16. The factor in choosing between the two numbers here is the age of the card. If it's an older card, than choose the smaller number (1 or 2). I get a lot of questions from people wanting to know why they have to use this if they don't have a Sound Blaster. Well, it's simple. This command has NOTHING to do with what type of sound card you use. Apogee games that use digitized sounds expect these cards to be at specific settings. If they are not, then the game needs to be told this. The way to do this is with the environment variable BLASTER. That's why this is needed. Please remember to add this to AUTOEXEC.BAT, save the file back to disk, reboot your computer, and make sure to delete the game config file (HOCUS.SAV) before running the game again. þ 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. þ If you have a Gravis GamePad, and your controller is acting as if some of the buttons aren't being pressed, it's may be 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. þ If you notice the game running slowly on your system, here are a few suggestions on improving game performance. ¯ Increase the amount of free memory your system has before running the game. See "How do I make more conventional memory available?" ¯ If you are a Sound Blaster or compatible sound card user, try disabling the Digitized sounds, or lowering the number of digital channels you're playing with in your game. This has to be done from the setup program. =================================== HOCUS POCUS COMMAND LINE PARAMETERS =================================== There are no command line parameters for Hocus Pocus. Any options you may want to change system wise are in the SETUP.EXE program that came with the game. All changes will have to be made from that program. ========================================= HOW TO GET HOCUS POCUS RUNNING UNDER OS/2 ========================================= Create a program reference object and make the following changes to the default settings: DOS_BACKGROUND_EXECUTION=OFF DOS_HIGH=ON DOS_UMB=ON DPMI_NETWORK_BUFF_SIZE=64 EMS_HIGH_OS_MAP_REGION=64 HW_TIMER=ON IDLE_SECONDS=60 IDLE_SENSITIVITY=100 INT_DURING_IO=ON KBD_BUFFER_EXTEND=OFF MOUSE_EXCLUSIVE_ACCESS=ON VIDEO_8514A_XGA_IOTRAP=OFF VIDEO_ONDEMAND_MEMORY=OFF VIDEO_RETRACE_EMULATION=OFF VIDEO_ROM_EMULATION=OFF XMS_MEMORY_LIMIT=1024 These settings are not officially supported by Apogee. Your mileage may vary. If you are an OS/2 user, and can come up with better settings, E-Mail Technical Support at one of the E-Mail addresses at the bottom of this document. ==================================== HOW DO I MAKE MORE MEMORY AVAILABLE? ==================================== If Hocus Pocus returns a message that says you do not have enough memory to run the game, or the program behaves erratically when it is executed, you will need to make more conventional memory available. We get a lot of questions like "I have 8 meg of memory, what do you mean I need more memory?" If this sounds like a question you might ask, then read the section called "The 640k barrier". There are virtually millions of ways a config.sys file can be arranged to provide memory, and you'd be reading this document forever if we tried to explain them all, so we'll just give you one simple example that will work. It is a simple setup, and will provide you with enough memory in order to run the game. Furthermore, there are also several versions of DOS out there. We will provide examples that use MS/DOS commands. If your version of DOS is not MS/DOS, you would need to use the appropriate substitute commands for the MS/DOS counterparts. If you are unfamiliar with editing your configuration files, or are uneasy about it, get a friend of yours that is familiar with the procedure to help, or check your DOS manual on how to use the Text (ASCII) editor that comes with your version of DOS. SAMPLE CONFIG.SYS ----------------- DEVICE=C:\DOS\HIMEM.SYS DEVICE=C:\DOS\EMM386.EXE RAM DOS=HIGH,UMB DEVICE=C:\DOS\DBLSPACE.SYS /MOVE The fourth line should only be used if you're using MS/DOS's DoubleSpace utility. (That would also most likely be the place you have a Stacker, SuperStor, or other some disk compression driver). Other things that would go in here would be sound drivers (SoundBlaster 16, Pro Audio Spectrum 16, etc..). SAMPLE AUTOEXEC.BAT ------------------- @echo off SET BLASTER=Aw Ix Dy Tz LH C:\DOS\MOUSE.COM You would only put the mouse line in there if you use the mouse to play the game, and you would only use the SET BLASTER line if you are playing with a sound card. If you are running MicroSoft DOS v6.0 or later, you can also try this to get your game running. When you start your system, you will see a message that says "Starting MS-DOS". If you press the F5 key during this time, you will get a message that says "MS-DOS is bypassing your CONFIG.SYS and AUTOEXEC.BAT" files. This is what's more commonly known as "booting clean", since you've bypassed your system startup files. At this point, you can change to the directory you've installed Hocus Pocus to, and the game should run fine. If you do find that you need some sort of modified config.sys and autoexec.bat files in order to run this game, you might wish to explore what is about to be said. Later revisions of DOS (MS/DOS 6.x+, and DR-DOS 6+) have built into them the capabilities of "Multiple Boot Configurations". If you are familiar with these procedures, it will be a snap to do. If you are unfamiliar, you need to consult your DOS manual. The process varies greatly from computer to computer depending on how you have your system set up, so this will not be explained here. However, the time spent learning this procedure from your DOS manual will benefit you greatly elsewhere, in addition to this game. If you are running DR-DOS, then there is a separate issue to be addressed. DR-DOS preallocates 64k of conventional memory to any .EXE file that it believes to be compressed. Since the Main Hocus Pocus executable file IS compressed, DR-DOS is allocating 64k of conventional memory from whatever you have to begin with, almost certainly leaving you with insufficient memory in order to play the game. There is a fix for this available from Novell. You need to contact Novell and obtain "DR-DOS Patch 326". This will optionally allow you to eliminate the preallocation that DR-DOS is doing. This patch is available in several places online as well. þ Software Creations BBS -> 1-508-368-7036 with filename DRDOS326.ZIP þ Novell BBS -> 1-408-649-3443 with filename PATCH326.ZIP þ Internet -> Email "drdos@novell.com" þ CompuServe -> GO NOVLIB, File Area 12, Filename PAT326.EXE þ America Online -> Do keyword search for "DR-DOS", and get filename PAT326.ZIP. This document does not pretend to be your DOS manual, but it does give you a basic explanation as to why you may not have enough memory in order to run a program of ours. If you are still having trouble getting this program to run after attempting the steps outlined above, you need to consult your DOS manual on "How to make more conventional memory" available. Your DOS manual has far more exhaustive examples on how to do this than we could possibly document here. Apogee Technical Support is unable to assist beyond what is documented here. If you are still having trouble getting the program to run, it is not a fault of our game, it is a limitation of DOS. Please check your DOS manual, or call MicroSoft's Technical Support Department. ==================== FILES WITH THIS GAME ==================== The following files comprise the Hocus Pocus game as it's distributed from Apogee. These games are essential for game play, there may be some related file such as the catalog, and order form files. Those are not what this section will discuss. HOCUS .DAT <- Main Hocus Pocus Graphics File HOCUS .EXE <- Main Hocus Pocus Game Executable SETUP .EXE <- Setup Program for Hocus Pocus __HPGRVS.EXE <- Main Executable file for Gravis UltraSound Card ULTRAMID.EXE <- Gravis UltraSound Music Program ULTRAMID.INI <- Gravis UltraSound Music Data File The last three files listed here are for people who have a Gravis UltraSound card. If you do not have this sound card, these files are not needed. On the other hand, if you do have a Gravis UltraSound card, the file "HOCUS.EXE" is not needed. If you're unsure as to what files you need, and what you don't need, don't worry about it; they won't harm anything by being there. ================ THE 640K BARRIER ================ This section isn't actually needed in order to get our programs running. What is contained in here is for the most part background information to better assist our customers in understanding why they need to make more conventional memory available. When MicroSoft first made DOS 1.0, 640 kilobytes (KB) was set aside as the highest amount of memory that a computer could have. The 640KB of memory is what is called "conventional memory". To maintain compatibility with older versions, this was never changed. Advances in memory management have made access to memory beyond 640KB, but this memory can only hold data; the program actually has to run in the first 640KB. This first 640k is called "Conventional Memory". Here is a brief discussion of the different types of memory available on your computer. The most important one is Conventional memory. þ CONVENTIONAL MEMORY starts at 0k and normally ends at 640k. (The cases where this is not the case are EXTREMELY rare) If you are not using some sort of memory manager (such as DOS's EMM386, Quarterdeck's QEMM, or Qualitas' 386MAX), this is the only type of memory you have. Conventional memory is used by DOS as well as device drivers and TSR's (Terminate and Stay Resident Programs). A TSR is a program that is loaded into your computer's memory (usually from the CONFIG.SYS or AUTOEXEC.BAT files) and stays there. Most programs remove themselves from memory after execution, a TSR does not. Device drivers and TSR's are programs that enable the computer to use additional hardware such as a mouse, scanner, CD-ROM, expanded or extended memory, etc. A program such as an Apogee game is NOT a program that can be loaded as a TSR. If all you have is conventional memory, anything that you would load as a TSR would come out of this section of memory. Take too much away, and you're not left over with enough memory to run our product. If you are getting an out of memory error from our program, it is this memory that you are running out of. Whether you have 1 meg, 8 meg of memory, or 32 meg of memory, it's irrelevant. Only the first 640k of memory is available for program execution. Please do not confuse this with hard drive space. Your hard drive space is not memory, and is not relevant nor should be considered in this example. þ UPPER MEMORY starts at 640k and ends at 1024k. Normally, this area is used for things such as system ROM, video and hardware cards, and the like. On most PC's hardware does not use the entire upper memory area, and with the use of the aforementioned memory managers, (EMM386, QEMM, FnordMem, etc.) you can move some TSR's into this memory area. These unused areas are called Upper Memory Blocks (UMB'S), and this where some TSR's can be loaded. þ EXTENDED MEMORY (XMS) is the memory addressed above 1024k. Extended memory requires the use of a memory manager, such as MS/DOS's HIMEM.SYS. This region of memory is not usable for standard program execution; it can only be used for data storage. Apogee programs that use this type of memory (such as Wolfenstein & Hocus Pocus), only use this to store level or graphic data. The actual program itself is running in conventional memory. þ HIGH MEMORY AREA (HMA) is the first 64k of extended memory. This is a special region of memory that is most commonly used to load DOS high. When you issue the DOS=HIGH command in your config.sys file, the amount of conventional memory that was previously being occupied by DOS itself is moved into this region. þ EXPANDED MEMORY (EMS) is another type of memory that some MS/DOS programs can make use of. Like XMS, this memory is not available for program execution, it's only used for data storage due to it's nature. An explanation of this type of memory is rather technical, so it will not be delved into here. If you're curious, check your DOS manual, or your memory manager manual. When you first start up your computer, there are two files that your computer looks at: CONFIG.SYS and AUTOEXEC.BAT. These two files contain lists of device drivers and TSR's that are automatically run when starting your computer. Each of these takes up space, and it is taken away from the 640k of conventional memory. As more and more programs are loaded from the autoexec.bat and config.sys files, you have less and less available from the original 640k. Since it is this memory that programs run in, you can see that the amount taken away from the programs executed in config.sys and autoexec.bat would want to be kept to a minimum. This can be accomplished by either reducing the amount of programs loaded in from config.sys and autoexec.bat, or moving them to high memory via the use of EMM386, QEMM, 386MAX, or some other memory management program. ============================ 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 (214) 278-5655. However, the voice line isn't your only channel of contact. We are also reachable via a fax machine at (214) 278-4670, (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 Voice: (214) 278-5655 Fax: (214) 278-4670 (24 hrs) 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). þ Major Online Services Internet -> joe.siegler@swcbbs.com CompuServe -> 74200,553 America Online -> APOGEE GEnie -> APOGEE Delphi -> APOGEE NVN -> APOGEE Prodigy -> CXVP94A See the appropriate instructions for these various services on how to send private mail to these addresses. All of these services have Internet E-Mail gateways, but please, if you're sending Internet E-Mail, use the swcbbs.com address. þ 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!! [ END OF FILE ]