Microsoft Fighter Ace II Readme and Driver List

Microsoft Fighter Ace II Readme and Driver List FIGHTER ACE II README AND DRIVER LIST
=============================================================================
Driver List

I. Fighter Ace II Readme

Fighter Ace II welcomes you to the best in online air combat.

Please read the following notes and information on this release of Fighter Ace II. This information will explain late breaking issues that are not available within the Fighter Ace II in-game help.

Contents:
1) Setup and installed files
2) Hardware Requirements
3) D3d and Graphics information
4) Content Issues
5) Flight information
6) Control Issues
7) In-game help information
8) Replay issues
9) Training Mission information
10) Command Listing

=============================================================================

1) Setup and installed files.

A) Clean installation
Please ensure that any beta, or incomplete versions of Fighter Ace II are removed completely before running the setup. Fighter Ace should be removed using the main Fighter Ace program uninstall button. Fighter Ace II can also be removed from the control panel Add\Remove. If removing Fighter Ace, the choice is offered to save your films and screenshots, remember to select if you want to remove these items also.

B) Readme Files
This readme is available directly from the initial setup. It is also available at any time from the windows Start Menu under Program files, Microsoft Games, Fighter Ace II.
The Readme is also available as a text file, Readme.txt, to print or view with any text editor. This file is available from the root directory that you installed the game to.

C) Command Listing
For your convenience, Fighter Ace II has installed a default command key listing for the game controls. This listing is also available from the root directory that the game was installed to.
The file is called Command.Doc and it is a Microsoft Word file.

D) Uninstalling Fighter Ace II
Fighter Ace should be removed using the main Fighter Ace program uninstall button. Fighter Ace II can also be removed from the control panel Add\Remove. If removing Fighter Ace, the choice is offered to save your films and screenshots, remember to select if you want to remove these items also.

=============================================================================

2) Hardware Requirements.

Fighter Ace II recommended configuration

╖ Multimedia PC with PII 300 MHz or higher, or comparable processor(see below).
╖ Microsoft Windows 98 OS.
╖ DirectX 6.1 or higher.
╖ Microsoft Direct 3D version 6.1compatible Graphics Accelerator card with, with 16mb Video RAM.
╖ 64 MB System RAM or higher
╖ 100 MB of available hard disk space.
╖ VGA monitor supporting 16-bit color and resolutions up to 1024 X 768.
╖ 28.8 Kbps or greater Internet access.
╖ Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.x, AOL 3.0 or higher, MSN 2.0 or higher, or Netscape 4.x.
╖ Mouse or compatible pointing device.
╖ Force Feedback peripherals compatible to DirectX 6.1
╖ DirectX 6.1 compatible sound card with speakers.

Fighter Ace II Minimum Requirements

╖ Multimedia PC with Pentium 200Mhz or compatible processor.
╖ Microsoft Windows 95 or Windows 98.
╖ DirectX 6.1 or higher.
╖ Super VGA (800X600) video card supporting 16-bit color.
╖ 32 MB RAM or higher
╖ 100 MB of available hard disk space.
╖ Super VGA (800X600) monitor.
╖ 28.8 Kbps Internet access.
╖ Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.x, AOL 3.0 or higher, MSN 2.0 or higher, or Netscape 4.x.
╖ Mouse or compatible pointing device.

Comparable processor limitations:

At this time, Fighter Ace II will not run on Cyrix systems. This will be corrected in subsequent releases.
=============================================================================

3) D3d and Graphics issues and information.

Where there are known support issues, we have listed them here. As a rule, if the game will not run under D3d or Glide, software is nearly always supported.

IMPORTANT: For the best game experience, Fighter Ace II requires you have the latest drivers installed for your hardware. Many of the issues listed in this section will be resolved if you install your video card's latest drivers.
For a list of the most common driver sites, please see our driver section in this Readme.

A) Diamond Video Cards:

Issue: With Diamond Stealth 3D 2000, the game crashes to the desktop after the profiler finishes running.
Suggestion: This issue is fixed with the latest drivers. Install the latest drivers.
If the problem persists, please contact your hardware manufacturer.

Issue: Running on Diamond Viper V330 with the latest drivers, the fatal error "Can't set video mode 640x480x16" may occur.
Suggestion: This issue is fixed using the retail drivers supplied with the card. Install the retail drivers.
If the problem persists, please contact your hardware manufacturer.

Issue: Diamond Viper V770 and Voodoo 2 combination will result in textures not being drawn when running in D3d.
Suggestion: This problem can be solved by restarting the machine, the textures will then be drawn correctly.
In addition, using the reference driver from NVidia will also fix this problem. If the problem persists, please contact your hardware manufacturer.

Issue: Diamond Viper V330 launching in D3d mode will hang at the Loading Screen.
Suggestion: Should this behavior occur, the latest drivers from Diamond fix this problem. If the problem persists, please contact your hardware manufacturer.

Issue: Diamond Monster Fusion (banshee) In Glide, alt-tabbing causes hard system hang
Suggestion: Glide drivers do not support this behavior, please contact your hardware manufacturer and to avoid this, please do not Alt-tab.

Issue: DirectDraw unable to set cooperative level error on Diamond Viper 770.
Suggestion: This condition can sometimes occur if the hardware acceleration graphics slider is not set to full. Restoring this slider to full will prevent this condition.

Issue: No direct draw hardware error with Diamond Speedstar A50 (SiS 6326AGP)
Suggestion: This card is not supported by Fighter Ace II.

Issue: Diamond Monster 3D. black border around land blocks on the terrain.
Suggestion: Latest driver from Diamond fixes this problem. If the problem persists, please contact your hardware manufacturer.

B) Hercules Video Cards:

Issue: Task switching while in software mode on the Hercules Stingray 128/3D causes machine to hang. This will happen using drivers for this card that are later then 4.03.2039.
Suggestion: While running Fighter Ace under this card, refrain from using the ALT-TAB to switch tasks. Exit the game first.

Issue: Dark lines may appear around terrain blocks while running in D3d under the Hercules Stingray 128/3D.
Suggestion: Upgrading to the latest drivers may help with this issue. If the problem persists, please contact your hardware manufacturer.

Issue: Task switching while running on Hercules Terminator Beast causes screen corruption and color distortion.
Suggestion: The latest drivers from Hercules fix the problem. Install the latest drivers. If the problem persists, please contact your hardware manufacturer.

C) STB Velocity

Issue: On the STB Velocity 128 with the Riva 128 zx chip, in some instances the cockpits will become transparent and see-through.
Suggestion: This is solved by using NVidia reference drivers v 3.37. If the problem persists; please contact your hardware manufacturer.

Issue: The full screen instruments are not sharp and clear on the STB Velocity 128 ZX with the Riva 128 ZX chipset.
Suggestion: This is solved by using NVidia reference drivers v 3.37. If the problem persists; please contact your hardware manufacturer.

Issue: Poor performance & pixilated effects with STB Nitro Mpact2 3DVD.
Suggestion: Under these cards, running software will produce better performance.

D) 3DfX, Glide

Issue: 3dfx Velocity 100. Glide button is active, but Glide does not work with this card, in game all textures (plane, ground) is transparent blue. An alt-tab will cause the client to shut down without an error message.
Suggestion: Glide is not supported is not supported on this card by Fighter Ace II.

Issue: V2 1000 PCI: When running in Glide Alt-Tab does not function to return to the desktop.
Suggestion: Do not use the Alt-Tab functionality under Glide for these cards.

Issue: Voodoo 3 3000. Using D3D mode and any available resolution, using Alt-Tab to return to the desktop and then back again into the game will crash the client.
Suggestion: The latest drivers from 3dfxcorrect these problems.

Issue: Task switching from flight with Voodoo 1 or 2 causes black desktop. When alt-tabbing out of Fighter Ace in Glide on a Voodoo 1 or 2, a black screen will be displayed instead of the Windows desktop.
Suggestion: The user may Alt-Tab back into Fighter Ace and continue to fly as normal.

Issue: Disabling Voodoo2 card in Device Manager creates hard hang when client is run.
Suggestion: Rename the file glide2x.dll to glide2x1.dll. If the problem persists; please contact your hardware manufacturer.

Issue: Voodoo2. Switching between D3D and Glide causes client to hang. Suggestion: Please exit Fighter Ace completely before switching between D3d and Glide. The problem will then not occur.

Issue: Voodoo2. While running under glide, colliding with another online player while in padlock mode may cause the game to hang.
Suggestion: Running the game in D3d will not cause this problem.

Issue: If you receive a "GlidelnitEnvironment: Glide 2x.ddl expected Voodoo Graphics, none detected" error, you may have had a Voodoo2 card installed and then removed it but did not uninstall the Voodoo2 software properly.
Suggestion Renaming the file (glide2x.dll) in the c:\windows\system folder, will eliminate this error

E) ATI/Rage 128

Issue: Rage 128. The horizon has different shades of blue bands stretched across it.
Suggestion: Updating the drivers for this card fixes the problem. If the problem persists, please contact your hardware manufacturer.

F) General Graphics Issues

The fast-paced and graphically-rich environment of FA II places more demands on your PC hardware.
If you are experiencing "lag" (as it is frequently referred to), in reality it may actually be bad frame-rate (how fast your computer "draws" each frame) that you are seeing.
If the whole game seems jumpy, even offline, then this is likely the cause of your "lag"
To help reduce or eliminate this effect, here are some graphics "tune-up tips" that might make the game much more fly-able for you.
Try doing the following, under Settings in the game:

1) Set screen resolution in the game to 640x480
2) Use D3D mode instead of Software
3) Set smoke length slider to Minimum
4) Set terrain details slider to medium or less
5) Un-check the "propeller visible from cockpit" box
6) Un-check the "Ground Object Textures" box

Also, to ensure best stability & performance, please make sure you have downloaded and installed the latest drivers for your video card.
We've provided a list of video card manufacturers and their websites, at the bottom of this document. Please see if using the latest drivers for your video card and the performance tips above help improve your control and experience in the game.

Issue: Running on NVidia TNT chipset, when an explosion occurs, the complete tile lights up.
Suggestion: This effect can be fixed with the latest drivers from NVidia. If problems persist; please contact your manufacturer.

Issue: For some users, when the game is launched in D3D the first time on a PC with a RIVA TNT or a RIVA TNT2, there are no ground or plane textures visible - everything is white.
Suggestion: After flying once, exit the game, re-boot the PC and then restart the game. All the textures will now appear correctly.

Issue: S3 Virge/GX cards will run FAII in hardware mode. This card set does not support alpha blending and bilinear filtering correctly.
Suggestion: Under this hardware, run Fighter Ace in software mode. If problems persist; please contact your manufacturer.

Issue: Matrox G-400 not selectable as a D3D device using retail drivers.
Suggestion: The latest drivers from Matrox fix this problem. If the problem persists; please contact your hardware manufacturer.

Issue: Using Banshee Chipset (Diamond Monster Fusion) while running D3D, the ground texture is very pixilated.
Suggestion: Running Glide, this condition will not occur to the same extent.

Issue: Under the Intel740 (Real Starfighter 3D) switching to a lower or higher resolution and re-entering game causes a hang at Loading screen.
Suggestion: The game will run fine under D3d on this card, but users will have to completely exit to the desktop and re-enter the game to change resolutions.

Issue: If the desktop resolution is set to 256 colors, the initial splash screen for Fighter Ace will appear washed out and badly palletized.
Suggestion: This is fixed when the color depth of the desktop is increased to more than 256 colors.

Issue: Terrain details can only be turned off by using Shift-F8 in game. This can only be done in game using the Shift-F8 key combo. There is no menu UI item for this control.

=============================================================================

4) Content Issues.

Issue: Clouds and Sky.
Under D3d, distant cloud is visible in the sky. This is not available for software users.

=============================================================================

5) Flight information.

Issue: If you have a plane padlocked, and you fly out of padlock range, padlock continues to keep tracking that plane until you hit any of the padlock keys.
Suggestion, use the next enemy keys to cycle to the next enemy plane ('e' ',' '.' 'Alt-V')

Issue: If the player switches to full screen view after ejecting from the plane, but before opening the parachute, the parachute won't open. Suggestion: Pressing F7 will switch the user to the outside camera view, the parachute can then be safely deployed.

=============================================================================

6) Control Issues.

Issue: The view hat on the CH Force F/X fails to change views.
Suggestion: If the user has the Force F/X plugged into the CH Pro Throttle, they can program the hat to any keystroke that would operate the views in the game.

Issue: Thrustmaster input devices may not work under Direct X 7.0.
Suggestion: Upgrading to DirectX 7.0a will fix this situation.

Issue: Some users may experience performance drops when receiving forces from gun fire hits or explosions in rapid succession.
Suggestion: Disable Force Feedback effects from the settings Menu.

=============================================================================

7) In-Game Help issues.

Issue: No help topic for right click. In the menu shell, help can be activated using right mouse click on most controls within each screen. Some controls do not have an associated help topic.

Issue: Under Software, the in-game help window is palletized with a washed out color. This occurrence is due to a palette loading issue.

Issue: Running under Glide, no in-flight help is available using Alt+F1.

=============================================================================

8) Replay issues.

Issue: Fighter Ace 1.5 film files will not play in Fighter Ace II.

Issue: Film files recorded in Fighter Ace II will not play in Fighter Ace 1.5

Issue: There are certain game objects that will not appear in replay files.

=============================================================================

9) Training.
Issue: After running the 1st training mission, if the user selects Custom Flight, the enemy aircraft from the 1st training mission will appear in this flight.

Suggestion: This is solved by selecting any other training mission, and then selecting the Custom Flight.

=============================================================================

10) Command Listing.

There is a command listing that is installed on the FAII root. This is a printable word document that contains the all of the keyboard commands for use with this beta version. It is here for convenience and no claims are made to its accuracy.

=============================================================================
Readme

II. Fighter Ace II Driver List

The following 3D video adapters are supported by Fighter Ace II.

Chip set	Video adapter manufacturer	Video adapter model	Manufacturer's Web site
128/3D Series	Hercules (Guillemot)	Hercules Stingray 128 3D	http://www.hercules.com
ATI Rage Pro	ATI	ATI 3D Rage Pro	http://www.atitech.com
ATI Rage 128	ATI	ATI Rage 128	http://www.atitech.com
ATI Rage 128	ATI	ATI Rage Fury	http://www.atitech.com
ATI Rage II+	ATI	ATI 3D Rage II+	http://www.atitech.com
ATI Rage Pro	ATI	ATI 3D Rage Pro	http://www.atitech.com
Intel i740	Real3D	Real 3D Starfighter	http://www.real3d.com
MGA G200	Matrox	Matrox Productiva G-200	http://www.matrox.com
MGA G-400	Matrox	Matrox Millennium G-400	http://www.matrox.com
nVidia Riva 128	STB	STB Velocity 128	http://www.stb.com
nVidia Riva 128 (AGP)	ASUS	ASUS 3DexPlorer 3000	http://www.asus.com
nVidia Riva 128 (AGP)	STB	STB Velocity 128	http://www.stb.com
nVidia Riva 128 (AGP)	Diamond	Diamond Viper V330	http://www.diamondmm.com
nVidia Riva 128 (PCI)	Diamond	Diamond Viper V330	http://www.diamondmm.com
nVidia Riva TNT	STB	STB Velocity 4400	http://www.stb.com
nVidia Riva TnT	Diamond	Diamond Viper V550	http://www.diamondmm.com
nVidia Riva TnT	Creative	Creative Blaster Riva TnT	http://www.americas.creative.com
Nvidia TnT	STB	STB Velocity 4400 w/TV Out	http://www.stb.com
Nvidia TnT2	Elsa	Elsa Erazor III	http://www.elsa.de
Nvidia TnT2	Diamond	Diamond Viper V770	http://www.diamondmm.com
Nvidia TnT2	Guillemot	Maxi Gamer Xentor	http://www.guillemot.com
Nvidia TnT2	Creative	Creative 3D Blaster TnT Ultra	http://www.americas.creative.com
nVidia ZX (NV3T)	STB	STB Velocity 128 ZX	http://www.stb.com
Rage 128 (AGP)	ATI	ATI Rage 128 GL AGP	http://www.atitech.com
Rage Pro(AGP)	ATI	ATI Rage Pro (AGP integrated)	http://www.atitech.com
Rage Pro(AGP)	ATI	ATI Rage Pro	http://www.atitech.com
Riva 128 (AGP)	STB	STB Velocity 128	http://www.stb.com
S3 Savage	Hercules	Hercules Terminator Beast	http://www.hercules.com
S3 Savage4	Diamond	Diamond Stealth III S540	http://www.diamondmm.com
S3 Savage4	Creative	3D Blaster Savage4 (AGP)	http://www.americas.creative.com
S3 Savage4	Creative	3D Blaster Savage4 (PCI)	http://www.americas.creative.com
3DFx Velocity	3Dfx Interactive	3Dfx Velocity 100	http://www.3dfxgamers.com
Verite 2100	Diamond	Diamond Stealth II S220	http://www.diamondmm.com
Voodoo Banshee	3Dfx Interactive	Voodoo Banshee	http://www.3dfxgamers.com
3dfx Voodoo	Diamond	Diamond Monster 3D	http://www.diamondmm.com
3dfx Voodoo	3Dfx Interactive	Voodoo Rush	http://www.3dfxgamers.com
3Dfx Voodoo2	Canopus	Canopus Pure 3D II	http://www.canopuscorp.com
3DFx Voodoo2	Creative	Creative 3D Blaster Voodoo2	http://www.americas.creative.com
3DFx Voodoo2	Diamond	Diamond Monster 3D II	http://www.diamondmm.com
3DFx Voodoo2	Diamond	Diamond Monster 3D II (SLI)	http://www.diamondmm.com
3DFx Voodoo2	3Dfx Interactive	3DFx Voodoo3 2000	http://www.3dfxgamers.com
Voodoo3	3Dfx Interactive	3DFx Voodoo 3 2000 PCI	http://www.3dfxgamers.com
Voodoo3	3Dfx Interactive	3DFx Voodoo 3 2000 AGP	http://www.3dfxgamers.com
Voodoo3	3Dfx Interactive	3DFx Voodoo3 3000	http://www.3dfxgamers.com
Voodoo3	3Dfx Interactive	3DFx Voodoo3 2000	http://www.3dfxgamers.com
3Dfx Voodoo3	3Dfx Interactive	3Dfx Voodoo3 3000 (AGP)	http://www.3dfxgamers.com
Voodoo3	3Dfx Interactive	3DFx Voodoo 3 3500	http://www.3dfxgamers.com
Voodoo Banshee	Diamond	Diamond Monster Fusion	http://www.diamondmm.com
Voodoo Banshee	Guillemot	Maxi Gamer Phoenix AGP	http://www.guillemot.com

Top