Welcome to the Magic School Bus

The Magic School Bus Explores The Solar System

Index to Topics:

  Getting Started

  Hardware and Software Requirements

  Tips on Setting Up Your Windows Environment

  Game Tips

  Troubleshooting

This HELP file is provided as a reference document to help you setup your Windows environment or fix any problems that you are having with "The Magic School Bus Explores The Solar System." In addition to the HELP file, there is also a README.TXT file included on the CD as a quick-reference to "The Magic School Bus Explores The Solar System."


Getting Started

Installing "The Magic School Bus Explores The Solar System"

1.	Start Microsoft Windows.

2.	Insert "The Magic School Bus Explores The Solar System" CD-ROM in your CD-ROM Drive.

3.	From the Program Manager File menu, choose Run.

4.	In the dialog box, type the following command, substituting the letter of your CD-ROM drive for <drive> and press ENTER.

<drive>:\SETUP.EXE

5.	Follow the instructions on the Setup screen.

The "Magic School Bus - Solar System" icon is used to start the program.

The "Bus Help - Solar System" icon is for access to the HELP file you are currently reading.


Hardware and Software Requirements

Computer:

A Multimedia PC or compatible with a 486sx or higher micro-processor, 25 MHz (33 MHz recommended).

Memory (RAM):

4 MB of RAM (8 MB recommended)

Note: On machines with 8 MB or less of RAM, a Windows swap file of at least 6,144 KB is required.  See your Microsoft Windows User's Guide for information on how to create a swap file.

Hard Drive Space:

On machines with 8 MB or less of RAM, you will need approx. 11 MB of free disk space. This includes the required swap file space outlined above and the hard drive space required by The Magic School Bus - Explores the Solar System program.

Machines with more than 8 MB of RAM will require only 5 MB of free disk space.

CD-ROM Drive:

Double-speed CD-ROM: The CD-ROM drive can transfer data from the CD-ROM at 300 KB per second while using less than 40% of the CPU bandwidth and has an average seek time of less than 400 milliseconds.

MS-DOS CD-ROM Extensions (MSCDEX) version 2.2 or later. Check the documentation that came with your CD-ROM drive.

NOTE: "The Magic School Bus Explores The Solar System" may run properly on systems with an MPC Level I "single-speed'' CD-ROM drive. We have required a double-speed CD-ROM for consistent performance on a wide range of systems.

Video Display Requirements:

SVGA 640 x 480 X 256 color (local bus/accelerated video recommended). The Magic School Bus Explores The Solar System" requires a display driver and monitor capable of displaying 256 colors with a color palette, or more than 256 colors, in Windows.

Operating System Requirements:

MS-DOS 5.0 or later

Microsoft Windows 3.1 or later

Sound Requirements:

8-bit audio board, (16-bit recommended), such as:

The Microsoft Windows Sound System.

Creative Labs Sound Blaster or compatible sound card.

Media Vision Pro Audio or compatible sound card.

Other Requirements:

Stereo sound amplification (speakers) or headphones

Microsoft Mouse or compatible pointing device

System Recommendations:

WINDOWS HOT-KEYS: We advise against using Windows "Hot Keys" while running "The Magic School Bus Explores The Solar System" whenever possible.

We recommend setting your display to 256 colors for optimized display of "The Magic School Bus Explores The Solar System".

For faster performance, be sure that there is a Windows "Permanent Swap File" set up in your environment. See your Microsoft Windows User's Guide for information on how to create a swap file.


MPC II Specification

What are Multimedia and MPC Requirements?

Overview

Multimedia computing is the integration of sound, animation, and photo-quality images with text and graphics. Multimedia is the general name for the use of sound, live video, animation, and "interactive technologies" on computers. Multimedia on the PC ranges from the speaker in your PC going "beep" to virtual reality applications. The term multimedia refers to a combination of the following elements within the PC environments:

Digital Sound
Animation
Text and Graphics
Digital Video
Photo Quality Images

A Multimedia PC consists of five basic components. All components should meet or exceed the hardware requirements outlined in the Multimedia PC Level I specification.

A PC compatible computer

CD-ROM drive

Audio board for playing WAVE and MIDI

Speakers or headphones for audio output

Microsoft Windows 3.1 or greater.

The Multimedia PC Marketing Council has established a specification that reflects a broad industry consensus regarding appropriate functionality for enhanced multimedia computing. This specification was developed with assistance from the following corporations:

Microsoft

Tandy

Fujitsu

CompuAdd

AT&T

NEC Technologies

Olivetti

Headland Technology

MediaVision

Creative Labs

The term Multimedia PC refers to a specific class of computers that meet or exceed this MPC specification. The MPC Trademark indicates that the hardware on which it is stamped complies with this specification. There are currently two versions of the MPC specification:

  MPC Level I

  *MPC Level II


MultiMedia Level I

Multimedia Level I Specification

The MPC Level I specification consists of the following requirements:

1.	Microprocessor (CPU)

Intel 80386sx 16 Mhz or better

2.	Random Access Memory (RAM)

2 MB of extended memory or more.

3.	Magnetic Storage Device (Hard Drive)

30 MB hard drive or larger

4.	Optical Storage Device (CD-ROM Drive)

CD-ROM drive with an average seek time of 1 second or less that is capable of maintaining a sustained transfer rate of 150 KB/second without consuming more than 40 percent of the CPU bandwidth in the process.

5.	Audio (Sound Card)

8-bit (16-bit recommended) Digital-to-Analog Converter (DAC) with:

8-bit (16 bit recommended) Analog-to-Digital Converter (ADC) with:

Internal synthesizer hardware with multi-voice, multi-timbral capabilities - six simultaneous melody notes plus two simultaneous percussive notes.

Internal mixing capabilities to combine input from three (recommended four) sources and present the output as stereo line-level signal at the back panel.

6.	Video (Display Monitor)

VGA compatible adapter and a color VGA capable monitor capable of displaying 256 colors with a color palette, or more than 256 colors, in Windows.

7.	User Input (Keyboard and Mouse)

Standard 101-key IBM-style keyboard with standard DIN connector.

Two-button mouse.

8.	I/O (Input/Output)

Standard 9-pin or 25 pin serial port

Standard 25-pin bi-directional parallel port

MIDI I/O port


Multimedia Level II Specification

The MPC Level II specification consists of the following requirements:

1.	Microprocessor (CPU)

Intel 80486sx 25 Mhz or better

2.	Random Access Memory (RAM)

4 MB of extended memory or more.

3.	Magnetic Storage Device (Hard Drive)

160 MB hard drive or larger

4.	Optical Storage Device (CD-ROM Drive)

CD-ROM drive with an average seek time of 400 milliseconds or less that is capable of maintaining a sustained transfer rate of 300 KB/second without consuming more than 40 percent of the CPU bandwidth in the process. In addition, the CD-ROM drive must be multi-session capable.

5.	Audio (Sound Card)

16-bit Digital-to-Analog Converter (DAC) with:

16 bit Analog-to-Digital Converter (ADC) with:

Internal synthesizer hardware with multi-voice, multi-timbral capabilities - six simultaneous melody notes plus two simultaneous percussive notes.

Internal mixing capabilities to combine input from three (recommended four) sources and present the output as stereo line-level signal at the back panel.

6.	Video (Display Monitor)

VGA compatible adapter and a color VGA capable monitor capable of displaying 640x480, 256 colors.

7.	User Input (Keyboard and Mouse)

Standard 101-key IBM-style keyboard with standard DIN connector.

Two-button mouse.

8.	I/O (Input/Output)

Standard 9-pin or 25 pin serial port

Standard 25-pin bi-directional parallel port

MIDI I/O port


Although the MPC Level II specification requires a 16 bit sound card, "The Magic School Bus Explores The Solar System" does not require a 16 bit sound card. "The Magic School Bus Explores The Solar System" will function properly with an 8 bit sound card.


Although the MPC Level II specification requires a MIDI I/O port, "The Magic School Bus Explores The Solar System" does not require a MIDI I/O port.


Although the MPC Level II specification requires a 160 MB hard drive, "The Magic School Bus Explores The Solar System" requires only 5 MB of hard disk space.


Tips on Setting Up Your Windows Environment

Intro

"The Magic School Bus Explores The Solar System" requires a minimum of 4 MB of random access memory (RAM) to operate. Check that available memory is adequate. Although Windows allows you to run more than one application simultaneously, it is highly recommended that you close all other open applications to release all available memory when you run "The Magic School Bus Explores The Solar System".

Running In Low Memory Or Running Slowly

"The Magic School Bus Explores The Solar System" uses your computer's system memory to display pictures. If you find that "The Magic School Bus Explores The Solar System" runs slowly or if you encounter out-of-memory errors, the program probably doesn't have enough memory. Try doing the following to improve your computer's performance:

1.	Close all unnecessary applications.

2.	Determine how much total memory your computer has available. At the MS-DOS prompt, type "mem" and press ENTER. You need a minimum of 4 MB of total RAM memory to use "The Magic School Bus Explores The Solar System". If you do not have at least 4 MB of memory, you will not be able to run "The Magic School Bus Explores The Solar System" until you add more memory.

3.	Verify that you have the required swap file setup on your hard disk, as outlined below.

On machines with 8 MB or less of RAM, a Windows swap file of at least 6,144 KB is required.

If no swap file exists, set up a Windows "permanent swap file" on your hard disk. See your Microsoft Windows User's Guide for information on how to verify or create a swap file.

4.	Defragment ("clean up") your hard disk by running a defragmentation program such as DEFRAG, which comes with MS-DOS version 6 or higher.

Video Display Drivers

"The Magic School Bus Explores The Solar System" requires a screen resolution of 640 x 480 or higher. In addition, it requires that your video display adapter displays a minimum of 256 colors in Windows. When you install "The Magic School Bus Explores The Solar System", the setup program will tell you if your video display adapter cannot display 256 colors. (Note: This mode is available with VGA cards which have 512K video RAM or higher.)

To install the required video driver follow the instructions in your Microsoft Windows User's Guide  under Display driver - updating.

Note that current drivers may be obtained directly from the video card manufacturer or from electronic bulletin boards (BBS) that are often setup by the video board manufacturers. Electronic bulletin boards are databases that are accessible via a modem.


Troubleshooting

  Troubleshooting Setup Problems

  Troubleshooting Audio Problems

  Troubleshooting Video Problems

  Troubleshooting Performance Problems

  My problem isn't any of these.


Click here if you can't get Setup to run or there is a problem during setup.


Click here if your problem is sound related (what you hear - or don't hear).


Click here if your problem is related to what you see on your screen.


Click here if the product seems to be running very slowly.


Troubleshooting Setup Problems

  "Magic School Bus requires a 256 color display."

  "No sound card detected."

  "There isn't enough free space on that drive . . ."

  Setup appears to freeze or hang.

  My problem isn't one of these.


Magic School Bus requires a 256 color display.

"The Magic School Bus Explores The Solar System" requires that your video driver support a screen resolution of at least 640x480 (although the program will support higher screen resolutions). In addition, the program requires that your video driver is able to display 256 colors.

If you are using a 256-color video driver, the video driver needs to be a "palletized" video driver (it needs to display 256 colors from a fixed color palette).

To install the required video driver follow the instructions in your Microsoft Windows User's Guide under Display driver - updating.


Your computer uses a piece of hardware called a video card (or video display adapter) to take images from the computer and display them on your video monitor. Your video card uses a special piece of software called a "video driver" to communicate with your computer.


While "The Magic School Bus Explores The Solar System" will support screen resolutions greater than 640x480, the area that the program actually uses will be limited to 640 pixels by 480 pixels. Therefore, for optimal viewing, it is recommended that you use a screen resolution of only 640x480.


No sound card detected.

This error indicates that your sound driver is either not installed, not installed correctly, not configured correctly, or is in use. For more information on troubleshooting WAVE errors, refer to the section entitled, "The characters do not talk when I click on them".


There isn't enough free space on that drive . . .

Setup requires approximately 5 MB of free space on your hard drive to install the program. If you have less than 5 MB of free space, you will get this error message. You will need to free up space on you hard drive and reinstall the program.

To find out how much free space you have on your hard drive, type the following at the MS-DOS prompt:

chkdsk

The number of "bytes available on disk" should be equal to at least 5,242,880 bytes.


Setup hangs

Setup appears to freeze or hang.

If setup appears to freeze or hang, it may be that something else is conflicting with the setup program. If this happens, exit and restart Windows. Be sure that nothing else is running before you run setup. To be sure that all applications are closed, hold down your Ctrl key and press your Esc key. This will run Task Manager. In the Task Manager Task List, the only application that should be listed is your Windows shell (e.g. Program Manager, Norton Desktop for Windows, TabWorks).


Troubleshooting Audio Problems

"The Magic School Bus Explores The Solar System" uses the following type of sound files:

WAVE (*.WAV): Digitized audio

To hear these sounds, you must have a sound card that is capable of playing WAVE sounds.

Your sound card uses a special piece of software called a "sound driver" to communicate with your computer. In some instances, you may not get any sounds when using "The Magic School Bus Explores The Solar System". Usually this is because your sound driver is not installed or is configured improperly. If you do not hear any of the characters talking when you click on them, or get an error message when you start the program saying that there is a problem with your sound card or sound driver, the WAVE portion of your sound driver may be either improperly configured or not installed. If you do not get WAVE sounds, please refer to the "I am having trouble with WAVE sounds" portion of this file.

  "I am having trouble with WAVE sounds"


"I am having trouble with WAVE sounds"

I am having trouble with WAVE sounds.

  I got an error message about my sound.

  The characters do not talk when I click on them.

  My sounds are "scratchy".

  My sounds "break up" when they play.


I got an error message about my sound

I got an error message about my sound.

The two most common errors you will get about WAVE sounds are:

"A sound card is required to run Magic School Bus."

"Magic School Bus cannot get the sound device right now, it's in use elsewhere, try again."

If you receive the first error message, it usually indicates that your sound driver is either not installed, not installed correctly or not configured correctly. If you receive the second error message, it usually indicates that your sound driver is in use by another open program. This is

solved by closing all other open programs, and restarting Magic School Bus.

For more information on troubleshooting WAVE errors, refer to the section entitled, "The characters do not talk when I click on them".


The characters do not talk when I click on them

The characters do not talk when I click on them.

If your characters do not talk when you click on them, you may have one of the following problems:

Your sound driver may not be configured correctly.

Your volume control and/or mixer control may be turned down.

Your speakers or headphones may be not be working.

Your sound driver may not be configured properly

If you have determined that your sound driver is installed, but still do not hear WAVE sounds, it may be that your sound driver is not configured properly. If that is the case, please refer to your sound card documentation or contact your sound card manufacturer to get your WAVE driver configured properly.

Once you have configured your sound driver, you can test to see if it is working correctly by doing the following:

1.	Open "Sound Recorder" in your Accessories group.

2.	Open a *.WAV file.

3.	Play the sound.

4.	If you get no sound or you get an error message your sound driver may not be configured properly, your volume may need to be turned up on your sound card, or you may have a problem with your headphones or speakers.

Your volume control and/or mixer control may be turned down

Many sound cards have a volume control knob on the sound card itself. Other sound cards have a "mixer control" program available in Windows. Still other sound cards have both. To determine how your sound card controls volume, please refer to your sound card documentation or contact your sound card manufacturer.

Once you have determined how your sound card controls the volume, turn up the volume on your sound card. If your sound card uses a "mixer control" program, be sure that both the WAVE volume and the Master volume are turned up.

Your speakers or headphones may be not be working

In many cases, you do not get sound because there is a problem with your headphones or with the speakers you are using with your sound card. Try using an alternate set of headphones and/or speakers. In addition, many speakers used with today's sound cards have volume control knobs on the speakers. Check to ensure that the volume is turned up on your speakers.

If your sound driver is installed, configured correctly, the volume is turned up, and your speakers and/or headphones are working correctly but you still get no WAVE sounds when using "The Magic School Bus Explores The Solar System", please contact your sound card manufacturer.


My sounds are scratchy

My sounds are "scratchy".

If your sounds are "scratchy" or sound distorted, it may be due to the speakers that you are using with your sound card. Many speakers do not have the ability to play some sounds, especially low frequency sounds. If you are using speakers, try changing speakers or try using headphones instead. If your sounds are still distorted or scratchy, you may be experiencing a problem with the DMA channel you are using.

The most common cause of scratchy or distorted sound is due to a problem with the DMA channel you have chosen to use on your sound card. Scratchy sounds are most often experienced on systems that are using 16-bit sound cards. 16-bit sound cards can access high DMA channels as well as low DMA channels.

If your sound card is using a high DMA channel in Windows and you are experiencing scratchy sounds, try using a low DMA channel instead.

If your sound card is using a low DMA channel in Windows and you are experiencing scratchy sounds, try using a high DMA channel instead.

If you need information on how to change your DMA settings in Windows for your sound card, please refer to your sound card documentation or call your sound card manufacturer.


DMA channel = Direct Memory Access channel


My sounds "break up" when they play

My sounds "break up" when they play.

If your sounds seem to "break up" when you play them. it could be due to one of two things:

Sound buffer set too low

System performance

To check your sound buffer setting, do the following:

1.	In Program Manager, open your Main group.

2.	Double-click on the "Control Panel" icon in Main.

3.	Double-click on the Drivers icon in Control Panel.

4.	From the list of installed drivers, choose "[MCI] Sound".

5.	Click the Setup button.

6.	Using the slider bar, increase the number of seconds that is used for buffering audio data. The default setting is four seconds.

7.	Click OK.

8.	Click Close.

9.	Close the Control Panel by choosing Settings, Exit.

10.	Restart "The Magic School Bus Explores The Solar System" and test to see whether sound still "breaks up" when it plays.

If your sounds still break up, please refer to the Toubleshooting Performance Problems section of this file.


Video Color Palette = the set of colors that are available at any given time for displaying

what you see on the screen.


Troubleshooting Video Problems

Your computer uses a piece of hardware called a video card (or video display adapter) to take images from the computer and display them on your video monitor. Your video card uses a special piece of software called a "video driver" or display driver to communicate with your computer.

In some instances, the video driver does not work correctly. When that happens your video color palette can re-map itself to something that is "ugly", your program can stop working, Windows can stop working, or your computer can seem to freeze or hang. In addition, "The Magic School Bus Explores The Solar System" requires that your video driver display at least 256 colors. Any of these problems can lead to the need to change and/or update your video driver.

The following are a list of the most common problems or error messages associated with the video driver:

  "The display driver is not a palette driver and supports less than 256 colors."

  The program does not fill my entire screen.

  My machine stops working or hangs when I use "Magic School Bus Explores The Solar System".

  My game freezes.


The display driver . . . supports less than 256 colors.

"The Magic School Bus Explores The Solar System" requires that your video driver support a screen resolution of at least 640x480 (although the program will support higher screen resolutions). In addition, the program requires that your video driver is able to display 256 colors.

If you are using a 256-color video driver, the video driver needs to be a "palletized" video driver (it needs to display 256 colors from a fixed color palette).

To install the required video driver follow the instructions in your Microsoft Windows User's Guide under Display driver - updating.


The program does not fill my entire screen.

While "The Magic School Bus Explores The Solar System" will support screen resolutions greater than 640x480, the area that the program actually uses will be limited to 640 pixels by 480 pixels. This is a design feature implemented, in part, for increased performance. Therefore, for optimal viewing, it is recommended that you use a screen resolution of only 640x480.


My machine hangs

My machine hangs.

If your machine seems to stop working or hang while using "The Magic School Bus Explores The Solar System", especially if it seems to hang during animations, movies (.AVI's), or during transitions between screens, there may be a problem with your video display driver.

To correct this problem, you may need to obtain a different and/or  updated video driver for your particular video card. If you are unsure about what kind of video card you have, you should contact the store or dealer that you purchased your computer from. If you are unsure about where to obtain a video driver for your video card or you do not know how to install the video driver, please contact the manufacturer of your video card.


My players freeze when I play the game.

My game freezes.

If objects freeze when you play the jumping game on a planet and you have the Microsoft Natural Keyboard software installed, it is because you have the software "key sounds" turned on. If you disable those sounds the game should play normally.


Troubleshooting Performance Problems

If you experience performance problems using "The Magic School Bus Explores The Solar System" it may be due to the following:

Your machine is displaying more than 256 colors.

Your machine does not meet the minimum system requirements for "The Magic School Bus Explores The Solar System".

Your machine just meets the minimum system requirements for "The Magic School Bus Explores The Solar System".

To determine if your machine is displaying more than 256 colors, open up Windows Setup and check the display line for color depth information. If none is present, then refer to the video/display driver documentation that came with your video card. To change the number of colors displayed, refer to the video/display driver documentation that came with your video card.

If your system does not meet the minimum system requirements for "The Magic School Bus Explores The Solar System", you need to make the necessary modification(s) to your system before you can expect "The Magic School Bus Explores The Solar System" to work properly.

If your machine "just meets" the minimum system requirements, you can try the following to help increase your system performance:

  Optimize your Windows swap file settings.

  Optimize your system's memory.

  Optimize Windows.

  Have SMARTDRIVE cache your CD-ROM drive.

  Close all other applications when using "The Magic School Bus Explores The Solar System".


On machines with 8 MB or less of RAM, at least a 6,144 KB swap file is required.

For faster performance, be sure that there is a Windows "Permanent Swap File" set up in your Windows environment set at the recommended setting.

See your Microsoft Windows User's Guide for information on determining your swap file settings. If your swap file does not meet the minimum size requirements as outlined above, please refer to your Microsoft Windows User's Guide for information on creating or changing your swap file settings.


For more information on optimizing your system's memory, please refer to your MS-DOS User's Guide.


For more information on optimizing Windows, please refer to your Microsoft Windows User's Guide.


If you are using MS-DOS 6.2 or later, you can use SMARTDRIVE to cache your CD-ROM drive. To do this, you need to load MSCDEX before you load SMARTDRIVE in your AUTOEXEC.BAT file. For more information, please refer to your MS-DOS User's Guide.


To be sure that all applications are closed, hold down your Ctrl key and press your Esc key. This will run Task Manager. In the Task Manager Task List, the only applications that should be listed are your Windows shell (e.g. Program Manager, Norton Desktop for Windows, TabWorks) and "The Magic School Bus Explores The Solar System".


My problem isn't one of these

My problem isn't one of these.

If your problem doesn't seem to be audio, video, printer, or performance related, ask yourself, "When does this problem occur?" Most problems will tend to fall into the above categories.

Often you will receive an error message and won't know what it means or what to do. If you get an error message while using the "Magic School Bus Explores The Solar System", please take note of the following:

1.	The exact error message.

2.	Where in the program you got the message.

3.	What events led up to the error message.


Game Tips

On each planet surface, a small satellite (the Whatsit) appears in the upper left or right corner of the screen. Clicking on the Whatsit will take youto the game for that planet.

Click on the spacebar to jump.

Run left or right by pressing the left and right arrow keys.

Click on the Whatsit while playing the game to quit the game and return to the planet surface.

Collect Jump Boots (marked J) and Traction Boots (marked T) to help you jump and land on moving platforms. Collect Rocket Packs to defy gravity (press up arrow button to fly) and Air Packs to extend oxygen supply.

If the game "freezes" while playing, please make sure "keyboard sounds" in your Microsoft Natural Keyboard software (if present) are turned off.