20 replies to this topic

[Elder]

ahhh my first post here.... I hope this is appropiate....I dl/ed the "lite" BCM demo ( only have ISDN) and just installed it... Ive been running the 12.00whql detonator drivers for a month or so ... seeming fine.... however with BCM when i launched the game the screen would go black for a few seonds then pop back to my desk top.... on a hunch i loaded up the "official" 6.50 drivers and the game now runs flawlessly... If any one else has the problem make sure your video drivers are the offical ones released from your vid card chipset manufacturer...... especially if your one of those people with and Nvidia card who loves to load the newest "beta" detonator drivers that seem to appear evey other week.....)

BTW i just learned of this game and this board. In brief all i can say is i cant believe i missed this one till now....Anyway i got questions which ill address in another post and after running some fourm searches.... oh wait i got to play the demo thru one more time........ see ya!
Elder
kk266
tbird 1.2 gig
512 crucial pc133
Elsa geforce 2 pro
onboard sound

[ 06-16-2001: Message edited by: mike ]

[Darkvenom]

Too bad the official drivers from Nvidia BSOD on me 25% of the time The drivers from Asus works fine. Anybody else owns a V7700 32mb PURE and have problems with the detonator drivers?

[Supreme Cmdr]

[indent]quote:

---

on a hunch i loaded up the "official" 6.50 drivers and the game now runs flawlessly

---

[/indent]

Had you actually read the FAQ, you would have saved yourself the hunch and some time+aggravation.

[Elder]

Ya i here ya SC... its just hard to find a balance between wanting to test the " latest and greatest" geforce drivers and being concerned with what drivers work with what particular game(s)/hardware im currently running.....)

CmdrDave- www.nvidia.com has the 6.50 drivers for the geforce... which are the most recent, official, and supported drivers from nvidia. Give them a try if your having any graphical issues.

[ 06-17-2001: Message edited by: mike ]

[Pioneer]

6.50 is still the way to go. The newest drivers have reported issues with Anarchy Online, as well as Tribes 2.

[Supreme Cmdr]

[indent]quote:

---

I suppose the only negative thing I could say about the game demo so far is the lack of interaction with other craft, i.e. I can not communicate with them. It would be nice in my opinion, to tell the Gamm to back off or be prepared for a fight (Sorry, I prefer Picard's approach to Kirk's. )or be able to verbally request docking instead of hitting ctrl-d. But I suppose the interaction with you crew serves to fill in the quiet void of space. I can see why it would not be necessary for multiplayer but some people do not play well with others.

---

[/indent]

These were all part of my original design docs - but alas, there is only so much that I can put in the game, and still have room for the kitchen sink

....but, since you are new to the BC series, then you probably are not aware of my track record for putting in freebies in my patches. So, you never know what may show up in a later patch.

[Game_Ender]

Ok i have downloaded the Episode 1 high content demo (it took a little under 18 hours and i hope it is worth it ). I also got the patch and did everything it said to impliment it.

When ever I start the game the screen goes black but I still hear the sound as the game starts up. The only way for me to get out of the game is to alt tab out which turns off the game.

I have a geforce 3 and I am running the latest driver that is on the nvidia web site, v12.41. I went to there site and i am going to give the 6.50 driver a try.

[ 06-28-2001: Message edited by: Game_Ender ]

[Gallion]

The following nvidia Det 3 Drivers work fine in my experience:

12.01
12.40
12.41 WHQL
12.90

The 6.50 drivers will work but you will miss out on a lot of goodies

[indent]quote:

---

...Ok i have downloaded the Episode 1

---

[/indent]

Should've spent time downloading Episode 2.

Enjoy

TTFN

[ 06-28-2001: Message edited by: Gallion ]

[Supreme Cmdr]

[indent]quote:

---

Should've spent time downloading Episode 2

---

[/indent]

Great, now he's going to sink into a state of depression.

[Game_Ender]

I already am, this also happens with Homeworld and Homeworld Cataclysm (but only since i got my Geforce 3).

The 6.50 driver won't install, it can't find a "Nvidia graphics chipset". Its also called "TNTW9.EXE" so it might be to old for a geforce 3? I don't what it is , the sound plays just like the game was starting up like normal but nothing appears on the screen.

Is there anything else to do, to screw up before i even start a scenario it must be something basic (or really complicated )

P.S. - I was planing on getting Episode 2 after i got Episode 1 working.

Edit- I forgot to mention i got a new mother board and CPU along with my Geforce 3, so they could be the problem. The mother board was by the K7VZA Revision 3.0 by ECS (With 1.3Ghz tbird).

Also this setup plays other 3D games just fine. The "other" includes Emperor: Battle for Dune and Deus Ex (it uses the Unreal Engine).

[ 06-28-2001: Message edited by: Game_Ender ]

[Game_Ender]

Here is the debug log file from one of the times the game didn't work right. To be more exact every time a start up the game the screen goes into stanby/shutdown mode (the mode it goes in when the i turn off the computer but not the monitor).

Loading objects.dat
Loading connect.dat
randomising
Misc allocations
Setup sin() table
iam_init()
alloc mtds
alliance_init()
WindowResize()
Client :0,0,634,455
Parent :0,0,640,480
palette_load()
Initialise Commlink
Initialise pte
sound_init()
keyboard_open()
Initialise debris
Initialise stars
Initialise planet
Planet points 424 427)
Planet triangles 800
control_open()
init() completed

Here is the results from a program that gets details on computer specs. I am doing this in hope that someone will see what is wrong. If i don't find something wrong i will just reformat my hard drive , reinstall windows , and then try to find all the right drivers .

----EASy System Summary--------------------------------------

Video Card : NVIDIA GeForce3
Video Driver : nvdisp.drv
Driver Version : 4.13.01.1200

Sound Card : Creative SB Live!
Sound Driver : emu10k1.vxd
Driver Version : 4.06.00.0703

DirectX : DirectX 8
Operating System Windows 98 A 4.10.2222

----EASy System Output---------------------------------------

Computer Name : Joe

BIOS Info
Name : Award
Version : Award Modular BIOS v4.51PG
PNP : Plug and Play BIOS
Manufacturer : (Standard system devices)

CPU Info

CPU Count : 1
CPU Type : 1338 MHz AuthenticAMD Thunderbird
6 4 2

RAM : 510 MB Total
408 MB Free
Virtual RAM : 1537 MB Total
1457 MB Free

Operating System : Windows 98 A 4.10.2222

Default Browser : Internet Explorer
Version : 5.50.4134.600

Temp Directory : C:WINDOWSTEMP
Size : 193 MB

------------------------------------------------------------

----Display Info--------------------------------------------

Number of Displays : 1

Current Mode (Primary) : 1024x768 32
Refresh Rate (Primary) : Optimal refresh rate

Primary display device

Description : NVIDIA GeForce3
Manufacturer : NVIDIA
Video Memory : 64 MB

Main Driver : nvdisp.drv
Version : 4.13.01.1200
Provider : NVIDIA

Supported Display Modes

| 16 | 256 | 16 bits| 24 bits| 32 bits
---------------------------------------------------
640 x 480| * | * | * | | *
800 x 600| | * | * | | *
1024x 768| | * | * | | *
1152x 864| | * | * | | *
1280x1024| | * | * | | *
1600x1200| | * | * | | *

------------------------------------------------------------

----Sound, Video and Game Controllers-----------------------

Description : Creative SB Live!
Manufacturer : Creative

Main Driver : emu10k1.vxd
Version : 4.06.00.0703
Provider : Creative

Description : Logitech USB Microphone
Manufacturer : Logitech

Main Driver : LVSound2.sys
Version :
Provider : Logitech

Description : Microsoft Kernel System Renderer
Manufacturer : Microsoft

Main Driver :
Version :
Provider : Microsoft

Description : 2-axis, 2-button joystick
Driver : msjstick.drv
Version : 4.08.00.0400
Attached : Yes

------------------------------------------------------------

----Direct X------------------------------------------------

DirectX Info
Version : DirectX 8

DirectDraw Info
Version : 4.08.00.0400
Certified : Not certified

DirectSound Info
Version : 4.08.00.0400
Certified : Not certified

DirectPlay Info
Version : 4.03.00.1096

DirectInput Info
Version : 4.08.00.0400

------------------------------------------------------------

----Drive Information---------------------------------------

----CDRom Info----------------------------------------------

Cache size : 1238 KB
Access Pattern : Quad-speed or higher

Drive Letter A
Volume Name :
Type : Floppy
File System : FAT
Total Space : 1.39 MB
Free Space : 891.50 KB

Drive Letter C
Volume Name :
Type : Fixed
File System : FAT32
Total Space : 5.96 GB
Free Space : 3.73 GB

Drive Letter D
Volume Name :
Type : Fixed
File System : FAT32
Total Space : 9.76 GB
Free Space : 570.89 MB

Drive Letter E
Volume Name :
Type : Fixed
File System : FAT32
Total Space : 9.75 GB
Free Space : 4.56 GB

Drive Letter F
Volume Name : EMPEROR3
Type : CDRom
File System : CDFS
Total Space : 592.63 MB
Free Space : 0.00 KB
Sec/MB : Test not performed
Detected Speed : Test not performed

------------------------------------------------------------

----Monitor Information-------------------------------------

Primary monitor

Description : ViewSonic PF790
Manufacturer : ViewSonic Corporation
Max. Resolution : 1600x1200

------------------------------------------------------------

----Network Information-------------------------------------

Description : Dial-Up Adapter
Manufacturer : Microsoft
Driver : pppmac.vxd
Provider : Microsoft
Bound Protocols
TCP/IP
IP Address: Obtained from provider
IP Mask: Obtained from provider

------------------------------------------------------------

----Input Device Information--------------------------------

Mouse Information

Description : Cordless8 (PS/2)
Type : PS2

Keyboard Information

Description : IBM enhanced (101- or 102-key)

------------------------------------------------------------

----Modem Information---------------------------------------

Description : Modem Blaster USB DE5670
Driver : Modem Blaster USB DE5670
Provider : 3-30-1999

------------------------------------------------------------

----Glide/OpenGL Information--------------------------------

Glide Info

Glide2 Version :
Glide3 Version :

OpenGL Info

Version : 4.0

------------------------------------------------------------

----Task List-----------------------------------------------

msgsrv32.exe
spool32.exe
mprexe.exe
mstask.exe
lexbces.exe
rpcss.exe
mmtask.tsk
ddhelp.exe
taskmon.exe
Systray
wmiexe.exe
rnaapp.exe
tapisrv.exe
iexplore.exe
pstores.exe
Explorer
ez.exe

------------------------------------------------------------

----Autoexec.bat--------------------------------------------

SET BLASTER=A240 I2 D0 H7 P330 T6

SET CTSYN=C:WINDOWS

C:PROGRA~1CREATIVESBLIVEDOSDRVSBEINIT.COM

@SET CLASSPATH=C:PROGRA~1PHOTOD~1.0ADOBEC~1;D:Program FilesHEATnavbar;%CLASSPATH%

------------------------------------------------------------

----Config.sys----------------------------------------------

DEVICE=C:WINDOWSHIMEM.SYS

DEVICE=C:WINDOWSEMM386.EXE

------------------------------------------------------------

X_CASE_START
X_CASE_DESCRIPTION:
X_CONTACT_FIRST_NAME:
X_CONTACT_LAST_NAME:
X_GAME:
X_SERIAL_KEY:
X_OPERATING_SYSTEM: Windows 98 A , Version 4.10, Build 2222
X_PROCESSOR: Thunderbird
X_SPEED: 1338 MHz
X_MMX: No
X_RAM: 510 MB
X_MANUFACTURER:
X_PRODUCT_ID:
X_VIDEO_CARD: NVIDIA GeForce3
X_DISPLAY_DRIVER: 4.13.01.1200
X_DISPLAY_DIRECTX: Not Certified, Hardware Support
X_DISPLAY_MEMORY: 7 MB
X_AUDIO_CERTIFIED: Not Certified
X_AUDIO_DRIVERS: emu10k1.vxd 4.06.00.0703
X_MODEM: Modem Blaster USB DE5670
X_V_MANUFACTURER: NVIDIA
X_A_MANUFACTURER: Creative
X_CASE_END

[Harlocke]

I have been having some odd graphic problems running the 12.90 drivers with the ep2 demo. Firstly the 12.90 drivers work with all my games and seem to be just as fast or even a tad faster (and have better visuals)than the previous 7.52 drivers I was running. Now I am currently playing "Emperor battle for dune","Startopia",and "UT"with "infiltration". These games seem to run much better with the 12.90 drivers due to dx8 support as EBfD and Startopia are dx8 games like unto the BCM demo2. The BCM demo2 runs great on these drivers and seems so far to be quite stable on them. Unfortunatly there is one little problem I am having with them. The problem ONLY occures in the e2demo. Basically what is happening is that the planetary aspect of the game is rendering ludicrus levels of fog. The "fog" (don't know if thats what it really is or not)is the same color of the sky..such as a mars like planet would be 5ft of visibility in redish fog..or a moon(satini) of a gas planet would be black fog as there is no atmosphere there. I can do every thing the demo offers except the plantary visiblity makes flying planet side impossible. I can see the shadowy forms of buildings and vehicles when I am in a certain distance but they have no visble color other than that of the fog ..just darker. TTDs are visible and readable and targets in the cvd are normal..just as they are in the space side of the game. Now what I am hoping here is that someone might have an idea of what needs to be adjusted to make this "Fog" from hell go away. Oddly this did not happen on my 7.52 drivers ( YES i know they not dx8 compliant but I was curious how far they would work..oddly they worked, just a bit unstable is all but everything was functional). I would like to hold onto these drivers(12.90) if possible but if not then could someone tell me which driver set from 10.80 ,12.00,12.41,12.60, work best as an alternative? Thanks, your time is much appreciated.

PS: my apature is set to 64mb and all the other little bios things that need to be done have been done since the the instalation of my 7.52 drivers.

My machine is a
PII 350
leadtec winfast geforce2 mx 32mb
128mb ram
win98
dx8.0

[Supreme Cmdr]

Only drivers officially released by the manufacturers, are supported. In which case, that would be the 12.41 WHQL drivers.

[Elder]

ack this post wont die!.....Im my opinion the multitude of vid card/driver combos out there creates a nightmare for game developers trying to create a solid game that will run on every ones rigs ..... So if you want to try vid cards or drivers not listed as "offical" by the game development team.....cool! But use at your own risk! That said anyone who owns an Nvidia based vid card is presented with "new" drivers ever other day it seems like. Many of us like to test out these drivers as see how they perform with different games/benchmarks.... All good....... But i think many people switch Video card drivers so often and dont uninstall/install properly that they have "junk" left in there registry thats affecting the performance of there video card when they do install the correct drivers.. Im to lazy to type out a step by step discription of how to uninstall/install vid drivers but I found this nice little utility over @ www.guru3d.com called Detonator Destroyer which explains how to use it and then install what ever drivers you want to install..Heres a link :

web page

P.s.
Im a very patient man.......but this waiting for BCM to go gold is killing me! arg!

ARG!

[Harlocke]

Thanks for your input into the matter, it is appreciated. Just fyi I did follow the guru3d method of install and uninstall for nvidia drivers. Switching to another driver set is really no big deal..I was just wondering if the issue could be remedied through settings somewhere. I think I have heard of this kind of problem with people with other products and there was some solution to it. However I will just explore the rest of the 12.41 and 12.60 to see which works out best for me. The main reason I was using the 12.90 driver was because I read about some fixes that the SC was working on that might be solved by the 12.90 canidate (hehe I do read ALL the vfc..old habit from the first game..wish there was a way to do a word search in it though. personaly I wish all programing teams would create vfc's as I do QA for a living, and well sometimes my job is harder than it needs to be). Also loaded them up cause most people around the web are saying they are pretty damn good drivers in comparison to 12.41, guess i'll go be the judge of that.

My apologies for being too wordy..I am a wordy kind of guy.

[Falcon]

i have a TNT2 with 12.41 det3 drivers and the only probs I had was not installing the drivers properly as per the specific instructions on installing the card drivers. Had no probs with episode 1 after turning of the z buffer, and absolutely none with episode 2. But maybe its because i read the FAQ.

The specs well Duron 800 Gigabyte 7Zm Mainboard 128 mg Ram TNT2 32 mg ram 98 SE and only 2.1 gb HDD

And it works damn fine

[ 07-17-2001: Message edited by: Falcon ]

[WhizzKidd]

[indent]quote:

---

Originally posted by Supreme Cmdr:
Only drivers officially released by the manufacturers, are supported. In which case, that would be the 12.41 WHQL drivers.

---

[/indent]

Um, I have those drivers installed and I cant get Demo Ep 1 to work at all. It just flashes down to 640x480 then flashes back to 1600x1200 (desktop res). Yes, "adjust z buffer depth to rendering depth if unequal" is ticked in my display settings. So, what gives?

[Epsilon 5]

Maybe those drivers only work in the 2nd demo...