Enhanced version question
 

After replacing my very old PC with a maching running windows 7 64 bit, I located and installed the enhanced version purchased a few years ago. I used the instructions that guide you through installing in a windows 7 OS. This is version 3.0 so I assumed I needed all patches 3.5 - 5.5 so these patches were applied. Unfortunately, when trying to start the game (using the "game options" app file) I get a message stating file BORLNDMM.DLL is missing and I need to reinstall so I reinstalled. Still no luck. All drivers are up to date. Does anyone have any advice?

Re: Enhanced version question
 

Did you install the game under Program files ?

borlndmm.dll does come with every copy of the game and is normally in the main winspmbt folder with the other .dlls . It sounds like windows 7 is playing hide and seek with it.

Don

Re: Enhanced version question
 

It was not installed in program files, I installed to C:\SPMBT. I searched that location and found BORLNDMM.DLL is present. Any suggestions on how to fix the issue?

Re: Enhanced version question
 

This is the first report of being unable to find that dll. So you must have done something unique :).

Did you install all the patches, in sequential ascending order, to the same folder (path) as you installed the game?. If not, you can have severe problems. You will have to change the path in the installer for each and every patch. Also, you will want to install all when logged in as the same user or W7 might get confused (it is easily confused).

(The help tab in game Options should read version 26th Feb 2011 BTW)

You can find if some files have been squirreled away to strange places by searching on game-specific file extensions, say .shp, .cmt and .obf. All should be in the correct places. Also there should only be one copy of the game exe for example - not several swuirreled under user profile trees etc (the usual thing if installed to /program files under W7 as UAC tries to "manage" things and gets it completely wrong, but also the case if you mistyped the path in any of the patch installs - where it may go to a completely new folder or whatever).

If that is all OK:
Does double clicking on the game executable (and others like Ww2_armourcalc) directly start the game/utility properly?. (Set it to windowed mode in game options first, windowed mode causes less hassles with W7 and you have the desktop resolution to replace full-screen since you have the CD).

Does trying to launch the game help (help screen in game options) and the utilities (utilities tab) work from game options?.

Cheers
Andy

Re: Enhanced version question
 

Are you sure its version 3 I have the enhanced CD & am pretty sure its version 1 so you have to installl ALL the patches in order.

Re: Enhanced version question
 

Thank you both for your responses and effort. As for the installation, I followed the Win7 sticky instructions to the letter placing everything in a unique folder on the C drive. To make sure I just deleted everything and reinstalled to...

C:\Games\WinSPMBT

The CD installation file indicated it is V3 during the installation (top left of screen). After installation I installed all (up to 5.5) patches to...

C:\Games\WinSPMBT

Afterwards I tried starting the exe files with the following results:
MBT_APCalc and ARMORCALC both produce a message saying VCL50.BPL cannot be found.
Trying to open GAMEOPTIONS I get the message that DXANITIMER.DLL cannot be found.
In the utilities folder both OOB Converter and COSTCALCULATOR work ok.

Should I install all patches to this V3 file starting at patch V2.0?

Do you think purchasing a new download enhanced version will solve the problem? I assume the enhanced version available is the latest version 5.5.

Re: Enhanced version question
 

Okay guessing here the Version 3 applies to the installer not the software you are instaling which will be version 1 so apply ALL patches. Right clicking on the WinSPMBT.exe icon & selecting properties will most likely show the version number.
The icon in the shape of a tank NOT the game options one that you open the game with.

Re: Enhanced version question
 

I just performed a new install following the Win7 sticky instructions and then applied all patches 2.0-5.5. I tried to start the game using the gameoptions exe file and still get the can't find BORLNDMM.DLL message. I searched for BORLNDMM.DLL and found it in the utilities folder. I tried moving BORLNDMM.DLL to the main folder. Afterwards I tried to start the game via the gameoptions exe file and I get a message saying it can't find DXANITIMER.DLL. Maybe I'm just out of luck with this game.

Re: Enhanced version question
 

Well despite you sayng so it sounds to me lke you are stll instaling in a folder monitored by UAC. Sounds stupid but you are installing the patches to the same folder as you installed the game to.

Turn off your virus checker
Install game & all patches in order to a folder say C:\Games\SPMBT
If I was you I would also turn off UAC
Open up Control Panel, and type “UAC” into the search box top right or google turning off UAC if that does not work.

This does make your system fractionally less secure but honestly its a total waste aimed more at placing stuff in set locations for business IT guys.
If your really worried about security you should not be using your adminastrive account as your day to day account

If this does not work can only suggest you may have a virus

Re: Enhanced version question
 

There is no "utilities" folder in the WinSP directory structure. The folder you found on your machine is likely from some other programme that uses Borland compilers (and may not be the same version either).

All the requisite dlls are installed in the first install of the original game, some other patches may then update those. But a missing dxanitimer points to the original game not being installed.

1) Install the original game ( from the physical CD, CD download, or the free demo version download)

The original game installation is the big (100MB) download or CD package that is version 1.0 (I think, been a long time :))

I suspect that you have not installed the original main 1.0 version - since you are missing some fundamental dll files.

2) Now download and apply each and every patch file in ascending numerical sequence.
There is no consolidated patch file - all patches require to be applied in order to incrementally build the original game up to the current release version.

From some of what you said above, you seem to have decided to install patches from about V3.0 for some reason. That will simply give you a part installation, missing vital files from the main game and previous incremental patches.

The patch files are available here - bottom right corner of the page
http://www.shrapnelgames.com/Camo_Wo.../MBT_page.html

So - to make it simple (I hope! :))
A) Decide which folder to install to (especially if using Windows Vista/Seven or later. See the sticky message at the top of the main forum on windows vista and seven "fun & games"). XP and earlier users can leave these at the default, as XP and earlier don't have the vile UAC to bollix up file management!.

B) Install the original main v1.0 game to that folder. The patches will build on this root!.

C) Now, install in ascending numeric order all of the following, changing the path for each and every patch installer to agree with stage A above, if you installed to a non-default path.
1- v2.0
2- v2.5
3- v3.0
4- v3.5
5- v4.0
6- v4.5
7- v5.0
8- v5.5

Andy

Re: Enhanced version question
 

My question is, Where EXACTLY do you see the "V3" you refer to??

You say

ANY "enhanced version purchased a few years ago" would be V1. There has NEVER been an upgrade to the basic CD version of the game SPECIFICALLY to avoid problems like this. Everyone starts with V1 then builds the game to the current level by patching sequentially oldest to newest and if you started with the DL verison and then upgraded to the CD version you MUST start the process of patching up all over again.

If you are starting from a physical CD version or a DL of the CD version or even if you are starting from the the basic DL version of the game you MUST start building the game from V1 NOT "V3"

I think, since this has been going on and on that the problem started with the assumption you could start with V3.

ALL of the DLL's were issued with V1. As Andy say, some may have been updated but if you repeatedly get messages that the game cannot find the DLL's then there are only two explanation

1/ You are not starting with V1

or

2/ Windows 7 does even stranger things with the game files than we had previously thought possible

but in this case I'm thinking it's 1/


There are NINE .Dll's the game needs to run. They should all be in the main root directory of the game.
http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/attac...1&d=1328792636

Don

Re: Enhanced version question
 

My guess is he located the version 3.0 supplemental patch (filesize 27.0MB) and not the actual purchased Enhanced CD version of the game.

It reads "WinSPMBT- Version 3.0 Supplement Install Program" and "Welcome to the WinSPMBT- Version 3.0 Supplement Install program. This program allows you to install WinSPMBT- Version 3.0 Supplement on you hard drive."

Maybe that is the cause for confusion here. A better text would be: "This program will upgrade your game to version 3.0".

All the later patches use the word "Upgrade" on them.

Re: Enhanced version question
 

Wow! I really appreciate all of the replies. The install screen reads "SPMBT V3 COMPLETE GAME" (see attached zip file). After reading all of the recent replies I see the only thing I have not done before is disable UAC. So, to make sure I have not repeatedly made the same mistake I did the following...

Disable UAC

Completely deleted my latest attempt at installation

Restarted computer

Installed using the complete game installation file to C:\Games\SPMBT This install file has the "SPMBT V3 COMPLETE GAME" title at the top left corner of the screen during installation. (See attached zip file. This install file is 77.9 MB on disk before installation)

Installed all patches 2.0 - 5.5 to the same location C:\Games\SPMBT

After all of this the C:\Games\SPMBT folder size on disk was 546 MB.

I tried opening the GameOption exe file and received the same relentless error message.

Re: Enhanced version question
 

:doh:

What you have there is V3 of the old DOS game and that is not compatible with the windows based winSPMBT.

I'm not quite sure where you see it called the "enhanced version" however and it would not have been purchased because we didn't offer a CD version of the DOS games and on top of that, I don't recall that photo in the screen shot that appears while the installer is running. Where did you get this ?

So the reason your game will not run is because you are trying to patch an old DOS version of the game from 8 or 9 years ago with the new Windows version patches of the game. That is a first for us I must admit.

Finally, even though that screen shot is a full sized BMP I cannot read what it says at the top left corner. Could you please tell me what it says exactly.

Don

Re: Enhanced version question
 

As Don says, these forums are for support of the WinSPMBT and (in the other case) WinSPWW2. The Win prefix came about when the DOS version was buried after the conversion to Windows.

These games only have ancestry in the long dead and gone and completely unsupported DOS versions (SPMBT and SPWW2) of half a decade or more ago. See the release history of the game guide.

Applying the Windows patches to the DOS games is as logical as trying to patch MS Word with WordPerfect. Completely different animals. Completely different file formats for one thing. Though way back in the days of messy-DOS though, we did have some folks try to apply our game patches to the original DOS SSI games...:doh:

If you have found an old copy of the antique DOS game installer - throw it away, MSDOS is dead and gone.

Follow the steps I outlined in my previous message using the free demo download as the base game and you will be able to play WinSPMBT in Windows.

(If you do want to play around with the defunct messy-DOS game, then you may find the old SPMBT Yahoo! group - no idea if it is still active, but some die-hard DOSsers did hang about there for a while.)

Andy