Game Unplayable - Staff please respond - Page 2

LLB · #11 November 17th, 2001, 10:09 PM

I think that very well may be the problem Richard. I don't think he missed my email, because he responded promptly to my first email requesting additional information and a savegame file, which I provided; but unless he has access to a computer that recreates the problem, the savegame will function perfectly -- as it does on my desktop machine. I don't know what the solution is.

L

davetox1 · #12 November 20th, 2001, 03:27 PM

The range check error isn't specific to any saved game - when it occurs - it occurs for all saved games, so sending Richard saved games won't help. I even tried loading several SEIV v1.49 copies (no mods) on my Dell P4 w/ME. All saved files for all SEIV copies show the RCE. In addition, any attempt to start a new game ends with a RCE when I try to move a ship. However, as mentioned, loading SEIV after the computer has been used for ~1/2 hr for other purposes eliminates RCEs from all saved games until the PC is shut off (then RCEs reappear). It appears some flag is set by using other programs and once that flag is set, RCEs disappear.

Richard - Do you keep your PC on all (or much) of the time - maybe that's why you don't see it? From a cold boot, try loading any saved game. Otherwise, maybe it is a Dell/Win ME specific problem.

It's too bad this problem hasn't been fixed. While the solution might be as simple switching a single bit from 1 to 0, finding that bit may be like finding the proverbial needle in a haystack.

Mephisto · #13 November 20th, 2001, 04:20 PM

Davetox1, I really doubt that SE4 is the problem. I would guess some hardware component of your PC is damaged. It might be the memory chips (RAM). I myself had 2 damaged RAMs in 2 days and they are a pain in the a** as these errors are hard to catch and will have many faces (device not working, RCEs, blue screens...). If oyu have more then 1 RAM-Chip, try removing one of them (shut your PC down!) and restart SE4 after that. If the error returns, put in the removed RAM and take the other one out. Retry SE4. If the RCEs are gone with only one RAM in your PC, the remove RAM is damaged for sure.

Jason2 · #14 November 20th, 2001, 08:42 PM

I can only check the internet when in the office - so I appreciate the many responses in my absence

I will attach the game... The computer I'm using is a brand new Dell Inspiron 8100 with a GForce2 ... I ran SEIV on a much older computer with no problems. I installed just the game and the current patch - I usually install the TDM modpack but haven't since the game won't play.

I read the other thread and will try starting, crashing, doing something else, playing - but there seems to be some sort of issue with Dells??

Thanks for the responses. I appreciate this community and the staff. My frustration comes from not being able to play such a great game.

Jason2

LLB · #15 November 20th, 2001, 11:19 PM

quote:
Originally posted by [K126]Mephisto:
Davetox1, I really doubt that SE4 is the problem. I would guess some hardware component of your PC is damaged. It might be the memory chips (RAM). I myself had 2 damaged RAMs in 2 days and they are a pain in the a** as these errors are hard to catch and will have many faces (device not working, RCEs, blue screens...). If oyu have more then 1 RAM-Chip, try removing one of them (shut your PC down!) and restart SE4 after that. If the error returns, put in the removed RAM and take the other one out. Retry SE4. If the RCEs are gone with only one RAM in your PC, the remove RAM is damaged for sure.

Sorry Mephisto, but I can't buy your theory. A bad hardware component would likely produce a variety of errors, as you suggest, not a crash in a single program. In my case at least, the Dell Inspiron 4000 that produces the error in SEIV appears to function flawlessly with other programs -- even other games.

Since the common thread connecting those of us who have the problem seems to be Dell laptops (I don't have a problem with my Dell desktop -- does anyone else?) plus WinME, I agree with davetox1 that that would be the plausible place to look for a solution. I also agree with him that finding it might not be easy.

L

dmm · #16 November 21st, 2001, 12:17 AM

Don't know if this will help, but it might.

I have several 4-processor Dell workstations running NT that I use for number-crunching. If I boot them up and right away run a program called Matlab (a well-known sci/eng program), it runs loops very slowly. But, as I open and close windows, Matlab gradually speeds up. After doing this a lot (like, a hundred times or so), I eventually get a 10x speedup. So the workaround was to write a program that does nothing but open and close DOS windows. It takes a minute to run, and then Matlab works great. This problem is specific to those Dell machines and to loops in Matlab. Wierd but true.

Alpha Kodiak · #17 November 21st, 2001, 12:22 AM

Man, this is not the thread Dell's marketing department wants the world to see!

Question, if you just turn on the laptop and let it sit for a half hour or so doing nothing, will SEIV work properly or not? That might be a clue as to what sort of issue to look for.

Mephisto · #18 November 21st, 2001, 12:39 AM

Sorry, didn't read the part about the laptop.

If only dell laptops with ME are the ones that crash it is probably a dell problem, I agree.

LLB · #19 November 22nd, 2001, 01:24 AM

quote:
Originally posted by Alpha Kodiak:
Man, this is not the thread Dell's marketing department wants the world to see!

Question, if you just turn on the laptop and let it sit for a half hour or so doing nothing, will SEIV work properly or not? That might be a clue as to what sort of issue to look for.

Well, I actually like my two Dell machines. There just seems to be a quirk in the laptops that crashes SEIV, or, probably more accurately, there's a quirk in SEIV that causes it to crash on Dell laptops.

Your idea of letting the machine sit for a half hour before trying the program is interesting. Usually when I turn the laptop on it's because I mean to do something with it

, so I've never tried your suggestion. I will when I get a chance, because I agree that the results might be informative.

Thanks,
L

LLB · #20 November 22nd, 2001, 01:41 AM

quote:
Originally posted by [K126]Mephisto:
Sorry, didn't read the part about the laptop. If only dell laptops with ME are the ones that crash it is probably a dell problem, I agree.

No sweat, Mephisto. I thought you were making good sense, because hardware glitches *can* cause just the sort of infuriating intermittent errors we've been describing. I've been there too, and it's *not* fun

.

L