Having trouble running exult

Dyst · Post by **Dyst** » Thu Jul 24, 2003 4:21 pm

Hi ,

I'm using a pentium 4 vpr matrix laptop with windows xp.

I got the ultima collection cd and exult 1.0 and exult 1.1

I can't seem to run ultima 7 with both exult emulators.

It just hangs in the exult window and i have 2 reboot everytime it fails.

i have not changed the exult.cfg in anyway except disabling the music in exult 1.0

I've also put in the paths correctly.

Please help.

Soul · Post by **Soul** » Thu Jul 24, 2003 9:22 pm

Can you be a bit more specific by "it hangs" ? Does the exult window freeze or does the entire machine freeze?

Paste your EXULT.CFG as well as the paths you have installed BG and SI too. Also a hang may indicate a hardware or software conflict of another sort, so any sort of sentry software you might be running, such as a software firewall.

Soul · Post by **Soul** » Thu Jul 24, 2003 9:24 pm

Forgive the intense typos... I meant to say, "post any sort of sentry software..."

And, adding onto that, does this problem happen with any other apps that you have tried? Or just Exult?

Dyst · Post by **Dyst** » Fri Jul 25, 2003 8:31 am

The exult window hangs in a sense that the exult window freezes (window not responding) while windows xp also slows down by just moving the mousepoint, which goes at a snails pace after i try closing the exult window.

I only manage to close the exult window and get everything back to normal speed if i wait a long while.

I'm not running any sentry software.

This problem only happens with exult.

The only possibility i can think of on y it doesn't work is becoz of the exult.cfg but since i installed exult in the same directory as ultima7 it shouldn't b a problem.

Soul · Post by **Soul** » Fri Jul 25, 2003 2:02 pm

Paste your exult.cfg here, then.

Dyst · Post by **Dyst** » Fri Jul 25, 2003 8:24 pm

Path for bg is c:\dyst\uc\u7exult. I didn't install si.

exult.cfg:-

c:\dyst\uc\u7exult

(default)

jmsfx.flx

.

(default)

jmsisfx.flx

1

yes

yes

gs

yes

none

no

0

no

0

1.0000

-1

no

no

no

no

yes

no

no

yes

no

no

0

320

200

2

2xSaI

no

yes

1.00

1.00

1.00

Dyst · Post by **Dyst** » Fri Jul 25, 2003 10:23 pm

I read in past message topics that somebody called michael had a similar problem with mine on 4/11/2002. Exult window remains black, computer becomes slow. Window closes eventually after a long time but nothing else happens game certainly doesn't run.

The only difference is that i'm using Windows XP home edition service pack 1. His i think is professional

Wizardry Dragon · Post by **Wizardry Dragon** » Sat Jul 26, 2003 7:05 am

2000 professional and XP are very different operating systems, as the connection problems with ExultStudio on 2000 attested too (hopefully fixed now!)

~ Wizardry Dragon

Dyst · Post by **Dyst** » Sat Jul 26, 2003 9:40 am

So Windows XP Home cannot run ultima 7 on exult?

Dyst · Post by **Dyst** » Sat Jul 26, 2003 9:49 am

This michael guy was using xp professional and couldn't get it 2 run. I'm using xp home edition and i've trouble getting it 2 run.

Anybody else using xp and encountered a similar problem? I do know some ppl run exult smoothly on xp so this is doubly frustrating.

Post by **wjp** » Sat Jul 26, 2003 11:17 am

Please post your stdout.txt/stderr.txt after a crash.

Post by **Dominus** » Sat Jul 26, 2003 11:20 am

thinks to check:
- are your video drivers up to date? download the newest and latest from the chip maker.
- same for soundcard.

What I miss in your exult.cfg is

./data

data path is where you find for example the file called exult_bg.flx. Don't know if putting that helps. Try the absolut path (the path where you find this file, for example c:\dyst\uc\u7exult\data)

Post by **Dominus** » Sat Jul 26, 2003 11:29 am

you could also try to send an email to that user and ask him if it is running now for him and what he did to get it work.
Please also tell us what your graphic card and sound card are and what driver version you are running.

And as Wjp wrote, please paste stdout.txt and stderr.txt found in your exult dir here.

Dyst · Post by **Dyst** » Sat Jul 26, 2003 2:47 pm

exult 1.1 cvs

Stdout.txt
Exult version 1.1.0cvs
Built at: Jul 17 2003 11:53:54
Compile-time options: USE_EXULTSTUDIO, HAVE_ZIP_SUPPORT
Compiler: gcc, version: 3.2.3 (mingw special 20030504-1)

Platform: Windows XP Service Pack 1 Version 5.1 Build 2600
Data path = data
Music path = data/music
1 Midi Devices Detected
Listing midi devices:
-1: Microsoft MIDI Mapper
0: Microsoft GS Wavetable SW Synth
Using device -1: Microsoft MIDI Mapper
Internal Win32 Midiout Midi Player for Exult and Pentagram.
is_installed: 'c:\dyst\uc\u7exult11\static\endgame.dat': yes
is_installed: '.\static\sispeech.spc' : no

stderr.txt
Fatal signal: Segmentation Fault (SDL Parachute Deployed)

Graphics card i'm using is NVidia Geforce 4 420 Go 32M version 3.0.8.2 and sound card is SoundMAX Integrated Digital Audio version 5.12.1.3515.

Dyst · Post by **Dyst** » Sat Jul 26, 2003 3:03 pm

I've added the absolute path for but i still get the same result.

Dyst · Post by **Dyst** » Sat Jul 26, 2003 3:22 pm

My graphics and sound card are all updated.

Post by **Dominus** » Sat Jul 26, 2003 3:28 pm

ok, I *guess* it is the drivers for the geoforce behaving badly. I looked around google and thought that maybe upgrading to newer drivers might help. But it seems you can't just install the latest detonators for that card.
At http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark, ... ~mode=flat
they talk about how to install them anyway, but I'm not sure if that would be the correct thing to suggest to you.

Did you try increasing/decreasing colourdepth? Or maybe turn off hardware accelearation and see if that helps...

Dyst · Post by **Dyst** » Sat Jul 26, 2003 7:03 pm

I decreased colourdepth, turned off hardware acceleration. 2 no avail...

i still get the "Fatal signal: Segmentation Fault (SDL Parachute Deployed)" message in stderr.txt

Wizardry Dragon · Post by **Wizardry Dragon** » Sun Jul 27, 2003 3:59 am

I have a feeling that this might be the problem:

is_installed: '.\static\sispeech.spc' : no

~ Wizardry Dragon

Post by **wjp** » Sun Jul 27, 2003 4:40 am

That just means that it didn't find SI.

Wizardry Dragon · Post by **Wizardry Dragon** » Sun Jul 27, 2003 3:10 pm

Yeah, but if he has paperdolls on that's a big problem

(I don't know if there's any way to tell)

~ Wizardry Dragon

Post by **Dominus** » Sun Jul 27, 2003 3:12 pm

if exult can't find SI, the option for paperdoll isn't used.

Dyst · Post by **Dyst** » Mon Jul 28, 2003 10:19 pm

Would an older version of exult make any difference in compatibility

with my computer?

Post by **Dominus** » Mon Jul 28, 2003 11:54 pm

probably not.

Wizardry Dragon · Post by **Wizardry Dragon** » Tue Jul 29, 2003 8:11 am

If he were running plain vinilla BG and not BG with FoV it may cause problems. It did for me

but I fixed by installing the copy off UC

~ Wizardry Dragon

Dyst · Post by **Dyst** » Tue Jul 29, 2003 11:02 am

I'm not really sure if FoV really makes the difference since BG itself can't run.

I've a feeling it could b the laptop itself 4 some reason.

For info, i also tried Ron Windeyer's 'U7xp' file for xp os but that didn't work either i got message "error loading a program".

Anybody able 2 run BG with a laptop?

Post by **Dominus** » Tue Jul 29, 2003 11:45 am

It works ok on my laptop but it has problems with the resolutions so it is not quite ok.
Laptops tend to have a memory problem, meaning on some the memory space which could be allocated for EMS is taken by other stuff, mostly by hardware you can'T turn off on a laptop.
If you search http://vogons.zetafleet.com/ you can find some more in depth and more precise explanation, or at least some hints on it (search for EMS problems). This problem has nothing to do with Exult but may be why dos games (like U7, U8 and Ultima Underworld (all patched of course)) don't run at all. My laptop has this problem.

Wizardry Dragon · Post by **Wizardry Dragon** » Wed Jul 30, 2003 7:47 am

It works fine even on my 6-year old pentium 133 laptop

So does Ultima 8, which I would have expected to run slow on a labtop with the specs that that one does

OT: Anyone have any idea when a version of Pentagram will come out in which we can actually play?

~ Wizardry Dragon

Post by **wjp** » Wed Jul 30, 2003 8:05 am

> OT: Anyone have any idea when a version of Pentagram will come out in which we can actually play?

Not a clue

*gets back to pathfinding*

Dyst · Post by **Dyst** » Wed Jul 30, 2003 5:02 pm

Mayb its the speed of my pentium 4 laptop.

Too fast?

Post by **Dominus** » Thu Jul 31, 2003 1:27 am

I can assure you it is not that your laptop is too fast. The problems with the old games is most likely what I have written last time. And the problem with Exult is most likely (I'd say 99%) a problem with your graphics card drivers.

Dyst · Post by **Dyst** » Thu Jul 31, 2003 1:15 pm

Sounds like there isn't a solution for allocating memory space for EMS on laptops from what i gather from the Vogon boards.

And i cannot update my graphics card any further.

I've certainly reached a deadend. Perhaps i should wait for ultima 7 game support for the dosbox emulator. I'm able 2 run some old games there but not all of them. But i do definitely miss playing ultima 7 its the most worthwhile game 2 play at a time like this and i never got 2 finish it.

Post by **Dominus** » Thu Jul 31, 2003 1:25 pm

I'm really sorry. I have no further idea on how to help you.

Dyst · Post by **Dyst** » Fri Aug 01, 2003 6:05 pm

Good news!

I downloaded ultima7 with the fov add-on from the net and i tried exult with it, this time it worked with no problems, musik and sound all stable!

So i believe ultima 7 from the uc cd isn't really compatible with exult in some way but when together with fov it works smoothly.

Finally, vindication 2 my own problem. Thank u 4 all the help.

I may have 2 throw away that uc cd.....heh heh

Post by **Dominus** » Sat Aug 02, 2003 2:19 am

Then I'd say the problem is that your CD has gone bad and some file must have been bad. Your UC should have been the U7 version with Forge of Virtue. AFAIK there has not been an official CD-Version without FoV.
You *could* take a closer look at the differences between your UC and Warez version to find out where the culprit was.

Dyst · Post by **Dyst** » Sat Aug 02, 2003 7:49 am

The Ultima Collection CD that i bought a year and a half ago is the CD-Rom Classics which has a serpent logo on the cover. It doesn't have the Forge of Virtue add-on for the Black Gate.

U must b talking about the other Complete Ultima 7 Cd-Rom that i've heard about that has the add-ons.

I believe exult only works with ultima 7 in the latter CD and not the former.
In fact i couldn't run all the ultima games on the UC CD until i downloaded them from the net 2 play.

Post by **Dominus** » Sat Aug 02, 2003 8:17 am

1. Exult works with ALL versions of Ultima 7, be it different languages or versions without the add-on.

2. Never heard of that Ultima Collection with a serpent logo on the cover but with BG only. What other Ultimas are on this CD?
What is the oldest file date in the BG static folder.

3. Resons why games might not work unless downloaded from the net:
Did you make sure that the file attributes are not "read-only"? A lot of the older Ultimas are very difficult to start when this is set.

Post by **wjp** » Sat Aug 02, 2003 8:22 am

> The Ultima Collection CD that i bought a year and a half ago is the CD-Rom
> Classics which has a serpent logo on the cover. It doesn't have the Forge of
> Virtue add-on for the Black Gate.

What makes you believe that it doesn't have the FoV?

Wizardry Dragon · Post by **Wizardry Dragon** » Sat Aug 02, 2003 11:40 am

The Ultima Collection has Black Gate and FOV.

~ Wizardry Dragon

Dyst · Post by **Dyst** » Mon Aug 04, 2003 2:10 pm

Here is the Ultima Collection on amazon.com, all the info is in there.

[http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/de ... s&n=507846]

The files aren't read-only when i tried 2 start the games the ms-dos prompt loaded up but closed immediately.

They never mentioned FoV on the CD and i didn't see it in the cd files. It might have FoV since i never got ultima 7 running b4 the net d/l but then if it did i would b surprised.

Post by **Dominus** » Mon Aug 04, 2003 3:09 pm

it is the one with FoV on it(as I wrote all CD-Versions of U7 have the Add-ons)
So could you compare the one you downloaded to that one to see what file caused it?
playing Ultimas on modern PCs with modern OS is not so out of the box. Almost all need some patch or something to make them play. And most have some install.exe that needs to be used as well (to make sure you disable any sound before starting to play).

Dyst · Post by **Dyst** » Mon Aug 04, 2003 3:10 pm

The oldest file in the static folder is tuesday dec 17 1991.

Dyst · Post by **Dyst** » Mon Aug 04, 2003 3:28 pm

Well the ultima 7 file in the UC CD doesn't have a gamedat or a data folder. It also has moslo which the one i downloaded doesn't have.

The one i downloaded also has the compressed zip folders u7gm and u7win9x in it. And contains the patch 2 run it under win 95/98.

I can't find the culprit though.