Graviteam

Hey guys
 Switching from XP to Windows 7 and I'd like to know is it better or easier to just re-download the game from Gamers Gate or can I simply copy the existing SF game to discs and install in the new computer.

 Also, I read the above sticky about NOT installing to C/Program Files. can I simply make a new folder in the C drive called C/Games or something similar and install into that? Frinik, I know you've mentioned creating a partition file (I just went back to older posts of yours) but I really do not know what that is or how to accomplish it. I'm a little verklempt when it comes to stuff like that.

 Thanks
H
 

Hemi, it all depends what you want to do.

If you want or like your current installation then copy it on a hard disk which you can keep a back-up and then make a copy on a partition on your new pc. You can also always make a fresh installation as well to experiment or simply if you want to enable different mods( i.e season mod etc ).

Me personally when I get a new desktop or laptop I simply copy the installations I like. I have made only 2 new installations in the last 3 year versus dozens of copies..

Hi Hemi,

About creating new partitions, I'd recommend to leave that alone, unless you're willing to experiment a little (or a lot, as the case may be).

Simply copy your SF files to a new folder, something other than 'Program Files', then try it out. The result should be similar.

Good luck,

Actually I beg to differ with my friend Kyth! Partitioning is the way to go and it's easy :D

  Thanks for the replies guys. What I'd like is to have something similar to what I have with my Silent Hunter setup. One clean/virgin install and one modded install to play. This way if the modded one goes haywire for any reason I have the backup to copy and mod.

 Am I correct in assuming I can create a folder in my C drive called "games" (or something like that) and put SF into that?  Also, since I'm a complete noob with windows 7 how do you expand the folder structure of all the drives. In XP it was rt click START and choose Explore to get an expanded view.

  Thanks again
H

Yes you can.
Not exactly sure what you mean by the second question.  If i want to see all the folders I do Start\Computer\double click on C (or whatever drive you're interested in).

Am I correct in assuming I can create a folder in my C drive called "games" (or something like that) and put SF into that?

Yes Hemi you can do that or create entirely new partitions.For example say you have a desktop with a 1 terabyte hard drive.You go into the windows control pannel and then select System and Security.Then the Administrative Tools folder in which you can defragment your hard drive, free up disk space and there's an option called create and format hard disk partitions. Using that tool you can fragment you primary drive called C: and create say 2 new partitions you can call D and E each with 200 gbs of free space where you can install all your games and personal folders.The advantage is that if you need to do a aprtial recovery of your C drive then your partitions are safe and so are your games and personal files. For the procedure to partition simply google it and you'll see on youtube or on the internet how to do it it's no nuclear science.

I actually put my SF folder in the Programfiles(86) folder..!  It works fine, the only glitch is that when loading a mission, the screen drops to desktop but I just have to alt-tab to get it back up again.

I didn't do a normal installation, I copied the game folder from my old XP desktop computer and dropped it straight in as I wanted to keep all the mods and configs without reinstalling them.

Well, count yourself among the lucky ones.

The fact remains, many people encountered problems, enough to warrant an 'early warning' to take some simple precautions:

http://graviteam.com/forum/index.php?topic=10219.0 (http://graviteam.com/forum/index.php?topic=10219.0)

I think that 'just in case' I'll move the folder out of the program files. Luckily it's an easy drag of the entire game folder and it all still works, like games from the good old days.

  My game is finally back up and running (sort of). I created a folder C/Games and moved all the files via a flash drive. Started it up last night and it works. I have a problem with the resolution tho. I have a flat screen monitor which has a native resolution of 1920x1080. The load screens look perfect but the in game screen is horrible. Appears kind of fuzzy (not sharp and distinct) almost blurry. The outside view is horrible. The in game texts at the top center are cut off so only the bottom 1/3 of the text is readable. I briefly played with different in-game resolutions but it changed very little. Anyone have any ideas, Frinik I know you've experimented quite extensively with graphics settings.

Also, I get a window in the graphics settings page saying that my graphic card has less than 128 mb memory and game may not run at all.

Anyway guys, I'm glad to be getting back here once again.

Cheers!

H

Hemi, what kind of graphic card do you have? It could be the AA( Anti Aliasing) that's creating the blurriness.

Go to the config  file : data/k42/loc_rus/config and open it with notepad. Check the render paragraph to see what values are in there. Here's mine below for comparison. You can use it simply change the res to the one you  prefer and make sure you save the changes before closing the  file:

//îïèñàíèå è êîíôèãóðàöèÿ âèäåîàäàïòåðà
i_render:render()
{
   //àäàïòåð
   adapter   =   0;
   //ðàçðåøåíèå, ÷àñòîòà, ðåæèì
   bb_wid   =   1600;
   bb_hei   =   900;
   bb_freq   =   60;
   bb_fmt   =   22;
   //ðåæèì áóôåðà ãëóáèíû
   depth_buffer   =   75;
   //îáðàáîòêà âåðøèí
   vertex_processing   =   1;
   //ãàììà (0.0 - inf  def 1.0)
   gamma   =   1.070000;
   //ÿðêîñòü (-1.0:1.0 def 0.0)
   bright   =   0.510000;
   //êîíòðàñò(0.0:1.0 def 1.0)
   contrast   =   0.970000;
   //àíòèàëèàñèíã (òèï, êà÷åñòâî)
   aa_type   =   0;
   aa_qual   =   0;
   //óðîâåíü àíèçîòðîïèè
   aniso   =   0.000000;
   //ïðîïîðöèè ýêðàíà (4/3, 16/9, 16/1, 5/4)
   aspect   =   0.000000;
   //îêîííûé ðåæèì
   windowed   =   0;

}// end of i_render:render


You can use my value or make sure at least that the resolution in the render entry is the same that you set in the game menu and matches your pc screen resolution:

Disable all Anti Aliasing in your Nvidia Control Panel or the ATI Catalyst suite depending on your gpu.As you see in my own render 'entries I have the AA type and qual set to 0.

The blurry graphics are probably from the default 640x480 resolution which will default from the 'less than 128mb' problem.

As mentioned above, try editing the 'bb_wid' and 'bb_hei' to match your desktop resolution; at least one person has tried it with good results:
http://graviteam.com/forum/index.php?topic=10930.msg27588#msg27588  (http://graviteam.com/forum/index.php?topic=10930.msg27588#msg27588)

Thanks guys, I'll give it a look see.

 BTW it's a Radeon HD7770.

One thing I noticed when I ntried playing the game with the Use Desktop Resolution ox checked I had a blurry line whenever I would use the gunsight optics and the image would become shifty and wobbly so make sure when going into the game settings menu  that you uncheck the Use Desktop Res box and that you check the No Video Restrictions box.

Kyth and Frinik
I opened the config file and set the two lines to match the in-game resolution which is the native resolution.  bb_wid   =   1920;    bb_hei   =   1080;
The "use desktop resolutions" box  is unchecked. I started the game and everything remains the same. Blurry/fuzzy similar situation the the thread that you sent me

 I still have the annoying window "graphic card has less than 128 mb memory and game may not run at all."

I checked and my drivers for the card are up to date however I cannot find any catalyst control center from which to make adjustments. I see reference to having to DL and install it. Is that so?

I'm sure in the end it's something simple, hopefully just needs some fine tuning.
Thanks guys
H

Yes .It's odd though whenever you download new drivers they usually come with the Catalyst Control Centre .Just go to the AMD website and download the 13.1 version. Once installed you can go in the game 3D settings. I will give you mine which I use for my ATI cards.

Did you also set the AA  to 0 in the render entries as below?

aa_type   =   0;
aa_qual   =   0;


BTW, did you save the settings you entered? Otherwise they will revert to the original value.

I read a thread about people having similar problems to your with an ATI gpu, the latest drivers 13.3 and the same res you are using and a blurriness. They fixed it by turning off ( unticking ) the Morphological Filtering in the Catalyst Control Centre 3d graphic options. That might be worth a shot once you have the CCC installed. I personally have all type of AA off as they tend to send your fps plummeting for just a little eye candy in exchange.


 I suspect you have an intel processor and the game defaults to the intel graphics HD3000 or 4000 rather than to your ATI gpu. Which is why the graphic look like s....t! 

I had that problem when playing game with an Nvidia card the games would default to the intel integrated gpu. But with Nvidia it' easy to set the default to the stronger gpu as Nvidia has a better working relation with Intel. Whereas AMD and Intel are bitter rivals and whenever a manufacturer pairs AMD graphics with an intel processor you cannot easily et the default to the ATI gpu....

Anyway there's a way you can disable the intel graphics so your games default to your dedicated graphics rather than to the integrated ones...One step at a time.

Hemisent, try right clicking on desktop.  My catalyst control center is located at the top of the resultant list.  Mine is called "AMD vision engine control center".  How's that for pretentious?  Anyway that's what it's called after the latest down load of the drivers that I did today from the AMD site.

Guys, thanks for all the help. I just DL'd the 13.1 driver and installed it. It came with the catalyst control center and it added itself to the list of options when I hit the start button.

Tanker, thanks...I didn't know that. Guess have a lot to learn about W7.. At any rate the CCC exists.

The AA was set to 0 in the render entries as below?

aa_type   =   0;
aa_qual   =   0;

I opened up the Control Center and found the screen for AA  and also the box for Morphological Filtering (it's already unchecked) but I have no idea what to do with these adjustments. From the looks of things the AA slider is already set to the far left or zero.

I just ran the game and if anything the view is worse and of course the "graphic card has less than 128 mb memory and game may not run at all." window is still there only a bit blurrier.

There's something else to try, which is quite a long shot.

Step 1: Change your Win7 desktop settings to something lower, say 1600 x 900. If the results are okay, then,
Step 2: Change the config.engcfg bbwid and bbhei settings to match the new resolution, then try them out in-game.

If everything is okay so far, then:
Step 3: Change Win7 desktop setting back to 1920 x 1080.
Step 4: Change config.engcfg bbwid and bbhei to match the resolution.

Occasionally, application settings fail to 'take' when the driver settings remain as defaulted,

Good luck,

PS
Throughout all this, its important to un-check the 'Restrict Video Modes' (or check the 'Do not restrict Video Modes'  :D) setting in the game. Since the game can't recognize your card, its automatic restrictions would be unreliable.

Hemi in the Catalyst Control centre you may have an option called Switchable Graphics. It allows you to set any game or program to a given preference either the dedicated graphics( the ATI ones) or the default ( usually the integrated Intel ones).Once you've made your choice you have to click apply.

BTW I assume that you have an LCD computer monitor  to your pc not a TV HD monitor?

You know what Hemi, why don't you post your full specs including processor, amount of RAM, the monitor you are using, what type of connections( HMDI, VGA etc). Check your cable to make sure it's properly connected and to the right place( a badly connected or improperly connected cable be the cause of blurriness or a poor display.

Kyth
 Whatever I did seemed to work...somewhat.  I changed the resolution back and forth and nothing happened but when I checked "Do not restrict Video Modes" that seemed to help. With a screen resolution of 1920 x 1080 the view was now clear as a bell however the in-game messages was still half buried so I changed to:
 bb_wid   =   1680;
bb_hei   =   1050;
bb_freq   =   60;
bb_fmt   =   22;

Now everything is working much better allowing me to test run the drivers tutorial-aside from me being rusty it was playable.
What I noticed in-game is that when changing stations, opening caps, changing views there is a huge lag. The screen goes black while I can hear the game running in the background, the keyboard commands even seem to work but all is black. This lasts for 30-60 seconds then graphics appear as normal.

Also, the  "graphic card has less than 128 mb memory and game may not run at all." window is still there.

Frinik, here's my specs.

Processor                  Intel Core I7-3770 CPU @ 3.40 HGz
Memory(RAM)                16.0 GB 
Graphics                   AMD Radeon HD 7700 Series (HD 7770)
Gaming Graphics            9964 MB Total available graphic memory
Primary Hard Disc          1770GB Free (1849GB total)

Manufacturer               Dell XPS 8500
Sustem Memory              16.0 GB RAM
System Type                64 bit operating system
Processors                 4

Total sixe hard disc       2088 GB
Disc Partition (C:)        1770 GB free

Graphics Display Type      AMD Radeon HF 7770                 
Available Graphics Memory  9964 MB
Dedicated System Memory    0 MB
Shared System Memory       7916 MB
Driver Version             9.12.0.0
Primary Monitor Resolution 1920x1080
Direct X Version           Direct X 10
Monitor                    Viewsonic VP2765 SERIES       VGA

Also, there is no "switchable Graphics" I went online and this card does not seem to have this option associated with it. Other 7000 series card do but this one has no mention.

Okay, good to hear that the resolution issues have been worked out!

To improve the performance it might be a good idea to reinstall DirectX 9, its possible that some of their files may be missing.

Good idea.I recommend that you Google and find the Microsoft DirectX9C June 2010 release which I the most complete.

In your Catalyst Control centre you will see a 3D option called AMD Tessalation. If it is set by default to AMD Optimized or something like that just change it Use Application Settings and click Apply.You won't notice much of a decrease in the quality of your game graphics but a huge boost in smoothness of play and fps. In my case the average fps jumped from 22 -24 to 30 -35.

Disabled VSync( set it to off or Use Application Settings. Turn the Open GL setting Off. Set your Power settings to Use Adaptive Power Settings and the Multisamplings AA you can set to Adaptive Multisampling settings.

Kyth, the advice to get Directx9 made a noticeable improvement. Thanks


Done, seems to have helped the lag in black screen a bit.


I had to go into "Advanced View" and found this, set AMD Tessalation as recommended.


Could not find VSync anywhere. Found a window for Video Synchronization but it only goves the option to move an image around in a square window, sort of like resetting your image placement??? Does that make sense?

Open GL does not seem to have an option...perhaps I'm looking in the wrong area of CCC.
Could not find Power Settings section or Multisamplings AA. Could you give me an idea where in the CCC to find these.

BTW, the "128 B window" still exists.

The game is now running worlds better than when I started but still not right. The 128MB window shows something still bot right.

Thanks guys
H

Hi,

If everything else is working okay, you can safely ignore this warning because the game doesn't recognize newer video cards consistently.

Hemi just open your CCC to Gaming. Inside you'll find an option called Wait for Vertical Refresh. That's the V Sync. Just set it to Always Off.

So far, after all the changes and adjustments the game is very playable...much better and smoother than on my old XPS PIV rig.  Aside from the black screen lag (which is greatly reduced BTW) when changing views everything is as it should be. I did notice in playing a practice mission last night that in outside view at a certain angle I get a dark green circular form about a 1/4 inch diameter. Almost looks like an oil spot or blob on water. The spot only appears at certain low angles and is off in the distance, as the angle changes the blob appears fluid and changes shape...very odd. I've never seen or heard of this before. It's not a deal breaker and is a minor annoyance.

Thanks guys for all the help.

Cheers
H

Could be a pixel problem... Is your screen an OLED one? Is it a Samsung?

I am happy that most of your problems are solved. This game is all about patience and tweaking. A great game but frustrating as Hell at times....

BTW you can set your game res at1680 X 1050 and gain a few fps without any major loss in the quality of the image. When you load your loading screen will shrink a little  if your screen native res is set at 1980 X 1080 but once the game is fully loaded you have a full screen.