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Q129019: 500 Nations: TROUBLE.TXT Contents

Article: Q129019
Product(s): Microsoft Home Multimedia Titles
Version(s): WINDOWS:1.0
Operating System(s): 
Keyword(s): win31
Last Modified: 21-OCT-2000

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The information in this article applies to:

- Microsoft 500 Nations, version 1.0, on platform(s):
   - the operating system: Microsoft Windows NT, on platform(s):
      - the operating system: Microsoft Windows 
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SUMMARY
=======

The following information is the contents of the TROUBLE.TXT file found in the
root directory of the Microsoft 500 nations CD-ROM.

Having problems running 500 Nations? Read the text below. If you don't find the
information you need here, check the README file on the 500 Nations CD-ROM.

PERFORMANCE PROBLEMS
====================

500 Nations uses your computer's system memory to display pictures.
If you find that 500 Nations runs slowly or if you encounter
out-of-memory errors, the program probably doesn't have enough
memory.  Consider doing the following to improve your computer's
performance:

* Close all unnecessary applications.

* Determine how much total memory your computer has available.  At
the MS-DOS command prompt, type "mem" and press ENTER.  500 Nations
will run best if you have at least 8MB (8192 KB) of total memory.

* If you are running Windows 3.1, make sure you have a permanent swap
file on your hard disk.  A swap file of greater than 4MB (4096 KB) is
recommended.  See your Windows documentation for more information.

* Defragment ("clean up") your hard disk by running a defragmentation
program such as DEFRAG, which comes with MS-DOS version 6 or higher.
A disk defragmenter is also included in Windows 95.

CD-ROM PROBLEMS
===============

NOTE:  Do not remove the 500 Nations compact disc from your CD-ROM
drive while 500 Nations is in the process of playing a sound, movie,
or slideshow, or is running in Random mode.

If the 500 Nations program cannot find the data files that it needs
from the 500 Nations compact disc, you'll see a message that asks you
to select the drive containing the files. To find the source of the
problem, do the following:

* Make sure the 500 Nations compact disc is correctly inserted into
the CD-ROM drive.

* Make sure that the 500 Nations program is looking for the compact
disc on the correct drive.  Check to see if the drive letter for your
CD-ROM drive has changed.  You can use the Windows File Manager to
determine which drive letter is assigned to the CD-ROM drive.  The
Select Drive command in the Disk menu will say "CD-ROM" next to the
CD-ROM drive letter.

* If you have an external CD-ROM drive, make sure that the drive is
connected to your computer, plugged in, and turned on.  If you still
see the error message after checking the points above, check the
documentation that came with your CD-ROM drive or contact the company
that supplied the drive.

* Make sure that your CD-ROM drive is MPC-compatible. MPC-compatible
drives meet the following criteria:

 1. An average seek time of less than one second;

 2. A transfer rate of 150KB per second while using less than 40% of
the CPU bandwidth.

Check the documentation that came with your CD-ROM drive to make sure
it meets these requirements. A CD-ROM drive that does not meet the
MPC specifications will exhibit slow performance, audio blips, or
interruptions when sound is played.

PRINTING AND COPYING
====================

The screens in 500 Nations are large color pictures. Depending on the
type of printer you have, printing a picture of the screen may take
several minutes.  Also, screen resolution and printer resolution are
often not the same, so the resulting printout may not match the
quality you see on the screen.

You should be able to print grayscale images from 500 Nations.  If
you have a black and white laser printer you might need to upgrade
your printer driver.  Call the dealer from whom you bought the
printer or the printer manufacturer.  It is also possible to print
500 Nations screens in color on a color printer.

Some Dot-matrix printers may not print pictures properly with the
"Low / Faster" quality setting in the Print Dialog. On these printers
change the quality setting in the Print Dialog to "High / Slower".

Because the pictures can be quite large, you may have difficulty
copying or printing in low-memory conditions.  In this case, close
all other unnecessary running applications and try again.

ATI PROBLEMS
============

500 Nations is incompatible with some features of video cards such as
the Mach32 chip set running the ATI drivers.  For 500 Nations to run
on the ATI driver, the "256 color palette" control in the "Advanced
features" of the "ATI Control Panel" needs to be set to ON.  For more
information, see the documentation for your video card.

AUDIO PROBLEMS
==============

Audio problems can have many causes.  Other applications that play
sounds may interrupt sounds in 500 Nations, because your computer
cannot play two sounds simultaneously.  This is generally a temporary
clash that will resolve itself.  However, a few applications that
play sounds, such as some screen savers, may remove audio capability
from all other Windows applications.  If you suspect you have such an
application, deactivate it or do not run it while running 500
Nations.

SOUNDS PLAY, BUT NOT VERY WELL
==============================

Sounds that are distorted or "fuzzy" have several possible causes.
The most likely one is simply that your speakers are not of high
quality.  Low frequency sounds may not reproduce well on some
equipment.

It is also possible that the software settings on your sound board
are causing distortion.  For example, if the sound card volume or
"WAVE file input" is set to near its maximum, it will produce
amplification distortion, just as it would on a stereo system.  To
find out how to change your sound board settings, check the
documentation that came with your sound board.

Your CD-ROM drive should be MPC-compatible.  MPC-compatible drives
meet the following criteria:

1. An average seek time of less than one second;

2. A transfer rate of 150KB per second while using less than 40% of
the CPU bandwidth.

Check the documentation that came with your CD-ROM drive to make sure
it meets these requirements.  An incompatible CD-ROM drive may work;
however, it may produce low-quality audio or cause the sound to be
interrupted while playing.

If you are running 500 Nations on an EISA machine and experience
audio problems, try changing the DMA channel on the sound card to DMA
7.

SOUND DOESN'T PLAY AT ALL
==========================

If you don't hear any sounds, make sure that the volume is set to an
audible level.

If the volume is set to an audible level and you still hear no sounds
at all, something may be wrong with your sound board setup.  Check to
see that the drivers are installed correctly and, if necessary,
reinstall them.  To determine if the sound drivers are installed,
check the Drivers section of the Windows Control Panel.  For more
information on installing your sound drivers, refer to the
documentation that came with your sound card.  If you have any
problems, contact your sound board manufacturer for assistance.

Please note that 500 Nations requires an MPC-compatible sound board
and is not intended to run with drivers which use the PC speaker,
such as the unsupported "PC Speaker" driver.  Such a driver will in
most cases not play any sounds, and if the driver setup option
"Enable Interrupts" is not checked, the system may lock up.  Check
the "Drivers" configuration in your Windows Control Panel.  If you
have both a sound board and the PC Speaker driver installed, it is
recommended that you remove the PC Speaker driver.

MEDIA VISION CARDS
==================

A small number of Media Vision sound card drivers (Pro Audio -
Spectrum cards) may have problems with sound in 500 Nations.  If you
have a Media Vision card and do not hear sounds or are having other
sound problems, you might require updated drivers.  Contact Media
Vision for current driver information.

Additional query words: kbhowto 1995 help problem mmtitles

======================================================================
Keywords          : win31 
Technology        : kbHomeProdSearch
Version           : WINDOWS:1.0

=============================================================================
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