Topic: Linux for Dummies?

[Nemesis]

Fortunately ATI along with Intel and VIA are opening up their documentation so open source drivers are getting better.

[Bonk]

You could also look into any available bios updates for your video card... (always a dicey proposition, but I've never had one fail).

I found this interesting note today:
http://www.winehq.org/?issue=333#TransGaming%20giving%20back%20to%20WINE

I don't see dpnet in the wine releases yet. I wonder just how functional that code is and if it has a chance of making into a release soon? (would be better than using dll overrides with old MS dplay dlls as I have been doing).

[Bonk]

I have very strong motivation to get OP working on the Dynaverse under wine now. I cannot connect to the Dynaverse at all from windows anymore, even did a completely fresh OP install (first time in 7 years). I removed numerous applications, all I am left with is the latest directx update or the nvidia drivers I'm using (I know there have been issues with nvidia windows drivers interfering with dynaverse login in the past).

Anyway, so I think I will get down to it with wine now, I'll dig into the code and rebuild it from source if it comes to it.

I can connect to the Dynaverse from OP under wine, run a mission, but missions do not end properly and I still have the stuttering sound issue. So it's not that far off, I can do this.

[Pestalence_XC]

Bonk.. which version of windows are you running and which video card?

If XP and NVidia, then

Turn off Anti-Virus

Install OP

Patch to v2552 then use the OP Server Directory fix (or just get the OP Enhancement Package v5.1)

if using the OP Enhancement Package v5.1 Check the WonServerSetup.gf file and put the " " marks around the Directory servers, remove the Stasis entry (invalid while Firesoul's server is offline), this was a temporary fix for XP and D2 due to the Taldren Firewall Detection (removal of the " off the server entries) this issue you fixed for XP and Vista..

Open OP directory and find StarfleetOP.exe, right click, copy, paste shortcut on to desktop.

right click shortcut and select properties

Click on compatibility tab

put checkmark into Disable Desktop Composition

Click OK.

Make sure you have latest edition of Diret X

I also recommend using NVidia's Beta Drivers located at :

http://www.nvidia.com/object/winxp_174.74.html   (Windows XP, XP Pro, XP Media Center Edition [x86 or 32 bit])

Disable firewalls and keep Anti-Virus disabled ..

try to connect.

Launch first time.. wait for firewall message, then ALT-F4 out of game.. immediately re-launch OP and try to connect to Dynaverse..

You should be able to log in now.

Repeat steps for launching after you turn your AV back on.. see if it will allow you to connect.. if not, your AV is blocking you.

If you can connect, then re-enable your Firewall, if unable to connect, then firewall not configured correctly or port forwarding is incorrect and may need to be re-installed/refreshed

This usually works for 99% of XP players to get 100% functionality on D2

[Bonk]

WinXP Pro / Nvidia GeForce FX 5500 256MB.

Thanks for the reminders Pestalence, I know the drill and have been through all of that (except different nvidia drivers). Oh wait... have not tried "disable desktop composition" on the shortcut yet though. That's a new one for me, let me give that a try.


Re: wine trials - Setting application specific settings for OP in wine using win95 compatibility and emulation for sound and video accel seemed to help somewhat, still getting stuttering shound though, it seems to be the main issue.

I'll give that desktop composition thing a try on WinXP, if no luck I'll start digging into the directsound code in wine to see if I can find what the quikcksilver sound code is doing that wine does not grok.


EDIT: oh, the Desktop Composition thing would be new to me because it is not present on the WinXP shortcut compatibility tab, must be a vista thing. I do have desktop shortcuts display disabled... I wonder if that could affect OP somehow? I'll give that a try.

EDIT2: I tried a number of combinations of compatibility settings in XP (disable visual themes, turn off advanced test sevices.. win95 compatibilty... all with no software firewall or AV.) So that just leaves Directx (which I have updated, rolled back and updated again) or the Nvidia drivers. So it has to be the nvidia drivers. They take quite some time to download, so I'm going to work on resolving sound issues with OP under wine instead.

[Bonk]

Aha! found my problem in windows, previously just turning off the windows firewall/ICS (I use the ICS functionality) at the control panel applet used to work, not anymore. If I go to the services console and stop the firewall/ICS service and UPnP service, bingo! I can login!

And boy is that serverlist fast now...    first time I've seen it (from windows) since modifying it serverside... wow, should have done that ages ago.

So something must have changed with the firewall/ICS/UPnP services in recent updates... it looks like the firewall/ICS service is now dependent on UPnP, I don't think that used to be the case. So I jsut need to remember to stop the firewall/ICS and UPnP services at the services mmc instead of using the control panel applet. (AVG and windows defender still enabled)

Shweet! (But too bad I wiped a 7 year old OP install to figure it out... )

Now I can go back to troubleshooting OP's sound in wine just for the sake of it. I think I'll try some of the more recent miles sound system dlls. http://www.radgametools.com/mssdown.htm  (mss32.dll from the tools package)

[Bonk]

Well OP would not start under wine using the mss32.dll from 2006 or from 2008, just the original from 2001 seems to work. (was worth a try)

I begin to suspect that the stuttering sound issue is simply a limitation of my processor, as it's maxed out totally while running OP under wine.

Let me go back and check You-Cheng's config and see if the processor was much faster, as he did not get stuttering sound...

You-Cheng's specs:
CPU: Intel Pentium-M "Dothan" 1.5Ghz
RAM: DDR333 512MB (256+256)
GPU: ATi Mobility Radeon 9700 64MB

Mine:
CPU: Intel Pentium III "Coppermine" 1GHz
RAM: PC133 640MB (256+256+128)
GPU: Nvidia GeForce FX 5500 256MB

I wonder if that extra 500MHz processor speed would make the difference? Just might... combined with the bus speed...

[Nemesis]

Note to Pestalence_XC:

Pest there is a very good reason no one made suggestions to Bonk on things that he might try to get his Windows SFC2 linked to the Dynaverse, namely that we were harnessing his drive to run it on Wine to solve those issues for us.  Now you've gone and messed it up.

BAD PEST! BAD!




 

[Pestalence_XC]

lol.. Bonk won't quit.. he is like me.. sink your teeth in and wont let go.. you will get Wine running OP soon enough with hardly any issues.

[KBF-Kurok]

any update on how this is going. Im totaly lost on how to get this to work. Configure my x to 16 bit? any documantation that anyone has written would be apreciated.

Kurok

[Bonk]

El bumpola - for reference to save searching for this thread, as I am giving this another go on my laptop running Kubuntu 8.10 and Wine 1.1.9. (considering my miserable failure at getting OP Dynaverse to run on Vista)

Note, I have installed Kubuntu 8.10 amd64 using Wubi, as my laptop has some kind of queer new pseudo-BIOS that prevents normal multiple partition boot setups.

Now I just need to remember how I did this last time, good thing I made notes! Though they are somewhat incomplete. I think I had to call wine at a sudo console to run setup.exe from the OP CD.

edit: Kurok, this time I will try to write a nice clear set of step-by-step instructions.

[Bonk]

Having less luck than last time, video much more choppy, sound still stuttering, and no serverlist.  Looks like I'll have to run OP and Artifex in a VM on my Vista install.

[Commander Maxillius]

Well, I completely forgot I read this a year ago!  I also completely forgot that I got it to work (somewhat) then too.

I just tried it again under Linux Mint and it works better!  I've currently got a game on pause, so it runs, but I've got a really bad audio artifact over top of the Federation starship background noise, and the rest of the audio is choppy.  The framerate isn't terrible, about like Windows-native 450-500 MHz, but considering I'm using an AMD Athlon 2400+, it could be better.

Couple issues though.  No models.  The game is running great, I can see the UI, targeting reticle, turn indicator, even damage textures, but alas, no models.

I also just dicovered the screensaver will kick on with inactivity while the game is running (like it is when paused) with no ill effects!

Perhaps restarting the machine will help since I didn't after installing DX8.


EDIT:  It crashed to desktop upon completion.  Rebooted and... crap.  Still no models, and sound artifact still there.

complete system stats: 
CPU: AMD Athlon XP 2400+
GPU: nVidia GeForce4 integrated
RAM: 768MB - 64MB dedicated video
OS: Linux Mint Elyssa (Ubuntu 8.04)
Xserver: 1280x1024 24-bit
WINE: v. 1.0, mimic Win98, DirectX mouse capture, ALSA sound (going to try OSS)

[Commander Maxillius]

ok, installed Enhancement pack 5.0 and changed the sound to OSS.  The sound artifact is gone, but it runs the game like windows native 133mhz.  A.K.A. crap.  Also, the Klingon model appeared, but the Federation one still didn't, even though the glows did.  No weapons fire showed up either.  The ships are apparently still there since I can maneuver and still get hit, but nothing appears.

found the issue:  the shiplist directs the game to folders that don't exist.  Example:  the Federation Police ship (F-POL) is directed to the non-existant OPPLUS/MODELS/fepol/fepol/.mod

Is there a way to fix this without going line by line?