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TIE Fighter Collector's CD-ROM Edition Crashes During Startup

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First post, by DSS

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I've been able to successfully use DOSBox for a variety of games in the past, but I dusted off my old TIE Fighter CDROM (the original one, not the Windows 95 one) to see if I could get things up and running. Within DOSBox, the game installed fine and I was able to set up the sound without a problem using General MIDI for music and Sound Blaster 16 for digital sound. But when I go to launch the game itself, after the DOS4GW prompt is displayed I get this crash:

dosbox000wj9.png

The text is significantly larger than usual (the cropping is exactly how it is displayed) and I cannot type anything in the prompt. I must exit out of DOSBox entirely after this point. No error message is displayed in the DOSBox Status Window.

This always happens 100% of the time and appears to be a memory-related error. The only time it does not happen is when I disable XMS, at which I am prompted with "VESA BIOS not detected. Hires mode may be unavailable. Do you wish to run Univbe to emulate VESA BIOS?" If I say yes, it tells me "Attempt to emulate VESA BIOS failed" then displays the error "DOS\16M error: [40] not enough available extended memory (XMIN)". This makes sense considering that I've disabled XMS. But if I enable it, I get the crash regardless of whether EMS or UMB are enabled or not. I normally use a CVS build of DOSBox 0.72, but I have also tried the standard version of DOSBox 0.72 and gotten the same result. I generally set my available RAM to 38, though I have lowered it to more traditional values such as 32 and 16 to see if it would help matters. It made no difference.

Yes, I have read the README. I have also read several various guides to getting TIE Fighter Collector's CDROM Edition up and running in DOSBox such as this one and this one. Before I list my dosbox.conf file, here's my system specs:

# Motherboard - ABIT IP35-Pro
# Processor type and speed - Intel Core 2 Q6600 @ 2.40 GHz
# Amount and type of RAM - 2 GB DDR2 Corsair XMS2
# Video board w/ RAM amount and type - Geforce 8800GT w/512 MB RAM
# Sound board - Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS
# Operating system - Windows XP Pro SP2
# Game name (and version, if applicable)
# Video mode - I have tried both ddraw and overlay, with no change

Now, my dosbox.conf file. I'm removing the parts commented out in the interest of post brevity:

[sdl]
fullscreen=false
fulldouble=false
fullresolution=original
windowresolution=original
output=ddraw
autolock=true
sensitivity=100
waitonerror=true
priority=higher,normal
mapperfile=mapper.txt
pixelshader=none
usescancodes=true
overscan=0

[dosbox]
language=
machine=vga
captures=capture
memsize=38

[render]
frameskip=0
aspect=false
scaler=normal2x

[vsync]
vsyncmode=on
vsyncrate=60

[cpu]
core=auto
cycles=auto
cycleup=500
cycledown=20
timesynched=false

[vga]
svgachipset=s3
videoram=2048

[mixer]
nosound=false
rate=44100
blocksize=2048
prebuffer=10

[printer]
printer=true
docpath=.
dpi=360
width=85
height=110
printoutput=ps
multipage=false

[midi]
mpu401=intelligent
device=default
mt32rate=44100
…Show last 65 lines
config=

[sblaster]
sbtype=sb16
sbbase=220
irq=7
dma=1
hdma=5
mixer=true
oplmode=auto
oplrate=44100

[gus]
gus=true
gusrate=44100
gusbase=240
irq1=5
irq2=5
dma1=3
dma2=3
ultradir=C:\ULTRASND

[innova]
innova=false
samplerate=22050
sidbase=280
quality=0

[speaker]
pcspeaker=true
pcrate=22050
tandy=auto
tandyrate=22050
disney=true

[joystick]
joysticktype=auto
timed=true
autofire=false
swap34=false
buttonwrap=true

[serial]
serial1=dummy
serial2=dummy
serial3=disabled
serial4=disabled

[glide]
glide=false

[dos]
xms=true
ems=true
umb=true
automount=true
keyboardlayout=none

[ipx]
ipx=true

[autoexec]
mount d j:\ -t cdrom
mount c f:\dosbox
c:

Any help would be appreciated. I know that TIE Fighter is very popular among the DOSBox crowd, so hopefully someone else out there has encountered this issue. I'll worry about whether or not I should set the joystick timing to false after I can actually start the game.

The weirdest thing? X-Wing Collector's CDROM Edition starts up just fine! Crashes as soon as I press a joystick button if I fullscreen the display, but I can worry about that later.

Last edited by DSS on 2008-03-15, 18:32. Edited 1 time in total.

Reply 1 of 17, by wd

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Tried disabling xms AND ems? Does it behave the same when sound is
completely disabled (game setup)?

Reply 2 of 17, by DSS

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Yes, even if I disable both XMS and EMS, then go into the install and set my sound card to None for both music and digital sound, this crash still persists. Oddly enough, this particular crash does not occur when I run X-Wing or Dark Forces, both of which use iMuse for their sound as well.

Reply 3 of 17, by MiniMax

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Tried different CPU cores?
Tried LOADFIX before running the game?

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Reply 4 of 17, by DSS

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MiniMax wrote:

Tried different CPU cores?
Tried LOADFIX before running the game?

Loadfix before running the game has no effect. How do you try different CPU cores within DOSBox? I can set the affinity within Windows Task Manager to just one CPU, but this doesn't help either.

Reply 5 of 17, by wd

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core= in dosbox.conf

Reply 6 of 17, by ADDiCT

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Tie Fighter is one of the games i've played the most in DOSBox, and i never had any problems with it. You should try to reinstall the game, and remember to use the same exact mountings you've used while installing when launching the game.

Some more things to try:
- unplug all joysticks when launching the game
- disable all unnecessary devices via dosbox.conf (gus, parallel, etc.)
- use DOS/32A instead of the original DOS4GW.EXE
- use the original CD or an image
- use official DOSBox (your conf implies you're using a CVS build with the GLIDE patch), or a different CVS build (my current favourite is Gulizoka's build)

Reply 7 of 17, by swaaye

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Yeah, TIECD should *just work*. I've played it a lot myself in DOSBOX 0.72 and the CVS versions since then. The only issue that I know of is with the joystick. You need to set "timed=false" in dosbox.conf's joystick section or the stick will not calibrate well or work right in general.

DOS32A isn't required but can help with speed.

Reply 8 of 17, by DSS

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Installing the Gulikoza build of DOSBox looks like it did the trick! I was using the DOSBox Daum Cafe build until this point. Problem solved! Thanks to everyone for the help and quick responses.

The next step is Saitek X52 joystick working as best as possible. The DOSBox status windows detects it as having 6 axes, 32 buttons, and 1 hat regardless of what joysticktype= is set to (the axes/hats count is not accurate).

If I set timed=false as so many people recommend, the joystick doesn't move at all. If I set it true with joysticktype=fcs or ch, it goes crazy once in game. Right now, I've set it to 2axis, and this appears to work in-game. Sometimes I do need to calibrate the stick multiple times for it to not just spin around madly on me though. By using the Saitek SST Profile editor, I can successfully bind the buttons on the joystick/throttle to keyboard presses. I don't suppose anyone has any premade ones handy, do they?

Reply 9 of 17, by MiniMax

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DSS - you get a thumbs down from me for still using an un-official build DOSBox when reporting problems. There is nothing that prevents you from having 100 different builds of DOSBox installed on your system, so PLEASE, install the official one, test your joystick, and then come back if it is still acting up.

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Reply 10 of 17, by DSS

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MiniMax wrote:

DSS - you get a thumbs down from me for still using an un-official build DOSBox when reporting problems.

In my defense, my initial post did state that "I normally use a CVS build of DOSBox 0.72, but I have also tried the standard version of DOSBox 0.72 and gotten the same result." Indeed, had the game not run on the unofficial build I was running but worked fine in the official build, I never would have made a post in the first place.

Reply 11 of 17, by MiniMax

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Interesting. I missed that part I guess. So, there is something in the the Gulikoza build that makes the game run, while it crashes in both the official build, and a clean CVS build?

And your joystick problem? Clean or non-clean build?

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Reply 12 of 17, by gulikoza

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I use my special jedi powers to make the game run in my builds 🤣
No, really, I have been testing Tie Fighter Collector's CD-ROM since I found out about DOSBox and never had any problems. Just tried with official 0.72, works like a charm.

http://www.si-gamer.net/gulikoza

Reply 13 of 17, by Xerxes

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Damn... i have the same problem. I've tested official 0.72 build, Gulikoza build, Daum Cafe - without luck 🙁

Intel C2D E8500@3,6 Ghz, DDR2-800 2x2Gb Ram, MSI Radeon HD6950 Twin Frozr II/OC, Asus P5E Deluxe, Asus Xonar DX, HDD: WD 500AAKS x2, Windows 7 Professional 64bit

Reply 14 of 17, by Qbix

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maybe it depends on the version of tie fighter.

Water flows down the stream
How to ask questions the smart way!

Reply 15 of 17, by Xerxes

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Unfortunately it is not a cause. I've tested my Tie (original cd) on 2 different computers:
1. on my desktop pc (in sig - WinXP sp2) TieCD doesn't work
2. on my laptop (Fujitsu Siemens S7020D with integrated graphics card - WinXP sp2) - it's working
I've used the exact same settings on both systems... 😵 😢

Intel C2D E8500@3,6 Ghz, DDR2-800 2x2Gb Ram, MSI Radeon HD6950 Twin Frozr II/OC, Asus P5E Deluxe, Asus Xonar DX, HDD: WD 500AAKS x2, Windows 7 Professional 64bit

Reply 16 of 17, by ADDiCT

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Qbix wrote:

maybe it depends on the version of tie fighter.

Xerxes wrote:

Unfortunately it is not a cause. I've tested my Tie (original cd) on 2 different computers:

Qbix was talking about different versions of the game, not different computers. Thus, your conclusion is not correct.

I'd try the following (maybe on both machines):
- Unplug all unnecessary devices (joypads, card readers, etc.)
- Create an image of the TIE Fighter CD-ROM (ISO should be OK, there are no audio tracks on the CD AFAIK)
- Start DOSBox with the default config (backup and delete your old dosbox.conf)
- Mount the image and install the game to a "virgin" (=empty) directory
- Start the game (remember to use the exact mountings you've used when installing the game!)

You should try these steps with the official DOSBox first.

I've never had crash problems with TIE Fighter, and i'm not even using an image. I've simply copied all CD files to a directory, and mount that dir when i want to play.

Reply 17 of 17, by Xerxes

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Yeah! I've installed the game to another drive (=empty directory) and it works! Thank You soooo much 😀

Intel C2D E8500@3,6 Ghz, DDR2-800 2x2Gb Ram, MSI Radeon HD6950 Twin Frozr II/OC, Asus P5E Deluxe, Asus Xonar DX, HDD: WD 500AAKS x2, Windows 7 Professional 64bit

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