0.72 is old, get the latest one

Re: 60 seconds guide to getting your game to run in DOSBox

read the manual

Hux wrote:

Hi All, newbie here with a question for any os X experts.

So I got Dosbox 0.72 on my OS X 10.3. I have a disk image of Afterlife which I copied to my hard drive. I mount the directory as my C drive. I try to run alifedos.exe, but it takes a minute to think and tells me to run afterdos.bat first. So I run that, but it takes forever for anything to happen then goes to a black screen and quits itself. Any recommendations for fixes?

Try to think of it more like you would if you were using an actual old computer. You wouldn't try to play the game directly from the real floppy/CD would you? You might try mounting an empty folder on your hard drive as C: and then the disk image as either A: (if it's a floppy image) or D: (if it's a CD image) and then run whatever you need to from the image drive to install to the hard drive.

Also, how do you free up the mouse? Once I click on something in there, I can never seem to get it back without having to force quit dosbox entirely.

On PC it's ctrl+F10, not sure about Mac. Check the readme.

Edit: As robertmo said, 0.72 is old as well and you may have better luck with 0.73.

You need to mount a "C:" drive and you CD, then run INSTALL.

Thanks everyone. That tutorial was really helpful. Been a long time since I've installed anything using DOS prompts. But I'm still having trouble.

I've mounted the two different drives and installed the game. However, whenever I try to run the .bat file, I just get a new dos command prompt. I tried running the game's exe file, but it just tells me I need to run the .bat file. Any ideas on what I should do?

Also, when I installed the game, it took like two hours to install. That seems really long to me, granted I did the large install, but still, seems like a longtime.

You guys have been really helpful so thanks you very much for that.

How to speed up DOSBox (by robertmo and mirekluza)

what is your dosbox version and where have you got it from?
what is your Operating System?
what are your PC specifications?
post your exact mountings
post what is written after you mounted
post content of "DOSBox Status Window"
enclose your dosbox's config file

post the content of .bat file

The long install time was probably because you were running DOSBox at the default settings, which are tuned for floppy disk-era games and may be a bit slow for CD-ROM era games.

When trying to run the game, make sure you mount both the CD image and hard drive folder in the same exact way that you did when installing. Make sure you're trying to run the game from the installed location within DOSBox and not from the CD image location.

Ok, so I finally figured out, I'm just supposed to type "afterdos" not "afterdos.bat". However, when I do that, the computer takes a few minutes and says "dos/4gw protected mode run-time version 1.97 Copyright national systems 1990-1994." My window goes black, grows in size by about 3 times, and then quits.

<<<what is your dosbox version and where have you got it from?>>>

.73 from the main Dosbox site. (the .72 in my original post was a typo)

<<<what is your Operating System?>>>

Mac Os X 10.3.9

<<<what are your PC specifications?>>>

Powerbook G4

<<<post your exact mountings>>>

mount c: ~/games/afterlifec

mount d: ~/games/afterlife

<<<post what is written after you mounted>>>

Drive C is mounted as local directory users/hux/games/afterlifec

Drive D is mounted as local directory users/hux/games/afterlife

<<<post content of "DOSBox Status Window">>>

DosBos 0.73, CPU Cycles max, Frameskip 0, Program: ALIFEDOS (the game's exe file)

<<<enclose your dosbox's config file>>>

I don't know how to get that.

<<<post the content of .bat file>>>

I don't know how to get that, either.

The DOSBox windows close completely? Weird.

first of all the CD is not mounted properly
check the manual hot to get to dosbox's configuration

Ok, I think I've found it. So, I remounted my D drive using -t cdrom ending and gotten this message "MSCDEX: Mounted subdirectory: limited support.
Drive D is mounted as CDROM /users/hux/games/afterlife"

One thing I thought of is that there's an option to create a boot disk, and I remember I had to dot hat for some games, but not others back on my old computer. Might I need to create a boot disk? And if so, is there a tutorial on it?

Here's the contents of the afterdos.bat file

@echo off
if exist *.swp del *.swp
set DOS4GVM=MAXMEM#16384 SWAPINC#0
ALIFEDOS.EXE AFTERDOS.INI %1 %2 %3 %4
set DOS4GVM=
if exist *.swp del *.swp

The board won't let me post my configuration file (it's the Dosbox .73 Preferences file, right?). So, I'm cutting and pasting it here:

# This is the configurationfile for DOSBox 0.73.
# Lines starting with a # are commentlines.
# They are used to (briefly) document the effect of each option.

[sdl]
# fullscreen: Start dosbox directly in fullscreen.
# fulldouble: Use double buffering in fullscreen.
# fullresolution: What resolution to use for fullscreen: original or fixed size (e.g. 1024x768).
# windowresolution: Scale the window to this size IF the output device supports hardware scaling.
# output: What video system to use for output.
# Possible values: surface, overlay, opengl, openglnb.
# autolock: Mouse will automatically lock, if you click on the screen.
# sensitivity: Mouse sensitivity.
# waitonerror: Wait before closing the console if dosbox has an error.
# priority: Priority levels for dosbox. Second entry behind the comma is for when dosbox is not focused/minimized. (pause is only valid for the second entry)
# Possible values: lowest, lower, normal, higher, highest, pause.
# mapperfile: File used to load/save the key/event mappings from.
# usescancodes: Avoid usage of symkeys, might not work on all operating systems.

fullscreen=false
fulldouble=false
fullresolution=original
windowresolution=original
output=surface
autolock=true
sensitivity=100
waitonerror=true
priority=higher,normal
mapperfile=mapper.txt
usescancodes=true

[dosbox]
# language: Select another language file.
# machine: The type of machine tries to emulate.
# Possible values: hercules, cga, tandy, pcjr, ega, vgaonly, svga_s3, svga_et3000, svga_et4000, svga_paradise, vesa_nolfb, vesa_oldvbe.
# captures: Directory where things like wave, midi, screenshot get captured.
# memsize: Amount of memory DOSBox has in megabytes.
# This value is best left at its default to avoid problems with some games,
# though few games might require a higher value.
# There is generally no speed advantage when raising this value.

language=
machine=svga_s3
captures=capture
memsize=16

[render]
# frameskip: How many frames DOSBox skips before drawing one.
# aspect: Do aspect correction, if your output method doesn't support scaling this can slow things down!.
# scaler: Scaler used to enlarge/enhance low resolution modes. If 'forced' is appended,the scaler will be used even if the result might not be desired.
# Possible values: none, normal2x, normal3x, advmame2x, advmame3x, advinterp2x, advinterp3x, hq2x, hq3x, 2xsai, super2xsai, supereagle, tv2x, tv3x, rgb2x, rgb3x, scan2x, scan3x.

frameskip=0
aspect=false
scaler=normal2x

[cpu]
# core: CPU Core used in emulation. auto will switch to dynamic if available and appropriate.
# Possible values: auto, normal, simple.
# cputype: CPU Type used in emulation. auto is the fastest choice.
# Possible values: auto, 386, 386_slow, 486_slow, pentium_slow, 386_prefetch.
# cycles: Amount of instructions DOSBox tries to emulate each millisecond. Setting this value too high results in sound dropouts and lags. Cycles can be set in 3 ways:
# 'auto' tries to guess what a game needs.
# It usually works, but can fail for certain games.
# 'fixed #number' will set a fixed amount of cycles. This is what you usually need if 'auto' fails.
# (Example: fixed 4000)
# 'max' will allocate as much cycles as your computer is able to handle
#
# Possible values: auto, fixed, max.
# cycleup: Amount of cycles to increase/decrease with keycombo.
# cycledown: Setting it lower than 100 will be a percentage.

core=auto
cputype=auto
cycles=auto
cycleup=500
cycledown=20

[mixer]
# nosound: Enable silent mode, sound is still emulated though.
# rate: Mixer sample rate, setting any device's rate higher than this will probably lower their sound quality.
# Possible values: 22050, 44100, 48000, 32000, 16000, 11025, 8000, 49716.
# blocksize: Mixer block size, larger blocks might help sound stuttering but sound will also be more lagged.
# Possible values: 2048, 4096, 8192, 1024, 512, 256.
# prebuffer: How many milliseconds of data to keep on top of the blocksize.

nosound=false
rate=22050
blocksize=2048
prebuffer=10

[midi]
# mpu401: Type of MPU-401 to emulate.
# Possible values: intelligent, uart, none.
# mididevice: Device that will receive the MIDI data from MPU-401.
# Possible values: default, win32, alsa, oss, coreaudio, coremidi, none.
# midiconfig: Special configuration options for the device driver. This is usually the id of the device you want to use. See README for details.

mpu401=intelligent
mididevice=default
midiconfig=

[sblaster]
# sbtype: Type of sblaster to emulate.
# Possible values: sb1, sb2, sbpro1, sbpro2, sb16, none.
# sbbase: The IO address of the soundblaster.
# Possible values: 220, 240, 260, 280, 2a0, 2c0, 2e0, 300.
# irq: The IRQ number of the soundblaster.
# Possible values: 7, 5, 3, 9, 10, 11, 12.
# dma: The DMA number of the soundblaster.
# Possible values: 1, 5, 0, 3, 6, 7.
# hdma: The High DMA number of the soundblaster.
# Possible values: 1, 5, 0, 3, 6, 7.
# sbmixer: Allow the soundblaster mixer to modify the DOSBox mixer.
# oplmode: Type of OPL emulation. On 'auto' the mode is determined by sblaster type. All OPL modes are Adlib-compatible, except for 'cms'.
# Possible values: auto, cms, opl2, dualopl2, opl3, none.
# oplemu: Provider for the OPL emulation. compat or old might provide better quality (see oplrate as well).
# Possible values: default, compat, fast, old.
# oplrate: Sample rate of OPL music emulation. Use 49716 for highest quality (set the mixer rate accordingly).
# Possible values: 22050, 49716, 44100, 48000, 32000, 16000, 11025, 8000.

sbtype=sb16
sbbase=220
irq=7
dma=1
hdma=5
sbmixer=true
oplmode=auto
oplemu=default
oplrate=22050

[gus]
# gus: Enable the Gravis Ultrasound emulation.
# gusrate: Sample rate of Ultrasound emulation.
# Possible values: 22050, 44100, 48000, 32000, 16000, 11025, 8000, 49716.
# gusbase: The IO base address of the Gravis Ultrasound.
# Possible values: 240, 220, 260, 280, 2a0, 2c0, 2e0, 300.
# gusirq: The IRQ number of the Gravis Ultrasound.
# Possible values: 5, 3, 7, 9, 10, 11, 12.
# gusdma: The DMA channel of the Gravis Ultrasound.
# Possible values: 3, 0, 1, 5, 6, 7.
# ultradir: Path to Ultrasound directory. In this directory
# there should be a MIDI directory that contains
# the patch files for GUS playback. Patch sets used
# with Timidity should work fine.

gus=false
gusrate=22050
gusbase=240
gusirq=5
gusdma=3
ultradir=C:\ULTRASND

[speaker]
# pcspeaker: Enable PC-Speaker emulation.
# pcrate: Sample rate of the PC-Speaker sound generation.
# Possible values: 22050, 44100, 48000, 32000, 16000, 11025, 8000, 49716.
# tandy: Enable Tandy Sound System emulation. For 'auto', emulation is present only if machine is set to 'tandy'.
# Possible values: auto, on, off.
# tandyrate: Sample rate of the Tandy 3-Voice generation.
# Possible values: 22050, 44100, 48000, 32000, 16000, 11025, 8000, 49716.
# disney: Enable Disney Sound Source emulation. (Covox Voice Master and Speech Thing compatible).

pcspeaker=true
pcrate=22050
tandy=auto
tandyrate=22050
disney=true

[joystick]
# joysticktype: Type of joystick to emulate: auto (default), none,
# 2axis (supports two joysticks),
# 4axis (supports one joystick, first joystick used),
# 4axis_2 (supports one joystick, second joystick used),
# fcs (Thrustmaster), ch (CH Flightstick).
# none disables joystick emulation.
# auto chooses emulation depending on real joystick(s).
# Possible values: auto, 2axis, 4axis, 4axis_2, fcs, ch, none.
# timed: enable timed intervals for axis. (false is old style behaviour).
# autofire: continuously fires as long as you keep the button pressed.
# swap34: swap the 3rd and the 4th axis. can be useful for certain joysticks.
# buttonwrap: enable button wrapping at the number of emulated buttons.

joysticktype=auto
timed=true
autofire=false
swap34=false
buttonwrap=true

[serial]
# serial1: set type of device connected to com port.
# Can be disabled, dummy, modem, nullmodem, directserial.
# Additional parameters must be in the same line in the form of
# parameter:value. Parameter for all types is irq.
# for directserial: realport (required), rxdelay (optional).
# (realport:COM1 realport:ttyS0).
# for modem: listenport (optional).
# for nullmodem: server, rxdelay, txdelay, telnet, usedtr,
# transparent, port, inhsocket (all optional).
# Example: serial1=modem listenport:5000
# Possible values: dummy, disabled, modem, nullmodem, directserial.
# serial2: see serial1
# Possible values: dummy, disabled, modem, nullmodem, directserial.
# serial3: see serial1
# Possible values: dummy, disabled, modem, nullmodem, directserial.
# serial4: see serial1
# Possible values: dummy, disabled, modem, nullmodem, directserial.

serial1=dummy
serial2=dummy
serial3=disabled
serial4=disabled

[dos]
# xms: Enable XMS support.
# ems: Enable EMS support.
# umb: Enable UMB support.
# keyboardlayout: Language code of the keyboard layout (or none).

xms=true
ems=true
umb=true
keyboardlayout=auto

[ipx]
# ipx: Enable ipx over UDP/IP emulation.

ipx=false

[autoexec]
# Lines in this section will be run at startup.

Powerbook G4

AFAIK the dynamic core hasn't been implemented on PPC CPU's, which would explain the bad performance you're seeing. I could be wrong with this though. Anyway, your machine isn't very fast, so you probably will have performance troubles with demanding games. On modern machines, even the largest DOS games should install in a few minutes only, and startup in a matter of seconds.

Might I need to create a boot disk?

Nah, you basically configure everything via the dosbox.conf file (the "preferences" file you've pasted above).

So, you don't think I'll be able to run it at all? That surprises me, because I've had a lot of success running the old adventure games on scummvm (been playing Sam and Max and Full Throttle).

Is there anything I can change in the file I posted that might help?

SCUMMVM isn't an emulator. DOSBox is.

you can try

0.73 is old, get the latest one

and try to install the game using imgmount (read the manual)
you can also speed up dosbox during installation (manual)
and for the play speed up too