I saw a TON of posts on Privateer, but few had ALL the answers I was looking for. I managed to get the game working pretty well, and wanted to share a full-working config file with everyone (so you dont need to spend a TON of time getting it to work). Of course, every computer is different, so I've also included some info on my computer

1. my computer info
2. config file contents
3. autoexec info
4. troubleshooting Q&A.

First off, DosBox says that this game runs only on DosBox 0.61 and 0.63 ... so if you are using DosBox 0.62, it probably wont work.

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MY COMPUTER
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Pentium 3, 3 GHz, 1GB Mem, running Windows Media Center Edition

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MY DOSBOX CONFIG FILE
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[cpu]
cycles=12000
core=normal
cycleup=50
cycledown=10

[dosbox]
machine=vga
memsize=32
language=
captures=C:\Games\DOSBox-0.61\D-Fend v2\Capture

[sdl]
output=surface
fullscreen=true
fulldouble=false
fullfixed=false
fullresolution=1024x768
hwscale=1.00
autolock=true
sensitivity=100
waitonerror=true
priority=higher,normal
mapperfile=mapper.txt

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

[sblaster]
type=sbpro1
base=220
irq=7
dma=1
hdma=5
mixer=true
oplmode=auto
oplrate=22050

[gus]
gus=false
rate=22050
base=240
irq1=5
irq2=5
dma1=1
dma2=1
ultradir=C:\ULTRASND

[midi]
mpu401=false
intelligent=true
device=default
config=

[speaker]
pcspeaker=true
pcrate=22050
tandyrate=22050
disney=false

[dos]
xms=true
ems=false

[mixer]
nosound=false
rate=22050
blocksize=2048
prebuffer=10

[modem]
modem=false
listenport=23
comport=COM2

[directserial]
directserial=false
Comport=COM1
realport=1
defaultbps=1200
parity=N
bytesize=8
stopbit=1

[ipx]
ipx=false

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D-FEND AUTOEXEC.BAT
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Add the following to the end of the config file if you are using D-Fend. If you are using another program, below is the information you need for the your autoexec.bat. Be sure to have the correct path to the game (C:\games\priv).

[autoexec]
mount C "C:\games\priv" -label C-drive
C:
cd\
cd \
loadfix -1 PRIV.EXE
exit

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Q&A
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Q: What version of DosBox do I need?
A: Privateer is supported on DosBox 0.61 and 0.63. It is declared "broken" on the DosBox site:
http://dosbox.sourceforge.net/comp_list.php?s … D=1732&letter=P

Q: I keep getting a "JEMM not found" error message or a "D002-FFFF" error message ... how do I fix this?
A: First, are you running the game without using DosBox? If so, then the game will not run (and you will ALWAYS get a JEMM error)!
If you get a JEMM error while running DosBox, you have to disable EMS (set it to "false" in the config file).

Q: The game is "skipping" alot (not the sound), or jumping between animations. What do I do?
A: Try setting your "Frame Skip" value to 0. If that doesnt work, then also try to increase your cycles. That worked for me.

Q: Sound is very choppy. How do I fix this?
A: Lower your CPU Cycles. I assume the exact number of cycles depends on your computer. You may want to play with this setting. Too little cycles will make the game take awhile to load, and could cause the game to be choppy as well. Too much causes the sound to break up.

Q: My Mouse doesnt work at all ... Or, I can move it around, but clicking doesnt work.
A: Auto Lock your mouse in the config settings (see my config above)

Q: My Mouse works, and I can click in the terminal, but when I take off, it doesnt work in flight
A: At the beginning of the game, when you choose: NEW, LOAD, OPTIONS, QUIT .... choose OPTIONS. Under controls, choose mouse. However, be warned that playing with the mouse is a bit difficult at first and takes some getting used to (try a joystick instead)
If this doesnt answer your question, ask yourself this ... does you mouse work well outside of the game. 😀

Hope this helps...

Jabbamonkey