1. I did not have any problems with Ultima 8, I will check it at home...

2. CWSDPMI will be useless for Ultima 8 (it supports only 32 bit DPMI, not 16 bit DPMI which Ultima 8 uses - but the game should run fine without any DPMI).

3. CON is DOS console (keyboard/display), installer probably tries to write something to screen. If it works otherwise, just ignore it.

Mirek

The thing is, the install acts like everything went fine and the game runs normally the first time it loads up, but once I quit and run it again I get a Dos error from Origin that the install was incomplete.

Could you do me a favor Mirek? Could you check your U8.ini file and tell me what it says? Mine is a single line of garbled mess. I have no idea if this could be affecting my issue, just something to check.

Also, I'm glad to hear that it runs nicely. Could you tell me your setup? Such as which version of Dosbox you're running, your OS, Dosbox config options, etc? That would be an extreme help to me.

Thanks again!

Anyone that has Ultima 8 working?

Could you tell me what version of Dosbox you have, what Dosbox config options you use (exactly how yours is), what OS you use, whether you use VDM sound, what the U8.ini file says.

Any or all of these things would be a great help from someone who is running U8 without problems.

Thanks for any help I can get here.

The thing is, the install acts like everything went fine and the game runs normally the first time it loads up, but once I quit and run it again I get a Dos error from Origin that the install was incomplete.

I'm having same issue. 🙁 So any help is appreciated.

I'm running DOSBox 0.61 at 10000 cycles on a Windows 98 SE system (no VDMSound) without any problems.

U8 sound settings: Soundblaster for music & speech (MPU401 works also, but is a little bit too slow)

My U8.ini looks rather strange:

ÿÿÿÿÐÿ„j \þß:`þ~ ÿß:~ • F 0 °Install usic Configura

My dosbox.conf file:

[sdl]
# fullscreen -- Start dosbox directly in fullscreen.
# fulldouble -- Use double buffering in fullscreen.
# fullfixed -- Don't resize the screen when in fullscreen.
# fullwidth/height -- What resolution to use for fullscreen, use together with fullfixed.
# output -- What to use for output: surface,overlay,opengl,openglnb.
# hwscale -- Extra scaling of window if the output device supports hardware scaling.
# autolock -- Mouse will automatically lock, if you click on the screen.
# sensitiviy -- Mouse sensitivity.
# waitonerror -- Wait before closing the console if dosbox has an error.

fullscreen=true
fulldouble=false
fullfixed=false
fullwidth=0
fullheight=0
output=surface
hwscale=1.00
autolock=true
sensitivity=100
waitonerror=true

[dosbox]
# language -- Select another language file.
# memsize -- Amount of memory dosbox has in megabytes.
# machine -- The type of machine tries to emulate:auto,hercules,cga,tandy,vga.
# Try a specific type if your game has problems with auto.

language=
machine=auto
memsize=16

[render]
# frameskip -- How many frames dosbox skips before drawing one.
# snapdir -- Directory where screenshots get saved.
# aspect -- Do aspect correction.
# scaler -- Scaler used to enlarge/enhance low resolution modes.
# Supported are none,normal2x,advmame2x

frameskip=0
snapdir=snaps
aspect=false
scaler=none

[cpu]
# core -- CPU Core used in emulation: normal,full,dynamic.
# cycles -- Amount of instructions dosbox tries to emulate each millisecond.
# Setting this higher than your machine can handle is bad!
# cycleup -- Amount of cycles to increase/decrease with keycombo.
# cycledown Setting it lower than 100 will be a percentage.

core=normal
cycles=10000
cycleup=500
cycledown=500

[mixer]
# nosound -- Enable silent mode, sound is still emulated though.
# rate -- Mixer sample rate, setting any devices higher than this will
# probably lower their sound quality.
# blocksize -- Mixer block size, larger blocks might help sound stuttering
# but sound will also be more lagged.
# wavedir -- Directory where saved sound output goes when you use the
# sound record key-combination, check README file.

nosound=false
rate=22050
blocksize=2048
wavedir=waves

[midi]
# mpu401 -- Enable MPU-401 Emulation.
# device -- Device that will receive the MIDI data from MPU-401.
# This can be default,alsa,oss,win32,coreaudio,none.
# config -- Special configuration options for the device.

mpu401=true
device=default
config=

[sblaster]
# sblaster -- Enable the soundblaster emulation.
# base,irq,dma -- The IO/IRQ/DMA address of the soundblaster.
# sbrate -- Sample rate of soundblaster emulation.
# adlib -- Enable the adlib emulation.
# adlibrate -- Sample rate of adlib emulation.
# cms -- Enable the Creative Music System/Gameblaster emulation.
# Enabling both the adlib and cms might give conflicts!
# cmsrate -- Sample rate of cms emulation.

sblaster=true
base=220
irq=7
dma=1
sbrate=22050
adlib=true
adlibrate=22050
adlibmode=adlib
cms=false
cmsrate=22050

[gus]
# gus -- Enable the Gravis Ultrasound emulation.
# base,irq1,irq2,dma1,dma2 -- The IO/IRQ/DMA addresses of the
# Gravis Ultrasound. (Same IRQ's and DMA's are OK.)
# rate -- Sample rate of Ultrasound emulation.
# 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=true
rate=22050
base=240
irq1=5
irq2=5
dma1=3
dma2=3
ultradir=C:\ULTRASND

[speaker]
# pcspeaker -- Enable PC-Speaker emulation.
# pcrate -- Sample rate of the PC-Speaker sound generation.
# tandy -- Enable Tandy 3-Voice emulation.
# tandyrate -- Sample rate of the Tandy 3-Voice generation.
# disney -- Enable Disney Sound Source emulation.

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

[bios]
# Nothing to setup yet!

[dos]
# xms -- Enable XMS support.
# ems -- Enable EMS support.

xms=true
ems=false

[modem]
# modem -- Enable virtual modem emulation.
# comport -- COM Port modem is connected to.
# listenport -- TCP Port the momdem listens on for incoming connections.

modem=true
comport=2
listenport=23

[autoexec]
# Lines in this section will be run at startup.
@echo off
mount c C:\games
mount d D:\ -t cdrom -aspi
mount e E:\ -t cdrom -aspi
C:

Thanks for providing so much detail Xelasarg. I ran with exactly the same things, and the same problem still occurs. The only difference I can see is that you are using Windows 98. I guess my problem is Windows XP-related. I'd run a 2nd partition with 98SE if only I had that OS handy. 😁

Has anyone else been able to run U8 under XP?

Yes, I run it using DOSBOX (CVS from 12.April) under Windows XP SP 1, using Sound Blaster Pro and General MIDI MPU-401 (actually when MPU-401 is available in games it is quicker then Soundblaster - it is not emulated, just forwarded to Windows - so I prefer it). It seems ok to me.
I did not have any problems with repeatedly running the game. I cannot tell about the CON errors in installer, I do not have installation floppies ...

Actually DOSBOX runs better for me in WXP then in W98 (quicker, but it may be just mess in my W98 SE installation)

Mirek

Sweet info mirekluza, it gives me some hope that I can run it on XP. Quick question for you, did you install from a CD (U8 original or Ultima Collection), or did you install from a downloaded copy of the game? Also, did you install in Dosbox, or from another version of the command prompt?

Sorry if I have to pick your brain, but recreating your steps exactly might be just what I need. Thanks!

I got the game just packed in ZIP file (I have never ever seen Ultima Collection in shop, otherwise I would buy it - but at the time when I became interested in Ultimas I was able to get just Ultima 9).
I have just unpacked and run install to configure sound (I had to set the destinalion directory correctly as well, otherwise installer crashed instead of configuring sound).
Other idea: you may perhaps try to patch the game.

Mirek

I'll give that a try. So you installed simply by double clicking Install.exe in the unzipped folder in a Windows environment, changed the destination directory manually, installed without sound options, and then ran through the latest CVS of Dosbox, is that right?

Is this the version CVS you have, dosbox20040414? Just want to be sure. One last thing, do you use VDM sound?

Thanks again for all the help!

Hmm, still no luck. Could be that I have a corrupt file somewhere. I'll look around.

Thanks again

>So you installed simply by double clicking Install.exe in the unzipped
>folder in a Windows environment
Not in Windows, I ran INSTALL.EXE in DOSBOX!
I used my own DOSBOX CVS build from the sources from the mentioned date.

> One last thing, do you use VDM sound?
Why? It has nothing to with DOSBOX. And I would not need it anyway (I have two soundcards, one ISA SB compatible and SB Live 😀 ). But in any case I prefer DOSBOX if possible.

> could send me the zip file for U8 that you used
I am sorry, but I do not distribute abandonware. You will have to look elsewhere. I can just advice you to check abandonware servers, sooner or later you will find it somewhere.

I think we do not get further here. So unless other people appear here with the same problem, I take it that there is something wrong in your installation.

Mirek

Hmm, a few more things I'd like to try before giving up all together.

Can you tell me how big your /static/u8shapes.flx file is? The error comes up as though it wants to decompress the shapes file like the very first time you run U8.exe

And lastly, can you tell me the directory you installed U8 to? and where that directory relates to where you bind the C drive in DosBox? I ask this because I have previously run into errors installing U8 if you try to install from the C drive to the C drive, I have to mount a D drive to install at all.

If these two things don't happen to be the problem, I am conceding defeat.

Thanks for all the help once again.

Update: I finally was able to circumvent the problem I was having before by installing the U8WIN9X patch before I tried to run U8.exe for the first time. Once I ran U8W.exe in Windows XP, it now lets me run the program normally.

However... a new problem has arisen with the speech part of sounds not working properly. Using VDM, the music works correctly but speech does not. I will be tinkering with this, but I did want to thank those of you who gave your help. I am excited about playing this classic again!

U8shapes.flx has 15,374,616 bytes.
I think that the directory does not matter. I have it in C:\U8, but I think I used it before in different directory as well.
The directory is only important for the installer (when I configured sound I had to configure destination directory to correct c:\u8 as well, so there was: Source drive c:\u8 , Destination drive c:\u8 ).

> The error comes up as though it wants to decompress
> the shapes file like the very first time you run U8.exe
This could be reason. If there is problem with this, then I could not see it (since it was already done before in my case). In this case I recommend to try to run Ultima 8 in Windows (and either use it there, or use that decompressed file back in DOSBOX). There is an unofficiall patch enabling Ultima 8 to run in Windows ( http://members.iinet.net.au/~rsd/U8inWindows.html ). If it is really this case, then it could be a problem in DOSBOX (please post info how it went).

Mirek

>Update: I finally was able to circumvent the problem I was having before
>by installing the U8WIN9X patch before I tried to run U8.exe for the first >time

I hope you do not mean that the whole time you were trying to run Ultima 8 natively in Windows. If it is like that, then we just wasted time here 🙁 🙁 🙁 - I know that U8 needs unofficiall Windows patch to run natively ...
This forum is for DOSBOX - that means for running games like Ultima 8 in DOSBOX. THERE IS SPECIALL FORUM FOR VDMSOUND OR DOS GAMES IN GENERAL !!!!!!!
Well, I should have been suspicious when you mentioned VDMSound ...

Mirek

This could be reason. If there is problem with this, then I could not see it (since it was already done before in my case). In this case I recommend to try to run Ultima 8 in Windows (and either use it there, or use that decompressed file back in DOSBOX). There is an unofficiall patch enabling Ultima 8 to run in Windows ( http://members.iinet.net.au/~rsd/U8inWindows.html ). If it is really this case, then it could be a problem in DOSBOX (please post info how it went).

The Windows patch definitely fixed the problem. See above post. I installed the game, and before running U8.exe, I ran the Windows patch, and ran the game from U8W.exe in windows, and that fixed my issue.

Thanks for all the help Mirek, you rock!

I hope you do not mean that the whole time you were trying to run Ultima 8 natively in Windows. If it is like that, then we just wasted time here - I know that U8 needs unofficiall Windows patch to run natively ...
This forum is for DOSBOX - that means for running games like Ultima 8 in DOSBOX. THERE IS SPECIALL FORUM FOR VDMSOUND OR DOS GAMES IN GENERAL !!!!!!!

No, no. The whole time I was trying to install and run, *inside* Dosbox, not from the Windows command prompt, or from Windows itself. I was purely trying to emulate Dos with Dosbox. I had tried to run the Windows patch once before, but I had already run U8.exe once and the patch was telling me it was corrupt.

I assure you I was not trying to run from Windows or the Windows command prompt, or wasting your time. 😁

Hi I have found the same problem and went loooking to it and found a solution... The problem is that for some obscure reason some files that are in the dosbox mount directory are used by some windows process. When the Ultima 8 extracts the file it transfers the data from u8shapes.cmp to u8shapes.flx in subfolder u8/static. Then the setup tries to erase the u8shapes.cmp which is now empty (about 10k) but doesn't succed because the file is locked.... Then when you try to run the game again it will find the u8shapes.cmp in static and say that you have an incomplete installation cause this file should not exist.

Solution is simple : remove the empty file manually after the first run.

Hope this helps. BTW I find running U8 in dosbox much more convenient than by the winpatch since I have 1GB of ram.

There is another problem. The game is SLOW. I have a P4 mobile 2.4 Ghz notebook from dell with 1GB memory and the game is so so playable. any suggestions on CPU cycles and keyframes?

I tried various settings and the best seems 6000-10000 with no keyframes dropped but that is still sloooow. I cant belive that my 2.4 Ghz even with the emulator can't handle a game that I was running on my 486-100 (or something).

Both of these problems I analyzed in my thread
DosBox 0.61 performance analysis and other problems

Thanks,

Mipam Moudry
Software Architect