VOGONS


First post, by cab

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Hi,

I am trying to run a game called Diamond Cave I wrote in the mid 90's. First of all, let me say that it is great to have this DOS emulation. I would not have imagined that I could see this game again, running under Windows XP! Many thanks.

Now, my problem is that the game runs great except for one thing. It uses an advanced VGA mode (text mode 259), which is text-based, but with replaced fonts (which are used for "blocky" graphics). It also has a scrollable upper part of the screen and a fixed lower part (split lines), which contains two lines that do not scroll and which are used to show game information.

In these two lines, as you can see from the attached screen shot, only garbage appears. There seems to be something wrong with either the font or the screen mode emulation.

I have tried with the other graphics drivers, but only VGA works for this game. I have not attached the game itself (1.3 MB), but would be happy to provide the game if anybody is willing to investigate the issue. I would also be willing to donate a small amount of money (20 Euro) for the resolution.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Regards,
Chris

--
Processor type and speed: Athlon 2GHz
Amount and type of RAM: 512 MB
Video board w/ RAM amount and type: Sorry, don't know
Sound board: Don't know, but sound works fine.
Operating system: Windows XP
Game name (and version, if applicable): Diamond Cave 6.03
Description of problem (be detailed: saying "it's jerky" doesn't help, saying "the player sprites seem to be jerky when I'm pressing any of the arrow keys" does): See above
Reproducibility of problem (always, only once, always but only on a specific level, etc.): Always. Just start the game and start the first level.
Sound mode used: Happens in both speaker and Adlib simulation mode.
Video mode (Software, OpenGL, Direct3D, or Glide, and resolution): Tried with surface and ddraw.
Version of emulator (for VDMSound, probably 2.0.4 or 2.1.0; for DOSBox, 0.58+): DOSBox 0.70
Steps already attempted to solve the problem (please say you've read the README if you haven't, and READ IT IF YOU HAVEN'T!): Yes, read the readme. Tried with different graphics drivers, but only vga works for the game. Honestly, I can't think of anything else to try.

Reply 1 of 10, by eL_PuSHeR

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WELCOME TO THE FORUM, Cab.

Also, it's nice to see a well explained report in your post.

Intel i7 5960X
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Reply 2 of 10, by Qbix

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the game itself would be handy.

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

Reply 3 of 10, by cab

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Good evening,

I am delighted and encouraged at such quick replies to my post. Please find the game attached to this post.

The graphics routines (in Borland Pascal) are also included. Let me know if you want me to point you to the specific code areas.

Kind regards,
Chris

Reply 4 of 10, by cab

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Hi again,

Has anybody had any time to look into this issue? I would still value a solution.

I raise the reward for a solution to 40 Euro 😀

Kind regards,
Chris

Reply 6 of 10, by h-a-l-9000

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2008-03-08 13:29 c2woody […]
Show full quote

2008-03-08 13:29 c2woody

* src/hardware/vga_draw.cpp: pel panning+line compare handled
different in textmodes, fixes diamond cave (thanks to hal for
spotting this)

😉

1+1=10

Reply 7 of 10, by wd

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hal got a paypal account?

Reply 8 of 10, by h-a-l-9000

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You made the fix.

1+1=10

Reply 9 of 10, by wd

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Don't remember (hey it's almost 3 months!), and don't have a paypal account 😉

Reply 10 of 10, by cab

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Hi DOSBox Crew - Qbix, hal, c2woody (alias wd),

Well, what can I say! I'm absolutely amazed at your brilliance, and I don't say this lightly. Incidentally, c2woody did the fix on my daughter's birthday. She's ten now, but wasn't even born when I wrote the game. I never suspected I would see this running again under Windows, because of the strange VGA features I used. Playing DC again, after all this time, and even with the same Adlib sound effects, means a lot to me.

This is what the Internet is fantastic for: Bringing together people with a common interest in some bizarre and wonderful niche of the universe (like reminiscing about past DOS games). Writing DOSBox is a tremendous job and I am impressed by your tenacity and professionalism in making this such a great and easy-to-use emulator.

I've donated 40 Euros (60 dollars) via PayPal. Talk to Qbix about your share 😀

Many thanks,
Chris