Try this, create a file named GO.BAT and edit it to contain the single command MEM /C, the run it with VDMSound (right-click and choose Run with VDMS), it should report something like the following:
Conventional Memory :

Name Size in Decimal Size in Hex
------------- --------------------- -------------
MSDOS 13184 ( 12.9K) 3380
KBD 3296 ( 3.2K) CE0
EMM 176 ( 0.2K) B0
HIMEM 1248 ( 1.2K) 4E0
COMMAND 3152 ( 3.1K) C50
FREE 112 ( 0.1K) 70
FREE 633984 (619.1K) 9AC80

Total FREE : 634096 (619.2K)

Upper Memory :

Name Size in Decimal Size in Hex
------------- --------------------- -------------
SYSTEM 180208 (176.0K) 2BFF0
MOUSE 12528 ( 12.2K) 30F0
DOSX 34720 ( 33.9K) 87A0
FREE 256 ( 0.3K) 100
FREE 34336 ( 33.5K) 8620

Total FREE : 34592 ( 33.8K)

Total bytes available to programs (Conventional+Upper) : 668688 (653.0K)
Largest executable program size : 633712 (618.9K)
Largest available upper memory block : 34336 ( 33.5K)

4194304 bytes total EMS memory
4194304 bytes free EMS memory

20971520 bytes total contiguous extended memory
0 bytes available contiguous extended memory
16628736 bytes available XMS memory
MS-DOS resident in High Memory Area

(thanks to Nicht)

Also, it looks like these guys are as helpful as us!
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/darklands/messages/

Originally posted by Unregistered ...but Darklands keeps telling me I haven't got enough conventional memory to run.. can anyone offer some advice?

Start with what Schadenfreude has already suggested and be on the lookout for your "Upper" and "EMS" memory capacity.

It is quite possible that your hardware may not allow for a large enough block of "upper" memory to allow for the creation of EMS.

Fortunately, if you have a powerful enough machine (which I have no idea if you do or do not...because you didn't post your system specs as requested in the posting guidelines), you can also try DosBox. It is a (full) PC emulator, as opposed to a soundcard emulator like VDMSound; that makes it immune to modern PC EMS limitations.

However, you need to read the README that comes with it carefully. It also needs more resources and the audio emulation isn't quite up to VDMSound standards.

Let us know what memory readings you get from MEM /c.

i am trying to run Darklands under win2k with a sblive!

i have installed vdmsound and started the game with it, still no sound for me ... have i missed anything ?

thx a bunch

Originally posted by Unregistered i have installed vdmsound and started the game with it, still no sound for me ... have i missed anything ?

Hard to tell, considering how precious little information there is in your post. When you say "no sound" for you, can we presume the game still runs properly, just that you have no audio?

Did you configure the sound settings to match those of VDMSound? Are you able to start and run the game with "No Sound" or "PC Speaker" audio settings?

oh my apologies...

yes the game runs fine, just quietly...

i am using win2k(sp2) with an sblive!(win2k built it driver... mayhaps i need to update it ?).

i have installed vmdsound (2.0.4 i believe), but i haven't done the update for it. . .

. . . sound settings ? i havent read anything about configuring sound settings. . . please tell. . . (ok i finally saw a tips from vmdsound that its best to have the sound card running at certain irq etc. . . is that it ? if so i need to figure out how to change that stuff. . .)

Originally posted by Unregistered yes the game runs fine, just quietly...

Ok, so the audio is the only problem.

. . . sound settings ? i havent read anything about configuring sound settings. . . please tell. . . (ok i finally saw a tips from vmdsound that its best to have the sound card running at certain irq etc. . . is that it ? if so i need to figure out how to change that stuff. . .)

Yes. Remember this is a DOS game. Even when running it in Win2K, you must meet it's requirements. VDMSound's default settings are in the VLP file created by starting the game with VDMSound. It may be necessary to do some tweakings to the settings (IOW, if "SoundBlaster 16" doesn't work well, step down to "SoundBlaster Pro 2", etc...).

Run your INSTALL.EXE, choose Reconfigure Hardware Options and match it as close as possible with VDMSound settings. That should be:

SoundBlaster Pro (later)
Speech Address:
(•) Address 220
( ) Address 230
( ) Address 240
( ) Address 250
( ) Address 260

Speech IRQ:--Speech DRQ:
( ) IRQ 2 ------(•) DRQ 1
( ) IRQ 3 ------( ) DRQ 2
( ) IRQ 4-------( ) DRQ 3
( ) IRQ 5
( ) IRQ 6
(•) IRQ 7

Also, check out http://www.darklands.net/

There's even a way of tricking the soundcard drivers into supporting SoundBlaster & Roland audio at the same time. Will have to get back to you on that.

Run your INSTALL.EXE, choose Reconfigure Hardware Options

which install.exe ? darklands' install.exe ? or vdmsound's install.exe ? either i have tried and i didnt see a Reconfigure Hardware Options...

i am digging through the microsoft web site to see if theres a way to mess with the hardware settings... (ok apparently my sblive is not a plug and play device and so i can't change the setting... wtf)

really appreciate your help here 😄 thx a lot

Originally posted by Unregistered which install.exe ? darklands' install.exe ? or vdmsound's install.exe ?

***
That would be Darklands. There is no INSTALL.EXE in VDMSound. The closest thing VDMSound has is the INSTALL.BAT, whose sole purpose was to install the GUI Launchpad, nothing to do with game configuration. Remember, you are trying to match the game with your audio "hardware". Since that hardware is emulated by VDMSound, that means you match the game settings with the settings of VDMSound.

...either i have tried and i didnt see a Reconfigure Hardware Options...

Then something has gone wrong. After you used the original CD or floppies to install the game, it should place an INSTALL.EXE in the game's directory.

It should look like the image I attached to this post (below).

i am digging through the microsoft web site to see if theres a way to mess with the hardware settings... (ok apparently my sblive is not a plug and play device and so i can't change the setting

You need to understand something. With very few exceptions, Win2K (like all other NT OS's) doesn't allow programs to directly access your hardware. ALL DOS programs use direct access to hardware. That means it doesn't matter what IRQ or DMA or whatever is, because Win2k won't allow your DOS program use it.

That's why you need VDMSound. It emulates a sound card that DOS programs expect to find (including emulation of it's common IRQ and DMA settings) and reroutes that data through your OS to your real soundcard for output. Remember, there is no DOS in NT..

ok i did that install.exe but i only had 2 options under Reconfigure Hardware. that is () no sound or () pc speaker... the rest of the options are all greyed out and can't be selected.

when i choose pc speaker the game refused to run completely...

EDITED:[hah choose "run with vmds" on the install.exe, finally got the desired screen, put 220, irq7 and drq1 on ... havent try the game yet tho...

ps YA BABY! there be music!]

really really thx for the help... couldn't have made it without your ^_^v

Originally posted by Unregistered ok i did that install.exe but i only had 2 options under Reconfigure Hardware. that is () no sound or () pc speaker... the rest of the options are all greyed out and can't be selected.

Actually, they can be selected, it's just they grey indicates they aren't valid choices (which is true if you aren't running VDMSound).

EDITED:[hah choose "run with vmds" on the install.exe, finally got the desired screen, put 220, irq7 and drq1 on ... havent try the game yet tho...

You mean you haven't been using "Run with VDMS"?! Then what have you been doing?

ps YA BABY! there be music!

And of course, I've misplaced the text on how to get MIDI with SoundBlaster. Will try later...

really really thx for the help... couldn't have made it without your

You might want to familiarize yourself with DOSgames and how they are usually configured...to save you grief on your trying to run your next DOS favorite.

hmm i had the game working for a while on my win 2k with geforce 256, but i recently bought an ati 9600 pro and downloaded the lates driver ver 6.14.10, then no more game for me... the dos prompt window would kinda hang and have to use task manager to end it...

reinstalled vdmsound and updated it... no help... any idea or where should i try looking again ? maybe i need to reinstall the game too ?

thanks

I tested it under WinXP a month ago and I had no problems with it. Check your setup settings.

Originally posted by jatravartids hmm i had the game working for a while on my win 2k with geforce 256, but i recently bought an ati 9600 pro and downloaded the lates driver ver 6.14.10, then no more game for me...

Well that shouldn't do anything as it's using a standard 320x200x256 display.

When mysterious events like this happen, start over from the beginning... Run the game's INSTALL and under "Reconfigure Hardware Options" choose No sound and save that configuration. Right-click on your DARKLAND.EXE file, choose Properties, click on the Memory tab, then change the EMS memory setting from "None" to 8192, then click OK.

Now run DARKLAND.EXE without VDMSound. Does it run in silence?

in fact i can't even do the install.exe with vdmsound... the dos prompt hangs again....

think i should install the entire game ?

Originally posted by jatravartids think i should install the entire game ?

Yes. The INSTALL program doesn't even need EMS. It sounds like it's been corrupted somehow...

lets hope its not the windows, tho i have a feeling i need to reinstall windows soon....

ever since i gotten the radeon 9600 pro 2 weeks ago my games are all screwed, either the old dos games dont run, or the new games (neverwinter nights to be exact) run for a few minutes and then the screen is totally jumbled and then even the windows screen is screwed, have to restart the machine... 🙁

Originally posted by jatravartids ever since i gotten the radeon 9600 pro 2 weeks ago my games are all screwed, either the old dos games dont run, or the new games (neverwinter nights to be exact) run for a few minutes and then the screen is totally jumbled

Hrmm. You might check with ATI about that.

ya after checking with the neverwinter nights forum, i see numerous posts about 9600 not working properly with the game and a fix is suppose to be coming out soon, cause not long ago ati finally pin point the problem and working on a fix now...

still my computer seems screwed... the display is not as stable as before...