Seems to be working okay for me in DOSBox 0.74(-3) and SVN with default settings -- SWOTL Manager 2.1 and SWOTL 2.1 (no addons).

Not sure how comfortable you are with DOSBox and DOS, but one thing that is critical for the TSR is proper paths. The SMCONFIG.CFG file initially has the game installed in C:\SWOTL, so either use the same path with DOSBox or change it in the config file accordingly.

One mistake that is often made is to mount a game directory as the root of the emulated hard drive:

Incorrect:

1MOUNT C C:\DOSGAMES\SWOTL
2C:
3SW

Correct:

1MOUNT C C:\DOSGAMES
2C:
3CD SWOTL
4SW

SWOTL itself seems to generally work okay with the incorrect method, but not all games will. However, the SWOTL Manager will not work with the incorrect method and in fact show a black screen like you describe because the game appears to be in C:\ and not C:\SWOTL as it should be. So, make sure you're mounting correctly.

Thanks for the input.

While I have all three versions of SWOTL (original floppies, ACC version on floppies, CD version), I downloaded a ready-to-go version including a preconfigured DOSBox 0.74; while this was the original version (without add-on aircraft) it worked normally once I changed the joystick timed option to false. I then copied my ACC version over this to get the add-on aircraft and it works fine, even runs full screen (1920x1200).

There apparently are no mount options since we're dealing with the floppy version, I've seen nothing in either DOSBox conf file.

This is the start line from the shortcut:
.............................................................
%COMSPEC% /C .\DOSBOX\DOSBox.exe -conf ".\DOSBOX\dosbox.conf" -conf ".\DOSBOX\dosbox_single.conf" -noconsole -c exit
............................................................

This is the SMConfig.cfg:
............................................................
Path to your SWOTL directory
c:\semag\SecretWeaponsoftheLuftwaffe\swotl\
Path to your SWOTL modified plane directory
c:\semag\SecretWeaponsoftheLuftwaffe\swotl\hangar\
The extension for your modified plane mods
exp
The extension for accompanying text to your plane mods
txt
List of Art Gallery Files
Cover
End of Art Gallery Files
..............................................................................

Given the long folder name, which came with the download, I tried enclosing it in quotation marks, made no difference.

Where did you acquire this "ready-to-go" copy of the game?

There is generally no support here for games obtained from non-legitimate sources; if for no other reason than missing components and improper installation and configuration (as in your case).

GamesNostalgia.com

Mainly to get a pre-configured DOSBox; but as I said, once it was working I copied my ACC version of SWOTL into the folder. If I didn't want to use SWMan there would be no issues, the game itself is running fine.

I don't know if SWOTL is officially abandonware, but Disney bought LucasArts some years ago and virtually dismantled it, so SWOTL is easily available online.

jgf wrote on 2021-04-25, 04:16:

I don't know if SWOTL is officially abandonware, but Disney bought LucasArts some years ago and virtually dismantled it, so SWOTL is easily available online.

Just because it is "easily available" doesn't mean that its distribution is legal. This argument has been had countless numbers of times over the last twenty years.

The bigger problem is that something might be awry with the configuration so that even if you copied your "ACC version" into the folder, there might still be problems. What is the "ACC version", anyway? Is there some reason you can't just install everything from scratch from your own original media? Setting up DOSBox is not so complicated as to make a "pre-configured DOSBox" desirable – or at least, it wouldn't have taken you 15 years to figure it out.

The problem with SWMAN is likely the paths, as I mentioned in my initial comment in this thread. That folder name longer than 8 characters in SMCONFIG.CFG is a big red flag, but it's hard to say what those paths should be because the commands in the [autoexec] section of the conf file have not been mentioned. However, if the game folder is mounted as root, as I suspect, then changing SWCONFIG.CFG to the following may work:

1Path to your SWOTL directory
2c:\
3Path to your SWOTL modified plane directory
4c:\hangar\

Or, if the game folder is mounted as it should be:

1Path to your SWOTL directory
2c:\swotl\
3Path to your SWOTL modified plane directory
4c:\swotl\hangar\

But if neither works then installing from scratch with proper paths may indeed be the only path (heh) forward.

Jorpho wrote on 2021-04-25, 04:53:

Just because it is "easily available" doesn't mean that its distribution is legal. This argument has been had countless numbers of times over the last twenty years.

Absolutely, which is why I said I've no idea if it's abandonware or not, but the main thing I wanted was the pre-configured DOSBox. FWIW, my first post to this site was many years ago with this same problem on an XP system, except I was using the CD version and had d/l'd DOSBox and trying to configure it myself.

Jorpho wrote on 2021-04-25, 04:53:

.... What is the "ACC version", anyway?...

There are three versions of SWOTL, the original, for which, about a year later, two expansion packs were released each adding a couple of aircraft and making a few updates; then a couple more years later LucasArts released all three of their sims (BattleHawks 1942, Their Finest Hour: Battle of Britain, and SWOTL) in one bundle as "Air Combat Classics" (ACC), the version of SWOTL included in this had both expansion packs included; another couple of years and a CD version of SWOTL was released (not popular with old fans; apparently subtle changes meant on some systems mods did not work properly with this version).

Jorpho wrote on 2021-04-25, 04:53:

Is there some reason you can't just install everything from scratch from your own original media? Setting up DOSBox is not so complicated as to make a "pre-configured DOSBox" desirable – or at least, it wouldn't have taken you 15 years to figure it out.

Well, how many computers today have a floppy drive? And the DVD drive in this old laptop is dead. FWIW, I took my ACC floppies to a friend, installed on a Linux/DOS system which had a floppy drive, then copied to a flashdrive to use on my laptop.

Fifteen years? Lol, no, I played SWOTL on that XP system for a couple of years (never did get SWMan to work on it) then that computer went the way of all old hardware, replaced by a Vista system (junk), then Win7, then anotehr Win7, now this old laptop because that last system ate its mobo. A recent discussion on another site about the odious MS Combat Flight SIM 3 (even with the vaunted Firepower mod it is wretched) meandered into other old sims and I dug out my SWOTL.

"not so complicated" .... anything is easy once you know how; I deal with DOSBox perhaps once or twice a year, and its adjustments are not intuitive. So I go online and ask questions.

ripsaw8080 wrote on 2021-04-25, 05:35:

... but it's hard to say what those paths should be because the commands in the [autoexec] section of the conf file have not been mentioned. ...

Here are contents of both conf files. (much easier to read here, when opened in notepad both look like one long word with no spacing anywhere)

[autoexec]
# Lines in this section will be run at startup.
@echo off
mount C ".\SWOTL"
c:
SW.BAT

Edit: cut all but the important part, and definitely cut the link to that website... not advertising that here.

Trimmed your comment to just the important part. You appear to be mounting the game folder as root, which you should not do as a rule because some games won't work that way. In any case, modifying SMCONFIG.CFG to be like the first example in my prior comment should get the TSR working.

jgf wrote on 2021-04-25, 07:27:

FWIW, I took my ACC floppies to a friend, installed on a Linux/DOS system which had a floppy drive, then copied to a flashdrive to use on my laptop.

In situations like this, it is often useful to make floppy images that you can mount using the "imgmount" command in DOSBox. You might even be able to find floppy images of Air Combat Classics on the Internet somewhere that you can use to make a fresh install. (Of course, you still can't be sure that those images are necessarily accurate copies of the original floppies, but it's reasonable to assume. Also, standard DOSBox doesn't support image swapping, so you'd probably have to use DOSBox-X or DOSBox-ECE for the installation.) But perhaps M. Ripsaw's suggestion will work.

" cut all but the important part, and definitely cut the link to that website"

Thanks; I wasn't sure what WAS the important part, so you got it all. Sorry about the link, but you did ask where i got the files.

Jorpho wrote on 2021-04-25, 20:06:

In situations like this, it is often useful to make floppy images that you can mount using the "imgmount" command in DOSBox. You might even be able to find floppy images of Air Combat Classics on the Internet somewhere that you can use to make a fresh install. (Of course, you still can't be sure that those images are necessarily accurate copies of the original floppies, but it's reasonable to assume. Also, standard DOSBox doesn't support image swapping, so you'd probably have to use DOSBox-X or DOSBox-ECE for the installation.) But perhaps M. Ripsaw's suggestion will work.

Thanks for the info. Ages ago, when it was obvious floppies were going the way of paper tape readers, I spent a boring afternoon copying all my floppies onto the HD, organizing everything, and put on CD; much later found anything spanning multiple floppies would not install from there (I think System Shock was on thirteen discs) .... at east I had decent backups.

As for different versions of DOSBox, I can assure you if I tried that I would be back here in minutes ..."What do I do?", 🤣.

ripsaw8080 wrote on 2021-04-25, 09:46:

Trimmed your comment to just the important part. You appear to be mounting the game folder as root, which you should not do as a rule because some games won't work that way. In any case, modifying SMCONFIG.CFG to be like the first example in my prior comment should get the TSR working.

OK, did that and SWMan works (thanks) ...almost. SWOLT still works fine; I can now bring up SWMan with ALT+1 but when I exit back to the game, whether I've made any changes or not, the keyboard is dead though the background music is still playing, using the joystick to move the cursor and click any menu item merely gets a popup message: "Insert Program Disk #1 Press A Key To Continue" ...of course pressing any key accomplishes nothing. Nor can I exit the game or DOSBox, so ALT+TAB out and close the game window and the DOSBox window. Restart and all is well, any changes made in SWMan appear in game now.

Definite progress, and I could if necessary play this way, just remember to ALT+TAB out and restart after using SWMan ...but I can foresee a bit of unacceptable language eventually.

AFAICT, the "Insert Disk..." message is what happens when you activate the TSR somewhere that you shouldn't. See the "Safe Places to Activate" section in the SM.DOC file. In DOSBox it's not easy to tell when the game is accessing the emulated hard disk, so you will have to either use the screens suggested in SM.DOC or find your own safe places.

I only activate at the menu screens ( where you select Custom Missions, Historic Missions, TOD, etc.) as I always did.

If you think starting over with a fresh DOSBox install and using my ACC version to start with will produce better results, I'm not averse to trying ....but I'll still need assistance, 🤣.

If the error occurs when the game is accessing the emulated hard disk, then to take a shot in the dark, you can try slowing the DOSBox emulation way down by repeatedly pressing CTRL-F11.

Well, wiped out everything and started over. Downloaded DFend, installed it and SWOTL in C:\DOSGames (C:\DOSGames\DFend and C:\DOSGames\SWOTL), a bit of fiddling and SWOTL is working normally ....and SWMan is back to a black screen from which I must CNTRL+F9 to escape.

Have tried both C:\SWOTL and C:\DOSGames\SWOTL as path for SWMan, makes no difference. I've not found the mount command in any files I've searched, closest thing is this from the "Secret Weapons of the Lufwaffe" prof:

0=.\VirtualHD\;Drive;C;false;
2=C:\DOSGames\SWOTL\;Drive;D;false;

The first line also appears in a "DOSBox DOS.prof"

Your post suggests that the profile is loading the game folder as root. As per the above post:

ripsaw8080 wrote on 2021-04-24, 18:32:

However, the SWOTL Manager will not work with the incorrect method and in fact show a black screen like you describe because the game appears to be in C:\ and not C:\SWOTL as it should be.

As I do not generally use DFend, I am not sure what the best way to fix this would be – except to not use DFend.

I let DFend/DOSBox do their thing and accept their defaults, I do not know how to override anything or create from scratch. So if something was done improperly it is because they did it that way.