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Grand Prix II for DOS
FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions)
Last revised: January 21, 1997
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System Requirements
===================
IBM PC 100MHz 80486DX/4 compatible or faster
DOS 5.0 or later (or 16MB RAM if running under Windows 95)
8MB RAM
Double-speed CD-ROM drive (300K/sec sustained transfer rate)
VGA graphics for 320 x 200 x 256 colors or
Super VGA graphics (VESA required) for 640 x 480 x 256 colors
Hard drive (15MB free)
Microsoft-compatible mouse
Supported
---------
Sound Blaster (or 100% compatible), ProAudio Spectrum or Gravis
UltraSound sound card
Steering wheel
Pedals
Recommended
-----------
IBM PC 90MHz Pentium compatible or faster
16MB RAM
Local bus or PCI Super VGA video card with 1MB video RAM
(VESA required)
Joystick
Required for Multiplayer Option
100% Hayes-compatible 9600 baud modem or faster (for 2-player mode)
Null-modem serial cable (for 2-player mode)
Memory and System Requirements
==============================
Grand Prix II requires 8MB RAM (16MB RAM if running under Windows 95).
We recommend playing the game in MS-DOS mode and not in a DOS box
under Windows 95.
SmartDrive and other caching software should be disabled before
installing or playing Grand Prix II.
Memory-resident virus checkers (especially those used within Windows
95) can cause Grand Prix II's installer to crash. Please disable any
memory-resident software (including DOS-based TSRs).
Grand Prix II should not have any problem with disk compression
software, such as DriveSpace.
The hardware detection phase may incorrectly identify Pentium Pro,
Cyrix 686 and Intel MMX machines as using an "Unknown" processor type.
Simply ignore this message, continue with the installation and the
game should run fine.
If you have the European version, a multilingual boot disc program is
included on the CD in a directory called UTILS\BOOTDISC. In the U.S.
version, the boot disk option is on the main install menu.
Installation Problems
=====================
If the installation program aborts or fails to copy any files, you
may have either a dirty or faulty CD-ROM. Please clean the CD-ROM
disc and try again.
Make sure you have enough memory before starting the installation as
outlined in the hardware detection phase. Disable any virus checkers.
Microsoft CD-ROM extensions (MSCDEX) should be reporting a version
2.23 or higher for Grand Prix II to work.
If you are still having problems, we recommend trying a boot disk
to start your computer before installing the game.
Video Card Problems
===================
If you have a Matrox Mystique video card, you may experience
problems with Grand Prix II randomly crashing or activating your
monitor's "power save" feature. This problem is caused by an
outdated BIOS on the video card. Please contact Matrox to update
the BIOS on your video card at 800-462-8769. You can download the
updated BIOS from Matrox's Web site at www.matrox.com or their
BBS at 514-685-6008.
Sound Card Problems
===================
If the auto-detect program locks up, reset the machine and try
reselecting auto-detect from the GP2 directory. If this again
produces a lockup or crash, try manually selecting your card's
IRQ, DMA and Port settings. If you are unsure as to what these
settings are, try typing "SET" from the command prompt or refer
to your hardware manuals.
If you have a Sound Blaster card, make sure you have the necessary
device drivers loaded in your CONFIG.SYS and AUTOEXEC.BAT files.
It is also important to have a SET line placed in the AUTOEXEC.BAT
file.
If you are experiencing problems with the program locking up or
crashing within the 3-D simulation, it could be because the
auto-detect has wrongly chosen your sound card. Run the sound
setup program again by typing "SETUP" and select "SoundBlaster
(original)" or "No Sound."
Gravis UltraSound
-----------------
The playback quality of the sound test sample may sound garbled.
This should not affect the playback quality during the game.
ATI Stereo F/X
--------------
Grand Prix II is not compatible with this sound card. If you have
the ATI Stereo F/X, you need to select "No Sound."
Sound Galaxy Pro and Other Sound Blaster 16 Compatible Cards
------------------------------------------------------------
The auto-detect program sometimes wrongly identifies the Sound
Galaxy Pro as a Sound Blaster 16. You must manually select
"SoundBlaster" and then enter the correct Port, IRQ and DMA
settings.
You can also start the game with no sound by typing the following
command line option: "GP2 Nosound."
Windows 95 Problems
===================
Because Grand Prix II was designed and developed to run under
MS-DOS, you may experience problems running under Windows 95.
To achieve optimal frame rate and performance levels, it is
strongly recommended that you reboot in MS-DOS mode.
It is important to ensure all necessary CD-ROM and sound card
drivers are loaded before attempting to run Grand Prix II.
Failure to do so may result in the game not loading. (We have
included the customer service help documents in a directory
called UTILS\HELPDOCS on the Grand Prix II CD-ROM.)
AutoPlay
--------
Some Windows 95 machines do not support AutoPlay. In this case,
please double-click on your CD-ROM icon and then double-click
on the install icon.
Windows 95 Keyboards
--------------------
On certain video cards, Windows 95 is unable to restore certain
DOS-based graphical applications such as Grand Prix II. This
is particularly a problem with the new Windows 95 keyboards
containing the new "Start" and "Windows" keys. If you press
these keys, Windows suspends Grand Prix II to bring up a
menu but is then unable to restore the game. The only solution
to this problem is to run Grand Prix II in MS-DOS mode.
Microsoft Plus
--------------
To prevent problems running Grand Prix II, the System Agent
should be disabled.
Control Method
==============
Included on the Grand Prix II CD-ROM is a directory called
GPFILES that contains predefined controller files for the
ThrustMaster T2 and GP500 race systems. You can use these as
examples to set up your own units.
The joystick port built into the Ensoniq Soundscape has a
known compatibility problem recognizing the GP500 race
system (which may affect other sticks). There's nothing
we can do but suggest the use of a game card.
Before calibrating a nonstandard joystick, it is important
to select "Control Driven Calibration."
Make sure you select the correct joystick axis. If the red
calibration dot fails to move, it is more than likely that
you selected the wrong joystick port.
Be sure to save the controller file.
How to Set Up a ThrustMaster T2 Steering Wheel
----------------------------------------------
From the main menu of Grand Prix II:
1) Select "Control Method."
2) Select "Not Used."
3) Select "Advanced Menu."
4) Select "Joystick A Horiz" for Steering Device.
5) Select "Analog" for Steering Mode.
6) Select "Joystick B Horiz" for Acceleration Device.
7) Select "Analog" for Acceleration Mode.
8) Select "Joystick B Horiz" for Brake Device.
9) Select "Switched" for Braking Mode.
10) Select "Control Driven Calibration" for Control Method.
Do not touch any other settings. You can edit the set name
to say "T2" or "TMaster" and then save the file. Now
calibrate the device, and your T2 should work.
Software Questions
==================
There is no rain or different weather conditions.
It is not possible to control the car using a mouse.
Grand Prix II does not support the specific use of 3-D
accelerator cards such as the 3D Blaster from Creative Labs.
Grand Prix II does not support local area networks for
head-to-head play.
If the game displays the message "Can't start Grand Prix II.
F1system.dat file damaged or not found," you need to either
reinstall the game or try running the game with the option
"GP2 Nostateload."
If the game does not have enough extended memory to run,
the SVGA detail option will be greyed out. You need to free
up more memory.
If the game cannot find a VESA driver, the game will run in
16 colors and the SVGA option will be greyed out. You need
to load a TSR such as UNIVBE or get a specific VESA driver
for your video card.
Windows 95 machines with slow (double-speed) CD-ROM drives
may experience "jumps" or "stutters" in the background music.
We recommend running Grand Prix II in MS-DOS mode.
Remove any video card exclusion zones used at the end of
the EMM386 line.
Modem/Serial Link Problems
==========================
In order to successfully connect Grand Prix II via modems,
it is necessary to know the correct modem initialization
strings to turn error correction and compression off. We
have included some modem initialization strings within the
game, but these are not guaranteed to work. Look for a
newer list of modem strings at the end of this FAQ.
Symptons of incorrect strings are a slow frame rate and
possibly a lockup or crash.
Linking within Windows 95 can cause the system to
momentarily pause. We recommend running Grand Prix II
in MS-DOS mode.
The highest baud rate can cause some systems to
momentarily "hang" or "freeze." Try selecting a lower
baud rate such as 19200.
While linked, the background music will automatically be
turned off.
You may find that you need to significantly reduce the
detail level in order for the game to run at an
acceptable frame rate. This is because the link takes
up some processor power.
COM Ports 3 and 4
-----------------
During testing, we found that some machines (but not all)
failed to recognize the presence of COM ports 3 and 4. To
help solve this, we included a small program called
COMSETUP in the UTILS\COMSETUP directory on the Grand
Prix II CD-ROM. To run the program, type "COMSETUP /H"
at the DOS prompt.
This will bring up a list of available COM ports, their
various port addresses and some help text. You will need
to find out what the hex address for COM ports 3 and 4
are. (This information can be obtained by running MSD or
Windows 95.) Once you have this info, you need to enter
the values to the end of the COMSETUP line and rerun
Grand Prix II. COM 3 or 4 may now be available.
Also make sure a mouse isn't plugged into the
corresponding COM ports. For example, if a mouse is
plugged into COM 1, you will be unable to select COM 3
(likewise for COM ports 2 and 4). If this is the case
on your system, try linking without a mouse or use the
command line option: "GP2 linkonmouseport."
Grand Prix II has known problems detecting PCMCIA
cards. We apologize for any inconvenience.
Modem Initialization Strings
----------------------------
The following list contains the initialization strings
for all the modems that have been tested. If your
modem is not listed in this list, please refer to your
modem's manual and enter the appropriate initialization
strings. We suggest the factory defaults for your modem.
If that does not work, we recommend turning off data
compression, error correction and software flow control.
MODEMNAME=DEFAULT
INITSTRING=
HANGUPSTRING=ATH0
BAUDRATE=9600
MODEMNAME=Boca 28.8 FaxModem EXT
INITSTRING=AT&F1
HANGUPSTRING=ATH0
BAUDRATE=38400
MODEMNAME=Cardinal 14.4 FaxModem EXT
INITSTRING=AT&F1
HANGUPSTRING=ATH0
BAUDRATE=19200
MODEMNAME=Cardinal 28.8 FaxModem INT
INITSTRING=AT&F
HANGUPSTRING=ATH0
BAUDRATE=38400
MODEMNAME=Compaq Presario Data/Fax/Voice 14.4
INITSTRING=AT&F
HANGUPSTRING=ATH0
BAUDRATE=19200
MODEMNAME=Gateway Telepath II 14.4 FaxModem INT
INITSTRING=AT&F
HANGUPSTRING=ATH0
BAUDRATE=19200
MODEMNAME=Generic Rockwell 14.4 FaxModem INT
INITSTRING=AT&FF
HANGUPSTRING=ATH0
BAUDRATE=19200
MODEMNAME=Hayes Optima 14.4 FaxModem EXT
INITSTRING=AT&F
HANGUPSTRING=ATH0
BAUDRATE=19200
MODEMNAME=Hayes Ultra 14.4 SmartModem EXT
INITSTRING=AT&F
HANGUPSTRING=ATH0
BAUDRATE=19200
MODEMNAME=Mitac 14.4 FaxModem EXT
INITSTRING=AT&F1
HANGUPSTRING=ATH0
BAUDRATE=19200
MODEMNAME=Motorola Lifestyle 28.8 FaxModem INT
INITSTRING=AT&F1
HANGUPSTRING=ATH0
BAUDRATE=38400
MODEMNAME=Packard Bell 14.4 FaxModem INT
INITSTRING=AT&F
HANGUPSTRING=ATH0
BAUDRATE=19200
MODEMNAME=Practical Peripherals 14.4 EXT
INITSTRING=AT&F1
HANGUPSTRING=ATH0
BAUDRATE=19200
MODEMNAME=SupraExpress 28.8 FaxModem EXT
INITSTRING=AT&F1
HANGUPSTRING=ATH0
BAUDRATE=38400
MODEMNAME=USR Courier 28.8 FaxModem INT
INITSTRING=AT&F1
HANGUPSTRING=ATH0
BAUDRATE=38400
MODEMNAME=USR Sportster 14.4 FaxModem EXT
INITSTRING=AT&F
HANGUPSTRING=ATH0
BAUDRATE=19200
MODEMNAME=USR Sportster 14.4 FaxModem INT
INITSTRING=AT&F
HANGUPSTRING=ATH0
BAUDRATE=19200
MODEMNAME=USR Sportster 28.8 FaxModem EXT
INITSTRING=AT&F1
HANGUPSTRING=ATH0
BAUDRATE=38400
MODEMNAME=USR Sportster 28.8 FaxModem INT
INITSTRING=AT&F1
HANGUPSTRING=ATH0
BAUDRATE=38400
MODEMNAME=USR Sportster 28.8 DSVD w/Voice INT
INITSTRING=AT&F1-SSE=1
HANGUPSTRING=ATH0
BAUDRATE=38400
MODEMNAME=USR Sportster 28.8 DSVD w/c Voice INT
INITSTRING=AT&F1
HANGUPSTRING=ATH0
BAUDRATE=38400
MODEMNAME=Zoom 14.4 FaxModem EXT
INITSTRING=AT&F
HANGUPSTRING=ATH0
BAUDRATE=19200
MODEMNAME=Zoom 28.8 FaxModem EXT
INITSTRING=AT&F
HANGUPSTRING=ATH0
BAUDRATE=38400
