DD_Brando

KG26 Alpha has put the collection on to Filefront here

is my friend - or so I am continually assured; as well as my pipe-smoking, sign-toting, investigative sleuth . If that is true, why didn't he warn me to hire a mind-guard?

So I decided to do something about the limited number of USB ports on my budget Abit AX78 mobo by buying and installing a Belkin 5 port USB card, a PCI-Express x1 model. I'd always thought that it would be good to use one of those tiny slots on the mobo for something, and what could be easier than fitting a card, eh? Well, first off I had to re-route one of the tubes from my water-cooling system to make the required slot available. No biggie and the move actually made the return-flow run more smooth and that only took about twenty minutes. So far so good. With the flow restored and clear of bubbles, I followed Belkin's instructions to the letter. Which is where it all started to fall apart..... "You must install the software before installing the hardware....." Okay, if that's how you want to do it I said, and slid the disc in. Select OS....check. Select product...check. Press Install.....check. Installation finished - remove all discs from the computer and reboot to complete the installation.....check. And then the PC restarted. With an error message. "The disc is not in the PC - you must insert the disc to complete the installation - please re-insert the disc" Duh? Anyway, I stuck the disc back in & the install, er, completed - annd I shut down and disconnected the power to actually insert the device. Check. And then it just got sillier. Windows couldn't detect the device and I couldn't access BIOS because the keyboard wouldn't come alight. I shut down again and fitted an old PSU keyboard, then booted successfully into BIOS. I set the USB keyboard and mouse function to work from BIOS instead of the OS and checked to see if the card was recognised at all. Then I rebooted to a partial success, in that the device was listed as functioning in Windows Device Manager. I plugged in my CH flight gear and my trackIR, and everything worked except my pedals. I had to re-calibrate them in the CHCM and then they worked. Hmmm. So I thought I'd go on-line and see if anyone else had similar problems with this 'simple' installation. I was almost unsurprised when I discovered that my network adapter was no longer present After several bouts of cable-wiggling and rebooting with and without the RJ45 cable connected it finally just reappeared with no explanation. By that time I couldn't bear the idea of going to read about any other poor B's who had been afflicted, so I decided to go on-line and have a session with some buddies. And then..... It was Teamspeak that finally wigged me out. In I went and there we were,and my mike had stopped transmitting!! It took me 3/4s of an hour to bring the bloody thing back on line - and it was only by lowering the volume a notch and then up again. A totally ridiculous and illogical solution. So I'm gob-smacked. Firstly that a respectable firm like Belkin can issue software that is so poorly written, and secondly that if it makes me 'hot under the collar' dealing with it - how the heck is it gonna be for those of us who are less computer-savvy? Do Belkin have some secret deal with PC technicians? Is this a clandestine job-creation scheme? After the dust has settled, yes, it's a really good piece of kit that has enhanced my mobo's limited qualities. But why the hell should I have to go through ice & fire to get it working? B

It Looks like it will catch flies just fine

Och aye. Like yon Robbie's advice to spiders everywhere - don't smoke marijuana when you're supposed to be working!

Strange that you gents are experiencing so many issues with this? I think it's safe to switch off Antivirus if you are d/l'ing from the pound, what d'you reckon Rog? It must surely be Vista-related. I've experienced no problems at all with XP Pro. B

I'm not sure how Vista responds - but alt-tabbing back & forth has mostly been a no-no for me, throughout the life of the game. I've been able to fix the 'frozen cursor' issue by using the Windows key, with a moderate amount of success, but alt-tabbing out of a running game usually means that I can't maximise the game again and have to do a hard re-set. IIRC it is even mentioned in the manual, that alt-tabbing facility is not built into the game. B

(Oh! Im sorry, my finger just slipped across - an easy mistake to make )I DO agree with this comment - I don't know where I would be without a back-up disc. And bouncy things. I try to keep hold of them too. Oh yes. Well, that's it. It's time to go to my therapy session..... B

I got it. [il2] title=Il2-Sturmovik Forgotten Battles hotkeys=HotKey game [window] width=1280 height=960 ColourBits=32 DepthBits=24 StencilBits=8 ChangeScreenRes=1 FullScreen=1 DrawIfNotFocused=0 EnableResize=0 EnableClose=1 SaveAspect=1 Use3Renders=0 [GLPROVIDER] GL=Opengl32.dll [GLPROVIDERS] Open GL=Opengl32.dll DirectX=dx8wrap.dll [NET] speed=5000 routeChannels=0 serverChannels=31 localPort=21000 remotePort=21000 SkinDownload=1 serverName=No Name serverDescription= remoteHost=bg.servegame.org localHost= socksHost= checkServerTimeSpeed=1 checkClientTimeSpeed=0 [MaxLag] farMaxLagTime=10.0 nearMaxLagTime=2.0 cheaterWarningDelay=5.0 cheaterWarningNum=-1 [chat] region=(dx=0.6925,dy=0.071666665,x=0.0,y=0.0) [game] Arcade=0 HighGore=0 mapPadX=0.66875 mapPadY=-0.046875 viewSet=38 Intro=0 NoSubTitles=0 NoChatter=0 NoHudLog=0 NoLensFlare=0 iconTypes=3 eventlog=eventlog.lst eventlogkeep=0 3dgunners=1 [HotKey game] PrintScreen=ScreenShot P=pause Pause=pause [HotKey gui] Escape=activate [HookViewFly Config] timeFirstStep=2.0 deltaZ=10.0 [HookView] MouseLeft=Len [HookView Config] AzimutSpeed=0.1 TangageSpeed=0.1 LenSpeed=1.0 MinLen=1.0 DefaultLen=20.0 MaxLen=3000.0 Speed=6 [HotKey builder] MouseLeft=objectMove MouseRight=popupmenu Enter=freeView Shift MouseLeft=worldZoom Alt MouseLeft=select+ Alt MouseRight=select- Alt Ctrl=unselect PageDown=change+ PageUp=change- End=change++ Home=change-- Ctrl MouseLeft=insert+ Insert=insert+ NumPad-0=insert+ F=fill Ctrl MouseRight=delete+ NumPad.=delete+ Delete=delete+ Backspace=cursor Tab=cursor F10=land F11=onLand NumPad-=normalLand NumPad+=toLand NumPad-5=resetAngles NumPad-8=resetTangage90 NumPad-7=stepAzimut-5 NumPad-4=stepAzimut-15 NumPad-1=stepAzimut-30 NumPad-9=stepAzimut5 NumPad-6=stepAzimut15 NumPad-3=stepAzimut30 [MouseXYZ] F1=SpeedSlow F2=SpeedNormal F3=SpeedFast MouseRight=XYmove F4 MouseRight=Zmove MouseMiddle=Amove F5 MouseRight=Amove F6 MouseRight=Tmove F7 MouseRight=Kmove [MouseXYZ Config] RealTime=1 [HotKey Console] Shift Tab=Activate [Console] HISTORY=1024 HISTORYCMD=1024 LOAD=console.cmd SAVE=console.cmd LOG=0 LOGTIME=0 LOGFILE=log.lst LOGKEEP=0 [sound] SoundUse=1 SoundEngine=1 Speakers=0 Placement=0 SoundFlags.reversestereo=0 RadioFlags.Enabled=1 RadioEngine=2 MusicVolume=0 ObjectVolume=7 MusState.takeoff=1 MusState.inflight=1 MusState.crash=1 MusFlags.play=0 MasterVolume=7 Attenuation=7 SoundMode=1 SamplingRate=2 NumChannels=3 SoundExt.occlusions=0 SoundFlags.hardware=1 SoundFlags.streams=1 SoundFlags.duplex=1 SoundExt.acoustics=0 SoundExt.volumefx=0 SoundFlags.voicemgr=0 SoundFlags.static=1 VoiceVolume=0 Channels=2 SoundExt.extrender=0 SoundFlags.bugscorrect=0 SoundSetupId=8 ActivationLevel=0.02 Preemphasis=0.85 RadioLatency=0.5 AGC=1 PTTMode=1 SoundFlags.UseRadioChatter=0 SoundFlags.AutoActivation=0 RadioFlags.PTTMode=0 RadioFlags.PlayClicks=0 ActLevel=0 MicLevel=0 SoundFlags.forceEAX1=0 [rts] ;ProcessAffinityMask=1 mouseUse=2 joyUse=1 trackIRUse=1 DisableIME=0 locale= [rts_mouse] SensitivityX=1.0 SensitivityY=1.0 Invert=0 [rts_joystick] X=0 1 4 9 16 25 36 49 64 81 100 0 Y=0 1 4 9 16 25 36 49 64 81 100 0 Z=0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 RZ=0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 0 FF=0 U=0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 0 V=0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 0 [Render_DirectX] TexQual=3 TexMipFilter=2 TexCompress=0 TexFlags.UseDither=1 TexFlags.UseAlpha=0 TexFlags.UseIndex=0 TexFlags.PolygonStipple=1 TexFlags.UseClampedSprites=0 TexFlags.DrawLandByTriangles=1 TexFlags.UseVertexArrays=1 TexFlags.DisableAPIExtensions=0 TexFlags.ARBMultitextureExt=1 TexFlags.TexEnvCombineExt=1 TexFlags.SecondaryColorExt=1 TexFlags.VertexArrayExt=1 TexFlags.ClipHintExt=0 TexFlags.UsePaletteExt=0 TexFlags.TexAnisotropicExt=0 TexFlags.TexCompressARBExt=1 TexFlags.TexEnvCombine4NV=0 TexFlags.TexEnvCombineDot3=0 TexFlags.DepthClampNV=0 TexFlags.SeparateSpecular=0 TexFlags.TextureShaderNV=0 HardwareShaders=0 Shadows=2 Specular=2 SpecularLight=2 DiffuseLight=2 DynamicalLights=1 MeshDetail=2 VisibilityDistance=3 Sky=2 Forest=2 LandShading=3 LandDetails=2 LandGeom=2 TexLarge=1 TexLandQual=3 TexLandLarge=1 VideoSetupId=4 ForceShaders1x=0 PolygonOffsetFactor=-0.15 PolygonOffsetUnits=-3.0 [Render_OpenGL] TexQual=3 TexMipFilter=2 TexCompress=0 TexFlags.UseDither=1 TexFlags.UseAlpha=0 TexFlags.UseIndex=0 TexFlags.PolygonStipple=1 TexFlags.UseClampedSprites=0 TexFlags.DrawLandByTriangles=1 TexFlags.UseVertexArrays=1 TexFlags.DisableAPIExtensions=0 TexFlags.ARBMultitextureExt=1 TexFlags.TexEnvCombineExt=1 TexFlags.SecondaryColorExt=1 TexFlags.VertexArrayExt=1 TexFlags.ClipHintExt=0 TexFlags.UsePaletteExt=0 TexFlags.TexAnisotropicExt=1 TexFlags.TexCompressARBExt=1 TexFlags.TexEnvCombine4NV=1 TexFlags.TexEnvCombineDot3=1 TexFlags.DepthClampNV=1 TexFlags.SeparateSpecular=1 TexFlags.TextureShaderNV=1 HardwareShaders=1 Shadows=2 Specular=2 SpecularLight=2 DiffuseLight=2 DynamicalLights=1 MeshDetail=2 VisibilityDistance=3 Sky=2 Forest=2 LandShading=3 LandDetails=2 LandGeom=2 TexLarge=1 TexLandQual=3 TexLandLarge=1 VideoSetupId=2 Water=2 Effects=2 ForceShaders1x=0 PolygonOffsetFactor=-0.15 PolygonOffsetUnits=-3.0

Yeah ~ 821 is the highest I've recorded with my x2 6000+ and 4 Gbs RAM It looks great for IL-2, so I'm happy to stick with it for a while, but I'll be taking a first-time, serious look at Intel when the new games arrive. Congrats Snacko, that's mind-bogglingly quick. B

I've posted a new batch and the Word documents Mike refers to in his post. Enjoy! B

I had a post from Mike McCoy - aka Madjek - I thought I would send these around as I have been fiddling around with some new Pacific missions in my pacific missions folder.

The modes thing is right! I have my tail-wheel lock as mode one on my CH fighterstick, doubling as my bomb-release in mode two. I wouldn't like to count just how many of my comrades I've blown up during my take-off routine - I reckon it's near a hundred B

Glad you got going again so easily m8. Sometimes it is just the simplest things that go wrong. As for your outburst, I don't remember anyone getting upset, only sympathetic. See you soon B

The anwer is yes. shorting will work. Note you'll need to check whether the stretch dislodged the mobo end of that run of cable. As far as the post is concerned, let's check a few things: Unplug the PC, after first setting the switch on the PSU to 0. Then plug it back in and look inside the case when you switch the PSU to 1. Do any LEDs light up on the mobo? Does the CPU fan, or any I/O fan, twitch at all? They don't switch fully on until you boot, but you normally see a little movement when you energise the motherboard. And on most boards LEDs will come on. If none of that happens then it's either the power supply or the mobo. It might be something to do with switching, but if no activity occurs when you energise the board I'd check the PSU first. If you have a spare PSU you could swap them out and check to see if the mobo is damaged. Let's know about the energising part first. B

[glow=red,2,300]+1[/glow] to all these good reponses. Nice find, boss!

Going back in time......... I just swapped out an old ATI Radeon 9700 Pro 128Mb AGP graphics card from a friend's rig. I know it's not particularly 'up there' as cards go, so it's free to anyone in the UK who wants to pay postage (probably about a fiver). I retro-fitted it with a Zalman VF700-Cu VGA cooler and ramsinks several years ago, so it may be useful for parts, or use in an AGP rig (FB on Excellent or lower). B

Yeah, Acronis make some useful software. True Image and Disk Director (version# have been on my home network for years and come in handy now and again for partitioning and so on. One thing I'm careful not to do, is to have T.I. configured in the Start-up menu. While it might be appropriate to have incremental updating of one's system (to the Acronis Secure Zone) going on if one is running a business, I prefer to make static back-ups and just update them when necessary. The automatic software just uses too much memory on a XP gaming machine. That aside, it's an excellent tool. B

Thanks everyone for contributing to this request for enlightenment I've taken the day off and will resume my attempts to get the entire splash screen to initialise on my main screen on Tuesday. Tomorrow I have a friend coming who needs various work done on his 'puter, so I'll be busy on that. But, as Arnie says; "I'll be back!" B

After a lot of messing around I'm getting half-decent results - but there is a persistent problem that I can't shake. Maybe I'm doing the procedure wrong, I just dunno I got extended desktop working, and I can drag (e.g.) TS over to it - but when I start FB the splash screen is sliced down the middle. The right half is visible but the left is just the desktop. I can hit the windows key and minimise the game, then I can navigate the mouse around and and also onto the second monitor and back, but it goes back to this right-half of the selection screen only visible Any thoughts, anyone? B

Ref. the sound devices x 2 issue: This may or may not be a problem. Some rigs do struggle with two active devices at full acceleration, some don't. I was more caught by the complications that the LifeChat x3000 added to the mix. I Googled up several reports of people having issues with that particular application. B

Thanks a lot for your speedy reply Rog - much appreciated! I now feel confident enough give it a try today See you in "two weeks"! LOL cheers B

I have a reasonable rig. Abit AX78, AMD 2x6000+ CPU @ 3.2 GHz with water-cooling, 2x2Gb DDR2 RAM, 730W PSU, 74Gb Raptor and an Acer x1950Pro (Radeon) graphics card cabled to a 24" DGM widescreen monitor It all runs FB "very nicely thank you"

I'm using a Creative headset which is fairly cheap, very comfy, and comes with a removable, flexible stalk-type mike. It's probably the best of all the units I've used in about ten years of RogerWilco & Teamspeak use, mainly because there is no swivelling hinge for the mike-boom. I always found that this is where the problems of frayed wire begin, and this flexi-stalk is way better. The headset I have is the regular mini-jack type - plugs into the sockets on the soundcard, or the sockets from an onboard sound chip. Here is the the link. This is the UK site, I believe they are cheaper in the USA. B