Macromedia Projector Bug=Constant Crashes
 

Everything i load, tutorial or campaign ends up with a different ctd...usually "macromedia projector" or "index". My Windows XP sp 1 Alienware rig is up to date with a fresh install of the OS & drivers.
This is the release version, got it today and it is unplayable. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/mad.gif

Re: Macromedia Projector Bug=Constant Crashes
 

Did you have the same problem with the demo?

Re: Macromedia Projector Bug=Constant Crashes
 

Nope, not the first demo, i never tried the "improved demo".
Update: 5 minutes is the most i can play, some Campaigns crash before they even start with the Macromedia Projector Error.
Alienware P4 2.8 ghz Intel WinXP sp1
1024 DDR Ram
GeForce FX5700 Ultra 128mg video card
Audigy 2ZS Platinum Pro 5.1 soundcard
Latest drivers on fresh OS

Very dissappointing, i hope the MAC users get their moneys worth...i haven't had such a bad software experience since the dos days.I paid for my pre-order months ago, January?, to think i waited all this time for nothing http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/Sick.gif.

Re: Macromedia Projector Bug=Constant Crashes
 

Unfortunately this error did not show up during test. Couple of things:

Have you changed any drivers or installed any new hardware or Operating System patches since you tried the previous demo?

This will help us eliminate a problem with your PC versus a problem with code that has changed since the first demo.

Can you get us a screenshot or the exact text of the error?

Does it happen when certain things happen in the game (ie when a specific sound is being played, etc).

Andrew should be joining us shortly and can help you figure this out a little bit further.

Again this is the first report of this but we will make sure we find the root cause so you can play the game ASAP.

Thanks for your patience.

Re: Macromedia Projector Bug=Constant Crashes
 

No changes other than possibly Nvidia drivers released 6/15/2005. It seemed to ctd when i used the arrow keys to change view the most but now it happens anywhere, anytime. The only thing that doesn't ctd in less than 5 minutes is the tutorial...the campaigns won't run. I am unfamiliar with "screenshots" and don't have any clue although i have been PC gaming some 13 years now and know how to get things to run...until now. Soon enough we'll know if it's just me...sorry to say i doubt it http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/fear.gif.

Re: Macromedia Projector Bug=Constant Crashes
 

Lord Hammer:

This did not show up in the testing, and I know (from your activity here and on other forums) you are not the type of user likely to be at fault. Add to that that other PC users do not seem to be having the same trouble, and I think it adds up to some sort of a incomparability between the Gold Salvo code and something in your system, or some combination of things in your system. Since the Demo worked on your system, we can find a solution, even if you get our own “Lord Hammer” build of Salvo. Suffice it to say, I will work with you to find the solution.

Please check the screen size that you are playing Salvo at. There may be a connection between the screen size and the error. Try running Salvo in the default “windowed” mode and see if that helps.

Another thing to try is a full uninstall and reinstall of Salvo. Uninstall the Demo if you have not, and then uninstall the final Salvo product, and reinstall. It is important that you not change anything after you reinstall, but that you go ahead and try to play the game. Then if the game works, you can try customizing the setup.

That’s it for now, but I would like to reiterate that I am committed to making Salvo work for you, so you can either continue to post notes here, or send Email to me at:

andrew2@spruegames.com

Re: Macromedia Projector Bug=Constant Crashes
 

The demo was deleted before i reinstalled my OS along with a registry cleaner "CheckMyPC" etc. I have tried running Window, expanded & full with different settings. When i got up this morning i gave it another shot and actually made it through the first scenario of an English Campaign...I will try your suggestionof re-installing and then start without any changes to the options etc. Thanks for your help, i will take a methodical approach and report back and if it is truly a unique problem then there is hope in tracking it down http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif. I apologize for my pessimism...it's just that i could almost taste the ocean air http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/fear.gif.

Re: Macromedia Projector Bug=Constant Crashes
 

I have the same problem with the Macromedia Projector crashes. It seems to affect only certain campaigns. The Edward Teach campaign is completely unplayable because of the crash bug. I tried a different campaign (I can't remember which one) and there seemed to be no problem after about a dozen turns. I didn't have time to play any further. I won't have time to really experiment to track down the crash conditions for several days. I just wanted to pop in quickly and let you know that someone else is having your problem.

Re: Macromedia Projector Bug=Constant Crashes
 

http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/image...es/biggrin.gifThanks, ironic that Edward Teach was the campaign that wouldn't even run more than a minute, it was by far the worst ctd wise as well as my first choice http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/image...s/rolleyes.gif.I uninstalled Salvo...i'll check back.
@Andrew: I tried all the "Pirate Campaigns", none of which would run, and a couple English of which i can move forward in at least one. So it does seem to hint at something in the game itself unless McBan has my same specs/hardware and we all know what the chances of that are http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif.

Re: Macromedia Projector Bug=Constant Crashes
 

I scraped up a little bit of time to experiment with Salvo! to reproducibly crash the game. Playing the Edward Teach campaign, the game runs fine until I use the arrow keys to move the viewpoint while a ship has been selected, but not moved yet. Then the Macromedia crash occurs after pressing an arrow key once or several times. Use of the arrow keys without a selected ship does not cause any crashes. I have not tried the other campaign where the game worked without any problems. It might be that for whatever reason I never used the arrow keys while a ship was selected. Anyway, this hopefully narrows the problem and provides a work-around for anyone having this problem.

Re: Macromedia Projector Bug=Constant Crashes
 

McBan: (& Lord Hammer)

Thanks for your excellent detective work- that will help us get to the solution faster, but we are not there yet. With something of a lump in my stomach, I tried the arrow keys on all the pirate missions, and I was not able to crash the program. That’s good for me & Salvo, but does not help you and Lord Hammer, nor get us anywhere closer to the solution.

Macromedia Crash:
I should clarify that when you get the system message that the “Macromedia Projector” has crashed, then there has been a crash that Salvo could not recover from. Errors that are directly the fault of my mistakes in programming will show up as “Script Errors” and should be recoverable, unless they loop. The system crash might still be caused by one of my errors, or it ~could~ be due to the development package that I used to make Salvo.

Turbo Mode?
Just a thought: What if it is not the keypress that causes the error, but the redraw that happens as you rotate around a selected ship? It would look like the kepress, but it may be something else. To test this, you may want to turn on Turbo mode in the Settings panel. Turbo mode will reduce the depth of the display, as well as removing some of the visual frills, thus reducing the work needed to redraw the screen and maybe helping this situation.

Wireless Network:
I just remembered something that happened fairly early on in Salvo’s development. I was using my brother’s notebook while visiting him in Ithaca. It turned out that when the system did not have a good connection to his wireless network, Salvo was very unstable, and I got the same sort of projector crash. Right next to the Hub, or with the Wireless turned Off, Salvo was rock solid. So – You may want to try running Salvo without any network, and even try running with no external connections at all.

Still…
I keep returning to the idea that the Demo worked. That suggests that something is different in the Gold code. The nature of the error suggests that it is something that the software can not deal with, something fatal. <Sorry – thinking out loud.>

Action:
I will check my system to make sure that I have the latest components of the development system. I was up to date when I finished Salvo, so I don’t expect there to be any updates, but it can not hurt. Also, I’ll proof the arrow keys and anything else that I can think of and create a new build of SALVO.EXE for you to try.

Re: Macromedia Projector Bug=Constant Crashes
 

Lord Hammer

Thanks for bringing this up in the first place. I am dismayed that there is another case of this problem (McBan) but I am also determined to find a solution.

Please take a look at my reply to McBan, and see if any of the items there help.

I will have an alternate SALVO.EXE file for you soon.

Re: Macromedia Projector Bug=Constant Crashes
 

I should be at work, but I had to check Salvo! out some more. I just played The Sultan's Honor to completion with no crashes, even when using the arrow keys while a ship is selected. Great game so far. I can't judge the AI fairly yet, but so far, so good.

Anyway, back to the crash problem. I tried the Turbo mode suggestion, but it had no effect. Being a scientist, I created a hypothesis that the problem had to do with the fog effect, since the crashing always occurred with the Edward Teach battle which has fog and not The Sultan's Honor which lacks fog. So, I changed one of the settings that seemed relevant, the smoke opacity setting, under the belief that it affects fog too. I increased it to 3 (from the default 2) and had no crashes after briefly testing it under the conditions that cause the crash. I decreased it to 1 and again it had no crashes. I increased it back to 2 and interestingly it still doesn't crash. I saved the settings, exited the game, restarted the game, and tested it. Still no crashes. Very curious. Anyway, the problem seems solved on my system after those manipulations. I suppose there could have been some bad number associated with the default smoke opacity setting that gets cleared out when the setting is changed, even when back to 2. I really need to get to work and I won't have time to test Salvo! again until Monday late afternoon/evening. Happy bug hunting!

Re: Macromedia Projector Bug=Constant Crashes
 

Last minute final checks on the crash problem indicated that I was hasty in thinking that the crash problem is solved by what I did above. The problem re-occurred at all smoke opacity settings, so disregard my earlier tests. It seems that I previously did not test with enough arrow presses because the crash is inconsistent in that sometimes it takes pressing the arrow key once when a ship is selected when fog is present to cause the crash, sometimes it takes more, maybe up to 5 or 6 or so.

So, I tried the other setting that I should have tried first, the fog of war override setting. Setting it to 5 seems to mostly solve the crash problem, after some testing of arrow pressing of about a dozen or more. A setting of 4 also seems to work, but I tested that less. However, even with a setting of 5, I am able to get the same type of crash under slightly different, more elaborate circumstances, by doing the following, again under fog conditions.

1. Select a ship, and use the arrow keys to rotate the view around the ship multiple times, going the whole way around the ship to be certain.

2. Immediately, while the ship is still selected after doing number 1 above, clicking either the ship list (and then clicking the screen to return to the main view causes the crash), or click the settings button immediately causes the crash.

This crash doesn't always occur, but usually does. I have not been consistent with the number of arrow presses beyond doing about 10 or more, so that may be a factor, or some other variable I haven't thought of could be causing the inconsistency. I didn't check any further because clearly the problem is somewhat complicated. However, the problem is clearly fog-based, so maybe that will help you. Again, good luck bug hunting!

Re: Macromedia Projector Bug=Constant Crashes
 

Wow! Some comments:I have tried Turbo Mode, my wireless has been disconnected since school let out(kids http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif), the demo that i tried(1st one) didn't have the arrow keys implemented.
I too had thought the keys were the "key" until it started happening randomly(perhaps a delayed reaction to arrow press) in the Pirate campaigns but with McBan's input i know it's only a matter of time...hopefully [img]/threads/images/Graemlins/Cold.gif[/img].
I too considered trying a game without using the key but frankly it is just too frustrating using my mouse to constantly change perspective.

Re: Macromedia Projector Bug=Constant Crashes
 

Re-installed Salvo, left default settings with same results. Certain Campaigns are just un-playable...period. McBan is onto something, Sultan's Honor has worked without crashing, so i'm up to 2 playable.

Re: Macromedia Projector Bug=Constant Crashes
 

Lord Hammer & McBan

I got your notes, and I expect to have a new build for you on Monday. It may be late Monday, but I’ll try…

Re: Macromedia Projector Bug=Constant Crashes
 

Lord Hammer & McBan

I still can not recreate the error on my development system , so this may be a shot in the dark, but here is a link to a file that may (or may not) help. All I have done is changed the sequence of a few elements and tweaked some things.

It is important to note that there are no improvements or new features in this code. It is just an alternate for the standard Salvo PC excitable. If it turns out that this file helps some users, it will be added to the Salvo downloads page.

Salvo_July11.exe is just under 30 MB and should be placed in the main Salvo directory where salvo.exe is. You can create a shortcut if you desire.

www.spruegames.com/Salvo/download/Salvo_July11.exe

Re: Macromedia Projector Bug=Constant Crashes
 

Sorry; the new Salvo exe crashes the same way. For me at least, the game is quite playable as long as I set the fog override at 5 and avoid clicking on the two options while a ship is selected. It would be nice to not override the fog, however. I also haven't had any crashes in non-fog battles. I played the first two battles of Huzza! without trouble and have started the third battle.

I don't understand the fog override. When the fog override is off, then what range of fog does that correspond to in the 1 to 5 setting? For the Edward Teach battle, it seems like 3. Is it the same for each battle with fog?

Re: Macromedia Projector Bug=Constant Crashes
 

Some follow up tests. With the fog override set at 5 and playing a foggy battle, I can use the arrow keys to shift my view around OK except that once I have done so for about 6 or more times (all in one turn or even pressing an arrow key only once per turn), the game crashes if I select the ship list icon and click to return to the main screen, and the game crashes sometimes immediately after I click the options icon from the main screen. For this crash, it doesn't matter whether a ship is selected or not, unlike the crash that occurs with fog override at 0 and simply using the arrow keys. The other options and screens seem to work OK so far. This makes playing a foggy battle somewhat crippled since the ship list screen cannot be used.

I just updated Windows (though I am still using WinXP SP1) and I have a current driver for my Nvidia 6800 GT. The Macromedia Projector crash details indicate that the crash occurs with iml32.dll and it leaves a log that I can email you if you want or I could go through Shrapnelgames Customer Support if you prefer.

Re: Macromedia Projector Bug=Constant Crashes
 

No change here...sorry.

Re: Macromedia Projector Bug=Constant Crashes
 

Lord Hammer & McBan

Drat, Double Drat and even hydroelectric-water-containment-device.

OK – Im working on some other leads, and I will fully investigate the fog override angle. Please do not send me the error log. Please.

More soon.

Second Try is the Charm. Right?
 

Lord Hammer & McBan

I still can not reproduce the error, nor find any smoking-gun type suspects. So - Following the FOW setting lead, I have rebuild that section of code, which also requires an alteration in the world file that contains the Caribbean ocean graphics. So, this is a two step update. (If it works I’ll but all 4 location ‘world’ files and the new EXE in a install update.)

The files are:

www.spruegames.com/Salvo/download/Salvo_July13.exe

www.spruegames.com/Salvo/download/world_2.cst


world_2.cst replaces the current world_2.exe on your harddrive, but you may want to rename the old one, just in case this does not work. world_2.cst is located in Salvo
s ‘locations’ directory:
C:\Program Files\Shrapnel Games\SprueGames\Salvo\locations\world_2.cst


Salvo_July13.exe can go into the main Salvo directory, just like Salvo_July11.exe did.
C:\Program Files\Shrapnel Games\SprueGames\Salvo\

Fingers crossed!

Re: Second Try is the Charm. Right?
 

WOW! I'm impressed, it runs like lightning now! I played thru the whole Edward Teach scenario using the arrow keys like it was a new toy. The game scrolls so quickly, in fact i have to be careful http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/image...es/biggrin.gif, which is consistent with my rig. One question, when i won the battle the victory screen listed my score and ships involved, it had a scroll bar on the right(long list) and when i tried to scroll it the game went to the opening video/animation. Thanks Andrew...you are dedicated!

Re: Second Try is the Charm. Right?
 

Lord Hammer

Great! That’s the best news I have had all day and then some. Its nerve racking working blind and I was a little afraid that it would take longer to find a solution and that you and McBan would become annoyed with the process. <G>

Im waiting to hear that this also works for McBan – and I’ll make it a more solid update. Right now – if you play one of the other scenarios that has fog (not in the Caribbean – like ‘The Second Anglo Dutch War’) you will see odd results. It should still work -> but maybe not look totally right.

Fingers Still Crossed.

Re: Second Try is the Charm. Right?
 

It works great for me too! I tested both types of crashes, the type with the fog override at 0, and the type with the fog override at 5, and it didn't crash under any of the previous conditions. It also feels slightly more solid or smooth somehow, but it could be my imagination since I now don't expect it to crash at any moment.

Thank you for your efforts! I appreciate it. I look forward to playing the various battles and campaigns without problems. You created so many cool ones, it is hard to know where to begin. I think I will simply enjoy the Edward Teach battle while waiting for the final update. Thanks again!

Re: Second Try is the Charm. Right?
 

Nope, it IS much smoother...it isn't your imagination. That's great news, thanks to both of you: Andrew and the professor http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/cool.gif. Looking forward to the final update as well.

Re: Second Try is the Charm. Right?
 

Yes it does work but the clouds and water are more "pixelated". The smoothness and responsiveness of the graphics/gameplay/ui since the fix make me want to play more whereas before it was painfully slow and awkward even without the ctd's. Thanks again Andrew!

Re: Second Try is the Charm. Right?
 

McBan:

<Sorry for the delay. I got sidetracked. I used an ATM machine yesterday that failed to print any but the last two digits of my balance. I’m now in the market for new underwear.>

I am glad that the fix that worked for Lord Hammer also works for you, and I am ready to call this beast beaten. Thanks for your excellent error reporting and intuitive investigation of the problem. You were a great help.

Now I’ll go work on the formalized update for the Salvo files page….

Re: Macromedia Projector Bug=Constant Crashes
 

Hi,

I've got the game two days ago, played some campaign, and in some of them the macromedia bug don't even let me play a minute. :-((((

Re: Macromedia Projector Bug=Constant Crashes
 

Andrew, you are welcome. It felt good to "experiment" again, even if it wasn't in my field. I gave up biotech research to examine biotech patent applications at the Patent Office, and now I am applying to be a manager there. There is too much to do professionally, and too little time to spend playing Salvo! right now, unfortunately. I appreciate how fast the game plays so when I do have a little time, I can actually play a meaningful amount.

Miguel, try the fix 8 posts above and play the Edward Teach campaign, see if you still get the crashes on that campaign, or wait for the formal update that fixes all of the battles. Also, if you get crashes on non-foggy battles, then you need to post Andrew about the problem.

Re: Macromedia Projector Bug=Constant Crashes
 

Miguel-

If you are experiencing the same things as are disused in this thread, then help is on the way. McBan and Lord Hammer have been instrumental in solving this problem - & I am working on making single download and install solution. You can try the stopgap for immediate results, or hold on just a few days for the official download.

If you are experiencing something other than what McBan and Lord Hammer have described – please let me know!

Hope this helps…

Re: Macromedia Projector Bug=Constant Crashes
 

Any word on the official patch? Salvo is pretty much unusable without it.

Re: Macromedia Projector Bug=Constant Crashes
 

It's got to run through test first to make sure we don't break additional items with this fix.

Re: Macromedia Projector Bug=Constant Crashes
 

Xerxes:

- The update is in testing, but is not going to be available until the testers have a full Gold install from CD and then can try the update. That should not take much longer.

Re: Macromedia Projector Bug=Constant Crashes
 

That 2 File fix, works like a Charm. Once, I remembered to start the Game with the 13 July Execute, that is, hehe. Thanks !

Re: Macromedia Projector Bug=Constant Crashes
 

Monru:

Glad to hear it. Still working on proofing the final patch – but it should not me much longer.

Re: Macromedia Projector Bug=Constant Crashes
 

I have a ibook 1ghz g4 with 512 ram I installed the demo. When I open the game to play it everything runs fine until I click load. I get a spinning ball and it quits. I tried adjusting the fog by setting it to 5 like suggest to no avail. I have Mac os x tiger 10.4.2. I have a ATI Mobility Radeon 9200 32mb ram. I also get no sound when the game starts up but maybe there is none in the menu screen. Would love any help you could offer as this game looks like a real good one and I would love to try it out.

Re: Macromedia Projector Bug=Constant Crashes
 

Still waiting on the patch, is there a delivery date yet?

Re: Macromedia Projector Bug=Constant Crashes
 

No not yet. Andrew is pounding away at code, then we'll test it.

Re: Macromedia Projector Bug=Constant Crashes
 

A bit more info: In the West Indies Campaign, I get the Macromedia CTD when I use the left or right arrow keys.

Re: Macromedia Projector Bug=Constant Crashes
 

Trinity:

Sorry for the neglect, things have been a bit intense on the development front, but its time to come back to the forums. This is the first report I have had about any Mac crashes with the demo or the program, and the aforementioned ‘patch’ sounds like a solution for a different problem. So, you may want to try reinstalling and see if something went wrong. I would recommend: a) Re-download the demo file. b) Unpack the DMG to a mounted volume, and c) copy the Salvo Demo to a different location than you used before.

If that does not help, then please let me know.

Re: Macromedia Projector Bug=Constant Crashes
 

Jim:

Does the earlier mentioned patch help in these situations, or are you getting the same result when you use the updated code?

The original patch that I put together is (should be) still available at:

www.spruegames.com/Salvo/download/Salvo_July11.exe

If this does not help – I would be very glad to know!! (Like – frantic – manic and whatnot.)

Re: Macromedia Projector Bug=Constant Crashes
 

Andrew

I purchased Salvo a couple of weeks ago and have started working my way through some of the scenarios. In the West Indies Campaign I started having the Macromedia Crash to Desktop (MCTD) experience in the third scenario. I checked the Shrapnel forums and found this thread. I downloaded the 11 Jul patch you suggested above and the patch did NOT correct my MCTD problem. I can see from the thread that this is something of an inconsistent problem, but it seems that more users are starting to encounter the problem. My system is a one month old Dell Dimnesion XPS with 3.4 GHz and 1 Gb RAM, and I have had no problems running all my old (and a few other new) programs, so I am reasonably convinced that this bug is a Salvo isse. I look forward to a solution.

Doug McLean

Re: Macromedia Projector Bug=Constant Crashes
 

Doug McLean

Thanks for letting me know!!! This bug is a little nerve racking, but I do believe that I have it on the run. However, your experience is the first report that I have had of the original fix not working, so it causes me some alarm. It would be great if I could have you try the newest version of ‘net_salvo.exe’ to see if the current code works better on your system. Just let me know if this is cool for you, and we will see how to work it out.

Re: Macromedia Projector Bug=Constant Crashes
 

hi, i came here by accident while looking for a solution to macromedia projector problems. i didn't realize this forum referred to a specific game. i am having the same problem with a game from another sight and it's not the first time. i get the same error message, macromedia projector has encountered a problem and must close. so i hope you don't mind me reading along and perhaps i can learn something that will work. thank you...

Re: Macromedia Projector Bug=Constant Crashes
 

Shelly:

Not a problem, but Im not sure it will help much. Just out of curiosity, what is the other program (If Im allowed to ask.If not - Someone will make the note go away. <G>)