Instructions for Installing and Configuring JetFighter IV with Microsoft XP

These procedures are a combination of practical experience from other users in this forum and procedures recommended in articles like this one from Gamespot ; " 18 Tips for Better WinXP Gaming "

First Step (Install JF4 with Anti-Virus program disabled) Disable your Anti-Virus program prior to installing or re-installing the game... Many programs (including JFIV) recommend you exit ALL windows programs before a new program install Example

Second Step (will allow many people to get up and running right away);

"EDIT" the JF4 configuration file ( jf4.ini ) file in the \Program Files\JetFighter IV folder. To find the JetFighter IV folder: Double click on the My Computer icon -> double click on the hard disk C: drive icon -> double click on the Program Files folder -> and double click on the JetFighter IV folder. Example (If the jf4.ini file is missing just run the program and use the JF4 menu - that will auto create the .ini file. If asked what program to use to edit the file choose NotePad Example

Look for the following line in the (sim Modes) section:
( simUseLoaderThread = 1 ) change it to read
( simUseLoaderThread = 0 ) instead.
Save the file and try running JF4 now.

More info:
The GlobalStar JetFighterIV FAQ website. Here is the GlobalStar Tech Support Request Form

Suggested troubleshooting steps:

We strongly recommend that as you perform these changes one at a time, then to test the JF4 game and see if it works. If you want assistance from other JF4 users you can post your problem in the JetFighter Forum at TalonSoft . JetFighter IV Fortress America Forum

(A) Turn off all game sounds. From the JF4 Main Menu choose OPTIONS then SOUND. Uncheck the boxs for Simulator Sound and Simulator Music. This step tries to isolate possible problems with DirectX sound during the rest of the troubleshooting steps. If the game starts running normally at this point you'll need to investigate advanced audio settings of your PC.

(B) Disconnect your joystick for troubleshooting. Certain joysticks default setting or USB issues may prevent JF4 from running.

(C) Try starting JF4 by double clicking on the JF4sim.exe (or JF4sim application) program located in the JetFighter IV folder. E xampl e

(D) Basic Video Resolution and Color Depth settings (some video card / monitor combinations have problems switching modes when entering game play) Resolution and Color
Set the Display Video and Game Graphics options to the same values. WinXP default color depth is 32bit, JF4 is 16bit.
E xampl e;16 bit 800X600 or 16bit 1024X768 or1280X768

Right-click anywhere on the desktop, click Properties, and then click the Settings tab. Adjust the screen resolution slider and select a color setting from the color quality drop-down menu. Click Apply, accept your changes, and then try the game again. You may need to try several combinations of resolution and color until you find a setting that will allow optimum game performance

Load and enter the JF4 program. From the “Main Menu” select “Options” then “Graphics.” Begin by removing the X or checkmark from every box on the page. Except “Look into Turns”, “On Screen Radar” and “AutoRange.” Set the “ Sim Resolution to match your settings from “Windows/Display/Properties” (800x600 or 1024x768). Set the “Model Texture Quality” to “16bit Half Resolution.” Finally set the “Terrain Detail Distance” to “1.” If everything else works OK you can try to ENABLE the other features one at a time .

(E) JF4 users have reported that some systems running XP can benefit in usability/performance by changing JF4 to run in WinXP compatibility modes. Make that change at the "Play JetFighter IV" shortcut and confirm that the shortcut points to "C:\Program Files\ JetFighter IV\jf4.exe" (default installation location) of the folder where you installed JF4. Also change the compatibility mode for“jf4.exe” and "jf4sim.exe" files in the "Program Files/JetFighter IV" folder.) Start at Win2000 compatibility and work backwards till you find the best performance. Example

(F) Disable unneeded Background Applications during installation and/or game play.

http://gamespot.com/gshw/stories/flat/0,12880,2863924,00.html

Press Ctrl+Alt+Del to open the WinXP Task Manager and select the Applications tab. Highlight and shut down any programs (other than the game you're trying to run). Look at the Processes tab for utilities such as audio mixers, firewalls, game controllers, or antivirus utilities running in memory. Try exiting nonsystem tasks (those tasks that are listed next to the user's name) that show significant usage of memory or CPU time. Highlight the process and use the End Process button. Example

There are just two rules: Exit only one task at a time (you can always shut down and restart the system to restart all of your tasks again), and tasks designated as "system" or "service" should not be exited unless you're trying to isolate a task that's affecting the system's stability. If you want to check what processes are safe to shut down you can research those processes at this site: Tasklist Pages Then try re-installing or playing JF4 with minimum processes running.

(G) Increase your Virtual Memory (page file) size. Ranges of 768MB to 3000mb have been reported to be successful. Set the upper and lower file size limits the same amount so the paging file is always the same size.

http://gamespot.com/gshw/stories/flat/0,12880,2863924-7,00.html
To check your virtual memory settings, click Start, Control Panel, Performance and Maintenance, and then Advanced. Under Performance, click the Settings button. The Performance Options dialogue opens. Look at the virtual memory settings at the bottom of the window. To change the virtual memory setting, click the Change button. The Virtual Memory dialogue provides a complete report of the disk space set aside for the swap file. To change the amount of space allocated for virtual memory, click "Custom size" and enter the minimum and maximum sizes (in megabytes). Example

What will make the biggest difference in the size you want choose will be the screen resolution you choose. If you choose 1600X1280 or 1280X1024 16bit full resolution you'll want a bigger Virtual Memory swap file than if you run your video options at 1024X768 or 800X600 16bit half resolution. If you notice farily large pauses in single player missions, you'll know you probably want to up the size of your Virtual Memory, or lower your resolution setting a bit.

(H) Scan your Hard Drive (More important if you've upgraded your PC to WINXP from another version)

http://gamespot.com/gshw/stories/flat/0,12880,2863924-2,00.html Right-click on a drive in the My Computer window to bring up its properties and then select the Tools menu. Click on Check Now to check the disk for errors. Here's a tip: If you leave the "Automatically fix file system errors" box unchecked while you test the drive and look for errors, it'll be faster to rerun the test later and fix any errors. Example

(I) Run the WinXP Disk Defragmenter (The program will recommend if you need to run this utility)

http://gamespot.com/gshw/stories/flat/0,12880,2863924-2,00.html Click Start, All Programs, Accessories, System Tools, and then Disk Defragmenter. Use the Analyze button to check the drive first and gauge the amount of fragmentation and then select Defragment if there's more than about 10 percent fragmentation. Example View the Defrag Analysis Report. Example If you notice fragments files listed in \Program Files\Jet Fighter IV folder you should probably run Defragmenter even if not recommended. Repeat First and Second Step above then test JF4.

(J) Confirm DirectX 8.1 is installed. From START -- >RUN --> type "dxdiag" --> OK button

Page through each of the Tabs to see if DirectX is showing any error conditions. Example If required Visit MS DirectX and download DX 8.1 Here is the address. http://www.microsoft.com/directx

(K) Run WindowsXP Update: Confirm WinXP is up-to-date. (see Note 3 below)
http://windowsupdate.microsoft.com

http://gamespot.com/gshw/stories/flat/0,12880,2863924-2,00.html
Visit the“Windows Update” website and download all the “Critical Updates for XP.” including the “Pentium III Patch if needed" That one should show up as a driver. See "Windows Update (Easy)"

(L) Troubleshoot possible Audio issues which might be causing JF4 to crash or run with poor performance. Open Start/Control Panel/Sound and Audio Devices/Audio/Advanced/Performance/Hardware Acceleration. Lower the hardware acceleration settings from Full one notch and test. Continue to lower the hardware acceleration settings to test the other settings as well. If your sound card supports 3D sound it should be turned off while troubleshooting JF4 game performance. Example

(M) Clean the Computer. It's a good idea to occasionally purge unneeded files from your recycle bin, temporary folder, Internet cache, and other locations on the drive. http://gamespot.com/gshw/stories/flat/0,12880,2863924-7,00.html

To start Disk Cleanup, click Start, click Run, and then type cleanmgr. Check the box for each group of files that you'd like to delete and then click OK to clear the space Exampl e

(N) In the \Program Files\JetFighter IV folder find the JF4sim.exe program. Double click on the file and see if the actual game flight simulator will run all by itself. If it does run when called direct, but not run when you press the FLY button from the menu program its possible that a pop-up add blacker is interferring when the frontend menu loader program (jf4.exe) tries to startup the flight simulator program (JF4sim.exe). This can look like a popup program to some security programs. Check your Task Manager (Cntrl-Alt-Delete keys used together) and review the PROCESSES tab. You should be able to identify each of the processes running using a resource like TASK LIST PROGRAMS . You can also use a search engine like Yahoo or Google and try searching on the process name in the tast list to find out more information.

Notes

(1) If you have WinXP Service Pack 1 installed the WinXP Applications Compatibility Updates have been incorporated into the Service Pack updated and are no longer installed separately . If you haven't upgraded to Service Pack 1 WinXP Applications Compatibility Updates (Q313484) or (Q319580) have been a problem in the past. Recommended edit of jf4.ini with simUseLoaderThread =0 allows these non-critical updates be installed. Previously we have recommended that users un-install these updates. That will still allow JF4 to run only if jf4.ini file has simUseLoaderThread=1 (the default value during installation). The Q313484 or Q319580 "Applications Compatibility Update" can be easily uninstalled by the Windows "Add/Remove" programs in the "Control panel." They can also be easily added later using WinXP Update.

Advanced Troubleshooting Resourcess - (under development)
Prepare for advanced troubleshooting by ensuring you have WinXP System Restore running. START -> Control Panel -> System -> System Restore Tab
System Restore can track changes and reverse those changes to the previous setting if necessary. Always enable System Restore for advanced troubleshooting.
Example

(l) Check Device Manager

(m) Check for updates to your system's hardware device drivers.

(n) Advanced Video Card Settings
NVIDIA GeForce (1/2/3/4)3dfx Voodoo 4/5 Tweak guide 3dfx Voodoo 3

(o) WinXP ReFresh Issue: http://www.xp-refresh.net/ Tthere is a program that automatically detects the highest refresh rates your computer can handle at every resolution, and configures Windows to always use the highest refresh rate possible at every resolution in DirectX games,

(p) Advanced Audio Card Settings: http://www.3dspotlight.com/tweaks/soundcard/
Disclaimer:
This article has been assembled from best available information and experiance available. There can be no guarantee of success on any specific system. Always back up your critical data files. You are, of course, responsible for loss of data or any other loss or difficulty you might experience as a result of attempting these procedures. As always it's highly recommend you first record all default configuration settings of files that you want to modify.
If you believe there are errors here or have suggestions in how to improve this article please let us know.