+---------------------------------------------------------------+ | THANDOR - THE INVASION (c) Innonics GmbH Ver. 1.0 | +---------------------------------------------------------------+ CONTENTS: 1. About THANDOR 1.1. Copy Protection 1.2. Change installation folder 1.3. CD-ROM inquiry 2. Network 2.1. Adding your own logos in a network 2.2. Campaigns in a network 2.3. Delays in a network 2.4. Multiple network connections 3. Program errors and Help 3.1. Error message: "error: GFX: failed to initialize Direct3D z buffer! (xx)" 3.2. Problems with the sound card 4. Technical help and updates 4.1. Support 4.2. Updates +--------------------------------------------------------------+ 1. About THANDOR 1.1. Copy protection To play THANDOR, you must insert the program CD into the CD-ROM drive. The CD must be placed in the drive from which you installed THANDOR. 1.2. Change installation folder If you change your configuration so that your CD-ROM has a different drive letter from the one it had during installation, you can change the installation path in the Registry. Warning! Only experienced users should make changes in the Registry. Please speak to our support if you do not know exactly what you must do. The installation path is saved in the value "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Planet4\Thandor\CD" You can use REGEDIT to change it. 1.3. CD-ROM inquiry The THANDOR CD must be in the drive during the entire game. The menus "Select mission" and "Mission description" can be selected only if the program CD is recognized as an original. If you do not put the CD-Rom into the CD-ROM drive until after you have started the program, please be patient for a few moments while THANDOR checks your original. If you are playing in a network, only every third computer needs an original CD-ROM. At the end of the mission, only still pictures instead of videos will be played on all of the other computers. The following table will show you the exact configuration of the number of original CD-ROMs required in a network: Number of Number of CD-ROMs Computers | ----------------+--------------- 1 | 1 2 | 1 3 | 1 ----------------+--------------- 4 | 2 5 | 2 6 | 2 ----------------+--------------- 7 | 3 8 | 3 +--------------------------------------------------------------+ 2. Network 2.1. Adding your own logos in a network In a network game, you can add your own logos to units and structures. You need a graphics file with the file name YOUR_PLAYER_NAME.pcx to do this. When designing your logos with the help of a suitable paint program, please make sure you observe the following format. - The graphic must be the size 64x64. - It must be 256 colors (8 bit). - The graphics format must be PCX. If these rules are not observed, THANDOR will not load your logo. To test your logo design, open a network game which you enter alone as a server (i.e., you do not wait for other players) and start a solo mission. Your test logo will then appear on your construction yard, for example. Shortly after the game is closed by the game server, your logo will be transferred to all of the other participating computers so that your fellow players can see your logo. Tip: Check your logo with other texture resolutions! 2.2. Campaigns in a network For technical reasons, all of the level data must be transferred at the start of a campaign in a network game (e.g., the two-player campaigns). Depending on the type of connection, this can take a long time. (For 100MBit/10MBIT networks, a few seconds - via the Internet, considerably longer) If you are playing together with a slow connection such as a modem or the Internet, you should avoid playing a campaign together and start only solo missions so you do not spend most of your time waiting to begin play. 2.3. Delays in a network Once the game server has started the network game, the following data will be transferred over the existing connections: a) Every client transfers his logo, if he has one, to the server. No loading bar appears as the transfer begins as soon as the game is closed. b) The server transfers the collected logos to all of the clients. A small progress bar appears in the lower right-hand part of the screen, showing how much time is left. If the transfer takes too long, you should play without using your own logos. c) The server transfers a list of the installed solo missions and campaigns. Once again, a small bar will show the progress. This transfer can take several seconds if the connection is slow. In the mission selection list, all of the maps which must be transferred by the server to any of the clients, because he either does not have the map or only has an older version of it, will be shown in bright white. Campaigns will be transferred in any case (see 2.2). The clients will gradually report which maps do not need to be transferred to them so that the display of the maps can change from bright white to normal white. If you do not have a fast connection between the computers (LAN), you should definitely play without transferring the game maps! Once the transfer has begun, it cannot be cancelled! If you have selected a map displayed in bright white, the progress of the transfer will be shown by a bar in the lower right-hand part of the screen. The transfer is done in two steps: a) after the game selection and before the faction selection b) after the faction selection and before the briefing Campaigns are transferred in one step before every briefing. 2.4. Multiple network connections If your computer is connected to several networks (e.g., several LANs or LAN and modem), THANDOR will use only one network. If you open a game as a server, only the computers from one network will be recognized. If you only want to participate in a game, it does not matter how many networks your computer belongs to as entering the server identification connects you directly to it. THANDOR uses a default network assigned by the system. You can overwrite this behaviour by entering the network address which THANDOR should use to wait for other computers in the command line parameter -ip="XXX". XXX can be your own IP address or a name which can be resolved as an IP address. Example: You have a network card in your local network. In addition, you have a modem / an ISDN card, which establishes a connection to your Internet provider via PPP when needed. If you want to be the game server in your LAN, you do not need to enter anything, for in general your network card will be taken as the standard network connection. If you only want to participate in a game (in a LAN or on the Internet), all you need to do is start THANDOR the normal way. If you want to open directly a game on the Internet or via your modem, you must start THANDOR with the parameter given above. To do so, first establish your modem connection (onto the Internet or to your game partner). Then start WINIPCFG (e.g., Start menu -> Run:WINIPCFG). Then select your modem connection and your IP address will appear under IP-ADDRESS; enter this address instead of XXX as a command line parameter for THANDOR (see above). +--------------------------------------------------------------+ 3. Program errors and Help 3.1. Error message: "error: GFX: failed to initialize Direct3D z buffer! (xx)" If this message appears after the intro, then you can only play THANDOR with a resolution of 640 x 480. As THANDOR is set for a resolution of 800 x 600, it cannot be started. Solution: Copy the file "\Thandor\Thandor.dat" from the CD-ROM into your THANDOR folder "c:\Programme\Thandor\". If the problem continues, then you cannot play THANDOR. Please contact our support (see also Point 4). 3.2. Error description: Although a sound card has been installed, you do not hear any sounds. If you are using the sound card "Terratec XLerate PCI", please install the latest drivers (Version 4.06.1187 of October 15, 1999). If this does not solve the problem, start THANDOR with the parameter -sound. You should see an error message (if DirectSound reports a sound card) which you then need when you contact our support (see Point 4). +--------------------------------------------------------------+ 4. Technical help and updates 4.1. Support If you have problems with THANDOR - THE INVASION, please contact our technical hotline, write us an e-mail, or visit our Internet page. You will find our telephone number and e-mail address in the text below. Before you contact us, please read the chapter "Technical Support" in the THANDOR manual and see if your problem is mentioned in one of the errors described there. If you still have problems with THANDOR, please have the following information at hand before you call us. - The exact error message (if there is one) - A description of the error (error description) - A list with the specifications of your computer: * Type of processor and clock speed (e.g., Intel Pentium II 333 MHz) * Size of RAM (e.g., 128 MB) * Type of CD-ROM drive and the speed (e.g., Plextor 32x) * Type of sound card (manufacturer, model, and driver version) * Type of graphics card (manufacturer, model, and driver version) * Type of 3D accelerator card (manufacturer, model, and driver version) You can obtain this information by clicking "START" in the Windows task bar and selecting "RUN". Enter "DXDIAG" on your keyboard and then click on "OK". You can reach our support 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m., Monday to Friday, by calling: Telephone: 0511/336137-90 (from 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.) Fax: 0511/336137-77 (all day) or all day by writing to: E-Mail: service@thandor.de 4.2. Updates You can find the latest information about THANDOR - THE INVASION on our Web page on the Internet. Our address is: http://www.thandor.de This is also where you will find the latest updates. +--------------------------------------------------------------+ We hope you have fun playing the game! Yours sincerely, THANDOR - THE INVASION Team (c) 1999 Innonics GmbH, Hanover All rights reserved - no reproduction, rental, changes, or public showing without permission. All other company and/or product names are the brands and/or registered trademarks of the respective owners.