Windows XP & Patch 1.1 Bug

[Kull]

Has anyone else experienced this problem?

On a clean Windows XP installation (ie not an upgrade), CTP2 loads fine, but the 1.1 Patch refuses to install (the error message says it can't verify that CTP2 exists on the system)

Since the odds of Activision fixing the install program are slim and none, does anyone have ideas on how to get around this problem? A zip folder containing all the patched files might work, but I have no idea which they are.

This is potentially a serious problem for those modders looking to "grow the gamer base", since without the patch none of the mods will work, and "newbies" with Windows XP machines will be unable to experience the improved CTP2.

[Locutus]

Hmm, are you sure it doesn't work? Sometimes uninstalling and reinstalling everything solves this problem. If not, check the register settings (Start->Run->Regedit): does HKEY_LOCAL_MACHNE -> Software -> Activision exist? What values are in it?


Edit: please ignore, just testing something here.

[child of Thor]

dear,dear....XP,
Lots of games have problems with XP it seems- good ol M$!
The obvious thing that springs to mind is have you used the original install path for CTP2 and is the patch looking in that place too? I use CTP2 in an F: directory on a slave drive(yep it works with all the mods and 1.1patch), and can get the patch to work through that.
So if it isn't a pathing problem it looks like its XP to blame - i run on good old 98. It could indeed be a problem for the future as more pc's ship with XP - CTP2 could die out This could be serious! maybe someone else has XP to try it out?

[Kull]

Locutus - Here's what RegEdit found (Do you need a shot from a different part of the directory?):

[Locutus]

Don't be silly! If the problem is really XP, I'll just make a manual patch for whoever needs it. All that the patch does is replace some files and update the registry. A .zip can take care of the file replacements and a .reg file can update the registry. Creating these files would require some effort but after that installing it is no harder than with regular mods.

[Locutus]

Kull,
Does CTP2 contain anything? (Besides the default key) And the uninstall key thingie?

[Kull]

Ask and ye shall receive:

(all pix removed)

[Locutus]

And the Activision_CtP2Uninstall thingie?

[Kull]

As Requested (by the way, the "Activenet" and "Applications" directory contents are identical to "Activision"):

(pix removed)

[Kull]

...and that IS the directory in which the game resides. It's also the same directory format I used in W98se, and the patch worked fine there.

[Locutus]

(by the way, the "Activenet" and "Applications" directory contents are identical to "Activision")

I know

Well, the contents of your register is identical to mine, so that's probably not a problem. What you should do is uninstall CtP2 and reinstall it in C:\Program Files\Activision\Call to Power 2 (the default folder). If this doesn't solve the problem, we can be fairly sure it's an XP problem, and I'll start working on putting together the necessary files for the 'manual' patch.

What I would also kindly request you to do is to edit out those attachments again. They served their purpose and right now they're only contain *very* useful information for software pirates. And even though there are other ways of obtaining this information, the owners of this site have a very clear no-piracy policy, so these pictures ought to be removed now.

[Kull]

uninstall/reinstall test now underway.....

[Kull]

No Dice (see below for details):

1) Uninstalled CTP2 - This worked fine, and i was even told to go remove the directories in order to completely remove all traces.

2) Installed CTP2 - Again, no problem. Started a "new" game and everything loaded fine.

3) Ran ctp2patch_1.11.exe - Program started up, but then gave the same error message "Unable to verify the location of Call To Power 2 on your system. Click OK to exit the installer."

[Locutus]

Wow, that was fast...
Oh well, I guess I'd better start looking for the files that are changed by the patch then... (I have no idea how long this will take - don't be too surprised if you don't hear anything for a few days).

[Kull]

Thanks Locutus! I'm only back in town for today anyway, and then disappear into the ether again for another 2 weeks. Hopefully the "Modders XP Bug Patch" will be ready when I return. My plan is to have a multi-O/S system anyway (with Win98 and others on a different HD), but the real concern was that "new customers" would find Modded CTP2 inaccessible, and that would truly sound it's death knell.