Computer model: Acer Aspire 5610z laptop
Operating System: Windows Vista Home Premium, Service Pack 1, 32 bit*
Processor: Genuine Intel® CPU T2060 @1.60GHz 1.60 GHz
Memory (RAM): 1.00 GB (Virtual Memory is set to 1gb minimum, 2gb maximum (a change I made in a failed attempt to get DXIW to run))
Rendering device: I use Direct 3D, as that is what was recommended upon installing Deus Ex
DirectX: DirectX10
Game version: Deus Ex GOTY (The ReadMe says 1.1?)
Side note: I HAVE run Deus Ex many times prior to installing.
![Wink ;)](./images/smilies/icon_wink.gif)
Antivirus: Trend Micro
*Edit: Since this log was actually POSTED today, my Vista has since become upgraded to SP2
I won’t start at the beginning; that would take an even greater forever than I already have to write… So I’ll just start where things were at their worst… After a bit of grief with the exe download, I decided to instead download the ISO, that way if it’s corrupted (as the exe was certainly BEHAVING like it was), at least its not on my hard drive.
I inserted the DVD, and was pleased by the sight of a very professional-looking launcher. My first click, I smile to the sound of a “biomod installation” sound effect… but other than that? Nothing. The launcher does not even close…
I Eject and reinsert the disc. Second click: the launcher closes in response this time, then the ‘verifying installer’ window very slowly reaches 100%. After that closes, nothing else happens. I wait several minutes, then open the disc in windows explorer and click the executable, no response. I Eject the disc after several more minutes of waiting, as I reinsert it, it then brings up a ‘device is not ready’ alert in response to my previous attempts to install. Doh.
So I decide to copy the executable 2 my desktop (who knows, it might work?). This takes a good 10-15 minutes just for the final 6mb.
Response time from C drive: 15 minutes 2 bring up properties. 37 minutes for the ‘cancel/allow’ screen. 2 minutes to recover from the darkened screen resulting from the ‘cancel/allow’ screen so I can use my computer again.
Update: I chose ‘allow’, obviously. It has now been an additional TWO HOURS and the install program has not initiated. ^^; I will now attempt to restart my computer, then download the executable and try THAT. Incidentally, I have found this mod (both the ISO AND exe I downloaded a few days ago, then deleted due to some major problems it caused) to be slow to respond in every respect, including deleting it, and burning the executable to disc, at which point it will sit at 99% longer than it takes to REACH 99%, and when I try to delete, it takes several minutes to respond to the command just like it did to bring up properties. I wonder why…?
New development: I tried to delete what I copied from the DVD, I got a ‘wait’ animation for my mouse curser for about 10 minutes until it returned to my regular arrow without even confirming the operation to delete (let alone proceeding with the delete). The file remains on my desktop and refuses to delete. ^^; Oh and I was SO looking forward to this one too!
Update: I just tried to shut down my computer in hopes that the exe would respond after a fresh boot. The computer would not respond to the command, I eventually had to resort to the power button. ^^;
Upon reboot, all the changes most recently added to my desktop (new or rearranged icons) have been undone. Again I try to delete the exe with no response, I try dragging and dropping to my recycle bin, and get nothing but a highlighted recycle bin icon and the incessant spinning ring (which I believe is the Vista equivalent to the hourglass) for my trouble. This is getting VERY frustrating…
New: I try control+alt+delete, after several minutes before task manager even opens, nothing I can assume represents the executable appears in the applications or processes lists in the task manager… Am I now forever stuck with useless (and HUGE) file on my desktop?? I try shutting down again, NOW it responds to my command to delete?! And it’s not even the confirm prompt, but the ‘administer permission’ prompt, a sure sign it plans not to work, then my computer shuts down before I can click anything.
Wow, this is awful. ^^; I really wanted this to work but all I got out of it was a whole gig on my hard drive taken up but naught but an icon (that is now the classic ‘windows exe’ icon instead of the TNM icon) that makes my computer useless every time I try 2 execute OR delete it. ^^; I suppose if I can ever delete this damned file maybe I’ll bite the bullet and try downloading and installing the exe from your site or ModDB (AGAIN) like I mentioned earlier, but I can’t say I’m all that tempted ATM… ^^;
Okay…? Another new development. After my most recent (and actually SUCCESSFUL) restart, the TNM icon is back, this time at last displaying the administrator ‘shield’ on the lower right corner as it should have had hours ago when I’d set ‘Run as Administrator’ in the compatibility options (within properties). But now I don’t know if I want to try and mess with it again… ^^; Maybe after a little break from it all to calm my frustrations.
In the mean time, I will run a virus scan while I pick up my husband from work, though the last time I had problems with the earlier downloaded and then deleted exe (multiple ‘Not Responding’ statuses on Windows Explorer simply from trying to open the FOLDER its located in (this was before I downloaded the ISO), at which point ending the folder window from the Task Manager resulted in my desktop vanishing and refusing to come back), I scanned the folder it was in for viruses and none were detected. I’ve never had problems with large files on this computer before this one, I don’t understand it… ^^;
(Side note: To give you an idea of exactly how slow and annoying this file has been, I started at 9:15am. It is now 1:45pm. Insanity. ^^; )
5:37pm: Virus scan is at last complete, it found naught but internet cookies and deleted them all. I am still debating whether or not I want to attempt to delete the file then redownload, or attempt to run it once more…
6:07pm: Okeydoke. Got me some popcorn and coffee and I’m ready to try again. I think I will start by attempting once again to delete the exe copied from the DVD… (New side note: I’ve already gotten ahead of myself and started the redownload of the exe (the patch/es will follow), starting with ModDB as my source, though DownThemAll can’t seem to lock on the file and without a download manager both IE and Firefox have a hard time downloading files IN FULL before they claim to be complete. >.< I guess I’ll cancel these and focus on what to do about this file on my desktop first…)
6:18pm: I right click on the file in hopes of selecting ‘Delete’ from the dropdown menu. I get that damned spinning ring until 6:20, at which point my clock stops. Sometime later, the dropdown menu appears, the clock jumps from 6:20 to 6:25, then the menu disappears before I can get to it. ^^; Crap.
6:28pm: I right click again, this time the dropdown menu comes up after only a second or two.
![Giggle ^_^](./images/smilies/etnc_hihi.gif)
6:30pm: Yes! I right click, at 6:33, the menu at last pops up, and when I select delete, the “Are you sure?” prompt appears. After I select yes, it immediately vanishes. Finally! *woohoos* Now here’s to hoping I can delete it from my recycle bin and get that gig back. ;P So far, however, its showing nothing in the folder (though the recycle bin icon indicates there’s something in it) and claims to still be loading… The green progress bar in the file path is not moving either. That must be one hell of a data-intensive file. >.<
6:43pm: Sweet.
![Giggle ^_^](./images/smilies/etnc_hihi.gif)
![Giggle ^_^](./images/smilies/etnc_hihi.gif)
7:35pm: Per usual I got to 99% done pretty quickly, then the file sat (and is still sitting) FOREVER at the last few megs… This has happened every time I’ve attempted to download this file; I hope that’s normal. ^^;
8:33pm: So I try to check the properties of the file to make sure its size is accurate down to the last byte. Twice I have clicked on properties with no response. Now I am P.O.ed. What is UP with the file, why does it keep pulling this?! I finally got to see the file size by looking at the properties of the folder I saved it to, but what good is the file if I cannot do ANYTHING that involves accessing it directly? I will now spend hours DEFRAGMENTING my computer even though it was just defragmented two days ago, and if, after that, I try to run the file and it still goes hours without initiating, I will officially call this a lost cause.
Oh nice. Now, fifteen minutes later and after already viewing the folder properties AND downloading the patch, the exe properties pop up out of the blue. ^^;
11:45am, the NEXT DAY: Defragmented and freshly rebooted, I open the folder I saved the exe to, then open this document to add my system properties before I forget. The folder takes forever just to load its contents, then the second the files show up my computer starts lagging SO HORRIBLY that windows actually asked me to change my color theme to ‘improve performance’ even though it’s NEVER been a problem BEFORE I made the ever so unreasonable request of asking my computer to OPEN A FOLDER WITH THIS EXE IN IT! *faints* I did as windows asked, and performance has not improved. Why does this mod seem to slow down my computer not only before I have even installed it, but before I even CLICK on it?
*Sigh* I apologize for the shouting, but I’ve never had more frustration with a piece of software than I’ve had just by having this install file located on my computer. It’s taken me a good fifteen minutes to write just the paragraph above this one, because I’ll type out half a sentence, then have to wait at LEAST thirty seconds for what I just typed to even show up. I guess this time I will restart my computer (again), and close everything I can stand to that’s running in the system tray, double click the exe, and give it as many hours as I can stand to allow this file to try to at LEAST run. If it doesn’t run after all that, I’ll officially deem it a corrupted at best. ^^;
12:30pm: So once again a fresh reboot. I clicked on the folder on my desktop that contains nothing but TNM and its patches 10 minutes ago and the folder just now started showing the folder contents. Side note: I’m writing this particular update in a note on my phone which I’ll later transfer to my computer to insure nothing is run after the reboot except the TNM executable.
12:45pm: I right clicked the file, clicked run as administrator, it gave me the ‘unverified publisher’ prompt. I hit run, and am now waiting. This is it. This is the program’s last chance to redeem itself. ^^; I’ll let you know (in likely a few hours with the way things have been going) how it went… Btw, 12:57 and it JUST NOW brought up the ‘cancel/allow’ prompt… Wait. Verifying installer… Holy shit it actually ran the setup wizard?! *dies of shock*
1:02pm: Oh my GOD, it’s installing! *fingers crossed*
1:04pm: Installation successful, it says… Well, let’s see now if it was worth the trouble.
![Wink ;)](./images/smilies/icon_wink.gif)
Restarting the program to make certain direct 3d is used, now it lets me use 32 bit, and is running more as expected.
Side note: The title music is to die for!
Edit: Very epic title screen, the music helps, I’m sure.
![Wink ;)](./images/smilies/icon_wink.gif)
Anyway... I’ll try patching it now, and see how that goes, cuz I can’t WAIT to get those pain in the ass exe files off my hard drive. ^^; Side note: I decided to burn the exes beforehand so I could happily delete them as soon as I was done with the patches. As with every time I’ve tried burning that exe (though I don’t recall what I did with the discs >.<) it gets to the last few mb, at which point my progress bar plummets all the way down to indicating 0%, and it sits at those last few mb for at least half an hour, longer than the rest of the 900 something mb.
Game has been patched. I've deleted the exes again, and, again, my computer is now running as it should. The game, however, Froze up as soon as I exited the apartment building you start out in… Second run, froze up after a save in the apartment building, then popped up an error window saying ‘igfx encountered an error’, what on earth is igfx?
Update: Okay so it’s every time I try to receive that message outside the apartment building that the game freezes up. I disabled the weather; it seems to be helping.
New update after a couple days gameplay: Well… it SEEMED to be helping. ^^; I have since disabled weather and decals, reduced the sound to 8bit, and upped my virtual memory another gig (2gb min, 3gb max), but still it is very laggy and likes to freeze up irreparably here and there (followed by either the ‘igfx errors’, or me having to use control+alt+delete and the task manager to close it).
Newest update: I have made it to the server complex. As soon as I power up and then board that elevator, following the loading screen into the lower levels, a PM pops up. The game freezes before the PM can play, just like it did outside the apartment building. I’ve tried disabling texture details in addition to decals, weather, and lowering the sound bit-rate. Unlike the first PM freeze that was corrected by simply turning off the weather effects, nothing has worked. Thus far, my only option to keep playing TNM is to deviate from the main goals, as I cannot progress any further. ^^; I figure this will likely be my final update, seeing as how I cannot play anymore unless I backtrack and just explore… So I guess I’m officially ready to submit this. ^^;
Though I confess I have not yet tried patch 1.0.3 (I just took note of it in forums, as it did not appear in the downloads section)… While it obviously will not correct the EXTREME install/delete issues I’ve experienced, I will at least try it and see how it plays after that…