16 replies to this topic

[DarkeWolf]

heh, no worries, I still slip and call it the primary quite often!

yeah, a fresh install is actually a better idea, as you also clean up all the crap entries that are in your registry from uninstalled programs that might still be lingering. or that point towards other files that are no longer there. Those can slow down your boot, and cause errors.
After you get your OS installed, and updated, you might want to go ahead and CORRECTLY set up your pagefile and virtual memory settings before installing progs/apps, so that maybe their installation will go a bit quicker. (windoze never does anything right!)
virtual mem is best when it's set for 2x your available RAM. So for instance if you have 2 gigs of ram, it would be 1024x2x2 (1024 megs= 1 gig)x2 (for two gigs) x2 for double your ram amount. So you'd want to set your virt mem for 4096 megabytes. With the minimum set for 4096 and maximum set for 4096. So that it uses no less, and no more than optimum. Just google "set virtual memory windows XP" and that should get a hit for you. Also "set pagefile windows xp" for the pagefile.
Virt mem is best if you can put it on a seperate partition, or seperate hdd.

BTW- You ARE going to want to partition that 500g drive. If I remember correctly, winXP SP1 will only recognize a primary partition size of I think.... 300 gigs, without a BIOS flash.
I recommend doing that before formatting what is currently your Master. {edit- sorry forgot, you're probly not gonna format it right away. But still...MUCH better to do the fdisk/partitioning while you've still got a working OS. [/edit]

DAO can run off another hdd. I've got it installed on a usb external. Tho, for better performance, I'd definitely recommend installing it on an internal drive.
Yeah, your install key for DAO is only good for 4 installations, total You can thank EAGames for that

Yeah! 6 years is definitely a pretty good lifetime! At least 3 years past warranty. Maybe 4-5 depending on the manufacturer. Definitely a good run, most of them nowadays dont live past a year or so after the warranty. Just make sure that you're not getting a refurbished drive as your replacement, no telling how long that thing would have been used before you got it.

Eh, it was probably a cost factor. back then sata wasnt as cheap as they are now. an IDE was definitely a lot cheaper in comparison.

[roninsoul7]

the limited installs are a really bad way to "reward" the customers that do bother paying for the game.

[DarkeWolf]

YUP. I can definitely agree there. Tho, to some degree, I can understand it. They released two downloadable versions of it, and this is EA's (inifinitely wise) way of trying to cut down on illegal distribution of their materials.
Dont agree with it, and definitely dont like it, since I'm ON my fourth install of the game after a fiasko trying to get rid of patch 1.03 and DAA.
However, I DO have my registry settings for it, and my files on a backup image. So if I ever need to reinstall again, I am hoping that I can do so by recovering the image.

[Codifer]

My DA:O is also on it's fourth iteration. My daughter gave it to me after she had installed it on her computer and I have done two re-installs to clear up some problems (the first re-install was necessary after the installation of the DA:O Tool Box obliterated the first installation).

This limitation affected what I bought today to cure the ailing hdd situation.

I decided to go with a 500 ghz Western Digital Sata. The fellow at Frye's assured me that I could install the SATA as a master and still have the slave (for now) be an IDE. We shall see. Perhaps next month I will get another and clone the slave hdd to that. That should hold me for another few years.

In order to get around the limitations on installations of DA:O as well as Windows (though I think that I am well under that limit) I did buy a cloning program from Apricorn (Drive Wire). It promises to make an exact duplicate of my present failing hdd as well as scale the partitioning of the new hdd. It is then a simple matter of swapping the new hdd into the case and firing it up. I know that I will be cloning the current mass of disc errors and registry horrors as well as all the extraneous crap I have accumulated. These errors will be taken care of in time after I do some research on registry cleaners and such. This for me was the quick solution as well as an investment in the next computer I build though I do not know when that will be. The immediate concern was/is to get it done before the hdd goes blooey.

I will probably de-frag and run scan disc (if I can find it in XP) before the cloning as Apricorn suggests. A few niggling things to do also. When I built this machine I started with the biggest , breeziest case I could find and wound up with a huge Antec Soho server. It works well even in this hot climate. Only recurring problem is the physical distance between components. The Sata cable looks like it will be a couple of inches short of reaching the hdd which must live in the upper 5.5 inch bay. But then I look at the case interior and I do see that there is a great empty space at the bottom where the hdd could live. I like that idea as it is directly behind a fan and fudging up a cradle does not look to pose a great problem.

I am sorry for hijacking the thread.

Someday I hope to resume playing DA:O. I hope that it is soon.

[notaddc]

Well, I'm not 100% sure of what your problem that you're having is. I do know that when you uninstall it, you need to make sure to clean out any registry entries for dragon age before doing your reinstall.
You can do this via the windows regedit command and then doing a search for dragon age in the registry. or you can use a program like ccleaner (free) or revo uninstaller pro (not free).

the savegame info does contain patch info in it. To clear that out, you'd need to force load your new savegame after the reinstall, and then create a new savegame, naming it something like "savegame clean" or whatever. Shut down the game, and then load up the clean save once you restart the game.

I will go ahead and mention tho too... that on many computers, the lag isnt an issue with patches. its the game itself, and it's poorly written memory usages. This game sucks down ram like a gluttunous PIG. Especially when doing savegame loads, area transitions, and in large areas like denerim and orzammar.

You can try to help cut that down, by streamlining what programs you have running in the background. By holding the ctrl + alt + del (delete) keys on your kybrd and doing an end process on any programs that you know aren't necessary to be running at the time.
you can also go into your game settings, and set your graphics to be lower and details lower. (tho anything below medium will not show eye colors) and turn off persistant gore, the subtitling, and the floating damage numbers.

I copied my save game folder and then deleted my whole dragon age folder(backed up of course) used Revo Uninstaller Pro, it uninstalled the game and said something like "no extra registrys found" re-installed it, ran it, turned it off and put in my backed up save game files and it STILL does the lag stuff after 10 minutes, is there no way to turn it back to 1.0? Do I have to un-install and then make a fresh game for 1.0? Is my save game doomed to 1.3 forever?

P.S. I have attached what the "game" tab says when I click it, still the same stuff...

someone help

Attached Files

•  lag 1.3.gif   118.96KB   9 downloads

[DarkeWolf]

From your screenshot, daorigins.exe is at version 1.0 it's not patched at all.
the other three... irrelevant. Mine says the exact same thing, tho I'm patched to 1.02a

yeah, you will need to make a clean save, but it's not going to change the other three listings there on that screen, cause those are defaults.
The game is slow, laggy, and sucks down ram like Obama spends tax money. The only REAL way to get around it is to install a lot more Ram into your computer

I wish I knew of something else to tell you, or something else for you to try. But aside from reinstalling, and doing what you can to optimize your system performance, I dont know how to reprogram the game to run better

[roninsoul7]

Ok, to add something new to the technical discussion, I recently had to install a new fan for my computer, it didn't come with enough SATA connectors to power everything, so I went to a small shop owned by a computer geek just like me and asked if there was a way around it, turns out there is an adaptor that turns a PATA(IDE) power connector into a SATA. So that means if you are changing stuff around, head to one of those shops and see if there are any connectors that can change stuff around for your needs. The new connector cost me $5 CAD, a drop in the bucket compared to the $40 more it would have cost to get yet another new fan with the proper connectors.