Memory-fix by Harkonnen is out!

damn i guess Harks gone to bed now, ill download the version already here

Any news?, i'm getting my computer formatted tomorrow so i can start everything from scratch and use the hark's new update.

Hi Harkonnen!

First of all thank you for this excellent patch
Now I need your advice.

patch_on = 1

1. Low graphics settings (especially textures)
video_memory + agp_apperture_size - 100

2. High graphics settings (especially textures)
video_memory + agp_apperture_size - 120

vid_mem_usage = 180
Insane mode = 1

These are my setting in your .ini file.
I have a GF 6600 256MB card
AGP in BIOS set to 256

I get slowdowns (10-15 sec) between turns all graphics high....any ideas????

Harkonnen
First post in over 3 years. Had to have my password reset so I could post my appreciation. Amazing job.

Sys Specs
2.66 GHz P4
512 MB RAM
GeForce4 448 (64 MB)
AGP 8x

I haven't tried your huge save game, but here's test results with a standard world save game (1977 AD) just prior to a domination victory...

Without patch (after loading and playing one turn)
VM Size 420 MB

With patch (after loading and playing one turn)
insane_mode = 1
vid_mem_usage = 40
VM Size 300 MB


This patch gives me the chance to try larger maps/more civs. Absolutely amazing. Thanks for all of your hard work!

sumoworm
Thank you!

Walter Hawkwood
Ok, I will get back to your issue after intermediate update release.

kettyo
Thanks! Without your info I'd rather turn 'insane_mode' to 0 by default for 1Gb users. Now I plan to do so for '1.5+ Gb' people only. Well, it's all about installer release, not about the one to be posted right now.

I have read about 'geometry instancing' as I saw such checkbox in ATI Tray Tools. First of all I thought it might be something I am doing with my fix, but later I have found that it's not:

a) So far I see it's for X600/800/... cards - the new line from ATI.
b) It requiers support from the software, i.e. it can't be forced like anti-aliasing. It's more like TrueForm setting.
c) It saves geometry processing, not its size. I.e. same geometry data receives its clipping hints (and probably gets transformed once), but still all the data remains duplicated.

Danb
I don't know yet for sure... Win98 doesn't provide enough info to get the reason of this problem. I will get back to you as soon as I release the update.

wdreamsmaycome
Wow... You made another change to my decision. Now I will ignore memory amount for 'installer' version wizard, only answers about alt-tabbing will matter

CivalGanjaman
No, you didn't miss it.

CombatWombat
It makes me sad, but almost every GF Ti user had problems with my fix... I don't know why GF2/GF3 users benefit more from it.

Civ.exe Error
Reduce 'vid_mem_usage' down to 150 or set 'insane_mode = 0'. One of these (preferably vid_mem_usage) should help.

Quetzalcoatl
Good

ALL
Was sleeping, yes... Because net decided to go down right when I was about to release it

Ok, my performance has drastically improved, which I like alot. Although, in my current game (using Rhye's Earth/18civs map), I've been getting constant CTDs between turns and also when I open the worldbuilder. When I say constant, I usually CTD 20-45 min after I load the game. During the earlier eras I experienced no CTDs, they only showed after Industrial and beyond. Not really sure how to fix this, any ideas Hark?

My rig is 2.6 ghz, 1gb ram with an ATI 9800 pro.

i have the problem that the there is an error that the "PatchByHarkonnen.dll" could not be loaded! what do i do????

sorry Harkonnen but i have win xp with service pack 2
thank you very much for all the thing you are doing for all us!!!!
you are the king

I got some random black landscape bug showups (sometimes just happens when I select a Unit) + Ghandi and co. are replaced by a grey screen if i talk to them.

AMD Athlon 1400 MHz
512 MB RAM
Radeon 9200SE 128MB
tried 0/1 Insane Mode etc. doesnt help

About the update.... Dang, I've sped it up with the update and movies started to stutter again while they didn't before... The game doesn't swap, background 3D animation is faster then movies. It looks like civ4 makes some FPS expectations before the movie, and it affects video timescale badly (as the game usually swaps a little to bring movie up).

I'll hold on a little to this issue and release the update then. Probably it'll be only about gray leader-boxes Movie fixes will come later along with globe view improvement.

Just my opinion but let the movies eat cake! If it's faster/leaner bring it on

movies are less important than gameplay. i seen the movies loads of times for ancient and none for modern because of gameplay.

Hark: Got a call from ICN said they fixed my T1 issue or should I ay T3 that we connect to to go up to chicago...

Harkonnen

I installed the patch and it has cause Civ to use less memory (lots less!), but it caused a new display problem. I'm getting blue-green trees. Pretty, maybe surrealistic, but not what I expected. I believed my display problems where corrected with the 1.09 patch (on a directtodrive download version of the game) and I was trying yours to see about speeding things up

I've attached copies of the screen capture (I've reduced the size to reduce the byte count) and a dxdiag. I've copied in my ini files below as the attacment manager wouldn't let me do any more (appears 2 files is my limit regardless of total size). I removed the comments from the ini info as I didn't think you needed them and it reduced the post size.

If there is anything else you need, just contact me (I have a 1MB msinfo file).

Harkonen ini
------------------------------------
patch_on = 1

vid_mem_usage = 80

insane_mode = 1

------------------------------------
Civ4 ini
------------------------------------
[GAME]

Map = Custom_Continents

GameType = singlePlayer

PitbossTurnTime = 0

MaxTurns = 0

QuickHandicap = HANDICAP_NOBLE

GameSpeed = GAMESPEED_EPIC

Era = ERA_ANCIENT

SeaLevel = SEALEVEL_MEDIUM

Climate = CLIMATE_TEMPERATE

WorldSize = WORLDSIZE_HUGE

GameName = PANSCEND1

FileName = 0

Nickname = FinnMaccool

Email = PANSCEND1

Alias = FinnMaccool

CheatCode = 0

[CONFIG]

MouseScrolling = 0

HideMinSpecWarning = 0

GameUpdateTime = 10

EnableVoice = 1

DisablePAKMemoryMapping = 1

BinkNoSkip = 1

BinkCopyAll = 1

Bink16Bit = 0

BinkInterlace = 0

ScreenShot Format = JPG

MinimapTrilinearFilter = 1

CutTrees = 1

PopSlides = 0

MapRandSeed = 0

SyncRandSeed = 0

Bandwidth = broadband

QuickStart = 0

PlayMusic = 1

AllowScreenShots = 0

SelectIP = 0

Mod = 0

FullScreen = 0

SetMaxFrameRate = 0

DynamicAnimPaging = 1

NoMovies = 0

HidePythonExceptions = 1

AutoSaveInterval = 4

AudioEnable = 1

Language = 0

UserProfile = Default Profile

SyncInput = 1

ForceNumlock = 0

[DEBUG]

GenerateCrashDumps = 0

AutorunTurnLimit = 0

Autorun = 0

D3D9Query = 1

ScreenHeight = 0

ScreenWidth = 0

HAPDebugger = 0

ShowPythonDebugMsgs = 0

Port = 2056

LoggingEnabled = 1

OverwriteLogs = 0

RandLog = 0

MessageLog = 0

BreakOnAlloc = -1

------------------------------------

Ho no,

Yesterday I play a game on Standard Continent map with 5 civs on that. All were working fine until 1869 where I receive the world map from the Indians Now that most of the map is revealed the Hard Drive is swapping a lot and zooming in and out take a lot of time and scrolling the map too. The game is playable, but very slow and I'm only in 1800's. The patch seem to have a effect on the beginning of the game, but don't much on the later game.

And the other hand, I've a graphic bug. In diplomacy, now I can see the background, but I don't see the leader or I see only is eye or is mouth. Sometime I only see a grey background.

My spec
Windows 2000 SP4
Civilization 1.09 with Harkonnen memory Patch
AMD Athlon 1800+
256 MB system Memory DDR 266MHZ
MSI Geforce3 TI200 64MB video Memory
2048 MB of Virtual Memory
AGP Aperture Size in Bios = 256
AGP ON
Anti Aliasing in card configuration app = Manage by application (Try to disable but no result)

My Setting
Vid_mem_usage = 70
Insane Mode = 1
D3D9Query = 1
DynamicAnimPaging = 1
All setting in game to low (Especially Texture)
Animations and effects is on
*I've tried Vid_mem_usage 32,70,150,200 and Insane Mode to 0 and no more result.

Memory usage is between 500 and 600 with all the settings I've tried.

I know that my spec is low and maybe there is nothing to do for me to increase performance in late game, but please if someone can help it would be appreciate. If not I will play like that and wait... wait and wait...

Another question for Harkonnen do your new release of the patch is out for now?

Thanks

maccool
You should set 'vid_mem_usage = 20' or 'vid_mem_usage = 32' since you've got only 64mb of video memory.

arioch99
Well, video memory counts and you've got only 64Mb too... You may try 'patch_on = 0' to see what actually happens when the patch is off. I could barely finish my 1961 savegame with 512mb / 128Mb, but at least I could

Ok thanks Harko I do others tests and see what I can do.

But If I decide to ugrade my computer, do you suggest to upgrade for another video card (More video Memory) or it is better to upgrade my System Memory. Which increases more the performances. Anyway I don't play large and huge map, I like to play standard or less map. What your suggest.

this program is great, it made civ-4 load and run faster.thanks harkonnen.

Here is the update. If this post is the very first thing you see about "famous memory-fix", then please follow here. This post is about intermediate test release for those who are with me in this thread helping to make final release out of it (much closer now).

The movies problem has appeared in some places (intro is still fine with me). I will address it in the next fix.

"PatchByHarkonnen.dll" attached to THIS post (post #1 is unchanged as this might be worse). You will have to set 'vid_mem_usage' to amount of video memory you have (64Mb users should read below). Just set it to 128 if you have 128Mb of video memory. Set to 256 if you have 256Mb. I will get this info automatically in 'installer' version, it's just too windows-version-dependent to extract all those infos in this small test.

64Mb users (and probably others):
Try previous value for 'vid_mem_usage' (the one that worked best for you), plus 50.

I am primarily interested in following three things:
1) Do gray leader-boxes still appear (not after alt-tabbing, just on its own)? If the answer is 'yes', did you have this problem before my fix?

2) Do black terrain/colored trees still appear (not after alt-tabbing, just on its own)? If the answer is 'yes', did you have this problem before my fix?

3) Does globe view perform worse than before the first version of fix? It shouldn't become faster on its own, my aim with this is not to make it slower at least.

4) Any new problems / improvements as compared to previous version of the fix (post #1)?

5) Your old 'vid_mem_usage' (post #1 version) and your new 'vid_mem_usage' (this post #640 version).

Changes which came into this intermediate release:
1) 'Harkonnen.ini not found' problem. Now you may double-click savegames.

2) FPS meter on the left along with reported memory savings (press Ctrl+Alt (Ctrl and Alt simultaneously) to toggle info on/off)

3) Changed mapper algorithm. Green/golden ships problem seems to have been solved.

4) Changed memory allocation strategy. Now it accounts textures and unmanaged vetex/index buffers, so it can readjust 'vid_mem_usage' you had to set before at run-time.

5) Reports when something is already hooking in (e.g. ATI Tray Tools / xFire).

For 3D programmers (and Firaxians) who care if FPS meter is correct:
1) Yes, I use high-frequency performance counter.
2) Yes, I render text via video-memory texture because 'GetDC' calls are slow for D3D.
3) FPS values are averaged on last 5 frames.
4) FPS values are update on-screen every 100ms (10 times a second), but are accounted with each frame.
5) FPS is updated by the time of 'Present' call. Drawing text is wrapped with BeginScene/EndScene calls.