Display problems

[Aoxomoxoa]

I recently got a new dual 1.8 G5 and a 20" cinema display that I also run a 18" CRT off in a dual monitor setup.

I installed my Civ 3 on it, and booted the game. The splash screens come through on the Cinema Display, but when the game window comes up, it is on the CRT over to the right.

Any idea what is going wrong? I do get an options screen for selecting the resolution and it has another screen that shows two monitors and recommends using the one with the menu bar (the cinema display).

There isn't a resolution choice that is the one the 20" cineme display uses (1680x1050). Any help would be appreciated.

Aox

 

[AlanH]

The more recent screen resolutions are not provided in the current release and beta versions. When/if the version 1.29f final release ever sees the light of day we are informed that it will have these, plus a custom resolution option. That would solve your 20" screen issue.

Re. the dual screen problem, I'll make a wild stab in the dark:

It may be that the software is using Quicktime to run the movies, and that does all the right things when choosing the screen to run on, as it's pure Mac software. But the game itself is Windows code running in a thin Mac wrapper, and perhaps, given a choice, it chooses a screen with a reolution in its list instead of using the Mac's configuration. If my pure speculation is correct, version 1.29f might therefore solve that problem as well.

I would recommend contacting MacSoft and asking if they have a pre-release you can "try out" for them in this situation. We know that Brad Oliver, the ex Westlake software genius who ported Civ3 to the Mac, passed the 1.29f release across to MacSoft before he moved to Aspyr, so they have had it now for six months or more.

HTH

 

[Aoxomoxoa]

I did forget to add that I did install the 1.29fb2 patch before launching. I did run this on a dual monitor setup previously, with a 1280x1024 lcd display in the main monitor setup with no probs whatsoever. That is on the old computer (Dual 1000 G4 Quicksilver).

Outside of the annoying other main bug of the game just up and freezing on a semiregular basis.

Aox

 

[AlanH]

I did forget to add that I did install the 1.29fb2 patch before launching. I did run this on a dual monitor setup previously, with a 1280x1024 lcd display in the main monitor setup with no probs whatsoever. That is on the old computer (Dual 1000 G4 Quicksilver).

The 1.29b2 patch doesn't have the extra monitor resolutions. As I said you would need to get the unreleased 1.29f from MacSoft if they are prepareed to let it out to you under NDA or whatever. We know it exists, but it's not in the public domain yet.

Outside of the annoying other main bug of the game just up and freezing on a semiregular basis.

I've seen other reports of Civ3 freezes on dual CPUs. You'll find posts on the subject around here, and a comment by Brad Oliver that since the Civ3 software doesn't run multiple threads it's difficult to see how a dual CPU could make a difference. Nevertheless it seems more than a coincidence. It never freezes on my single CPU G4 and I think that's the general experience.

 

[ChiefSparkY]

Doesn't this http://www.defyne.org/civ3hack/ Civ 3 Resolution Hacker solve this guy's problem? It was first mentioned in another thread on this forum a couple of months ago and I only stumbled upon that thread recently which has solved my resolution problems - I'm amazed that more of you haven't mentioned it, it's fantastic!

 

[Aoxomoxoa]

This worked!

Aox

 

[AlanH]

I'd quite forgotten it. Sorry, as I don't have the problem it had slipped my mind. But that's what the community is about. No one person has to remember everything