GAAAAH this is really frustrating - CTD again! - Page 3

schlechter pfennig · 05-01-10, 10:57 PM

I had a problem about a year and a half ago that, in the exact same place after leaving Trondheim I'd CTD. Didn't matter what I did, or which mod I had activated. If I hit that place within a certain day/date/time . . . *kaboom*!

You might also want to try a product called 'GameBooster'. It was recommended to me. It shuts down all uneccessary services to free up RAM for when you play a PC game. It also allows you to specifically choose and select a game to have all its game files defragmented.

I wish you luck. CTD's like you're experiencing make you want to scream.

05-01-10, 11:05 PM

Once you un-install and do all the other steps,
be sure to do a defrag then install.

Windows has a nasty habit of just re-nameing deleted files
instead of doing a new install of them.
Defraging will wipe those old files.

frau kaleun · 05-01-10, 11:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by schlechter pfennig

I had a problem about a year and a half ago that, in the exact same place after leaving Trondheim I'd CTD. Didn't matter what I did, or which mod I had activated. If I hit that place within a certain day/date/time . . . *kaboom*!

You might also want to try a product called 'GameBooster'. It was recommended to me. It shuts down all uneccessary services to free up RAM for when you play a PC game. It also allows you to specifically choose and select a game to have all its game files defragmented.

I wish you luck. CTD's like you're experiencing make you want to scream.

I had Gamebooster briefly and didn't see much of a difference when using it. Read some negative comments about it as well that made me decide to uninstall it.

And honestly I'm not convinced that it's a memory issue that was causing the freeze/crash problem, as I could run patrols fine with the exact same mod combo up until Oct 1939. I do though think it's a memory issue that makes the newer version of St Naz & Schluese problematic, at least without the LHT option enabled as well. But even with that combo and nothing else I still get a lag in the same problem spot so it doesn't look like using it in place of the older version is likely to solve whatever was causing the total freeze.

Oh and BTW I forgot to mention above that I started another career in that test install in Oct 1939, out of Willy again, and did NOT go through that SE corner of AN34, and did not see any lag at all when I passed through the western portion of the same grid.

Which of course does not mean that I wouldn't see the lag somewhere else on the map, or experience the freeze/crash in those other locations, if whatever's causing it is NOT just in that one spot. In fact I know I had the odd lag now and then on patrols prior to Oct 1939, but nothing that ever caused the game to freeze up completely.

So now I guess my question is, how and where do I look for whatever is causing that issue in SE AN34?

Wreford-Brown · 05-02-10, 03:02 AM

Any chance it's a minefield? Lag as the mines are rendered then CTD when the mine is hit?
I used to suffer CTDs every time I hit a mine which was annoying but could be worked around.

05-02-10, 04:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wreford-Brown

Any chance it's a minefield? Lag as the mines are rendered then CTD when the mine is hit?
I used to suffer CTDs every time I hit a mine which was annoying but could be worked around.

No, because my old unmodded install used to do the same thing in the same place, with no active minefields. I'd have to conclude that it's not the mods either.
As is usualy the case, it looks like Jimbuna shed the best light on the subject. It's just a shame that she has to go through all that work again.

frau kaleun · 05-02-10, 03:58 PM

Okay - I have reinstalled everything and done some more testing.

Started 4 patrols in a brand new spankin' clean install of GWX3, all in Aug/Sept/Oct 1939, all out of Willy with 2 Flotilla. No modding or any changes whatsoever made to the install (other than switching to German voices). Got the same lag in the SE corner of AN34 on all four patrols.

Exited the game and enabled the blank campaign files via JSGME and ran a fifth patrol starting in late Oct 1939, went through the same area in 128 TC as on the four previous attempts, and the same lag wasn't there - or if there was one it was too brief for me to see it as the seconds clicked by.

I really would like to figure out what causes the issue in that particular location, because after running two patrols with all my chosen mods enabled and having no problems with the game freezing/crashing, I'm still leaning toward the idea that it wasn't a mod overload but just the fact that I happened to pass through that area on the patrol that DID freeze up.

Obviously I could just avoid that area on all patrols, but if the same issue affects other locations, I can't avoid all of them because I don't know where they are.

frau kaleun · 05-02-10, 06:19 PM

I opened both the RND and SCR campaign files in Mission Editor and tried to see if I could pinpoint anything going on in the spot where the AN34 lag is happening. Nothing in the SCR file but here's a screenshot from that sector in the RND file:

The arrow points to a spot which is obviously something and it's right where all my freezes and lags are happening. I ran the simulation and there is nothing moving along that line in that area until after 3 Sept 1939 after which something does start moving along there every 2-3 days.

With all my careers, I have only passed out through that area after the war starts on the third patrol. The first patrol always starts on 1 Aug, the second in late August sometime, and then I come home and only on the third patrol would I be passing through there after whatever it is also starts moving along that line. I think this is the reason why I can get through two patrols with no problem (other than maybe a slight lag) but then freeze up and crash on the third one.

Problem is, I have no idea what it is that's passing through there, other than a green dot with a "?" in it. And I don't know how to find out, or what to do about it causing the kind of problem I'm having.

So, uh, help?

Jimbuna · 05-02-10, 06:28 PM

I'll have a look in the morning but suspect your looking at nothing more than a waypoint.

frau kaleun · 05-02-10, 06:44 PM

Well I figured that's what the dot is, but it doesn't seem to be causing any real problems until there's actually traffic going through it after the war starts.

Does the little "?" icon that I see passing through there after Sept 3 in the simulation refer to some specific vessel or event, or does the fact that it's from the "random" file mean it could be anything?

I don't mind doing the legwork to find out what it is if it is something specific, I just have no idea where or how to look for that information.

Wreford-Brown · 05-03-10, 03:24 AM

That should be a waypoint for a random ship from the _RND file called Danish Shipping. One random generic merchant.

Look in your data\Roster\Denmark\Sea folder and see if there are any ships in the roster that don't appear in data\Sea. SH3 might be picking up a ship from the roster whose model either doesn't exist or is broken.

frau kaleun · 05-03-10, 09:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wreford-Brown

That should be a waypoint for a random ship from the _RND file called Danish Shipping. One random generic merchant.

Look in your data\Roster\Denmark\Sea folder and see if there are any ships in the roster that don't appear in data\Sea. SH3 might be picking up a ship from the roster whose model either doesn't exist or is broken.

Thank you, that is awesome, I will have a look tonight if possible.

Would this be the same thing to look for in the updated versions of the relevant files and data in the different St Naz/Schluese mods and/or your add'l ships mods that go with them? Because I'll definitely want to use a version of those again if I can and all I looked at so far was the original files that came with GWX3.

bigboywooly · 05-03-10, 10:17 AM

Danish roster looks fine
One thing you can try - now I know you said you enabled the Blank campaign files
Take the Campaign_RND out of those blank files so only enabling the SCR
Give that a try
If ok
Reverse so you only load the RND ingame and then try
Will narrow down to one file or the other

Does your blank set have a blank LND in also ?
If does then you will need have 3 tries
lol

Wreford-Brown · 05-03-10, 10:29 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by frau kaleun

Thank you, that is awesome, I will have a look tonight if possible.

Would this be the same thing to look for in the updated versions of the relevant files and data in the different St Naz/Schluese mods and/or your add'l ships mods that go with them? Because I'll definitely want to use a version of those again if I can and all I looked at so far was the original files that came with GWX3.

Danish roster will be fine in GWX, Wilhelmshaven and my mod - there will only be a problem if you have some legacy files screwing up your install.

Edit: Dammit, bbw beat me to it!

frau kaleun · 05-03-10, 11:38 AM

@bbw: Yeah, I thought about that after I shut everything down last night - that it would be a good idea to try things again with just one of the blank files enabled, and then just the other one, to be sure only one of them was an issue. There are only _RND and _SCR files in the blank campaign mod I used.

@wb: So basically it could just be a matter of the game trying to generate a ship on that route, and the files it needs to do so are either missing or corrupted. That makes sense.

bigboywooly · 05-03-10, 11:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by frau kaleun

@wb: So basically it could just be a matter of the game trying to generate a ship on that route, and the files it needs to do so are either missing or corrupted. That makes sense.

Pretty much
My Danish roster looks fine as does WBs but check yours just to be sure

If there is a rogue unit ingame it usually CTDs when you get within 50 km of it - when it spawns
Unless you have a corrupted unit from a DL I cant see it happening as all those units were tested extensively
If your tests find nothing will try removing Stavanger from the game
IIRC there was a similar problem a long time ago with Malmo and that area - maybe just too many bases close to each other
Long shot but worth a try esp as you get lag in that area with blank files

05-02-10, 03:02 AM	#34
Wreford-Brown Sea Lord Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: In sight of Stonehenge Posts: 1,750 Downloads: 51 Uploads: 26	Any chance it's a minefield? Lag as the mines are rendered then CTD when the mine is hit? I used to suffer CTDs every time I hit a mine which was annoying but could be worked around. __________________ All my mods are available at MediaFire: SH3 Mods Other modders SH3 mods SH4 Mods ...you can't please all of the people all of the time...

05-02-10, 06:28 PM	#38
Jimbuna Chief of the Boat Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: 250 metres below the surface Posts: 190,525 Downloads: 63 Uploads: 13	I'll have a look in the morning but suspect your looking at nothing more than a waypoint. __________________ Wise men speak because they have something to say; Fools because they have to say something. Oh my God, not again!!

05-03-10, 03:24 AM	#40
Wreford-Brown Sea Lord Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: In sight of Stonehenge Posts: 1,750 Downloads: 51 Uploads: 26	That should be a waypoint for a random ship from the _RND file called Danish Shipping. One random generic merchant. Look in your data\Roster\Denmark\Sea folder and see if there are any ships in the roster that don't appear in data\Sea. SH3 might be picking up a ship from the roster whose model either doesn't exist or is broken. __________________ All my mods are available at MediaFire: SH3 Mods Other modders SH3 mods SH4 Mods ...you can't please all of the people all of the time...

05-03-10, 10:17 AM	#42
bigboywooly Rear Admiral Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Swindon, England Posts: 10,151 Downloads: 35 Uploads: 0	Danish roster looks fine One thing you can try - now I know you said you enabled the Blank campaign files Take the Campaign_RND out of those blank files so only enabling the SCR Give that a try If ok Reverse so you only load the RND ingame and then try Will narrow down to one file or the other Does your blank set have a blank LND in also ? If does then you will need have 3 tries lol __________________ My mediafire page http://www.mediafire.com/?11eoq19bq9r41

05-01-10, 10:57 PM	#31
schlechter pfennig Commander Join Date: Mar 2010 Posts: 462 Downloads: 53 Uploads: 7	I had a problem about a year and a half ago that, in the exact same place after leaving Trondheim I'd CTD. Didn't matter what I did, or which mod I had activated. If I hit that place within a certain day/date/time . . . kaboom! You might also want to try a product called 'GameBooster'. It was recommended to me. It shuts down all uneccessary services to free up RAM for when you play a PC game. It also allows you to specifically choose and select a game to have all its game files defragmented. I wish you luck. CTD's like you're experiencing make you want to scream.

05-01-10, 11:05 PM	#32
Madox58 Stowaway Posts: n/a Downloads: Uploads:	Once you un-install and do all the other steps, be sure to do a defrag then install. Windows has a nasty habit of just re-nameing deleted files instead of doing a new install of them. Defraging will wipe those old files.

05-02-10, 03:58 PM	#36
frau kaleun Rear Admiral Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Skyri--oh who are we kidding, I'm probably at Lowe's. Again. Posts: 12,706 Downloads: 168 Uploads: 0	Okay - I have reinstalled everything and done some more testing. Started 4 patrols in a brand new spankin' clean install of GWX3, all in Aug/Sept/Oct 1939, all out of Willy with 2 Flotilla. No modding or any changes whatsoever made to the install (other than switching to German voices). Got the same lag in the SE corner of AN34 on all four patrols. Exited the game and enabled the blank campaign files via JSGME and ran a fifth patrol starting in late Oct 1939, went through the same area in 128 TC as on the four previous attempts, and the same lag wasn't there - or if there was one it was too brief for me to see it as the seconds clicked by. I really would like to figure out what causes the issue in that particular location, because after running two patrols with all my chosen mods enabled and having no problems with the game freezing/crashing, I'm still leaning toward the idea that it wasn't a mod overload but just the fact that I happened to pass through that area on the patrol that DID freeze up. Obviously I could just avoid that area on all patrols, but if the same issue affects other locations, I can't avoid all of them because I don't know where they are.

05-02-10, 06:19 PM	#37
frau kaleun Rear Admiral Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Skyri--oh who are we kidding, I'm probably at Lowe's. Again. Posts: 12,706 Downloads: 168 Uploads: 0	I opened both the RND and SCR campaign files in Mission Editor and tried to see if I could pinpoint anything going on in the spot where the AN34 lag is happening. Nothing in the SCR file but here's a screenshot from that sector in the RND file: The arrow points to a spot which is obviously something and it's right where all my freezes and lags are happening. I ran the simulation and there is nothing moving along that line in that area until after 3 Sept 1939 after which something does start moving along there every 2-3 days. With all my careers, I have only passed out through that area after the war starts on the third patrol. The first patrol always starts on 1 Aug, the second in late August sometime, and then I come home and only on the third patrol would I be passing through there after whatever it is also starts moving along that line. I think this is the reason why I can get through two patrols with no problem (other than maybe a slight lag) but then freeze up and crash on the third one. Problem is, I have no idea what it is that's passing through there, other than a green dot with a "?" in it. And I don't know how to find out, or what to do about it causing the kind of problem I'm having. So, uh, help?

05-02-10, 06:44 PM	#39
frau kaleun Rear Admiral Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Skyri--oh who are we kidding, I'm probably at Lowe's. Again. Posts: 12,706 Downloads: 168 Uploads: 0	Well I figured that's what the dot is, but it doesn't seem to be causing any real problems until there's actually traffic going through it after the war starts. Does the little "?" icon that I see passing through there after Sept 3 in the simulation refer to some specific vessel or event, or does the fact that it's from the "random" file mean it could be anything? I don't mind doing the legwork to find out what it is if it is something specific, I just have no idea where or how to look for that information.

05-03-10, 11:38 AM	#44
frau kaleun Rear Admiral Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Skyri--oh who are we kidding, I'm probably at Lowe's. Again. Posts: 12,706 Downloads: 168 Uploads: 0	@bbw: Yeah, I thought about that after I shut everything down last night - that it would be a good idea to try things again with just one of the blank files enabled, and then just the other one, to be sure only one of them was an issue. There are only _RND and _SCR files in the blank campaign mod I used. @wb: So basically it could just be a matter of the game trying to generate a ship on that route, and the files it needs to do so are either missing or corrupted. That makes sense.