Direct3D problems in Microsoft Flight Simulator 98

[Sunny129]

i also posted this in the software forum on the possibilty that some might think the problem lies in the software. Mods, please forgive me if the same thread is not allowed in more than one forum. I dont know the exact rules, but i thought it couldnt hurt. anyways, here's my problem:

its been a while since i've played FS98, but about 6 months ago i went from an STB nVidia ZX 8MB video card to a Voodoo5 5500 AGP. upon switching over to the new card, my D3D
support in flight simulator stopped working. after posting a thread for help, and troubleshooting what i could, the D3D rendering started working on its own one day. i did nothing to
change it, it just started working on its own, so i didnt mess with it. since then i have reformatted and had to reinstall the game. now i am having the same problem w/ D3D rendering in
FS98. the option to use D3D for rendering is still selectable in the display menu, but it does not seem to work. the horizon is divided into very distinct color separations, like the
wrungs on a ladder so to speak. it does not blend from top to bottom like D3D does. does anyone know what the problem might be? D3D support is selected in the game, but it isnt
working. keep in mind i've tried all sets of drivers since the release of the Voodoo5, and nothing works. i've reinstalled FS98 2 or 3 times and that doesnt change anything either. it cant
be the video card, drivers, or the game, b/c remember it started working one day on its own the last time i had the problem. please help! i'm a flightsim fanatic and i dont know how
much more i can take of this sh!tty 3d rendering!

 

[Sunny129]

i just noticed something that is worth mentioning...when i go to "options -> preferences -> display -> display options -> hardware acceleration" to change to D3D support, i noticed that this selection is for the "fullscreen device." however, in the past i have never run FS98 in fullscreen mode and changed this option to D3D, and i was able to play FS98 windowed and rendered through D3D (not fullscreen mode). now i did try fullscreen and the game did render in D3D, but i hate fullscreen while playing FS98. i know there is a way to get the game to render D3D without being in fullscreen mode. i have done it in the past just by setting that option to "primary display driver (Direct3D)". now it wont work unless i'm in full screen mode. FS98 Gurus i need your help! what could be keeping me from rendering the game in D3D in windows (not fullscreen) mode?

 

[Sunny129]

^...help me anybody...

 

[Mykex]

Did you try re-installing card to make sure the right card is listed 4 FS98? Being sure to install standard vga device and reboot to clear settings? Also did you go into safe mode and remove all old vid adapters from device manager?

Newer cards tend to be picky in this,this is noticed by FS98 giving the strange report of the device. It should read "VooDoo 5500 AGP" in (says this FS2000) display adapter so odds are one or both of these should fix your problem.

Also did you download and install FS98 update since this is a card that came out after the game it may help but it should at least say "3DFX Voodoo series" even if the game dosent recognize the V5.

 

[Sunny129]

yes i installed the standard VGA device after removing my old card. then i installed the Voodoo5. i have been into safe mode and there are no other display adapter drivers in the device manager other than the 3dfx Voodoo series.

now i dont know about FS2000 b/c i havent used it yet, but you say the display adapter option should include the "Voodoo 5500 AGP" if i am using that card," but FS98 has never specified a certain card in its display adapter menu. there have always been two choices since i've had the game, and i've had it since it came out. the two choices are "primary display adapter" and "primary display adapter (Direct3D)." it says this no matter what video card is being used. theoretically i should be able to select the D3D option and it should render through D3D. now like i said b4, it is working in fullscreen mode, b/c that is what the option is for. but i have made that simple change in the past and it switched right over to D3D rendering in windows without having to make it fullscreen.

as far as updates go, i only knew about the FS98 patch 1 until the other day, where i stumbled across a video card update as well. but it was for the Voodoo2, and there was no other updates for cards made after the Voodoo2. maybe someone knows of an update that i could use or night help? and maybe a URL or link to get there? thanks

EDIT: the above "patch" i mentioned for the Voodoo2 isnt really a patch, its just a set of drivers...

 

[Mykex]

The only other thing I can think of is to go into FS98.cfg file find the display adapter remove what is there and restart? I tryed it with FS2k but the V5 just popped back. Unfortunatly I gave away my 98 disc or I could give you more info.

In FS2k the line read:
[DISPLAY]
Device=Voodoo5 5500 AGP
Mode=1024x768x32

 

[Sunny129]

is there any way you can point me toward that update you mentioned b/c i'm not sure which one you are talking about. there have been all sorts of updates for FS98 since it came out...

 

[Mykex]

3D Enable Faq
All four

Forgive the order I posted first is 3D faq second all four MS patches for FS98
Look under Flight Sim "Classic" for 98

 

[Sunny129]

thanks for the links...i'll post when i find out whether or not these updates help...

 

[Mykex]

The only other things I can think of is reinstaling DirectX/Game/V5 Drivers. DirectX8 didnt bring any earth shattering improvement but it didnt screw anything up either if your not already using it.

 

[Sunny129]

i am currently using directX 7.0a. i would neither like to downgrade to 5.0 nor upgrade to 8.0. at any rate, v7.0 or 7.0a shouldnt be causing problems, but i suppose it wouldnt hurt to reinstall. but i would like to reinstall the version i am using now...

its almost like this isnt a true problem in the sense that the D3D rendering option is for fullscreen anyways, and it does work in fullscreen. my problem is that i never realized that it is a fullscreen option until recently. however, changing the "fullscreen" option to support D3D also worked in windows (without having to go into fullscreen mode), and now its not, but i would like it to since i hate fullscreen mode. i would call microsoft tech support, but its such a pain getting through to them.

 

[Sunny129]

Mykex, thanks for the links...unfortunately none of those files are what i needed. that page on 3D accelerators in FS98 and FS2K were helpful though. i guess i'm just going to play the game for a few more days and see if D3D kicks in on its own like it did the last time i had this problem. maybe i'll even give MS tech support a call...thanks for the help.