Microsoft Zoo Tycoon Readme File
October 2001
© Microsoft Corporation, 2001. All rights reserved.
Welcome to Microsoft Zoo Tycoon!
This file contains information to help you troubleshoot issues with Zoo Tycoon. You can find more information about Zoo Tycoon on the Zoo Tycoon http://www.microsoft.com/games/zootycoon/. You can find information on Microsoft Product Support Services in the printed or online manual.
Note: If Zoo Tycoon came installed on your computer as an OEM version, contact the manufacturer of the computer or other hardware it was bundled with for product support. Refer to the documentation that came with your computer or hardware for the product support telephone number.
CONTENTS
A. System Requirements
B. Installation
Installing Zoo Tycoon
Installing DirectX 8.0a
Viewing the Online Print Piece
SafeDisc Issues
Installation Issue
C. Getting Help
D. Gameplay Issues
E. Configuration Issues
F. 3D Card Issues
G. 3D Card Drivers and Manufacturers
Zoo Tycoon requires a personal computer with the following minimum requirements.
· Multimedia personal computer with a Pentium 233 or higher processor.
· Microsoft Windows 95, Windows 95 OSR2, Windows 98, Windows 98 Second Edition, Windows Me, Windows 2000, or Windows XP.
· 32 Megabytes (MB) of RAM recommended (128 MB recommended for Windows XP).
· 250 MB of available hard disk space for a minimum installation (requires CD in the CD-ROM drive to play the game); 350 MB for a full installation.
· 150 MB of available hard disk space for a cache file.
· 4× CD-ROM drive.
· Super VGA video display with 4 MB of VRAM.
· Keyboard and Microsoft Mouse or compatible pointing device.
· Sound card and speakers or headphones (recommended for hearing audio).
This section describes how to manually install the software components necessary to play Zoo Tycoon in the event that they were not installed automatically.
NOTE: We recommend you uninstall earlier Beta, Trial, and OEM versions of the game before you install the Retail version.
To uninstall earlier versions of Zoo Tycoon
· On the Windows taskbar, click Start, point to Programs, Microsoft Games, and Zoo Tycoon, and then click Uninstall Zoo Tycoon.
-or-
· In the Zoo Tycoon root directory, double-click Uninstal.exe.
If your computer does not automatically install Zoo Tycoon after the CD is inserted into the CD-ROM drive, perform the following procedure.
To install Zoo Tycoon manually
1. On the Windows taskbar, click Start, and then click Run.
2. Type x:\setup, where x is the letter of your CD-ROM drive, and then click OK.
For example, if your CD-ROM drive letter is D, type d:\setup
3. Click Install, and then follow the instructions that appear on the screen.
If for some reason DirectX 8.0a was not installed with the game, use the following procedure to install it manually.
To install DirectX 8.0a manually
1. Insert the Zoo Tycoon CD in the CD-ROM drive.
2. In Windows Explorer, double-click the CD-ROM drive and then the DirectX folder.
3. Double-click Dxsetup.exe, and then follow the instructions that appear on the screen.
You must restart your computer when installation is complete.
If you experience video or sound problems using DirectX, always check with your video or sound card manufacturer for the latest DirectX-compatible drivers, or go to http://support.microsoft.com/support/directx/ for the latest troubleshooting information.
Adobe Acrobat Reader allows you to view and print the online version of the Zoo Tycoon manual, located in the Manuals folder as a .pdf file.
To install Adobe Acrobat Reader 5.0
2. In Windows Explorer, double-click the CD-ROM drive and then the Goodies folder.
3. Double-click Ar500enu.exe, and then follow the instructions that appear on the screen.
Copyright © 2001 Adobe Systems Incorporated. All rights reserved.
Adobe, Acrobat, Acrobat Reader, and After Effects are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Adobe Systems Incorporated in the United States and/or other countries.
The Zoo Tycoon copy-protection software, SafeDisc, requires that the game must be installed from the CD; you cannot copy files from the CD to the computer and then install from the computer's hard drive.
SafeDisc with Software
SafeDisc is incompatible with some software, which includes the following.
McAfee (Network Associates) Nuts & Bolts: Nuts & Bolts causes the game to fail if the Bomb Shelter utility is in a certain configuration. The following steps allow SafeDisc-protected products to be used:
1. Maximize Bomb Shelter.
2. In the Bomb Shelter dialog box, click Properties.
3. In the Error Protection group, click Advanced.
4. In the Advanced Properties tab, deselect the Write Protect VMM check box.
5. Click Apply or OK, and then click OK on all subsequent screens.
Minimum processor error message may appear: During installation on some computers that meet at least the minimum system requirements, the following error message may appear anyway: "Zoo Tycoon requires a Pentium 233 or higher processor. Setup has not detected the required minimum processor but will continue with installation." If your computer does meet the minimum system requirements, you will still be able to play the game as normal.
You can get help for Zoo Tycoon in the following ways:
· For an overview of the game as well as information about installing, getting started, and playing the game, see the printed manual.
· For help with specific screen elements in the game, hold your mouse pointer over the area you want help with. Information appears on the screen.
· For general tips and notes about the game, press the F1 key.
· You can also get help from Zookeeper Recommendations. Click an animal, then click the image of the zookeeper in the panel that appears. This will give you a list of anything the selected animal might want to become happier.
· When you choose an animal to adopt from the Adopt Animals tab, click the animal information button. This will display information on making the animal happy.
The following are the known gameplay issues for Zoo Tycoon.
Improve performance with terrain blending options: A feature of Zoo Tycoon is terrain blending, which causes two adjacent terrain types to blend together to make a more attractive and realistic image of the zoo's landscape. To improve Zoo Tycoon's performance, you may reduce the degree that Zoo Tycoon blends terrain. Click the Game Options tab then the Sound & Video tab to change terrain blending.
Blinking cursor: If, prior to running Zoo Tycoon, the Display Pointer Trails check box is selected in the Mouse Properties dialog box, the cursor will blink when you are playing Zoo Tycoon. To stop the Zoo Tycoon cursor from blinking, deselect the Display Pointer Trails check box.
Building sections disappear: If you have a line of buildings running from the upper left to the lower right of the screen and place a building perpendicularly near that line, and move your view of the game screen so the newest building is near the top of the screen, the building may not display correctly. This is merely a display issue—the building will function normally. To view the building normally, move your view of the game screen so the building is toward the center of the screen.
Deleting saved games with the Uninstall application: If you move Zoo Tycoon saved games to a location other than the Saved Games folder, those saved games will not be deleted when you uninstall Zoo Tycoon. To avoid this, always keep your saved games in the Saved Games folder in the Zoo Tycoon folder prior uninstalling Zoo Tycoon; otherwise, you will have to delete your saved games manually from the folder you saved them in.
Display resolution issue: If your computer's graphics card does not support 1280x1024 resolution but you select that option in Zoo Tycoon, Zoo Tycoon may display correctly in the current game but not correctly on subsequent games. To avoid this, set Zoo Tycoon to use only the resolutions that your computer's graphic card supports. Refer to your graphics card documentation for help in determining the best resolution setting for your computer.
Empty Adopt Animals panel: If you play a game that has gained animals through research and conservation programs, quit that game, and then start a new game, the Adopt Animals panel may be blank. To fix this, scroll to the top of the Adopt Animals panel, and the animals available in the game you have just started will display properly.
New content causes crash: If Zoo Tycoon crashes on startup after you load new content (animals, buildings, etc.) you have likely loaded a corrupt file. To repair your installation of Zoo Tycoon, delete the corrupted file from the Updates folder in the Zoo Tycoon program folder.
Restarting after adding new items: After you add new items to Zoo Tycoon using Zoo Tycoon's built-in feature for adding new items, a message appears stating that Zoo Tycoon will restart automatically. If Zoo Tycoon doesn't restart automatically, restart the game manually.
Running in the background: If you are playing Zoo Tycoon and decide to minimize it so it's running in the taskbar, and then press CTRL+ALT+DEL and select Lock Computer, Zoo Tycoon may crash. To avoid this, quit Zoo Tycoon before locking your computer.
Re-installing Zoo Tycoon: If you need to re-install Zoo Tycoon or need to move it to a new computer and you want to preserve your progress in the game, you will have to save the zoo.ini file from the game you plan to uninstall. This file records the progress you have made in Zoo Tycoon scenarios. After you have re-installed Zoo Tycoon, replace the new zoo.ini file with the one you have saved. If you do not save the zoo.ini file yourself, your progress through the Zoo Tycoon scenarios will be lost.
Uninstalling updates: You may add updates and additional content to the Zoo Tycoon game from Zoo Tycoon's main menu, but Zoo Tycoon will not delete them for you. To uninstall additional Zoo Tycoon items, you must delete them from the Updates folder in the Zoo Tycoon folder.
"Zookeeper having trouble…" messages: This message may appear if you have built a zoo that requires a zookeeper to walk a long distance from exhibit to exhibit. The exhibit gates and paths may be clear, but because the zookeeper may have to walk around many buildings or scenery, it may take a long time for the zookeeper to reach an exhibit, which causes the message to appear. To prevent this, assign zookeepers to specific exhibits to keep them from walking too far from exhibits, pick up and move zookeepers closer to exhibits yourself, or build exhibits so they are close to each other, thereby minimizing the time it takes for zookeepers to walk through the zoo.
Known hardware and operating system configuration issues are listed in this section. For issues with specific 3D cards, see section F, "3D Card Issues."
Performance on Windows 95 may be poor: When running Windows 95, transitions between screens and dialog boxes may be slow, music may be choppy, or other performance problems may be evident. This may be caused by the operating system not being as efficient with memory as later versions. Once a transition has been made or a piece of music has been played, that specific transition or music will be normal for the rest of that session.
Performance on Windows Me may be poor: When running Windows Me, loading times may be slow or other performance problems may be evident. To resolve, try closing all other applications.
Performance may be poor after standby or suspend mode: If you manually or automatically put your computer on standby or suspend mode while playing the game, performance may be poor when you come out of standby or suspend mode and resume the game: music and sounds may not be heard, transitions may be choppy, or the game may hang. To resolve, restart the game.
DCOM on Windows 95: When running Windows 95, if DCOM is not installed on the computer, an error message will appear indicating that DCOM is required; the game will crash when Play is clicked on the Main Screen. Installing DirectX 8.0a from the Zoo Tycoon compact disc will automatically install DCOM (see section B, "Installation"). To install DCOM manually, double-click Dcom95.exe in the root directory where you installed Zoo Tycoon or on the Zoo Tycoon CD. Follow the instructions on the screen, and then reinstall Zoo Tycoon if you already installed it.
Zoo Tycoon only fully supports DirectX 8.0a-compliant video cards. It is good practice to always install the latest certified drivers for all of your hardware.
NVIDIA: Some versions of NVIDIA graphics cards may cause Zoo Tycoon to crash. To fix this, make sure your graphics card is using driver 4.13.1.1241 or later. This driver can be found on NVIDIA's website (http://www.nvidia.com/). If you cannot find the driver on that website, contact your graphics card manufacturer.
Maxi Gamer Couger and Maxi Gamer Xentor 32: You may experience some erratic game play with Zoo Tycoon when using these cards. If you do experience difficulty, please consult with the card's manufacturer to obtain their latest DirectX compatible drivers. This is the only known workaround.
Make sure that you have the latest drivers from the manufacturer of your video card. Many video issues will be resolved if you install your video card's latest drivers. Zoo Tycoon may not properly detect some older video cards because their video drivers are not DirectX 8.0a-compliant. Contact your video card manufacturer for updated drivers, or install the latest reference drivers for your video board. Note that many reference drivers are not supported by the chipset manufacturer. Listed below are some common video card manufacturers' Web sites.
3dfx Interactive—http://www.3dfx.com/
3Dlabs—http://www.3dlabs.com/
AccelGraphics (see 3Dlabs)— http://www.3dlabs.com/
Asus—http://www.asus.com/
ATI—http://support.atitech.ca/
Aztech Labs—http://www.aztechlabs.com/
Canopus—http://www.canopuscorp.com/
Creative Labs—http://www.creativelabs.com/
Elsa Technology—http://www.elsa.de/
Gateway 2000—http://www.gw2k.com/
Guillemot—http://www.guillemot.com/
Hercules (see Guillemot)—http://www.guillemot.com/
I/O Magic—http://www.iomagic.com/
Intergraph (see 3Dlabs)—http://www.3dlabs.com/
Jaton—http://www.jaton.com/
Leadtek—http://www.leadtek.com/
Matrox—http://www.matrox.com/
Number Nine—http://www.nine.com/
NVIDIA—http://www.nvidia.com/
Orchid (see S3)—http://www.s3.com/
S3 Incorporated—http://www.s3.com/
SiS—http://www.sis.com.tw/
Silicon Integrated Systems Corporation (SiS)—http://www.sis.com.tw/
STB (see 3dfx Interactive)—http://www.3dfx.com/
VIA Technologies—http://www.viatech.com/
VideoLogic—http://www.videologic.com/
Angelss191