GUIDE: Priming Your PC For X2 (Finished)

[4d]

Priming Your PC For X2

I have not yet seen a guide on how to prime your PC for X2, nor optimise it, and if you, like I once did, have no-clue whatsoever to edit the registery for a complete fresh start, heres a guide for it.

Contents

Part 1: Getting your PC ready before Playing
1.0 - Introduction
1.1 - Freeing up space on hard-drive
1.2 - Checking for spyware/adware
1.3 - Defragmentation
1.4 - Dowloading the latest patch(es)

Part 2: Getting your PC ready just before playing
2.0 - Introduction
2.1 - Enabling AGP
2.2 - Deciding on Resolution
2.3 - Setting up controllers (optional)
2.4 - Unrecommended things

Part 3: Complete 100% Super Uninstallation
3.0 - Introduction
3.1 - Uninstalation of X2
3.2 - Deleting Egosoft/Enlight Folder
3.2 - Editing the registery

Part 1: Getting your PC ready before Playing

1.0 - Introduction
Ok, so you want to know how to get you PC ready for X2. We all know it is a incredibly demanding game, software and hardware wise. Whereas you might not be able to do anything to improve the games performance hardware wise, it is still possible to improve the games performance without even touching your PC's case. I say PC because this guide is very much for PC owners, so I am sorry if you have a Mac, I can't help you because I've never owned one. However, i must stress that you follow all the steps in EXACT ORDER!!

1.1 - Freeing up space on hard-drive
You may think this will not help a games perfomance, or change it whatsoever, but it does, just becasue you appear to have just enough space on your hard drive to jus sqeeze in the game, doesn't mean it will operate at its best, let alone run.
You may or may not know that computers require space on the hard drive all the time, just to run your operation system, whatever that may be, you require space. This is the same for games. I reccomend freeing up at least 1 gig extra space over the space required for installation.

1.2 - Checking for spyware/adware
You probably know what both of the above are, so I am not going to explain it. If you know what they are, you will probably also know that they can drasticly effect your PCs performance. If you spend a lot of time of the net, them you can be sure that you have a nice little collection of these extemely anoying programs.
You can remove them manually, but this take horribly long and is quite pointless when you can get a program to do it for you. For this I reccomend Spybot Search and Destroy. It is a free, easy to use program which can be downloaded here: http://www.safer-networking.org/en/index.html

1.3 - Defragmentation
Now that you have done a hefty deleting of files, it is recommend that you do one of these. Also, it is higly unlikely that you have ever done one before, so it is a good idea to do one now. WARNING: This can take incrediby long ie. 4 hours, so it may be better that you leave it over night doing this, hey, just like seta.
To carry out a defagmentation go to Start> Programs> Accesories> System Tools> Disk Defragmentor.

1.4 - Dowloading the latest patch(es)
Unless you have a very good reason too, it is highly reccomended that you update to the latest version, 1.4, and install the updated AI life patch. Here are the update paths:

European Version (Non-German)
Version 1.2 > Version 1.4

European Version (German)
Version 1.2 > Version 1.4

US Version
Version 1.0 > Version 1.2 > Version 1.4

Australian Version
Version 1.0 > Version 1.2 > Version 1.4

Note: Not all American and Australian versions are 1.0, they are the early disks. It is recommended very much that you CHECK YOU CURRENT VERSION before applying a patch. Applying the wrong update will corrupt your instalation and a reinstall will be required.

Part 2: Getting your PC ready just before playing

2.0 - Introduction
Now that we have done the above its time to prime your PC just before you start to play the game. This will greatly improve the performance of the game. The one thing you must do is to disable any virus checkers you have running. It is also reccomended, if you have a limeted ammount of RAM spare (256mg) is too quit any unnecessary programs running in the background. Close them by either using Control + Alt + Delete to open the task manager and close programs from there, or by right clicking on programs that you don’t need in the system tray and selecting quit or close.

2.1 - Enabling AGP
This is not a required step, but is recommended as it will speed up X2 generally. AGP texture acceleration comes (currently) in three different types: *2, *4 and *8. It all depending on what graphics card you have, some may not even have AGP available, whereas new ones will probably run the best *8 option. To turn on AGP go to Start > Run and then type ‘dxdiag’. This will open the Direct X Diagnostic window. You will see a bar at the bottom of the window begin to fill: this is just DX collecting your system information. When DXDiag has finished, browse to the system information and then click ‘enable’ next to AGP. Now close DXDiag and notice the difference to the performance.

2.2 - Deciding on Resolution
Now, this is a much more important part than you may think. X2 is a very demanding game and will only run on high resolution well. For a very low spec PC a resolution of 640*480*16 is recommended. For a low spec PC 640*480*32. For a medium spec PC 720*520*32. For a high spec PC 1024*820*32. If you understand resolutions, then you will be able to pick the optimum one for your specific PC. Here are what the parts mean:

[640]*480*32 = That 640 means the number of pixels across the width of the screen.

640*[480]*32 = That 480 means the number of pixels across the height of the screen.

640*480*[32] = That 32 represents the colors displayed. 32 is the highest and best option whereas 16 is the lowest and worst. 16 = Low Color/24 = High Color/32 = True Color.

Choosing a resolution for X2 is just like choosing a resolution in windows, its all exactly the same. The higher you go, the more demanding X2 will become and you will need a very good PC to run in a high resolution.

2.3 - Setting up controllers (optional)
Now, X2 does work with controllers and joysticks, they just need to be set up to your liking. Start X2 by Start > Programs > Egosoft/Enlight > X2 The Threat > Run X2 The Threat and wait for the grey startup screen to display. Among the other options, there is a ‘controller setup’ button, click it. From this menu you will be able to adjust the sensitivity of the controller, select a controller, etc. The higher you but the sensitivity, the more the game will react to your controller. You can also change mouse settings from this menu. If you don’t like the fact that in X2 up is down and down is up (on the controller) you can invert mouse control.

2.4 - Unrecommended things
Please, please DO NOT ACTIVATE THE SCRIPT EDITOR until you have decided you really, really want it and what sort of player you are. I have written a little questionaire to help you decided what sort of gamer you are, and whether you want the editor or not. Please note: the only way to fully remove any trace of the script editor once you have activated it is a complete 100% uninstall (covered later in the guide).

First, Script Editor Pros
Use unsigned scripts
Make your own scripts
Generaly change the universe in whatever way you see fit

Second, Script Editor Cons
THE HORRIBLE, HORIBLE MODIFIED WATEMARK AT THE TOP LEFT (Egosoft please take note)
The word 'modified' in multiple places in the menus
Once a save has the script editor activated in will never be 'clean'

The 'What Sort Of Gamer Are You' Questionaire

Question 1:
Do you consider using a script to remove khaak...
a) ok [-1 point]
b) acceptable [+0 points]
c) cheating [+1 point]

Question 2:
Do you consider using an unsigned script...
a) ok [-1 point]
b) acceptable [+0 points]
c) cheating [+1 point]

Question 3:
Do you consider the 'modified' watermark...
a) ok [-1 point]
b) hardly noticable [+0 points]
c) disgusting [+1 point]

Question 4:
Do you thing the word 'modified' in your pilots log, etc...
a) ok [-1 point]
b) hardly noticable [+0 points]
c) disgusting [+1 point]

Question 5:
Do you think you would write your own scripts?
a) yes [-1 point]
b) maybe [+0 point]
c) no [+1 point]

Question 6:
Do you use signed scripts?
a) yes [-1 point]
b) maybe [+0 point]
c) no [+1 point]

Question 7:
Do you aprove of game scripting/editing?
a) yes [-1 point]
b) maybe [+0 point]
c) no [+1 point]

If you had:
Less than 1 point: You will probably not use the editor and hate the modified watermark. It is unrecommended that you activate the script editor.

No points: You probably will use the editor eventually and won't notice the 'modified' watermark. Whether you use the script editor is your choice.

More than 1 point: It is very likely that you will use the script editor and will not mind 'modified' around the place. You can activate the editor if you wish.

Part 3: Complete 100% Super Uninstallation

3.0 - Introduction
If you do something horrible to your game ie. patched your game with the wrong patch, or activated the script editor and hating the 'modified' watermark, which might as well say 'CHEATER' in large letters, it has the same effect on some people. I went for ages not knowing how to completely remove X2 so I could reinstall with a fresh game, because of a lack of guide for that. But, now here is a guide, telling you how to remove the game 100%. Please note: do no go messing around in the registery; you mess the registery up, you mess you PC up. Always, always BACKUP THE REGISTERY BEFORE EDITING . AND DO NOT RESTART THE COMPUTER WHILE DOING THE ABOVE.

3.1 - Uninstalation of X2
Now, this is the easy part. If you don't know how to uninstal something then you really have no hope whatsoever using a computer and have no right to be near one, but I'll go through it just in case.
Start > Programs > Egosoft/Enlight > X2 The Threat > Uninstall
If you are incredibly unlucky and your PC has done something incredibly stupid and tells you 'This command is only valid for products that are installed' even though it is install, just proceed to the next step. When I fist saw this happen I was like WTF????!!?!?!?!

3.2 - Deleting Egosoft/Enlight Folder
This is also necissary after uninstalation, as you do not wish to leave any trace of the game for the PC to pick up on and keep whatever reason you are uninstalling for. Just browse to your Egosoft/Enlight folder and hit delete. This is probably something like: C:\Program Files\Egosoft. Remember to empyty the recyle bin before continuing.

3.2 - Editing the registery
Now, we come to the final part of the guide, and defintely the most dangerous and difficult. I say this for good reason as the registery is what makes you PC go. You mess up the registery, you mess up your PC. Now, you could use the standard windows registery editor called 'regedit', which is unreccomended, but can either be got by typing 'regedit' into Start > Run or by browsing to the Windows folder and double-clicking on 'regedit.exe'. If you wish to do the deleting this way, look in 'HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE'. However, there are other entries that I failed to find, so it is reccomended that you 'jv 16 Power Tools' to do it for you. Get in at www.macecraft.com. Thanks very much to Cursed Ghost, who brought this wonderful program to my attention.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
End of Guide
If you have any feedback and/or questions please post them.

[conlan]

HA!

Now this I will be reading with GREAT interest.

I am running on a P3 650 MHz, win XP and 384 MB RAM, a GeForce 2 MX 32 MB graphics card.

I was going to upgrade my PC a short while ago, but then some unexpected paving around the house ambushed my PC upgrade funds.

It's probably a good thing anyway, now is not a good time to be getting a PC with all this new PCI express stuff comming out.

I think I will hold out for the Nforce 4 mobo to become reasonable money wise and make the jump in Feb/March.

If my PC war chest has sufficiently recovered, that is..

Conlan

[Al]

One thing that I've just found out is that cheap power supplies can cause all sorts of problems. I've just swapped my new cheap high power one for an old lower power but decent quality one and all my problems have disappeared.

Al

[darkmaster]

Mmm.. ok, this isn't for hardware support, but I add in a quick question, I'm sure that some hardware guru will answer me in no time. My MB have the AGP4x slot And I have a GeForce 4.
Since nvidia Cards are backward compatible, I'm thinking to upgrade the Videocard with an AGP8X video card that will run in 4X mode (something like an FX 5700)
Will I get some benefit or is it a useless upgrade?

[softweir]

You will get benefit. While the 4x AGP may be a bottleneck, it's not that much of a slowdown compared to CPU speed or GPU speed. How MUCH benefit you get depends on your CPU. In X2 the CPU is very heavily used and a low-power CPU can slow things down a lot regardless of GPU power.

[Maximum476]

Ok you haven't got a 8x slot so that will have no effect. As for the card upgrade it does kinda depend on which gforce4 you have got. The 5700 is similar to the 4600 IIRC so there may not be a huge improvement. Check on tomshardware for the latest vga chart, it gives benchmarks for several games on there and you should be able rough estimate of the speed difference. Just do a google search and you should find the website. Also if you tell us what cpu/ram etc you have we can probably tell if that is upto scratch or not.

And just for the record in case you dont know this, a little info on the gf4 range. Firstly we have the 4200, 4400, and 4600, as you would expect these go in order of speed and fairly obvious. Then the 8x versions were brought out of these, which are 4200 8x, 4800SE, and 4800 respectively. Some ppl get confused as SE usually stands for special edition, were as here it stands for slow edition. In the later gforces they use a similar naming convention, using LE which is light edition.

[darkmaster]

Right, I bought the videocard Looong ago, so I'm checking...
My dxdiag reports the video to be a Geforce 4 MX 440.
My system (this one I know, no need to check. ) is:

Processor: Intel P4 2Ghz
Ram: 512 MB ddr
MB: Asus P4PE - Video slot (as I said): AGP 4X
OS: Windows XP Home edition, SP2.

Thanks, my friends.

[fchopin]

You should also say what system you are using, like Windows XP etc,.

There may be different variations on what you posted depending on the system.

[darkmaster]

Oh, Ok, I'm editing the Previuos post...

[Maximum476]

Damn I forgot about the MX versions, I only really consider the Ti versions. In that case then yes I think it will give you a big graphics boost, mx cards are fairly weak. As for cpu speed, it seems to be ok, 2 gig is about borderline now and anything below is gonna get old fast, for gamers like to keep their comps upto date that is, so maybe worry about it later. Do you know what speed ram you've got?

[fchopin]

Oh, Ok, I'm editing the Previuos post...

Sorry darkmaster I was posting for 4d.

[darkmaster]

I think It's 333, but don't remember well, My system is now 2 years old, and With x2, I began to notice that.
As for motherboard, I think I will change it, but, if I can make an upgrade now without changing it (and then changing Processor and ram), it would be a good thing, that hardware cost a bit too much...

[darkmaster]

Sorry darkmaster I was posting for 4d.

I was a little egocentric.

[4d]

You should also say what system you are using, like Windows XP etc,.

There may be different variations on what you posted depending on the system.

This guide is checked and works with 95, XP, ME and as 98 is so like ME, that works as well.

[Xenon_Slayer]

[Old post of mine]
For proformance boosts I suggest turning down all background applications and then going into task manager. In the "Prossesses" list turn off as many as you can. When you get to one called "Explorer.exe" all your Icons will dissapear, its worth it though. Open up X2 through the "Run" command at the top of the task manager. X2 should run rearly smoth now.
To get Icons back run "Explorer.exe" in the run menu.
[Old post of mine]

[The_Abyss]

You should also say what system you are using, like Windows XP etc,.

There may be different variations on what you posted depending on the system.

This guide is checked and works with 95, XP, ME and as 98 is so like ME, that works as well.

That is incorrect. It will not run with Win 95 or Win 98 First Edition.

[4d]

You should also say what system you are using, like Windows XP etc,.

There may be different variations on what you posted depending on the system.

This guide is checked and works with 95, XP, ME and as 98 is so like ME, that works as well.

That is incorrect. It will not run with Win 95 or Win 98 First Edition.

No, not the game, the guide. The instructions work for all Windows that I stated, eg. DXDiag is exactly the same over all windows. I'm not talking about how to get the game to work, I'm talking how to prime the PC for playing. Also, when I finish the guide can you reference it in the 'Ultimate Guide For Everything', thanks.

[4d]

The guide is now finished, please post any feedback and/or question you might have.

[4d]

I forgot to mention, can a mod please reference the guide in 'the ultimate guide for everything'.

[dbgray]

My current system is xp2000, 512 mb 333 ddr ram, 128mb msi Rad9800 pro. My Motherboard will take 400mhz fsb athlons and ram, will i see a big improvement if I get an xp3200 and 512 mb (1 gig if i can afford it) ddr 400?