Difference between revisions of "Running Oolite-Windows"

Latest revision as of 19:56, 19 August 2024

Overview

The Windows port of Oolite is built from the same source as the Mac OS X and Linux versions, and has all the features of those versions.

All OXPs should be compatible with the Windows port.

Building

Note that this page is referenced as 'Building' from https://github.com/OoliteProject/oolite however this page does not contain any build information.

Check out https://wiki.alioth.net/index.php/Developing_Oolite#On_Windows_2 instead.

Getting and installing the compiled game

The latest recommended release, 1.90 can be downloaded from Oolite.space.

To install, run the installer that you have just downloaded.

The game has been tested on Windows Vista SP2, 7, 8, 8.1 and 10. This game uses OpenGL, and you are advised to run the latest 3D graphics drivers from your 3D card manufacturer.

It will not run on the DOS-extender versions of Windows such as Windows 95, 98 or ME.

For Windows XP, the last version compatible with the OS is 1.84.

Important note for Vista users!

Summary:

DATA LOSS and OXP MALFUNCTION can appear if you install an early version of Oolite (1.65 - 1.72.x) on Vista. Oolite 1.73 and later releases have corrected this issue by using a different default installation directory, instead of one inside program files, as before.

Do This

When asked by the installer, change the Oolite install directory to a different location, one outside C:\Program Files\, like

C:\Oolite\
C:\Games\Oolite\

etc.

Don't Do This

It is STRONGLY recommended NOT to use the folder C:\Program Files\Oolite\ or any path including the following:

%ProgramFiles%
%ProgramData%
%SystemRoot%

Why?

Vista rearranges some files outside the Oolite folder structure without visible alias/redirects, which completely hides all saved games and causes some OXP add-ons to malfunction. This is because Vista virtualizes files in those locations for legacy processes. You can read more about this problem on this Oolite forum thread. The Microsoft explanation is here: [1].

Recovering Your Commanders Saved Under Vista

If you have already installed Oolite on a Vista machine and wish to move your saved games to a new and safer file location:

Examine location C:\Users\[username]\AppData\Local\VirtualStore\Program Files\Oolite\oolite.app\oolite-saves\

or

Use Windows Explorer to search for the string " *.oolite-save " with the Windows search option "include system and hidden files" checked (turned on).

For example, the default commander, if saved, might be found in this path: C:\Users\[username]\AppData\Local\VirtualStore\Program Files\Oolite\oolite.app\oolite-saves\Jameson.oolite-save

Running the game

Find the Oolite icon in the Start -> Programs menu and click on it. Alternatively double click the Oolite program icon on the desktop. Note that the following key combination will get you out of 'graphics related trouble':

Shift-Escape: Quit Oolite immediately

If your game seems to have unreasonably low fps performance (check this in-game by hitting SHIFT-F) it is strongly recommended you visit your graphic cards' suppliers website and download and install the latest drivers.

Installing OXPs

You will need to find where the oolite.app folder is placed: versions 1.65 to 1.72.x should default to C:\Program Files\Oolite, later versions default install is C:\Oolite, to avoid clashes with Vista's virtual folders feature(see above). Create an AddOns folder beside the oolite.app folder. Put OXPs in here. NB: most OXPs zip files contain a folder with a README file and the actual OXP directory (somename.oxp) as a sub-folder - in this case, it's best to unzip the OXP somewhere else and then copy the unpacked .oxp folder into AddOns.

Filming your game

You can record video of the game with the Windows Gamebar shortcut keys. <Windows>+<Alt>+R starts the recording, the same combination stops it. The video gets saved in C:\Users\<YourUserName>\Videos\Captures, with a filename like 'Oolite v1.89 - Jul 23 2020 2020-07-29 19-35-26.mp4'.

(another_commander)

Notes for amd64 users

64-bit builds of Oolite for Windows are available and the development environment used defaults to 64-bit executables generation. They are the recommended ones for 64-bit OSes. However, the 32-bit version should run on 64-bit Windows without issues as well.

Building from Source

Developing_Oolite#On_Windows

Links

Deployment to Test Release updater (2015)
Building Oolite Windows from source - The Easier Way (2009 - to date)
a_c's overview of developing Oolite-Windows (2023)

Windows 11: Forcing Auto HDR on any version of Oolite (2023)
Capture game footage on Windows 10 (2015)

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
+[[File:Windows1.0.png|right]]
 ==Overview==
-The Windows port of Oolite is built from the same source as the Linux and OS-X versions, and has all the features of those versions.
+The Windows port of Oolite is built from the same source as the [[Running Oolite-Mac|Mac OS X]] and [[Running Oolite-Linux|Linux]] versions, and has all the features of those versions.
 All OXPs should be compatible with the Windows port.
-==Getting and installing the game==
+==Building==
-The game may be downloaded from [http://oolite-pc.berlios.de the BerliOS project page] for Oolite-PC. The installer is also mirrored at ftp://ftp.alioth.net/oolite
-To install, run the executable that you have just downloaded. You will get the familiar Windows installer.
+Note that this page is referenced as 'Building' from https://github.com/OoliteProject/oolite however this page does not contain any build information.
-A regular build of changes from the SVN source is being carried out on a regular basis. The complete installer above must be installed before any of the updates will work. The update filename changes with each build, so get the latest update file by following the link here: [http://aegidian.org/bb/viewtopic.php?t=1529].
+Check out https://wiki.alioth.net/index.php/Developing_Oolite#On_Windows_2 instead.
-The game has been tested on Windows XP and Windows 2000. '''It will not run on the DOS-extender versions of Windows''' such as Windows 95, 98 or ME. It is expected it will run with Vista, so long as drivers are available for the hardware you have. You are advised to run the latest 3D graphics drivers from your 3D card manufacturer.
+==Getting and installing the compiled game==
+The latest recommended release, 1.90 can be downloaded from [https://www.oolite.space/download/ Oolite.space].
+To install, run the installer that you have just downloaded.
-===Errata===
+The game has been tested on Windows Vista SP2, 7, 8, 8.1 and 10. This game uses OpenGL, and you are advised to run the latest 3D graphics drivers from your 3D card manufacturer.
-There was a problem in the 1.62 build that caused memory exhaustion. [http://www.aegidian.org/bb/viewtopic.php?t=1416 Please read this page] to find out how to manually patch the Windows installation. Users of later builds (for example, the current -344 build on the BerliOS site) will not suffer from this issue.
+'''It will not run on the DOS-extender versions of Windows''' such as Windows 95, 98 or ME.
+'''For Windows XP, the last version compatible with the OS is 1.84.'''
+===Important note for Vista users!===
+<h5>Summary:</h5>
+DATA LOSS and OXP MALFUNCTION can appear if you install an early version of Oolite (1.65 - 1.72.x) on Vista. '''Oolite 1.73 and later releases have corrected this issue''' by using a different default installation directory, instead of one inside program files, as before.
+<h5>Do This</h5>
+When asked by the installer, change the Oolite install directory to a different location, one outside C:\Program Files\, like
+* C:\Oolite\
+* C:\Games\Oolite\
+etc.
+<h5>Don't Do This</h5>
+It is STRONGLY recommended NOT to use the folder C:\Program Files\Oolite\ or any path including the following:
+* %ProgramFiles%
+* %ProgramData%
+* %SystemRoot%
+<h5>Why?</h5>
+Vista rearranges some files outside the Oolite folder structure without visible alias/redirects, which completely hides all saved games and causes some OXP add-ons to malfunction. This is because Vista virtualizes files in those locations for legacy processes. You can read more about this problem on [https://bb.oolite.space/viewtopic.php?t=5610 this Oolite forum thread]. The Microsoft explanation is here: [http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/magazine/2007.06.uac.aspx].
+<h5>Recovering Your Commanders Saved Under Vista</h5>
+If you have already installed Oolite on a Vista machine and wish to move your saved games to a new and safer file location:
+* Examine location C:\Users\[username]\AppData\Local\VirtualStore\Program Files\Oolite\oolite.app\oolite-saves\
+or
+* Use Windows Explorer to search for the string " *.oolite-save " with the Windows search option "''include system and hidden files''" checked (turned on).
+For example, the default commander, if saved, might be found in this path:
+C:\Users\[username]\AppData\Local\VirtualStore\Program Files\Oolite\oolite.app\oolite-saves\Jameson.oolite-save
 ==Running the game==
@@ Line 21: / Line 56: @@
 Shift-Escape: Quit Oolite immediately
+If your game seems to have unreasonably low fps performance (check this in-game by hitting SHIFT-F) it is strongly recommended you visit your graphic cards' suppliers website and download and install the latest drivers.
 ===Installing OXPs===
-You will need to find where the oolite.app folder is placed: it should be in C:\Program Files\Oolite. Create an AddOns folder beside the oolite.app folder. Put OXPs in here. Note that some OXPs when unzipped contain a folder with a README file and then the OXP - in this case, it's best to unzip the OXP somewhere other than AddOns and copy the OXP folder once unpacked into AddOns.
+You will need to find where the oolite.app folder is placed: versions 1.65 to 1.72.x should default to C:\Program Files\Oolite, later versions default install is C:\Oolite, to avoid clashes with Vista's virtual folders feature(see above). Create an AddOns folder beside the oolite.app folder. Put OXPs in here. '''NB:''' most OXPs zip files contain a folder with a README file and the actual OXP directory (somename.oxp) as a sub-folder - in this case, it's best to unzip the OXP somewhere else and then copy the unpacked .oxp folder into AddOns.
+===Filming your game===
+{{QuoteText|Text=You can record video of the game with the Windows Gamebar shortcut keys. <Windows>+<Alt>+R starts the recording, the same combination stops it. The video gets saved in C:\Users\<YourUserName>\Videos\Captures, with a filename like 'Oolite v1.89 - Jul 23 2020 2020-07-29 19-35-26.mp4'.|Source=([https://bb.oolite.space/viewtopic.php?p=275049#p275049 another_commander])}}
 ===Notes for amd64 users===
-No builds for 64-bit versions of Windows have yet been made, however, given the proper availability of graphics and sound drivers, the 32-bit version should run on 64-bit Windows. 32 bit Windows running on amd64 hardware should not have an issue.
+-bit builds of Oolite for Windows are available and the development environment used defaults to 64-bit executables generation. They are the recommended ones for 64-bit OSes. However, the 32-bit version should run on 64-bit Windows without issues as well.
-==Building Oolite from source==
-# Download and install the necessary software
-## Download and install svn for Windows: [http://subversion.tigris.org/project_packages.html#binary-packages]. Accept all defaults given by the installer.
-## Download and install GNUstep for windows: [ftp://ftp.gnustep.org/pub/gnustep/binaries/windows/base-1.11.1-gui-0.10.1/GNUstep-base-1.11.1-gui-0.10.1-3.exe]. Accept all defaults given by the installer.
-## Download the SDL files required to build Oolite: [http://prdownload.berlios.de/oolite-pc/Local.zip]
-## Unzip this file to <code>c:\GNUstep\Local</code>
-# Get the source and build it (note, the source comes from the oolite-linux project)
-## Start the GNUstep command line (<i>Start -> Programs -> GNUstep Development -> MSYS for GNUstep</i>) and issue the following commands:
-## <code>cd $GNUSTEP_LOCAL_ROOT</code>
-## <code>export PATH=$PATH:$GNUSTEP_LOCAL_ROOT/bin</code>
-## <code>mkdir oolite</code>
-## <code>cd oolite</code>
-## <code>svn checkout svn://svn.berlios.de/oolite-linux/trunk</code>
-## <code>cd trunk</code>
-## <code>make</code>
-# To run the game in the build environment:
-## Before running the first time: <code>cp $GNUSTEP_LOCAL_ROOT/bin/*.dll oolite.app</code>
-## <code>openapp oolite.app</code>
-Assuming you have installed one of Nic's releases as detailed above, you can easily keep updating the installation from the latest source. In the <code>$GNUSTEP_LOCAL_ROOT/oolite/trunk</code> directory, issue the commands:
-# <code>export PATH=$PATH:$GNUSTEP_LOCAL_ROOT/bin</code>
-# <code>svn up</code>
-# <code>rm -rf oolite.app/Resources; make</code>
-You only need to issue the export PATH command when you first start the command line. The rm -rf command before make is required because GNUstep for Windows cannot parse the XML plist file format, and the build fails when it tries to read one of these generated each time the build is performed. This failure is not important, and the process still works, but it is annoying.
-Then use the following script to copy the new files over the existing installation:
-<pre>
+==Building from Source==
-OA="/c/Program Files/Oolite/oolite.app"
+[[Developing_Oolite#On_Windows]]
-cd $GNUSTEP_LOCAL_ROOT/oolite/trunk
-if [ oolite.app/oolite.exe -nt "$OA/oolite.exe" ]; then
-    echo "Updating oolite.exe"
-    cp oolite.app/oolite.exe "$OA/oolite.exe"
-fi
-for a in AIs Config Images Models Music Sounds Textures; do
+==Links==
-    for b in Resources/$a/*; do
+*[https://bb.oolite.space/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=17502 Deployment to Test Release updater] (2015)
-        c=`basename $b`
+*[https://bb.oolite.space/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=5943 Building Oolite Windows from source - The Easier Way] (2009 - to date)
-        if [ $b -nt "$OA/Contents/Resources/$a/$c" ]; then
+*[https://bb.oolite.space/viewtopic.php?p=292289#p292289 a_c's overview of developing Oolite-Windows] (2023)
-            echo "Updating with $b"
-            cp $b "$OA/Contents/Resources/$a/$c"
-        fi
-    done
-done
-</pre>
-Also see the Oolite-PC forum: [http://www.aegidian.org/bb/viewforum.php?f=8]
-[[Category:Oolite]]
+*[https://bb.oolite.space/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=21546 Windows 11: Forcing Auto HDR on any version of Oolite] (2023)
+*[https://bb.oolite.space/viewtopic.php?t=17886 Capture game footage on Windows 10] (2015)
+[[Category:Oolite]] [[Category:Help pages]]
+[[Category:Factual]]