Resolved - steam and DoD issue all in one

[Bryant 1st MRB]

Name: andrew bryant

Rank: PFC

Type of issue: (Software, Hardware, Steam, Not sure) all of the above its a duzy

Brief Description of Issue: 1st issue. ever since i got my GTX 560 ti graphics card. when i hit start or alt tab to go to home page it wont let me in, it will just sit on a black screen. i can do it on anyother game, just not DoD's

Also alot of time on map changes itll get to sending client info and just stick there, the program will stop responding, but whem you close it it remaines active so i must actually restart my machine to be able to play again

and yes i have un and re installed DoDs...

my specs if it really matters is a i-5 2500k (4.7 Ghz)

GTX 560 ti

ssome asus board with numbers somwhere along the line of p8-z68 pro

and thanks

***Medical Supply Staff ONLY Below this line***

Current Status: Resolved

Main Technician: N. Holland

Supporting Technician:

Edited June 1, 2012 by Holland 1st MRB

[Holland 1st MRB]

Did you make any changes to the the settings in DOD:S, any new configs, etc.

Double check through the graphics settings for your card. Make sure everything you want is enabled, and that you don't want is disabled. If you are unsure of what an option does, just google it.

As for the sending info part, does it freeze there? On most computers, the source engine will freeze up, and occasionally be flagged as unresponsive while loading, but picks itself back up after about anywhere from 10-60 seconds (this can be longer, depending on the situation).

Is just the game frozen, or your entire computer?

If possible, go to the task manager, processes, and click hl2.exe

Give all of the information found in the columns beside hl2.exe

[Bryant 1st MRB]

when it freezes i can close it, but even when you end tthe process in task manager...it wont end. and if i do i a regular shut down itll stay on the "shutting down..." screen for at one point 3 days bfore i just hit the button. its an odd issue.

and for the hitting start my father has the same issue

[Holland 1st MRB]

I myself have had the problem of the game freezing permanently after hitting start. For me, it would only happen when I was on Garry's Mod, while in a server, and even then it was off and on.

Be sure you are operating your task manager out of the "processes" tab, and not the "applications" tab. I am unsure if you have been doing this already.

and if i do i a regular shut down itll stay on the "shutting down..." screen for at one point 3 days bfore i just hit the button. its an odd issue.

That is the kind of information I wish people would include in tickets more often.

From that, I would suggest a number of things to you.

1)As it is a good idea to try the simplest solution first, clean out your computer. Be sure that the airflow is not being obstructed in anyway, blow out any dust.

2)Go through your currently active services. This can be done quickly via the MSConfig tool. To access it, simply go to your start menu, and click run. Type msconfig into the box, and click OK. Go to the "Services" tab, and uncheck anything that is not necessary. If you do not know what something does, google it.

3)Take a look through all of your startup processes. Anything that starts up by default when you log into your computer. When I am checking my startups, I generally make sure that the "Startup" folder is completely empty. Then, go to the msconfig tool I showed you above, and go to the "Startup" tab. Uncheck anything that does not need to be started up by default. As usual, if you do not know what a process is, then google it. Note, that disabling it from the startup tab will not disable the program. It will only stop it from starting up along with you logging in.

4)Go to start, control panel. Click "Uninstall a program". This will bring up a list of all currently installed softwares on your computer. It is a good idea to clean this out once in a while, of anything that you are no longer planning on using, as over time, it tends to get clogged with failed installations, old software, etc.

That should be a decent start on the problem. Please respond, confirming that these steps have been looked into.

As for the windows key, the Source Engine and Microsoft tend to have a slight disagreement over the use of that key. I personally have mine disabled, as I have no real use for it.

The problem, I believe, is with the source engine itself. Just avoid pressing the windows key.

[Bryant 1st MRB]

Thank you. the only reason i use windows is for vent and its annoying haveing to quit to get into vent. and occasionally i hit it by accident, or a program will minimize dods. and ill do a complete uninstall of steam to see if that could be a fix....lol i love how i work in this office yet still use it

[Holland 1st MRB]

It is absolutely acceptable to use the office you work in.

You could alt-tab out of the game, instead of the windows key (In my situation, it behaves differently).

Is the problem resolved, or still ongoing?

[Bryant 1st MRB]

Alt tab keeps me out as well.

On going the start isn't my major issue. The freeze when sending client info is the big issue

[Rather]

Are you using a stock or custom .cfg file? Or any autoexec.cfg files? If you use a custom config or an autoexec then copy/paste them in a quote box for me.

Also please (in a seperate quote box) list your advanced video settings: MSAA level, Anisotropic Filtering Level, DirectX Level, etc...

Edited May 21, 2012 by Rather 1st MRB

[Bryant 1st MRB]

Yeah my game is stock and gimme an hour im not home atm

[Holland 1st MRB]

Any updates on the situation?

Is this still an ongoing problem?

[Bryant 1st MRB]

Yeah.

Its fine tho ill live:D

[Holland 1st MRB]

The purpose of this office is to fix the problems posted, not make people realize what they have is "good enough".

Unfortunately we need a little more information to work off of.

Also please (in a seperate quote box) list your advanced video settings: MSAA level, Anisotropic Filtering Level, DirectX Level, etc...

As well, as seen in Parker's recent ticket, it could be an issue with your graphics card or the associated driver itself. When I get onto my home PC, I will do some research on the issue to see if I can come up with anything related.

Please keep us posted.

[Holland 1st MRB]

The alt-tabbing is, as I thought, really an issue with the source engine itself.

It can be worked around with multiple different solutions, but all will require a little compromise.

Try to avoid alt-tabbing as much as possible, and use the steam overlay where possible. The integrated web browser is a nice tool.

If that really isn't an option, and you know you will be needing to alt-tab (ie, for talking to friends outside of steam, etc), than try the following;

You can also run the game in "fake fullscreen" mode, essentially by right clicking on the game in your steam library, and clicking properties. Click "Set Launch Options...", and then type the following into the box.

-w reswidth -h resheight -windowed -noborder

Replace the "reswidth" with your resolutions width, and "resheight" with the height respectively.

This should not have any major effect on the performance of the game, so long as you have a powerful enough rig to render the game, and whatever else may be running in the background with it all at once.

As for the second issue, through a little research, I have come up with two viable solutions.

The first, and most prevalent one is the "slow query check". What this refers to, is when the server is attempting to connect two people at the exact same time, when only one slot is available. The solution; retry. Not likely to happen often.

The second, and what feels like it will be the most likely problem, is your DirectX setting ingame. Lower it. Many, many people who report this problem with DOD:S specifically, also claim that it is fixed entirely when using anything lower than DX9, whereas the problem occurs at DX9 or higher. Try changing your settings to run the game on DX8.

[Holland 1st MRB]

Have you tried my suggestion?

I am confident that it will fix the problems you are reporting.

[Bryant 1st MRB]

The start menu problem is resolved the sending info isnt but ill live, thanks