Myst 3 Exile Start up error | Forums

[Shikezi8609]

First I am running XP Pro

When I start the game and it goes black to start loading I get the following error,

SER COULD NOT CREATE SOUND DRIVER

And I can't get any further, I've tried running in compatibility mode and not running it in that mode. I'd very much like to play the game, but can't seem to figure out the issue.

Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks

[Heimdall_G]

Welcome to the Forums!

You didn't mention whether you have Exile on CD's or DVD, but it's probably on DVD as part of the 10th Anniversary DVD Edition. Let's go with that.


In general,
-- a. Install Exile to your C: drive only, NOT to an external E-SATA or USB hard drive.
-- b. Start Exile from a fresh boot.
----- 1. Reboot, log into Windows with full Administrator privileges, and close all open applications. (If you're not certain if you have Administrator privileges, open the Control Panel, and select User Accounts. Your User Name should show Administrators under Group.)
----- 2. Disable all anti-virus/spyware/adware/pop-up programs running in the background.
----- 3. If you have only a software firewall (ZoneAlarm, for example), do NOT disable it!
----- 4. Do NOT run any other programs before starting Exile.
-- c. Do NOT boot up with a disc in the drive.
-- d. Disconnect all USB devices other than mouse and keyboard before starting Exile.
-- e. Start Exile using the Desktop icon, NOT a menu item on the disc.
----- 1. If the Exile disc autostarts when you insert it into the drive, cancel back to the Desktop.

Always start Exile by doing steps b through e.


Suggestions:

1. Uninstall Exile and re-install from a clean boot. First, use the Disk Cleanup utility to empty \temp and \temporary folders, Internet caches, and the Recycle Bin.
-- a. Log into Windows with full Administrator privileges and close all open applications.
-- b. Click on Start > All Programs > Accessories > System Tools > Disk Cleanup.
-- c. Select the desired hard disk, then click on OK.
-- d. Click on all of the boxes to uncheck them.
-- e. Click on only the following boxes to check them:
----- 1. Temporary Internet Files
----- 1. Recycle Bin
----- 3. Temporary Files
-- f. Click on OK > Yes to run the cleanup.

Don't check any of the other boxes unless you're certain you know what you're doing and have read Description of the Disk Cleanup Tool in Windows XP. Another (free) option is Piriform's CCleaner.

Also empty your Internet browser caches (temporary Internet files, cookies, etc.) from within the browser itself. The following steps are for Internet Explorer 8, but earlier versions are similar.
-- a. Close all open instances of IE.
-- b. Open a single instance of IE.
-- c. Click on Tools > Internet Options > General tab > Browsing history > Delete.
-- d. Check only the boxes for:
----- 1. Preserve Favorites website data
----- 2. Temporary Internet files
----- 3. Cookies
----- 4. History
-- e. Click on Delete.
-- d. Click on OK to close IE back to the Desktop.

Next, uninstall Exile using Control Panel's Add or Remove Programs.
-- a. Click on Start > Control Panel, then double-click Add or Remove Programs.
----- 1. Wait for the "Currently installed programs" list to populate, which might take a minute or two.
-- b. In the Currently installed programs box, click on the Exile entry.
-- c. Click on Remove (or Change/Remove).
-- d. If prompted to confirm the removal of the program, click Yes.
-- e. Close Control Panel back to the Desktop, and reboot.

Then re-install Exile from a clean boot.
-- a. Log in with full Administrator privileges, and close all open applications.
-- b. Click on Start > Run.
-- c. Type msconfig in the Open box, then click on OK.
-- d. Click on Selective Startup on the General tab.
-- e. Under Selective Startup, clear the check boxes for:
----- 1. Process SYSTEM.INI File
----- 2. Process WIN.INI File
----- 3. Load Startup Items
-- f. On the Services tab, click on the Hide All Microsoft Services check box, then click on Disable All.
-- g. Click on OK, and then click on Restart. Log into Windows with full Administrator privileges, and close all open applications.
-- h. Install Exile. Accept the install defaults.
----- 1. Insert the Exile CD (Disc #1) into the drive, and allow it to spin up to speed. If it autostarts, cancel back to the Desktop.
----- 2. Click on Start > Run.
----- 3. Browse to ck.exe or Setup.exe on the CD.
----- 4. Double-click on the file to put it in the Open: box.
----- 5. Click on OK to start the install process.
----- 6. When the installation is complete, remove the CD from the drive.
-- i. Restore the settings you changed in steps c. through f.
----- 1. Click Start > Run.
----- 2. Type msconfig in the Open box, then click on OK.
----- 3. Click on Normal Startup - load all device drivers and services on the General tab.
----- 4. Click on OK, and then click on Restart to reboot into normal Windows.
-- j. Do the above "in general" steps b through e to start Exile.

2. If the above don't help, you may have a hardware and/or driver problem. Please post a DxDiag report in this topic, so that we can take a look at your system and make recommendations. The report will be long, but post *ALL* of it! (If the Forum software won't let you post all of your report in one piece, post the truncated portion in a second post.)

To post a DxDiag report:
1. Click on Start > Run.
2. Type dxdiag in the box.
3. Click OK.
4. Let the blue bar in the lower left corner of the Dxdiag window finish crawling and disappear.
5. Run all of the tests you can on the Display, Sound and Music tabs. Do not neglect to do this step!
-- a. On the Display tab, click on the Test DirectDraw and Test Direct3D boxes, and follow the resulting instructions.
-- b. On all of the Sound tabs, click on the Test DirectSound box, and follow the resulting instructions.
-- c. On the Music tab, click on Test DirectMusic box, and follow the resulting instructions.
6. Click on the Save All Information but_ton.
7. Close the DxDiag utility.
8. Now you have a DxDiag.txt file on your Desktop, or in the location where you saved it. Copy *ALL* of the contents of this file to the Windows Clipboard.
-- a. Double-click on the file to open it.
-- b. Right-click anywhere in the text, then click on Select All in the resulting menu.
-- c. Right-click on the highlighted text, then click on Copy in the resulting menu.
9. Paste the contents of the file from the Clipboard into a new post in this topic.
-- a. Click on the yellow Reply arrow in the lower right corner of the screen.
-- b. With the mouse cursor at the upper left corner of the Quick Reply to: box, type in any additional details that might help diagnose the problem.
-- c. Position the mouse cursor at the left margin and two lines down (press Enter to add a line) from any additional details, then right-click.
-- d. Click on Paste in the resulting menu.
-- e. Click on Post Now.

If the manufacturer and exact model number of your PC aren't shown under 'System Information' (System Manufacturer and System Model) at the top of the report, also include that information in your post. Or, if you built your system or it was put together locally for you, include the manufacturer and exact model number of your motherboard.

[Shikezi8609]

Thanks so much for the reply and help!

I don't have the collectors, wish I did, but the version with 4 discs. I bought it off Ebay since I was going through the series again and don't own em any longer. Steam only carries the two which is disappointing.

I fixed the issue though thanks to your post. I did everything and it still didn't work and ended up doing a dxdiag. Upon doing that I noticed my sound device wasn't registering. Even though I was getting sound through my headset, it still wasn't registering any sound device. Simply unplugged it and plugged it back in and installed an update and it works wonderfully now. So yeah, if anyone has any driver issues I'd suggest the dxdiag first, to make sure everything is registering lol!

Again, thanks for the help! Wouldn't happen to know where to get the rest of the myst series from a more reliable source would ya? lol

[Heimdall_G]

You're welcome!

If you want reliable, my recommendation is Amazon.

The Myst series, from Amazon:

-- Myst 10th Anniversary DVD Edition - contains updated versions of Myst (Masterpiece edition), Riven, and Myst III: Exile

-- Myst IV: Revelation

-- Myst V: End of Ages

-- Myst URU: Complete Chronicles - contains Uru: Ages Beyond Myst, To D'ni Expansion Pack, and The Path of the Shell