This article is intended assist those who are trying to use DOSBox and its D-Fend front end for Windows to install and run Silent Hunter in a Windows XP environment. It details my experience with the procedure on the specific computer platform described below. I was pleasantly surprised at how easy it was to do. It is not a "turnkey" solution as it will require some tweaking based on the specifications of your computer platform. If you use this procedure, please post your comments and questions on our Silent Hunter Forum, and let us know about any tweaks you made in the game's profile.
The following is quoted from the official DOSBox Web site:
DOSBox is a DOS-emulator that uses the SDL-library which makes DOSBox very easy to port to different platforms. DOSBox has already been ported to many different platforms, such as Windows, BeOS, Linux, MacOS X.
DOSBox also emulates CPU:286/386 realmode/protected mode, Directory File System/XMS/EMS, Tandy/Hercules/CGA/EGA/VGA/VESA graphics, a SoundBlaster/Gravis Ultra Sound card for excellent sound compatibility with older games.
You can "re-live" the good old days with the help of DOSBox, it can run plenty of the old classics that don't run on your new computer!
DOSBox is totally free of charge and OpenSource.
Check our "Downloads" section for the most recent DOSBox version.
At the outset, I want to extend my thanks to the DOSBox project crew for creating this great DOS-emulator. You guys are great! I encourage anyone who uses the software to support this project by making a contribution.
I used DOSBox to install and successfully run Silent Hunter Commander's Edition on a Dell Dimension 4550, configured as follows: 2.4 GHz Pentium 4 processor, 533 MHz FSB, 1 GB RAM, 65 GB 7500 RPM hard disk, Sony 52X DVD ROM, ATI Radeon 9700 Pro AGP video card with 256 MB RAM, Creative Audio PCI sound card, and Windows XP Home Edition SP2.
Before you attempt this, make sure you have the latest hardware drivers installed for your sound card and video card.
The first thing you will need to do is download DOSBox and the D-Fend windows front end here. They each install smoothly in Windows XP. I recommend you install DOSBox first, and then D-Fend. Be sure to configure D-Fend so it points to your DOSBox installation. The program will ask you do to this when you first open it. It should point to this location, unless you installed it differently:
C:\Program Files\DOSBox\
Now let's get down to the basics. We need to break the bonds Windows XP imposes and get Silent Hunter installed on your hard disk. To accomplish this, I will borrow some steps and graphics from Don Wells's excellent article, "Installation and Operation under Windows XP (SP1)". In performing the following steps, I was signed in with a user account designated as a "Computer Administrator."
First, from the Windows XP desktop, right-click the mouse and select "New > Shortcut".
Point the shortcut to the file: "C:\Windows\System32\Command.com".
Name the shortcut "Silent Hunter Dos Install" and click the "Finish" button to create the shortcut so it is on the Windows XP desktop.
Now right-click on the "Silent Hunter Dos Install" shortcut icon to bring up the context menu, and choose "Properties." Displayed will be a nine-tab window, with the "General" tab looking something like the one shown below.
Next choose the "Program" tab and change it so that it is identical to the one shown below.
Next choose the "Memory" tab and change it so that it is identical to the one shown below.
Next choose the "Screen" tab and change it so that it is identical to the one shown below.
Click the "Apply" button, then the "OK" button. The shortcut is now configured to allow installation of Silent Hunter from the CD-ROM.
Now double-click the "Silent Hunter Dos Install" shortcut icon to start a full-screen DOS session. Execute the "Mem.exe" program at the DOS prompt. The memory data displayed will be similar to the screen shown below.
Next, at the DOS prompt use the "Make Directory" command, i.e., "md" to create the sub-directory "c:\GAMES". This assumes drive "c:" is the target drive for the game installation. As Don notes in his article, "Failure to create this sub-directory will cause a failure later during the installation process. The install program is brain-damaged and will not create any sub-directory except for the destination directory off the root of the install drive or a pre-existing sub-directory on that drive."
Place your Silent Hunter CD-ROM in the CD drive, and at the "C:\>" prompt change the current drive to that of the CD drive. Then type the following at the command-line prompt:
Install x:
(where 'x:' represents the target drive for the installation)
The following installation screen will appear. Select the "Maximum Install" option.
The next screen should look similar to the following:
Click the "Continue" button and you will then see the screen below. Enter the target 'Hard Drive' (on this screen example I have chosen "C:") and make the "Directory" setting the same as show below. Click the "Start" button and the installation process will begin.
When the installation of the program and data files from the CD-ROM is complete the following screen will be displayed. Click the "OK" button to continue the installation and configuration process.
Next, click "NO" to skip the Readme file.
Next, the installation process continues with the configuration of the sound card. Choose the "No Digital Audio" option, and then the "Done" option to exit. We will take care of the sound card later.
The Silent Hunter installation process is completed when the following screen is displayed.
Get back to the "C:\>" prompt so we can eliminate the need for the game CD-ROM to be in the CD drive. First, create a sub-directory named "\BUD" in the "\GAMES\SILENT" sub-directory on your Windows XP hard drive. From our above example, in the "C:\GAMES\SILENT" location we now have "C:\GAMES\SILENT\BUD". Second, copy all of the "*.SMK" files in the "\SH\BUD" sub-directory from the game CD-ROM to the "C:\GAMES\SILENT\BUD" sub-directory. Third, with NOTEPAD edit the file "ShPath.ini" located in the "C:\GAMES\SILENT" sub-directory to look identical to this:
BUD =BUD\
DATA =DATA\
ART =ART\
SFX =SFX\
SPEECH =SPEECH\
CINES =CINES\
SCEN =SCEN\
SAVE =SAVE\
Don't forget to save the changes.
Now let's deal with the sound card. Create and edit the Silent Hunter sound configuration files "Dig.Ini" and "Mdi.Ini" in the "C:\GAMES\SILENT" sub-directory by using NOTEPAD to configure both files so they look like this:
Dig.ini file contents:
;
;Miles Design Audio Interface Library V3.03 of 18-Jun-95
;
DEVICE Creative Labs Sound Blaster 16 or AWE32
DRIVER SB16.DIG
IO_ADDR 220h
IRQ 7
DMA_8_BIT 1
DMA_16_BIT 5
Mdi.ini file contents:
;
;Miles Design Audio Interface Library V3.03 of 18-Jun-95
;
DEVICE Creative Labs Sound Blaster 16 or AWE32
DRIVER SB16.MDI
IO_ADDR 220h
IRQ 7
DMA_8_BIT 1
DMA_16_BIT 5
Make sure you use NOTEPAD or other text editor to do this, and remember to place them in the "C:\GAMES\SILENT" sub-directory.
Now close out your DOS session and let's focus on getting D-Fend configured.
Fire up D-Fend, and click on the upper left toolbar icon to use the Profile Wizard. Configure the profile information box as follows:
Click "Accept all defaults" and you will return to the D-Fend desktop screen. Highlight the profile for Silent Hunter and right click it. Select "Edit Profile" and you will see the following screen:
Make sure the "Profile Setting" tab is configured as above. Next click the "General" tab.
Configure the "General" tab as above, then click the "Environment" tab.
Configure the "Environment" tab as above, then click the "Mounting" tab.
The "Mounting" tab should appear as above unless you installed the program on a different hard drive. If so, you will have to "mount" that drive. See the D-Fend manual under "Help" if necessary. Next, click the "Sound" tab.
Configure the "Sound tab as above, and use the default settings for the GUS and MIDI tabs. Configure the "Misc" tab as follows:
Click "OK". You will return to the D-Fend desktop screen. Highlight the Silent Hunter profile we just created and double click it. The game should start with the opening logo screens. When you finally get to Silent Hunter's main menu, click the left mouse button once to "Auto lock" the mouse.
At this point you may have to adjust some of the profile's settings depending on the capabilities of your computer. In particular, in the "Environment" tab, you may need to raise or lower the "CPU Settings" for "Cycles" if your computer is substantially slower or faster than the platform I used. It also helps to shut down any TSRs or other programs that may be running before starting Silent Hunter. You can do this by opening the Windows Task Manager and closing any programs shown as running. Silent Hunter is a graphics heavy program, and it needs a lot of CPU power to keep the waves rolling and the SJ Radar working smoothly. In my experience, everything works well up to a time compression factor of 128X. Anything beyond that causes everything to come to a standstill from the bridge view, and the SJ Radar gets very erratic. The good news is that from the map view, your boat will still move at the desired time compression factor, so if seeing the waves speed by and watching the SJ Radar spin at 256X and above is not a concern, you are prepared to take on the enemy.
In closing, I can tell you that DOSBox is a great addition to our series of solutions for getting Silent Hunter running in a Windows XP environment. It is not the ideal solution, but it is a new alternative that will likely improve over time as we share our experiences with it and discover new tweaks.
