SimCity 4 + RH Runs on Windows Vista

[AIX 270]

I did a search and could not come up with any pre-existing topics on this.

I recently installed the Beta 2 of Windows Vista that Microsoft has released (for free).

I was expecting lots of bugs and compatibility issues, but it has been smooth sailing for the most part. Anyway, I just installed Simcity 4 and it seems to be running great under Vista. You do have to tweak some of the program installation security settings (Vista has new installation safety features). At first, it didn't work when I installed vanilla, but when I installed the RH expansion pack, it seemed to work just fine.

I saw no lags, no hiccupping, no major issues with running them game along with my 1.75 GB plug-in folder. There was only one small issue and that the game seemed to zoom-in all by itself on rare occasions.

My specs are:

AMD Athlon 64 3800+ processor at 2.4 Ghz

2 GB of RAM

80 GB 5400 RPM HDD, 160 GB 7200 Ext. HDD

128 MB ATI Mobility Radeon Xpress 200M graphics

Pinned for 180 days.  NOB.

[Wraith101 0]

And you had problems before upgrading to Vista? Did you notice any difference in performance?

Does the beta have the new DirectX included?

[AIX 270]

I did not have problems when I was running Windows XP.

Performance was about the same - I saw no loss in performance of the game, BUT, it seems like my video card isn't supported in the exact same way as XP. It works, but many of the settings for the graphics card under the DXDIAG utility are longer available.

According to the DXDIAG utility, Vista comes with DirectX 10.

[Constantina 5]

There was only one small issue and that the game seemed to zoom-in all by itself on rare occasions. quote>

I can zoom in and out using the scroller in the mouse, and if you accidently rolled on it, the view will zoom in or out.

[hamsterTK 93]

Thats good to hear!

But is the rumor that the BAT wont work on vista true?

[Wraith101 0]

oooh, DX10 is the major reason I want to upgrade. Just have to find somewhere to download it!

[AIX 270]

I do not know about the BAT working on Vista or not simply because I'm not a batter. I do know that all my custom lots, BATs, and plugins function just fine.

[gstommylee 6]

the beta version of vista is ulimate edition and it provides another 128mb of graphics ram according to what vista tells me.  Vista beta 2 does not include all the performance additions yet.  Wehn the final product come out we may see a even greater performance increase.

[AIX 270]

I saw that under the performance rating thing, it said I had 256 MB of graphic memory. Is that extra 128MB virtual-shared memory just like integrated graphics?

[gstommylee 6]

Okay heres the idea.  vista 32bit needs 512mb  64bit needs a 1gig for ulimate edition.

anything extra over the requirement gets used as virtual ram for the graphics other words the more ram you got the higher the graphics ram will be.

[AIX 270]

Wow I am glad to see this thread get a 4-star rating and a pin. Still playing the game with no major problems. For those that are interested, I wrote a review on Vista here: http://www.jeremie.us/2006/06/10/vista-is-on-da-box/

[Wraith101 0]

Nice Review!

[Ramona Brie 121]

Interesting. This will help as Vista gets closer to RTM.

[hamsterTK 93]

anymore word on how bat will work?

[kaploosh 0]

I'm relived. Thought I could not play SC4 on Vista.

[DStirling 6]

Wow! Sounds like Vista is going to be great. I know windows XP has had a very long lifespan compared to older versions so I wonder how long Vista will last...

[acidbomb2k4 0]

@hamstertk: he said he hadnt tried cause he wasnt a batter. maybe someone out there knows and could hepl us out. it is, however, great news that hes not having any troubles

[pm.shen 0]

Right now, I have installed Sim City 4 onto my Vista Computer but for some reason, I cannot launch it. Does anyone know what is wrong or how to fix this?

I have uninstalled it and installed it several times but the problem doesn't seem to be improving

[the_real_simmer_3 0]

I had that problem on XP(no beta vista for me).Wait for a week or two to re-install.

[MrFingers 0]

Why ANYONE would buy windows vista is completely beyond me.

[SimFox 804]

HamsterTK, I see no reason what so ever why BAT wouldn't work on Vista.

Bat is actually just a collection of scripts, not a program in its own right. As such it has limitation of being somewhat inflexible about its own location and location of programs it utilizes. This could be ONLY reason for some fears. But as such it is easily fixable! Same as problem with MAX8 was.

[coolotter88 2]

yeah, my recommendation is that you should avoid windows vista for the first year (or two). if it ain't broke, don't fix it. if you have a perfectly fine version of XP, why would you NEED to upgrade "instantly". Until microsoft forces you to buy windows vista (in some arcane evil way or something like that) don't buy it. geez and its 400 dollars for ultimate.

[hamsterTK 93]

yeah, my recommendation is that you should avoid windows vista for the first year (or two). if it ain't broke, don't fix it. if you have a perfectly fine version of XP, why would you NEED to upgrade "instantly". Until microsoft forces you to buy windows vista (in some arcane evil way or something like that) don't buy it. geez and its 400 dollars for ultimate.quote>

yeah pretty much.

I will get vista when i get a new computer because i know that the upgrade will really lower the performance of my not so new laptop and its not really worth it until new software starts really needing it.

Bat is actually just a collection of scripts, not a program in its own right. As such it has limitation of being somewhat inflexible about its own location and location of programs it utilizes. This could be ONLY reason for some fears. But as such it is easily fixable! Same as problem with MAX8 wasquote>

hehe we all know what happens if heaven forbid you browse your night textures folder with thumbnail viewing enabled.... gmax is so flaky

[MrFingers 0]

ditch windows, get a mac

only then will you realise the error of your ways.

[Screwballl 196]

another thing to watch out for is the new DRM (Digital Rights Management) embedded with Vista. If it doesn;t find a license for your current media (videos or music) then it will try to get you a new license... but once this is done they have a record of all the music you have and RIAA could come knocking at your door...

I myself am testing Vista RC1 right now and it seems to run pretty good on my XP3000+ and 9600XT... I just refuse to port over any of my music or videos to it.

Officially I will not switch to Vista until at least SP1 is released for it... besides, XP SP3 is due out around the time of Vista release (they could release it now but they want more people to switch rather than keep XP).

[dussin23 1]

Very 1984-ish, screwball.

[coolotter88 2]

unfortunately, windows XP SP3 will only be released at microsoft's discretion...in other words, they're probably not going to release an SP3, their programmers are all pooped out from finding those evil code monkeys lurking in Vista's source code...they can strike any time and anywhere *shifty eyes* watch out for the evil code monkeys...

[A Nonny Moose 8,262]

Considering that Vista really wants more souped up machines than XP, not putting out XP SP3 would effectively abandon those of us who have machines that won't run Vista, or not run it acceptably.  Maybe they don't care, but there are competing operating environments out here, and I, for one, am not going to leap at the next stick out the window because it is new.  Vista SP1 or even SP2 before I would consider investment in it and/or new hardware.

[renerecato 0]

I just installed Windows Vista Basic (32-bit) onto my MacBook Pro 2.33 ghz through Parallels and I tried to install SimCity 4. It looked like it installed just fine, but I can't get the game to start. I get this error message: CANNOT LOCATE THE SIMCITY 4 DELUXE PLAY DISK. PLEASE INSERT THE SIMCITY 4 DELUXE PLAY DISK, SELECT OK AND RESTART THE GAME.

Can anybody help??!!!

[A Nonny Moose 8,262]

The play disk is disk 2.  It should be in your dvd/cd drive.  If the disk is in the drive, you probably need to update your device drivers from the manufacturer's site.  You may have loaded Vista's default, generic drivers which may not really support your drive properly.

If you do this and have no improvement, turn off autorun on the drive, and start the game from the shortcut with the disk in the drivel.