SimCity 4 Launcher - Updated (10/09/15) 1.5.4b - R12

[A Nonny Moose 8,262]

Well, I suppose if it is necessary, then you are stuck with it.  Really too bad that you have to support it this way.

[Logic_Bomb 86]

Well, I suppose if it is necessary, then you are stuck with it.  Really too bad that you have to support it this way.

It does suck, I don't see why certain services even need HTTPS (Dropbox public links, for instance), it seems a little silly, but, I'm using my own and domain and server to host updates now, so I'm in the process of migrating to a different HTTP library, one that doesn't use SSL and thus has no external dependencies.

 

In other news; Just finished an update today that adds a mod-manager to the UI.

 

Regards,

 

Logic_

[apeek 200]

 

Entry Point Not Found

The procedure entry point DHparams_dup could not be located in the dynamic link library LIBEAY32.dll.  

 

The above message appears immediately upon launch.  After clicking OK, the program seems to work fine.  However, it's annoying enough for me to discard this app.

 

Win7 x64

Unfortunately this is not within my control, that would be caused by an out-dated or broken version of OpenSSL, and is not something I can fix, I can, on the other hand, give you a link to an update of SSL.

I will try and replicate the issue and see if I could implement a work-around, but I can't guarantee anything.

Regards,

 

Logic_

 

My config is pretty standard, everything is up to date, and the event logs are clean.  What about my environment could make me vulnerable to this error?  Is OpenSSL a dependency for all users?

[Logic_Bomb 86]

 

 

Entry Point Not Found

The procedure entry point DHparams_dup could not be located in the dynamic link library LIBEAY32.dll.  

 

The above message appears immediately upon launch.  After clicking OK, the program seems to work fine.  However, it's annoying enough for me to discard this app.

 

Win7 x64

Unfortunately this is not within my control, that would be caused by an out-dated or broken version of OpenSSL, and is not something I can fix, I can, on the other hand, give you a link to an update of SSL.

I will try and replicate the issue and see if I could implement a work-around, but I can't guarantee anything.

Regards,

 

Logic_

 

My config is pretty standard, everything is up to date, and the event logs are clean.  What about my environment could make me vulnerable to this error?  Is OpenSSL a dependency for all users?

 

OpenSSL is a dependency for all users, yes. It could just be that an application that has been installed has replaced OpenSSL with an outdated copy, it could also be a number of other things (Anti-virus for example). I haven't had any other reports of this, and I can't replicate it on any of my test-beds (XP, Windows 7 & Windows without manually installing an out-dated EAY32 library, so this leads me to believe it is your environment, unfortunately.

 

As I said, you could try updating OpenSSL, but I am in the process of stripping the OpenSSL dependencies out of the updater, as it no longer uses Dropbox, so it doesn't need to support https. This should solve it for you, and I'm hoping to have this update released within the next week or so.

 

Regards,

 

Logic_

[apeek 200]

 

 

 

Entry Point Not Found

The procedure entry point DHparams_dup could not be located in the dynamic link library LIBEAY32.dll.  

 

The above message appears immediately upon launch.  After clicking OK, the program seems to work fine.  However, it's annoying enough for me to discard this app.

 

Win7 x64

Unfortunately this is not within my control, that would be caused by an out-dated or broken version of OpenSSL, and is not something I can fix, I can, on the other hand, give you a link to an update of SSL.

I will try and replicate the issue and see if I could implement a work-around, but I can't guarantee anything.

Regards,

 

Logic_

 

My config is pretty standard, everything is up to date, and the event logs are clean.  What about my environment could make me vulnerable to this error?  Is OpenSSL a dependency for all users?

 

OpenSSL is a dependency for all users, yes. It could just be that an application that has been installed has replaced OpenSSL with an outdated copy, it could also be a number of other things (Anti-virus for example). I haven't had any other reports of this, and I can't replicate it on any of my test-beds (XP, Windows 7 & Windows without manually installing an out-dated EAY32 library, so this leads me to believe it is your environment, unfortunately.

 

As I said, you could try updating OpenSSL, but I am in the process of stripping the OpenSSL dependencies out of the updater, as it no longer uses Dropbox, so it doesn't need to support https. This should solve it for you, and I'm hoping to have this update released within the next week or so.

 

Regards,

 

Logic_

 

Thank-you for the elucidation. Your work mirrors the same fastidious attitude.

[crymorenoobs 3]

Installed the launcher to my simcity 4 deluxe folder, but every time I try and launch the game I get application load error 5:0000065434 and the launcher closes. Any ideas? I'm using the steam version.

 

[A Nonny Moose 8,262]

As far as I am aware, the Launcher should be installed in your system residency and marked to be allowed to execute.  Does it have execute permission?  I have the impression it is a regular program.

[Logic_Bomb 86]

Installed the launcher to my simcity 4 deluxe folder, but every time I try and launch the game I get application load error 5:0000065434 and the launcher closes. Any ideas? I'm using the steam version.

 

Do you get any errors that mention a SC4L.log file? If so, could you paste the log output here? If not, could you upload a screenshot of the error?

 

Thanks & Regards,

 

Logic_

[crymorenoobs 3]

As far as I am aware, the Launcher should be installed in your system residency and marked to be allowed to execute.  Does it have execute permission?  I have the impression it is a regular program.

 

 

 

Installed the launcher to my simcity 4 deluxe folder, but every time I try and launch the game I get application load error 5:0000065434 and the launcher closes. Any ideas? I'm using the steam version.

 

Do you get any errors that mention a SC4L.log file? If so, could you paste the log output here? If not, could you upload a screenshot of the error?

 

Thanks & Regards,

 

Logic_

 

 

 

 

 

I originally installed it into my Simcity 4 folder in My Documents, uninstalled it, and then installed it here.

EDIT: I just now realized that this is a steam error and not really your problem. Sorry about this. Either way, I'll post back with my fix so anyone who searches the problem will find my fix...

EDIT2: Easy fix. My problem stems from having 2 separate steam libraries. SimCity or SC4L assume that the game is in the default steam library. All I did to fix it was copy my steam.exe into my simcity 4 deluxe folder.

[chaos406 1]

Hey crymorenoobs, just wanted to thank you for your fix. I have my steam installation on two different drives as well. I ran steam.exe from the drive with Simcity4 on it and the launcher works now. Thanks!!!

[Trekker4747 75]

I download the program from The Exchange but upon trying to install it it set off my anti-virus software which feels the program is malicious. Is it being overly protective or is their a problem with the latest available file?

[A Nonny Moose 8,262]

Don't know, since I don't use it.  Suggest it is a piece of unnecessary after market software.  Why not just use the command line options in the target of the launching shortcut?  Here is a complete list of options.

 

To give you a picture of the use of these, here is my command line:

 

"C:/Program Files (x86)/Maxis/SimCity 4 Deluxe/Apps/SimCity 4.exe"  -intro:off -CustomResolution:enabled -r1920x1080x32 -d:directx  -CPUCount:1 -f

 

Pay attention to the complete path name in quotes.  Use the one in your shortcut with backslashes (\).  Mine is on Linux.  Except for the name separator (/) this is not different from Windoze.  Sorry for the small type size but I wanted this to show on a single line, which it must be.

[Logic_Bomb 86]

I download the program from The Exchange but upon trying to install it it set off my anti-virus software which feels the program is malicious. Is it being overly protective or is their a problem with the latest available file?

Hmm, That's a little odd, there's lots of functionality that I could see an AV tagging as 'suspicious' but nothing actively malicious The full source-code is available on Google Code if you or anyone else wishes to verify its integrity, other than that I can only give you my word that there is no malicious content. I'll look into the AV warnings and see if I can resolve them. Thanks for the heads up.

 

Don't know, since I don't use it.  Suggest it is a piece of unnecessary after market software.  Why not just use the command line options in the target of the launching shortcut?  Here is a complete list of options.

 

To give you a picture of the use of these, here is my command line:

 

"C:/Program Files (x86)/Maxis/SimCity 4 Deluxe/Apps/SimCity 4.exe"  -intro:off -CustomResolution:enabled -r1920x1080x32 -d:directx  -CPUCount:1 -f

 

Pay attention to the complete path name in quotes.  Use the one in your shortcut with backslashes (\).  Mine is on Linux.  Except for the name separator (/) this is not different from Windoze.  Sorry for the small type size but I wanted this to show on a single line, which it must be.

A pretty harsh suggestion at that. Thanks.

 

Regards,

 

Logic_

[A Nonny Moose 8,262]

Actually, this is a great service for those who don't want to fuss with command lines.  There are getting to be more and more of them, but it is a can of worms when you get to the point of sorting out the local problems with graphics.  I suggest you might want to take a look at that as either a separate task or an add to your product. 

 

Most people have trouble editing the *.sgr files.  With a little scrounging around in the c:/Program Files (x86)/Maxis/SimCity 4 Deluxe/Apps/<system name>-config-log.txt file you should be able to find the data you need provided the game has run at least once.

[Tino06 16]

Would it be possible to add an option for borderless windowed mode (fake fullscreen)? That would make Alt-Tabbing much smoother

[A Nonny Moose 8,262]

What is borderless windowed mode?  I guess it must be something new since I stopped using windows, and I don't think it is available in X-windows.

 

When I was still coding with Visual Studio, I know you could leave out many form features, but I don't think you could omit the window border.  Without the border, where would you have the windows controls?

[rsc204 21,857]

Would it be possible to add an option for borderless windowed mode (fake fullscreen)? That would make Alt-Tabbing much smoother

 

Isn't that something that controlled by SC4 as opposed to the launcher, I don't think it could be simply added to the game itself, that sort of stuff is usually in the bounds of things that can't be changed, at least we can alt-tab I've plenty of games where that's simply impossible to do.

 

As for the launcher v.s. command line setup, I personally use the launcher, mostly out of lazyness, it's just simpler to change things this way than mucking around with command line shortcuts, even though I'm comfortable with them, certainly this is a great service for the vast majority of users that just want to make things work. If there was a way to read the adapter stings and add appropriate lines to the graphics rules/video card files that would be a seriously helpful feature. This problem comes up very frequently and many seem to struggle with the concept of opening a non-notepad file in notepad, let alone finding the strings to copy. That said I don't think you can rely on the SC4 config log for this, often if you need to add the strings manually SC4 will not have recognised the card correctly, presumably it's possible to read this information from Windows/Registry though?

[A Nonny Moose 8,262]

If you can get the information of the Registry, it will be one of the only occasions that this pile of garbage has anything useful in it.  It has been abused by so many people that it really needs to be frequently cleaned.  Leaving junk in the Registry is just as bad as not cleaning up temporary files, but much harder to clean out.

[Logic_Bomb 86]

Would it be possible to add an option for borderless windowed mode (fake fullscreen)? That would make Alt-Tabbing much smoother

I'm pretty sure using injection with an OpenGL/DX DLL created to force the SC4 window into borderless/pseudo-fullscreen mode would be pretty trivial. I'll give it a shot and try and include it in the next update, I'll mark the option as experimental though, as I have no idea how stable it would be.

 

Edit: Looking through some of the methods exposed by the WinAPI had me realize that this might be even easier than I thought, and might be as simple as grabbing the Window Handle and then passing it to a couple of WinAPI functions, I'll investigate over any free time I have this week and report back with either progress or an update.

 

 

Would it be possible to add an option for borderless windowed mode (fake fullscreen)? That would make Alt-Tabbing much smoother 

 

Isn't that something that controlled by SC4 as opposed to the launcher, I don't think it could be simply added to the game itself, that sort of stuff is usually in the bounds of things that can't be changed, at least we can alt-tab I've plenty of games where that's simply impossible to do.

I'd be inclined to disagree at this point, as I think it might be pretty plausable, it'd be a hack-around, but plausible non-the-less.

 

Regards,

 

Logic_

[A Nonny Moose 8,262]

Good luck with this.  Doesn't it depend on windows controls that came out with Windows 8?  When I was teaching Visual Studio the idea of a borderless window was not in the software but that was 10+ years ago, and we know how Moore's Conjecture works for software.

[Logic_Bomb 86]

The new release has been finished and the Seamless/Borderless mode implemented! The updater should grab the latest update upon execution.

 

Good luck with this.  Doesn't it depend on windows controls that came out with Windows 8?  When I was teaching Visual Studio the idea of a borderless window was not in the software but that was 10+ years ago, and we know how Moore's Conjecture works for software.

The calls are present within the WinAPI on every Windows version since Windows 2000 Professional, and the calls have not been removed in Windows 8 or 10, I've double checked!

 

Regards,

 

Logic_

[A Nonny Moose 8,262]

Excellent.  This is for advanced programmers only.  I don't think this is present in any of the canned Form controls, so you have to make your own call.

[Logic_Bomb 86]

Excellent.  This is for advanced programmers only.  I don't think this is present in any of the canned Form controls, so you have to make your own call.

Aha, I'd agree, WinAPI calls can be quite nasty! Aha. Either way, it's implemented now and seems to be working!

 

Luckily SC4 plays nice with the Task Bar, otherwise things could have been much more complex. As it was, I only needed to use; FindWindow, GetWindowLong(GWL_STYLE/GWL_EXSTYLE), SetWindowLong(GWL_STYLE/GWL_EXSTYLE), SetWindowPos and ShowWindow.

 

Regards,

 

Logic_

[A Nonny Moose 8,262]

Well done.  There was a time when I coded at that level.  Somehow, retirement causes one to lose interest in such things.

[alxandriadna 2]

Hi, how to use the mod manager?

 

 

[Logic_Bomb 86]

Hi, how to use the mod manager?

Hi there alxandriadna,

To use the mod manager, you install the mods (as per the mod specific instructions) into your "My Documents/Sim City 4/Plugins/" directory, the mod manager then allows you to enable or disable mods before launching SC4.

I'm hoping to extend the features of the mod manager in forthcoming updates, so stay tuned.

Hope that helps.

Regards,

Logic_

[alxandriadna 2]

TANKS

for your response,

i have many plugins in the plugins folder to "my docs" but the launcher sims to be not see???

[alxandriadna 2]

 i wil reinstall the launcher and see what happens....Tanks!

[alxandriadna 2]

nothing changes, the launcher appears not register the folder "plugins"!!! (in my c>docs...)

[A Nonny Moose 8,262]

What version of the operating system are you on?  Is your plugins folder at C:\<your account>\Documents\SimCity 4\Plugins?

 

If you loaded from Steam or Origin, you may find that you need some further advice from Logic...