Mark Scurvyfox
Moderator
Ahoy there,
Lately most of you are getting the annoying errors while playing POTCO such as runtime errors; so I decided to create a guide to help you prevent those errors to occur!
Starting with basics!
DEFINITION OF RUNTIME ERRORS:
A runtime error is a software or hardware problem that prevents a program from working correctly. Runtime errors might cause you to lose information in the file you're working on, cause errors in the file (corrupt the file) so you can't work with it, or prevent you from using a feature. Unlike stop errors, runtime errors don't typically cause Windows or a program to stop working.
Runtime errors can occur if you are running two software programs that are not compatible, if your computer has memory problems, or if the computer has been infected with malicious software.
So how I can fix that???
First of all, there are obviously requirements to play the game. Does your computer meet these? If they don't, I would recommend not playing until you can get a better computer.
Windows 2000, XP, Vista, 7
800 MHz or faster processor
512 MB RAM
32 MB 3D graphics card
DirectX 9 or better
700 MB free disk space
Broadband Connection (recommended)
Why these errors occurring???
Runtime errors can occur if you are running two software programs that are not compatible, if your computer has memory problems, if the computer has been infected with malicious software, if the computer has overloaded processor (CPU) memory, or if the computer has outdated graphics card or driver(s).
HOW TO FIX THOSE ERRORS:
While playing POTCO I would recommend you close all background applications, so your CPU or RAM does NOT reach their limits and a runtime error suddenly appears.
Are your computer up to date? As I stated previously, having an outdated system can cause runtime errors as well. First of all make sure you have all windows updates installed in your system.
Start > Control Panel > Windows Update > Check for new updates
After you have all the updates installed, make sure your graphic drivers are up to date as well.
Start > search > dxdiag > display tab > drivers > date: XX/XX/XXX
If you find that your graphics driver is old, you must install the new version immediately. (At display tab there is also your graphics card model, manufacturer etc.)
The most common brands of graphic cards are the following:
ATI
NVIDIA
INTEL
Is your computer infected with malicious software? Chances are you are encountering runtime errors if your system has virus and such. You will need a program called “Anti-virus” to check if your system is infected. I personally use AVAST Free Antivirus and I highly recommend it.
Aside from these, both your computer and POTCO require Microsoft Visual Redistributable Package to run properly!
MICROSOFT VISUAL PACKAGE??? WHAT IS THAT???
Visual C++ redistributables are components shipped by app developers who use Visual C++ to write their software and choose to use Microsoft's code inside the component (e.g. sin and cos math functions) instead of reinventing the wheel.
You can find and download the latest redistributable packages on the following sites:
http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=5555 (2010)
http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=30679 (2012)
I recommend you to install both versions and after that check Windows Update (again) for updated release(s) related to these packages!
Do you still risk it? Are you putting your efforts into a waste?
I hope you found my solutions helpful!
If you have any question(s) feel free to ask me!
Lately most of you are getting the annoying errors while playing POTCO such as runtime errors; so I decided to create a guide to help you prevent those errors to occur!
Starting with basics!
DEFINITION OF RUNTIME ERRORS:
A runtime error is a software or hardware problem that prevents a program from working correctly. Runtime errors might cause you to lose information in the file you're working on, cause errors in the file (corrupt the file) so you can't work with it, or prevent you from using a feature. Unlike stop errors, runtime errors don't typically cause Windows or a program to stop working.
Runtime errors can occur if you are running two software programs that are not compatible, if your computer has memory problems, or if the computer has been infected with malicious software.
So how I can fix that???
First of all, there are obviously requirements to play the game. Does your computer meet these? If they don't, I would recommend not playing until you can get a better computer.
Windows 2000, XP, Vista, 7
800 MHz or faster processor
512 MB RAM
32 MB 3D graphics card
DirectX 9 or better
700 MB free disk space
Broadband Connection (recommended)
Why these errors occurring???
Runtime errors can occur if you are running two software programs that are not compatible, if your computer has memory problems, if the computer has been infected with malicious software, if the computer has overloaded processor (CPU) memory, or if the computer has outdated graphics card or driver(s).
HOW TO FIX THOSE ERRORS:
While playing POTCO I would recommend you close all background applications, so your CPU or RAM does NOT reach their limits and a runtime error suddenly appears.
Are your computer up to date? As I stated previously, having an outdated system can cause runtime errors as well. First of all make sure you have all windows updates installed in your system.
Start > Control Panel > Windows Update > Check for new updates
After you have all the updates installed, make sure your graphic drivers are up to date as well.
Start > search > dxdiag > display tab > drivers > date: XX/XX/XXX
If you find that your graphics driver is old, you must install the new version immediately. (At display tab there is also your graphics card model, manufacturer etc.)
The most common brands of graphic cards are the following:
ATI
NVIDIA
INTEL
Is your computer infected with malicious software? Chances are you are encountering runtime errors if your system has virus and such. You will need a program called “Anti-virus” to check if your system is infected. I personally use AVAST Free Antivirus and I highly recommend it.
Aside from these, both your computer and POTCO require Microsoft Visual Redistributable Package to run properly!
MICROSOFT VISUAL PACKAGE??? WHAT IS THAT???
Visual C++ redistributables are components shipped by app developers who use Visual C++ to write their software and choose to use Microsoft's code inside the component (e.g. sin and cos math functions) instead of reinventing the wheel.
You can find and download the latest redistributable packages on the following sites:
http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=5555 (2010)
http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=30679 (2012)
I recommend you to install both versions and after that check Windows Update (again) for updated release(s) related to these packages!
Do you still risk it? Are you putting your efforts into a waste?
I hope you found my solutions helpful!
If you have any question(s) feel free to ask me!