Elite / Frontier Can't launch from space station

Grimble

G
Hi
Has anyone else met this?
I have come back to Elite after many years and at least two computer upgrades. I am now retired and have time to play again!
I have managed to get Frontier Elite II working on XP using VDMS although the sound does not work properly. However, I picked up my old commander with his Anaconda and over a million monitary units but when I try to leave the space station, the exit door opens then immediately closes again and I am left smashed to pieces in the bay!!! I have checked my ship's condition and all appears to be fine. If I exchange my ship for another I am able to leave the station but there are no decent ships at this station (I cannot quite afford the Boa). Any ideas???
 

Grimble

G
Thanks Sreve I tried about a week on but still no result. If I go back through about 10 previous saves, space station launches give the same problem even though I was able to launch from them previously. I can take off from a planet OK with the same (earlier) Anaconda. If I go even further back to my previous ship, a Python, I can leave the space station OK. Huh!!! What's going on?
 

DraQ

D
1. If you have engines in the 'engines off' mode, stations won't auto-launch you, you need to use thrusters.

2. Try using DosBox and set cycles to max (cycles=max) in configuration file.
 

Grimble

G
Thanks DraQ
Engines are on but no forward movement, just the port door opening then closing and slowly rotating clockwise as I sit there and helplessly watch it, frantically pressing everything in sight.

I will look up and download DosBox and see if that works.
 

DraQ

D
Grimble said:
Thanks DraQ
Engines are on but no forward movement, just the port door opening then closing and slowly rotating clockwise as I sit there and helplessly watch it, frantically pressing everything in sight.

I will look up and download DosBox and see if that works.
Click to expand...
Make sure that you have fuel in the internal tank and that all thrusters and drive are operational, but if it's windows specific bug, I can't help you. DOSBox and GLFrontier are your only hope. GLFrontier doesn't accept normal frontier saves though, so if you want to use your old saves, stick with DOSBox.
 

Sir.Tj

The Moderator who shall not be Blamed....
Volunteer Moderator
Sir.Tj
Yep I'd make sure you have refuelled, as the ship will just hang around in the dock until your tanks are full.
 

Grimble

G
Thanks DraQ and T.j but yes I do have fuel, ship refueled etc. all looks good. In desperation I just tried hyperspacing from within the docking bay... and it worked!!! as soon as the docking door began to close I hyperspaced out without a glitch. It gets stranger.
 

Grimble

G
I tried a couple of things.
1. I downloaded DosBox and loaded Elite from there. From the same save position the same thing happened in the dock but this time I was able to accelerate through the closing door and out into space but at a cost of much damage to equipment and goods. Also the game seems to run slowly through DosBox, certainly purchases and sales of goods.
2. Using VDMS, The ship that hyperspaced from within the dock successfully landed on a planet surface and can take off again OK.
I will let you know what happens when I dock at another spaceport.
I don't remember having all these problems last time!
 

Grimble

G
No, just the same but I can hyperspace out still from the docking bay. I shall have to try another ship or give up!!! I met another problem while trying to get to a destination; the computer said 'Warning, ship under attack' but there was nothing there; I could not use stardreamer because I kept getting the attack message and I was still 22AU distant. In real time that's a no go so I had to Hyperspace to another system to get out of it.
This program is too buggy for windows. I think I shall give up till I find a better version.
Thanks for all the advice.
 

Grimble

G
Thanks for the help.
DraQ; I downloaded FE2 and tried it... exactly the same thing happened when trying to leave dock!
GLFrontier looks good but I cringe at the thought of starting over from scratch and I don't have sound. I downloaded the sound files but don't konw how to install them from the tarball. The supplied commander file is way beyond where I am and although it's tempting to run with it, it's like cheating myself. I am up to Competent with just over 1,000,000 credits.
I think my ship (save file) must have become corrupted some how. I shall have to try an up/downgrade and see what that does.
 

turwhitt

turwhitt
I really advise you play GLFFE. It looks great and plays great.

Yes you will be starting again, but i got back to where i was when i gave up years ago, and it only took me about 2 mega sessions.

If you really don't want to get back to where you were with hard work, there is a GLFFE save game editor, where you would be able to hack your save game so it has the same items/money/rating/rank as your old one. The only thing you can't change is the date.
 

DraQ

D
turwhitt said:
I really advise you play GLFFE. It looks great and plays great.

Yes you will be starting again, but i got back to where i was when i gave up years ago, and it only took me about 2 mega sessions.

If you really don't want to get back to where you were with hard work, there is a GLFFE save game editor, where you would be able to hack your save game so it has the same items/money/rating/rank as your old one. The only thing you can't change is the date.
Click to expand...

GLFFE is FFE.
FFE!=FE2
There are many cool new features in FFE, like handcoded missions, better enemy AI, some new ships, new equipment and journals, but some of the FE2's features were lost due to premature relase. No clouds, numerous ship model and astronomical screw-ups, only one lightsource per system, etc.

Edit:
Also, Grimble, if you could give me starport and system name, plus coordinates, I could fly there and check if it isn't the problem with starport itself.
 
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DraQ

D
turwhitt said:
I am aware of that, but GLFFE is great if you want to play Frontier on a modern system.
Click to expand...
GLFFE is great if you want to play FFE on modern system, though JJFFE is still an option and might even be preferable if you want 100% functionality.

If you want to play Frontier on modern system and you don't want to bother with DOSBox, you should use GLFrontier.

There are as many reasons for prefering FE2 over FFE as there are for doing otherwise.

I have played both games extensively (Dangerous in GLFrontier, Competent in JJFFE), but still have a slight preferene for FE2 over FFE.
 

Grimble

G
Hmm interesting views. My computer is too slow for DosBox but OK with VDMS and for GLFFE, and I have got the sound effects and music working on the latter now.
DraQ, by hyperspacing straight from the dock I have visited several star ports and a planet base. All starports give me the same problem but planet take off is OK so I don't think it is a particular star system, more likely my commander file or computer.
If you would like to allow private emails briefly, I could email and attach a copy of my commander for you to try. That would eliminate one or the other.
My next move is to change ships to see if that works. Problem there is finding a half decent replacement.
Do ypu know where I can download the GLFFE commander file editor?
 
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