Installing X-Wing and TIE Fighter Collectors Editions, Legally!

So, there has been a lot of talk on the internet about installing the old X-Wing and TIE Fighter PC games.  So I thought I would post a guide on how to install the games (mostly) legally.

Recently, the Internet Archive released a library of pack-in and demo disks.  After searching through it, I found that both X-Wing and TIE Fighter Collectors editions were included, and these were the good ones, the DOS/Win 95 packs.  Take a look at the CD Archive here. Both X-Wing Collectors Edition and TIE Fighter Collectors Edition were included.  The download links are on the left hand side of the screen.

The Internet Archive has long been a reputable site, so I wouldn't worry about the legality of these files.  The have plenty of opportunity to take them down and these files are available publicly.

Once you have downloaded the .iso file for each disc, move them to a folder on your PC somewhere near the root of your drive.  I like to create a folder C:\OLDGAMES, and then create a subfolder called ISO.  Copy your .iso files there.

Now, we need DOSBox.  If you are on windows, check out this link to download.  If you are on Mac OS or Linux, just check out the DOSBox website.  Once installed, open the program and you get a nice DOS Prompt.

I don't have access to my main PC right now, so we will have to do without screenshots until I can update this later.

Open dosbox, and enter the following commands:

     mount C: C:\OLDGAMES

     imgmount D: C:\OLDGAMES\ISO\XWINGCD.iso -t iso -fs iso

To Install the game, now type these commands:

     D:\

     setup  (it may be install, but I am not complete sure, will update later)

Follow the standard install, make sure to test the audio and set the soundcard to a SoundBlaster 16, as this is DOSBox's default.

Now everything should be installed, so let's play!

Type:

     C:

     cd xwingcd

     xwing  (might be xwingcd)

And you are set!  You can  play with keyboard and mouse or a joystick, and that joystick should be automatically detected by DOSBox.

Now, whenever you want to play, open dosbox, and enter these commands:

     mount C: C:\OLDGAMES
     imgmount D: C:\OLDGAMES\ISO\XWINGCD.iso -t iso -fs iso
     C:
     cd xwingcd
     xwing  (might be xwingcd)

If you want to play full screen, make sure to press ctrl+enter.  To exit, exit through the games menus and then type exit at the DOS Prompt.





Now, TIE Fighter sometimes has joystick issues, so there is a patch out there to fix that.  Its is available from Lucasarts I believe.  Download that patch, dump it in the C:\OLDGAMES\TIECD folder, and then run it from the dos prompt.  Should fix any issues.

Make sure you leave any questions/comments in the comments section!

A Morning Sunrise

It is a strange world we live in today.

Though given this beautiful world, many choose to escape it.  To enter into our own little (mostly digital) worlds, and hide away from that which is happening around us.

Now, don't take me wrong, I do this same thing myself time and time again. Just take a look at this Blog and you will see how obvious that is.

But on my drive in to work this morning, I was lucky to catch my favorite part of the sunrise.  The official sunrise time for this morning was 6:13.  But around half an hour before sunrise, on mornings with some clouds in the sky, the sun lights the clouds from below, instead of above.  

This creates some beautiful crimson reds, that spread only on the tips of the ridges of the clouds, as if someone has taken a brush and grazed a thing layer of paint over those edges.

Further down the horizon, before we even reach the clouds is a brilliant pool of red and orange light, the pot from which the brush is dipped.  

To the left, on this particular day, the cool white light of the moon perforates the clouds, lending to an odd mixture of warm and cold light that will be washed away by the coming sun.

Not my photo, but pretty much what I was inspired by.  Mine photo had a lot more blur, cars, and power lines in the way.

It is in times like these, scenes like these, that I take a second to look at the world God has given us.  The world that we have been blessed with.  It is a reminder that there is so much more than our little worlds we build for ourselves.  So much more than the here and now.

As I look out onto this beautiful scene, I say a silent prayer thanking the Lord for my life and everything and everyone in it.