(Older Sierra gamers and new PCs) For folks needing to play older games, see if you can find a Windows version of Microsoft’s Virutal PC. After installation, you can set a computer to use Windows 3.1, DOS 5, 6 or 7, Windwos 95 and so on, even Linux (real reason for creation). A new version for OS X Pather is due, too, with no Windows XP packaged, so a user can do the same for Mac with PC OSs.
I used it just fine on my PC, by putting DOS 2000 and Windows 95a. All of older Sierra and Virgin/Westwood games run fine, but I also had a brutal time convincing the program to tweak for an old Pentium II.
I hope this helps anybody have the troubles I’ve had with older Sierra and Virgin/Westwood games to play.
The other solution for the sound card problem for me was to just install in an open ISA slot and SoundBlaster Pro and disable my on-board sound. Despite WinXP “wanting” a 16-bit or better sound card, all of my sounds are fine, and my WinXP games, like Half-Life, work just peachy. However, the on-board must be disabled physically.
Lastly, most Windows 3.x software will run 100% fine under WinXP, as long as it doesn’t have a Win95 autorun setting (any Sierra game published from, more or less, Sep. ’95 and later). You must, though, have the ability to adjust your video mode to 256 colors or 16 colors, and, for King’s Quest 5 CD, you must adjust the resolution to 640 x 480 x 256 colors. Other than that, everything works great!
Then again, just buy Virutal PC and forget about the last two solutions.
From the Corporate Offices of Warbasse Kyokai, total owner of Anime Strike, Manga Wolf Comics, Disenfranchised Comic Shop, and etc. etc. etc.