KQ Anthology & Windows 2000

[mag]

I have the King's Quest Anthology with KQ1-6, and I'm having some difficulty getting it running in Windows 2000. Whenever I try to install it I get this message:

ECHO is off.
ECHO is off.
Unable to create the directory
"":\sierra\kq1
Installation cancelled.
Press any key to continue...

I'm guessing from this that ECHO is off, whatever that means. I thought I might be able to use DOSBox, but I apparently can only use that to run programs, not install them. Is there anybody here who has gotten KQ working in Windows 2000 that can help me out?

Thanks,
mag

[fov]

I'm guessing from this that ECHO is off, whatever that means.

lol

If you have the same one I have (the 15th anniversary edition?), there is an annoying DOS menu thingie from which you can choose which games to install. I think you can also install the games individually from the CD. Does each game have a folder, and if so, is there an install.bat or install.exe file in those folders? Double-clicking those might get you where you're trying to go. (I'm sorry, I'm in the process of moving and my disks are already at the new place so I can't double check for you...)

The error message you're getting implies that it's trying to create a directory on a non-existant drive. It *should* be trying to put the directory on C:. I take it you weren't given the option to browse to C: and install there? (If you were given this option, are you sure you didn't accidentally fill in "", which is where the message implies it's trying to install the games?)

-emily

ps Just realized that in DOS you're not going to get an option to browse to a different drive... how are you installing? Are you using a DOS prompt? If so, you can type in a command that tells the program where to install -- unfortunately I would have to play around to figure it out and I'm on a mac right now, but maybe someone who actually understands DOS can help.

[AGA]

Echo off doesn't mean anything really, it just means the commands in the batch file won't be "echoed" on the screen. You can safely ignore that.

If I recall correctly, KQ anthology had a DOS and a Win installer, have you tried running both? You could also try looking on the CD itself in the d:\kq#\ directories. You can manually copy the files from these directories to your harddisk and then run them, usually, without installing (at least you can with all the other Sierra Collections).

EDIT: yeah, what the person above said, basically :)

[mag]

Originally Posted by fov
If you have the same one I have (the 15th anniversary edition?), there is an annoying DOS menu thingie from which you can choose which games to install.

My version was released in 1994. I don't think that's the same as the 15th Anniversary Edition. But I do have an annoying DOS menu thingie where it says, "Press the appropriate letter to install the game of your choice."

I've tried installing it both from Windows and from the Command Prompt. What happens is whenever I choose which game to install it takes me to a command prompt window that says "Enter the drive letter to install to." I press C. Then it beeps at me and goes into its "ECHO is off" message. It says "Press any key to continue..." I hit enter, and the window closes.


Originally Posted by AGA
You could also try looking on the CD itself in the d:\kq#\ directories. You can manually copy the files from these directories to your harddisk and then run them, usually, without installing (at least you can with all the other Sierra Collections).

I just tried that. Apparently, my collection is so ancient that that doesn't work. I get a message that says "Game not installed. Choose KQ Games Install to install this game."

It's times like this that I wish Sierra had made its games for Linux.

mag

[fov]

yes, mine has that menu too.

I will be over at the new place today dropping off boxes. If I think of it I'll bring the CD home with me and give it a spin. I have win2000 on my laptop.

I had a very similar problem when I first tried installing these. There weren't really any instructions. I figured it out though. I'll let you know.

-emily

[fov]

Got it!

First copy the whole folder for the game you're installing (say KQ1) into C:\Sierra. (If that directory doesn't already exist, make it yourself. I don't know that it needs to be in that specific directory, but I didn't bother trying it anywhere else, and that's the directory it would have gone into if the game had installed it the "real" way.)

Open that folder and run _INSTALL.BAT. (This is NOT the same as INSTALL.BAT. Run the one that starts with an underscore.)

Don't worry about the stuff that displays really quickly in the DOS box, as far as I can tell it's not important.

In your KQ1 folder, you should now have a file called KQ1.COM. Double click this to start the game. (Don't use the KQ1.BAT file, it will give you an error message that the game isn't installed.)

I only tried it with KQ1, but I assume the same process would work with all the DOS games in the collection.

:) emily

ps if it makes you feel any better, one of the things I tried gave me the exact same error message you got...

[mag]

Originally Posted by fov
I will be over at the new place today dropping off boxes. If I think of it I'll bring the CD home with me and give it a spin. I have win2000 on my laptop.

Wow. I wouldn't have asked you to go to that much trouble. It worked, though. I can't believe all this time I kept clicking INSTALL and never thought to try _INSTALL. Oh well.

Anyway, I hereby nominate you as the most awesome person on the forums. Thanks!

mag

[fov]

Wow. I wouldn't have asked you to go to that much trouble. It worked, though. I can't believe all this time I kept clicking INSTALL and never thought to try _INSTALL. Oh well.

No trouble. I love figuring crap like this out.

Glad it worked! Enjoy the games!

:) emily