Error Messages from the DOS Calibration and Test

There are only a few error messages that are displayed by the Assassin 3D DOS Calibration and Test Program. If one of these occurs, you will see the error message and the program will terminate. The program will not display the welcome screen.

The first error message occurs if the FPGAMING environment variable is not set. In this case you will see the following error message:

Your DOS environment variable FPGAMING is not set.
Please add the following line to your "autoexec.bat" file.
"set FPGAMING=c:\fpgaming" or any other valid directory.

To correct this error message, just add the lines below to your AUTOEXEC.BAT.
"set FPGAMING=c:\fpgaming"
"set path=%path%;c:\fpgaming"

The second error message occurs if an Assassin 3D is not plugged in to the gameport, but some other device is (like your joystick). In this case, the following message will be displayed:

Some device is detected, but not an Assassin 3D.
Verify the Assassin 3D is plugged into your gameport.
If that isn't the problem, test the gameport with your analog joystick.
If that works fine, rerun this program with the Assassin 3D attached.
If this message still occurs, please contact First-Person Gaming Technical Support.

Verify that only one joystick gameport is enabled and that the Trackball is plugged into that gameport. Check out the Gameport Diagnostics for help.
Please read through the Frequently Asked Questions to see if your problem is answered there
If all else fails please email Technical Support with the as much information as you can get about your computer and the software that may be running at the time you tried to do the DOS Calibration and Test.

The third error message that can occur is when nothing is installed into the gameport. In this case, the following message will be displayed.

No device is detected on the gameport.
Verify the Assassin 3D is plugged into your gameport.
If that isn't the problem, test the gameport with your analog joystick.
If that works fine, rerun this program with the Assassin 3D attached.
If this message still occurs, contact First-Person Gaming Technical Support.

As above, verify that only one joystick gameport is enabled and that the Trackball is plugged into that gameport. Check out the Gameport Diagnostics for help.
Please read through the Frequently Asked Questions to see if your problem is answered there
If all else fails please email Technical Support with the as much information as you can get about your computer and the software that may be running at the time you tried to do the DOS Calibration and Test.

Another error message will be

Error -- invalid first packet from Assassin 3D.
If you get this message again, refer to your User's
Guide for Troubleshooting information or visit our
web site for Technical Support at:
http://www.fpgaming.com/technical.htm

This is a sign that your gameport may be incompatible with the Assassin 3D.

If you are using a CH Products Gameport 3 Automatic try setting your force setting to 15. You will need to edit the AUTOEXEC.BAT file and look for the line that has CHJOY3. Edit that line to say CHJOY3 15.

If you are using a ThrustMaster ACM Card you will need to turn your dial up to 7.

Please check out the Gameport Diagnostics section for more help. Also take a look at the incompatible game ports page.

Problems while using the DOS Calibration and Test

Note: If any of the testing steps cannot be completed (e.g. Pushing the joystick handle all the way forward will not complete step 3 in the testing process), the most likely cause is an incorrect calibration. Simply hit the Escape key to quit the Assassin 3D Maintenance Program and rerun it.

If the buttons are not behaving correctly, you may have chosen the wrong joystick type. If you have selected a CH Products type joystick but have a ThrustMaster type joystick plugged in, you will notice that simultaneous button presses will be converted into a single button press - most likely a press from a button you don't have on your joystick. Alternately, if you have selected a ThrustMaster type joystick and have a CH Products type joystick installed, you will notice the throttle changing when the hat buttons are pressed. As above, hit the Escape key to quit and rerun the program to chose the correct joystick type.

Take a look at the Joystick Pros and Cons to check on your joysticks protocol or type.

Lastly, if your joystick if very inexpensive (cheap), you may notice quite a bit of jumping in the joystick Time-based information. This problem exhibits itself when the joystick is moving. This is caused by lower-quality potentiometers and will definitely negatively affect the quality of your game play. If you are experiencing this problem, a joystick upgrade should completely eradicate it.

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This page was last updated 06/13/04