Why does my VP6.1 say it has expired??

[friebus]

Went to go run VP for the first time this year of 2006, and up pops a message box...

"This is a tech beta and has expired. Please visit visualpinball.com for latest version."

Or something to that effect.

So what the hell? I thought 6.1 had the expiration date removed. Anyone else have this happen to them?

 

[zerhino]

I had the same thing happen to me. DL the vp7 unexpiring from VPO under core vp files.

 

[GHoSTFaCe]

I thought 6.1 had the expiration date removed. Anyone else have this happen to them?

I thought that too, but I'm sure there were beta versions and you apparently have one. I use VP7 because I run XP SP2, but some VP6.1 people (ahem, tiltjlp) are dead-set against upgrading to VP7. If you're one of them, I've attached my VP6.1 exe file for you. I just tested it and it doesn't say it's expired.

Happy new year! :D

PS: hit the edit button instead of the quote botton . . . tiltjlp

 

[GHoSTFaCe]

Hmm, apparently no .exe attachments are allowed. Ah well, here it is zipped.

 

[tiltjlp]

I thought 6.1 had the expiration date removed. Anyone else have this happen to them?

I thought that too, but I'm sure there were beta versions and you apparently have one. I use VP7 because I run XP SP2, but some VP6.1 people (ahem, tiltjlp) are dead-set against upgrading to VP7. If you're one of them, I've attached my VP6.1 exe file for you. I just tested it and it doesn't say it's expired.

Happy new year! :D

My 6.1 still works perfectly, as it always has. And I have two perfect reasons not to upgrade, my learned and esteemed friend. Reason one is that my partner, Patrick, prefers 6.1. The other reason is that I didn't like the SP2 update, and removed it from my system, so I have no need for 7.?. I can live without gate elasticity, if it means I can avoid more unwanted MicroJunk on my PC. I'll check our version of 6.1 in our Essential Files section, just to make sure.

Just a ? for those who have gotten expiration notices when running VP. Just how much partying did you do last night? Maybe you're seeing things . . . what color is your new pet elephant?

John

 

[tiltjlp]

Thanks for the EXE file Ghostface. Seems like we only have the Full Install version of 6.1, so I added the file you provided.

John

 

[GHoSTFaCe]

My 6.1 still works perfectly, as it always has. And I have two perfect reasons not to upgrade, my learned and esteemed friend. Reason one is that my partner, Patrick, prefers 6.1. The other reason is that I didn't like the SP2 update, and removed it from my system, so I have no need for 7.?. I can live without gate elasticity, if it means I can avoid more unwanted MicroJunk on my PC.

I was just funnin' with ya John, no offense meant. Lots of people stuck with VP6.1, and truthfully, it's still more stable than VP7. Most notably for me, VP7 has an annoying Scintilla editor bug which just drives me wacky. Were I not running XP SP2, I might still be running VP6.1 as well. And, I still keep it around because an occasional table just won't play right with VP7 (which is why I still have that VP6.1 EXE handy).

 

[destruk]

You missed about 14 releases of VP since that version was made available. There was 6.1, which you had that just now expired.
Then there was 6.1 nonexpiring
Then there was vp7
VP7 Fix 1-5
VP7 alpha 1-5
VP7 nonexpiring

Really how could you have missed so many?

AJ's still has the 6.1 nonexpiring copy if you needed it. Me, I keep all the versions I run across.

 

[PacDude]

VP7 alpha 5 is the one that gave me that message just now, not VP 6.1 (apparently the version included in Phoenixx's easy install kit that I used at my mother's house is the expiring version).

 

[destruk]

I think the unexpiring one was from october for VP7 - so that is more understandable then.

 

[kristian]

I can avoid more unwanted MicroJunk on my PC.

Prolly a good choice.

 

[patrick]

VPinball-XPFix

I have the same problem.

VP61 is ok but crashes with the echap key on XP
VP7 is always ok.
VPinball-XPFix for VP61 have the expired date. Is it possible to have it without expired date? It is my prefered version.

Patrick

 

[GHoSTFaCe]

Re: VPinball-XPFix

VPinball-XPFix for VP61 have the expired date. Is it possible to have it without expired date? It is my prefered version.

Sure, check the Downloads section under Essential Files (or look at the top of this thread), there is now a download available here for a VP6.1 exe with no expiration.

 

[friebus]

Thanks a bunch kiddies, that did the trick! I've been having some weird activity with my computer (or at least when I'm on the internet, damn thing no longer remembers automatic log in for sites like this) and was worried it had spread to other areas.

 

[patrick]

VPinball-XPFix have the expired date.
With windows XP pack2, VP6 crahes when the echap key is pressed to return to the editor. VPinball-XPFix have been created to fix that but have yet the expired date.

 

[GHoSTFaCe]

Use the VP7 Unexpiring exe file (also available in Downloads, Essential Files) to correct this problem.

 

[patrick]

vp6 fix

Yes, VP7 is ok with XP.
But it seems that i must abandonate my vp6fix with XP.

 

[GHoSTFaCe]

As far as I know, the XP fix builds were all actually VP7 alpha releases even though they may not have been called that. The new VP7 functionality such as the debugger and the gates with elasticity was in the XP fix versions from the beginning, so those versions were much closer to VP7 than VP6.1.

 

[tiltjlp]

Re: vp6 fix

Yes, VP7 is ok with XP.
But it seems that i must abandonate my vp6fix with XP.

So I wonder if I'll need to switch to VP7 since you have Patrick. No big deal, I think it will work OK although I don't have the SP2 installed, and won't install it again. We'll have to see.

John

 

[tudnut]

As long as we're on the subject of the various good and bad things of 6 vs. 7, I might as well throw in (a la my thread over at VPF) that there's no ball trough bug with 6.

 

[PacDude]

What ball trough bug would that be, exactly, tudnut? There are NO ball troughs in VP in case you didn't know. They have to be scripted. So if something is broken, it's probably the authors' fault for using bad code in the first place. You'll notice that no VPM tables using VBS file based troughs are broken in VP7....

At this point, I know of no goo reason to keep 6.1 around. Authors should fix their tables and that would be that. Everyone should be on the same page because if/when the Ultracade version comes out, there will be yet another yet of incompatibilities and I'd prefer to see only 2 VP versions instead of 3.

 

[tudnut]

Okay, let me be more precise: there were tables with open ball troughs whose scripting worked just fine under 6 but which don't work under 7, for some reason. (Geez, YOU knew what I meant, you've been in on the forum over there!) I'd hardly call it "bad code" if it worked in the first place, it's just bad as regards the update. (Of course I suppose someone more knowledgeable than me could argue that there was some inherent flaw in their code in the first place, anyway, which 6 was just acting more lenient to. After all, not ALL open trough tables have gone sour, but certainly enough have to indicate some common problem.)

I was by no means advocating that people stick with 6 over 7, just mentioning one of the differences.

As for authors fixing their tables, works for me...though I wonder if they're all still around.

 

[friebus]

What is the current state of the Ultracade business? Wasn't there supposed to be a thing out for Xmas? What's the short and skinny version of the progress, and more importantly, when is that nifty controler coming out!

Actually I'm just curious cause I know you authors were very much looking forward to them being able to do some long overdue bug fixes with VP. Are they making good on their promise and not causing the end of the world like so many feared?! From what I'm reading into the above post by Pac, it sounds like they are making good. So how 'bout a quickie update from anyone in the know.

 

[PacDude]

Well, the last time I heard anything, they were almost entirely going with Kurt's tables in the initial release (or at least the test run) so I don't think I'll be retiring any time soon, if that's what anyone is wondering. I don't and won't get paid if it's not included. AHigh agreed some of the older tables weren't very commercial and was going to push for a few of my more popular ones to get in there when the product comes out, but I haven't heard anything lately.

I've heard they are in the red and only because some Chicago gaming company decided to back them is the product going forward (seems their arcade cabinets aren't making them big profits?). I'm just guessing, but being based out of two incredibly expensive states for real estate can't help any (San Jose, CA and some city in Massachusetts).

I've heard they need VPM to do certain things and that the VPM authors want to trade their source code for VP's source code so we don't have to depend on them or Randy to get updates to VP anymore. I haven't heard whether they made any progress on that front and seeing as Destruk seems to be pissed at me over suggesting Monopoly's mech sim isn't quite perfect, I doubt I ever will hear anything any sooner than you will.

I've heard Randy has access to their beta releases and source code and he could release an update at any time, but even Ultracade hasn't heard from him in a long time, so I wouldn't count on Randy doing ANYTHING with ANY of it. You've probably got a better chance of seeing ULtracade EVENTUALLY (if they can ever get a hold of him to get permission) release one. I think they can work around the problem by bundling their full version of VP with a hardware product like their controller to use as a dongle and that might get around the whole Randy issue, but I don't know specifics.

I've personally tested a beta VP to see if the reel bug is gone and on the last version I downloaded (a month ago?) reels still don't display correctly on ATI hardware.

The ultracade version of VP breaks certain things because of new physics. For example, I forgot to disable a kicker on one of my tables (maybe Firepower) for the trough eject but normally a ball would never make it back up in there to get trapped in that kicker. But the new VP sucks in balls much more readily within a certain range so it bounces RIGHT BACK IN on that table like that because the trough isn't kicking the ball out exactly straight and so it immediately just falls back into the kicker and gets stuck. That's just one example of how it can break an existing table.

All existing tables default to having their reels and decals turned off (in the last version I tried) so at the very least you'd have to load them in and turn them on and then resave.

I saw no controls for a vertical display offhand so I'm wondering if that's a separate program (like many rotating LCD monitors come with) and the new VP simply adapts properly or something. But then I didn't look into every little odd new control (some of which are found in odd places and are apparently only temporary for testing purposes).

I heard their testing was to start around next week in the field, so obviously the product didn't ship by Christmas.... The photos I've seen of the current prototype look pretty darn cool, though. I wouldn't mind having one, especially if they had some cool tables to go with it.

 

[tiltjlp]

Dude, the trough problem Tudnut is talking about is with some EMs that display drained balls on the bottom right apron. I seem to recall Bedigo saying the problem had to do with kickers and ramp contol points ovelapping.

John