This is gonna suck, I know it (windows 7, FOF, batch files)

[Dutch]

I upgraded my home PC to Windows 7 this weekend.

CELEBRATE!

Now I have to get FOF2k7 and MP and gstelmacks utilities back up and operational.

DREAD.

[Dutch]

Well, off to a good start. Downloading the installation package took 18 seconds and I have the core game installed already.

[Dutch]

No licenses left. Must e-mail support.

http://www.elicense.com/support-form.aspx

[Dutch]

I don't think it's realistic that they will respond tonight. I'm guessing they will respond tommorrow morning before I can continue with my upgrade.

[Dutch]

Still nothing. Although it wasn't mentioned in the auto-emailer, I suspect that elicense is on vacation until next week. If they respond this week, I'll consider it a pleasant surprise.

Thankfully I have this loaded on my laptop and managed to keep my leagues up to date.

[QuikSand]

(dynasty thread)

[Dutch]

Might as well be. :)

[MIJB#19]

(dynasty thread)You read my mind or something? I thought the same thing. :lol:

[QuikSand]

Oh, and I'd offer to help... but I'm clearly not the guy. When I got a new W7 laptop for home, I never got any of the bells and whistles to work, and now my setup there is managing the Pensacola Redskins with default graphics and no gstelmack toys. A far cry from the fully cuervo-ized Chesapeake Chitterlings with all the analytics in place.

[Tasan]

Batch files can still be made to work. I'm not sure about stelmac stuff though, haven't gotten around to putting those back on.

[Yoda]

Windows 7 has a free virtual XP machine that you can download right from Microsoft.

[Jughead Spock]

I just recovered from a big crash and re-setup four different leagues, no big problem - other than the inherent arcane setup crap necessary with this game.

[Dutch]

E-license is back in action today after the holiday week and issued me a new license for my order #. Thanks for that, I'll try and continue my dynasty tonight. :)

[Dutch]

And what do ya know, a couple of shortcut tweaks, download some history files, find my team's passwords...and I'm back up and running. That was quite a bit easier than I anticipated. :)

[QuikSand]

Willing to share the contents of your batch files? I never got around to getting them set up at home, but perhaps you have inspired me to try again... since I'm W7 also, maybe our setups are similar enough that I might be able to tweak yours.

[Dutch]

I hate to give the bat file without instructions and I am not very good at step-by-step instructions...so this might be a disaster, but since this is all relatively fresh on my mind, I better strike while the iron is hot and put down as much info as I can into this post.

I won't be offended if you look at this post and just say "forget it" but it's so much easier to do than to read about. Anyway...

Here's my IHOF.bat file


copy universe\IHOF\frfoot.fni universe\
copy universe\IHOF\frfoot.fcy universe\
copy universe\IHOF\*.bmp "D:\Games\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\Pictures\"
start frfoot2007.lnk


**********

IMPORTANT: I'm not sure if you need this tidbit or not, but without this info, I'd never have been able to get this to work.

1. For Windows 7...You need to be able to see the "appdata" folder and it helps to see all file extensions. So go to Windows Explore pane, click on the "Organize" drop down menu, and select-->"Folder and Search Options"

2. In "Folder and Search Options", select the "View" tab and CHECK "Show hidden files, folders, and drives" and UNCHECK "Hide Extensions for known file types"

*****

As for the batch file instructions...

You basically need two files in the following directory-->

C:\Users\mcossaboom\AppData\Roaming\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007
(red text is obviously going to be your account info)

IHOF.bat
FrFoot2007.lnk(The frfoot2007.lnk file is the shortcut file that is created when you right-click on the FrFoot2007.exe that runs the game. Just generate that shortcut, rename it frfoot2007.lnk and copy it into the above folder.

When I installed the game, I put it in my D: drive...so that's where I have to navigate to in order to generate that shortcut. ("D:\Games\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\FrFoot2007.exe"))

Again, don't really don't know how much you have set up already but for completeness sake, I'll put this info out there also.

In your C:\Users\mcossaboom\AppData\Roaming\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\Universe folder, you need your "IHOF" folder that contains the two city files for the unique league and any picture files that have been created for your league.

Once you get one league working, just copy your working batch file (change all instances of the league name to the next league) and create a new league folder under universe containing there unique city files and pictures files.

Hopefully you catch one or two steps that are helpful to get your batch files sorted out.

[QuikSand]

Not sure when I will get to sit down with this, but many thanks.

[MIJB#19]

It's turing into an interactive dynasty, I love it!

[Dutch]

It's turing into an interactive dynasty, I love it!

:) Damn, I totally forgot about gstelmack's utilities...guess that'll be the next part of this awesome dynasty thread.

[Ben E Lou]

My new laptop should arrive today or tomorrow. I will be taking this plunge finally. :eek:

[Solecismic]

I have been assured that ViaTech hasn't forgotten about this. At some point, I hope to offer different downloads for post-Vista and pre-Vista. Hopefully in the not-too-distant future.

[MacroGuru]

This wasn't an issue when I received my Win 7 laptop...followed the instructions and done....

[Dutch]

I have been assured that ViaTech hasn't forgotten about this. At some point, I hope to offer different downloads for post-Vista and pre-Vista. Hopefully in the not-too-distant future.

*fingers crossed* I had to rebuild my home PC once already since this thread started...it just gets tiring.

Ben - I needed to read a LOT of the gstelmack utilities thread to pick out all the pertinant information there....that was a pain in the ass too, but shouldn't be for you...it was your posts that got me sorted out.

[gstelmack]

The most you should have to do for my utility suite is create an FOFPaths.txt file with the relevant paths to the FOF install and maybe the app data path where FOF installs its bits.

[Ben E Lou]

*fingers crossed* I had to rebuild my home PC once already since this thread started...it just gets tiring.

Ben - I needed to read a LOT of the gstelmack utilities thread to pick out all the pertinant information there....that was a pain in the ass too, but shouldn't be for you...it was your posts that got me sorted out.I hope so, 'cause otherwise, you're gonna be running the Orlando Jets, and I'll be running the Augusta (GA) Bills in the IHOF. ;)

[Dutch]

hehe...

Greg, another part I'm pretty sure I had to do was move 6 or so files from one directory to another.

[gstelmack]

hehe...

Greg, another part I'm pretty sure I had to do was move 6 or so files from one directory to another.

You should not need to do that anymore, it should be pulling the correct files from the correct places, IF you have the directories set up right. If anyone still has to move files to make it run, I'd love to know which files and what utility made you do that.

[Ben E Lou]

I have everything working fine in the batch files except for the .bmp files. I'm getting an "Access is denied" error that I can't resolve. I found a solution online and set myself as the owner of both the appdata and program files solecismic folders, but that still didn't solve it. Anyone got a quick fix there? Since it appears cities, nicknames, and fgr file stuff is working fine, I certainly won't spend much time on just this.

[Ben E Lou]

StelmackSoft stuff working fine on first attempt. Even did DBupdater and the cities are still correct. Definitely using new machine to sim starting with CCFL tomorrow morning.

[Kodos]

I can't seem to find my export on our Vista laptop. I can do everything but find my damn export. Rrrrrrgh. The game says it is at c:\program files\solecismic software\fof 2027\export\IHOF0001.022. But it isn't.

I'm trying to phase out the copy on my home PC so that I can set it up on my new Windows 7 laptop and delicense it on the PC. Before delicensing, I wanted the security of having it fully operational on our older laptop. Frustration.

[Yoda]

The export will be at
C:\Users\*User Name*\AppData\Roaming\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\export\IHOF0001.022

[Yoda]

I have everything working fine in the batch files except for the .bmp files. I'm getting an "Access is denied" error that I can't resolve. I found a solution online and set myself as the owner of both the appdata and program files solecismic folders, but that still didn't solve it. Anyone got a quick fix there? Since it appears cities, nicknames, and fgr file stuff is working fine, I certainly won't spend much time on just this.

Did you have the change in permissions affect all sub folders?

You might have to run the batch file as admin as well, or have the batch file in the same folder as the .bmp files.

[Kodos]

The export will be at
C:\Users\*User Name*\AppData\Roaming\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\export\IHOF0001.022

Somehow, that folder isn't even there, starting where I underlined it. Mine is installed at C:\Program Files\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007. I can load the game, make changes, etc., but when I export, there is nothing in the export folder.

This may be the final breaking point with me and FOF.

[Yoda]

You are right, that is where the game is installed. But, because of changes MS made, the DATA files are in the app data folder. Which is hidden if you haven't unhidden it. You have to make it so you can see the hidden folders.

[Ben E Lou]

Did you have the change in permissions affect all sub folders?Yup.

You might have to run the batch file as admin as well, or have the batch file in the same folder as the .bmp files.OK. These seem like easy-enough things to try. ;)

[Kodos]

You are right, that is where the game is installed. But, because of changes MS made, the DATA files are in the app data folder. Which is hidden if you haven't unhidden it. You have to make it so you can see the hidden folders.

Ah, the old "hidden folder" trick. I'll look into that tonight.

[gstelmack]

I have everything working fine in the batch files except for the .bmp files. I'm getting an "Access is denied" error that I can't resolve. I found a solution online and set myself as the owner of both the appdata and program files solecismic folders, but that still didn't solve it. Anyone got a quick fix there? Since it appears cities, nicknames, and fgr file stuff is working fine, I certainly won't spend much time on just this.

Everything other than the bmps goes in the Universe area over in app data. However, the bitmaps are still stuck in program files, which you intentionally can't write to on Win7 to make it harder for viruses and whatnot to affect your exes. The Pictures folder really should be in app data since it's important to modify for multiple league support, but until then yeah you either need to unprotect that folder in the FOF install directory, or run your batch file as administrator. I'd recommend the latter, it's less of a security hole.

[Ben E Lou]

Everything other than the bmps goes in the Universe area over in app data. However, the bitmaps are still stuck in program files, which you intentionally can't write to on Win7 to make it harder for viruses and whatnot to affect your exes. The Pictures folder really should be in app data since it's important to modify for multiple league support, but until then yeah you either need to unprotect that folder in the FOF install directory, or run your batch file as administrator. I'd recommend the latter, it's less of a security hole.Running as administrator made it reference windows\system32 rather than the FOF folder, so I just dropped the shortcut there and used absolute links in the batch file, and now everything works.

copy "C:\Users\Ben\AppData\Roaming\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\universe\WOOF\frfoot.fni" "C:\Users\Ben\AppData\Roaming\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\universe\"
copy "C:\Users\Ben\AppData\Roaming\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\universe\WOOF\frfoot.fcy" "C:\Users\Ben\AppData\Roaming\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\universe\"
copy "C:\Users\Ben\AppData\Roaming\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\universe\WOOF\frfoot.fgr" "C:\Users\Ben\AppData\Roaming\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\universe\"
copy "C:\Users\Ben\AppData\Roaming\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\universe\WOOF\*.bmp" "C:\Program Files (x86)\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\Pictures\"
copy "C:\Users\Ben\AppData\Roaming\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\universe\WOOF\TeamImageMap.csv "C:\Documents and Settings\BenjaminLe\My Documents\StelmackSoft\UtilitySuite"
start frfoot2007.lnk

[Hoya1]

couple of quick questions....

what's the .fgr file?
where is your frfoot2007.lnk located
where is your batch file located.


thanks!

[Ben E Lou]

FGR is really only needed if you're simming a MP league. It contains the settings such as injuries, cap span, etc.

I've got the link in the windows/system32 folder, because that's where Run As Administrator seems to be taking me. No idea why. Don't really care why. ;)

Batch file is in the Front Office Football 2007 folder.

[Hoya1]

thanks!
I've never moved the fgr file, but think i will add this to my batch files that I could never get to work and quit putting any effort to it. I'm hoping that your setup will work!

[QuikSand]

Spent some time with this lovely process today. Bad idea.

[aston217]

Quik, the batch files should work fine as long as the directories are all correct and you are running in admin mode. Actually I don't think I'm even doing that.

The one quirk is with this last line, where you put the custom BMPs into a folder in the FOF install directory.


copy universe\OSFL\*.bmp c:\progra~2\soleci~1\fronto~1\pictures\
start c:\progra~2\soleci~1\fronto~1\frfoot~1.exe


Dutch's instructions show that he installed into a custom folder. If you install just into the default directory (most people do), then there's a minor change if you're running 64-bit Windows 7:

Instead of:
C:\Program Files\...
It's now:
C:\Program Files(x86)\...

That could be where you're tripping up. If you use shortened folder names as I do in the quoted excerpt from my batch file posted above, then what used to be "progra~1" will now be "progra~2".

[QuikSand]

New laptop, trying this stuff again. I'm using a modified version of Ben's location-specific batch file -- looks like I'm getting all the files copied over correctly, but then it doesn't locate the frfoot.lnk file, even though I have copies of that file located in both the AppData and Program Files folders.

Still trying... am attempting to think of this as if it were a puzzle, rather than a pain in the ass.

Well, at least this seems to mean I can get the names and graphics to work properly, even if I then have to click another place to run FOF. Progress, I suppose.

[Dutch]

Still trying... am attempting to think of this as if it were a puzzle, rather than a pain in the ass.

If only we had that mindset 5 years ago.

The frfoot.lnk file will be in your C:\Users\(Quiksand)\AppData\Roaming\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007 folder. Or create one there by rightclicking in the directory folder pane-->right-click-->New-->Shortcut

And make sure you set frfoot.lnk-->Properties-->Shortcut to...

C:\Program Files (x86)\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\FrFoot2007.exe

(or wherever your default install directory is)

[QuikSand]

Well, I confess to being lost among the advice from several people, so here's my status update:

My current batch file for IHOF is drawn mostly from Ben's above:

- - - - -
copy "C:\Users\mjs\AppData\Roaming\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\universe\IHOF\frfoot.fni" "C:\Users\mjs\AppData\Roaming\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\universe"
copy "C:\Users\mjs\AppData\Roaming\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\universe\IHOF\frfoot.fcy" "C:\Users\mjs\AppData\Roaming\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\universe"
copy "C:\Users\mjs\AppData\Roaming\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\universe\IHOF\frfoot.fgr" "C:\Users\mjs\AppData\Roaming\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\universe"
copy "C:\Users\mjs\AppData\Roaming\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\universe\IHOF\*.bmp "C:\Program Files (x86)\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\Pictures"
copy "C:\Users\mjs\AppData\Roaming\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\universe\IHOF\TeamImageMap.csv "C:\Documents and Settings\mjs\My Documents\StelmackSoft\UtilitySuite"
start frfoot2007.lnk

- - - - -

When I run it, it correctly copies over the .fni, .fcy and .fgr files, then it gives me an error message on the .bmp instructions "The syntax of the command is incorrect" and then the same message for the fourth instruction for the Stelmackalyzer. The .bmp files are not being transferred.

Then, the last operation generates a popup window that states: Windows cannot find 'frfoot2007.lnk'. Make sure you typed the name correctly and try again.

Anyway, at this point it seems to be copying over city names, which is the most annoying thing when it's not correct. I'd still like to work out the rest (don't even know the value of the stelmack line actually), and if my spelling all this out helps someone point out what I'm doing wrong, I'd be very grateful.

[Ben E Lou]

The Stelmack line is useless to you if you're not running Extender. That just brings in the images and link to the web for that.

The fourth line...

MINE: copy "C:\Users\Ben\AppData\Roaming\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\universe\IHOF\*.bmp" "C:\Program Files (x86)\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\Pictures\"
YOURS: copy "C:\Users\mjs\AppData\Roaming\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\universe\IHOF\*.bmp "C:\Program Files (x86)\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\Pictures"

[Ben E Lou]

I guess try the end slash?

[QuikSand]

Just checking a few things and typing out my results:

-IHOF folder is in the correct place, and the ban*.bmp files are in that main folder

-path to the Program Files (x86) appears to be correct

-i do *not* have a file named teamimagemap.csv in my IHOF folder or anywhere that I can locate (I have loaded but not run the stelmackalyzer on this machine)

[QuikSand]

I guess try the end slash?

Edited it in, still getting the same error message and no bmp files moving.

[Ben E Lou]

Yeah...the teamimagemap.csv file is in your StelmackSoft folder. There's no need for that line in the batch or to move the file to your IHOF folder if you don't use Extender.

[Ben E Lou]

Ahhhh..I see it. You're missing a quotation mark after *.bmp

[QuikSand]

Oh, I also get a popup window every time I open FOF with my desktop shortcut, asking if I approve the unapproved program making changes to my computer. I have the file properties set to "Run as Administrator" and don't see any other settings there that seem relevant.

[Ben E Lou]

Oh, I also get a popup window every time I open FOF with my desktop shortcut, asking if I approve the unapproved program making changes to my computer. I have the file properties set to "Run as Administrator" and don't see any other settings there that seem relevant.I got rid of that by turning off all security other than my Antivirus/Firewall. It's been around a year since I did it, so I don't remember the specifics.

[QuikSand]

Ahhhh..I see it. You're missing a quotation mark after *.bmp

Sweet, that worked. No idea how it happened, as all I did was paste in yours and do a replace to put in my user name. Bad spot for an errant keystroke, I guess. Many thanks.

[QuikSand]

Since other people working through their problems gave me great aid, here's my current batch file, that properly transfers the frfoot files and the ban*.bmp files:

- - - - -
copy "C:\Users\mjs\AppData\Roaming\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\universe\IHOF\frfoot.fni" "C:\Users\mjs\AppData\Roaming\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\universe"
copy "C:\Users\mjs\AppData\Roaming\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\universe\IHOF\frfoot.fcy" "C:\Users\mjs\AppData\Roaming\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\universe"
copy "C:\Users\mjs\AppData\Roaming\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\universe\IHOF\frfoot.fgr" "C:\Users\mjs\AppData\Roaming\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\universe"
copy "C:\Users\mjs\AppData\Roaming\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\universe\IHOF\*.bmp" "C:\Program Files (x86)\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\Pictures\"
start frfoot2007.lnk
- - - - -

I'll keep working on the auto-start, but thanks to you all for your guidance.

[Ben E Lou]

Found the security thingamabob.

Control Panel-->User Accounts-->Change User Account Control Settings

[QuikSand]

Ahhhh..I see it. You're missing a quotation mark after *.bmp

FYI, the missing quotation mark is in the code text you posted above... I don't want to edit it in myself, but you may want to, as that seemed to be my problem.

[QuikSand]

Found the security thingamabob.

Control Panel-->User Accounts-->Change User Account Control Settings

Yeah, I just set that to "don't bug me" despite the sense that this seemed like risky behavior. Alas.

[dzilla77]

The Stelmack line is useless to you if you're not running Extender. That just brings in the images and link to the web for that.

The fourth line...

MINE: copy "C:\Users\Ben\AppData\Roaming\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\universe\IHOF\*.bmp" "C:\Program Files (x86)\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\Pictures\"
YOURS: copy "C:\Users\mjs\AppData\Roaming\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\universe\IHOF\*.bmp "C:\Program Files (x86)\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\Pictures"

Missing a set of quotes after the first .bmp.

[Ben E Lou]

Edited, Quik. (And now it's my turn to think "how on earth did that one character get deleted?")

[QuikSand]

So... is the purpose of running a shortcut file rather than the actual file itself so it can be set up to run as administrator? Still hoping to crack this and make it a one step process.

[Dutch]

It has to do with the split between the program files and the universe files. The executable sits in one directory, but all the changes to each invidivual universe sit over in the appdata directory. So everything is built out in the appdata directory and to make it easier, the shortcut is used to just point back to the executable.

[QuikSand]

Okay... so I'm looking in my AppData file folder, here's the exact batch file that i see:

copy "C:\Users\mjs\AppData\Roaming\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\universe\IHOF\frfoot.fni" "C:\Users\mjs\AppData\Roaming\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\universe"
copy "C:\Users\mjs\AppData\Roaming\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\universe\IHOF\frfoot.fcy" "C:\Users\mjs\AppData\Roaming\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\universe"
copy "C:\Users\mjs\AppData\Roaming\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\universe\IHOF\frfoot.fgr" "C:\Users\mjs\AppData\Roaming\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\universe"
copy "C:\Users\mjs\AppData\Roaming\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\universe\IHOF\*.bmp" "C:\Program Files (x86)\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\Pictures\"
start frfoot2007.lnk

I also see an file named frfoot2007.lnk in the same directory.

When I run this batch file, it appears to handle all the transfer of files properly, but then it coughs up when it cannot locate the frfoot.lnk file, for whatever reason.

[aston217]

Try starting the .exe rather than the .lnk.

[ozias]

Hey Quik, this is all I use for my batch file and I've not had a problem running the game using either of the MP leagues or solo play.

cd..
copy OSFL\frfoot.* C:\Users\Oz\AppData\Roaming\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\universe
copy OSFL\*.bmp "C:\Program Files (x86)\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\Pictures"
start FrFoot2007.lnk

I have the same setup for the eNFL as well, except it's copy eNFL\frfoot.* and eNFL\*.bmp

In the universe folder, I have a OSFL folder and an eNFL folder, in each folder I keep all of the team pictures as well as a copy of the frfoot.fcy and frfoot.fni.

I have the frfoot.fgr in the Universe folder, as well as the .fcy and .fni files so solo play will work. There is also the frfoot2007.lnk(shortcut link) in there as well which the "start frfoot2007.lnk" line is looking for, and the link points to the actual executable here..."C:\Program Files (x86)\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\FrFoot2007.exe"

Not sure if it will help you or not, but I've not had any problems using the above.

[Jughead Spock]

I got tired of dealing with .lnk issues, and just added these two lines to the bottom -

cd "\program files (x86)\solecismic software\Front Office Football 2007\"
start FrFoot2007.exe

[Dutch]

Right-click on the frfoot2007.lnk file and walk through the following tabs to ensure these settings are correct.

COMPATIBILITY tab
CHECK both boxes for...
"Run this program in compatibility mode for Windows XP Service Pack 2"
AND
"Run this program as an administrator"

GENERAL tab
Read-only and Hidden Attributes are unchecked

SHORTCUT tab
Target: "C:\Program Files (x86)\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007\FrFoot2007.exe"

Start in: "C:\Program Files (x86)\Solecismic Software\Front Office Football 2007"

(When you click on "OPEN FILE LOCATION" it actually opens the folder where the "frfoot2007.exe" executable resides. Here you can verify that the GENERAL and COMPATIBILITY tabs for the executable are set with the same check boxes as for the link file.)

[QuikSand]

Thanks for the suggestions - probably will sit down with this tomorrow, it's becoming a vision quest for me now. I may do peyote first.