System Specs?

Also is there a Problem code? I remember having a 0088 Error with some software once , that had a VERY similar error message, I recall fixing it by reinstalling the Microsoft .NET Framework.

I know I currently have Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0 on my PC for awhile now ,even before the beta came out. I do not know of Sins requires files from Microsoft .NET Framework or not.

Oh and ...... Go into your XP Control Panel then to Administrative Tools and then to Event Viewer. And look for an error log file. Is any more detailed information related to this error?

Stupid question, but did you try re-installing ?

Specs are good, either there is a problem with XP or Sins didn't install right...

After the game fails to load again, go into your XP Control Panel then to Administrative Tools and then to Event Viewer. And look for an error log file.

In a few hours someone for SD/IC will be on to help, I don't have a clue...

Failed to initialize COM error, does it have a code? I've never seen a microsoft error without a code.

The new patch is a full download?

Try turning off the intro movies as well. Open C:\Documents and Settings\username\Application Data\Ironclad Games\Sins of a Solar Empire\Setting\user.setting in notepad and change ShowIntroMovies TRUE to ShowIntroMovies FALSE.

kk mate its ok look on the bright sins its sins so it will be good and at least we getting a patch

ah, thanks...i was wondering where the settings files were stored, but i didn't think to associate "ironclad games" with SSE. i'll poke around in there later and see if i can make some progress that way.

part of the difficulty is that i can think of 3 different "COM" things related to this: "Component Object Model", COM ports, and the Stardock "ComponentManager" (registry entries i found relating to SD central). if only i could figure out which of those the error was referring to.... it seems like it would have to be Component Object Model.

We have a special exe for you to try, but it won't work until you get the patch data. Please email support@ironcladgames.com once you have patched (unless that fixes your problems) and we'll send you back the exe.

alrighty, worked great under vista. nice to finally get to check it out a bit. i'm definitely impressed with the performance under vista, so far, but i haven't really put it to the test too much, yet.

going back to xp, i'm still at the same point. i tried another install and still get the COM error.

UPDATE (12:20 PM PDT): ok, i installed the patched version, and i noticed some different stuff, including a whole new error (this one even has a number!), but ended up at the same place again.

before this patch, when the download finished, there was some drive activity and then a dialog would pop up asking if i wanted to create a desktop shortcut, then ask if i wanted to run the game.

this time, (post patch) it finished downloading, then there was a bunch of decompression that happened which listed its progess in the download box. i saw lots of file names, then it deleted temporary files, so that's something different...the enumeration of files didn't happen the first time. i suspect something may have been whack with the download/install process.

so, after this part, i got a whole new error:

"There was an error activating Sins of a Solar Empire. Error: 6

Excessive activations (#) - Multiple activation requests for this product have arrived and been processed. This has triggered the threshold for potential errors. If you are having problems activating or need to reset the activation count, please email this log file to support@stardock.com from the email address you ordered under."

i click OK, it asks if i want to create a shortcut, then if i want to start the game.

when i go to start the game, i get the COM error again.

is there a way to completely remove everything related to this game, as if i had never installed it, and try again? also, if there's supposed to be an "Ironclad Games" folder in my user's "Application Data" folder, one has yet to appear. i haven't had any luck locating the one from my Vista install for SSE, unfortunately.

any ideas?

figured out the COM error....or i think i did.

so, yes, i have activated too many times. but the COM error was a hardware configuration issue, so it must have been a Windows error. it appears to be fixed now, as i unplugged the front USB header cable from the COM port on my board (OOPS! the USB and COM headers look nearly identical, i got sloppy when i switched cases recently.) now i get an activation dialog when i start the game in XP.

YAY!

it was a really strange error, i just lucked into figuring it out. i find it really strange that vista had no problems with the same situation. right now i'm not 100% certain it's fixed because i had to wait until today to get activation reset. i'll have to check tonight after work to make sure it's going to start, but getting the activation dialog is a new thing, and i think that means it's fixed.

meanwhile, i've been playing in vista! it's sweet and runs quite well on my "ancient" Athlon XP 2800+ machine. i'm starting to learn my way around the interface with the basic navigation tutorial. this weekend i should have a whole bunch of time to play and compare vista vs. xp and stuff, so i'll post anything interesting.

thanks for the efforts in helping with troubleshooting.