Re: Why can't I copy a Barbie Horse Adventures Mystery Ride game
Donna
> From http://support2.vugames.com/vug/answer.aspx?ID=2828
> after the 90-day warranty period, replacements for Vivendi PC titles
> such as Barbie Horse Adventures Mystery Ride
> are available for $10.00 per product
Hi Gene,
That is very useful information!
http://support2.vugames.com/vug/answer.aspx?ID=2828
I did not know about this replacement offer from Vivendi when I promised
myself I'd make that safety backup of my Barbie CD-ROM.
Because Vivendi/Mattel already needlessly cost me an immense amount of
frustration, I've already sworn off Vivendi & Mattel PC games forever (I am
stubborn once I make a decision, as if you can't tell).
However, I did learn enough to make the following recommendations were
another mother to ask "How should I back up my Vivendi Mattel PC game">
My answer would be (in this order).
Answer 1: Never buy any Vivendi or Mattel game. Problem solved immediately.
Answer 2: Buy the twenty-dollar Vivendi Mattel game but when the game disc
eventually becomes unplayable (trust me, it will), then send it back to
Vivendi for an additional fifteen dollars (I'm including shipping &
packaging). Not very convenient nor cost effective if you ask me.
Answer 3: Buy the twenty-dollar Vivendi game but when the game becomes
unplayable search on Amazon or Ebay and for another twenty dollars or so
you can buy a replacement game. Not very convenient.
Answer 4: Buy Alcohol 120% for about sixty dollars and create a non 1:1
copy of your twenty-dollar Vivendi game that requires Alcohol 120% to run
emulation in the background. Cost effectiveness is the worst of all the
suggestions here.
Answer 5: Buy for about 45 dollars the BlindWrite BWA Builder and make a
backup copy of your twenty-dollar Vivendi game BEFORE the game eventually
becomes unplayable. Ensure you install off the original CD-ROM but play off
the copy so only the copy gets scratched by the kids in normal use. Still
not very cost effective but at least it's convenient.
Answer 6: Try the method I'm about to try which was suggested by Shadow
which does not require the BWA Builder software. We'll see what the results
are and report back to the newsgroup.
Thank you for your suggestion as I didn't know it was an option until you
posted.
Donna
Donna
Thanks to you, am very close to backing up my Vivendi Universal Games
Mattel Barbie Horse Adventures Mystery Ride CD-ROM to two working CD-ROMs
as detailed below (one for installation and the other for playing).
So the next mother doesn't have to spend the inordinate amount of time
figuring out how to protect her Vivendi Barbie game, I wrote up exactly the
steps I followed, based on your advice and the web page
http://club.cdfreaks.com/showthread.php?t=126424
The only problem I have at the moment is that the second backup (the
installation backup vs the game-play backup) hung Nero when I tried to burn
it so, I have to try again. But, before I forget the steps, here they are.
To create the game-play CD-ROM
* Uninstall all vestiges of previously installed Vivendi sofware
* This will take long as the Vivendi uninstaller is slow & cumbersome
* Reboot
* Install Alcohol 120% version 1.9.5 (Build 3823)
* http://www.alcohol-soft.com
* Put the original Vivendi Mattel Barbie game disc in your drive
* If the Barbie game starts (it will), then hit the game EXIT button
* Start Alcohol 120% version 1.9.5 (Build 3823)
* C:\Program Files\Alcohol Soft\Alcohol 120\Alcohol.exe
* Press on the Alcohol 120% "File -> Image Making Wizard"
* Select the options below
+ Datatype "Securom *New (4.x/5.x)" (do not choose "Securom *NEW")
+ CD/DVD Device = D:
+ Read Speed = Maximum
+ on -> Skip reading errors
+ off -> Fast skip error blocks
+ off -> Advanced Sector Scanning (Factor: 100)
+ on -> Read Sub-Channel Data from current disc
+ on -> Data Position Measurement (Precision: Normal)
* Press the "Next" button
* Select the options below
+ Image name = Barbie_Horse
+ Image format = Media Descriptor Image file (*.mds)
+ Full name of Image file =
+ C:\Documents and Settings\Donna\My Documents\Alcohol
120%\Barbie_Horse.mds
+ Press the "Start" button
= This pops up an Alcohol 120% Data Position Measurement screen
= saying "Please select the measuring speed for DPM function"
= Of the dozen speeds available, choose what works best
= For example, I chose "Maximum" but you'll need to experiment
= Once you've chosen the DPM speed, press the OK button
= This writes the image files in about two minutes saying:
= Disc dumping D:
= Reading Mode: RAW + SUB-16, Ignore reading errors
= Source Info: Session: 1, Track: 1, Length: 248.4 MB/028:15:59
= DPM measuring precision: High / Maximum
= Wait for a while for DPM analysis
= Writing image file:
= C:\Documents and Settings\Donna\My Documents\Alcohol%20120%\
= Barbie_Horse.mdf & Barbie_Horse.mds
= The CD-ROM drive then ejects the original Vivendi Mattel disc
* Press "File -> Exit" to quit out of Alcohol 120%
* Install "A-Ray Scanner" version 2.0.2.3
*
http://www.softpedia.com/get/CD-DVD-Tools/CD-DVD-Rip-Other-Tools/ARay-Scanner.shtml
* Reboot
* Start A-Ray Scanner
* C:\Program Files\A-Ray_scanner\A-Ray.exe
* Click on the "OPTIONS" button
* Press the "TwinCreator" button
* Press the "Select Supported Image" button and open the MDF file
* C:\Documents and Settings\Donna\My
Documents\Alcohol%20120%\Barbie_Horse.mdf
* Press the "Select Media Description" button and open the MDS file
* C:\Documents and Settings\Donna\My
Documents\Alcohol%20120%\Barbie_Horse.mds
* Click the "Start" button
* You'll get a screen saying
= The following peak ranges will be inserted into the image
= 1700-3000 3100-4050 4200-4700 5300-5850 (blah blah blah)
= Press the "OK" button to close this TwinCreator screen
* The patching process will take about a minute or two
* Click on "OK" in the TwinCreator Done form
* Click on "Exit" in the TwinCreator form
* Click on "EXIT" in the "A-Ray Scanner v2,0.2.3" window
* You will see two additional similar-sized files on your hard disk
* C:\Documents and Settings\Donna\My Documents\Alcohol%20120%\patched.mdf
* C:\Documents and Settings\Donna\My Documents\Alcohol%20120%\patched.mds
* Remove the Vivendi Mattel Barbie CD-ROM game from your D: drive
* Put a blank CDR/W into your D: drive
* Start Alcohol 120% version 1.9.5 (Build 3823)
* C:\Program Files\Alcohol Soft\Alcohol 120\Alcohol.exe
* Right click in the main box where the MDS file is listed
* C:\Documents and Settings\My Documents\Alcohol 120%\Barbie_Horse.mds
* Size = 296.92 MB Media Descriptor Image file
* Select "Add Images" from the menu that pops up
* Choose the patched.mds file
* C:\Documents and Settings\Donna\My Documents\Alcohol%20120%\patched.mds
* Size = 304.44 MB Media Descriptor Image file
* Highlight the patched.mds media descriptor image file
* Press on "File->Image Burning Wizard"
* In the "Select an Image file you would like to record", choose
* C:\Documents and Settings\Donna\My Documents\Alcohol%20120%\patched.mds
* Check the box next to "Delete image file after recording"
* Press the Alcohol 120% Image Burning Wizard "Next" button
* You will immediately see an error pop up saying "No RMPS info in the
source, you are not able to make a copy using this datatype!"
* Just click the "OK" button to ignore this warning
* Change the Datatype to "Securom *NEW" (not "Securom *NEW 4.x/5/x")
* Select your "Write Speed" to "Maximum" or to "4X (600KB/Sec)"
* Press the "Start" button
* You will immediately see an error pop up saying "Particular Lead-Out
Setting" of "Image size does NOT match to Lead-Out recorded in TOC!" and
"Lead-Out Address in TOC: 28:15:59" and "Image size 28:58:56".
* That "Particular Lead-Out Setting" will also have these settings
* on keep TOC as on source CD, write until end of image file
* off Modify Lead Out address to the length of the image file
* off Keep TOC as on source CD, write until Lead Out address
* Keeping those default options, press the "OK" button
* Alcohol 120% will then burn the patched image in about ten minutes
* Alcohol 120% will also eject the newly burned CD-ROM when done
* When Alcohol 120% ejects the newly burned CD-ROM, press "Finish"
* Then press "File -> Exit" to exit out of Alcohol 120%
* You have now completed the first step of the two-step process
* Write "Barbie Backup 2 of 2 - PLAY CD-ROM" on the newly burned CD-ROM
* You now have a game-play CD-ROM but you need an install CD-ROM
Even though the instructions warned against it, I tried to install from
this game-play CD-ROM. The cumbersome and slow Vivendi Universal Games
installation process looked like it worked but in actuality it failed. The
game failed to play, giving the cryptic error of "15" (whatever that
means). So, I had to go through the poorly devised uninstallation process
from Vivendi (more and more I hate the fact they just don't care about us).
To create an install CD-ROM
* Make a copy of your newly burned CD-ROM using Nero or equivalent
* Use the "Exact CD" or "CD Copy" feature of your burner software
* This copy will take much longer than you are used to
* In fact, mine never did complete
If you get this copy of the backup to work
* Label this double copy "Barbie Backup 1 of 2 - INSTALL CD-ROM"
* Install your Barbie game using the 1 of 2 INSTALL CD-ROM
* Play your Barbie game using the 2 of 2 PLAY CD-ROM
* Safeguard your original Barbie game playing CD-ROM
In summary, this process of creating two CD-ROMs (one for installing, one
for playing) from the original Vivendi Universal Games Barbie game does not
require any BWA Builder and it should have worked.
I will try again (that was my last blank CD-ROM so I'll go out today and
buy some more). If anyone has advice as to why the burn of the installation
CD-ROM went overnight and never completed, please let me know.
Donna
Donna
> Path: newsdbm04.news.prodigy.com!newsdst02.news.prodigy.com!prodigy.com!newscon02.news.prodigy.com!prodigy.net!wns14feed!worldnet.att.net!4.24.21.153!newsfeed3.dallas1.level3.net!news.level3.com!newsfeed1.easynews.com!easynews.com!easynews!sn-xt-sjc-02!sn-xt-sjc-06!sn-xt-sjc-09!sn-post-sjc-01!supernews.com!corp.supernews.com!not-for-mail
> From: John Corliss <jcor...@fake.invalid>
> Newsgroups: alt.comp.periphs.cdr
> Subject: Re: Why can't I copy a Barbie Horse Adventures Mystery Ride game
> Date: Tue, 30 May 2006 02:42:26 -0700
> Organization: Posted via Supernews, http://www.supernews.com
> Message-ID: <127o4s3...@corp.supernews.com>
> User-Agent: Thunderbird 1.5.0.2 (Windows/20060308)
> MIME-Version: 1.0
> References: <447042A7...@mindspring.com> <1r8taq9i2labu.1bnb5uibnehxo$.d...@40tude.net> <tpay0mxmk7w5.16lfuncgnak0f$.d...@40tude.net> <e4usi8$2r7$1...@charm.magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu> <169j17gees8vd$.jiebni2jfb0j$.d...@40tude.net> <hkl972t2cnv95t1u2...@4ax.com> <e57ok1$cj8$1...@news.xmission.com> <am2f729sd3pngo9eo...@4ax.com> <1np92xtegph4p$.15f1m6k2ccq1b$.d...@40tude.net> <1rdh72d8dj68tu9ml...@4ax.com> <x136op877d80$.1ku6e5on1pj1a$.d...@40tude.net> <5aih721ajpb0tped7...@4ax.com> <k61qo2lbei3d.yzdxncustgzc$.d...@40tude.net> <17mf0gv3f0xao$.80nnacrf6u6w$.d...@40tude.net>
> In-Reply-To: <17mf0gv3f0xao$.80nnacrf6u6w$.d...@40tude.net>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed
> Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
> X-Complaints-To: ab...@supernews.com
> Lines: 25
> Xref: prodigy.net alt.comp.periphs.cdr:420736
> X-Antivirus: avast! (VPS 0622-3, 06/01/2006), Inbound message
> X-Antivirus-Status: Clean
>
> Donna wrote:
>> In frustration, I've asked the expert CD Freaks if they could find a copy
>> of the Blindwrite BWA Builder version 4 on the net.
>> http://club.cdfreaks.com/showthread.php?t=181545
> If a software author or authors decide to change
> the license of their program from freeware to some kind of $ware, they
> often will "search and destroy" all links to and as many archived copies
> of the freeware version as they can.
Luckily for me, a kind user on club.cdfreaks.com provided BlindWrite
version 4 for me
http://club.cdfreaks.com/showthread.php?p=1445144#post1445144
It's too bad all the tutorials using Blind Write Version 4 are nullified
without that BlindWrite version 4 software (the version 5 doesn't come with
this feature out of the box).
Now that I'm past the step of building the BWA file (I'll post it
separately so the next mom can skip this step) I'm currently on the
twinpeaks step so I'm researching that as we speak.
Here is the link to the twinpeaks download
http://club.cdfreaks.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=65147
And here are the tutorials I'm reading to understand how to use twinpeaks
http://forums.makeabackup.com/viewtopic.php?t=741
http://forums.afterdawn.com/thread_view.cfm/26771
http://club.cdfreaks.com/showthread.php?t=57740
Donna K