Aceshigh Posted October 30, 2008 Share Posted October 30, 2008 Hi everyone, I need help on an odd issue. I have my FSX and FTX installed on a second hard drive. Last night I unplugged the second hard drive to dust out my tower. I forgot to plug the second drive back in. I booted up and of course the FSX & FTX Icons showed as broken links. I shut down and plugged the second hard drive back in and rebooted. Now the FSX & FTX Icons are still showing as dead links ( see screenshot ). They work but no Icons ? I remade the short cuts and still they show up as dead. I clicked on the properties of the shortcuts and the Icons are showing as fine but not on the desktop? I re ran the FTX Icon color mode swapper and it worked, but on reboot the icon is dead again. ( not showing correctly). I went to the directory of FSX and sent the "FSX.exe' to the desktop as a shortcut. But still on the desktop it shows as a broken link ?? arhhhhhhhhhh.... any ideas ? Is it best to have FSX and FTX on a second drive? ..why did this happen? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
a49002 Posted October 30, 2008 Share Posted October 30, 2008 Mate, You indicated that the link actually runs ok, so this is possibly just an icon refresh issue. This may sound oddly simple but I suggest right clicking on your desktop background (everything minimised, and choose a part of the screen with no icons) and select the 'Refresh' option. Check if your Icons refresh correctly. If not, just right click on the affected icon/s and choose the 'Properties' option then select 'Change Icon' and browse to the location of your FSX executable file (or any suitable icon for that matter). Paul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aceshigh Posted October 30, 2008 Author Share Posted October 30, 2008 No luck, tried all that. ..if I fix the FTX mode icon the next time I turn the mode on or off the icon shows as dead again. FTX does the same ? ( as in the screenshot above ) got me stumped ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maurice_King Posted October 30, 2008 Share Posted October 30, 2008 Right first things first , Make sure the HD is the same drive letter assigned to it as it was before, this is VERY important. For this reason I always make my CD Y and Burner X as they then NEVER cahnge and thus effect the active partition and drive letter allocation for other drives and or Partitions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aceshigh Posted October 30, 2008 Author Share Posted October 30, 2008 Yes, just re-checked, the drive letter is still drive "E" as when I installed the FSX & FTX. The FSX Icon seem to be back, how and why I have no idea. The FTX icon still only half works? Seems to be linked to the scripts, I reinstalled the FTX color mode icon changer and it will stay now on green for "On" mode but now when it gets turned "off" the icon changes to the dead link icon, fails to go red. I always leave this FTX icon on the desktop but unplugging the drive may have damaged the color mode script?? Im guessing now of course. thanks * Just found out that FTX wont turn off no matter what the FTX mode icon says. its stuck in the "on" mode. oh dear... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maurice_King Posted October 30, 2008 Share Posted October 30, 2008 I did some digging and the Icons you see on the desktop are NOT as the old type are BUT you can very easily go to the FSX directory and right click on the executable and make a new Desktop Icon, it really isn't a big deal Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aceshigh Posted October 30, 2008 Author Share Posted October 30, 2008 I did some digging and the Icons you see on the desktop are NOT as the old type are BUT you can very easily go to the FSX directory and right click on the executable and make a new Desktop Icon, it really isn't a big deal Already did that and it failed, ( as I mentioned in my first post ) the Icons still show as dead links on the desktop. So to me its is a "big deal". I went to executable and made a new desktop icon but it still shows as a dead link on the desktop., I stated that in the start of the post? And FTX is stuck in "on" mode. So a very big deal for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maurice_King Posted October 30, 2008 Share Posted October 30, 2008 I don't quite follow are you able to edit the icon program activation line at all ?? Something doesn't ring true and I think it has something to do with file ownership and access rights. Yet another Vista bug that is supposed to help make the OS and its file structure more secure but the flow on effect is it malkes editing scripts for program execution a right pain. OK can you run FSX etc fromn the Program menu? if so (after deleting the original icons from the desktop - This is an must) go to the program meun and copy the shourcut there and see if that works !! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aceshigh Posted October 30, 2008 Author Share Posted October 30, 2008 I deleted the icons, copied the ones from the program menu and when they hit the desktop they show as the dead link image. The FSX one stays there to next boot then goes bad, works but shows as a dead link. FSX mode icon was replaced by re running the FTXmode_icon_color swapper.exe. after reinstall it shows as blue, I then turn FTX to "on" and the icon goes green, turn it off and the icon fails to go red and just shows as the dead link image. FTX is now always in the "on" mode. Cannot turn it off ? So no matter what I delete and reinstall or copy from other menus the result goes back to the dead link image and FTX mode stuck in "on". dam vista !! :'( PS: i checked all file ownership and access rights and all is ticked to full. FSX, FTX, icons etc all have the full access. hope that makes sense. lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wantok Posted October 30, 2008 Share Posted October 30, 2008 You could try this... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aceshigh Posted October 30, 2008 Author Share Posted October 30, 2008 Thanks Wantok that fixed the dead icon issue, but FTX is still stuck in "On"mode. I did the following and it worked: "Delete the IconCache.db file as mentioned above, but instead of killing Explorer, instead switch to 16-bit color mode, and then back to 32-bit color mode." Now I need to fix FTX as its stuck in "on" mode? bloody Vista.. grrrr... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Aussieman Posted October 30, 2008 Share Posted October 30, 2008 Vista has nothing to do with it ...... it reminds me of the I D1 0 T syndrome Cheers Pat Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aceshigh Posted October 30, 2008 Author Share Posted October 30, 2008 Vista has nothing to do with it ...... it reminds me of the I D1 0 T syndrome Cheers Pat So your calling me an idiot.. who the hell do you think you are? Im not here to be insulted. Your comment has been Reported to the moderator. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Tomkins Posted October 30, 2008 Share Posted October 30, 2008 Pat, you're not being very helpful. I know you're having a joke, but tech stuff is a nightmare for many of us. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maurice_King Posted October 30, 2008 Share Posted October 30, 2008 For what its worth you might like to check your registry entries for FTX and FSX as these can in some instances get screwed with both Vista and XP Pro especially with dynamic Icons like that used with FTX. I believe this is where you issue might lie rather than with the actual Icon itself, FTX switching and it's icon are dynamic so they get swapped in and out of the scripted location. This isn't necessarily an issue with Vista or any other OS. Vista currently has issues with some hardware and software but that is to be expected. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aceshigh Posted October 30, 2008 Author Share Posted October 30, 2008 The icons are not the worry.. just an annoyance. I could put up with bad icons at least if they worked, the FSX icon works the FTX mode icon does not. ... its locked to FTX "on" mode. I checked through the registry but started to get in too deep for my skill level. thanks for the help. Feel a bit let down tonight, normaly these forums are friendly, with fellow flight simmers all willing to help best they can. Sometimes pooling together to help work someones tech problem out. But to have ones forum post insulted and a personal insult at that is getting low. Mark ( Aceshigh) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Venema Posted October 30, 2008 Share Posted October 30, 2008 What do you mean by FTX Mode is stuck "ON"? Are you referring to the icon colour, or that FTX Mode can't be switched off? Please elaborate for us Mark. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Aussieman Posted October 30, 2008 Share Posted October 30, 2008 Is it possible that you may have created a power spike when you plugged the drive back in? Ii usually leave my computer turned off for at least 10 minutes before touching anything inside the case to make sure everything is safe. It is also advisable to earth yourself to something to prevent spikes. If that has happened then the drive could be on its way to HD heaven. Just a thought. Cheers Pat Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Aussieman Posted October 30, 2008 Share Posted October 30, 2008 Have you done a flight after you have tried to turn off FTX?? If it has turned off you will notice the difference in the textures. You will get the default desert type texture. Cheers Pat Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aceshigh Posted October 30, 2008 Author Share Posted October 30, 2008 What do you mean by FTX Mode is stuck "ON"? Are you referring to the icon colour, or that FTX Mode can't be switched off? Please elaborate for us Mark. FTX mode cannot be switched off. FTX is ON when I go into the flight sim. Even if the Icon on the desk says its off and its showing as Red. PS: Aussieman, insult me one minute offering help the next? ( read my reply a few posts back ) everything else on the drive is working fine, only FTX mode cannot be turned off no matter what the mode on the desktop says. I see only FTX textures when flying. Even if the mode is switched to off. With the mode on the desktop saying OFF and RED, I can go for a flight over any FTX area and still see FTX textures. cannot turn FTX off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aceshigh Posted October 30, 2008 Author Share Posted October 30, 2008 A picture or two is worth a thousand words... FTX MODE ON. FTX MODE OFF FTX is ON regardless of what the mode switcher says. Before anyone asks ... Yes, I came out of the Flight Sim before changing the mode from On to off. LOL AuGreen shown in these screenshots but no matter what FTX area is loaded FTX is always ON. Can't get it to turn off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maurice_King Posted October 30, 2008 Share Posted October 30, 2008 This is way out in left field but why would you want to switch it off? The script to copy has been effected by the look of it. you might need to de-install and then clean the registry entry and re-install so the script is reset. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aceshigh Posted October 30, 2008 Author Share Posted October 30, 2008 LOL I know FTX is good but some days I like to fly outside of Australia. yes a full re-install may be in order. Unless someone come along with a fix. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Holger Sandmann Posted October 30, 2008 Share Posted October 30, 2008 Hi Mark, good news: your screenshot comparison does not show anything wrong because the mode switcher does not switch FTX and its ground textures and other features on or off. All the application does when you select OFF is to restore several modified default files that are used outside of the FTX coverage area. And only two of these files can lead to readily apparent visual issues when flying outside of Australia with FTX Mode ON. One of them is the terrain.cfg file that can cause the loss of water bodies if Ultimate Terrain or similar add-ons with custom terrain.cfg entries are used; and the other is an autogen definition file that leads to those odd "gabled" rooftop textures on some industrial buildings. Other than that there's no visible difference between FTX ON or OFF. If you actually want to restore the default Australia you'd have to set FTX Mode to OFF and manually uncheck all the FTX entries in the scenery library menu. Cheers, Holger Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maurice_King Posted October 30, 2008 Share Posted October 30, 2008 "Mark" Turning FTX On or Off doesn't effect ground tiles anywhere else but Australia, at least on my system it doesn't. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wolter van der Spoel Posted October 30, 2008 Share Posted October 30, 2008 rgr, the only items "affected" are Houses and vegetation as afar as I could detect Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aceshigh Posted October 30, 2008 Author Share Posted October 30, 2008 ok the AU green screenshots may have been the wrong choice.. With FTX off I still see the FTX street lights, farms ETC. New screenshot may show what is the frustration of trying to explain what I see. LOL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wolter van der Spoel Posted October 30, 2008 Share Posted October 30, 2008 In that case your Backup folder is "corrupted" that can occur when installing an FTX pack without switching FTX mode OFF before installing the New package what it essentially does is copy your "default" textures to the Backup folder, but when your FTX mode is ON it will copy the FTX textures to the Backup hence when you switch you still have the same things displaying. So what you need is a "Virgin" copy for your backup folder, IF, my memory serves me correctly there was another occasion when this came up , alltough I must honestly admit that I do need to do some searching to get that above water. I'll have a look for it and come back to you on it, and in case anyone else has it handy he's more than welcome to chime in Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aceshigh Posted October 30, 2008 Author Share Posted October 30, 2008 Would it be easy to just re-install FSX +FTX. Start over rather than bang my head again the wall trying to fix it. If the backups are gone bad nothing can fix them other than a complete reinstall? Anyway thanks for puttting up with me, very frustrating trying to explain and show a problem which is hard to show or explain. LOL Its been very frustrating trying to explain what I see here.. LOL I have had FTX from the first release and know it well. I can see the difference between On and Off modes. when I could not see the old crappy FSX look I grew concerned. Now if I did not fly out of OZ it would not matter. LOL thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wolter van der Spoel Posted October 30, 2008 Share Posted October 30, 2008 the option there would be to start from scratch re-installing fsX and FTX Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Holger Sandmann Posted October 30, 2008 Share Posted October 30, 2008 Hello Mark, please read my previous post again: the mode switcher does not switch FTX and its ground textures and other features on or off. The only place you can see FTX ground textures is in the FTX coverage areas. And you are still in FTX land in that last screenshot, aren't you? They won't disappear when you set FTX mode to OFF. At the same time there is no way that FTX road or ground textures as well as FTX autogen would show up anywhere else on the FS planet because they reside in their own folders and these folders are not being touched by the FTX mode switcher. Trust me, everyone else is seeing exactly the same thing you are. Cheers, Holger Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aceshigh Posted October 31, 2008 Author Share Posted October 31, 2008 So your saying that with the FTX mode turned off in the FTX mode switcher, I and everyone else still see the little FTX light poles along the streets ? ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wantok Posted October 31, 2008 Share Posted October 31, 2008 If you actually want to restore the default Australia you'd have to set FTX Mode to OFF and manually uncheck all the FTX entries in the scenery library menu. This is the key concept. Having FTX mode switched off does not remove FTX or switch off the FTX scenery, when flying in Australia. If you really want to do that, as Da Man said above, you have to manually disable the FTX entries in the scenery library as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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