SQ Collection Series Installer update: Attn MI

[Collector]

I have added the SQ6 Demo to the installer and the GMBLAST driver to SQ1VGA. SQ3 already had the new SB driver that had the digital sound FX.

[MusicallyInspired]

Nice! Did you happen to test the driver for SQ3? Not all of them work and allow sound effects. At least that's my memory of it. I'll try it myself with my own collection and see what happens.

EDIT: I just tested the SNDBLAST.DRV (9.54 KB) that comes with the collection and it does not allow digital sound effects or stereo adlib music. The SNDBLAST.DRV (8.51 KB) that I provided is an alternate one with these enhanced features. I just tested it and the stereo adlib music works along with the digital sound effects upon replacing it. It's probably the same issue with all releases of SQ3.

[Collector]

The driver that you posted was the same as the upgraded driver that the installer already used to replace the one provided with the collection.

[MusicallyInspired]

Well, I used your installer and it doesn't replace. It uses the inferior SNDBLAST.DRV.

[Collector]

Just checked. Even though The installer adds the 8.51 KB SNDBLAST.DRV, I missed taking out the copy command for the SNDBLAST.DRV from the disc, so it was overwriting the replacement. The installers for the collections have become rather large and complex, so it is becoming easier to miss a few things. The script is now several thousand lines long. Thanks for the catch. It has been fixed if you wish to redownload it. The good driver will no longer be overwritten with the original driver from the disc.

[MusicallyInspired]

Cool! I have no doubt these installers are large and complex! That's awesome.

[Tawmis]

Would say driver be better than the Roland usage (Munt)?

[Collector]

Actually, there is an MTBLAST.DRV driver for both games that allows MT-32 music and SoundBlaster digital sound effects. The installer does not use it for the default for obvious reasons.

[MusicallyInspired]

In most cases the regular MT-32 driver would be better because most of the sound effects (sans "Where am I?") are lo-fi digital recordings of MT-32 sounds which you can get in full quality from MUNT or a real MT-32. So it's a trade off. It all depends on what you want.

[Collector]

Just set your audio to MTBLAST.DRV to try it.

[r1cola]

can I use this to install the Sq6demo standalone?

[Collector]

No, but you can download the demo packed in a new installer.

[r1cola]

thanks collector,

On a side note, this dl reminded me of something i meant to post awhile ago...

seems *every* new game exe from the installers cause MBAM to throw a "trojan.downloader" alert, which is quite puzzling as I have no doubts about your files whatsoever. But, MalwareBytes is typically VERY good about false pos stuff, so what could this possibly be from? Is there some kind of UPX packer being used on these?

[Collector]

The EXEs are generated by a Batch To EXE Converter downloaded from cnet's download.com. The available downloads from there are thoroughly tested and has a high reputation for being safe. The only things that go into the files are a batch file to start the game in DOSBox or ScummVM and an icon. This solves a number of minor problems over what I used to do, including being able to start ScummVM without a console window before the SVM developers finally added making that a configurable option, but most importantly, Windows keeps better track of an installed game for a more thorough uninstall or reinstallation.

That said, there are one or two AVs that may give a false positive from EXEs generated by the software, but the overwhelming majority scans it as clean. Typical sampling from a number of sites that have tested it with multiple AVs:

BitDefender Antivirus Pro, NOD32, Avira Antivirus and Kaspersky Antivirus. Bat To Exe Converter was found clean of any form of viruses, spyware or malware, making it safe to install on any system. For improved security, Bat To Exe Converter will be retested with every version update.

Avira Antivirus Premium - Infected: 0, Warnings: 0, Infections: 0
BitDefender Antivirus Pro - Infected files: 0, Suspect files: 0, Warnings: 0,
ESET NOD32 - Infected: files - 0, objects - 0, Cleaned: files - 0, objects 0
Kaspersky Anti-Virus - Suspicions: 0, Disinfected: 0

Other sites give the same results using other AVs. I use Microsoft Security Essentials, which has given me great protection since I first installed it on my last machine. It is always active and has not tagged the utility or any of the generated EXEs as suspect and my PC is always found clean. When downloading any patches or utilities that I use in my installers, I always scan them with 2 or three different security programs. The installers from here are downloaded at least a few thousand times in an average month, but this is only about the 2nd time someone has reported a false positive.

[r1cola]

yeah, i use MSE as well and it indeed finds nothing wrong with it, but ive found that using a single AV/AM solution often lets some things through, hence the extra layer of MBAM... but yeah, I'm not too concerned about it, just thought I'd run it by you to see if anything similar had happened before....

Thanks for all your wonderful work!