mangled cd key check

[eigenface]

After installing and patching doom 3 (with the patch provided on the dark mod wiki), and installing saint lucia, I ran the game, and got to the point of clicking "start mission" on the purchase equipment screen. Then a dialogue box appeared and asked for my cd key, with

 

"<EMPTY STL"

 

half cut off behind the field to enter the key. Also, there was an 8 in the field, but when I typed in my cd key it got superimposed on top instead of replacing the 8. Anyway, my cd key is not being accepted so I cannot play the game. The dialogue box that says my key was not accepted has

 

"#STR_071 94"

 

at the top. Does anyone know what's going on?

 

 

P.S. The forum would not let me search for "cd" or "key", apparently because these words are less than 4 characters. I see what this hurts, and I don't see what this helps. Can this restriction be removed?

Edited October 24, 2008 by eigenface

[Ishtvan]

I got this problem with Doom3 after patching as well. It's not a mod problem because it happens in just Doom3 as well. I've actually been too lazy to attempt to fix it because there is a workaround. In Saint Lucia, hit Start Mission and go thru the purchasing screen and everything up to the point where it gives you the error. Open the console (CTRL-ALT-~ on US keyboards) and type map saintlucia.map. This works in general to load maps from the console even though you get that erroneous CD key popup box. You get the popup box the first time you try to load a map, but can then try again and it works.

[SneaksieDave]

One brute force method to stop the mangling of keys and configs Dram suggested and has worked great for me for months is to set the files read-only. In your face, Doom!

[eigenface]

Ishtvan, thanks a lot.

 

I was able to load the map, framerate was ok, but then I went in the first door and down a corridor and my computer crashed - I had to switch it off and on. Does anyone know why?

 

SneaksieDave, which files should I set to read-only?

[Ishtvan]

Does it always crash in the same spot or does it just crash randomly? Could something be overheating?

[Tels]

Ishtvan, thanks a lot.

 

I was able to load the map, framerate was ok, but then I went in the first door and down a corridor and my computer crashed - I had to switch it off and on. Does anyone know why?

 

SneaksieDave, which files should I set to read-only?

 

It should be c:\doom3\base\doomkey but I am not sure if it is named the same under windows. Make sure you only set it to readonly after you first passed the CD check and the game is running so the contents of that file appear to be correct.

 

Edit: Note that you game might still fail the CD check, it connects to the network at the beginning and checks that the CD key is not in use. If the game crashes and you restart it, it might sometimes not know that the "other guy" using the same CD is was you. But with setting the file to read-only at least you don't have to enter it every time.

 

You can also disconnect your network when D3 starts, it will take a while then tell you the CD key is valid

[SneaksieDave]

Yep what Tels said. I set:

 

doom3/base/doomkey

 

to read-only, and make a backup copy of:

 

doom3/darkmod/DoomConfig.cfg

 

As sometimes that (when the key problem happened) that would get set back to default.

[AluminumHaste]

You should also be able to just add the idnet.ua-corp.com to the hosts file and block it that way.

 

Open your hosts file (you'll have to search for it) located in Windows\System32\Drivers\etc, and add this to the end:

 

127.0.0.1 idnet.ua-corp.com

 

That should work. Any request from that server should be redirected to the localhost.