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Bought this game months ago at DSE for my daughter......then we all got
busy getting ready to shift house.

We did try running it on Linux via TransGaming's "WineX".....as the
previous two harry Potter games both run more or less perfectly on Linux
that way. But this game didn't work....it seemed to have real trouble
reading the CD.

Then we shifted.....

So though I bought the game months ago, we had not actually tried it on
genuine Windows.

We did today....and it has exactly the same problem it had on Linux -
the CD drive(s - tried 3) can't make any sense of the copy-protection on
the game CD.

Every time you try to start it, it crashes out completely when the
screen goes balck after the display of the splash bitmap.

It's a known problem on the EA games web site.....

So, if I have any advice to offer, it's either don't buy this game at
all....or make damn sure you keep the receipts until you KNOW it works
on your PC.

I have seen very few games that would not run out of the box.....the
last being "Outcast".....and they at least had a patch available you
could download.

No such luck here.

"steve" <> wrote in message
news:409e1170$...
> Bought this game months ago at DSE for my daughter......then we all got
> busy getting ready to shift house.
>
> We did try running it on Linux via TransGaming's "WineX".....as the
> previous two harry Potter games both run more or less perfectly on Linux
> that way. But this game didn't work....it seemed to have real trouble
> reading the CD.
>
> Then we shifted.....
>
> So though I bought the game months ago, we had not actually tried it on
> genuine Windows.
>
> We did today....and it has exactly the same problem it had on Linux -
> the CD drive(s - tried 3) can't make any sense of the copy-protection on
> the game CD.
>
> Every time you try to start it, it crashes out completely when the
> screen goes balck after the display of the splash bitmap.
>
> It's a known problem on the EA games web site.....
>
> So, if I have any advice to offer, it's either don't buy this game at
> all....or make damn sure you keep the receipts until you KNOW it works
> on your PC.
>
> I have seen very few games that would not run out of the box.....the
> last being "Outcast".....and they at least had a patch available you
> could download.
>
> No such luck here.

I think in this situation you are perfectly entitled to hop onto say
Bittorent or any p2p filesharing network and download a cracked copy.

If the cd protection is the problem, have you tried a site like
gamecopyworld and downloading a CD crack patch?

I wonder if the trick of holding Shift when you insert the CD would
work if it is a problem with encryption. Apparently this works with
encrypted music CDs.

On Sun, 09 May 2004 23:06:24 +1200, steve
<> wrote:

>Bought this game months ago at DSE for my daughter......then we all got
>busy getting ready to shift house.
>
>We did try running it on Linux via TransGaming's "WineX".....as the
>previous two harry Potter games both run more or less perfectly on Linux
>that way. But this game didn't work....it seemed to have real trouble
>reading the CD.
>
>Then we shifted.....
>
>So though I bought the game months ago, we had not actually tried it on
> genuine Windows.
>
>We did today....and it has exactly the same problem it had on Linux -
>the CD drive(s - tried 3) can't make any sense of the copy-protection on
>the game CD.
>
>Every time you try to start it, it crashes out completely when the
>screen goes balck after the display of the splash bitmap.
>
>It's a known problem on the EA games web site.....
>
>So, if I have any advice to offer, it's either don't buy this game at
>all....or make damn sure you keep the receipts until you KNOW it works
>on your PC.
>
>I have seen very few games that would not run out of the box.....the
>last being "Outcast".....and they at least had a patch available you
>could download.
>
>No such luck here.

Craig Sutton wrote:

> I think in this situation you are perfectly entitled to hop onto say
> Bittorent or any p2p filesharing network and download a cracked copy.
>
> If the cd protection is the problem, have you tried a site like
> gamecopyworld and downloading a CD crack patch?

Great suggestion. I'm sorry I didn't think of it.
--
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"..... all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed
to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves
by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed."
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