18 Wheel of Steel - Across America README 18 Wheel of Steel - Across America (TM) ValuSoft, a division of THQ.

Software (C) 2003 SCS Software Developed by SCS Software, uses Prism3D engine (C) 2003 SCS Software ****************************************************************** IMPORTANT: The game requires at least DirectX 8.1 installed on the computer to work properly. You can find DirectX 9.0a distribution on the game CD in the DirectX9 folder ****************************************************************** For 18 Wheels of Steel - Across America technical Support, please please visit: http://www.valusoft.com For the latest information on game, please visit: http://www.valusoft.com *** For users of some graphics cards and chipsets, please note that you may be required to switch to DirectX instead of OpenGL. If you see any graphics corrupt ion, it is a good idea to try this. Please see the Troubleshooting section below. ****************************************************************** INSTALLATION To install 18 Wheels of Steel - Across America, insert the game CD into your CDROM drive. If installation does not start automatically, click on START and the n Run and type d:\autorun.exe and click OK. If you CD-ROM drive uses a differen t drive letter, replace the "d" with the letter that your computer uses for the CD-ROM drive. Click on the Install button to begin the installation process. F ollow the on-screen instructions to install the game. If you experience problems running the autorun.exe try using the setup.exe also found on the CD. ****************************************************************** MINIMUM SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS: Windows 98/ME/2000/XP Pentium III 700MHz or 100% compatible processor 256 MB RAM 16MB 3D Video Accelerator with DirectX 8.1 compliant video drivers DirectX 8.1 compatible sound card 400MB Hard disk space 4X CD-ROM Drive Mouse ******************************************************************

TROUBLE SHOOTING: The most common errors are related to video & sound card drivers. This game requires DirectX 8.1 or later. If your drivers are not DirectX certified, please download or obtain the latest drivers from your card manufacturer. This is the number one problem people have with DirectX games. Even if you think you have the latest drivers, you probably don't. This will most likely solve your problem. After you have updated your drivers, you should reinstall DirectX (from whatever folder you downloaded it to), and restart Windows. If you are having sound or video problems, you should try reinstalling DirectX. Q: How do I get DirectX? A: DirectX is most likely already installed on your computer, but there may be a more up to date version available. DirectX is a free download from Microsoft. We recommend getting the most up to date version, as it will most likely make all your games perform better. You can get the latest version from their website at: www.microsoft.com/directx/ Q: How do I determine if my Video card is DirectX compatible? A: For DirectX diagnosing tools, open Windows Explorer and go to the C:\Program Files\DirectX\Setup\ directory. Run the program named Dxdiag.exe. This will give you detailed information for all your drivers and other DirectX components. This will also help tech support if you should need to call them. If you are crashing upon exit of the game, particularly if you see a DDRAW error, please try to obtain the latest drivers for your video card. More up-to-date info on DirectX can be found at Microsoft's webpage, at: www.microsoft.com/directx/ Q: How do I update my video drivers? A: You must first know what video card you are using. To find this out, either look at the documentation that came with your computer / video card purchase or you can find out by looking at your computer's System Properties. If you already know what card you have, go to that manufacturer's web site and follow their instructions for downloading and upgrading your driver. If you do not know what card you have, follow the instructions below. Your System Properties can be viewed by right clicking on the My Computer icon on your desktop, selecting Properties, then selecting the Device Manager tab. You will see a monitor icon with the text Display Adapters next to it. Left click on the + and you should see what driver you are currently using. Click on it and then click the Properties button. That should tell you the manufacturer. You must now go to the manufacturer web site to obtain the free driver upgrade. The drivers are usually located in the Support section of their site. Other areas to look are Downloads, Drivers, Files, Upgrades, Technical Support or User Support. Some of the larger hardware manufacturer sites are: www.nvidia.com

www.ati.com www.creative.com www.matrox.com www.s3.com www.intel.com www.micronpc.com www.gateway.com www.compaq.com www.hp.com www.dell.com Q: Will the game run on 3dfx Voodoo video cards? A: This cannot be guaranteed. Unfortunately, 3dfx ceased doing business in late 2000. All official development of drivers for Voodoo video cards ceased prior to the release of DirectX 8.1 compliant drivers. We cannot support or guarantee the installation, visual quality or performance of beta, third party or unofficial driver versions. Q: The game is running choppy or slow. A: Make sure your computer meets the minimum system requirements. You should be running the latest version of DirectX and have updated drivers for your video card. You may also want to turn down the Visual Quality settings to lower details, or decrease the Resolution in the Options Menu. Running the game in Fullscreen mode rather than windowed mode can also improve the performance. Q: My game is crashing for some reason. A: This could be related to several things, and is most likely a driver related issue. Make sure you follow the instructions above for updating your driver. If you are running with Special Effects turned on, try turning them off. Q: I am not seeing any textures on the ground, or the textures don t look right. A: Try turning down or up Detail in the Options Menu. Q: I am not hearing any sound or the sounds are broken up. A: Be sure you have updated the drivers of your sound card. Users of sound cards or integrated chipsets based on CMedia 8738 chipset who experience instability problems are advised to turn the Windows sound hardware acceleration level to lowest possible level.