Merry Christmas - And Happy New Year, from The Game Tips And More Blog [Wallpaper Greetings]

I just wanted to take a moment to say, no matter what you are celebrating at this time of year (or not), no matter what games you are playing (or not), no matter what you believe or who you are (or aren't), I want to wish you, my dear reader, a heartfelt Merry Christmas and All The Best in the New Year.

To celebrate at this time, I want to share a Desktop Wallpaper I threw together, captured in Planet Coaster, after taking some time to festively decorate King Coaster's 'Festive Funlands' Park (Gingerbread Night Scene with added Lights, Decorations and Greetings). Take care all - and See You In The New Year!

Sincerely,

Troy from The Game Tips And More Blog


~ P.S.
Don't forget to check out some Game Sales going on all over (Steam, Origin, Good Old Games (GOG), HumbleBundle, and more - even local stores/retailers - have fun out there)!

Quick Tip: NVIDIA 'In Game Overlay' Stopped Working? Here's How To At Least Get It Going Again [Fix / Workaround That Might Work For Some, Updated 2018-04-26]

Whether it wants to be called Shadowplay, Share or [as of the time of this post] In-Game Overlay; it doesn't really matter to most people I think - we just look for something to record our gameplay once in a while, maybe take some Screenshots, 'and just work'. Thankfully, NVIDIA's In-Game Overlay [or whatever it may be called by the time I finish this post, heh] does just that. Most of the time.


Although I rotate between a handful of different recording programs off and on (such as Bandicam, Action, Playclaw and others - just for fun and also slowly working on another 'Game Recording Comparison' for the future), In-Game Overlay [built into the NVIDIA Drivers, aka "for free"] records when I want, it records a Buffered Loop (a timed, re-recording of 'the last xyz seconds', to save when needed) - and it even takes Screenshots and more. However, sometimes this big fella has just 'stopped working' lately. No saving Screenshots, no Recording, no Error Message, Nothing; and I wasn't sure why... After only a tiny bit of Troubleshooting, I quickly figured out how to at least 'get it going again' and I just wanted to share that here for you all, in a Quick Tip™.

To be honest [I always believe in being completely honest], I am still not sure why NVIDIA's In-Game Overlay stopped working - but I did figure out how to simply get it working again - and here's what I did:

• Once I noticed the Overlay wasn't taking Screenshots, I looked to see if the Overlay itself or more of the (many) NVIDIA utilities were still running, in the Task Manager. They were. [The In Game Overlay's Executable is still called "NVIDIA Share.exe", btw]
• Thinking that something might have gone wrong with the Overlay utility, I opened up NVIDIA's GeForce Experience.
• In GFX [my accro.], I clicked on the 'gear' in the upper-right corner, "Settings".
• In the Settings area, I clicked on the switch/toggle for In-Game Overlay.
• Although it took longer than normal, it eventually turned Off. Clicking it again, it turned back On.

That's it! After those steps, the In-Game Overlay was working once again. Taking a Screenshot, for example, the notification from the Overlay came up, and the Screen was saved. It also started Recording again, without issue. Here is a 'Tutorial Image' of the steps to take:

Tutorial Image of what steps to take to 'restart' the NVIDIA In Game Overlay;
the recording utility built into the NVIDIA Drivers
(Click to see Full Size)

Although I do not have any details on why it failed, I still thought this short 'tip' would be helpful for people that might run into this ("shadowplay not recording" or "in-game overlay not taking screenshots", etc) - so I wanted to share it here. HTH!

...

Update, 2018-03-26: Just a quick Update, that as of March 2018, I have run into somewhat of an extension of this issue, where GFX is no longer responding to this simple 'toggle' of the In-Game Overlay... Doing so (which used to temporarily 'fix' the issue above), now merely results in an 'error' message box, stating "That Didn't Work. Try Restarting Your System.", which although polite, is not very informative as to what caused the error or what else can be attempted to isolate/troubleshoot the issue further:

Doing some more research online, I see many others running into this issue, as well as its' 'extension' here... However, there still is no absolute 'fix' for this problem yet [at least, none that is verifiable and repeatable, which I prefer to have as a qualification to my sharing it here as a "fix"] - therefore, I cannot say for certain what can be done to fix it, even though a wide range of things have somewhat worked for others (some early steps work, others must use further steps), such as:

• Uninstalling/Reinstalling GeForce Experience
• Installing an older version of GeForce Experience
• Utilizing a third-party 'drivers uninstaller' to completely remove NVIDIA's GPU Drivers and Reinstall NVIDIA's GPU Drivers/GeForce Experience [AMD users can get a similar utility directly from AMD]
• Reinstallation/Formatting of entire system (eg. Windows) and Reinstalling NVIDIA GPU Drivers and Reinstalling GeForce Experience

...

Update, 2018-04-26: Just another Update, that as of April 2018, I was looking at this issue once again [since it still occurs, where InGameOverlay/Share just 'stops working' randomly (for no apparent reason)] and found that NVIDIA has this exact symptom listed as an "Open Issue (Windows 10)" in their Driver Updates now (Change Log / Release Notes); which basically means it is 'a known issue', but that they do not have a fix/patch at this time. This was found in the Release Notes for NVIDIA GPU Driver version 397.31, found here:

https://us.download.nvidia.com/Windows/397.31/397.31-win10-win8-win7-desktop-release-notes.pdf

(USA Source of NVIDIA GPU Drivers, Release Notes)

As you can see, under the Windows 10 Section, it lists this very problem as an Open Issue. Good Luck, NVIDIA - I hope you find a solution someday!

Excerpt of the Driver Release Notes, showing this problem as an 'open issue'
Click to see Full Size

Again, once I find out what actually is a solid fix for this issue, I will state so here and post it in big, bold lettering [lol], along with a Tutorial Image (text on an example image of the solution, etc). Until then...

Quick Tip: Corel's ScreenCap Recording Utility - Problem Recording Audio, "Prepare Record Failed" Error [A FIX]

[Update/Addendum 2016-12: I recently received PaintShop Pro X9 as a 'Christmas Eve Gift From Santa' and did a quick test of this again, to find that this 'FIX' also works for the Screen Capture "Stand-Alone" version that was recently released with PaintShop Pro X9! Thank you to everyone that is stating this 'still works' with VSPx10!]

I just wanted to share a Quick Tip for those having problems recording audio with the Corel ScreepCap utility, especially if you are seeing a "Prepare Record Failed!" Error/Popup, upon trying to begin recording. I experienced this myself at first, when trying ScreenCap, so began Troubleshooting to see what could be the cause. While I did not find out the exact reason for the error I did find a fix that worked and is repeatable, allowing me to record audio with Corel's Screencap utility from then on. Hopefully, this will work for you, too...

I purchased VideoStudio x8 about a week ago [as of the time of this post] - and I have been having a blast learning it and exploring all of the great content that came with it. While I might do a "First Impressions/Review" article on the program, and maybe even some Tutorials eventually, for now I want to focus on this error/problem with the ScreenCap module, especially since experiencing it myself and then seeing it in the Corel User Forums, finding out that it is in fact an 'older' problem for many. To begin, I will present the steps I found to enable working audio recording with ScreenCap.

The "Prepare Record Failed" error from Corel's ScreenCap module that pops-up when this problem is encountered,,
captured within Windows 8.1, at the time (the solution below was done in Windows 10)

Here are the steps I took, that solved the problem with 'no audio' when recording with the ScreenCap utility, causing it to crash (and display the error message shown above):

[Note: These steps assume that the user is attempting to utilize the onboard (built-in) audio adapter of the mainboard - if you are using a differing device (eg. a sound card), then merely follow the steps replacing that device with the ones mentioned below. As well, I took screenshots of these steps in Windows 10, which is why my Desktop may appear slightly different than if you are running Windows 8.1 or Windows 7 - the steps should work in the same manner, however]

• There are a few ways to open the Sound Devices list in Windows, but one of them is to right-click the little speaker icon in the System Tray (the area in the lower-right corner with the date and time).
  In the sub-menu that pops up, click "Recording Devices".

• In the Recording Tab of the Sound panel/window that comes up, let's make sure you can see Disabled and Hidden devices in the list. To do this, right-click somewhere in the white inner area (but not on a device in the list) and a pop-up menu should appear, saying "Show Disabled Devices" and "Show Disconnected Devices".
  If these do not have a checkmark beside them, click on each of them one at a time, to enable these options. Now, you should see all the recording devices currently attached to your system. Some will be 'greyed out' if they are not plugged in or nothing is plugged into them.

• In the list of devices, right-click the "Stereo Mix" device and choose "Enable", to 'turn on' the recording capability of your onboard audio adapter (the built-in audio capability in many modern mainboards).
  If a green checkmark is on the icon representing the device, it is also the Default Device  for Recording (that is, the one that a program will try to use first, for recording).
  If there is no green circle with a checkmark, right-click once again on the same device and choose "Set As Default Device", and now one should appear next to the "Stereo Mix" device.
  [if your system is already configured with the motherboard audio enabled and recording, this step may not be required]

• Click OK to close the Sound panel/window and close the list of audio devices.

• Start up Corel's ScreenCap utility by double-clicking the icon on the Desktop for it, or navigating to the Tile or Shortcut in the Start Menu, to launch it.
  [In my case, I had an icon on my desktop that said "Corel ScreenCap x8" and I used that]
  Once it opens, click on the word "Settings" near the bottom of the panel, to open up the options/settings for Screen Capture.

• In the Audio Settings category/area, click on the Circle next to "System Audio" to Disable Screen Capture from attempting to record from there
  [this seems counter-intuitive, but this is what I tested in Troubleshooting and doing this 'workaround' allowed me to 'fix' the problem and get it working - it seems more of a 'workaround' with getting the program to work, than a true 'fix' however, but this is what can be done, for now]. 

• Just above the "System Audio", click on the "I" next to "Voice" to Enable recording from that input
  [this seems counter-intuitive again, as we are not going to use a microphone in this example, but this is the second part of the 'workaround' to get Screen Capture to record audio, for now].

• Now, we will tell Screen Capture to use a different device for recording sound (as input).
  Click on the "Sound Check" button, next to the "Voice" setting.
  This will open up the Sound Check window/panel.
• Next to the "Input Device" setting, click on the pull-down menu and your device that we enabled earlier should show up in the list, as "Stereo Mix".
  
  
  
  Choose that device from the pull-down list and if you want to check to make sure it is receiving sound, you can click on the "Record" button.
  Once you click on this button, it will automatically record for ten seconds. If you quickly start a sound file, song or game, it should record exactly what you hear. Then, it will play the short test recording back for you, automatically.
  [this should verify that ScreenCap can now record audio through that device]
  
• Click the "X" in the upper-right corner, to close the Sound Check panel/window. 

That's it!


Now you should be able to hit the big red circle button at the top of the Screen Capture panel to begin recording - and it should now capture everything that you can hear through your speakers/headphones...

The ScreenCap utility does not seem to like 7.1 (8-channel) or 5.1 (6-channel) or even Quadrophonic (4-channel) audio as of the time of this post - you may still get the "Prepare Record Failed" Error if you do not change your system's audio adapter to Stereo (2-channel) Mode.


The above steps are the ones I took to enable these devices - and although it is mainly for users who have a similar type of audio device that I have at the time of this posting (a "Realtek High Definition" audio adapter/chip in their system (on their motherboard)), other devices may be slightly different in the naming if you are using a different audio device (the hardware and name listed for it, eg. "VIA HD Audio" or "SoundBlaster Z", etc) - but the steps should still be quite similar (the windows to open up, what to click on, etc). These are the exact steps I took, and they enabled me to record audio through the Screen Capture utility; and so I wanted to share them in the hope that they will work for you, too.

 [I may return to this post and add a tutorial video showing visually how to do the steps in Windows in the near future - if I do, it will be located here]

Enjoy -  and See You In The Games!




[Editor's Log: Just a note about my Wallpaper in the images within... For fun, I had created a background (desktop wallpaper) and a logo (shown in the above material) about The Blog , done in the style of the AMD Badge Logo and AMD Background Pattern - as I am currently enjoying an AMD GPU - but I do not have a preference between AMD GPUs and NVIDIA GPUs, I have owned both in the past and will use both in the future. I am not endorsed or affiliated with either AMD or NVIDIA in any commercial manner. Just letting my precious readers know I am impartial and like both of them!]

"Can You Guess Where The Screenshot Below Is From?", The Game Tips And More Blog's Game Screenshot Identification Contest, Starts Again Today! [2015-03 - Updated, End Of Contest]

It's somewhere within the first few days of a new month - and that means 

it's somewhere-around-approximately-something-kinda-like-the time for 

The Third Installment of The Game Tips And More Blog's New Contest: 

"Can You Guess Where The Screenshot Below Is From?"

(A Game Screenshot Identification Contest)

which starts again today - March 1st, 2015!

All you have to do to win, is contact me in any way you can (eg. Comment on this article below, Twitter profile tweet, email me at GameTipsAndMore@Gma il.com [removing the space]) within the next two weeks, with these three items within your message:

1. Your guess for the game the image is from, as well as just one location it is used (area/map/level name or building name, etc)
2. Any name/handle/alias you wish to be identified by (if different from your ID that you contacted me with) if you win
3. Information on how to contact you back (to receive Steam game gifts, etc) if you win

That's it!

**[Just a quick note to be careful not to include any information you do not wish to share 'publicly' when posting in the Comments area below or sending a Twitter profile Tweet as these messages are seen by 'everyone']

Correct answers submitted for 14 days after the Contest starting time (beginning at the time of this posting) will be chosen from randomly, where one Skillful Identifier will receive this month's contest prize - which is carried over from last month: a gifted game from the Steam online store!

Winners will also be announced in bold, large lettered-text, here on this article and will thereby be immortalized on The Intertubes in perpetuity, proving to all other comers that they were The Ultimate Game Screenshot Sleuth!


Are you ready? Here then, is the Screenshot for this month, below:

[As you can see, the image is a portion of a full screen capture; but don't worry - the image used for the contest will never be too obscure or small (for example, it will never be 'just the end of a wooden log' or anything like that)]

...

Since it has been 7 days without a winner, here is an additional Hint!

Take a look at this image below:

Hint: Here is a larger portion of this month's screenshot and how
things look in-game, unedited (other than 'cut out' from the surrounding environs)...
Click to see Full Size

...

It has been two weeks since the Contest began and there have been no correct submissions! Aww....

To end The Mystery, here is the answer for this month's edition of

'Can You Guess Where The Screenshot Below Is From' (2015-03):

The Answer for this month's contest could have been: "Counter Strike Global Offensive" or "CSGO" for the game, and a listed place/source could have been "the Safehouse level/map" (with possibly the addition of "interior, upstairs, bedroom" as terms, but that sort of thing is never required). Click to see Full Size

Come back next month friends, when you can have another chance to be a Digital Screenshot Sleuth in the fourth edition of 'Can You Guess Where The Screenshot Below Is From' - and a chance to win the Prize that will be carried over to next time: a gifted game from the Steam online store!

See You In The Games!

(The Game Tips And More Blog Contest Game #2015-03)

"Can You Guess Where The Screenshot Below Is From?", The Game Tips And More Blog's Game Screenshot Identification Contest, Starts Again Today! [2015-02 - Updated, End Of Contest]

It's somewhere within the first few days of a new month - and that means 

it's somewhere-around-approximately-something-kinda-like-the time for 

The Second Installment of The Game Tips And More Blog's New Contest: 

"Can You Guess Where The Screenshot Below Is From?"

(A Game Screenshot Identification Contest)

which starts again today - February 2nd, 2015!

All you have to do to win, is contact me in any way you can (Comment on this article below, Twitter profile tweet, email me at GameTipsAndMore@Gma il.com [removing the space]) within the next ten days, with these three items within your message:

1. Your guess for the game the image is from, as well as just one location it is used (area/map/level name or building name, etc)
2. Any name/handle/alias you wish to be identified by (if different from your ID that you contacted me with) if you win
3. Information on how to contact you back (to receive Steam game gifts, etc) if you win

That's it!

**[Just a quick note to be careful not to include any information you do not wish to share 'publicly' when posting in the Comments area below or sending a Twitter profile Tweet as these messages are seen by 'everyone']

Correct answers submitted for 10 days after the Contest starting time (beginning at the time of this posting) will be chosen from randomly, where one Skillful Identifier will receive this month's contest prize - which is carried over from last month: a gifted game from the Steam online store!

Winners will also be announced in bold, large lettered-text, here on this article and will thereby be immortalized on The Intertubes in perpetuity, proving to all other comers that they were The Ultimate Game Screenshot Sleuth!


Are you ready? Here then, is the Screenshot for this month, below:

[As you can see, the image is a portion of a full screen capture; but don't worry - the image used for the contests will never be too obscure or small (for example, it will never be 'the end of a wooden log' or anything like that)]

»»  Since it has been 7 days without a correct submission yet, here is a helpful Hint!

Take a look at this image below:

Larger portion of screenshot for this month's identification contest
(Click to see Full Size)

Hint: This is how the image looks in-game, unedited (other than 'cut out' from the surrounding environs)... 

NOTA BENE: THIS CONTEST HAS BEEN EXTENDED UNTIL THE 22nd! 

The Theme Hospital Professor has chosen to Extend this month's contest, to allow for more time to identify the game and location of where the image above is from - get out there and see if you can find out where it is - and Good Luck!

It has been 20 days since the Contest began and there have been no correct submissions! Aww....

To end The Mystery, here is the answer for this month's edition of

'Can You Guess Where The Screenshot Below Is From' (2015-02):

The Answer for this month's contest would have been, "Archage" for the game, and a listed place of usage (the item being focused on) could have been "Walls of Memoria" (with possibly the addition of "view from Gweonid Lake", but that sort of thing is never required). Click to see Full Size

Come back next month friends, when you can have another chance to be a Digital Screenshot Sleuth in the third edition of 'Can You Guess Where The Screenshot Below Is From' - and a chance to win the Prize that will be carried over to next time: a gifted game from the Steam online store!

See You In The Games!


(The Game Tips And More Blog Contest Game #2015-02)

"Can You Guess Where The Screenshot Below Is From?", The Game Tips And More Blog's Game Screenshot Identification Contest, Begins Today! [2015-01 - Updated, End of Contest]

[Update: Since it has been 7 days without a correct submission yet, a Hint has been added! (See '»»' ) ]

[Update: Sorry, No Winner this month! The Answer for this month's Screenshot is below

and the Prize will be carried over to next month's contest!]

The Very First Installment of The Game Tips And More Blog's New Contest, "Can You Guess Where The Screenshot Below Is From?" (A Game Screenshot Identification Contest), Begins Today - January 5th, 2015!


All you have to do to win, is contact me in any way you can (Comment on this article below, Twitter profile tweet, Email, etc) within the next ten days, with these three items within your message:

1. Your guess for the game the image is from, as well as just one location it is used (area/map/level name or building name, etc)
2. Any name/handle/alias you wish to be identified by (if different from your ID that you contacted me with) if you win
3. Information on how to contact you back (to receive Steam game gifts, etc) if you win

That's it!

**[Just a quick note to be careful not to include any information you do not wish to share 'publicly' when posting in the Comments area below, Twitter profile Tweet, etc. as these messages are seen by 'everyone']

Correct answers submitted for 10 days after the Contest starting time (beginning at the time of this posting) will be chosen from randomly, where one skillful identifier will receive this month's contest prize: a gifted game from the Steam online store!

Winners will also be announced in bold, large lettered-text, here on this article and will thereby be immortalized on The Intertubes in perpetuity, proving to all other comers that they were The Ultimate Game Screenshot Sleuth!


Are you ready? Here is the Screenshot for this month, below:

[As you can see, the image is a portion of a full screen capture; but don't worry - the image used for the contests will never be too obscure or small (for example, it will never be 'the end of a wooden log' or anything like that)]

»»  Since it has been 7 days without a correct submission yet, here is a helpful Hint!

Take a look at this image below:

Hint: This is how the image looks in-game, unedited (other than 'cut out' from the surrounding environs)... The image was initially 'corrected' to display the "person" in the picture at the correct perspective (how a person would be depicted straight-on, as in a painting [for example]). I felt that leaving it at this original angle [of how it exists in the game exactly] would possibly give the answer away too easily perhaps [for some].


[Note: Please do not feel deceived by the above, dear reader, as that was not my intention. I merely meant to display it "how it would look in real life"; much like correcting the angle of a clock on a wall or a painting, straightening it - I did not mean to seem overly deceptive - I want everyone to win! I simply thought that showing it 'at the exact angle it appears in the game' may have given the answer away too quickly, in this case/game. If you feel 'duped' in this one instance, please accept my sincere apologies.]



It has been 10 days since the Contest began and there have been no correct submissions! Aww....

To end The Mystery, here is the answer for this month's edition of
'Can You Guess Where The Screenshot Below Is From' (2015-01):

The Answer for this month's contest would have been, "Diablo 3" for the game,
and a listed place of usage could have been "Cathedral Level 3".
Click to see Full Size

Come back next month friends, when you can have another chance to be a Digital Screenshot Sleuth in the second edition of 'Can You Guess Where The Screenshot Below Is From' - and a chance to win the Prize that will be carried over to next time: a gifted game from the Steam online store!


See You Next Month - and See You In The Games!


(The Game Tips And More Blog Contest Game #2015-01)