OBS Shortcut / Hotkeys Stopped Working [Fix/Workaround]

Just a quick fix/workaround for something I bumped into with OBS this past few days - for some reason, the Hotkeys (Shortcut Keys that you press to start Recording, Take Screenshots, etc) seemed to stop working once you took the focus off of OBS itself. For example, if I started OBS, then started a game, and hit the keyboard key that was configured for OBS to Record (while it was in the background), it didn't do anything (eg. / to start recording). I did figure it out though, it was a real easy fix for now; so I wanted to share it here.

There was a Windows Update recently [for me] and so I thought maybe OBS needed more Permissions or something; so I just ran OBS in Administrator Mode - and it worked!

All you have to do is Right-Click the Icon that starts up OBS and choose "Run As Administrator" (possibly under More > Run As Administrator, for example, if using the Start Menu for launching OBS). That's it!
Now you should find that you can start up a game and/or ALT+TAB to the game, leave OBS running in the background, and OBS will faithfully start Recording/Taking Screenshots/etc again. 

Sorry I haven't posted for some time now; my own illness (not COVID) has been acting up this year. A lot. Anyway, HTH

~T

No Man's Sky 'Not Starting' or 'Failing To Launch'? - Here's What Worked For Me [Notification/Tutorial]

[Text-Mode Only: This posting is being shared as Text-Only, to speed up the ability to share it, at this time. 

I may return to add helpful screenshots/diagrams/etc, at a later date.]

Update 1: Added link to driver download, for the version that worked for me (NVIDIA website)
Update 2: Oddly, the GOG version was working - but as of 09.02 neither game starts up at all

For the past week or so (since the BEYOND release) I've had a problem trying to get back into No Man's Sky to check it out... The game just wouldn't start/launch. I noticed that it was popping up in the Windows Taskbar but then it would 'close itself' or 'crash' - either way, resulting in the game closing up and I wasn't able to play and try out the new stuff!

After messing with it off and on for about a week, I finally figured out something that worked - No Man's Sky actually starts now, and I can play! Here are the things I tried at first:

• Restarted PC/system
• Re-installed NMS
• Verified Cache (Steam version**)
• Disabled Anti-Virus temporarily while running game (third-party AV, Windows Defender, etc)
• Ran game as Administrator
• Ran the Compatibility Troubleshooter for the game executable (Windows 10, did not affect result of game closing itself upon starting it)
• Dusted out system and hardware (to help with potential overheating, corruption/errors due to heat and dust issues, etc)
• Re-installed NMS to C: drive (Windows/main drive/partition, then moved NMS back to other SSD [I had it originally on], as it made no difference)
• Re-installed GPU drivers (videocard 'system files that Windows uses to 'talk' to the hardware' [is how I describe "computer drivers" to others])
• Ran Windows Update (there was an Update package, did not affect result of game closing itself)
• Considered re-installing Windows 10 (then did not do it - this time - lol)

I tried a ton of other little things as well, like re-installing Visual C++ libraries for Windows (system files that are part of Windows that many, many programs utilize) - it had apparently worked for many people, and I saw this mentioned in a few different Game Support forums (eg. Reddit, Steam, GameFaqs, etc) if you want to try this, these can be found at the Microsoft website, here:

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/2977003/the-latest-supported-visual-c-downloads

With all of these steps (many of them mentioned by helpful users on multiple forums online - most of them I knew and tried myself), at some point, they would 'get the game working' for many people. Sadly, not for me. I had to hunt around and 'hack away at the bushes of the problem jungle' on my own for awhile... Finally, I found something that got No Man's Sky working for me - here is what I did:

'Roll back' the GPU drivers (videocard system files that Windows uses to 'talk' to the hardware) to an older version, then re-install the latest version of the GPU drivers (non-'clean' install). BOOM it worked! 

Here is the steps I took that finally got No Man's Sky working:

• Regress the GPU drivers [re-install older and older versions of the GPU drivers] until the game works (for me, that meant I re-installed older drivers over and over until NMS started 'fully and without issues' - for me, that was NVIDIA GPU Driver version 391.01 - this driver can be downloaded directly from NVIDIA's website, however, their own Search for Drivers does not go back that far... I found these older versions by going to Google and searching "NVIDIA driver 391", for example, then following a Link that goes to NVIDIA's Driver website [as opposed to other third-party websites, not that they are always 'bad', some are great, but I wanted the official NVIDIA drivers from them, for this]). If you want to try the exact version I found worked for me, the link to NVIDIA's release of that Driver is here:
  https://www.nvidia.com/download/driverResults.aspx/131443/en-us
• Once game is verified as 'working without issues', re-install latest GPU Driver (version 436.xx as of the time of this posting) 'on top of' the currently installed Drivers [newer versions of NVIDIA Drivers 'uninstall' the older versions, but just do not chose the 'clean' install, where it deletes your Profiles, etc]. I found I also had to select to install the "NVIDIA HD Audio" and "NVIDIA 3D" options, as well...

That's it!

Although professionally I am a Computer Tech, I'm not a Developer/Programmer, so I'm not 100% sure why it got No Man's Sky working finally (but I can assume some things, like the game needing some older Windows System libraries that got 'corrupted' or lost, somehow, and other things that could have occurred) - but I'm just glad that the game runs once again. 

Of course, this may not be your specific issue with NMS not starting for you, my dear reader; but perhaps it can help the game to run for you, too. Good Luck with it - and a many-a-Good-Journey to you, Traveller! 

Addendum: As of 09.02, both versions (GOG and Steam) now do not start up (they do not run properly) - the game appears in the Taskbar for a moment, then closes itself. I shall try some Troubleshooting again, and if I find another 'fix', I will return to share it here...

**Oddly, the Good Old Games (now GOG.com) version, that I received as a gift a while ago, worked fine... Only the Steam version of NMS had issues... During the course of Troubleshooting the Steam version, the GOG version stopped working [lol] - then, after 'fixing' the Steam version, the GOG version was working once again. Possibly, the issues were related, but I am not sure. Hopefully, one of the steps mentioned herein (or my 'final solution' step [maybe I should rename that]) will work for you

And More: 'Should I have the "Turn on 7.1 Virtual Surround Sound" checkbox selected (checked) in Windows..?

I just wanted to share with you all, what seems like "The Official Answer" from Dolby Labs themselves - the answer to the question:

In the Spatial Sound tab of the Properties of my Headset/Headphones, should I have the "Turn on 7.1 Virtual Surround Sound checkbox selected ('checked'), or not..?

I found this question asked in a Steam Discussion earlier in the year, about whether or not the checkbox for "7.1 virtual surround sound" should be selected or not. At the time, I was sending emails back and forth with Dolby Support a bit, and got the answer of 'use whatever sounds better for your headset' - which does make sense; each model in each brand of every set of headphones has different capabilities and manufacturing limitations and can indeed sound different from the next.

While helpful advice, I had submitted a Feedback Comment at their website, that said that the Dolby App did not specifically address this checkbox in Windows 10 (and whether or not it should be 'ticked'). I looked recently at the Dolby App again just a couple of days ago [as of the time of this posting, which is near the end of 2018] and found that a diagram, showing the answer to whether the 7.1 Surround Sound checkbox should be selected/ticked or not, was now present; and wanted to share it with you all, here. 

Below then, is the Screenshot from the Official Dolby App in Windows 10 [and the "Spatial Sound" Tab of my Headset, how it was at the time, shown on the Right]:

The Dolby Atmos App in Windows 10, showing the "Turn on 7.1 virtual surround sound" checkbox suggested as "Checked", with my Windows 10 Sound Properties panel shown on the right (showing the checkbox unselected at the time)

It seems then, that 'the final answer' to whether or not this checkbox should be selected or not, is "Yes", as suggested by Dolby Labs themselves. 

[Edit: After returning to do more Testing with Dolby Atmos in Windows 10, I have found that the checkbox for "Turn on 7.1 virtual surround sound" now automatically becomes selected ('checked') when SPATIAL SOUND > DOLBY ATMOS is chosen/enabled (eg. when right-clicking on the Speaker icon [Sound] in the System Tray / Notification area of the Taskbar to enable it [near the Clock on the taskbar in Windows])]

If I may still add, 'juuuust in case', to try both ways still, with whatever headphones you are utilizing, taking a moment to listen to something with it checked then unchecked, to 'make sure' that you are getting what sounds the best, to YOU - as suggested by Dolby themselves [to me directly through emails with them]. Regardless, I hope this helps to clear things up a bit. 

Addendum:

While a Review of Dolby's Atmos surround sound for Windows 10 is out of the scope of this specific posting, I am slowly working on a short "Review" of the function/app, comparing it to other '7.1 Surround Sound' sources, such as Razer's "Surround Pro" and others, with some examples/recordings of the differences as well. 

Until then, to help, I will state a very brief 'first impressions' of this audio functionality/app [that Santa saw fit to give me as an early Present for Xmas] - that is, a point-form of my own 'first impressions' of Dolby Atmos in Windows 10: 

- It does sound good' overall, with the expected "Dolby Quality" that their products produce. Clear and Crisp and Boom-y

- The surround sound works very well, moreso in movies than games though; as in some games it can seem a bit 'muddled', where the surround directionals 'leak' a bit into each other [to my ears]

- Overall though, it has clear, crisp highs and nice booming/pounding lows
[the high end seems to be a bit over-accentuated to me, but it may just be that my ears are a bit more sensitive to that range. it is a common practice to enhance Treble slightly to increase perceptive audio clarity to humans]

- The only thing missing from the App is a configurable Equalizer (sliders that can adjust the strength of each frequency range, so that users can increase/decrease ones that they wish to adjust), but then, it is suggested in the app itself, that it actually adjusts automatically, based on the source and frequencies within the media itself (as their proprietary Dolby algorithms/functions do in movies,etc).

- If you don't have a Surround sound option with your headphones already
[a 7.1/8channel dongle/plug or option somewhere - for example, my Headphones from Santa one Xmas has a little box on the USB cable that has a '7.1 Button' on it, which works surprisingly well for emulating Surround Sound]the sound quality of Dolby's Atmos really does seem worth the $15 so far in my limited testing; however don't worry if you can't purchase it, Windows 10 now comes with its' own "Windows Sonic for Headphones" 7.1 Surround Sound emulation.

And More: It's Not Just You™ - Windows Desktop Icons Sometimes Loading Small Versions Of Themselves For No Reason At All

[Windows Related] Although not really anything 'new' - this is something I have been experiencing off and on in Windows for years now - I wanted to mention something here (just in case it might help others too) that today is, for some strange reason, the first time I am submitting Windows Feedback on an aging issue: where the Desktop Icon images sometimes (for unknown reasons) load as wee-little versions of themselves - intermittently showing smaller images of the 'normally-256x256-or-higher' resolution images - and if you are experiencing this too, It's Not Just You™...

For the last few versions of Windows, I have been seeing, at random times, Desktop Icons loading - not their nice, large representations of their games, both alluring and alluding to the fun to be had in the games 'behind-the-mask' - but loading wee-little teeny-tiny versions of themselves, squishing the pixels in merciless transgression, giving my normally-full-of-icons Desktop scattered pimples of picturesque perturbation. One example of one of these perpetrators, is below:

As you can see, the [lower] Warhammer 40k Icon I created/assigned, has loaded 'full size' (Windows Large Preset Size), whereas the Vindictus Icon [on top] has loaded a 'smaller size' of its' normally larger self today - for no stated reason at all. No message, no little exclamation mark on the corner of the image, to indicate "something went wrong", leading me to troubleshoot what might be the issue. Indeed, I can do nothing, but try to ignore my pimple-popping urge to fix these intermittent occurrences to my Desktop (temporarily, by replacing the Icon image with something else - the only repeatable 'workaround' I have come across so far).

And so, after many years of finger-in-the-dam work on bypassing this little problem [pun not intended], I have finally mentioned it to Microsoft, via their Official Windows Feedback Hub, found in Windows 10...

The Official Windows Feedback Hub personally thanking me for submitting my feedback about icons loading smaller sizes of themselves, randomly, for no reason whatsoever other than to make me notice that game that I haven't played in years but still have installed, taking up space on my drives, which is already at a premium due to my screenshot and clip hoarding tendencies

As many of you already know, MS has been trying very hard to really listen to Users these last few generations of Windows, implementing Suggestions and continually collecting Feedback on a myriad of topics that have to do with Windows, from how it operates, to how it simply looks. Today, I finally got around to telling them about this little virtual thorn of mine. Perhaps someday, they will find out why this happens randomly [to different icons each time!] and I may one day feel relief in my virtual lion's paw... Good Luck, Microsoft - I think you'll need it; and if you, dear reader, are experiencing this too, remember - It's Not Just You™...




Addendum:
Just a quick note that I have been creating/editing my own Windows Desktop Shortcut Icons for some time now, from multi-layered compositions (with added sun flare!) to simple crops from game boxes or ads (like the one shown above, for Warhammer) - someday, I plan on sharing these Icons with you, my dear readers, here at The Blog. I have no idea when, but it's safe to say that I will be able to collect them up, polish them down and pack them in a Zipped-up File and share them sometime around 2025... Soon™

It's Not Just You™ - Mirillis' ACTION Crashing On Startup After 2.2.0 Update [My Issue Fixed with 2.2.1]

Just a quick post, to let those of you using the game and desktop recording application ACTION! by Mirillis know that a few days ago (on February 10th, 2017) the program was Updated to version 2.2.0. I enjoy testing out ACTION! as it has good performance - I purchased a License for it a while back and I want to do a 'Game Recorder Comparison' for The Blog which includes it as 'one of the contestants' here someday "Soon™" - but for now, I wanted to let other users of it know that ACTION! currently seems to be crashing after this latest Update...

Example of ACTION! currently crashing on Startup as of the date of this post.
GFX (GeForce eXperience, my abbrev.) shown in the background as having the Latest Drivers.
Click to see Full Size.

Now, this may only be NVIDIA GPU owners - I recently received a shiny new GTX 1060 GPU for Christmas from Santa and was testing out some game recording applications off and on - and found that ACTION! is crashing. Steam users are talking about it as well, as they seem to be having the same issue [my version of ACTION! is the Standalone version]. *Note, I am not "Joker5", one of the users mentioning this issue, in the Screenshot containing the Steam Activity Feed about it, I did not make a comment on the Feed at this time

While I am sorry to say that I do not have a Solution or Fix at the moment (I usually put "[Fix]" or something similar in the Title if I do), this is just a quick post to let other users of Mirillis' ACTION! know that - if you are having 'crashing-on-startup' issues at this time - It's Not Just You™...




Update 1 (2017-02-14):
I did eventually get the application to start, but it took six tries/restarts to do so. I will Update this post when a more permanent fix/update is known

Update 2 (2017-02-15 AM):
There is a new version of NVIDIA drivers released (378.66 dated 2017-02-13), but after installing them, now ACTION gives an Error 104 about half the time when starting it up... I purchased a Commercial Use License for ACTION a while ago, and made no changes to my firewall (the error is related to those aspects) so this should not be happening. I may contact Mirillis or post in their forum, etc. to see if this is related and/or notify them of this

Example of an Error that was occurring with ACTION version 2.2.0 showing NVIDIA Driver version in GeForce Experience
Click to see Full Size

Update 3 (2017-02-15 PM):

There was just now an Update released for Mirillis' ACTION (version 2.2.1, released today, 2017-02-15)

Update 2.2.1 notification message at the bottom of the ACTION! interface
Click to see Full Size

I have installed this new version and tested it - and it runs without issue - I have closed it an opened it numerous times now, without any problems. Here is a Screenshot of it starting up:

Screenshot of ACTION! version 2.2.1 starting up in Windows (including a wide-angle Desktop Wallpaper I compiled from multiple screenshots, with customized logo, I will make these available in the future)
Click to see Full Size

Using this version now, I went and looked at the Changelog for it (History of Changes and Updates to the program). Here is the Changelog for this version:

It is the first item that I find interesting, as I recently was testing out a 'Razer Surround Pro' audio device that came with my Gamepad - and as a result of porting audio through that device, there are no longer any Audio Devices listed as operational in the Recording tab of sound devices in Windows. Here is what my list of input devices look like now:

I only mention this because it is interesting to me [I wonder how related having no Input Devices was, to the issue I was experiencing (along with others, according to their forum and Steam Feeds), with ACTION - prompting this Update? I don't know the answer, of course, I am not a Developer or Programmer for Mirillis... I am merely thinking out loud. Wondering, heh].

Regardless, if you have run into this issue, it seems to have been solved by this update that 'just' came out - go get it - hopefully it will fix any issues for you too. Way to go, Mirillis - keep it up!



[Personal Note/Declaration: I am not affiliated with Mirillis or any of their products in any way (look at the links, there are no 'affiliate links' or 'tags' in them) and have not and will not receive any compensation in any form, for talking about ACTION here. I am merely a user of their program and wanted to share this information to help others. I have also utilized other similar programs in the past (such as FRAPS and Bandicam, free recording programs like OBS and MSI's Afterburner and more) and will use any of these products in the future]

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!]

Quick Tip, Fix: No Audio Recorded in Windows 10 with the Game DVR Recording Application [with Video Tutorial, List of Steps and Example of Result]

So, I upgraded my system to Windows10 and have been using it for a couple of weeks now (and was part of the Beta before that). One of the things I was doing, was testing out the Windows built-in game recording program "Game DVR", to see if could be a replacement for third-party game recording applications (such as MSI Afterburner, Bandicam, OBS and others). I am currently working on a longer Quality Test article, going into detail about Game DVR and the recording output it produces and comparing it to other game recording programs and codecs - however for now, I quickly wanted to share a fix I found for a problem with Game DVR in Windows 10 (which I saw that many online were running into as well), that capturing with the Game DVR app results in no sound/audio in the output file - even if the Audio Setting is "On" in the Settings for Game DVR (shown just below):

The Audio Settings for Game DVR in Windows 10, showing the Audio as being Enabled

At first, nothing I did locally on the system seemed to alleviate the issue. Game DVR was recording only video, no audio, in any and all games and applications [there was literally no Audio Track within the recorded/created file]. Sound was working on the system, I could hear everything - it just did not get created within the output file, produced by Game DVR when I hit "record". I quickly wrote a Quick Tip about how I found a temporary Workaround, posted here at the blog, where I used a Secondary Audio Device to get it to record audio. However, most users I believe, will not have a second audio device available, desiring to use the built-in (onboard) audio adapter on their motherboard - and so this was not a "true 'fix'", at the time...

To make a longer story short for this post [I realize I tend to ramble on, whether it is to help explain something or get off track, thank you ADHD!], after working on this problem off and on, I finally found more of a real answer, via a Microsoft Support Engineer's Tip on the Official Microsoft Forums to try the How-To page on Fixing Sound Problems for Windows 10, located here:

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-10/fix-sound-problems#v1h=tab01

Which led to:

Above, is a short 'Minute Tutorial', showing a

walkthrough of the steps listed below

These are the steps it eventually took to get Game DVR to record audio in Windows 10:

• Open the Device Manager for Windows by clicking on the Start Menu (in the lower-left corner) and in the Search "the web and Windows" area, start to type "Device Manager" (without quotation marks) - a prediction menu should show up, displaying "Device Manager" at the top. Click on it to launch the Device Manager interface.

• In the Device Manager window, expand the category "Sound, video and game controllers" (which lists (among other things) audio devices installed in the system and useable by Windows), by clicking on the ">" arrow next to the title of the category.

• Right-click the audio adapter you wish to use as your main audio recording device for Game DVR.
  In this case, I wanted to use the built-in (onboard) audio adapter called "Realtek High Definition Audio". A submenu will pop-up, showing "Update Driver Software", "Disable" and "Uninstall", among other choices.

• Select the choice "Update Driver Software" by left-clicking it.

• In the "Update Driver Software" Wizard that pops up, choose "Browse my computer for driver software".
  This is because, if your audio is working properly already (you can hear audio - but can't record it in Game DVR), there are already Drivers installed for the audio device ['Drivers' are System Files that Windows uses to "talk to" and use the device] and we want to Update/append them.

• In the next window, choose the option to "Let me pick from a list of device drivers on my computer".
  This will list installed/found Drivers that your hardware/device can utilize. It should list your audio device and Drivers for it, as shown below.

• Choose a more recent version/dated Driver for your audio device, if there is more than one listed and click on it.
  If there are only two items (eg. "High Definition Audio Device" and something else that is your audio device), choose the one that is more specific to your hardware (containing the name of the device, etc).

• Click "Next" to advance the Driver Software wizard.

• A warning may be displayed, informing you that using the chosen Driver is not recommended because Windows has not verified it will work with your hardware.
  Do not worry, this message is mainly stating that Microsoft has not had a 'chance to officially test' your audio hardware with Windows 10 yet, informing you of this as a precautionary measure. What we want to do is, allow Windows 10 to utilize the Drivers we have installed in the system for the audio device (as opposed to a Windows 10 'generic driver' for the device). 

• Click "Yes" to try using the installed Drivers for the audio adapter (and no longer use the Windows 10 generic drivers for it).

• The Driver Software wizard will complete and list your audio device. Click "Close" to exit the window/wizard.
  It may inform you that you have to Restart your system to properly initialize the audio device and load the Drivers for it in Windows fully.

• Restart your computer to re-initialize the audio device and load the Drivers for it in Windows fully.

Now, you should find that the Game DVR in Windows 10 records a proper audio track, creating it within the recorded file, giving you full game recording audio!


Below, is an example of testing the new configuration with Game DVR, immediately after restarting my system (using the PC Gamer Minecraft Demo as a test) - note that this is not a 'tutorial', it is merely an example of Game DVR properly working with audio, after taking the steps listed above:

Hopefully it will work for you, dear reader, as it did for me.

Good luck with it - and See You In The Games!

Quick Tip, Workaround: No Audio Recorded in Windows 10 with the Game DVR Recording Application

Just yesterday, I upgraded my system to Windows10. Yes, I took the plunge... I was in the Beta for Windows 10 and have been using it for a while, testing out games for a future article on Windows 10 and Gaming here [Coming Soon™], and today, I tried out the Windows built-in game recording program "Game DVR", to see if could replace third-party game recording applications (such as MSI Afterburner, Dxtory, Bandicam, and more). I am currently working on a longer Quality Test article, going into detail about Game DVR and the recording output it produces; however for now, I quickly wanted to address a problem that I ran into already with Game DVR in Windows 10 (and saw that many online were running into as well): capturing with the app results in no sound/audio in the output file - even if the Audio Setting is "On" in the Settings for Game DVR...

The Audio Settings for Game DVR in Windows 10, showing the Audio as being Enabled

Nothing I did locally on the system seemed to alleviate the issue. Game DVR was recording only video, no audio, in any and all games and applications. Sound was working on the system, I could hear everything - it just did not get created within the output file, produced by Game DVR when I hit "record". Interesting. Just in case, I re-installed Audio drivers and rebooted, re-installed a few test games and tried again. No audio within the recordings from Game DVR. I even tried Disabling and Enabling various combinations of the Input and Output devices listed under the Sound properties. No audio in the recordings from Game DVR still. Interesting.

A typical Game DVR popup ...sorta

As general Troubleshooting steps dictate, once Software has been investigated, if there is no progress, then Hardware should then be looked at. So, I attached a USB Audio Device I had left over from my last set of headphones: a Creative Labs THX-Certified Tactic 3D USB Audio Adapter - and plugged in my headphones into it. Boom. It worked! Game DVR was now recording Audio and including it in the videos created by the app [the game recordings].

The list of Playback Devices in Windows 10, showing that I attached my USB Headset Audio Adapter and unplugged it from my Onboard (built-in to the motherboard) Audio Adapter (the red arrow). Using this device, Game DVR then produced Audio properly within produced recordings from the app.

Detaching the USB Audio Adapter, my Onboard Sound Adapter kicked in automatically (a Realtek ALC1150 with 8-channel HD audio) and I still had sound - but Game DVR no longer recorded any (again, no Audio Track within the recorded file). Re-attaching the USB Audio Device, Game DVR records audio within the recordings once more... So, it seems that it simply does not like my onboard (built-in to the mainboard) audio. That's fine, no hurt feelings, I'll explain it to my motherboard tomorrow. My 'workaround' then?

Install a Sound Card or USB Audio Adapter, to use as an additional audio device - then "Game DVR" will use it to record audio within your game recordings.

Since this isn't really a 'fix', I will post this as a "Workaround", as it is something that an end user will have to do to get the app working as desired. Slash-sigh, I know... Well, until this gets patched within Game DVR, or Drivers get updated [it could possibly be my mainboard drivers, too], or Windows gets an Update that addresses this, I'll just leave a little Suggestion via the Feedback app in Windows 10 to take a look at the Game DVR app - after all, I'm certainly not the only one to run into this (I have seen it come up in a few forums now) - which is why I am quickly writing this post; perhaps someone else may be helped or may be able to at least record their games with Sound, even though it may take extra steps or devices to do so. Hopefully it will work for you, dear reader, as it did for me.

Good luck with it - and See You In The Games!

[Personal Version/Opinion: Obviously, this post is directed more towards those that really, really want to use Game DVR as their main game recording application. It's quite alright if you don't use it or can't at this time. It isn't 'the only game in town' that offers game recording... I myself prefer Bandicam the most and I usually suggest MSI Afterburner to those who want a free program. I also have an old Fraps I purchased years ago that I try out for games that are 'finicky' to record with. I have also tried Dxtory and OBS and others, as well. My point is that Windows 10 'just' came out days ago and trying to use Game DVR in it puts a User 'on the leading edge' of technology. When that happens, there are bound to be problems encountered. This is one. Don't be too upset if you cannot use it yet dear reader, especially when there are so many other options for the same thing. If you are able to get your hands on a second audio device of some sort, great - I hope it works out for you then, as it did for me... Take Care]

Update: A fix was found via a tip from the Official Microsoft Forums - I have personally tested it and it worked for me! That post is the very next one here at the blog.

Diablo II - Getting The Scrollwheel To Work In The Game [FIX]

I was having a lot of fun playing in the 2014 Ladder Season in Diablo2, but ran across a problem where the scroll wheel of the mouse wasn't working in the game. For the skills/spells in D2, I prefer to assign the 'right side' (right mouse button) skills to Function Keys, and then use the scrollwheel to quickly change/choose the skill I want to use at the time. At first, this didn't work in the game at all (it was like it wasn't detecting my mouse's wheel), but I quickly figured out this easy 'fix' to get it working in the game. Here is a short tutorial for it, with screenshots for each step:

Simply right-click the Shortcut for DiabloII on the desktop/background and choose Properties. 

(Click to see Full Size)

Then, just place checkmarks in the Checkboxes for (1) "Run this program in compatibility mode" under the Compatibility Mode category, and (2) "Run this program as an administrator" under the Privilege Level area, and click OK (there is no need to adjust what compatibility mode to use (what Service Pack version, etc.)).

(Click to see Full Size)

Then, in the game, hit Escape and choose to go into the Options Menu.

(Click to see Full Size)

In the Options area, go into the Configure Controls section.

(Click to see Full Size)

You should now find you can scroll this list up and down, if the game has properly detected your mouse/wheel. Go down to the "Select Previous/Next Skill" functions and you can now assign 'Mouse Wheel Up' and 'Mouse Wheel Down' to whichever direction you prefer to select your skills (click on one of the Key/Button categories in line with Select Previous/Next Skill, and then use the mouse wheel, spinning it up or down).

(Click to see Full Size)

That's it! Now you can use your mouse's scrollwheel to quickly choose the skill you want your character to use. 

[Although I was utilizing Windows7 at the time here, 
I have recently tested it in Windows 8.1 and it worked there as well] 

I hope that gets it working for you - and See You In The Game!

TestRun, Video Edition: Recording Gameplay - Rollercoaster Tycoon 2 (Video Samples with Brief Tutorial Video)

This is a more informal TestRun, where I was merely testing out the perceived quality of some recording codecs while attempting to get gameplay recording of Rollercoaster Tycoon 2 going. As most of you know, recording this game is not just a point-and-shoot affair. Heck, most game recording applications won't even detect the way it is buffering and utilizing video memory, resulting in a black screen, flashing or very laggy output. After trying years ago and abandoning it temporarily, I was recently searching websites with information on trying it again. With no luck finding a starting point of information, I decided to figure it out on my own - and of course share my findings should anything turn out fruitful...

First, simply trying to record RCT2 with FRAPS and then Bandicam, turned up nothing as a result. Either it would not detect the screen (it is not using 2D/3D rendering/buffering on the videocard in a standard manner) or it would capture blackness (when trying Bandicam's 'Record The Screen', for instance). Since these are two well-made recording products, I assumed other products would result in the same ...result. I also seem to remember trying applications like Camtasia, back in the day..

So next, I tried good'ol 'Virtualbox'. A staple Virtual Machine emulator (think of a little computer-running-inside-a-computer), I installed an old version of WindowsXP that I had into the GuestVM. Installing my DRM-free purchase of RCT2 from Good Old Games, I tried recording the screen. No luck, since it wasn't using Direct3D in a way that I could record (after I finally got Direct3D working in it). I tried playing it in a Windowed VM and recording that. It wouldn't even run for some reason. It kept trying to 'take over' the VM and resizing it. I tried setting my Host Computer desktop resolution to 1280x720 and getting the game to detect that and run it at that resolution, 'Full Screen' and 'Seamless'. Nope. For one thing, the game kept detecting and making available only the most basic of 4:3 aspect resolutions (CRT monitor type sizes), no matter what driver/settings I used for the virtual machine (I of course wanted the more modern widescreen 16:9 ratio, as YouTube uses).

Third, I tried VMware's 'VMware Player'. A free virtual machine app, where the business version (VMware Workstation) is the go-to prog for business virtualization. Installing my XP and then RCT2 into the VM, I got it going in 720p rez and prepared Bandicam to record a "Rectangle On A Screen". It worked wonderfully. So, with the odd stutter (very few and far between), I can now record RCT2 gameplay and wanted to share my findings of the ability with everyone.

I was also messing around with different recording codecs, to see what they looked like at different settings with this game at 720p. I quickly threw together this little video showing some settings and results (Sample Video). A summary of what I have set up to record Rollercoaster Tycoon 2 gameplay is just below a short analysis of the video/recordings. Again. this isn't a 'full/technical' TestRun, it is just me sharing some tests I did and showing that one can indeed record RCT2. Further down, there is a video that goes over the steps in summary, then in slightly more detail, showing the steps taken on the screen, a short 'tutorial' I suppose. For those who haven't figured it out or got it working yet, perhaps this information will help you out, too. Enjoy!

RCT2 testing (codecs/settings) with Bandicam (Samples)

Recorded with: Bandicam, various quality settings, various codecs @ 1280x720 (720p HD)

Recorded game: Rollercoaster Tycoon 2 (RCT2)

Some recording data (per codec) for this test:

MJPEG @ q80 = 45,000kbps data rate (~330MB per minute of gameplay recording)

MPEG-1 @ q80 = 11,000kbps data rate (~80MB per minute of gameplay recording)

MJPEG @ q60 = 34,000kbps data rate (~250MB per minute of gameplay recording)

MPEG-1 @ q60 = 3,000kbps data rate (~22MB per minute of gameplay recording)

*XviD and x264 are omitted as results for this test as editing/recompression resulted in corrupted video output (they will be included in a future TestRun with many codecs)

Brief analysis of sample video:

• All of the MPEG-1 settings are quite watchable, unless of course the temporal gibbs effects bothers you (the little 'ghosty/glimmer' effects that follow around the peeps). Perhaps if I didn't mention it, you might not have noticed? As with all recording/editing, if it 'looks fine to you', then you can run with it if you want. Some people "need" the best quality possible, some can watch any quality and enjoy it. If the MPEG-1 setting at 80% Quality seemed fine to you, go ahead and use that (it is about 1/4 the size of the MJPEG recordings and I have found that editing MPEG-1 is bit slower but quite possible to do in editing applications such as Sony's Vegas line of products).
• The MJPEG at a Quality of 50 percent is watchable but messy looking, as expected since a JPG (MJPEG is a series of JPG frames) at only 50% quality would have tons of compression artifacts. 60% is just as bad, with 'rough blocks' everywhere (macroblock artifacting). MJPEG at Quality80 isn't bad and very watchable, but it is much larger in bitrate usage/file size than say, MPEG-1 at the same quality setting (it is about four times larger in file size). It is the easiest codec to edit, however.
• XviD, an MPEG-4 codec, can potientially looks a lot 'cleaner' as it can handle smaller macroblocks/divisions of the screen (inherent in the improvements in MPEG-4 over MPEG-1) - but the output seems to have strong corruption (it leaves 'trails' on the screen) when attempting to edit/recompress it into a final product (as seen in the video).
• x264, a more recent 'Advanced Video Codec' version of MPEG-4, it records in wonderful quality and low file sizes - but all of that is hidden behind, again, corruption ('trails' left behind on the screen*) and slow editing.
  (The editing can be helped somewhat by specifying a smaller GroupOfPictures (frames inbetween keyframes/information frames, to help seeking through the video.)
  Keep in mind that for the MPEG-4 codecs, the corruption surfaces only when editing/recompressing the source video. The 'original' gameplay recording in MPEG-4 is quite clean and watchable, completely fine if you are just going to 'record-and-upload' to a video sharing site or personal website.
  *More on this issue and x264 recording in a future article
• A full Codec Comparison TestRun is coming, where I test out a bunch of different codecs and see how they fare for general game recording, MPEG-1, MPEG-4, AVC/h264 (MPEG-4 Part-10), MJPEG, XviD, RGB24 and more...
  
  Some related articles:
  Game recording comparison with various codecs and settings (Minecraft)
  http://gametipsandmore.blogspot.ca/2012/10/testrun-video-edition-fraps-vs-dxtory.html
  The ghosting/blurring effect when rendering in Sony Vegas products
  http://gametipsandmore.blogspot.ca/2012/10/and-more-how-to-stop-ghosting-or.html

There are a couple other ways to do it I think, but here is how I recorded Rollercoaster Tycoon 2 gameplay with Bandicam:

• Install Windows into a VM Guest (for example, a VMware virtual machine within the VMware Player application)
• Install RCT2 into that Virtual Machine, running the VM in a window (for example, 1280x720)
• Set up Bandicam to record a 'Rectangle On A Screen' and set the Rectangle to be the same size as the Virtual Machine running in a window (in this case, 1280x720) and line them up. 

That's it!

Tutorial Video on how to record Rollercoaster Tycoon 2 with Bandicam

I had seen many people on many forums asking for years how to record RCT2 gamplay. I have seen a few videos online now and so some have it working, but if you haven't been able to get it going or would like to try to make your own Rollercoaster Tycoon 2 videos, here's how. Good luck with it and have fun!

See you in the games!