Guide: How to make the new NCSoft Launcher as unobtrusive as possible.
By
Alexander_Drako,
Posted on: 2011-03-04 08:32 in ALL ACCESS Gameplay Technical Issues Bugs
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Strangely enough (as has been said in another thread), you were agreeing every single time using the old launcher (unless of course you were bypassing the launcher).
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Originally Posted by ricktu
This ^^^^^^
Why the hell do we have to agree to the terms and conditions EVERY time we play? You only need to agree to them once for crying out loud. It should not ask you again unless they have changed. No other game or program I have ever played/used has forced you to agree to them every single time. There can't be any legal reason for this or they would all do it. |
Yes I realised it was there too. 
It just like less of an inconvenience because you could almost double click the button on the screen prior to it to start the game. I'd still like to know why we have it forced on us though.
Well i re-installed it and the same problem. It shows me that City of Heroes does cannot patch with the NCSofr Launcher. That's the reason i can't log in with it, and i have to log in with the old CoH updater.
I'm using Windows Vista in the computer i use to play the City Games.
Yunalesca, you might want to try the instructions here:
http://boards.cityofheroes.com/showthread.php?t=254492
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Thank You Tex. I will read it. |
Originally Posted by Tex
Yunalesca, you might want to try the instructions here:
http://boards.cityofheroes.com/showthread.php?t=254492 |
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Let me give credit where credit is due.|
Originally Posted by Hyperstrike
Good find Kheldarn!
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Although I can't find the OP made with the info, Leandro posted how to do it initially. I just added images to make it easier.
Well, that, and said it in my own Kheldarnian way. 
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Well, got it downloaded and installed without a hitch. All three versions got connected to and updated. All in all, including updating Test and Beta I think it took less than 20 minutes.
I was having issues where the launcher would come up and check for updates and then start loading a game. Unfortunately, it kept trying to load the Beta test version. I deleted my old shortcut and made a new one from the launcher and that seems to have fixed the problem.
Does the launcher always need to be run as an Administrator? I installed the launcher under my Administrator account on my PC (Windows XP) but I normally play CoH on my User account. When I run the launcher as a User, I get warning messages about not having access to files in the CoH directory. I can click OK to get past the warnings and play the game, but its annoying to do so when running the old launcher is more convenient.
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Windows XP's user/administrator system was never supported by software developers. Only today are we seeing a world of software written with Vista and 7's security model in mind, and that's only because Microsoft forced developers at gunpoint (with UAC). I wouldn't hold out hope of the launcher getting support for Windows XP user accounts.
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Originally Posted by Speculator
Does the launcher always need to be run as an Administrator? I installed the launcher under my Administrator account on my PC (Windows XP) but I normally play CoH on my User account. When I run the launcher as a User, I get warning messages about not having access to files in the CoH directory. I can click OK to get past the warnings and play the game, but its annoying to do so when running the old launcher is more convenient.
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All you really need to do here to get rid of the warnings is to grant the security rights needed to make changes to your User account.|
Originally Posted by Speculator
Does the launcher always need to be run as an Administrator? I installed the launcher under my Administrator account on my PC (Windows XP) but I normally play CoH on my User account. When I run the launcher as a User, I get warning messages about not having access to files in the CoH directory. I can click OK to get past the warnings and play the game, but its annoying to do so when running the old launcher is more convenient.
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Right-Click the folder that COH resides in and select Properties. Click the "Security" tab and Add your user account name to the list and tick the "Full Control" "Allow" box in the bottom window.
Either that or you can even modify the shortcut in Windows XP to allow the NCSoft Launcher (and anything it launches) to be run as an Administrator user. Right-click the shortcut to the launcher and select Properties. On the "Shortcut" tab is an "Advanced" button that has an option to enable "Run with different credentials" that you can then specify what user credentials are used to launch NCSoft Launcher (and the programs it launches).
Maybe someone has any idea of this...
If people arent aware, there are 2 links for the new NCSoft launcher, one that is called COH_Installer.exe(first link provided) and the second one called NCSoftLauncherSetup.exe that can be found in other links.
I used the first one, and had an issue where the patcher would go on an infinite loop and wouldnt start. OK, uninstall, reinstall(even reinstall game), same issue.
Now, with the NCSoftLauncherSetup.exe(provided by the tech support), I CAN launch the game... sort of... when it starts to install CoH(or when updating it) it would only launch the OLD launcher, and thats it.
I have reinstalled, tried a few times, uninstalled everything CoH related. What's worse, I tried to do this on my newly formated laptop to no avail. It would still launch the old updater.
(Yes, I have followed the fabled link to the FAQ/Fix, as well as sent everything tech support has thrown at me... Im kinda hopeless at this point).
Help?
IIRC there was a CoH minipatch you could install if you already had the launcher for another NC game to make the existing CoH compatible.
This may be the cause of some of the issues...
I think it patched the launcher executables to actually support the NC launcher.
Hmm, ah here we go: http://www.cityofheroes.com/news/news_archive/upgrade_to_the_ncsoft_launcher.html
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Please note it says: This will modify your game client so that it will be fully supported by the NCsoft Launcher.|
Question 4: I already use the NCsoft launcher. What do I need to do to prepare? Answer 4: If you have already installed the NCsoft launcher and are using it, you will still need to download the new City of Heroes game installer from http://www.cityofheroes.com/account/download_game_client/new_installer_en.html. This will modify your game client so that it will be fully supported by the NCsoft Launcher. You will not need to re-download or re-install your game client. |
Hope this helps...
EU @Coolio
Edit: For Alexander_Drako
After installing the basic launcher "NCSoftLauncherSetup.exe" try running the "COH_Installer.exe" to patch your game to work with the launcher.
It patches the CoX executables to work with the NClauncher rather than loop into the older launcher, this is where you are having the problem IIRC.
Note: "COH_Installer.exe"
Will try to patch the game (City of) if it finds it or will install the NClauncher to install the game if it doesn't.
The patch to the game (City of) will only happen if it (COH_Installer.exe) can find the NCLauncher executable if it can find it, if it can't then it won't patch anything, hence causing this issue for players with "City of" already installed but not the NClauncher.
If you know you have the game installed but not the NClauncher, get the "NCSoftLauncherSetup.exe" and run it before the "COH_Installer.exe"
Hope this helps solve this additional issue.
Nuff Said...
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This guide helped get the NCSoft Launcher customized with as little pain as possible on my new computer. Thank you, Hyperstrike.
Something I just found out:
In the list of games under the Installed header on the left side of the launcher, you can simply double click the game, and it will launch.
Hooray! No more having to click the game, then move down to the Play Now button, and click it. What? I'm lazy.
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Ok, how about if I want to run CoH with 2 screen resolutions depending on if my laptop is connected to a monitor or not... do I have to go into the properties to change this every time? or is there a way to get 2 CoH entries in the "installed" column?
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Originally Posted by Kheldarn
Bonus!
Do you have extra command line parameters you like to run at game launch, like telling it to use the new Going Rogue Praetorian Gold skin? You can do that, too! First, right-click on the City of Heroes entry, and select Properties: *snip image* In the screen that comes up, you'll notice a place for Extra Command Line Parameters (Advanced): *snip image* Simply enter the Command Line Parameters you desire, then click OK:  Ta-da! Now the game will launch with the Golden GR Skin! |
So I figured out a quality-of-life improvement for those of us who are on Win7, don't want to run as an administrative account (I don't spend all my time on a Linux server logged in as 'root', either), have indeed set the correct permissions on their game directories (hint: COMPUTERNAME\Users should have Full Control of DRIVE:\Wherever You Put\City of Heroes) and are getting damned UAC prompts anyway.
In the UAC dialog itself, click the little drop-arrow in the lower-left part of the dialog box to "show details" so you can see exactly what's going on. I'll bet that if you have Test or Beta servers in your list, what's happening is that the Launcher is too stupid to write the "Installation Directory" string entries to your part of the registry. I'm not making this up: I had to manually create those entries in HKCU\Software\Cryptic\CohTest (and CohBeta) in order to shut the bleeping UAC prompts up. Why in the name of bleeping bleep the Launcher couldn't write to my own part of the registry is beyond me. But, oh well.
On Protector...
Hero Woods Cutter, level 50 Katana/Regen Scrapper
Villain ProPaine, level 50 Plant/Fire Dominator
Villain Amber Ellie Dee, level 50 Sonic/Radiation Corruptor
Hero Coruscation Agent, level 50 Fire/Devices Blaster
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Test got a patch last week (I think it was?). I tested, and double clicking a server that has a patch needed will indeed launch the patching process.|
Originally Posted by Kheldarn
Something I just found out:
In the list of games under the Installed header on the left side of the launcher, you can simply double click the game, and it will launch. Hooray! No more having to click the game, then move down to the Play Now button, and click it. What? I'm lazy. |
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Originally Posted by Traumatica
Ok, how about if I want to run CoH with 2 screen resolutions depending on if my laptop is connected to a monitor or not... do I have to go into the properties to change this every time? or is there a way to get 2 CoH entries in the "installed" column?
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Originally Posted by LittleGreyDuck
So I figured out a quality-of-life improvement for those of us who are on Win7, don't want to run as an administrative account (I don't spend all my time on a Linux server logged in as 'root', either), have indeed set the correct permissions on their game directories (hint: COMPUTERNAME\Users should have Full Control of DRIVE:\Wherever You Put\City of Heroes) and are getting damned UAC prompts anyway.
In the UAC dialog itself, click the little drop-arrow in the lower-left part of the dialog box to "show details" so you can see exactly what's going on. I'll bet that if you have Test or Beta servers in your list, what's happening is that the Launcher is too stupid to write the "Installation Directory" string entries to your part of the registry. I'm not making this up: I had to manually create those entries in HKCU\Software\Cryptic\CohTest (and CohBeta) in order to shut the bleeping UAC prompts up. Why in the name of bleeping bleep the Launcher couldn't write to my own part of the registry is beyond me. But, oh well. |
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On a "family" computer, I don't find it useless at all. I keep privileges low, and folks know that if the prompt comes up I need to be involved. If you're the only one who uses your computer and you're savvy enough? I agree, kill the thing.|
Originally Posted by Kheldarn
I just disabled UAC. It's useless.
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This closes the second-to-last "here's when it's okay to click past the UAC prompt" hole I had, so I'm a pretty happy camper.
On Protector...
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Villain ProPaine, level 50 Plant/Fire Dominator
Villain Amber Ellie Dee, level 50 Sonic/Radiation Corruptor
Hero Coruscation Agent, level 50 Fire/Devices Blaster
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That is a good point. There's no such thing as "family" computer in my house. We each have our own. (And guess who's Family IT? |
Originally Posted by LittleGreyDuck
On a "family" computer, I don't find it useless at all. I keep privileges low, and folks know that if the prompt comes up I need to be involved. If you're the only one who uses your computer and you're savvy enough? I agree, kill the thing.
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)
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You could create separate shortcuts to the game itelf (opens the launcher and starts the game from same shortcut) and put the separate command line options in the shortcut instead of in the launcher. Name the shortcuts CoH Laptop Display and CoH Monitor Display so that you can tell which is which.
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Originally Posted by Traumatica
Ok, how about if I want to run CoH with 2 screen resolutions depending on if my laptop is connected to a monitor or not... do I have to go into the properties to change this every time? or is there a way to get 2 CoH entries in the "installed" column?
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If the game spit out 20 dollar bills people would complain that they weren't sequentially numbered. If they were sequentially numbered people would complain that they weren't random enough.
Black Pebble is my new hero.
what would cause the launcher to go right to the test server, instead of live? I think it may be that live/test are in the same folder. Any ideas?
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Right click on the Launcher Shortcut and select Properties. There should be nothing after NCLauncher.exe|
Originally Posted by Healix
what would cause the launcher to go right to the test server, instead of live? I think it may be that live/test are in the same folder. Any ideas?
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It sounds like yours ends as follows:
NCLauncher.exe /LaunchGame=CoHTest
EDIT: I actually have 4 shortcuts for the Launcher. One just opens the Launcher (helpful for troubleshooting or giving instructions like these). One opens the Launcher and start the Live client. One opens the Launcher and starts the Test client. One opens the Launcher and starts the Beta client. All close the Launcher as soon as the game is launched.
If the game spit out 20 dollar bills people would complain that they weren't sequentially numbered. If they were sequentially numbered people would complain that they weren't random enough.
Black Pebble is my new hero.
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This sounds like a good idea, but while I know how to pass the command lines to the game, I don't know what they are, especially the ones for display options. Is there a thread around here that has that information?
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Originally Posted by Texas Justice
You could create separate shortcuts to the game itelf (opens the launcher and starts the game from same shortcut) and put the separate command line options in the shortcut instead of in the launcher. Name the shortcuts CoH Laptop Display and CoH Monitor Display so that you can tell which is which.
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Why the hell do we have to agree to the terms and conditions EVERY time we play? You only need to agree to them once for crying out loud. It should not ask you again unless they have changed.
No other game or program I have ever played/used has forced you to agree to them every single time. There can't be any legal reason for this or they would all do it.