oh no! Not another error message!

well this time it is a tough one. I doubt it can be cured, but first I show you the message I get from Windows Vista x64:



Cannot find
'file:///C:/US...:%5CProgram%20Files%5CAutodesk%5C3ds%20Max%20 9%5CWebdepot%5C'
Make sure the path or Internet address is correct.

it pops up when I start 3dsmax9. It has nothing to do with 3dsmax9, it is an error message from InternetExplorer. I can't click the message away, it always comes back. Result: I cannot run 3dsmax. Simple as that. I cannot run 3dsmax. Incredible. This is my major 3D program, and I never had problems with it. Never. And Vista x64 is my major OS for graphics. This means I'll have to format my disk and reinstall everything. My god . . .


[sarcasm]
this is all Nvidia's fault. They are too lazy to create a maxtreme driver for 3dsmax2008, therefore I am forced to use 3dsmax9, and after installing v.9, this damned message popped up for the first time when I tried to run 3dsmax9. What is that? I asked myself, restarted Windows and tried again. Same thing. Then I thought aha, this must be a conflict between v.9 and v.2008, so I deinstalled v.2008. Same thing. So I deinstalled and deleted everything from Autodesk, cleaned the registry, and started new with a single installation of v.9. Still the same #¦%*& bull&ç@¬§ thing. I still cannot run my beloved 3D program. Even if I bought a license I couldn't run it.
[sarcasm end]

In C:\Program Files\Autodesk\3ds Max 9, there is a Webdepot folder!!! Why does this stupid InternetExplorer ask me about it when it is there at the correct address??? This is unbelievable.

Alright, I admit, if I had a license, I could ask the Autodesk support, and I would get the solution. I hope you guys never run into this problem, so look at this thread as an entertaining thread and be glad you can run 3dsmax9 without this bull#¢&%. I think I will erase Vista x64 and install XP x64.

alright, I found a cure. I opened Explorer and opened the folder

C:\Program Files\Autodesk\3ds Max 9\Webdepot

then started 3dsmax. The error message appeared, but then I could click the red "x" close button on the message (the OK button only made the message reappear), and it disappeared. An empty InternetExplorer window opened (completely empty, blank white), but I was able to register 3dsmax9 and run it. So this problem is solved.

But it's not over. Another unexpected error appeared:

DLL failed to initialize. Error code: 998 - Invalid access to memory location.

Alright, some directx problem. I closed 3dsmax and installed

directx_jun2007_redist

although I was pretty sure I already had installed it. Anyway. It didn't make the message go away. I looked at the location it indicates, and saw that there is no "DxDDS.bmi" file nor a DxPlugins folder inside the stdplugs folder. Strange, this never happened to me, and I have done so many 3dsmax-installations on so many different Windows OS's. I really think I'm lost now. By the way, 3dsmax displayed blank white viewports, only the active viewport was normal.

Well, then I did something irrational. I installed maxtreme for XP x64, and the installation did not complete, which is not surprising because I'm on Vista x64. Nevertheless I was able to set the viewport renderer to maxtreme, and voila, everything is fine now. Except of the DxDDS.bmi error message that appears every time I start 3dsmax, but this is something I can live with. Ah, at last, I can use the full potential of the quadro card with a very fast and fluid 3dsmax viewport, although maxtreme is supposed to run on XP only. The performance difference between a Geforce 8600 and a quadro FX 4500 is huge, to say the least.

So this thread turned into something more informative I guess, for you guys encountering similar problems.

[hiroguchi_saitou]

Wow, thanks for sharing your problem, i want to try xp 64 just for max `08. i just owned 8800gts but i think it`s powerful enough to tame 1.xx mil. polygon, combined with `08 scene optimization.
i`ve tried quadro fx3500 on my office, but i think my 88gts just a little bit more powerful than it.

it's still showing the dx error message each time I start 3dsmax, but I can live with it. I'm rather glad that maxtreme works for Vista.

About performance: I don't see much difference between a Geforce 8600 and a Quadro 4500. They are both good for video editing and 3D-graphics, and both can load quite a bunch of polygons and textures. The more stuff you load, the clearer gets the difference between the two cards. I have not much experience with other applications, but in 3dsmax it is essential if you run the viewport with directx or maxtreme. A Geforce running with directx starts stuttering, while a Quadro running with maxtreme has a very smooth display. It takes a second or two where nothing moves, but then you can pan and move in your scene as if there were only a few polys. And high resolution textures are perfectly displayed, without the usual texture degradation. So in a 1600x1200 pixel monitor, what you see is more precise than your 640x480 pixel render. -> no need to test-render to see the correct textures!

So, that's why some people pay the multiple price for a Quadro. It's the same chip as the Geforce I think, but some features are unlocked while on the Geforce they are locked. For graphic work, a Quadro is really worth it.

Maybe it is possible to softmod a Geforce so that the maxtreme driver can be installed and can run. Then possibly the performance could increase, but so far I was not very satisfied with softmodding. I did it with a Geforce4 (-> Quadro 350) and with a ATI 9600 (-> FireGl xx), and I must say that it was in vain, no performance gain at all. It is just fun to see your card description change in your device manager, not more.