[ER, EL, AC] Solutions for Error Numbers - 10, 31, 32, 37, 93, 94, and 99

[Vice]

While doing tech support for these games over the last 10 years or so, these errors are occasionally submitted by players who ask for ways to resolve them. I'm posting this thread as a resource of information on the causes and details on the solutions.

These error messages usually occur when you initially launch a game or during the loading phase. They can also sometimes happen during gameplay. When I've received tech support requests for this problem, I often discover that the system has also encountered similar problems in other games (usually CTD's) in the Windows error log. For SW3DG games, the errors above indicate the game is not able to load media it needs.

Potential Causes
- Anti-virus or other software running in the background using up or blocking resources the game needs to load media. Such interference causes the game to halt when it can't load a media file it needs. A/V programs known to cause interference problems with games are Norton, McAfee, eTrust, and AVG (although AVG doesn't seem to cause too many problems in my games, issues with AVG are usually limited to simply causing longer load times). An anti-spyware program that is known to interfere with games is Spyware Doctor.
- Insufficient memory or disk resources. A badly fragmented drive that is low on available space may also cause such a problem. Running additional programs in the background can reduce available system resources. Some systems I've reviewed have very little physical memory available, causing a low resource condition that prevents running a game reliably.

Solutions
- Replace existing anti-virus software with versions that have fewer interference issues with games. A good free alternative that seems to have very few interference problems with most games is Avast ( http://www.avast.com/free-antivirus-download ). You can even leave its full protection mode active while playing SW3DG games. An alternative for anti-spyware is SpyBot.
- Remove unnecessary background/startup programs to free up system memory and processor resources. If the hard drive is almost full, remove programs or files to free up more hard drive space.

Specific Program Alerts
2-14-2009 - One apparent culprit of causing interference with the games here and/or possibly others is a program called Cyberlink Media Library Service (background task filename is CLMLSvc.exe). This program is apparently pre-installed on some HP computers and has been confirmed as being a cause for some error code related problems. Stopping this process has solved the problem as reported by five users so far.

Completing one or more of the solutions above has solved virtually all of the reported problems with these error messages. Obviously, you'll need to be aware of any security and/or operation implications disabling or removing certain programs may have and you'll want to backup any files or programs you want to keep for later use/installation.

For additional information on running background programs that can hurt your computer's performance and stability, along with tips for improving system performance, visit this link: http://www.starwraith.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=2431

[Edited on 7-7-2011 by Vice]