Foxy HOTAS Cougar Edition: Web release ReadMe.txt file
Version: 4.0
Last modified: 7th July 2004

Please turn on Word Wrap from your application's (eg. Notepad) Edit menu to view this file correctly.
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        Welcome to Foxy
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Howdy! Welcome to Foxy, an application or really a whole suite of applications designed to help you discover the power of your new HOTAS Cougar Joystick and Throttle. I'll keep this short and sweet because I've no doubt that you're too excited to read through a six page ReadMe.txt file! Let's get straight onto installing Foxy.

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  Foxy requires Small Fonts!
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IMPORTANT: Foxy requires that you have your fonts set to Small Fonts (Windows defaults to this). To check or change your font settings do the following:
1.) Right click on your desktop and from the menu that pops up, select Properties. This will open up the Display Properties window.
2.) Select the Settings tab and from there, press the Advanced button.
3.) In the Display Frame, select the Small Fonts option from the drop down combo listbox.
4.) Press OK.

If you don't do this, then you will find that various parts of the Editor, Composer and Korgy will not display properly.

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      Installation of Foxy version 4.0
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The installation of Foxy comes in 2 downloads: 

Foxyv4.zip contains the files required to install Foxy and its supporting applications.
Foxyv4FSSP.exe (Flight Sim Support Pack) contains joystick and macro files for most of the flight sims currently available. You do not need to install this if you don't want to, although if you are a beginner to Foxy or TM programming, it is highly recommended. If you don't install this, the Favourites menu in Foxy and in FoxyGUI will be empty.

Here's how to install Foxy.


1.) Please ensure that you have installed, setup and tested your Cougar and the Thrustmaster applications first. Do NOT install Foxy before doing this.
2.) I recommend rebooting your machine before installing. Just a good habit to get into.
3.) Ensure you have NO running applications. This includes programs like virus checkers, internet software, First Aid, Ad-Aware etc.
4.) Extract the contents of Foxyv4.zip to your computer (say to your desktop) and run the setup.exe file. Foxy will ask you where you want to install it to, and I recommend that you let it install to its default location: C:\Program Files\Foxy
5.) If you have downloaded the Flight Sim Support Pack (Foxyv4FSSP.exe), you should run it and unzip its contents into Foxy’s folder now before running Foxy. By default this will be located at: C:\Program Files\Foxy\. If you run Foxy before installing the Support Pack, and want to set up the support for various flight sims on Foxy’s Favourites menu, then close down Foxy, delete Foxy.ini and run Foxy again.
6.) Now REBOOT YOUR MACHINE. Foxy won't ask you to do this, so please do it yourself.
7.) Once you've installed Foxy, and rebooted, then you can run it from the Thrustmaster HOTAS Cougar program group.
8.) If you were unable to install Foxy, see the troubleshooting section below.

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     Reinstalling Foxy
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If you're reinstalling Foxy over a previous version for the Cougar, then don't! I know you won't want to lose any information you've generated with Foxy, such as those files for your sims you've been working on for months! So my recommendation is to:
1.) Backup your Files folder to a different location, but do not delete it.
2.) Backup your Layouts folder to a different location, but do not delete it.
3.) Backup your Foxy.ini file and Layouts.ini file to a different location.
4.) Uninstall Foxy from the Control Panel's Add/Remove Programs applet. Note that Foxy never deletes files you have created with it but weren't installed as part of the installation routine. (Phew!)
5.) Install the new version. Do not run it yet.
6.) Copy back your Layouts folder, selected or your own joystick and macro files from the Files folder etc. and you should be ready to go, with no information lost.

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      Setting up Foxy
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1.) If you've installed and run the Thrustmaster Cougar and its applications successfully, then Foxy should detect them and set up all of its settings for you. You won't need to do anything apart from enter your name and pilot callsign. (I should point out at this stage that Foxy does not at any time collect any information from you and make it available to any other application. So although Foxy asks you for your name, it's purely for Foxy's own use.)
2.) If Foxy can't for some reason locate where you've installed the Thrustmaster software, then it will ask you to enter it as it's setting up all of its settings. Or you can do it later from the Preferences Window, which you can open from the Edit menu or the toolbar. The default location for the TM applications is C:\Program Files\HOTAS.

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      Notes on Foxy
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1.) Foxy was developed in Visual Basic 6 Professional, with the very latest service pack installed (service pack 6). The installation routine is Microsoft's own as recommended for modern installations. Therefore you can rest assured that Foxy installs only the latest controls and library files, in strict accordance with installation protocols under Windows operating systems, and therefore shouldn't interfere with other software on your system. Foxy has been developed from its Fox Two Freeware routes over 6+ years ago, and versions of it are used throughout the World on all sorts of configurations and Windows operating systems. During the testing of Foxy and the Cougar, no problems were found installing or running it on Windows 98SE, Windows 2000 and Windows XP. Because it has been used widely over all these years, it's a fair assumption to make that it's a fairly robust application. So if you are having problems installing or running it, then you're damned unlucky! I've only ever had one person who couldn't install Fox Two Professional for the previous TM controllers, and when he decided to reformat and reinstall all of his software, it then installed with no problems. A bit drastic but goes to show you that something else was causing the problem.

2.) People often ask me whether Foxy writes information to the registry, or collects information about a user. No, it does not is the answer. Foxy writes all of its information to various .ini files in its folder, the main one being Foxy.ini. If this file becomes corrupted in any way, then it can have unwanted effects on Foxy. If this does happen to you, and I've never seen it here, then you can either just delete the Foxy.ini file, putting Foxy back into its freshly installed state without affecting any saved files you may have developed, or you can edit the Foxy.ini file in Notepad if you know what you're doing.

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    If everything went smoothly ...
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If you're a veteran of previous Fox Two applications and previous TM controllers like the F-22 Pro, F-16 FLCS, F-16 TQS or the Digital setups, then just review the summary of what's changed from these controllers compared to the Cougar. If you're a complete beginner, and you're not interested in dabbling with programming yet, then you have 3 options. 

Option 1.) Just close Foxy down, run your flight sim. and get flying. If your flight sim is capable of assigning its functions the buttons and hats on your controllers, then you can do that, and that's it.
Option 2.) If you want to program your controllers, but don't actually want to learn how to write your own files yet, then select a file for your flight sim from the Favourites menu, then Download the file from the download menu, and go flying. Nice and simple!
Option 3.) If you're keen to learn how to program your files, then there's a plethora of help ready to teach you. This comes in the form of your manual, Foxy's help file, FoxyGUI, the wizards on the wizards menu, and the tutorial files on the same menu. What I recommend is that you read the Introducing Foxy help topic in the help file, and then load up the Macro wizard from the Wizards menu. Once you've gone through that, as well as the joystick wizard afterwards, I'd then take a look at the first 2 tutorial files in the Wizards menu, and you'll then be well on your way to becoming a programming guru :)

I HIGHLY recommend that you read the first sections of the help file - the Introducing Foxy and other sections in the Getting Started chapter. You will need to have a lot of that information in your head!

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      If everything didn't ...
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1.) Run the installer separately
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If the installer complains that it couldn't find the .msi file, or that there's no association with the .msi file, then you need to install the Windows Installer first before trying to install Foxy. You see, the way Foxy installs is to install the Windows Installer first, which in turn installs Foxy. Here's how to sort this one out then ... 

    1.1.) Reboot your machine, and make sure no background apps are running.
    1.2.) Then install the Windows installer by running InstMsiA.exe for Windows 98 machines, or InstMsiW.exe for Windows NT machines.
    1.3.) Now reboot again, and make sure no background apps are running.
    1.4.) Now if the Windows installer has installed OK, you should be able to right click on the Foxy.msi file, and from the menu that pops up, select install. Or you could just run the setup.exe file again.
    1.5.) Make sure that you have absolutely NO other apps running when doing any of these things. So CTRL ALT DELETE and close down everything but Explorer and Systray.
    1.6.) Now reboot and you'll be up and running fine. 
    
I've had a few users who've had to install Foxy this way, but all reported success. 
    
    
2.) RichEd32.dll problems
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If your installation is stopped with some message about the RichEd32.dll file, just continue. Foxy keeps its own version of this file in its folder and will use this version.

3.) Write protected system files
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    Another problem people have had in the past is that the installation process gets stopped because certain system files on your system are old and need updating, but they're write protected. If you see this, you will need to change the attributes of your system files in your Windows/System directory so that they're not write protected. In most cases you can do this by selecting all the files in Windows Explorer, pressing the Properties toolbar button, and deselect the Read Only checkbox.

4.) Conflict with some virus checkers
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I had this e-mail from one user years ago and as it's self explanatory, here it is. "During the install (specifically while copying files), the system hung well and truly, no response whatsoever.  This happened on two occasions, before I was sufficiently motivated to sort out why. It seems that the version of McAfee I'm running (3.1.6, with full checks) cannot synchronise with the install routine, and it was locking when trying to check/write some of the button rtf template files.  I switched the virus checker off, let the install run, and everything went fine third time around." 

I think you're very unlikely to see this problem now that I'm using the Microsoft Installer, and it hasn't surfaced for years now. I personally have 3 machines here running different software, all with virus checkers and firewalls, and never had a problem installing Foxy on any of them. Still, it's always a good idea to install software with no running background apps, and preferably after a reboot.

5.) Conflict with First Aid 97
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A few years ago 1 beta tester reported that if he had First Aid running, when calling the Preferences Window caused a problem. Disabling First Aid removed the problem for him. 

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           Known issues
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1.) Every single procedure in Foxy has error trapping in it, so if a bug can be trapped by Visual Basic, then it should be, so the app shouldn't crash through my fault. In most cases, you'll be able to keep using the app with no problems. However, some bugs occur at a lower level - we've all experienced General Protection Faults (GPF) and the dreaded Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) that have required us to turn our computers off and then on again. These are untrappable (that's why they appear!!). Rebooting your machine is your best solution (and often the only one) if you see these.

2.) Symptom: You can't see the images properly in the Composer. Also, some of the buttons in the macros frame are missing
Comments: This occurs when you have your system setup for large fonts. Foxy can't handle this I'm afraid, and it would be a HUGE job for me to change all the image coding in the Composer and the Macros frame to try to correct this, and I'm not even sure I could. Please see the note about this at the beginning of this ReadMe.txt file and the help file topic "Small Fonts, big problem."

3.) Symptom: The Image Viewer sometimes shows two sets of Minimise, Restore and Maximise buttons on the top right of its window.
Comments: At the moment this one has me beaten. I don't even know how one could program a Window to have these! Looking into it. It doesn't cause a problem though.

4.) Symptom: When using a file with very long statements in it, the scrollbars in the Editor don't take you to the end of the line.
Comments: This is a known issue with this Microsoft control, and there's no solution. To get to the end of the long line then place the insertion point on the line, and hit the END key on your keyboard. Or split the line up by creating macros for parts of the line, and just have the macros on the statement. Or press the "right arrow" button to the right of the scrollbar.

5.) Symptom: Deleting a file in Foxy's folder causes Foxy to be reinstalled when run again.
Comments: See Foxy's manual or the Help file on: The Windows Installer and Foxy's Critical Files.  

6.) Symptom: The Cougar manual and help files contain way too much text.
Comments: ... err .... guilty as charged.  

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   Uninstalling or repairing Foxy
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ALWAYS UNINSTALL PREVIOUS FOXY VERSIONS BEFORE INSTALLING A LATER VERSION. Note though that you do not need to uninstall any of my previous Fox Two applications if you want to continue using those. To uninstall Foxy, Use the Control Panel "Add/Remove Programs" applet. You will be given the choice of either repairing Foxy, or uninstalling it. Choose the option you want to run.

Note that uninstalling will not remove the Foxy folder completely from your hard drive. This is because Foxy generates other files when it's used, like your Foxy.ini file housing all your settings, and your Files folder, if you've developed your own files. This is by design and a good thing as well. Why? Because you can reinstall Foxy into that folder, and not lose any of your settings or your files. I do however recommend that you delete your Foxy.ini file if you're about to reinstall if you were having problems with Foxy previously. 

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   Thanks to the beta testers
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Many thanks to the Cougar World beta testers who helped find the bugs in the development of Foxy version 4 and the HOTAS Cougar software version 3.0. Thanks then to: 
185wolverine, dimebug, DonULFonso, Emacs, FUBAR, Isamu, Jagstang, JAMF, javanree, Judy, K@OS, Loffy, MeanGreeny, nicolaas, Outflanker, Rabbit52, Red Dog, ronht, UgoRipley and us57035.

A special thanks as always to Frugal for his support and for hosting Cougar World and its forums.

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I think that's it for now. Best of luck!
       
Cheers and enjoy Foxy! 

James "Nutty" Hallows




          
