Running 3DMark 99 Max in Windows 7 64-bit

[Lunar Delta]

I was feeling a little nostalgic today, so I wanted to try to run the original 3D Mark program so I could hear its excellent music and see its old-school demo feel. But the installer won't even run:



Which is weird because I don't have any trouble running any other 32-bit programs, even fairly old ones. 3D Mark 2000 runs perfectly well in Windows XP SP3 compatibility mode.

Do any of the PC gurus here know of any way I can force or 'trick' the installer into running? Or am I just SOL? I tried doing a Google search, but not many useful results came up.

[PacJack360]

Are you sure it's not a 16-bit program? I ask because I believe I had this same message recently when I tried to play a 16-bit game. That would also explain why it asks for a 32-bit or 64-bit version.

[ppgrainbow]

Lunar Delta

I was feeling a little nostalgic today, so I wanted to try to run the original 3D Mark program so I could hear its excellent music and see its old-school demo feel. But the installer won't even run:



Which is weird because I don't have any trouble running any other 32-bit programs, even fairly old ones. 3D Mark 2000 runs perfectly well in Windows XP SP3 compatibility mode.

Do any of the PC gurus here know of any way I can force or 'trick' the installer into running? Or am I just SOL? I tried doing a Google search, but not many useful results came up.

You're probably getting this error message, because 3DMark 99 Max uses a 16-bit installer that will not install in 64-bit Windows 7.

[The Last Rydian]

And unfortunately there's nothing you can do, 64-bit versions of windows remove the ability to run 16-bit programs (at least natively).

[TommySperms]

HOW TO RUN 3DMark99Max under Windows 7

3DMark99Max.exe is a self-extract WinZip file that doesn't open directly under Windows 7. Just open fhe file with a any newer version from WinZip and extract all files to any folder. After that:


1. Run SETUP.EXE and follow instructions
2. Under the START Menu, right-click and select properties for '3D Mark 99 Max'
3. Change compatibility to 'Windows 98/ME' on the menu and 'Run as Administrator'
4. Save Changes
5. ENJOY

Have a nice day.

[PacJack360]

TommySperms

HOW TO RUN 3DMark99Max under Windows 7

3DMark99Max.exe is a self-extract WinZip file that doesn't open directly under Windows 7. Just open fhe file with a any newer version from WinZip and extract all files to any folder. After that:


1. Run SETUP.EXE and follow instructions
2. Under the START Menu, right-click and select properties for '3D Mark 99 Max'
3. Change compatibility to 'Windows 98/ME' on the menu and 'Run as Administrator'
4. Save Changes
5. ENJOY

Have a nice day.

1. Don't necro old threads
2. Compatibility mode will not let you use a 16-bit program on a 64-bit version of Windows

[Lunar Delta]

Yeah.

Although I did end up getting it to work by installing a 32-bit copy of Windows on a separate hard drive and installing it from there. The program itself is 32-bit so it runs fine from Windows 7 now.

[TommySperms]

Dear gents,

My motivation was the same from many - Pure Nostalgy to watch the 99 DEMO again. I had the same problem when running the EXE right away. Unfortunately it seems like having found an easy solution bothers people.

If there's any unrecognized 16bit code, this is the WinZip self-extractor embbed in the file 3DMarkMax.exe. After I "unzippep it manually" with WinZip (yeah...I unzipped a EXE file instead of running it), it was easy to extract all the content to a TEMP folder. After that I had no problem to run the SETUP.EXE included and install it. Just follow my instructions on compatibility and it should work fine.

I run Win7/64 on a AMD Atlon 5200+, ATI 3870 Video card and a Creative X-Fi Titanium Sound Card. In other words, nothing could make it more dificult as I struggled a lot to make this hardware runs smooth under Win7/64 (compatible drivers). If you still need the zipped file I created from the intermediary TEMP folder, I'll be glad to share it with anyone.

Have a nice week!