Attached Link: http://www.pcbos.nl/3D.htm

Hallo Larry!

first of all: the difference between the old Environment Creators and the new version, "Environment Creators theLuxe Version II" is about as immense as that between Windows 3.1 and Windows XP :-)
Version2 can create Ligthing Environments from photographs, for instance.. Wonderful how you seem to mix the two as if they are the same :-)

I think that -unless your windows installation is at fault- your problem is as simple as you having not unlocked mainbuttons.py. It is not effective to unlock only the folder "poserScripts". You must specifically SELECT mainbuttons.py, and unlock THAT file. The state of the folder it is in is not significant. I hope the rest of my answer below may make it clear why it is so important to have this right.

Lets come back to your problem in detail. I want to be quite specific about this: if your windows installation is OK, and IF you checked your new drive thoroughly (including surface check and thorough formatting!- this process might take an hour or more!), and IF you installed first Poser, then the ProPack extension, both from their respective original CDs - thereby not running the risk of importing faults from your backup: EC really should run without any problem whatsoever. The program has many users who make extensive use of it, and only under a German OS it needs an adaptation to run smoothly.

The detailed check of your new disk is a lot of work that has nothing to do with the Environment Creators, but that is the price you have to pay when you work with IDE disks. If it is of any consolation: I do the same with my SCSI disks. In fact, the thorough check thing I do twice a year for all my disks. And I have not had a disk crash for the last 15 years...

So lets approach this analitically- I have worked with computers, Mac, Unix and Windows, since 1987 by the way, and this is how I always get round any computer problem.

First the simple way.

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Remember EC only runs from the Python window- the small window with a row of buttons you get when choosing "Python" from the "Windows" menu in your Poser.

This is why, once you ran the DAZ installer, you have to run a small Python program to install EC under one of those buttons in that window.
The DAZ Installer will tell you what Python program to run once you installed.

I understand from you you first bought the original, EC Version I, and then the update to Version II.

So there we go. In your existing Poser-with-ProPack installation, install Version I with your DAZ installer.
Now run the Python program as instructed by the DAZ installer.

!!First UNLOCK Runtime:Python:poserScripts:mainbuttons.py of course, since this file must be changed. If you close and then restart Poser, you must unlock mainbuttons.py again before running any script that changes it. Its simply a bug in Poser, but once you know about it, it is not that difficult.

Run the Python program the DAZ installer asks you to run. You unlocked mainbuttons.py beforehand naturally. You now have installed EC to the Python Window- youll see a button there, labelled "lights-the-Lux" or something like that. Click on that one, and a new menu will appear, with all ECs modules.

OK, so that works. Now run your DAZ upgrade installer, and then the Python script the Installer asks you to run. If mainbuttons.py is locked, this installer will tell you it is and what to do about it.
If everything is fine, EC II will now be installed.

If you want, you can now install the update to EC 2.0.1, and the manual (pretty important information to be found here!).

Updates and manual to be downloaded from the product pages at DAZ (so if you bought an UPGRADE, only download from the UPGRADE page at DAZ!!), or from EC IIs download page at my site:

http://www.pcbos.nl/3D.htm

Finally, you can replace the Runtime folders with those in your backup- AS LONG AS YOU DO NOT REPLACE THE "PYTHON" AND THE "SCRIPTS" FOLDERS!!

If you can now run EC as normal, you know the problem was as simple as not unlocking mainbuttons.py.

If not, youre in deep trouble with your windows installation.
Check your disk to the maximum, reinstall windows from its original CD and so on.

By the way: I banned Windows 98 from all our computers two years ago, I had too many problems with it- hardware that suddenly didnt work anymore (though 100% OK in other computers!), data losses and so on. For PC work, I now rely on NT 4 and Windows 2000 Pro. Had not had a problem for two years.

I hope this helps you! If you need help again, mailing to tech@ pcbos.nl is the quickest way to get an answer.

Cheers,

Paul Christiaan