(cont. from SimCity 4 vs. Vista, Page One..)

Wait for a moment – it does not take long. ImageCFG is repackaging the EXE. You will see a series of instructions the utility is carrying out, looking something (but not exactly) like the image of the DOS screen below. The screen is ONLY a sample screen of what will be happening: Yours might look rather different!

Once the process is complete, you’ll be back at the prompt and you can type Exit to close the DOS Window.

Fig. 3: Modifying the SC4 Shortcut..

Before you storm off to play again, please also do the priority fix in Part II, the two work best together. If you have problems, delete the fixed SimCity 4.exe (or rename it) and copy the backup back to its proper location.

Part II:
The following is an optional addition to the SimCity 4 Shortcut – it works ONLY on Vista or Windows 7, NOT on XP, and can be applied regardless of the CPU – dual core or single core. What it does is to change the priority the game takes, over other stuff that might be running. It does not automatically put it ahead of everything else, but it will set it to high, which usually is more than good enough, and happens regardless of the load order. To do this, right-click on the shortcut you always use to run the game, then select Properties. The properties window comes up.

Put the following text (you can copy & paste from the line below) BEFORE whatever it says on that line (again assuming that your Windows operating system is located on drive C):

C:\Windows\System32\cmd.exe /c START “high priority sc4” /high

Exactly as it is shown here, including the parenthesis. Thus, the entire line will then read (Fig.4)- if your Maxis folder is indeed under C:\Program Files\:

C:\Windows\System32\cmd.exe /c START “high priority sc4” /high “C:\Program Files\Maxis\SimCity 4 Deluxe\Apps\SimCity 4.exe
 

Fig. 4: The modified shortcut..

Again I am assuming that your Program Files are on “C:\..”. Change it you use a different drive. All quotation marks (parenthesis) must be used. If you have any games switches, like -Intro:off or some such, they must come at the very end. Click Apply or OK and close the dialog.

You are done.

Nota Bene: Depending on the amount of memory your graphic card features, you might also want to change the Compatibility settings at the same time: if you have less than 256mb of dedicated graphic memory, runing the game in XP (Service Pack 2) mode can help the game running better. It is worth a try.