Technical support

Unable to launch one of our games and play? This could be caused by one of two common technical problems:

• When clicking the Play button, a new window appears with nothing in it.
  This is usually the sign that you do not have Java on your computer. Java is a piece of software required to run our online games. Java used to be included in previous versions of the operating system, but Microsoft decided recently to take it out of Windows XP for legal and business reasons. To install Java automatically, click on:

  

• After clicking the Play button, a new window opens, the game logo appears and a progression bar fills up, but it gets stuck at the end with the message "Connecting to Server".
  This is most likely caused by a firewall on your network. Your computer needs to connect to our game server on a specific TCP/IP port. Personal firewalls, such as the ones used in a personal DSL line, are usually not a problem. They allow outbound connections on all ports, which is not a security problem, especially with Java applets. However, corporate firewalls are usually more restrictive, and block all outgoing connections as well. Only your network administrator will be able to allow outgoing connections on a specific port, depending on the game you want to play:
  • #24100 for Gang of Four online
  • #1238 for Fist of Dragonstones online
  • #1236 for Queen's Necklace online
  • #25536 for Ticket to Ride online
• Still not working?
  Check your configuration and contact technical support (see below)
  • Recommended configuration:
    99% of problems encountered with Java Applets come from outdated or buggy "Java Virtual Machines", either at the operating system level or within the web browser. Therefore, we recommend the following configuration:
    - A recent (up-to-date if possible) version of your Web browser: at least MS Internet Explorer 5.5 or 6, or Netscape 7 on the Windows platform. The older your browser, the more likely you are to encounter problems. In this case, we would like to hear about it so that we can try to fix the problem. See the bug reporting section below.
    - If you use another Virtual Machine than the one that comes with your browser (like the Sun JRE on Windows), make sure you have the latest version as well (at least Sun JRE 1.4.2)
    - A good amount of RAM (128 MB or better). Our online games do not require much RAM at all, but some browsers have such a poor memory management that you might have problems at the end of a day's work. Restarting the web browser (by closing all web windows and re-launching it) usually helps a lot. If it fails, try restarting your computer.
  • Reporting Bugs and problems:
    To report bugs or problems, send an email to . Make sure you give us:
    1. a brief explanation of the problem and steps to reproduce it if it is reproducible
    2. your operating system and its version (Windows 98, MacOS X 10.2, Linux RedHat 7.2, etc.)
    3. your hardware configuration¹ (RAM, etc.)
    4. your Web browser name and version (i.e. Internet Explorer 5.5, Netscape 7, Chimera, etc.)
    5. a Java console extract²
    6. if the problem occured during a game, give us your login along with the one of the other players, date and time of the game

¹To access to your system information:
- On MacOSX, run "Apple System Profiler" then File -> Save, sit/zip the file and send it to us.
- On Linux, simply run "uname -a && java -version" on a shell and send us the result.
- On Windows 2000, run "System Information" from the Start Up menu -> Accessories -> System Tools -> System Information. Select the root of the tree in the new window, and then File -> Save as information system file. Zip the file and send it to us.

²How to get a Java Console:

• Windows, MS Internet Explorer, Microsoft VM:
  1. Go to Tools -> Options -> Advanced and check the 3 checkboxes related to Java
  2. Restart IE
  3. Go and play
  4. Upon apparition of the bug/problem, go to View -> Java Console
  5. Extract the content, and zip it (or any compression format)
• Windows, any browser, Sun VM:
  1. Go to Setting Panels -> Java Plug-in
  2. In the basic tab, activate the Console
  3. Re-Launch your browser
  4. Go and play
  5. Upon apparition of the bug/problem, fire the Java Console (different options depending on your os/browser combination)
  6. Extract the content and zip (or any compression format) it.
• On MacOSX:
  1. go to Applications/utilities/Java/Java 1.4.2 plugin settings
  2. In the basic tab, activate the Console
  3. Re-Launch your browser
  4. Go and play
  5. Upon apparition of the bug/problem, fire the Java Console (different options depending on your os/browser combination)
  6. Extract the content and zip (or any compression format) it.