Direct executable launches
Verified against Personal Companion retail 3.42, using isolated copies of
installs/deluxe_dnk/ in DOSBox 0.74-3. The original installation was unchanged.
Flight without the menu
Run from the game installation directory:
3 -s -k
This reached the cockpit and runway without first running the menu, even after
removing 3.CMD, 3D.CFG, MOAG.CFG, PILOT.HSC and TOWERS.DAT from the test
copy. It provides a direct route into the default training flight. This was a
startup check, not a completed-flight/progression test.
3 -s also started flight with the existing menu-generated 3.CMD. Without that
file, the same command reached joystick calibration instead. Adding -k avoided
that calibration. Bare 3, 3 -i and 3 -iy{k all printed the refusal to run
directly. The -s argument therefore permits independent startup; there is no
requirement for an actual menu parent process. Its entry guard and the option dispatch are now traced; useful flags are listed below.
The normal batch returns from flight through MOAG -_- -r, which processes the
result and returns to the menu. Launching the engine alone omits that return
stage. For ordinary campaign play, CORNCOB.BAT remains the intended entry point.
Flight-engine option dispatch
The normal 3.42 executable's table is at DS:f48c; its handlers occupy file
0xd78e..0xd877. The original CMDLINE.ASM supplies names, while the table and
consumers were checked in the retained executable. Flags are lowercase and can
be combined after one dash. 3.CMD is read after the command line, so saved
numeric settings can override values supplied directly.
| Flag | Meaning |
|---|---|
-s |
Satisfies the direct-engine entry guard; normal batch uses this too. |
-k |
Disable joystick flight input/calibration and use keyboard. |
-i |
Start invulnerable. |
-f |
Grant experimental-aircraft throttle and ending permission. |
-r |
Read current world state from 3UNIV.DAT. |
-h |
Request a reserve aircraft. |
-a |
Generate the airfields-only world rather than the normal training defences. |
-e |
Enable the developer world-copy key (release Right Shift); also initialise the AAA/KLA counts to zero. |
-b |
Other Worlds recording playback from 3DEMO.DAT; recorder/playback code is absent from normal 3.42. |
-nN, -lN, -mN |
Training AAA, KLA-site and vehicle-site counts. |
-vN, -tN, -wN |
Their corresponding training qualities; -uN aliases -tN, -xN aliases -wN. |
-y |
Beginner flight assistance. |
-{ |
Enable instructional/radio message boxes. |
-qN |
Force the pre-shift timing value instead of measuring the normal frame interval. |
-o |
Echo the command-file settings and pause during startup. |
-j, -g |
Joystick recenter/automatic-detection control bits. |
-d |
Set the diagnostic flag; many of its consumers are compile-time diagnostic branches. |
-cN |
Set the internal registration-code words. |
For example, 3 -skif starts the default training flight with keyboard controls,
invulnerability and experimental-flight permission. Direct launch does not itself
supply a particular campaign world or process career results afterward.
MOAG -_- -i also accepts a front-end-wide invulnerability override; -r is its
normal post-flight return mode. The initial -_- is only a literal guard string,
not evidence that the program checks which parent process launched it.
Other executables
| Invocation | Observed behaviour |
|---|---|
CCTITLE |
Runs the opening title/story sequence independently. Escape returns to DOS. |
MOAG -_- |
Runs the front end, including its initial title sequence. Bare MOAG refuses to start. |
JVCC input.jpg output.vga |
Converts an image independently. Converting the supplied CAP1CJ.JPG produced a byte-identical copy of the reference CAP1CJ.VGA. |
TOWER -_- 4 [filename] |
Opens airfield four from the supplied briefing file, defaulting to TOWERS.DAT. -1 instead selects the boss screen. See the complete helper contract. |
ISCORE |
Bare invocation refuses to start. It expects shared reporting state, including references to MOAG.CFG and 3.RES. |
RIMG, SRATS |
Both can run independently after BIOS video mode 10h has been selected. They draw into an existing graphics context; they do not initialise a complete application. |
SOADL |
Direct invocation has not been tested. |
To run the starfield independently from the project directory, use
./run_srats_dosbox.sh. It uses the same cycle setting as the normal launcher
and preserves the user's global DOSBox configuration. The ten-byte
tools/MODE10.COM helper selects BIOS video mode 10h before launching SRATS;
no additional configuration file is required. Press Enter for the portal
sequence or Escape to exit.
Audio was disabled during these tests, so standalone title/music-driver behaviour was not verified.
Evidence
The launch records include commands, removed state files, console output and screenshots:
