Here's the official reply from EA tech support. I've responded giving them my solution.
>>Thank you for contacting us here at Electronic Arts Technical Support.
I'm sorry to hear about your difficulties with the game.
I will recommend three sets of steps to resolve your issue. Please try them out one by one. If all of them fails, I have also included our Warranty for your perusal.
When a game displays an error describing an inability to read the CD, or a game will not load once installed, this can be for several reasons. The reason usually falls on three areas; the CD-ROM drive, the game disc, or a software issue between the two. As you can imagine this can be a daunting task to troubleshoot, however if you follow the below steps you'll be able to narrow down the issue to the root cause and resolve the issue. Please keep in mind that these are not meant to be tried all at once, so make sure that once you've completed a section that you attempt to launch the game to see if that particular troubleshooting resolved your issue.
1. Make sure that you have closed any programs or tasks running in the background as sometimes one of the programs can conflict with the game. Background applications such as anti-virus programs are often the cause of conflicts.
· Hold down the Ctrl, Alt, and Delete keys at the same time
· Click the "Processes" tab.
· Click on the gray bar in the middle column that says User Name to sort by user name.
· Do NOT select anything for SYSTEM, LOCAL SERVICE, or NETWORK SERVICE.
· Click on anything besides EXPLORER and TASKMGR for this User Name or other user names.
· Click on END PROCESS
· Repeat these steps until only explorer.exe and taskmgr.exe are open for this user profile.
2.Install SafeDisc Update.
Install SafeDisc update.
Before you install the SafeDisc update, follow these steps to see if they are required for your computer.
Insert the game play disc.
Click Start.
Click Run.
Type cmd in the available text box and press OK.
At the command prompt, type in the CD-ROM drive letter that your play disc is currently in, followed by a colon.
Example : D:
Press the Enter key on your keyboard.
Note : This should change your current prompt to match the drive letter you typed.
Type dir /a:h in the new prompt, and press Enter on your keyboard.
This will display all of the hidden files on the disc. If there is a file named SSIFSDAT.SYS listed among them, you do not need this update however it may benefit other games.
Click on the following link to download the SafeDisc update.
http://www.macrovision.com/products/safedisc/downloads.shtml Follow the instructions listed on the Macrovision website to download and install the SafeDisc update.
Once the update has been successfully installed, restart the game.
3. Other CD ROM troubleshooting steps:
Verify that the disk is clean/undamaged and the drive is able to recognize the disk.
Verify that the correct game CD/DVD is inserted in the drive.
Log on as Administrator.
Disable Compatibility Mode.
Install and then start the game from a different CD-ROM /DVD-ROM drive.
Disable Emulation software.
Change DMA transfer mode to PIO mode.
Download and install the DCOM update.
Download the latest firmware version for your CD-ROM/DVD-ROM drive.
Scan your computer for viruses.
Remove Spyware from your computer.
Verify that the disk is clean/undamaged and the drive is able to recognize the disk.
With multiple disc games, the installation program will prompt you to insert the next disc during installation. If the installation program stops responding, it may be due to clicking the "OK" button too quickly after inserting the next disc or inserting a dirty disc.
The following steps will help prevent lockups during installation.
After inserting the disc that the installation program is prompting you to insert, please wait at least 10 to 15 seconds (the indicator light will stop blinking on the CD-ROM drive) before clicking the "OK" button. This will allow the CD-ROM drive to initialize the disc properly and allow the installation to resume properly.
Make sure that the disc is clean and free from defects. Fingerprints and scratches could also cause lockups during installation. Use a soft dry cloth to wipe any smudges or fingerprints from the disk.
Verify that the correct game CD/DVD is inserted in the correct drive.
Many games now come with multiple CD's, and which CD is required to start the game may not be blatantly apparent.
Note : If you are unsure which CD is required to launch the game, please refer to the game documentation, or attempt to start the game with all of the discs that came with the game.
Games now are being offered in a DVD disc format to reduce disc swapping during installation, and reduce the confusion for the consumer. The catch to this is that you cannot install or play a DVD version game unless you have a DVD-ROM drive in your computer to install and play from.
Log on as Administrator .(This only applies for Microsoft Windows NT, Microsoft Windows 2000, and Microsoft Windows XP)
Many games now will only work properly when installed and played on an account with Administrator level access.
Disable Compatibility Mode .
Right-click on the shortcut used to launch the program and choose Properties.
Click on the Compatibility tab.
Uncheck the box next to Run this program in compatibility mode for.
Click the Apply button, and then click OK to close the window.
Launch the game from the shortcut that you just modified.
Install and then start the game from a different CD-ROM/DVD-ROM drive .(This only applies if you have a secondary CD-ROM or DVD-ROM drive in the same computer.)
If the game is currently installed, uninstall the software.
Click Start.
Click Control Panel.
Double-Click Add/Remove Programs.
Select the game you are troubleshooting, and click the Remove or Add/Remove button (depending on your operating system).
Install the game using your secondary CD-ROM or DVD-ROM drive.
Insert the game disc.
Choose Install from the autoplay screen.
Once the game is installed, start the game while the game CD is in your secondary CD-ROM or DVD-ROM drive.
Disable Emulation software.
Because of the way Emulation software converts physical hard drive space to mimic a removable storage device, such as a CD-ROM drive; this can prevent the software from being read properly. Below are a few of the mentioned emulation drives with basic instructions for disabling them. Should your particular emulation software not be listed, please refer to the software manufacturers website for further information.
Alcohol 10%
Start Alcohol and click on the Emulation option on the left window.
Select Emulation from the option tree.
Uncheck the Ignore Media Types box to turn off the media type emulation.
Select Extra Emulation from the options tree.
Uncheck the BAD Sectors Emulation to turn off this type of emulation.
Exit Alcohol 120% and restart the game.
CloneCD
On your Windows task bar in the bottom right of your screen (next to the clock), locate the CloneCD tray icon.
The icon can differ, but should look like one of these:
Right-click on the icon, and uncheck Hide CD-R media.
Restart the game.
Daemon Tools
Locate the Daemon Tools icon, which should be located on the Windows taskbar (next to the clock).
This icon can differ, so hover your mouse over each icon for a description of what it is.
Once you've found the Daemon Tools icon, right-click on it.
Select the Emulation tab.
Deselect SafeDisc.
Restart the game.
Veritas DLA
Double-click on My Computer.
Right-click on the CD Drive.
Click Properties.
Click on the DLA tab.
Uncheck Enable DLA on your Drives.
Nero Image Drive
Launch Nero ImageDrive.
Go to the following location:
Start à All Programs à Nero à Nero 6 Ultra Edition à Nero ImageDrive
Select Disable Nero ImageDrive located at the bottom left side of the program.
Change DMA transfer mode to PIO mode .(This applies only to Windows XP users).
Click Start.
Click Control Panel.
Click Switch to Classic View in the left pane.
Double-click on System.
Click on the Hardware tab.
Click on the Device Manager button.
Double-click IDE ATA/ATAPI controllers.
Double-click Secondary IDE Channel.
Click on the Advanced Settings tab.
Note : If you do not see the Advanced Settings tab, your computer probably has a SCSI (small computer system interface) drive. DMA transfer mode options are not available for SCSI drives.
Under Device 0, select PIO only in the Transfer Mode box.
If you have more than one CD or DVD drive, also select PIO only in the Transfer Mode box under Device 1.
WARNING : If Current Transfer Mode under Device 0 or under Device 1 states Not Applicable, that device is not in use. Change only the Devices that do not state Not Applicable. If both devices state Not Applicable, your CD or DVD drive is on the Primary IDE Channel.
Double-click Primary IDE Channel.
Click on the Advanced Settings tab.
Under Device 1, select DMA if available in the Transfer Mode box.
WARNING : Device 0 is most likely your hard drive and should not be changed.
Click OK.
Restart your computer, and then restart the game.
Download and install the DCOM update .(This only applies to Windows 95/98 users)
For Windows 95 users:
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=d7a4de78-81a9-4db7-beb6-84ff99342172&displaylang=en For Windows 98 users:
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=08b1ac1b-7a11-43e8-b59d-0867f9bdda66&displaylang=en Download the latest firmware version for your CD-ROM/DVD-ROM drive .
Contact your CD-ROM drive hardware manufacturer to obtain and install the latest version of the firmware. For information about how to contact your CD-ROM drive hardware manufacturer, click the appropriate article number in the following list to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
65416 Hardware and Software Third-Party Vendor Contact List, A-K
60781 Hardware and Software Third-Party Vendor Contact List, L-P
60782 Hardware and Software Third-Party Vendor Contact List, Q-Z
Microsoft provides third-party contact information to help you find technical support. This contact information may change without notice. Microsoft does not guarantee the accuracy of this third-party contact information.
Scan your computer for viruses.
The game may quit, generate an error message, or stop responding during start or when you play the game if your computer is infected with the virus.
Important : If you already have an anti-virus program installed on your computer, update your antivirus program with the latest signature files before scanning your computer. Most software companies that create antivirus programs release a new signature file each month. After you obtain the latest signature files, scan your computer. For help obtaining the antivirus signature files, contact the antivirus software manufacturer.
If you do not have anti-virus software installed, click on one of the free online virus scanners listed below to scan your system for viruses:
http://security.symantec.com http://housecall.trendmicro.com/housecall/start_corp.asp Remove Spyware from your computer.
Spyware is software that collects personal information without your knowledge or permission. You might be the target of Spyware or other unwanted software if you download music from file-sharing programs, download free games from sites that you do not trust, or download other software from an unknown source. Spyware may affect the game play and the startup process.
To learn more about the symptoms of Spyware and other unwanted software, how to remove Spyware, and how you can help protect your computer, visit the following Microsoft Web site:
http://www.microsoft.com/athome/security/spyware/default.mspx If none of the above steps have resolved your issue, you may perform a manual installation of the game to bypass use of the disk drive and verify integrity of the disks.
Make sure to follow the steps below exactly as they read, or else the install may not work.
1. Double-click My Computer.
2. Right-click on the Local Disk C and choose Open.
3. Right-click inside the window and select New, and then Folder.
4. Name the folder Disk Images it is important that the name has a space in it.
5. Double-Click the new Disk Images folder to open it.
6. Right-click inside the window and select New, and then Folder.
7. Name this folder Disk1.
8. Repeat steps 6 and 7 while substituting Disk1 for Disk2 and Disk 3 or as many disk as there is in the game. It is important to note there must not be a space between "Disk" and the number. If you have the DVD version you will only need the Disk1 folder.
9. Insert Disk 1 of into your disk drive and if the autoplay starts, cancel it.
10. Double-click My Computer to open it.
11. Right-click on your disk drive and choose Open.
12. When you see the contents of the disk in the Window, click on Edit at the top of the window and choose Select All.
13. All the contents of the disk should now be highlighted, click on Edit at the top of the window again and choose Copy.
14. Open the Disk1 folder you created under C:\Disk Images; click on Edit at the top of the window and choose Paste. This will copy the contents of the disk into the Disk1 folder.
15. Repeat steps 9 through 14 for Disk 2, Disk 3 and if there is , Disk4 until you have copied each disk into its appropriate folder. If you have the DVD version, you will not need to perform this step.
Once the disks have been copied, remove ALL disks from any drives.
Open the Disk1 folder under Disk Images and double-click on autorun.exe to start the installation.
To save disk space, you can delete the Disk Images folders after the installation has completed.
If you receive an error whilst copying the files this means the disk is either damaged or defective. If the disk is clean with no visible scratches/damage, you should exchange your copy for a new one through the store of purchase or our " target=_blankWarranty Department.
If these steps fail, see if you can try to install the disk on another computer to verify the integrity of the disk itself. If setup fails on another system, or you do not have access to another system to try this on, you will want to contact our Warranty department for a replacement disk.
WARRANTY
For returns after the 90-day warranty period - Please return the product along with a check or money order for $7.50 made payable to Electronic Arts, and a brief description of the difficulty you are experiencing including your name, address, and phone number to the address below. We strongly recommend that you send your product using a delivery method that is traceable.
Electronic Arts Customer Warranty
PO Box 9025
Redwood City, CA 94063-9025
warranty@ea.com<<<<
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