[RESOLVED] gameex losing focus on start up/random flickering of desktop

**aldub516** · March 20, 2015

**aldub516** · March 21, 2015

when the pc boots up, i see three windows when i alt-tab.. desktop, gameex, and gameex hide os. As soon as i hit alt-tab though gameex hide os closes itself, and i can tab to gameex. It seems that the hide os app is putting a black screen over gameex. As you can see in my ini, all my settings should be appropriate, and i havent changed them in a long time. Is there any log or ini type file of my pc that i can post to help? Maybe theres some resolution conflict or something going on? Im not all too well rounded on small technical things sometimes. This is currently my only problem, not being able to see gameex when i boot up.

**brienj** · March 22, 2015

when the pc boots up, i see three windows when i alt-tab.. desktop, gameex, and gameex hide os. As soon as i hit alt-tab though gameex hide os closes itself, and i can tab to gameex. It seems that the hide os app is putting a black screen over gameex. As you can see in my ini, all my settings should be appropriate, and i havent changed them in a long time. Is there any log or ini type file of my pc that i can post to help? Maybe theres some resolution conflict or something going on? Im not all too well rounded on small technical things sometimes. This is currently my only problem, not being able to see gameex when i boot up.

I had the same problem, the way I solved it was by delaying its startup about 5 seconds after every other app starts up or by making it the OS shell.

This is the startup delay program I used, because I was too lazy to make my own program - http://www.r2.com.au/page/products/show/startup-delayer/

I've recently switched back to using explorer as the shell, with the startup delay, and just hacking everything to hide that windows is present. Some of the programs I have running in the background, my Xbox 360 wireless controller programs, one to show battery level pressing the guide button and one to turn off the controller by long holding the guide button, as well as a few other important programs, didn't want to operate very well with GameEx as the shell.

**aldub516** · March 22, 2015

My issue is, my PC boots super fast with the ssd. I'm in windows in just a few seconds. Gameex is set as a startup program, but takes anywhere from 20 seconds to over a minute to start. Every other process is already started and running even tho there aren't many. Just graphics, network adapter and that's about it. So delaying it won't really matter I don't think. I just don't get why "hide os" is putting a black screen over gamex and taking the focus

**aldub516** · March 22, 2015

I can use gammex as a shell, which would be ideal but I need to find a way to then run explorer and all that for the network adapters and such. Maybe that will go well if I play with the app launcher plugin. I can set gameex as the shell

And then use the launcher to launch explorer and steam and everything else. I'm just worried all those post processes will take over gameex again

**brienj** · March 22, 2015

I can use gammex as a shell, which would be ideal but I need to find a way to then run explorer and all that for the network adapters and such. Maybe that will go well if I play with the app launcher plugin. I can set gameex as the shell
And then use the launcher to launch explorer and steam and everything else. I'm just worried all those post processes will take over gameex again

I can write a program that can move the GameEx process to the front and HideOS to the back, if you want, and then you could have it launch after GameEx started. The ideal situation would be if HideOS was programmed to automatically stay in the background, but that is something that would have to be done by Tom.

**aldub516** · March 22, 2015

Im sure that would help, but my question is, i did not have this problem ever, and it just started. So why would hide os suddenly be operating on top of gameex? I will try whatever you may suggest. If that would solve my issue great, but id still like to understand why this issue started. I dont know how to use event viewer very well, im trying to use it to see what kind of things are starting up with the pc, or that may be overriding it. The shell works great for speed, but adds the problems of launching explorer after, or having issues during a crash or error. If i can just figure this out id be happy to leave it as a regular start up program. Me sad.

**brienj** · March 22, 2015

Im sure that would help, but my question is, i did not have this problem ever, and it just started. So why would hide os suddenly be operating on top of gameex? I will try whatever you may suggest. If that would solve my issue great, but id still like to understand why this issue started. I dont know how to use event viewer very well, im trying to use it to see what kind of things are starting up with the pc, or that may be overriding it. The shell works great for speed, but adds the problems of launching explorer after, or having issues during a crash or error. If i can just figure this out id be happy to leave it as a regular start up program. Me sad.

I got the same problem after an update, two updates ago, and I don't know what is causing it, but for me, delaying the startup for it helped the problem go away.

**aldub516** · March 22, 2015

i will try your suggestion for the delay app.. just annoys me to have so many workarounds, i feel like my whole system is working on a thread. As a note, i just went ahead and disabled hide operating system in settings. but when i boot up gameex from start, the hide os app seems to still be running as i see it when i alt tab to my windows. Should that not be running when i disable hide os? or is that another app that always runs with gameex. This is so stressful. Gameex fully starts up, then just minimizes itself and gets covered by a black screen until i tab over to it

**aldub516** · March 22, 2015

im gonna wait a little longer before trying the delay software. Im HOPING this is a new bug in gameex and tom can blast out a small patch. Either way, your suggestions help a lot, and i may actually look into that delay program because even when gameex does start fine, it takes a while to start. I could toy with the start up app timings. Thanks man... still awaiting a cleaner work around

**brienj** · March 22, 2015

i will try your suggestion for the delay app.. just annoys me to have so many workarounds, i feel like my whole system is working on a thread. As a note, i just went ahead and disabled hide operating system in settings. but when i boot up gameex from start, the hide os app seems to still be running as i see it when i alt tab to my windows. Should that not be running when i disable hide os? or is that another app that always runs with gameex. This is so stressful. Gameex fully starts up, then just minimizes itself and gets covered by a black screen until i tab over to it

Turn off hiding the taskbar too.

That is what helped me keep HideOS from starting. But I still had to delay startup, because of other programs I had starting. If HideOS starts at all though, it always takes focus away.

**aldub516** · March 22, 2015

hide task bar is already set. As i said i never had this problem with these settings. The thing about the start up is, nothing else is starting up besides gameex. why did the hide os never take the focus away before?

**brienj** · March 22, 2015

hide task bar is already set. As i said i never had this problem with these settings. The thing about the start up is, nothing else is starting up besides gameex. why did the hide os never take the focus away before?

I don't know, I didn't program it, and not sure if he changed something in how HideOS works or anything. Like I said, I can make a small program that can launch and make HideOS go to the back and GameEx to the front right after it launches though. It would be nice if the problem could just be fixed, or someone could suggest something to keep HideOS from starting when it shouldn't. Try renaming HideOS to something else, then it won't launch.

**aldub516** · March 22, 2015

i would easily accept your program sir. I dont know what entails making a program lol, but if you whip something together i will absolutely try it

**aldub516** · March 22, 2015

my pc is showing some generally weird signs. Sometimes for instance, when i close a folder or program, or any random open item, my desktop will flash the default blue backround for a quick second.. almost as if my pc is refreshing itself. This is all new and came hand and hand with all these focus issues

**brienj** · March 22, 2015

i would easily accept your program sir. I dont know what entails making a program lol, but if you whip something together i will absolutely try it

Yeah, it's a real easy program to write. I made the Shell Starter program here, and I have a program to automatically make the fighting game EF-12 go full-screen when launched, and to make sure the process closes when going back to GameEx, but I haven't released it yet, because nobody showed any interest for it. But I'll whip a program up and submit it here, and as long as they accept it, you can get it and use it. I'll set it up to see if HideOS is running and make it go to the background, and then make GameEx go to the front. I just have to remember the Windows API commands for that, but I know it can be done. I believe I have the code in one of my programs already.

**brienj** · March 22, 2015

Alright, I made the program, can you test it out on your system and see if it works? Just add the program to be launched by GameEx after starting. It worked on my system, hopefully it works for you too.

http://www.mediafire.com/download/c5s7pr8pc6df11p/GameExToFront.zip

**aldub516** · March 23, 2015

ok so i set the app in the gameex settings to launch at start, launch at start dont wait. I then tried it in quick launch to run before, and nothing works. Anything i do gameex starts minimized.. Remember, this is ONLY when i set gameex as a start up program. Otherwise i can run it fine

**brienj** · March 23, 2015

ok so i set the app in the gameex settings to launch at start, launch at start dont wait. I then tried it in quick launch to run before, and nothing works. Anything i do gameex starts minimized.. Remember, this is ONLY when i set gameex as a start up program. Otherwise i can run it fine

That's strange, because I set it to also check if it is minimized and maximize it if it is, so I don't know what is going on.

**aldub516** · March 23, 2015

I've resorted to crying. Anything else? Something is making everything feel weird. As i said, sometimes I close my chrome browser on the arcade PC and my screen / desktop flashes like its refreshing or something. I'm trying to think of any settings I toyed with

**Draco1962** · March 23, 2015

Latest GPU drivers (from the manufacturer and not MS Update)?

**aldub516** · March 24, 2015

Will check and update today. Are there any windows event logs or anything that can help anyone?

**Draco1962** · March 24, 2015

Hard to say. This is where you have to keep track of the date/time of the event, then parse through the event logs for applications and hardware to see if there are any errors noted.

**aldub516** · March 25, 2015

I'm gonna bite the bullet... << who knows if I used that saying properly.. Anyways. I backed up all my configs and settings. I'm going to try and use windows 8 refresh tool. If not, clean install of windows. THEORETICALLY since I have everything I need, and know all my settings, I should be able to restore my cab to its former self fairly easy, even avoiding all the toying I did with settings. Either that, or I'm going to spend the next two months redoing everything

[RESOLVED] gameex losing focus on start up/random flickering of desktop

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