Fixes for 2.1 and TW2EE Issues and 142 error or W2 stopped working Update 12/19/2014
While these fixes were first for the 2.1 patch they also work for the TW2EE patch
After working with a member by the name of Darius Naglo (permission given to use name) recently who was getting the 142 error with Steam version of Witcher 2 and finally after 2 days of updating software and outdated drivers and removing unneeded software to no avail we finally stumbled on the culprit...Browser Toolbars or in his case the Jzip toolbar .
After further searching and installing toolbars of various vendors i`ve found 3 that will cause this error or condition . Are there others ? I`m quite sure there are but i neither have the time nor energy to try every toolbar out there . I have listed 3 that i know to be causing the issue . I know the Yahoo and Google toolbars to be ok with no ill effects from either .
Jzip toolbar
Wincore Media bar
BearShare software
ILivid toolbar
searchqu toolbar - This program is deceivingly listed as Windows searchqu toolbar . It is NOT a Windows program but a program made for Windows
Media bar - usually comes as part of a software package deal from imesh or Bandoo media and several other vendors .
Zoomex - Is adware that usually comes bundled with other applications A facebook helper that will enlarge photos of facebook pics. Runs as an extension in Chrome, Firefox, and Internet Explorer . Uninstalling tips can be found in this link
safe saevoee - comes bundled with other 3rd party software
other possibles are
Conduit Engine
ijji(IJJI) toolbar
any torrent toolbar
UPDATE 8/19/2013 - Nvidia beta drivers 326.41 and GEForce Experience 1.6
It has been noted that the Nvidia beta drivers 326.41 along with GE Force Experience 1.6 will also give the 142 error . It is advised to roll back the drivers to a WHQL set and or uninstall the GEForce experience app . Do note that these beta drivers work fine on Vista but not so much with 7 and 8 .
UPDATE
12/11/2012 -
The Bing Desktop released as an optional Windows Update installed alongside with Magic Disc will also cause Witcher 2 not to launch with all versions.
Magic Disc coupled with more unknown programs causes Witcher 2 to stop working . Uninstalling Magic Disc lets The Witcher 2 launch
Also it may be worth checking the windows update log for any failed updates for the simple reason that if a windows update fails for any reason then there is something that`s not right with the OS at the start and not correcting it can only lead to further complications later on .
Another possible solution is to synchronize internet time as suggested by another user (SpamIrwin) . To synchronize time click Start>Control Panel>Date and Time then click the tab Internet Time then click the Change Settings box and then select Update Now . Once synchronized retry game .
OF NOTE : Since the issue with Kaspersky2011 causing issues with witcher 2 i started searching for 2012 versions of antivirus programs , the more common ones are listed below with extra security if you are so inclined for free trials .
http://www.bitdefender.com/solutions/internet-security.html - free trial
http://www.pandasecurity.com/homeusers/solutions/internet-security/
http://www.avg.com/us-en/internet-security - Free trial
http://download.cnet.com/Norton-Internet-Security-2012/3000-18510_4-10592551.html - free trial
http://www.f-secure.com/en/web/home_us/home - Free trial
http://www.avast.com/en-us/internet-security - Free trial
http://www.eset.com/us/home/products/smart-security/
http://www.gdata-software.com/home-security/
https://www.bullguard.com/download-login.aspx?action=download&pid=3
There are free antivirus programs for personal use and are listed below . This is not a complete list by no means but are some of the better ones .
Microsoft Security Essentials
Avira Free
Avast Free
AVG Free
ADDITIONAL STEPS THAT USERS CAN DO - added on May 6 2012
Adding a game exe to the VIRTU Control Panel instructions is a step to try before uninstalling ftp://174.142.97.10/manual/virtu/Z68 Extreme4/English.pdf
Q : Do i have to uninstall Lucid products like Virtu , LucidLogix , or HydraLogix ?
A : No . You can simply rename a single file namely this one appinit_dll.dll before playing Witcher 2 and after you`re done with Witcher 2 then rename it back to what it was originally with full functionality to the program(s) restored . But if you do not use these programs and have no intention to then it can be uninstalled with no side effects to your computer or games .
Q : Do i need to uninstall Adobe Acrobat Extended Pro ?
A : No . It`s enough to rename or remove this file Acaptuser32.dll before playing Witcher 2 . After you`re done then either rename or move it back to the original folder and full functionality will be restored to Adobe Acrobat Extended Pro .
Q : After uninstalling the searchqu toolbar i notice i still have the searchqu folder and that it cannot be deleted .
A : To delete entirely the searchqu folder after uninstalling the toolbar right click the searchqu folder and select rename . Then rename the folder to Searchqu.OLD and restart computer and when the computer reboots then navigate to the folder again and right click>delete and the folder and it`s contents will cease to exist .
Adobe's new patch for Adobe Acrobat 9 Pro Extended.
(courtesy of Sygnus21)
For those that had to rename the file: Acaptuser32.dll to Acaptuser32.dll.bak (C:\WINDOWS\SysWOW64\ and/or C:\WINDOWS\System32\) to get Witcher 2 to run be aware that an update was just released by Adobe a day ago which repairs the file back to: Acaptuser32.dll.
I want to thank all users who were a great help to locate these programs !
UPDATE : 12/19/2014
Endless Loop of launcher to wolf head (game starting) and back to launcher :
Xfire : Xfire is a freeware instant messaging service for gamers that also serves as a game server browser with various other features. It is currently available for various versions Microsoft Windows.
You do not need to uninstall Xfire simply press Ctrl + Alt + Delete which opens task manager then find and and highlight Xfire and select "End Process" then game should start normally .
While these fixes were first for the 2.1 patch they also work for the TW2EE patch
After working with a member by the name of Darius Naglo (permission given to use name) recently who was getting the 142 error with Steam version of Witcher 2 and finally after 2 days of updating software and outdated drivers and removing unneeded software to no avail we finally stumbled on the culprit...Browser Toolbars or in his case the Jzip toolbar .
After further searching and installing toolbars of various vendors i`ve found 3 that will cause this error or condition . Are there others ? I`m quite sure there are but i neither have the time nor energy to try every toolbar out there . I have listed 3 that i know to be causing the issue . I know the Yahoo and Google toolbars to be ok with no ill effects from either .
Jzip toolbar
Wincore Media bar
BearShare software
ILivid toolbar
searchqu toolbar - This program is deceivingly listed as Windows searchqu toolbar . It is NOT a Windows program but a program made for Windows
Media bar - usually comes as part of a software package deal from imesh or Bandoo media and several other vendors .
Zoomex - Is adware that usually comes bundled with other applications A facebook helper that will enlarge photos of facebook pics. Runs as an extension in Chrome, Firefox, and Internet Explorer . Uninstalling tips can be found in this link
safe saevoee - comes bundled with other 3rd party software
other possibles are
Conduit Engine
ijji(IJJI) toolbar
any torrent toolbar
UPDATE 8/19/2013 - Nvidia beta drivers 326.41 and GEForce Experience 1.6
It has been noted that the Nvidia beta drivers 326.41 along with GE Force Experience 1.6 will also give the 142 error . It is advised to roll back the drivers to a WHQL set and or uninstall the GEForce experience app . Do note that these beta drivers work fine on Vista but not so much with 7 and 8 .
UPDATE
12/11/2012 -
The Bing Desktop released as an optional Windows Update installed alongside with Magic Disc will also cause Witcher 2 not to launch with all versions.
Magic Disc coupled with more unknown programs causes Witcher 2 to stop working . Uninstalling Magic Disc lets The Witcher 2 launch
Also it may be worth checking the windows update log for any failed updates for the simple reason that if a windows update fails for any reason then there is something that`s not right with the OS at the start and not correcting it can only lead to further complications later on .
Another possible solution is to synchronize internet time as suggested by another user (SpamIrwin) . To synchronize time click Start>Control Panel>Date and Time then click the tab Internet Time then click the Change Settings box and then select Update Now . Once synchronized retry game .
OF NOTE : Since the issue with Kaspersky2011 causing issues with witcher 2 i started searching for 2012 versions of antivirus programs , the more common ones are listed below with extra security if you are so inclined for free trials .
http://www.bitdefender.com/solutions/internet-security.html - free trial
http://www.pandasecurity.com/homeusers/solutions/internet-security/
http://www.avg.com/us-en/internet-security - Free trial
http://download.cnet.com/Norton-Internet-Security-2012/3000-18510_4-10592551.html - free trial
http://www.f-secure.com/en/web/home_us/home - Free trial
http://www.avast.com/en-us/internet-security - Free trial
http://www.eset.com/us/home/products/smart-security/
http://www.gdata-software.com/home-security/
https://www.bullguard.com/download-login.aspx?action=download&pid=3
There are free antivirus programs for personal use and are listed below . This is not a complete list by no means but are some of the better ones .
Microsoft Security Essentials
Avira Free
Avast Free
AVG Free
ADDITIONAL STEPS THAT USERS CAN DO - added on May 6 2012
Adding a game exe to the VIRTU Control Panel instructions is a step to try before uninstalling ftp://174.142.97.10/manual/virtu/Z68 Extreme4/English.pdf
Q : Do i have to uninstall Lucid products like Virtu , LucidLogix , or HydraLogix ?
A : No . You can simply rename a single file namely this one appinit_dll.dll before playing Witcher 2 and after you`re done with Witcher 2 then rename it back to what it was originally with full functionality to the program(s) restored . But if you do not use these programs and have no intention to then it can be uninstalled with no side effects to your computer or games .
Q : Do i need to uninstall Adobe Acrobat Extended Pro ?
A : No . It`s enough to rename or remove this file Acaptuser32.dll before playing Witcher 2 . After you`re done then either rename or move it back to the original folder and full functionality will be restored to Adobe Acrobat Extended Pro .
Q : After uninstalling the searchqu toolbar i notice i still have the searchqu folder and that it cannot be deleted .
A : To delete entirely the searchqu folder after uninstalling the toolbar right click the searchqu folder and select rename . Then rename the folder to Searchqu.OLD and restart computer and when the computer reboots then navigate to the folder again and right click>delete and the folder and it`s contents will cease to exist .
Adobe's new patch for Adobe Acrobat 9 Pro Extended.
(courtesy of Sygnus21)
For those that had to rename the file: Acaptuser32.dll to Acaptuser32.dll.bak (C:\WINDOWS\SysWOW64\ and/or C:\WINDOWS\System32\) to get Witcher 2 to run be aware that an update was just released by Adobe a day ago which repairs the file back to: Acaptuser32.dll.
I want to thank all users who were a great help to locate these programs !
UPDATE : 12/19/2014
Endless Loop of launcher to wolf head (game starting) and back to launcher :
Xfire : Xfire is a freeware instant messaging service for gamers that also serves as a game server browser with various other features. It is currently available for various versions Microsoft Windows.
You do not need to uninstall Xfire simply press Ctrl + Alt + Delete which opens task manager then find and and highlight Xfire and select "End Process" then game should start normally .
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