Support Page

 This page answers various troubleshooting questions

If your problem isn't listed on this page please report your problem (making sure to quote your license code) by either sending email to support@jfp.co.jp or by post. (We apologise for the fact that we have no telephone support service). Please also include the version of Windows you use, how much memory you have installed and how much free disk space you have available.

New! August 25, 1999
The updater from version V1.1 (or V1.1a) to version V1.1b is out! To get your updater you will need your user name and password. Registered users have been informed by email or postcard.
 (This updater is the same version as those versions distributed by floppy disk after August 25, 1999).
Download the updater here

(1)The garden design button doesn't appear.

This problem has been addressed in the latest update. In V1.1 the problem can be rectified as follows:

If the Garden Design button doesn't appear as in the picture below,

first open the Windows control panel and choose 'Display.

Choose the 'Settings' tap and then click 'Advanced". This allows you to set the font size. If your font setting is set to 'Large fonts' you may experience this problem. In order to solve the problem please select 'Small fonts'.

(2)After I deleted the Virtual Gardening folder I was unable to re-install the software.

This fix applies to the following 2 situations: 

In these situations Virtual Gardening remains in the Windows registry.

The Virtual Gardening CD is designed so that you will not inadvertently install multiple copies of the software on the same computer.

If you are experiencing this problem please use the 'VGRECOV.exe' program which has been written to remove Virtual Gardening from the registry.
 You can download VGRECOV.exe here. (32.5k)


You may encounter various messages when running VGRECOV.exe but they do not affect the running of the program. Please continue with the various steps of the program.

(3)When trying to "Load Garden Design" with the default Japanese Style Garden I get an error.

We have found some corrupt data in the sample 'Japanese Style Garden' which caused this problem. Please accept our apologies. We have included a fix for this problem in the updater. This error has no effect on gardens that you have designed yourself.

(4)I can't put a fence on areas where the garden plot lines are diagonal.


You cannot put a fence on a diagonal plot line unless the edge of the fence exactly matches the plot line. Please use the Magnifying Glass button to increase the magnification of the screen and then put your fence so that it exactly matches the edge of the plot.

(5)The walk-through screen turns black!

Probably your screen is set to show either 256 or 16 colors.

1. If you are running Virtual Gardening, please first quit the program.

2. From the Windows 'Start' button please choose 'Settings'→'Display'→'Settings

3. In 'Colors' please choose either 'High Color (16 bit)' or 'True Color (24 bit)'. On some machines you may not be able to choose 'True Color'.

4. Windows will ask if you want to restart the machine. Please do so. In Windows 98 you may not need to restart your computer. There is no problem if Windows allows you to change the colors without restarting.

5. Open Virtual Gardening.

(6)I don't understand how to use the software. Is there no manual?

Apart from the 'quick reference guide' there is no written manual. However, from the main menu you can choose the "Virtual Gardening Demo" which gives you an explanation of the functions of Virtual Gardening complete with sound and pictures. You need to put the CD-ROM in your CD-ROM drive in order to use this function.

(7)After moving the house within the garden plot the plot design gets messed up.


There is sometimes a problem when moving the house or changing the design of the garden plot after you have put various 'features' in your garden. Please fix your house and plot design before adding various features to your garden.

(8)Various errors keep popping up stopping me from doing the walk-through.


First, please check that you have upgraded to version V1.1b and that you have bought the CD-ROM (this feature is not available unless you have bought the CD). In the 'Version Information' menu you can find out which version you have.

If you have V1.1b please check the following points:

Windows 95 Users
In the Virtual Gardening folder (C:Program Files:JFP:VG if you accepted the default) if you have the files Opengl32.dll and Glu32.dll try disabling them by changing their names to Opengl32.dlx and Glu32.dlx.

If the problem still hasn't gone away please follow the instructions for Windows 98 below.


Windows 98 Users.
Open the 'System' control panel in the Windows 'Control Panel' and choose the 'Performance' tab. Click the 'Graphics' button and move 'Hardware acceleration' to 'None'. Click 'Ok' and restart Windows.

If this solves the problem please try experimenting with different hardware acceleration settings until you find the maximum setting at which the problem does not appear (you will have to restart Windows each time you change the setting). Performance will be negatively affected by lower acceleration settings.

If the problem still remains unresolved, please try the solution detailed for Windows NT users below.

Windows NT Users.
Try updating your display driver to the newest available driver. However, there can be problems when updating the display device drivers that may stop your computer from booting. We recommend this option only if you are confident that you know what you are doing.

(9)Is there no print function?

We apologize for the fact that there is no print function in Virtual Gardening. However, if you want to print out an image from the software you can use the screen capture function to copy the contents of the screen. By pressing ALT Print Screen you can make a copy of the screen. If you want a copy of the whole screen you can just press Print screen. You can then paste the image into Paint or another image editing program. There are also freeware screen capture programs available that you may wish to use.