The current stable version of JJFFE for all platforms is 2.8. Note that version 2.8 contains numerous fixes for original FFE bugs that haven't been extensively tested, so version 2.6 (win32) and 2.5 (other) versions are provided in case of problems.
The DirectX work-in-progress version contains heavily modified video and sound code. The video code has a new soft-scaling option that may be much faster when running in windowed mode on S3 cards, and also a letterbox option which can make fullscreen 640x480 look a lot better on drivers that can't handle lower resolutions. Music may well work if it didn't in previous versions.
The work-in-progress source also has a working SDL port that compiles on both Linux and Windows. The Linux/SDL version should be faster and more flexible than the Linux/Allegro port, although it has no music.
If you're running Win95, Win98, WinME, Win2000 or WinXP, the best version is generally the Win32/DirectX5 version. This won't run on WinNT4 - you need to download the Win32/DirectX3 version instead.
The DirectX version can be very slow on some machines, especially in windowed mode, and fullscreen mode may not work very well. In this case, the two DJGPP versions can work fine on Win9x/ME, and with effort on Win2k/NT. The DJGPP/HMI version uses the original sound code and relies on the setup.exe configuration program. The DJGPP/Allegro version should autodetect, but has lower-quality MIDI and no joystick code.
Note that for Win9x/ME, the only real advantage of running the DirectX version is that it will run in windowed mode.
If you're running DOS, Windows NT3 or OS/2, only the DJGPP versions are likely to work. If you're running Linux, you can either compile your own from the source or download a binary version from Proton's FFE page. I don't have a Linux installation so there's no binary version here.
JJFFE is only a replacement executable and config files for FFE, not the complete game. It will run on its own, but will not have music, sound effects, journals or the cabin backgrounds for the larger ships. It should be unzipped over a complete FFE installation for full functionality. There are essentially three different types of FFE installation, which each require a different installation process.
If you don't already have a copy of FFE, the shareware version can be obtained from Frontier Developments.
Installing with the shareware version of FFE
Unzip the shareware version of FFE into a suitable directory, making sure that directory structure is preserved. Then unzip JJFFE into the Game directory inside that directory. This is usually C:\firstenc\game.
Installing over the original disk version of FFE
Install FFE into a suitable directory. Then unzip JJFFE directly into that directory.
Installing over the original CD version of FFE
Copy the entire CD into a suitable directory on the hard drive. Then unzip JJFFE directly into that directory. Don't bother using the installer on the CD.
Alternatively, if you don't want to waste 300 MB of hard disk space on the videos, copy everything except the Data folder onto the hard drive, then modify the config file to point at the CD drive.
Checking installation
To make sure that you've installed it properly, check that the JJFFE executable (program file) is in the same directory as the file mission.dat, the fx and music folders and the cabin*.bmp files.
Sound configuration
For the DOS/HMI version, run setup.exe to configure the soundcard. If this doesn't work, check out the DJGPP version info or try a different JJFFE version. All other versions autoconfigure sound.
Running the game
To run the game, always run the JJFFE executable directly rather than using the firstenc.bat file provided in the shareware version of FFE. Note that Ctrl-F12 can be used to toggle fullscreen mode for the DirectX versions.
Advanced installation instructions
Other organisations of installation are possible. There are common rules that you can follow if you know what you're doing:
Complete installation guide for any Windows system. You still need to know how to navigate a directory tree and use an unzip package, but if you haven't figured that much out you should probably get Windows for Dummies.
The standard FFE key controls can be found in Jades' FFE FAQ. Modifications are as follows:
Config file names for each version are as follows:
Win32/DirectX: ffewin.cfg
DOS/Allegro: ffedosal.cfg
DOS/HMI: ffedos.cfg
Linux/Allegro: ffelnxal.cfg
[VIDEO] section:
RedBase - brightness modifier for red channel.
GreenBase - brightness modifier for green channel.
BlueBase - brightness modifier for blue channel.
Negative values decrease brightness, positive values increase. Try plus or minus 10 first.
[DIR] section:
SamplePath - location of sound effect (*.raw) files.
SongPath - location of music (*.mid or *.hmp) files.
AVIPath - location of video (*.avi) files.
CmmdrPath - location of commander files.
All paths should either be relative to the JJFFE executable or start with a drive letter. For example "AVIPath=D:\DATA" would be standard for an FFE CD in drive D. The paths are not case-dependent for DOS/Windows and are highly tolerant of rogue slashes.
For version-specific config information see the DirectX or DJGPP version info pages. Also see the Frequently Asked Questions page.