This is really frustrating, whenever I add a topic (no matter what topic it is) to the Topics list in a Quest I'm working on, as soon as I right click the Info list for the topic and hit New, the GECK stops working, it just sits there thinking (frozen) and I have to Ctrl+Alt+Del. Grrr.

The same thing happens to me

Anyone have some answers?

Don't you have to add it before you reference it in the Quest script?

I'm not talking abotu the script, I'm talking about the Topics list in the Quest edit window. When I click on a topic I've added, I try adding a new part to the Info list (this is necessary to make the NPCs say anything) but as soon as I try this, the editor stops working.

Ok - Is your esp the active file?

Yup, and I made sure to load the base game .esm the when starting my .esp the first time I started the project, I did everything exactly how I always have in the past. There's no reason for this bullsh*t freezing to be happening, I hate it when programs do stuff like this.

Not saying this is the holy grail of answers, but pull up the task manager and look for a process called ctfmon

if its there...kill it.

better yet, go to start/run/ type in msconfig, and prevent ctfmon (or is it cftmon? either way its the only file in the universe with a name even remotely similar) from ever loading.

its an old trick the bethesda tech support gave me for a similar problem I had when PLAYING oblivion and they claim its an issue with all their titles.

In fact I recommend going to the PC ISSUES forum on here and looking for a topic near the top that is asking for (or may have been by now) stickied regarding stopping crashes for PLAYING the game, as they have a definite impact on editing as well.

ctfmon has something to do with a thing called 'language bar' which windows insists on adding to your taskbar, and tends to come back and haunt you even if you turn the feature off in services

Nope, I don't see it in the processes, so it must be something else. Thanks for the help though, I really do appreciate it. Anyone else got any suggestions? This problem really svcks because I'm pretty much at a stand still in my mod until this can be fixed.

Bump?

Check out this thread, it cant hurt: http://www.gamesas.com/bgsforums/index.php?showtopic=920596

Also, if you have any drivers for your mouse installed, consider ditching them and using a microsoft generic driver if its a usb or standard mouse. If its a cordless, consider getting a regular mouse.

It's not a general error I don't think, because the game never crashes, and the only time the GECK EVER crashes, is when I try adding something to the Info List for a dialogue Topic. I think the problem lies in the method I'm using to crate (or try fruitlessly to create) dialogue. What we really need is someone who has successfully created dialogue already so they can show me exactly how, and hopefully doing it their way will prevent the crash,

So you are right clicking on the rows where it says Info and as soon as the screen for that comes up then it freezes? If that's what you are doing then you are doing it correctly, it might just be your computer.

Yeah, as soon as I click NEW on that menu that comes up, the GECK dies. It's probably the most irritating error ever, because it means I can't make the kind of mods I make and have already started (ones that include new NPCs, new Quests, new Areas, etc.). GRRRRRRARRRGGG!!!!!!!!! :banghead:

it works for me. A dialogue with a long list of topics pop up and i can select and add them? Did you patch the game?

I'm going to upload my geck.exe for you. Though I don't think it will make any difference. As much as I hate to say, perhaps you may need to defrag or reinstall the game. Mabye send me your .esp and send me directions on what you want?

http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c148/D2k204/FO3/QuestTopics.jpg Because it opened for me and works fine.

https://www.yousendit.com/download/TTZsQndIT2I0b0FLSkE9PQ

Wow, thanks man, I really appreciate the help, but sadly its still screwing up even with your exe, I'm going to patch and hope that helps, I didn't realize that there was one out already. Oh, and encase it matters, it stops working no matter what Dialogue Topic's info list I'm adding to.

Okay, I've tried a few other things (including patching my game), and nothing's working, should I just assume that I'll never be able to mod for Fallout 3 because of this? Making mods is the whole reason I got the game in the first place, I really don't want to have wasted my time and money because of a stupid glitch. Could someone tell me the steps they went through when creating new Dialogue for new Quests/NPCs? A precise tutorial would be perfect (nothing long, I know how to make new quests and NPCs, it's just the first few steps of Dialogue creation process that I want to make sure I'm doing properly). This is my last chance here guys.

This happened to some people with the Oblivion CS.
http://www.gamesas.com/bgsforums/index.php?showtopic=930276&hl=dialogue+crash
http://www.gamesas.com/bgsforums/index.php?showtopic=895756&hl=dialogue+crash
http://www.gamesas.com/bgsforums/index.php?showtopic=890088&hl=dialogue+crash

Looking at the threads it seems reinstalling the game and CS to somewhere other than your Program Files folder might fix it.

Thanks Toaster! I'll give that a shot. I'm crossing my fingers double-hard here.

EDIT: Looks like I'm lucky I've got a laptop with XP on it, I'll report back again to let you know if editing the dialogue of the .esp on my laptop works. Thanks again.

EDIT: Well, look at that, my laptop can't install the GECK for some random reason. Now a re-install of the game and the GECK. Wish me luck.

Any one have any updates on this? Is there a way to let Beth know? Not that they would care...

I have exactly the same problem.
Right click to add a new topic and it starts to do it, then crashes.
Although it will let me copy it. Very frustrating.
I have it on Windows 7 . Looking in the details in the crash dialogue it says;

Problem signature:
Problem Event Name: APPCRASH
Application Name: GECK.exe
Application Version: 1.5.0.19
Fault Module Name: ntdll.dll
Fault Module Version: 6.1.7600.16385

I installed with and without the patch, and it does the same.
I put ntdll.dll in the same folder but didn't work.
I am tempted to try an old XP version of that dll in my folder.
Of course I installed and run with admin privlages.

Right now I also have it installed on my Aspire One netbook with XP.
It won't run Fallout, or any previews in Geck, but at least I can edit dialogues.
Then I copy it back to the Windows 7 machine to do the rest of the edits, and testing.

Frustrating...

Actually the golden answer is, plug a microphone into your computer before opening the geck and your good to go. I had this problem on my old computer, and I just left a mic plugged in 24/7 and it never happened again.

Thought I would give it a try, but no good.
This is a new computer. And Geck works fine except
for editing dialogues.

Thanks though.

Oh yea forgot to mention, this is 99% of the time of the fix, IF you have windows vista AND a realtek sound family chipset, otherwise it is not your answer.