using suffixes on windows programs

Hey, computer noob here again with what’s probably a real simple question.

Via this: http://www.gog.com/en/forum/arcanum_of_steamworks_and_magick_obscura/windowed_mode_fix

I realize that I could run the game windowed (which I’d like to do) by running it with the -window suffix. The thing is, I’m not sure how to do that. I’m running Windows 7, and I’m a double-click-on-stuff kinda guy without much computer savvy. I tried renaming the target of the shortcut to it, but it didn’t seem to want to allow that (and in hindsight, that was probably not at all what I needed to do).

So, anyone able to throw me a line here?

Okay, I’m way rusty on this stuff, but I seem to recall that there’s a way to wrap up a command to start a Windows program into an icon. I think that you can make a shortcut icon and then edit the program launch parameters in the icon. But that’s an XP-era memory, so it’s probably out of date…

“renaming the target of the shortcut” should be exactly what you need to do…

Right click on the shortcut, and select ‘Properties’. Resulting window will have a number of tabs, one of which is called ‘Shortcut’. On that tab, modify the ‘Target’ field; add the ‘-window’ there. You may need to add double quotes around the existing path if it includes a space. In that case, add the ‘-window’ outside the quotes, like so:

“C:\Program Files\Folder\program.exe” -window

Hm. Gave me permission to do it, but still isn’t running the program in windowed mode. Not sure if I’ve done something wrong or what-all. Grumble.

Besides adding the “-window” did you follow this suggestion:

…from the OP you linked in your OP?

I did. Still no help. I posted in the forum there, but as it’s several months old, and everyone else seems to be able to make it work, I’m not holding out a lot of hope.

Yoiks! Never mind. Figured out there was a patch I had to install. All is hunky dorey now!