Nah, I was just being a moron... can't believe I made this mistake....
For the last three runs, I was unpacking the mod to ...Program Files\Freelancer Mod Manager\mods (which is what you do to every other mod) instead of ...Program Files\Freelancer Mod Manager (which is where crossfire MUST go). Doesn't explain why the first 3 didn't work. Maybe I didn't do a thorough cleanup. Hmm...
It wasn't until your comment that the mod unpacks to the Freelancer game folder that made me rethink the process. Activation of the mod by FLMM does an automatic lateral transfer of files from: ...Program Files\Freelancer Mod Manager to ...Program Files\Microsoft Games\Freelancer
So if my original starting point was different (...Program Files\Freelancer Mod Manager\mods) then they would end up at the wrong place. THAT was why I found crossfire in ...Program Files\Microsoft Games\Freelancer\mods and that's why the launcher won't pop up, because Crossfire's Freelancer.exe was in a different folder from the original Freelancer.exe!
Thanks a lot for all your help! The mod works perfectly and is pretty amazing. Though I'm shocked how awful I'm at the game. I don't recall it being this hard in the original, but that's good. I find it more engaging than before.
But regarding install, Mike/mods, would it be possible for you to sticky a more detailed "Installation Guide for Crossfire XXXX" directly in the main Crossfire mod forum? Reading some previous posts, I'm wondering if a more explicit tutorial with more info might help solve potential issues? Below is the guide I1ian very kindly sent me. I added some notes that I and I believe some people got tripped up on.
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Removal of Crossfire 1.82:
1. Go to your Control Panel(CP) and uninstall Freelancer and the Crossfire Mod.
2. Go to your My Documents and delete the Freelancer Folder.
3. Go to the folder which contained the Freelancer game and delete it, because it remains after the uninstalling from the CP.
4. Go to your Freelancer Mod Manager, and you'll see 2 uninstall exe files. Use them both, use the first one and then the second one, as they are placed in the perfect order. Once this is done, the 2nd exe you've just used will delete the whole FLMM and its folder automatically.
5. Use a Cleaner program, such as Advanced System Care(better in this case though..) or PC Tools Performance Kit Tool(best in this case).
6. Remove your remaining iso files within the Daemon Tools or Alcohol 120%/52%.
Installation of Crossfire 1.82 for Windows XP:
*Installation works best and fastest if all other programs are closed to minimize memory resource drain.
1. Install Freelancer
2. Restart your PC(The Setup wll request it when it finishes with the installation process).
3. Install Freelancer Mod Manager 1.31(FLMM) [Installed to default location: likely ....Program Files\Freelancer Mod Manager]
*4*. Unpack Crossfire 1.82 ==> [Unpack to default location, which must be the FLMM MAIN Folder, likely... Program Files\Freelancer Mod Manager. Do NOT unpack to the "mods" folder within FLMM, which is where most mods go. Crossfire MUST be unpacked to the main FLMM folder]
5. Do NOT manually open FLMM. FLMM will automatically start once crossfire unpacks.
6. Activate Crossfire 1.82 Client. The window may go to a " Not Responding " mode. Ignore that and wait until it activates. It can take some time/up to half an hour.
7. Open Freelancer game icon and a crossfire launcher should pop up. (If it doesn't, you did something wrong) Allow automatic patching for MP play.
8. If entering Freelancer for the first time, the screen may turn black. Minimize with alt+tab and accept EULA before returning to game.
Troubleshoot:
Improper/Incomplete Installation: The default install setting for all three programs, Freelancer Game, FLMM and crossfire, should be the correct paths. When Crossfire is activated by FLMM, the files of the mod unpacked to the FLMM folder (i.e. ...Program Files\Freelancer Mod Manager)will be installed to the original Freelancer game folder. (i.e....Program Files\Microsoft Games\Freelancer) The Crossfire launcher, called "Freelancer.exe," which has a distinct crossfire icon, must be in the same folder as the original game's "Freelancer.exe." This is why Crossfire must be unpacked to the main FLMM folder in step *4*. This transfer is hard coded.