Eddie E said:
I just upgraded from a AIW 128 Rage Pro to a AIW 9600 Pro. I followed the
instructions uninstalling all of the ATI software using WinXP uninstall
process as instructed. I installed the new card and ran the installation CD.
Everything installed except the DVD and Multimedia programs. When the
installation process got to those 2 programs I received a message that an
older version already exist and the newer version will not continue
installation. I guess somewhere on my system there are still remnants of the
old DVD and multimedia software. For some reason it was not completely
removed during the uninstall process. Can someone please tell what I need to
do to clear out the old files? Thanks
Eddie
A number of manufacturers are providing uninstall routines that are very
unsatisfactory, Eddie. There's a thread on Rage3D forums,
http://www.rage3d.com/board/, around editing ATi entries out of your
registry, but an easier, and perhaps better suited to your AIW 128 Rage Pro
software, method is to use a good registry editor like the Registry Tools
section of jv16 Power Tools suite. This is available commercially now from
http://www.macecraft.com/, but if you google for it you should be able to
find a copy of v.1.3, the last freeware version. There is also a trial
period for the commercial version; but since you'll find it'll be an
extremely useful product on an ongoing basis, you'd really want to think of
buying if you go that way. There are other good registry editors, but I
haven't used any of them, so I can't make other recommendations.
First, uninstall all your ATi software and drivers again (back to that
exciting Standard VGA driver display!), reboot, run jv16 Power Tools and
select the Registry Tools. This will list all relevant ATi entries in your
registry (it certainly shows everything in the Rage3d thread, and more) and
gives you the opportunity to remove them, which you should do. Next, go to
the Starting Programs section and remove any registry entries starting ATi
programs. If you have any leftover entries in in Add/Remove Programs,
there's also a section for removing those. As you may be beginning to
realise, this is an extremely useful facility for dealing with all sorts of
inadequate uninstalls - there's also a backup facility in case you want to
restore anything you've removed. It apparently will warn you if you try to
remove anything that might damage your system.
Close jv16 and reboot. Open Windows Explorer, click View > Folder Options >
View and select Show all files (this will enable you to see the ATi system
files you'll need to delete). Delete the big ATI folder on your C: drive
and delete any ATI folders in Program Files. Now open the WINDOWS (or WINNT
for XP) folder and do a search on ati*.*; subfolders too. I believe in XP
there's the facility to list files by manufacturer; if you use this, you'll
get more, as not all ATi files begin with ati - this seems to get all the
important ones, though. Delete everything that isn't there for another
reason; i.e. screensavers, internet files etc.
Close Windows Explorer (you might want to set View back to Do not show
hidden or system files - makes life easier) and open your Recyle Bin. Empty
it and reboot. It may also be useful to go into Device Manager in Safe Mode
(XP has a show all mode?) and remove ATI WDM Rage Theatre Video and
Specialized MVD WDM VBI Codec; this can prevent possible multiple instances
of these on reinstall. Cancel out when your system wants to reinstall them
on reboot. Your machine is now clean, and ready for a new videocard
install. Install DirectX 9.0 (don't install DX 9.0b if your AIW has a
PAL/SECAM tuner, or uses non-North American NTSC versions, as DX 9.0b breaks
them), and install your drivers, then your multimedia software.
It may well be worth considering downloading and installing drivers and
software from the ATi site,
http://www.ati.com/support/driver.html, which
are likely to be more recent versions than your CD ones; although possibly
it may be best to avoid the Catalyst 3.8s as there are reports of adverse
monitor effects - I haven't tried them yet, so I can't say. There also seem
to be problems with the "all-in-one" driver sets: better to download and
install the separate capture, display and control panel modules. It also
seems preferable to use ATi's older recommended install order: capture
driver, don't reboot, display driver, reboot, control panel, reboot, rather
than the newer order: display, control panel, capture, rebooting between
each,.
And don't forget to install Windows Media Encoder 9.0 (there's a link on the
multimedia page) before you install MMC 8.x.
I always use this cleanup routine every time I upgrade (or sideways or down
grade, as well!). Saves a lot of trouble and makes your system run better.
Many posters here say they just install new drivers over the old and there
are no problems, but I have to wonder how much better their systems would
run if they did take the trouble to have a clear out before upgrades. And,
once you get the routine down, it doesn't take long, either.
HTH patrickp
