Hi,
Updating video card drivers can solve most gaming
issues. Here's some
rules of thumb though to always keep in mind. Shut DL
accelerators, fire-
walls and antivirus programs off while downloading or
installing drivers and
updates. Also check the game's website (or
Fileplanet.com) for patches.
Before you update your drivers, I recommend that you
install DirectX 9.0b:
http://download.microsoft.com/download/c/9/c/c9c8a1d4-
7690-4c98-baf3-0c67e7f3751f/dx90b_redist.exe
Here are the steps I recommend you use to update your
driver:
1. To identify the make and model of your card, right
click your
Desktop, choose Properties / Settings / Advanced /
Adapter.
2. Download the latest video driver for your card online,
using
http://www3.sympatico.ca/nibblesnbits/Video.html#drivers
to find the website to download from. I also have
advanced
video driver and direct X troubleshooting steps on
that page.
3. Save the .exe driver (or uncompress the zip file) to a
folder
in My Documents named after the driver version number.
4. Restart the computer in Safe Mode by pressing the F8
key
about once every second as it's rebooting to pick
Safe Mode.
5. Click Start / (settings) Control Panel / System /
Hardware
Device Manager / expand +Display Adapters / right
click on
the adapter, pick "Uninstall", and click No if asked
to reboot.
6. Use Control Panel / Add-Remove programs to uninstall
the
previous driver (exe)software which may have been
installed.
7. Restart the computer in Safe Mode by pressing the F8
key
about once every second as it's rebooting to pick
Safe Mode.
8. If the driver is a (exe)program file, GO DIRECTLY TO
step 10.
9. When Windows prompts you to install the video
adapter, click
"Install from a list or specific location", click
the "Browse" button,
browse to the My documents folder where you saved the
driver,
and finally click on one of the driver files to begin
installation.
Skip step 10 and go directly to
step 11.
10. When Windows prompts you to install the video
adapter, click
"Cancel" and Double click the driver program to begin
installation.
11. After you reboot, go to Control Panel / Display /
Settings and
choose 32 bit Color Quality, and 1024x768 Screen
Resolution.
TROUBLESHOOTING:
Test your drivers using DXDiag: Click Start / Run /
type: DXDIAG
Click the "Test" buttons in the Display, Sound, Music &
Network Tabs;
If any of the Display options are Disabled and you cannot
Enable them,
your most likely solution would be to update your Chipset
Drivers as per
my website:
http://www3.sympatico.ca/nibblesnbits/Video.html#v11
Along with your Video card, Sound Cards, Motherboard
Chipsets,
and Video Monitors may also require updated drivers.
Even your
motherboard's BIOS may need to be updated for
compatibility with
your Video card. These steps are listed at:
http://NibblesNbitsVideo.tk
Perhaps the old Nvidia drivers did not completely
uninstall. If that's the
case, use this utility to completely uninstall the
drivers and go to step 7:
http://content.guru3d.com/index.php?
page=detonatorrip&menu=0
The latest video drivers sometime don't work with a
particular game.
(Check the Video suggestions in the readme.txt file in
your game folder/CD)
If there's no suggestions, try an older (WHQL) driver,
and/or if you still
experience problems try a Beta driver, or even an Omega
driver instead:
BETA Drivers:
http://download.guru3d.com/
OMEGA Drivers:
http://www.omegacorner.com/
There you have it, if you have any questions feel free to
post them!
--
Cheers,
Jimmy S.
Additional Support Resources: My Zone.com Helpsite:
http://nibblesnbits.tk
Microsoft Online Tech Support:
http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=376
Game FAQ's:
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?
scid=FH;[LN];gms
My advice is donated "AS IS" without warranty; nor do I
confer any rights.
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