Images are choppy

[Jennifer]

Can anyone help me figure out why images in web browsers
are choppy on my new Dell laptop? The resolution is set
high, but the graphics are rough around the edges.

Thank you!

 

[Sparker9]

Here's a reply from "freddie" on 11/14/03, in response to a similar question posted in another newsgroup:

---quote---
this was happening to me and i think that i've finally
fixed it. it seems like this was happening to lots of
people with newer dell laptops with fancy high-resolution
video cards/screens.

i spent like 4 hours with a dell person on the phone who
ultimately told me that i'd have to format my hard drive
and load things separately, thank god i didn't do that.

i tried downloading an updated driver from the website of
the company that makes the video card (NVidia) - i don't
think i needed to do that but a friend was saying that
possibly IE was using a generic Microsoft XP video driver
for the card. it turns out that it IS using that type of
driver but i don't think that's the problem.

anyway there are 2 things that i did and either or one of
them worked. the link below is to the dell support page
where i found the info. first of all you need to go into
internet explorer's Internet Options under the Tools
heading, then click the Advanced tab. scroll down to the
Multimedia heading and UN-check the "enable image auto-
resizing". somebody on one of the groups said that alone
worked for them.

the second thing is to right-click on the Windows
Desktop, then click Properties. click on Settings, then
Advanced. change the DPI setting to "Normal Size (96
dpi)", then click OK and restart your system.

the net effect is that the text winds up being kind of
small, but the images on IE are super-clear. i hope this
works for everyone else.

-fdp
---end quote---

Hope this helps.

 

[Walter W]

Two possibilities come to mind.

First, are you running "native resolution"? Your LCD is designed to run a
particular resolution, and if you deviate from that, the quality may suffer.
If the resolution is set to something different and you set it to match the
LCD native resolution, you may even notice text looking better. Using CRT
(picture tube) monitors, you can increase the resolution to get more on the
screen, but this does not work well with LCD monitors.

Second, is the auto-resizing feature on IE 6. Do the pictures in your
browser have a square at the lower right part of the picture when you place
the cursor on the picture after it loads? The block takes about two seconds
to show up. If so, click the block to bring the picture back to full size
(click it again to return to where you see the full image if you want). This
feature is supposed to help you see the entire picture where the picture is
bigger than the available window space, but it will roughen the edges of the
pictures it shrinks This can be found under Tools | Advanced down in the
Multimedia section. You can remove the check mark to have the picture
require scrolling if it's too big, or simply click the block to get the
actual size after the picture loads. Another selection is Smart Image
Dithering in the same section that is supposed to smooth the pictures.

Walt

 

[Roger Pearse]

Can anyone help me figure out why images in web browsers
are choppy on my new Dell laptop? The resolution is set
high, but the graphics are rough around the edges.

This is a known problem with various new Dell laptops. Look at this
on the Dell site, and follow the links to those in the fora trying out
the various suggestions.

<http://delltalk.us.dell.com/supportforums/board/message?board.id=insp_video&message.id=92122>

What it seems to come down to, is that the Dell laptops do not
actually work properly. They will only display graphics in IE
correctly in 96dpi mode, and the text in that is miniscule: too small
to use without eyestrain (I've tried). In normal 120dpi, as shipped,
they all show the graphics/images as blurry. The various suggestions
do not fix the problem. There is an attempt to blame Microsoft, but
the problem seems to be with Dell. The worst website I have seen,
using a Dell 5150 and IE6 is... www.dell.com! Didn't anyone from Dell
look at their own website?

Clearly a new graphics driver is needed.

I must admit to being very annoyed. I bought a brand-new laptop, for
real money, and it doesn't work correctly with the mainstream web
browser? Much as I like the Dell 5150 -- a nice, fast, well-specified
machine -- I am going to be forced to return it as defective.

All the best,

Roger Pearse

 

[R. McCarty]

Dell recently "pulled" their Enterprise support operations from
India back to Round Rock, Tx because of customer "Concerns".
If you like the graphics on your new notebook, wait until our
cars, airplanes and weapons are designed in Bangalore, India
built in China and delivered here in Japanese cargo vessels.
We are just beginning to see the end results of outsourcing &
offshoring.

 

[Roger Pearse]

Dell recently "pulled" their Enterprise support operations from
India back to Round Rock, Tx because of customer "Concerns".

I had great difficulty ordering my laptop in the first place by phone,
since none of the people I spoke to spoke comprehensible English. You
don't spend serious money ordering from someone you aren't sure
understands you.

If you like the graphics on your new notebook, wait until our
cars, airplanes and weapons are designed in Bangalore, India
built in China and delivered here in Japanese cargo vessels.
We are just beginning to see the end results of outsourcing &
offshoring.

It's a fad. They tried this in the 80's, and it was abandoned.

You know, I think it may all be a mistake. Probably there is some
business consultant doing the rounds, making the point that most
businesses have too many chiefs and not enough indians. By the time
the message gets back to the pointy-haired boss, he thinks he can cure
it by just hiring more Indians...

All the best,

Roger Pearse