MANY of the problems people have starting Flight Simulator or with odd
graphics are the result of video card drivers, sound card drivers or their
interaction with DirectX. Information about these issues can often be gained
from the log file generated by the DirectX Diagnostic AFTER it has tested
your system. The diagnostic is automaticly installed with DirectX, many
popular games and even with Microsoft Media Player. The Diagnostic can be
run from the Windows 98 or Windows XP Home System Information Utility OR
typing DXDIAG from the Run option.
You will draw the attention of more people familiar with Flight Simulator
issues in the microsoft.public.simulators group/forum. Posting what messages
are displayed when you run the diagnostic's tests and the contents of the
resulting log file may contribute to persons with similar hardware
identifying the cause of your problem. Make sure you are running the version
9.0b of DirectX. If you are running an earlier version Windows Update should
offer a download of 9.0b.
Note that many video accelerator and sound card manufacturers have more
recent drivers available for download from their web site than what is
provided on the installation CDs that come with the product. It's often a
good idea to set your display to ordinary VGA, which looks realy ugly, and
uninstall your current video drivers before installing a later version.
Check the driver download and the manufacturer's web site for detailed
instructions.
