Walter said:
I understand I need dx9 if I want to upgrade to Vista or 7 with the Aero
effect.
My computer is a few years old. My video card is (PCi) NVIDIA Geforce 4 mx
4000
How can I tell if I have dx9 installed in my computer?
If I don't have it, do I need a new video card and how do I get dx9?
Thanks
You're asking the question
"What level of hardware support do I require in a video
card, such that it can handle Vista Aero compositing ? "
The answer is, the video card should support DirectX 9 in hardware,
should have a minimum of Pixel Shader 2 support, and have 128MB
of graphics RAM resident on the video card. My ATI 9800Pro video
card, just barely meets those requirements.
So it is not a matter of which version of DirectX Microsoft
code is installed on your machine. It is a matter of how
much of that version of DirectX, operates in hardware, without
software emulating the function (at much slower speeds).
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc749434(WS.10).aspx
* DirectX 9-class GPU
* Pixel Shader 2.0 in hardware
* 128 MB graphics memory
The MX4000 has:
http://www.gpureview.com/GeForce-MX4000-card-130.html
* No pixel shaders at all
* DirectX Compliance is 7.0
* You probably already know how much RAM is onboard the video card.
There are some 128MB cards. But based on the other shortcomings,
I don't think it matters.
So if you were to run Vista and attempt Aero, it should be
disabled. So the compositing visual effects would not be
rendered. Just means a little less "eye candy".
This is the newest AGP card you can get. It isn't a strong gamer
card, but will easily handle Aero compositing effects.
Radeon HD 4650 1GB AGP 8X $95
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150433
It is a 1.5V only video card, as is shown by the single slot cut
on the right hand end of the connector.
http://c1.neweggimages.com/NeweggImage/productimage/14-150-433-04.jpg
http://www.playtool.com/pages/agpcompat/agp.html
The HD 4650 has low power consumption, and the chart here suggests
30W maximum, 9.4W while idling in the desktop.
http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/video/display/ati-radeon-hd4650_4.html#sect0
Bridged AGP cards, such as ATI cards that use Rialto or
Nvidia cards that used to use the HSI bridge chip, are
"Universal 1.5V AGP 3.0 Cards". Examples in the Playtool
charts are the ATI X1950 Pro (uses Rialto) and Nvidia 7800 GS
(uses HSI). Any newer cards, which continue to use bridge
chips of that type, should also have the same compatibility
level.
You can see Rialto, in this picture of the back of the HD 4650 AGP.
The pink stuff is protection for the Rialto.
http://c1.neweggimages.com/NeweggImage/productimage/14-150-433-05.jpg
Nvidia apparently is no longer making HSI chips, so they are
not in a position to issue newer hardware with AGP connectors.
There are still 6200 cards, for example, which appear to be
native AGP, and need no HSI to have an AGP interface. So you
can still get those.
This is a picture of an Nvidia card. This is an Nvidia 7600 GT AGP,
where the HSI chip is underneath the fins near the edge connector.
The inclusion of that chip and its heatsink, sometimes made it hard
to find aftermarket coolers to fit to those kinds of video cards
(like if you wanted a bigger heatsink or a quieter fan).
http://images17.newegg.com/is/image/newegg/14-130-099-S03?$S640W$
A 6200 AGP, as long as it has enough RAM on board, would
qualify for Aero. It has DirectX 9 hardware support, Pixel Shader 3
(one better than needed), and likely has enough RAM. This
particular one has 512MB of memory, at least that is what the
advert claims. Cards like this are gutless for gameplay, but
would be fine for most other uses.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814139043
http://www.gpureview.com/GeForce-6200-AGP-card-192.html
If you look at a picture of the 6200 video card, it has two slots
cut, implying it can operate the AGP I/O signals at 1.5V
or 3.3V supply voltage. That helps sometimes, if the motherboard
is really old. (Check the Playtool charts, to match video cards
to motherboards.)
You should always check whether drivers are actually available
I looked on the Nvidia site, and the 6200 is still in the supported
hardware list, driver dated June 9, 2009.
http://www.nvidia.com/object/win7_winvista_32bit_186.18_whql.html
Products supported
Windows 7 or Windows Vista (32-bit)
GeForce 6200
So those are a couple examples of cards you might use. The
6200 is getting pretty close to meeting the minimum. The ATI
card is a more modern release.
Paul
