video card

[john townsley]

I believe extra Video Ram will mean more graphics can be handled by the PC
what does the video card specs mean exactly

eg 32mb, 64mb card, 128mb card
whats the difference in performance with these different sizes.

 

[kony]

I believe extra Video Ram will mean more graphics can be handled by the PC
what does the video card specs mean exactly

eg 32mb, 64mb card, 128mb card
whats the difference in performance with these different sizes.

It depends on the size of the "graphics" in the app your
trying to run. For basic office, email, web surfing,
there's no need for more than 32MB, but otherwise there's no
way to generalize the performance difference without a
target use.

A graphic artist may find that (depending on the sizes of
images dealt with) substantially more memory allows zooming
and panning seamlessly.

A gamer may find at least 64MB beneficial for games of the
past 1-4 years, but any modern 3D games benefit a lot from
128MB. 256MB isn't very useful unless it's on a very fast
card, and likewise if the use is demanding 3D, a lot of
memory on a relatively slow (GPU) card won't offset the
other bottleneck of video processing. On the other hand
many games allow reducing the special effects or quality
somewhat, reducing the amount of memory needed.

A better way to determine how much memory is beneficial is
to take the opposite approach, consider what you'll be doing
with the system and what requirements those uses have...
and how much additional $$ you want to put into getting a
little bit longer viable lifespan out of the card.

 

[john townsley]

It depends on the size of the "graphics" in the app your
trying to run. For basic office, email, web surfing,
there's no need for more than 32MB, but otherwise there's no
way to generalize the performance difference without a
target use.

A graphic artist may find that (depending on the sizes of
images dealt with) substantially more memory allows zooming
and panning seamlessly.

A gamer may find at least 64MB beneficial for games of the
past 1-4 years, but any modern 3D games benefit a lot from
128MB. 256MB isn't very useful unless it's on a very fast
card, and likewise if the use is demanding 3D, a lot of
memory on a relatively slow (GPU) card won't offset the
other bottleneck of video processing. On the other hand
many games allow reducing the special effects or quality
somewhat, reducing the amount of memory needed.

A better way to determine how much memory is beneficial is
to take the opposite approach, consider what you'll be doing
with the system and what requirements those uses have...
and how much additional $$ you want to put into getting a
little bit longer viable lifespan out of the card.

so how is the video RAM different to regular RAM?

 

[kony]

so how is the video RAM different to regular RAM?

Dedicated to video use, and when the budget and design
allows for it (as it usually does) the locality allows for
faster interface. Bascially it's just another data cache of
a sort, and with so much processing and frame buffering
(potentially) going on continually it makes the most sense
to let the data accumulate near where it's used... putting
it in an oversimplified way. Also with a video card it's
normally a pre-engineered solution, without the variability
of different user config or 3rd party hardware, again it can
be better tuned to the specific video card design,
maximizing the potential of a given memory bus... or
unfortunately, deliberately crippled to create a
lower-priced product offering.

 

[Mike Walsh]

You can display high resolution (1600 x 1200) images with 8 MB video memory. The additional video memory is needed by the video processor for frame buffering and to render 3D images. The current 3D video processors are very powerful and can use 256 MB video memory.

 

[DevilsPGD]

In message <[email protected]> Mike Walsh

You can display high resolution (1600 x 1200) images with 8 MB video memory. The additional video memory is needed by the video processor for frame buffering and to render 3D images. The current 3D video processors are very powerful and can use 256 MB video memory.

It depends on the colour mode -- 8MB video memory is not sufficient to
use 1600x1200 in 8bit (256 colour)

 

[Mike Walsh]

8 MB is enough for 1600 x 1200 at 32 bit color.

1600 x 1200 x 32 = 61,440,000 bits, about 7.33 MB.

 

[DevilsPGD]

In message <[email protected]> Mike Walsh

8 MB is enough for 1600 x 1200 at 32 bit color.

1600 x 1200 x 32 = 61,440,000 bits, about 7.33 MB.

*sighs* Sorry, I screwed up a digit when I did the math, sorry 'bout that.

 

[YanquiDawg]

The more onboard ram you have the better.I wouldn't even consider anything less
than 128 MB on the vid card. 256 is getting more common and 512 is on the way.

 

[kony]

The more onboard ram you have the better.I wouldn't even consider anything less
than 128 MB on the vid card. 256 is getting more common and 512 is on the way.

Yes/no/maybe

Having more ram than needed is of no benefit, though it's
pretty easy to need over 64MB for gaming. In some cases
larger amounts of memory require more conservative timings
so in those cases it can actually be a detriment to have
more memory... not to mention that in some cases more memory
means less, possibly even much less, overclocking potential.

 

[DevilsPGD]

In message <[email protected]>

The more onboard ram you have the better.I wouldn't even consider anything less
than 128 MB on the vid card. 256 is getting more common and 512 is on the way.

Not if you don't use any 3D functionality. If you're only using the 2D
functionality of your video card, meaning no games, no 3D effects, no
movies, etc, then additional memory is of no value.

 

[YanquiDawg]

I should have mentioned moer=better "for gaming" but I still wouldn't consider
anything less than 128MB video ram for pretty much any video intensive progam
less than two years old.