graphics card

[ellie]

Hiya

i should know this as an IT manageress

but im a dbms admin and awfull with hardware.

I was thinking of giving my old pc some life with a new graphics card

It currently has an onboard 4mb ati card. I want to put in a pci based card as i think its where im getting a bottleneck (lots of memory etc).

Is it a nightmare trying to configure the card when there is already one onboard? or just a matter of disabling one of them?

I know its a dumb question but wanna make sure before buying

Thanks

Ellie

 

[gonzo_for_civ]

There is no problem at all.

If you get an AGP card, just plug it in.

If you get a PCI card, plug it in, get drivers installed, and plug the monitor into the just installed card instead of the onboard port, then you'll be using the PCI card instead.

 

[ellie]

Thanks

Ellie
(pushing her old compaq owards another 12 months!!)

 

[gonzo_for_civ]

WAIT! If it's a compaq you have, do this....

1) Find a screwdriver.

2) Open your case.

3) Repeatedly stab motherboard w/screwdriver

j/k, compaqs can be good machines, just make sure to dust often to help avoid overheating due to improper airflow.

 

[ellie]

Hehe i actually like my compaq. The machines i buy for work are cheap clones. When i have to add memory everything inside is a mess. At least my home pc, everything is easy to access and neat etc.

Hmm was thinking of a dell machine when i finally pack in this machine.

Any horror stories there?

Ellie

 

[mad-bax]

Ellie,

If your graphics is "onboard" then you probably mean it's integrated on the motherboard. In this case you will have to disable it in the BIOS b4 you boot the machine but after you install the new card.

To do this hit a key (usually Del or F1) as the machine boots to enter the BIOS setup screen. Then it depends on the BIOS type as to what you will find. But in one of the menus you will find a setting relating to onboard graphics which will be set to enabled. You will need to change that to disabled.

PCI video cards have now almost been completely superceded by AGP cards. NVIDIA and ATI cards are the leading types at the moment. Cards based on the NVIDIA chipset are more cost effective.

It sounds to me like your machine might be a little old. So before you buy an AGP card, open the computer and look at the motherboard (the big printed Circuit board that everything is plugged into). Depending on type it will have one, two or three types of slot that you can plug stuff into. The long black slots are the oldest ISA type. Short white slots are PCI and Short brown slots are AGP. You need to make sure you have an AGP slot b4 buying the card.

Dell machines are fine. If you buy a Dell do so online as you will get a discount. Do not buy extended cover for the machine. If it breaks after 12 months the computer won't be worth a carrot anyway.

The only trouble I have with Dells is that they say they will deliver the machine in a few days but it might not arrive for a few weeks.

If you are brave you can build your own (highly recommended). Since you are located in the UK I would recommend that you have a look at www.overclockers.co.uk.

Sorry if this reply is overly basic, but I just don't know what you know - if you see what I mean.

 

[GenghisK]

Why in the world did she choose a branded PC (rolling my eyes, looking at the sky, sighing)
At least I know some compaq bios setup are awful... Really nothing to do with a nice softmenu III

 

[ellie]

i bought it from a friend
a long time ago when it was top of the range for a fraction of the cost

i think i paid 200 for it (p 333, 128 ram etc, obsolete now but then it was considered fast).

Nod i figued i might have to disable it, but thought id better check first..i have an agp slot, i am obviously behind the times thinking in terms of pci

Thanks

Ellie

 

[damunzy]

Make sure that is an AGP slot and not an AMR slot! For the pictures I have seen the AMR slots look pretty similar to AGP but are smaller.....would have for you to waste money because of an AMR slot.

 

[gonzo_for_civ]

If your graphics is "onboard" then you probably mean it's integrated on the motherboard. In this case you will have to disable it in the BIOS b4 you boot the machine but after you install the new card.

He is correct. If you are installing an AGP card you will have to do this. I never had to worry about that in the past because when I was working in the computer repair field PCI was more common then AGP, and if it's a PCI card you install, you merely plug the monitor into the different port

If you have the docs for your computer, or a free support line to call, they should be able to tell you exactly how to disable the onboard video.

Some systems detect it automatically, and will do it for you, however.

 

[gonzo_for_civ]

Make sure that is an AGP slot and not an AMR slot! For the pictures I have seen the AMR slots look pretty similar to AGP but are smaller.....would have for you to waste money because of an AMR slot.

A compaq 333 was most likely purchased new sometime after 1998, therefore there isn't much possibility of it being an AMR slot.

 

[ellie]

Hmm a friend has offered me a tnt 2 pci graphics card for 25 uk pounds, still go for an agp card?.

AAhh well the computer is junk i doubt if a card will get me much more lifefrom it anyway ;p

Ellie

 

[damunzy]

Originally posted by gonzo_for_civ


A compaq 333 was most likely purchased new sometime after 1998, therefore there isn't much possibility of it being an AMR slot.

Good point but you never know.

ellie, is it a TNT2 M64 or a regular TNT2? Either way it is a little expensive, 25 USD is more what it is worth, or about 15 pounds. If it is a TNT2 M64 then you might as well get a TNT1 since there isn't much different between them. 15 pounds for a TNT2 regular is not a horrible price.

 

[ellie]

A regular tnt2

Hmm i thought it was a good deal, ill shop around thanks

Ellie

 

[GI JOE]

I have 128mb nvidia geforce4 mx440
how old is that card and are there any driver updates needed already??????????

 

[CrackedCrystal]

Originally posted by GI JOE
I have 128mb nvidia geforce4 mx440
how old is that card and are there any driver updates needed already??????????

The geforce 4 is a very new card, less than a year. It's top of the line right now (not your specific model though). As for driver updates, you have not given enough information to anser that. What drivers are your currently using? What version number are you using? Are you using reference drivers or one created by the card manufacturer?

But, if your card is working just fine, don't bother updating the drivers. And if you want to anyway, make sure to back up your system before doing so.

 

[damunzy]

www.nvidia.com for the latest updates.

 

[ainwood]

I've recently purchased a geforce 440 has 64MB DDR and support for 8X AGP. At the same time I got a new motherboard, 512MB of DDR and an Athlon XP 2100.

Unfortunately, the PC I want to put it in is still in a container at the local port. Won't get my hands on it for another three weeks.

 

[damunzy]

@ainwood: Where are you located and where did you order it from?
@ellie: Have you gotten a new video card??

 

[ainwood]

Munzy -

I've recently relocated from the UK back to NZ. We shipped all our household stuff over, but it took about 8 weeks to arrive. Now its got to clear through customs, and also New Zealand's ministry of agriculture & fisheries (biosecurity - NZ has very few of the diseases that europe has).

We actually had to wait to buy a house as well, so that we've got somewhere to deliver our stuff to.

Re where I got the new hardware - we came back through singapore, and Knight-Dragon suggested that I go to the Simtel mall. I did that, and shopped around. Ended up paying about 1/2 what I would have if i'd shopped inthe UK or NZ