computer game help

[D22369 0]

computer guru's - dudes and dudettes

this computer illiterate needs help with a small problem have encountered with a game
it runs ok, but the graphics are kinda like stop motion freeze frame from one frame to another.

the game is neverwinter nights, it requires:
Pentium III 800, or athalon 800
128mb ram (256 recommended)
1.2gb free hard drive space
16mb tnt2-class openGL 1.2 compliant video card
direct X 8.1
8x cd ROM

I have:

1.3GB celeron processor
256 mb ram
40 gb drive - 80% free and defragged
direct x 8.1
3D agp graphics card
8x cd ROM

is it time to update my video card?
I can double my ram, would this help?

thanks;
Roy

They say I suffer from insanity.... But I actually enjoy it.

[PhreeZone 20]

Running a virus scanner by chance? Sometimes that screws with games.

Yesterday is history
And tomorrow is a mystery

Parachutemanuals.com

[GTAVercetti 0]

It sounds like a video card issue. How much RAM is on your card though?

It may also be the Celeron, which has a slower bus speed than a P3 and has an older instruction set.

Why yes, my license number is a palindrome. Thank you for noticing.

[PhillyKev 0]

How much RAM on the video card and what speed is it? That's dramatically more important than the RAM or processor speed of the pc itself when dealing with game graphics.

[flyangel2 2]

See, there you guys go, talking dirty again. I opened this thread just so I could get turned on by all the geek talk

May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous, leading to the most amazing view. May your mountains rise into and above the clouds. - Edward Abbey

[D22369 0]

GAAAAA.........ram on the video card??

help......does not compute!!!!...

how would I find that info? I dont think I have the manuals for this machine anymore.....

I also disable mcaffey before playing, so its not the virus software

thanks;
Roy

They say I suffer from insanity.... But I actually enjoy it.

[ianmdrennan 2]

Right click on my computer, select properties. Click the hardware tab and then press the device manager button. A list of devices should appear, expand the display adapters and tell us what it says under that.

Blues,
Ian

Performance Designs Factory Team

[D22369 0]

it says;

intel(R) 82810E graphics controller

boy...I gotta take some computer classes.... I am just lucky I can turn this oversized calculator on...
Roy

They say I suffer from insanity.... But I actually enjoy it.

[ianmdrennan 2]

I believe that is a 16mb integrated video controller. My recommendation would be to make sure your machine has an AGP port (extremely unlikely it wouldn't) and go buy a new video card. There are a lot of good options out there, but expect to spend at LEAST $200 for anything worthwhile. The cheaper you buy the less time it'll be useful for. Personally I'm an ATI fan. I've been running the 9700 Pro since it's release and still haven't needed to upgrade but I sense that time is nearing with Battlefield 2 and Quake 4 on the horizon.

If you decide to buy a card, let us know how much you're willing to spend and guidence can be offered from there.

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I am just lucky I can turn this oversized calculator on...

They turn on????!!!????

Blues,
Ian

Performance Designs Factory Team

[PhillyKev 0]

Actually, that's a chip set designation. It could be on a non-integrated, AGP card that uses that chipset. It could have any amount of RAM. He did say he has an AGP card.

[D22369 0]

expect to spend at LEAST $200***

ouch, ouch....ouchiouchouch!!!!

hmmmm, I can buy a new computer for less than 500$, I have had good luck with this emachine, are they still a good buy compared to others?

Roy

They say I suffer from insanity.... But I actually enjoy it.

[D22369 0]

It could have any amount of RAM. He did say he has an AGP card.
***

I bought this computer in early 2002, so its probably way behind the curve.....kinda like me when it comes to computers

Roy

They say I suffer from insanity.... But I actually enjoy it.

[ianmdrennan 2]

Yeah, but like he said it's an emachine and it's the display chipset. If he had an agp card in the slot it'd show up there as well.

uggg....emachine....I just rebuilt a friend of mines. Lots of low grade stuff. Slow mem, celeron, integrated everything.

I've generally preferred building my own gaming machines, off the shelf stuff rarely is decent or those that are are way over priced *cough*alienware*cough*

Oh and D, high end gaming cards run mid 300's and up so 200 isn't too bad
Blues,
Ian

Performance Designs Factory Team

[Slappie 9]

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3D agp graphics card

He's got an AGP slot. My suggestion is take a trip down to your local "computer" store and check out the deals on AGP Video Cards. Get one that has a minimum of 128mgs of Video RAM. For about $150-250 you can pick one up that's easy to install and will improve your performance 110%. If the only game you're playing is NWN then you're not going to be stretching the limits of the lower end video cards.

ATI 9k series cards would work.

nVidia - 5k series would work also.

I run a FX5950 256mg Pro and I'm getting very good FPS (frames per second) in Doom 3, Counter Strike: Source and all my other high graphic intensive games. I will be upgrading in the Spring though. Might even be upgrading the entire machine.

P4 3.2ghz 800fsb - hyperthreading CPU
1.5gig PC3200 ram
2x 120gig HDs (RAID)
FX5950 256mg DDR video *weak point on machine
ViewSonic SBF90 (19" monitor with superbright)

running WinXP Pro will most of the gadgets and gizmos turned off, on a DSL internet connection.

Not the fastest but she keeps me in the game.

"Find out just what any people will quietly submit to and you have found out the exact measure of injustice and wrong which will be imposed upon them."

[PhillyKev 0]

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hmmmm, I can buy a new computer for less than 500$,

sure, with a shitty video card that will give you choppy graphics when you play games

Here's a decent card for $40.

http://www.dealtime.com/xPC-VGA_ROSEWILL_RADEON9200SE_128MB_DDR

[Nightingale 0]

I play neverwinter, and I've got nvidia geforce cards on both my desktop and laptop. haven't had any problems. I think both cards have 64 mgs ram.

As a sidenote, I had the skipping freeze frame problem with everquest 2. I added more ram and it fixed the problem. I've now got 1 gig ram in my laptop, upgraded from 512. Neverwinter ran fine on 512 for me, but again, I've got a good video card.

[D22369 0]

Oh and D, high end gaming cards run mid 300's and up so 200 isn't too bad
***

so it would probably be better to spend 500$ for a new computer with more everything? than to upgrade this one....?

on a side note, do you know a skinny skydiver dark hair, can do a standing backbend and place his hands between his feet named charles? nickname chuckles? he is a computer tech, and I believe he jumps in your area

Roy

They say I suffer from insanity.... But I actually enjoy it.

[D22369 0]

sure, with a shitty video card that will give you choppy graphics when you play games ***

heheh, like I said, I know....nuthin about computers..... if I pull the card out of this one, will it say on it what its ram is?

Roy

They say I suffer from insanity.... But I actually enjoy it.

[CrazyIvan 0]

One thing, read the fine print and see what are the "preferred" video cards for that game, including MODEL, because for example, a game can run if you had an ATI Radeon, but if you have a Radeon 7800 or a Radeon 9800 will make a difference, internal architecture are different, no matter how much RAM that video card has.

My 2 cents.

__________________________________________
Blue Skies and May the Force be with you.

[GTAVercetti 0]

Get a new Shuttle for about $1000 at Best Buy.

They are tiny, fast, and have lots of USB and firewire ports for add-on.

A little more cash, but it will last longer. And with a Best Buy card, you can get 6 months same as cash.

http://www.shuttle.com

Why yes, my license number is a palindrome. Thank you for noticing.

[D22369 0]

See, there you guys go, talking dirty again. I opened this thread just so I could get turned on by all the geek talk ***

hmmm, turned on by geek talk huh???...... damn.... sucks to be me.... now if you got turned on by heavy machinery that rips up the lanscape and tears down buildings, and large power tools, I might have a chance to turn ya on
but alas.......

LOL
Roy

They say I suffer from insanity.... But I actually enjoy it.

[flyangel2 2]

Nope, it's the geek talk that gets me going.

May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous, leading to the most amazing view. May your mountains rise into and above the clouds. - Edward Abbey

[ChasingBlueSky 0]

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3D agp graphics card

Last I checked AGP can be integrated onto the MB. Well, the chipset and GPU are integrated and they utilize the system memory.

eMachines tend to cut a lot of corners to create those PCs cheap. Often they don't include expansion slots - he may not even have an AGP slot (which means you would need to use a PCI video card in the one or two slots they give you)! In this scenario a lot of stress is put on the CPU and system RAM and most of the better games run like crap on these machines. What model # system did you get? We can look up the specs for you and let you know if you can even upgrade it.

In the mean time, while you try to upgrade, make sure you update the drivers for the system and have all the latest patches for the game.

I would avoid getting a video card from any of the local big box stores - they are very over priced there. Check out www.pricewatch.com and you will find them much cheaper (make sure to check the ratings on the site - you can never go wrong with TigerDirect or NewEgg). You can get a slower next gen card for the same cost you spend on an older gen vid card at Best Buy. Once you get the card, ask a local geek or take it to Best Buy to have them install it.

FYI - I am still running an Nvidia GeForce4 Ti4200 (AGP8x) with 128mb Ram on it and an AMD XP2000+. I am still playing Far Cry, Half Life 2, Riddick, and Doom 3 on it without an issue. You could easily get away with an ATI 9550, 9600xt or 9700 and still have it last for about two years.

_________________________________________
you can burn the land and boil the sea, but you can't take the sky from me....
I WILL fly again.....

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[D22369 0]

its model number T 1125


I really apreciate everyones help
Roy

They say I suffer from insanity.... But I actually enjoy it.

[ChasingBlueSky 0]

Yup, looks like the video is on board and there is no AGP slot (best guess without seeing it). They recommend a PCI video card upgrade. That alone will keep you from having good video performance in any newer game on the market. Those older cards just don't have the architecture and pipelines to handle the graphics.

And from I can remember, the video that comes on board is just a generic Intel chipset that is terrible for games but works well for office work.

_________________________________________
you can burn the land and boil the sea, but you can't take the sky from me....
I WILL fly again.....