MY SUPER PC How To Build A PC - A Computer Building Guide Rob Williams - contact via the forums Last Updated: 1/6/2009
Making PCWorld's "Best Free Stuff On The Web Guide - 101 Great Sites" as the favorite Build A PC site!

Video Card Drivers Settings

The graphics driver I'm using is the NVIDIA reference driver version 40.72 WHQL Certified (released November 8, 2002 on NVIDIA's site). I describe the procedure I used for updating the graphics drivers on my Build A Computer Like My Super PC - BIOS Flash Updates And Driver Updates page.

Date of Driver as shown under the Device Manager

Version of Driver as shown under Display Properties

Clicking on the GeForce4 Ti 4200 tab automatically brings up the little side window with configuration options. Here are the ones that have the most to do with image quality and video card performance. It's fine to leave the values unchanged, as I did. They already provide a nice compromise between image quality and video card performance.

3D Antialiasing Settings

Direct3D Settings

OpenGL Settings

Next: Build A Computer Like My Super PC - BIOS Settings

My complete recommendations for building a computer with quality components at unbeatable prices is on my home page at Build A Computer Like My Super PC - Cost To Build A Computer. Here again are the recommendations for a video card! Description Where I Would Get It Today Today's Price Comments EVGA GeForce GTX 260 Core 216 896MB DDR3 Newegg $279.99 Free shipping! Retail box. Clicking the link takes you directly to it. A GeForce GTX 260 Core 216 video card like this one is great for demanding graphics environments, including digital video and top-tier gaming, without spending too much. DirectX 10 support built-in. PCI-E 2.0 compliant. SLI compatible. Fast DDR3 memory. Power supply of 500-watts or better recommended. Does use an extra slot. Uses two 6-pin PCI-E power connectors from the power supply (the Antec Sonata III comes with two). HIS Hightech HD 4850 512MB DDR3 Newegg $144.99 Retail box. Clicking the link takes you directly to it. Price reflects this $10 rebate good on purchases through January 31. This single-slot card is able to play any top-tier game. DirectX 10.1 support built-in. PCI-E 2.0 compliant. CrossFireX compatible. Fast DDR3 memory. Power supply of 450-watts or better recommended. Does not use an extra slot. Uses the 6-pin PCI-E power connector from the power supply. HIS Hightech HD 4870 512MB DDR5 Newegg $189.99 Free shipping! Retail box. Clicking the link takes you directly to it. Price reflects this $10 rebate good on purchases through January 31. The GeForce GTX 260 Core 216 is more powerful than this ATI offering, but not by much. DirectX 10.1 support built-in. PCI-E 2.0 compliant. CrossFireX compatible. Fast DDR5 memory. Power supply of 500-watts or better recommended. Does not use an extra slot. Uses two 6-pin PCI-E power connectors from the power supply (the Antec Sonata III comes with two).

Skip Ahead

Introduction/Cost To Build A Computer   Computer Building Price Considerations   faq: OEM Definition   Case And Power Supply   Processor   Motherboard   RAM   Video Card   Sound Card   Hard Drive   faq: Can I Use My Old Hard Drive With A New Computer?   CD-ROM And CD-RW   DVD   Change The Front Panel On The DVD RW   Flat Panel LCD Monitor   Other Computer Hardware   Windows Operating System   Firewall   Sharing Cable Modem or DSL   CPU Cooler And Case Fans   Overclocking   How Fast Is It?   Assemble   What Problems Were There?   More About How To Get A Cheap Computer With Top Quality And High Performance   Changes For A Game Computer And Enjoying Computer Games   Changes For A Computer With MP3 Music As A Priority   Media Center PC   Help And Support   faq: How Can I Tell What I Already Have In My Computer?