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| Diamond ExpertTalk - Information compiled by the Diamond Tech Support Team |
Please consult the help files for installation/configuration of system, software and drivers as well the various sources of drivers  - Questions - General Config. / Win 3.x / Win 95 / Win NT / Misc. Apps / Games General Config.
1-1
: Fire GL 1000: Can the card be used in dual-screen mode?
1-2
: Fire GL 1000: Which VESA standard and what modes are supported for DOS?
1-3
: What if the computer cannot detect the graphics board?
1-4
: How can I measure the 3D performance of Fire GL 1000?
1-5
: I do not get a picture on my monitor when booting with a NexGen
motherboard and the computer starts beeping
Win 3.x
2-1
: Are there drivers for Windows 3.x?
Win 95
3-1
: Does Fire GL 1000 offer support for Open GL und Heidi with Windows95?
3-2
: Is DirectX 3.0 supported for Fire GL 1000?
3-3
: Windows 95 hangs on start or when opening windows
3-4
: How can I set higher resolutions in the Windows display configuration
(Display Properties dialog)?
Win NT
4-1
: Windows NT 4.0 hangs on start or when opening windows
4-2
: How can I set higher resolutions in the Windows display configuration?
4-3
: Fire GL 2000: I can't get dual-screen display with Windows
4-4
: Open GL screen savers are not any faster than before with the 'old'
graphics card
4-5
: Screen turns red when starting 3DWIN
Misc. Apps
5-1
: SoftImage 3.51 doesn't run correctly (icons disappear) with
Fire GL 1000
5-2
: Does Fire GL 1000 have GLINT support with 3DMAX? I only get texture
mapping in the current window
5-3
: 3D-Win or BigFocus don't recognize the Fire GL 1000 correctly or
demand registration
5-4
: With Fire GL 1000, nothing is displayed in the wireframe preview of
LightWave 3D
5-5
: Are there any special drivers for 3D Studio 4.0 under DOS for
Fire GL 1000?
5-6
: How do I activate the Open GL support in Lightwave3D 5.0
5-7
: When I try and install the HEIDI drivers for 3D Studio Max, the
installer says that 3D Studio must be installed first but it's
already installed
5-8
: Animation is flickering in the Lightwave Layout Editor's preview
5-9
: Under Windows95, 3DSmax only allows a resolution of 800x600x16 with
the Heidi driver. However, Z-buffer configuration allows for higher
resolutions and colour depths
5-10
: Pro/engineer: Under NT 4.0 you hardly notice any acceleration
5-11
: Fire GL 4000:
3DSmax2 with OpenGL under NT4 - system hangs after material assignment
(e.g. 3dsmaxr2.tga) and switching the 'show map in viewport' icon
on/off
Games
6-1
: My display flickers when I play games with Fire GL 1000
6-2
: How can I get higher resolutions with games under Windows95?
6-3
: The game "Formula 1" does not start with a DirectX driver under
Windows95
6-4
: Problems while installation/start of Hexen II
- Answers - General Config.1-1 : Fire GL 1000: Can the card be used in dual-screen mode?  No - Fire GL 1000 is not designed for that. Fire GL 3000 can be used in dual-screen mode. 1-2 : Fire GL 1000: Which VESA standard and what modes are supported for DOS? The card supports VESA 2.0 in the 640x400 and 640x480 modes under DOS. 1-3 : What if the computer cannot detect the graphics board? General: - Make shure that the system BIOS supports this type of graphics hardware (double IRQ device for PCI slots). See the manual of the motherboard or ask your dealer or see the Internet homepages (e.g. AWARD, ASUS) for a BIOS upgrade. - Configure the IRQ assignments for the PCI slots in the system BIOS manually. On an ASUS motherboard, don't use the PCI Media Slot. - If you have an Adaptec 2940(UW) adapter installed in your system, load the most current drivers (see Internet: www.adaptec.com) or install (as a check) another controller. FIRE GL 1000: - Set Jumper 1 to position 2-3 (PCI 2.0 support). 1-4 : How can I measure the 3D performance of Fire GL 1000? - Use the Direct3D performance test TUNNEL to test the effects of the different options. Address: http://www.crunge.com:80/directx/d3dtunnel.html - For OpenGL, try the VIEVPERF test. Address: http://www.specbench.org/gpc/opc.static/index.html - In 3D Studio Max you can find a sample file called 'gearduck.max'. This example shows an animation of a plastic duck fricasseed between two gear wheels. When you run this animation in preview and measure the time, then it should turn out that it runs twice as fast with 3D hardware support than with software support. Important: In the 'time configuration' under 'Play', the option 'real-time' should not be selected; 'Pal' should be selected as frame rate. On a Pentium Pro 200 computer it should take - ca. 60 sec. if Z-buffer is set under File/settings/screen driver/select driver and - ca. 30 sec. if the card's Heidi driver is used (GLINT hardware is set). 1-5 : I do not get a picture on my monitor when booting with a NexGen motherboard and the computer starts beeping This might be an initialisation problem with the PCI bus during system start-up. When booting, press "Insert" for a moment. Win 3.x2-1 : Are there drivers for Windows 3.x? No, there will be no drivers for this antiquated version. Win 953-1 : Does Fire GL 1000 offer support for Open GL und Heidi with Windows95? Yes, if you install the current drivers (see BBS/Internet or SuperCD Prof. Line). 3-2 : Is DirectX 3.0 supported for Fire GL 1000? Install the current drivers (see BBS/Internet/current driver CD). 3-3 : Windows 95 hangs on start or when opening windows - Please check whether your computer BIOS supports this type of card (double IRQ-assignment for PCI slots). Please refer to the manual of the motherboard, contact your local dealer or see the Internet home pages of the respective providers. A system Bios upgrade may be necessary. - Configure the IRQ assignments for the PCI slots in the system BIOS manually. On an ASUS motherboard, don't use the PCI Media Slot. - Problems can occur with certain hardware configurations with the B-Version of Windows95 OSR2 (rev.4.00.95b). - Select "Standard VGA" as your display adapter setting. - Note the correct jumper setting on the card: JP1 on pins 2-3. - The card's VGA BIOS should be active for driver installation. - In the Device Manager, remove the "Diamond FIRE GL 1000" and the "3D Accelerator" entries (for Fire GL 2000/3000 the GLINT entry). - Delete the Fire INF file (e.g. in C:\fire\display). (As a search aid, use *.INF with text "FIRE GL".) - Quit Windows and turn off your computer. After restarting, install the drivers again. - If you have an Adaptec 2940(UW) adapter installed in your system, load the most current drivers (see Internet: www.adaptec.com) or install (as a check) another controller. 3-4 : How can I set higher resolutions in the Windows display configuration (Display Properties dialog)? The maximum settings depend on the selected or configured monitor. Be sure you don't exceed your monitor's frequency specifications! Win NT4-1 : Windows NT 4.0 hangs on start or when opening windows - Please check whether your computer BIOS supports this type of card (double IRQ-assignment for PCI slots). Please refer to the manual of the motherboard, contact your local dealer or see the Internet home pages of the respective providers. A system Bios upgrade may be necessary. Note the correct jumper setting on the card. The card's VGA BIOS must be active for driver installation. If you have an Adaptec 2940(UW) adapter installed in your system, load the most current drivers (see Internet: www.adaptec.com) or install (as a check) another controller. Configure the IRQ assignments for the PCI slots in the system BIOS manually. On an ASUS motherboard, don't use the PCI Media Slot. 4-2 : How can I set higher resolutions in the Windows display configuration (Display Properties dialog)? In the "Configuration" panel of the Windows NT 4.0 Display Properties dialog, activate the "Export high resolution, single buffered formats" option. 4-3 : Fire GL 2000: I can't get dual-screen display with Windows When configuring the display, select a dual-screen resolution such as 2048x768 if you want a resolution of 1024*768 per screen. A combination of different resolutions, colour depths and frequencies for each monitor is impossible. 4-4 : Open GL screen savers are not any faster than before with the 'old' graphics card The speed of these NT tools is dependent on the 2D performance of the graphics card - that is why you won't notice any acceleration in comparison with a Millenium for example. 4-5 : Screen turns red when starting 3DWIN Configure your driver for High or True Color - not for 256 colors! Note: Possible color configurations are dependent on the card's resolution and memory. Misc. Apps5-1 : SoftImage 3.51 doesn't run correctly (icons disappear) with Fire GL 1000 Because of the hardware requirement this application has only been (and will only be) certified for Fire GL 3000 and GL 4000 with Windows NT! 5-2 : Does Fire GL 1000 have GLINT support with 3DMAX? I only get texture mapping in the current window? An improved driver is in preparation. 5-3 : 3D-Win or BigFocus don't recognize the Fire GL 1000 correctly or demand registration Install the current drivers (see BBS/Internet or SuperCD II Prof.Line). Disable the automatic hardware recognition in 3D-Win or BigFocus. 5-4 : With Fire GL 1000, nothing is displayed in the wireframe preview of LightWave 3D Use the shaded preview. A driver update is in preparation (look later on BBS/Internet). 5-5 : Are there any special drivers for 3D Studio 4.0 under DOS for Fire GL 1000? No, there are no DOS drivers for this card. 5-6 : How do I activate the Open GL support in Lightwave3D 5.0? Turn on "Use OpenGL" in the Option Panel. Go to the scene panel, and under the 'Show' pulldown, select "Show All Objects as Full Solids". In order for OpenGL updating to be done in real time, the "Bounding Box Point/Polygon Threshold" on the Options/Layout panel must be set to a number higher than the number of polygons in the scene. 5-7 : When I try and install the HEIDI drivers for 3D Studio Max, the installer says that 3D Studio must be installed first but it's already installed Do a file search for "wglint.hdi" on your hard disk where the Fire GL drivers are installed. Once found, copy this file to your 3dstudio\drivers directory. 3DStudio should now be able to use the HEIDI drivers. 5-8 : Animation is flickering in the Lightwave Layout Editor's preview Install the latest drivers. 5-9 : Under Windows95, 3DSmax only allows a resolution of 800x600x16 with the Heidi driver. However, Z-buffer configuration allows for higher resolutions and colour depths This is a limitation of the 4 MB version of the Fire GL 1000. The solution to this problem would be a 4 MB memory extension. 5-10 : Pro/engineer: Under Nt 4.0 you hardly notice any acceleration In the configuration file CONFIG.PRO replace the entry 'win32' by 'openGL'. 5-11 : Fire GL 4000: 3DSmax2 with OpenGL under NT4 - system hangs after material assignment (e.g. 3dsmaxr2.tga) and switching the 'show map in viewport' icon on/off Use the latest NT4 driver. Be careful not to use the Heidi driver (in the Plugin directory of 3Dmax2 there should be no REFRESH.DLU file)! Games6-1 : My display flickers when I play games with Fire GL 1000 Use the file VBETUNE via AUTOEXEC.BAT before starting the game (see BBS/ Internet). Unfortunately, this tool won't work with ASUS boards. 6-2 : How can I get higher resolutions with games under Windows95? Use the SciTech 5.3a driver TSR matching your Permedia card. (see BBS/ Internet - Hotline). 6-3 : The game "Formula 1" does not start with a DirectX driver under Windows95 For this game you need the 8MB version of the graphics card or the 4 MB memory extension for the 4MB card. 6-4 : Problems while installation/start of Hexen II 1) If you get the error message: "A required .DLL file, GLIDE2X.DLL, was not found." please rename OpenGL32.dll to e.g. xxOpenGL32.dll or delete the file. 2.) If textures are not displayed ... please start Hexen with the parameter -lm_4! eof |
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