I'm really sorry!! What am I doing wrong?

  • Thread starter Thread starter Jagular
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Jagular

Jagular

Active member
Take that either way you want and it works :D:D.

So what am I doing wrong? At this point I have formatted my hard drive. I took all of the PCI cards out of my computer except the IDE controller. I took the good video card out (GeForce 4 TI4200 128mb) and put my old video card in (TNT2 32mb) so I could see what I’m doing (and to see if my video card is the problem) :D. Windows 98 installed just fine with this almost bare bones configuration. Everything was looking peachy. So I installed the latest driver for my monitor (Dell M770), took the TNT2 out, put the TI4200 in and followed the directions to install the drivers for it. Suddenly the system likes to hang up just after the Windows 98 splash screen but before it actually shows the desktop. It us shows a blank black screen with a cursor flashing in the upper left corner.

I did have the TI4200 installed in a previous iteration of this format reinstall sequence which would sporadically hang up in the same place or get to the desktop. I installed the drivers that time for the TI4200 but couldn’t use any of the features (ex. couldn’t change to 32bit color, increase refresh rate or increase resolution).

This is really starting to get frustrating. What’s the problem? Is my TI4200 borked? (I sure hope not). It seems to work but just has problems when I load the drivers.

Well…this is all confusing I’m sure. Any help would be appreciated. I’m about ready to give up and either take it in and have someone else do it or just buy a decent bare bones system that I can install the good stuff I do have into.

Thanks :(
 
Hmmm. Have you made sure your MOBO has the latest drivers and bios? It could be an AGP issue.
 
TexRoadkill said:
Hmmm. Have you made sure your MOBO has the latest drivers and bios? It could be an AGP issue.
Click to expand...

OOOO....that's an interesting point. I know I flashed the latest bios a few months ago when I upgraded my cpu. But maybe since I just wiped the hard drive I need to go get a driver for the MOBO? It's an old BX440 (I think). Do I have that right? I'm gonna go check it out.

Thanks Tex :)
 
Jagular said:
OOOO....that's an interesting point. I know I flashed the latest bios a few months ago when I upgraded my cpu. But maybe since I just wiped the hard drive I need to go get a driver for the MOBO? It's an old BX440 (I think). Do I have that right? I'm gonna go check it out.

Thanks Tex :)
Click to expand...

OOPS, I meant 440BX :D:D
 
440bx is an older board.
AGP standard has gone through some development stages, and earlier AGP cards were designed to work at different voltage than modern cards.
I would suggest to check compatibility between your current card and AGP implementation on your board.
Just a thought.
 
webstop said:
440bx is an older board.
AGP standard has gone through some development stages, and earlier AGP cards were designed to work at different voltage than modern cards.
I would suggest to check compatibility between your current card and AGP implementation on your board.
Just a thought.
Click to expand...

Thanks. Thing is, it was working in there before the big crash :D. Still worth checking out though. I appreciate it :)
 
Jagular said:
OOOO....that's an interesting point. I know I flashed the latest bios a few months ago when I upgraded my cpu. But maybe since I just wiped the hard drive I need to go get a driver for the MOBO? It's an old BX440 (I think). Do I have that right? I'm gonna go check it out.

Thanks Tex :)
Click to expand...

I think there are drivers for the AGP port as well as the Bios stuff but I'm not completely sure. My last few Mobos have had VIA chipsets and I just install their 4in1 driver packs when they are released. You might cruise your CMOS settings and make sure that the AGP port is set correctly with the speed and port size.
 
The newer AGP cards, which run up to 8X AGP, are supposed to be backward compatible with the older AGP slots. But this scenario sounds like that might be a problem.

Or, your TI4200 may be borked. :(
 
RWhite said:
The newer AGP cards, which run up to 8X AGP, are supposed to be backward compatible with the older AGP slots. But this scenario sounds like that might be a problem.

Or, your TI4200 may be borked. :(
Click to expand...

I got that card specifically so I could play UT2003 (which is still a stretch on my PIII 1 ghz system even with that card) :D. I guess I should spend more time writing & recordin and less time playing anyway LOL (actually haven't played but one evening for the last 4 months).

Maybe I'll start from scratch again and reformat, reinstall win98 and put the TNT2 in there and install the drivers for that to see if that will work. If so, it may be my TI4200's problem. If not, it's probably something else. :shrug:

Thanks for the advice :)
 
From Nvidia website:

There are dozens of reasons that can cause a system to lock up, especially under intense graphical situations. First of all, verify that your system supports the minimum requirements provided by your graphics card manufacturer. Primarily, make sure if your graphics card is an AGP card, that your motherboard meets the AGP 2.0 specification. If your motherboard does not meet the AGP 2.0 specification, then it may become unstable, especially when you are running 3D applications. If you are unsure if your motherboard is AGP 2.0 compliant, please contact your motherboard manufacturer and ask them if your particular motherboard is AGP 2.0 compliant. Also, your system should be running at least a 235-watt power supply (250-watt is preferred.)
 
webstop said:
From Nvidia website:

There are dozens of reasons that can cause a system to lock up, especially under intense graphical situations. First of all, verify that your system supports the minimum requirements provided by your graphics card manufacturer. Primarily, make sure if your graphics card is an AGP card, that your motherboard meets the AGP 2.0 specification. If your motherboard does not meet the AGP 2.0 specification, then it may become unstable, especially when you are running 3D applications. If you are unsure if your motherboard is AGP 2.0 compliant, please contact your motherboard manufacturer and ask them if your particular motherboard is AGP 2.0 compliant. Also, your system should be running at least a 235-watt power supply (250-watt is preferred.)
Click to expand...

Heh...looks like I may be lacking in more than one area :D

Thanks....I think ;) :D
 
Update & question (for anyone interested)

I was finally able to get something to work :rolleyes: :D

I reformatted again, reinstalled win98 with my TNT2 card in. I installed the monitor driver & the driver for the TNT2 and lo and behold it worked.

This is a mixed blessing. It still liked to hang up like I described above with the TI4200 installed, but when I did get to the desktop, I was able to access the capabilities of the TNT2 card (32 bit color & 1024x768 res). Thank God I don't have to look at 16 color 640x480 anymore :D.

So anyway, I am still not sure if there is a problem with my TI4200 card or not. Or maybe my mobo AGP slot is getting a little touchy? Any way to test the TI4200 to make sure it's ok (like taking it in to a computer repair shop and have them take a look at it)? I really would like to make sure it works.

I think I'll try reinstalling the TI4200 tonight now that I have gotten some sort of video card to work. One more shot. If not I'll have to keep the TNT2 in there (no UT2003 for me then) and try to get at least basic functionality back (so I can pay bills & stuff). I might hold off on reinstalling the 1010lt too. I may be able to talk my wife into letting me go into hock for $300 or so to build a new system. Any thoughts on that?

Thanks againd for all your input :)
 
be sure and keep both video cards and drivers seperate. i was reading this thread and i don't see where you UN-INSTALLthe tnt drivers when you installed the 4200.

you must not load two different video drivers. period! totally uninstall one before using the other or you will hang up---guaranteed!!;)

and yes,the newer hardware is begging for a mobo/processor upgrade. it would work smoother that way.
 
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