Hi there,
Before I begin, I must admit... This is my first time installing a graphics card.
Now, with that being said, I did a lot of research. You see, I understand it's most cost-effective to just buy a new computer rather than "upgrade" an old one; however, the point of this project was to learn something new and hopefully get this computer to play games like Diablo and Neverwinter Nights as smoothly as possible.In all honesty, I just want to play old games on it.
Some Google searching told me that the best card, both performance and value-wise, for this computer would be the GeForce 8400 GS and that installation would be a piece of cake. Physically installing the card? Absolutely! It was a bit awkward for me since I hadn't done it myself before, but once I removed the bracket from the PCI (no PCI-e here) slot, I slid it in with ease and heard the telltale click. Getting the computer to recognize the card or the driver to install? A completely different story.
Here are the steps I took:
... After that, I got no signal, so I did what any other problem-solving person would do and connected the monitor to the old VGA port. Of course, I had a signal again.
I did some more Google searching and came across a page that had me check my Device Manager to see if it was even listed, and lo and behold, it wasn't. Just the disabled integrated graphics card. I even tried looking for hidden devices but no dice. One suggestion said that perhaps I needed to install the driver first. For this card, the last update to this driver was done on Tuesday, July 29, 2014, ver. 340.52. I downloaded it, launched the installer, and was greeted with a lovely, little message telling me that the installer cannot continue because the driver couldn't find compatible hardware. Back to square one: no hardware detected.
I feel like for someone who has never done a graphics card installation that I have a pretty good understanding of the process and the steps that should be taken to ensure successful installation. I watched plenty of videos, read manuals and step-by-step instructions... and yet I still don't have this card properly installed. What am I missing? I could sure use some help on this one.:/
Here are the specs:
RAM: 1.50 GB
Hard Drive: 74.4 GB capacity
Optical Storage: DVD/RW
Processor: Intel Celeron D 3.24 GHz
Clock Speed: 2.53 GHz
OS: Windows XP Professional, Version 2002, Service Pack 3
Before I begin, I must admit... This is my first time installing a graphics card.
Now, with that being said, I did a lot of research. You see, I understand it's most cost-effective to just buy a new computer rather than "upgrade" an old one; however, the point of this project was to learn something new and hopefully get this computer to play games like Diablo and Neverwinter Nights as smoothly as possible.In all honesty, I just want to play old games on it.
Some Google searching told me that the best card, both performance and value-wise, for this computer would be the GeForce 8400 GS and that installation would be a piece of cake. Physically installing the card? Absolutely! It was a bit awkward for me since I hadn't done it myself before, but once I removed the bracket from the PCI (no PCI-e here) slot, I slid it in with ease and heard the telltale click. Getting the computer to recognize the card or the driver to install? A completely different story.
Here are the steps I took:
■Disabled the onboard graphics via the Device Manager
■Restarted the computer and entered the BIOS
■Choose "Auto" from the Primary Video Controller (I could only choose "Auto" or "Onboard")
■Saved my changes and shut down the computer
■Installed the card into the PCI slot
■Connected my monitor to the card's VGA port
■Turned on the computer
... After that, I got no signal, so I did what any other problem-solving person would do and connected the monitor to the old VGA port. Of course, I had a signal again.
I did some more Google searching and came across a page that had me check my Device Manager to see if it was even listed, and lo and behold, it wasn't. Just the disabled integrated graphics card. I even tried looking for hidden devices but no dice. One suggestion said that perhaps I needed to install the driver first. For this card, the last update to this driver was done on Tuesday, July 29, 2014, ver. 340.52. I downloaded it, launched the installer, and was greeted with a lovely, little message telling me that the installer cannot continue because the driver couldn't find compatible hardware. Back to square one: no hardware detected.
I feel like for someone who has never done a graphics card installation that I have a pretty good understanding of the process and the steps that should be taken to ensure successful installation. I watched plenty of videos, read manuals and step-by-step instructions... and yet I still don't have this card properly installed. What am I missing? I could sure use some help on this one.:/
Here are the specs:
RAM: 1.50 GB
Hard Drive: 74.4 GB capacity
Optical Storage: DVD/RW
Processor: Intel Celeron D 3.24 GHz
Clock Speed: 2.53 GHz
OS: Windows XP Professional, Version 2002, Service Pack 3
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