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2001-06-06
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[English]
README.TXT MATROX GRAPHICS INC. 2000.10.12
Matrox PowerDesk for Windows NT 4.0
Rev. 4.90.011
Contents
========
- Release description
- Installation
- Using Matrox PowerDesk
- Hardware-accelerated 3D
- Notes, problems and limitations
- Matrox TV output
Release description
===================
This is the Matrox Windows NT Display Driver. It supports Microsoft
Windows NT for x86 CPU's, version 4.0 (Build 1381 -- or later).
This product includes:
- Display Driver
- Matrox PowerDesk for Windows NT 4.0
Installation
============
To install Matrox PowerDesk, start the "setup" program included
with it, then follow the on-screen instructions.
The setup program will only install software if a Matrox graphics
card model supported by the setup program is installed in your
computer.
If you're installing this software on many systems, there are setup
options to partially automate the procedure. For more information,
see the "setup_un.doc" file included with this software.
Using Matrox PowerDesk
======================
Changing resolution, selecting a monitor, and using the Matrox
PowerDesk is covered in the "online.doc" file. You can view this
file with WordPad.
Hardware-accelerated 3D
=======================
For 3D hardware acceleration, the Matrox Windows NT 4.0 display
driver supports the OpenGL interface with 2 driver types -- MCD
(Mini Client Driver) and ICD (Installable Client Driver). The
Matrox Millennium, Millennium II, Mystique, Mystique 220, and G100-
based graphics cards have MCD support. The Matrox G200-based, G400-
based and later graphics cards have ICD support. (An ICD has more
potential for optimization than an MCD.)
3D hardware acceleration has the following restrictions:
- Currently no acceleration is available when multiple cards are
in use.
- The MCD/ICD does not support 8 bpp (256 colors) and 24 bpp
(16777216 colors) modes. 16 bpp (64 K colors) and 32 bpp (True
Color) modes are the ones that can be hardware-accelerated.
- Limitations to the available resolutions are to be expected. All
3D modes require extra memory to handle double buffering and/or
Z-buffering, and this memory is no longer available for display.
Notes, problems and limitations
===============================
- Computers with more than one PCI bus
It is possible that a switch to a full-screen Command Prompt, or
any change of mode, will result in a blue-screen crash if a card
is installed on a PCI bus other than bus 0. The problem is under
investigation. Moving the card to a different PCI slot is a
possible workaround.
There are systems where Windows NT reports conflicts between
adapters installed beyond the PCI bridge. In this case, the Matrox
miniport driver cannot access its own card. If your system appears
unable to find the card, try moving it to a different PCI slot.
Installing Microsoft Service Pack 3 (or later) for Windows NT 4.0
should fix many of these problems.
- DirectDraw with virtual desktops
Some DirectDraw programs don't work properly with virtual
desktops. We recommend you run DirectDraw programs with a normal
desktop.
- 3D-Maze screen saver
Display problems may appear while using the "3D-Maze" screen
saver. These may happen after Microsoft Service Pack 2 for
Windows NT 4.0 is installed. These display problems are
apparently fixed by Service Pack 3 (or later).
- Running Winstone 97
The CenterPOPUP feature should be disabled (which is the default
setting) when running the Winstone 97 benchmark. Some tests may
report a time-out error if CenterPOPUP is used.
- Limitation with multiple graphics cards
Windows NT 4.0 supports a maximum of about 280 different display
modes (combinations of resolution, color palette and refresh rate
settings). You may encounter this limit if you have more than one
Matrox graphics card installed in your computer.
If the Matrox "VESA settings" option button is selected when there
are multiple Matrox cards in your computer, you're even more
likely to encounter the Windows NT 4.0 limit in the number of
display modes. This is because the "VESA settings" option supports
several different refresh rates for each display resolution and
color palette setting.
If you have more than one Matrox graphics card in your computer,
we recommend you not use the "VESA settings" option. Note that
changing your refresh rate through the Microsoft "Display
Properties" dialog box activates the "VESA settings" option.
- 3D Studio MAX 1.2
If you have problems running 3D Studio MAX 1.2 using the Matrox
HEIDI driver, try disabling the "Use bus mastering" check box
under "General settings". To access this check box, click
"Start" > "Programs" > "Matrox PowerDesk" > "Matrox Display
Properties" > "Performance".
- 3D Studio MAX 2.0
Switching between HEIDI software emulation and OpenGL
acceleration while 3D Studio MAX 2.0 is running, may cause the
viewports to flicker while playing animations. This problem
may also happen if display settings (resolution or color palette)
are changed while 3D Studio MAX is running. If you experience
these problems, try closing 3D Studio MAX, changing your display
settings (resolution or color palette), and then restarting 3D
Studio MAX.
- 15-bit color palette support
A 15-bit color palette is no longer supported.
- OpenGL support
Note the following limitations related to the OpenGL (3D) driver
included with your Matrox display driver:
- If you have a newer Matrox product or your Matrox software
was provided by the manufacturer of your computer, full
OpenGL support may be disabled with your Matrox display
driver. For a Matrox display driver with full OpenGL support
enabled, see the Matrox Web site (www.matrox.com/mga). (If
your Matrox product was provided by the manufacturer of your
computer, check the Web site of that manufacturer for a
display driver. A display driver provided by the manufacturer
of your computer is more likely to be tested with your
computer model.)
- In multi-display mode under Windows NT 4.0, OpenGL
acceleration is only available if DualHead graphics
hardware is the only graphics hardware you're using. (Multi-
display OpenGL acceleration isn't supported with Matrox MMS
products or with more than one graphics card in your
computer.)
- Using 3D Studio MAX 2.0, you may experience problems with the
viewports being improperly redrawn. If this happens, simply
click in a viewport to properly update their display. This
problem isn't present with version 2.5 (or later) of 3D
Studio MAX.
- System memory requirements
Because of a limitation in Windows NT 4.0, you may experience
problems if your computer doesn't have more system memory than
the total amount of graphics memory used in your computer. To
determine the amount of graphics memory used in your computer,
add the total amount of graphics memory on each installed Matrox
graphics product in your computer.
Depending on your total amount of graphics memory, here are some
recommended amounts of system memory for Windows NT 4.0:
Graphics memory | System memory
(total) | (recommended)
-------------------+------------------
32 MB | 64 MB or more
64 MB | 128 MB or more
128 MB | 192 MB or more
160 MB | 256 MB or more
- Full-screen DOS support with multiple graphics chip
If you have more than 10 graphics chips in your system (for
example, 3 Matrox MMS-Quad cards), your system may stop
responding when running a DOS program in full-screen mode. If
your DOS program supports it, run it in a DOS window.
Matrox TV output
================
Certain models of Matrox graphics cards support TV output. With TV
output support, you can view or record your computer display with a
TV or video recorder connected to your graphics card.
Recommendation
--------------
- While playing games using TV output, we recommend you use a
640 x 480 display resolution. This is because the resolution
capabilities of TVs are lower than most computer monitors. If you
use a higher display resolution (800 x 600 or 1024 x 768), the
display on your TV may not look as sharp as the display of your
computer monitor -- that is, some of the extra detail may be
harder to see on your TV.
- For Matrox G100/G200 graphics cards with TV ouput support:
Matrox default advanced TV output settings are good for viewing
most computer graphics (for example, computer games or your
Windows desktop) on most TVs. Based on broadcast standards, there
are advanced TV output settings that are better suited for
viewing full-screen video (for example, from a video file). These
settings are:
NTSC
Brightness : 180
Contrast : 234
Saturation : 137
Hue : 0
PAL
Brightness : 167
Contrast : 255
Saturation : 138
Hue : 0
Note: For ideal settings, you may also need to adjust the
settings on your TV. The default brightness, contrast, saturation
and hue settings on most consumer video devices are higher than
broadcast standards. These settings are usually OK for viewing
video but may not look OK with computer graphics. (This is why
Matrox default TV output settings are lower than what's ideal for
video.) For more information on how to adjust settings on your
TV, see your TV manual.
More information
----------------
For more information on display settings, see your Matrox manual
and online documentation. For information on how to change the
display resolution of a game you're using, see its documentation.
Note: The Matrox zoom and virtual desktop features aren't supported
in TV output mode. Also, TV output mode isn't supported if you have
more than one Matrox graphics card in your computer.
Note: For TV output with full-screen DOS display modes under
Windows NT 4.0, only text display modes (02h, 03h) are supported.