Using 3DMark... When you create a new 3DMark Benchmark, the main dialog opens up with a lot of information in it. The main goal behind the interface is to show you all the required details within the same view. You can read through all settings and launch your benchmark with only one click. 1. Description - edit the project name and add your own comments. 2. Select Tests - change which tests will be run (available only in 3DMark 99 Pro). 3. Options - change the playback options, such as looping (available only in 3DMark 99 Pro). 4. Display Settings - change the Rendering Platform, Resolution, Color Depth and Buffering Modes. 5. Run - run the Result Browser, Help file, Demo mode or Benchmark. Result Browser System Info

1. Description Project Name allows you to write a full name for the test. The Project Name is used in Result Browser to identify the current project. Comments allows you to expand further on the project name. Some items that you might want to write here: Name of the tester More detailed description if necessary Installation procedure for the current 3D accelerator.

 

2. Select Tests If you want to run only some of the tests, you can select them by overall category in the 'Normal' Page, or any of the individual 23 tests in the 'Custom' Page. See Test Descriptions for a detailed information on the tests. Note: 3DMark 99 Lite always has the Overall Performance and Image Quality tests selected. It is not possible to select custom tests in the Lite version.

 

3. Options Benchmark Options Disable title screens between tests - Disables the info screen that appears between the benchmark tests Test repeat count - You can force 3DMark 99 to loop each test several times for greater accuracy. Looping -The benchmark restarts itself with the selected tests after each benchmark round has been completed. Demo Mode Options Disable music - No music will be played during the demo mode. Looping -The demo mode restarts itself automatically until interrupted. Note: The Options menu is not available in 3DMark 99 Lite.

4. Display Settings The Display Settings dialog controls the screen output of 3DMark. The right side of the dialog shows the amount of total texture memory and available texture memory on the selected 3D accelerator. These figures change depending on the options selected on the left side, so you can track how much memory each option consumes, and how much is left for textures. Rendering Platform If you have multiple 3D accelerators in your system you can select on which accelerator the tests are run. The options below change according to what is available on the selected 3D accelerator. Screen Resolution and Color Depth You can choose which resolution to run 3DMark in. All resolution and color depth combinations available on your system and currently selected 3D accelerator are displayed here. 32-bit color depth produces better visual quality but takes twice the memory for frame buffers and textures. As the 32-bit modes use more memory, this also means that to be able to render a single frame, the 3D accelerator needs to move more data. This usually causes degraded performance when compared to 16-bit color modes. The default settings for 3DMark 99 are 800x600 resolution, 16 bit color, 16 bit Z-buffer and double frame buffer. Note: 3DMark 99 Lite is limited to only 640x480 and 800x600 16 bit color screen modes. Z-Buffer Depth Z-buffer is used to help sorting the 3D scene so that polygons are rendered in correct order. Normally 3D accelerators support only 16 bit Z-buffer, but it has certain limitations. If the game needs to draw far away objects and also detailed objects up close, 16 bit Z-buffer might not be enough. Therefore in some applications 24 or 32 bit Z-buffer results in better visual quality. The downside is that these 24 and 32 bit Z-buffers consume more memory. Frame Buffering Mode Select whether 3DMark will use one, two or three screen buffers. This does not affect results as 3DMark measures only the time spent on rendering.. Single buffering: Use front buffer only. You will see flickering polygons as the screen is drawn on constantly. Double buffering: Use a front and a back buffer. Front buffer is displayed while back buffer is being rendered to. When render is complete, buffers are swapped. Triple buffering: Use a front buffer and two back buffers. This is similar to double buffering but prevents the situation where the system would have to wait for vertical sync and screens to be swapped before it can start rendering another frame. Information Total Video Memory is the amount of video memory in kilobytes that the 3D Accelerator reported. The amount of Video Memory limits how high resolutions the 3D Accelerator is able to use. Video Memory Used shows how much the currently selected: Screen Resolution Color Depth Z-Buffer Depth Buffering Mode consume memory. The formula that calculates the Used Video Memory is: Used Video Memory = (Xsize*Ysize) * (ColorDepthBits/8) * AmountOfFrameBuffers + (Xsize*Ysize) * (ZbufferBits/8) So for example if you are you are using 640*480 Resolution, 16-bit color, 16-bit Z-Buffer and Double Buffering, the result is: (640*480) * (16/8) * 2 + (640*480) * (16/8) = 1 843 200 bytes Texture Memory Available shows how much texture memory is available to the 3D Accelerator. Most AGP 3D Accelerators report most of the system memory available as texture memory in addition to their internal video memory. The texture format displayed next to the Screen Resolution and Color depth is automatically selected according to the Screen Color Depth. If the Screen Color Depth is 16-bit, 3DMark uses Direct3D's "default" texture format, which in this case would normally be 16-bit or 15-bit. If the Screen Color Depth is 32-bit, 3DMark tries to use the "maximum" texture bit depth available, which usually means 32-bit. This also means that the textures use twice the amount of memory than in 16-bit mode.

5. Run Benchmark - Launches the benchmark with the selected display settings and options. Demo Mode - Launches the non-interactive demonstration. Help - Launches your default browser with these HTML help files. Result Browser - Launches the Result Browser program.

System Info The System Info feature in 3DMark 99 analyses and displays a multitude of information that can help you to correct problems in your system and optimize its performance. System Info can be accessed from the "Run" menu or from Toolbar Icon.  For easy access, it has been divided to four separate sections (tabs). System Tab The system tab displays the following information: Windows version DirectX version Bios version Bios date Total Physical Memory Free Physical Memory Processor Tab The Processor Tab displays information related to the CPU and cache memory: Processor Type - Indicates manufacturer and model of the CPU. Processor Speed - Indicates the processor speed in Megaherz. Processor Caps - Indicates whether the CPU supports any additional features such as MMX or 3DNow! L1 Cache Size L2 Cache Size - L2 cache size is not detected on "Socket 7" systems. Desktop Tab The desktop tab displays information about your current Windows desktop settings: 2D Display Adapter Name 2D Display Adapter Driver Date Monitor Name Monitor Driver Date Desktop Width (pixels) Desktop Height (pixels) Desktop Color Depth 3D Accelerator Tab The 3D accelerator tab is named according to your 3D accelerator's driver name. There can be multiple 3D accelerator tabs if the system contains more than one 3D accelerator. The 3D accelerator tab displays comprehensive information about the capabilities of your 3D accelerator: Driver Name Driver Version and WHQL (Microsoft) certification status Total Video Memory On Card Total Texture Memory Bus interface (AGP or PCI) Supported features Supported 3D display modes Supported texture formats   The System Information is collected at 3DMark 99 startup, and items that can change on the fly such as "Free Physical Memory" and "Desktop Resolution and Color Depth" may not correspond to the actual situation.

 

 

Result Browser

Result Browser is used for detailed viewing and analysing of results. For details on its use, read the Result Browser Help.