ATI 4850 driver issues

rbmorse said:

sygnus21 said:

As for the video card drivers - ALWAYS get them from the manufacturer, NEVER from Windows update.

That is very, very ill informed advice. The drivers available from Windows Update may not be the very latest, but they have been validated and validation is important when you're trying to troubleshoot an installation because it removes a critical variable from the process.

So true, My brother had problems with his card's.
x2 XFX Nvidia 9600GT 1GB {SLI enabled}
He used XFX drivers before, the last 2 updates they produced now caused screen flickers when Flashed, Stunned or Smoked in Call of Duty : World At War. It doesn't do it in Call of Duty 4 or any other game for that matter, All games are set at highest settings, he even tried using optimal settings, still problem persists.

He then removed all his video drivers and tried straight nvidia drivers, still problem occured in COD5.
He then uninstalled his video drivers and downloaded + installed the ones from Windows Update, Problem is solved.

So, my question is "whats wrong with drivers from Microsoft?"

Drivers from Windows Update has saved the hassle of waiting for my manufacturer to make a new driver for Win 7. The drivers for Vista just refused to install in Win 7.
Did a Windows Update scan and bingo, a driver for my device, otherwise Id be waiting for a few months

So far Windows Update hasn't let me down

sygnus21 said:

rbmorse said:

sygnus21 said:

As for the video card drivers - ALWAYS get them from the manufacturer, NEVER from Windows update.

That is very, very ill informed advice. The drivers available from Windows Update may not be the very latest, but they have been validated and validation is important when you're trying to troubleshoot an installation because it removes a critical variable from the process.

Thanks for your opinion, but I stand behind what I said... even with some of your valid points.

And for the record the "latest" official ATI 9.12 drivers ARE WHQL certified.

As for this question...

Guy with a Colt said:

So, my question is "whats wrong with drivers from Microsoft?"

The problem is that when you have Windows update set to automatically download updates, including drivers that are already installed, things can get screwy and go haywire... as a lot of folks have found out!

Also the drivers from the manufacturer are more suitable for the hardware since they are the one "making" the hardware. And let's not forget that the drivers supplied for various hardware from Microsoft are mostly generic in nature and usually lack features that a full set has, thus limiting the potential of said hardware. But hey, it's your computer use what you want.

And BTW, 99.999 percent of this board will side with my statement...

sygnus21 said:

As for the video card drivers - ALWAYS get them from the manufacturer, NEVER from Windows update.

Have a good day.

1. I don't have Windows Updates deciding when to download and or install them.
I have it set so that if I want to download + install updates I run it and check etc.

2. Yes youre right with manufacturer's driver's, they are better than the ones you get from Windows Upate.

If you can't get the manufaturer's drivers working or they haven't got a driver for the OS that you're using, then the alternative is to use a different manufacturer or ones from Windows Update.

3. The drivers I got from Windows Update are no different from the ones I used in Vista. Look's no different, except they work.

Sorry to have borught this up.
I'm not looking for a debate or an argument.

Everyone is entitled to their opinion.

Guy with a Colt said:

I'm not looking for a debate or an argument.

Neither was I.

And yes, I agree, a driver is better than no driver. We know this, I just didn't think that needed to pointed out. Obviously I was wrong.

rbmorse said:

sygnus21 said:

As for the video card drivers - ALWAYS get them from the manufacturer, NEVER from Windows update.

That is very, very ill informed advice. The drivers available from Windows Update may not be the very latest, but they have been validated and validation is important when you're trying to troubleshoot an installation because it removes a critical variable from the process.

Guy with a Colt said:

So true...

Peace