Got a new computer yesterday (HP a1230n) and the first game I bought was the Half-Life 2 pack with Counter Strike: Source. To try out my new graphics card I started watching some videos on a website called break.com. The quality of these videos and any other videos I have watched on this computer have completely sucked, they are all blury and the screen is made up of little squares. However playing Counter Strike and Half-Life 2 the graphics are very good and better than any computer I have ever owned. The graphics card in my computer is an ATI Radeon Xpress 200 which was made integrated for AMD processors. Why are the graphics in a game good, yet they suck for wathcing videos? How can I change this without buying a new graphics card?
Awesome for games, not for videos
- Thread starter MCanavan6
- Start date
diduknowthat
formerly liuliuboy
first of all, that integrated graphics card isn't that good for games. To test that out, try maxing out all the settings in hl2 lost coast and you'll see what i mean.
And for the video...do you have a slow internet connection? Maybe some video settings are messed up or the resolution is just low
And for the video...do you have a slow internet connection? Maybe some video settings are messed up or the resolution is just low
NeuromancerWGDD'U
New Member
I'd look at either the video files themselves or the codecs. Try downloading the latest version of WMP or Real Player, or whatever you wish to use. Also, has the quality gone all pear-shaped with video files on the computer, or just over the net? If it's just over the net...may just be bad plug-in's.
Anywho, that's not going to be a problem with the video card. I'm 99.9999999% sure that it's software related (there is no "absolutely" positive, ever).
Anywho, that's not going to be a problem with the video card. I'm 99.9999999% sure that it's software related (there is no "absolutely" positive, ever).
Last edited:
NeuromancerWGDD'U
New Member
Not guarenteed to help, but if it doesn't, no harm done.MCanavan6 said:
diduknowthat
formerly liuliuboy
what are these videos? Got a link of somekind?
www.break.comliuliuboy said:
NeuromancerWGDD'U
New Member
Are you trying to watch them full-screen? Those aren't exactly the highest quality videos.
Greg J.
VIP Member
There should be a shortcut on your desktop. If not, then double click the ATI icon in your system tray by the clock. An ATI menu should pop up. You should be able to navigate to what you need via the ATI menu tabs.
Another way is to right-click your desktop and click "properties". When that menu comes up, click the "Settings" tab and click the "Advanced" button. That should bring up the ATI menu.
Another way is to right-click your desktop and click "properties". When that menu comes up, click the "Settings" tab and click the "Advanced" button. That should bring up the ATI menu.
Last edited:
Greg J.
VIP Member
Actually, there should be options inside the ATI menu with slider bars ranging from "Performance" to "Quality". Sorry about my earlier instructions.
In simple terms, "anti-aliasing" smoothes out diagonal lines that are jagged so the image appears smoother. This is especially nice in games.
"Anisotrphic Filtering" basically sharpens up two-dimensional objects (flat) like sprites and textures in games (like on walls, floors, etc.).
Refresh rate is how many times your monitor (if it is a regular monitor, not a flatpanel or LCD) redraws its picture. Usually to lessen headaches, a higher refresh rate is used than the factory setting of 60Hz.
"Vsync" is an option found in many games that allows the frame rate of the game to be matched to the refresh rate of the monitor. Generally, allowing VSync provides the greatest stability, but turning it off can allow for much higher frame rates. The downside of the greater speed is the potential for artifacts (messed up older drawn graphics) to develop.
In simple terms, "anti-aliasing" smoothes out diagonal lines that are jagged so the image appears smoother. This is especially nice in games.
"Anisotrphic Filtering" basically sharpens up two-dimensional objects (flat) like sprites and textures in games (like on walls, floors, etc.).
Refresh rate is how many times your monitor (if it is a regular monitor, not a flatpanel or LCD) redraws its picture. Usually to lessen headaches, a higher refresh rate is used than the factory setting of 60Hz.
"Vsync" is an option found in many games that allows the frame rate of the game to be matched to the refresh rate of the monitor. Generally, allowing VSync provides the greatest stability, but turning it off can allow for much higher frame rates. The downside of the greater speed is the potential for artifacts (messed up older drawn graphics) to develop.