still learning how to flap

[pointerboat]

Forgive me guys - I know you've heard this a kazillion times already but..........I've got a P4, 2.4 ghz, Intel 845GVSR (motherboard ?), Intel 3D on board, Samsung 160GB , 7200 RPM, 256 MB DDR ram, shiny new one that replaces my old Pentium 100 .  The helpful lads at the store tell me that what I really need is 256 megs of more ram and a Radeon 9200 vid card and my whole flying experience is going to change dramatically !  I'm not sure that I can believe them .  I don't think that video card supports Direct X 9 for one thing .  The price of this upgrade in Canada is about $300.  I suppose the new card would increase my fps but , keeping in mind that I am pretty much a fifty year-old virgin when it comes to these things - to what degree will my flying experience change ? And furthermore , without having to sell the farm , is there a better way ?  I flew over NYC today and it looked ridiculous .  I always thought it would be bigger !  Have pity on me - I'm trying to learn as fast as I can .   Regards.....Terry

[Daz]

if you have the money to get a direct x 9 card like an ati 9800 pro or nvidia fx5700 you will be shocked at the change in quality and if you want to go all out get yourself a ati 9800 xt or nvidia fx5950 ultra.. take a look over at the freeware screenshot section and you should expect that.. nothing better than taking off from a busy airport with max settings....more ram wouldnt hurt either 512 mb is todays "standard". i have 1024 mb and thats enough. the rest of your system is pretty much spot on ans should run it fine if you get new card and more ram.

hope this helps and im sure other forum users can suggest alternatives

[VPA_KTPA]

Terry what opperating system are you running there?.hopefully its windows xp.i can probley go into more details after i no for shure whitch one you have.

[pointerboat]

I'm running Win XP Home . What I am noticing , is an alarming lack of detail ; for example, New York looks like "20 skyscrapers in a field . "  I'll agree that it's head and shoulders aboave FS98 ......but it looks like you could stick all of New York City in the lower corner of my front field !  What is it that actually makes the scenery look like it should - is it the graphics card ?  I have a sneaking suspicion that more ram will kick up the horsepower in the old Beaver, but how do I make the Big Apple look like someplace where I'd like to take my dear old mother ?  Regards to you all from Douglas , Ontario........Terry ( Wilford Brimley lookalike ).

[VPA_KTPA]

Thats good to hear that you have win xp.i will agree with the ram idea.ram is alot cheaper now than it use to be.i would get a 512mb stick of DDR ram.to go with that 256mb DDR you allready have.for best results.the 512 DDR ram where i am cost about $100 u.s dollars.but shop around for the best deal.i started out on a Nvidia ge force 5200fx video card.and i have seen it on sale for $60 u.s dollars.but i just put in the ATI 9600xt video card and i paid right at $200 u.s dollars.but if there going to charge $300 for the 256 megs of more ram and a Radeon 9200.that sounds to high in price.cause where i am you can get the 512 mb DDR ram and get the ATI 9600xt video card for around that price.and the ram and video card are pretty simple to install they come with information to aid in installing.


I bought my ram from this place kingston 512 mb DDR for around $100.
http://www.officedepot.com/

And i got the ATI 9600xt video card from this place for $200.and if that one is to much money.then get the Nvidia ge force 5200fx and that 512mb of ram and you should be able to turn up the scenery and enjoy it in the sim.

http://www.bestbuy.com/

And i am pretty shure your motherboard has an AGP slot.but make shure cause those 2 video cards i told you about are AGP typ.the AGP typ are much better and faster than the PCI typ video cards.

[VPA_KTPA]

I ment to tell you all so if you want to see a hole new New York.go in to settings then at display click on addon dynamic scenery and move the slider to the right.and you should see a big diffrence there.and it should look more like what you see in the real world.

[4_Series_Scania]

[quote]Forgive me guys - I know you've heard this a kazillion times already but..........I've got a P4, 2.4 ghz, Intel 845GVSR (motherboard ?), Intel 3D on board, Samsung 160GB , 7200 RPM, 256 MB DDR ram, shiny new one that replaces my old Pentium 100 .

[pointerboat]

Thanks lads .  I was quoted $650 plus for a 9800 and 512 megs of ram .  I'm now looking around for a better deal .   Tax in , thats about 750 bucks - buys a lot of beans .  Regards....Terry

[JBaymore]

pointerboat,

CompUSA either has or just had the Radeon 9800 XT on sale for about $450 USD.  Look around...... it is dropping in price.

best,

..............john

[Delta_]

The 9200 is DX 8.1 which is why i never recommend it to anyone, the FX5200 is better out those two.

However if you are on a major budget you can get a 9600 non-pro for $90.  This is 3x faster than a FX5200.  Also look out for Radeons that have xxxxse, like 9600se or 9200se.  Those are bad cards, they use cheap half bandwidth memory and must be avoided at all costs!

I also recommend atleast another 256Mb of memory.

[congo]

Hi Pointerboat,

Don't get distressed, there are plenty of places to buy the gear cheaper.

I don't know if you can get this or not, but its the cheapest good video card I've ever seen.....

http://www.buyxtremegear.com/apo5700128.html

also look here for base prices on all hardware.....

http://www.pricewatch.com/