Adding a new Video Card to your Vista Operating System

 

If You Need a New Video Card to Make Vista Run Better

 

If Vista’s Aero interface doesn’t look like it should the problem is your old video card or integrated Graphics of your computer

 

  Welcome hubber to our continuing discussion of all things Vista, if you replaced your RAM memory using our hub “Time to Perform a Memory Upgrade to Help Vista Run Better”.  Then you may need to also install a new video card to get Vista’s new Aero interface run efficiently and allow you to try out all its new features.  Below we have everything you need to complete the job and get Vista running, we hope this hub takes care of any problems you might be having with your new Vista operating system.  Happy hubbing!

 

  If the video card, or integrated graphics for the ancient ones, currently installed in your old computer is an older model it will probably significantly reduce Vista’s operating speed or be too lacking in power to run the Aero interface with its transparent windows, Windows Sidebar, pretty pictures and the new ways to preview windows, to name but a few.  Not a problem, desktop computer owners can easily install a new video card to kick start Vista’s graphics power so they can benefit from Vista’s more power-hungry features.  The following guidelines should be followed to identify the kind of video card your computer supports and install a new one on your computer which will help Vista operate better.

 

  Computers are all basically the same as far as video cards are concerned, they are installed in one of the provided expansion slots on your computer’s motherboard and provide the video output port that connects to your displays video cable.  Before you purchase a new video card however, check your motherboard’s users manual to find out which types of slots are available on your PC.  The majority of desktop computers sold within the last few years have a PCI (Peripheral Component Interconnect) Express slot, which is a dedicated slot for a video card.  If you have one of the ancient ones we mentioned earlier you probably have an AGP (Accelerated Graphics Port) slot or a standard PCI slot.  Currently the PCI Express interface provides the best of the three types mentioned here so we suggest you install a PCI Express just to be safe.  When you’re selecting the video card you want, keep in mind that the Aero interface requires your video card meet the specifications of Vista Premium Ready if you want to use all features included with the new interface.  If you want to find out what video cards make the rank, check out Microsoft’s Windows Vista Hardware Compatibility List (winqual.microsoft.com/hcl/default.aspx) and look through the database for video cards that are marked Certified For Windows Vista. 

 

  Before you can remove your old video card, you need to uninstall the drivers for your current graphics processor to make sure there are no problems with the new video card’s drivers when you install them.  To remove the old driver in Vista, click the Start button, select Control Panel, and click System And Maintenance.  Then in the System and Maintenance window, scroll down and click Device Manager, double click the Display Adapters category and then right-click your old video card.  Select Uninstall to remove the video driver from your computer and it’s now ready for the new drivers.

 

  You should always follow the instructions that were included to uninstall the drivers currently on your PC.  Turn off the computer and unplug all the cables from your PC.  Open the computer’s outer casing and immediately ground yourself (by touching the internal metal frame of the PC) to discharge the static electricity stored on your skin.  Before removing the circuit board, you might need to free a small plastic tab that locks the card in place but it should come out pretty easily.  Unscrew the metal plate on the card from the computer’s chassis and pull the card straight out of the slot, its just that easy.  If you find your computer uses on board video, you need to disable the motherboard’s graphics adapter in Device Manager before installing a new card.  To do this click the Start button and then select Control Panel, System and Maintenance, and then Device Manager.  Right click the video components for on board video and then select Disable from the list and your ready to install a new video card.

 

  To insert a new video card, line it up directly over the proper slot and press firmly until the screw hole in the metal plate lines up with the hole in the PC’s chassis and that’s it.  Close the case on your computer and hook-up the computer’s cables.  After Vista boots up, the operating system should automatically detect the new card and it should be operational.  One last thing, make sure to use the software CD that was included with the new video card to install drivers for the card.  Then, just download the newest Vista drivers for your video card from the manufacturers Website and install them and your new Vista operating system should purr like a baby.

 

  Well that’s it for our hubs on how to get your new Vista operating system up and running and hopefully purring like a kitten.  Join us next time for our continuing hubs on everything Vista, until next time hubber, happy hubbing!