Maximize my graphics!

[Irisjir Callard]

Ok. Here's my setup.

Overlay graphics resolution, 1024X768
Background graphics resolution 1024X1024

Texture compression is uncompressed, on screen maps are compressed.

Bump mapping is enabled, environmental animations are turned on but NOT smooth.

I have a 1.6 GHz processor AMD Turion, 448 MB ram

Graphics card is part of my motherboard, since I'm running a laptop, so there's not a whole lot I can do about that. My laptop ALREADY runs ridiculously hot, so any suggestions that involve 'overclocking' I would like to have clearly labeled so I don't melt my processor doing something I thought was safe.

My question is, is there anything I can do, change, tweak, or edit within my settings that will NOT fry either my machine or my framerate, to make my game graphics and screenshots look better and less pixelated/jagged-eged?

[Taskmage]

Re: Maximize my graphics!

Well, first of all, if you're using the in-game screenshot utility your screenshots are going to look like crap regardless. So if you aren't using one already, get something like fraps or another screenshot utility.

For reducing jaggies, the best thing you're going to be able to do is oversample. Try setting your background resolution to 2048x2048 and see if your system can handle it. If that has too much of an impact on your framerate, knock it down to something like 1600x1152 and see if that helps.

[Mhurron]

Re: Maximize my graphics!

A - there's already a thread about graphics settings
B - Your laptop has an onboard graphics card that's stealing ram from your system, there is only so much it can do.

[Irisjir Callard]

Re: Maximize my graphics!

On a not-unrelated note, Fraps and I have not been getting along very well...

XD


I was looking at the possibilities for doubling my resolution via the method mentioned in one of the stickies, but I discarded those as being a little bit too extreme, considering that I'm already amazed my processor hasn't cracked itself in half from overheating.

If that's all there is, that's all there is, I was just wondering if there was anything obvious that I hadn't discovered in my research.

[Murphie]

Re: Maximize my graphics!

That's pretty much all there is, unfortunately. If Fraps is bogging you down, you might want to try Clipper though, for full screen shots. I've been using it for years, and it barely uses any resources.

[Irisjir Callard]

Re: Maximize my graphics!

Actually it's fraps video that I'm having trouble with. The screenshots are...well...better than the ingame utility (huge shock there, huh?) but the video recording is...weird. Either it takes it 5-10 seconds to start recording, or I haven't figured out how to turn it on properly.

[Taskmage]

Re: Maximize my graphics!

The load on your system for video capture is pretty enormous. If you think your processor is near its limit with the game alone, it probably just can't handle manipulating all that image data and dumping it off to your hard drive in real time.

[neighbortaru]

Re: Maximize my graphics!

not to mention most laptop hard drives are incredibly slow

[Feba]

Re: Maximize my graphics!

from what I recall, most of the problems fraps causes are from hard drive usage, not CPU usage, although that is definitely a factor as well and I haven't used it in forever so I could be wrong.

unless your laptop is thousands of dollars, you're probably not going to be able to use fraps on it while you play a game and enjoy it, sorry

[Mhurron]

Re: Maximize my graphics!

Fraps also causes extra strain on the Video system, Fraps doing anything more then screenshots is not in your future.

Your processor is plenty to run the game, it's your ram and lack of separate video that is your problem.

Most laptops just were never intended to be used for gaming.

[Kailea]

Re: Maximize my graphics!

Another thing you could do, is to disable all the "pretty" in Windows, that will also give you some free resources.

and one last thing, disable all your startup items, except visrus scan, unless you want it disabled as well ;p

[Taskmage]

Re: Maximize my graphics!

Disable as much background tasks as possible (Winamp, iTunes, Antivirus, IM, etc). Consider creating a special account to log into that has the bare minimum running and no visual effects for your OS.

Another thing you could do, is to disable all the "pretty" in Windows, that will also give you some free resources.
and one last thing, disable all your startup items, except visrus scan, unless you want it disabled as well ;p

This is forum related (as opposed to game related), and will probably seem really petty, but oh well.

People re-answering questions that have already been answered in a thread.

It's not a race or anything. I mean, I'm not saying that people should be discouraged from answering questions, or that the first responder is always going to answer the question completely, or even accurately. But for crying out loud, at least read the other responses before replying. Try not to repeat the information that has already been provided by previous posters. If you have something to add, then do so. But if the question has already been answered, and you don't have new information to provide, then you know, save the novel for your blog.

<_<;

[Kailea]

Re: Maximize my graphics!

well excuse me for not seeing something in a post... good god, I had just woke up -.-