Quick overview:
The graphics card is the component of your computer that is responsible for the visual events on the monitor. Click here to find out more about this hardware and the technical terms now used. In many cases, Windows 2000 recognizes the graphics card and automatically sets the most ergonomic resolution, color depth and refresh rate so that your eyes do not get tired while working. Unfortunately, 2000 only offers standard drivers, which cannot exploit the true potential of the card in terms of performance and functions. For this reason, it is advisable to use the manufacturer's specially tailored drivers.
In particularly severe cases, Windows 2000 does not recognize your graphics hardware at all and sets low default values. Here you can see an example with the meager resolution of 640x480 and sparse 16 colors at an eye-watering 60Hz:
You can only counteract this situation with the manufacturer's drivers - only then can the loveless and harmful monitor image be transformed into a feast for the eyes. And this is how you proceed:
1. Choose the appropriate manufacturer of your graphics card from this list and visit their driver pages to download the latest versions. For owners of Nvidia GeForce cards, I can highly recommend the driver named Nvidia Detonator 44.03, as it is the fastest and most stable driver in the large Detonator series to date. You can find this and many others at www.guru3d.com. If your card is running a Kyro II chip from PowerVR, I recommend the latest reference driver from www.powervr.com
2. In particularly convenient cases, the downloaded file is an installation program that you run directly by double-clicking. Sometimes a special obstacle is placed in the way: The files are in ZIP format, which you first convert into a readable format by right-clicking on the file and selecting Extract from the menu. To use this extraction function, you must download the WinAce program from www.winace.com. You can find out more about this in the section: Programs your computer really needs.
Now these should be available in a folder. I will now continue in this guide with this cumbersome example using a GeForce II GTS.
3. After the files have been unpacked, right-click on any part of the Windows interface (desktop) and select Properties.
4. A new window pops up in which you highlight the Settings tab and immediately click Advanced at the bottom.
6. Another window opens up before your eyes. Now go straight to the Graphics card tab and click on Properties. Start the driver wizard by clicking on the tab Select driver and Update driver. You will be greeted by the wizard, which you can accept by clicking Next. Select Search for a suitable driver and, in the next window, remove the checkmark in front of Diskette and CD-ROM drive and leave one in front of Specify another source.
Now search for the folder of your drivers via the Explorer that starts and select it.
7. The drivers will be detected and installed after your OK agreement until the message Finish, which you confirm immediately. You should now restart your computer - you will receive a separate prompt to do so.
8. After a reboot, your Windows 2000 interface shines in a glorious splendor with high refresh rates and many colors.
Since the installation of the graphics card is now complete, we need to move on to the finishing touches and the optimized settings, which you can read about in detail in this article: The optimal settings for your graphics card - tips for the perfect picture
You can also go directly from picture to sound: Simple sound card driver setup plus facts, tips and quality tuning
NOTE FOR NEW PUBLICATION: This article was produced by Sandro Villinger and comes from the Windows Tweaks archive, which has been built up since the late 1990s.
On Windows Tweaks you will find time-saving tech guides for PC, software & Microsoft. For a stress-free digital everyday life. Already we have been "tweaking" Windows since 1998 and just won't stop!
