EPTI plugged the card, installed the nvidia drivers from the CD, uninstalled the ati drivers and everything was working fine. Today, everything seemed to be fine too, but only for like 5 hours. Then my computer started freezing.
Basically it's working very, very slowly - for example switching the windows takes around 10 seconds, when I type something each letter shows up after a second or so etc. According to my research something is using nearly 100% processor time. The process causing it is "system". According to process explorer, system process is bloated with 'deferred procedure calls' (DPCs?). It didnt take me a lot of time to find that a lot of people have the same problem. There is actually a 45 (!) page thread where a lot of people are complaining that they have the problem and that a solution is unkown - at least through the first 20 pages (http://forum.sysinternals.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=837&PN=19). Apparently nvidia is a shitty manufacturer; anyway, according to the thread reinstalling the drivers has helped for some people. This is the part where I need help - how am I supposed to reinstall the bloody drivers.
The first problem is choosing the proper ones; I have no fucking idea what version do I have now - it isnt listed in the "nvidia settings" thingie (near the clock); according to device manager I'm using 6.14.11.6906.
This is kinda strange, because there are no such drivers at the nvidia website:
ftp://download.nvidia.com/Windows/
Every driver seems to newer.
Or maybe, I should interpret it as 61.4? or 161.4?
...
Anyway, there is an update option in that "nvidia settings" thingie which sends me to:
http://www.nvidia.pl/Download/index.aspx?lang=en
Which option should I choose? 1 - choose the drivers individually (recommended), or 2 - find the drivers automatically (prerelease)
WTF does the prerelease mean? Prerelease drivers? Or new option at the website?
It doesnt work anyway..
Well, I download 178.13_geforce_winxp_32bit_english_whql.exe through the website (178>6, I agree).
My problem is that the drivers DONT FUCKING INSTALL. I click the exe, Im told to select a directory (duh), then they install like every fucking program I installed during the last 10 years. After some time the installer asks for a reboot. After the reboot everything is even more fucked up - windows is working in recovery mode (800:600 256 colours) and the drivers seem not to be installed at all (no 'nvidia settings thingie').
I've decided to try 77.35 (hey, 177 is higher than 6, right?) and actually "nvidia installer" showed up after the reboot.
The installer shows a strange message: "it has been detected that a windows installer is running. would you like to install the drivers? press yes to close windows installer, press no to quit".
Am I a fucking moron, or do both options lead to not installing the drivers?
Actually they fucking do, because I fucking rebooted 5 times and tested each possibility (e.g closing the damn windows installer window). None of them worked and I've always ended up seeing the nice windows recovery mode.
My question is, which drivers should I download then?
Im having big problems in typing this, because the computer keeps crashing (not to mention the weird resolution). The good thing is that without the drivers there seem to be no "deferred procedure calls".
Perhaps any of you has also bought the shit called nvidia and encountered a similar problem; sorry for swearing but I have lost last 6 hours for that piece of garbage
nvidia seems to be such a crappy company - they manufacture crappy cards, write crappy drivers for them, with installers that seem not to work, and upload them at a website that does not work.
I think I will give the card back and ask for a radeon..
HELP : ( : ( : (
