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PowerStrip 2.25 Release Notes
August 18, 1998
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(c) Copyright EnTech Taiwan, 1995-98.
HOW TO USE THIS DOCUMENT
========================
To view pstrip.txt on screen in Notepad, maximize the Notepad
window. To print pstrip.txt, open it in Notepad or another word
processor, and then on the File menu, click Print.
CONTENTS
========
LICENSE, REGISTRATION AND SUPPORT
POWERSTRIP DESCRIPTION
INSTALLING AND CONFIGURING THE POWERSTRIP
UPGRADING THE POWERSTRIP
REMOVING THE POWERSTRIP
POWERSTRIP REFRESH RATE SUPPORT
NON-ADMINISTRATORS UNDER WINDOWS NT
NOTES ON SPECIFIC CHIPSETS AND DRIVERS
KNOWN LIMITATIONS
HISTORY
LICENSE, REGISTRATION AND SUPPORT
=================================
This version of the PowerStrip is shareware. You must read and
accept the terms of the legal disclaimer below before you
can use this software.
LEGAL DISCLAIMER - This software is provided "as is" without
warranty of any kind, either expressed or implied, including,
but not limited to, the implied warranties of merchantability
and fitness for a particular purpose. The entire risk as to the
quality and performance of the software is with you. Should the
software prove defective, you assume the cost of all necessary
servicing, repair or correction.
In no event will EnTech Taiwan be liable to you for damages,
including any general, special, incidental or consequential
damages arising out of the use or inability to use the software
(including but not limited to loss of data or data being rendered
inaccurate or losses sustained by you or third parties or a
failure of the software to operate with any other programs), even
if such holder or other party has been advised of the possibility
of such damages.
REGISTRATION - The PowerStrip can be purchased for US$29.95
through RegSoft's Registration Service. For on-line registration,
please follow the link at http://www.entechtaiwan.com/ps.htm.
Voice and fax orders can be placed by calling 1-888-REG-IT80 or
770-497-9126 (voice), or 1-770-497-9234 (fax). Please refer to
Product ID #3573.
Licensed versions of the PowerStrip do not display the
"PowerStrip Demo" dialog box on start-up, and - naturally -
save and restore your preferences.
SUPPORT - PowerStrip support is available from EnTech Taiwan via
Internet e-mail addressed to support@entechtaiwan.com. Program
updates are made available over the Internet at
http://www.entechtaiwan.com.
POWERSTRIP DESCRIPTION
======================
The PowerStrip is a desktop enhancement and display control utility,
specifically optimized for use with current and future 32-bit versions
of Microsoft Windows. The PowerStrip works in conjunction with your
display driver and graphics hardware, supporting on-the-fly color depth,
resolution, and refresh rate switching, user-defined presets, program/
shortcut associations, an optional toolbar, graphics system information,
screen saving, power management, cursor controls, and extensive monitor
support. A full description of PowerStrip features can be found in the
online documentation.
INSTALLING AND CONFIGURING THE POWERSTRIP
=========================================
To install PowerStrip, you must have a PC running Windows NT or
Windows 95/98, and a graphics card or monitor specifically approved for
use with the PowerStrip. These instructions assume that you have already
successfully installed the very latest display drivers provided
by your graphics card manufacturer or by Microsoft.
NB: The PowerStrip is NOT designed for use with proprietary display
drivers and/or firmware which deviates significantly from the chip
vendor's reference designs.
To install PowerStrip software, carry out the following steps:
1. Run the included Setup program. Or to install manually, right-click
the file pstrip.inf file using the Windows Explorer, and then click
Install.
2. Run the PowerStrip from the PowerStrip folder in the Start menu and
double-click the PowerStrip icon on the system tray, or select
PowerStrip configuration... from the PowerStrip popup menu or
toolbar.
3. Select color depth, resolution and refresh rate combinations of
your choice and drag-and-drop on Preset button to save settings,
or on monitor image to preview settings.
To remove the PowerStrip from your computer, select the Add/Remove
option from the Control Panel, and select "PowerStrip (remove only)"
from the list.
UPGRADING THE POWERSTRIP
========================
When you upgrade the PowerStrip from an older version, all your presets
and associations are preserved, but custom monitor information and
refresh rates will be lost. This is a deliberate safety precaution.
REMOVING THE POWERSTRIP
=======================
To completely remove the PowerStrip from your system, follow these
steps:
1. Open the Control Panel -> Add/Remove Programs applet, and select the
"PowerStrip (remove only)" option from the list.
2. Re-install your display drivers to ensure that driver registry
information has been restored to its original state.
3. Re-confirm your Windows monitor type (under Windows 95/98/NT5) to
ensure that monitor registry information has been restored to its
original state.
POWERSTRIP REFRESH RATE SUPPORT
===============================
The PowerStrip may include extensive refresh rate support which goes
far beyond the level of support provided by the chip vendor's BIOS and
drivers. However, this additional support requires that the PowerStrip
be running. Since the PowerStrip will, of course, be loaded after the
Windows desktop appears, Windows will first start up at the closest
refresh rate supported directly by the driver, and only then switch to
a custom refresh rate (if enabled) when the PowerStrip loads. For
example, if you have a Rendition or Riva128 accelerator and have used
the PowerStrip to set the refresh rate to 150Hz, Windows will
typically startup at 120Hz (the closest rate supported directly by
Rendition and nVidia), and then switch automatically to 150Hz when the
PowerStrip loads.
NON-ADMINISTRATORS UNDER WINDOWS NT
===================================
By default, the PowerStrip provides direct hardware support under NT
only to administrators. Non-administrator access to the PowerStrip is
available by using the Setup program.
NOTES ON SPECIFIC CHIPSETS AND DRIVERS
======================================
AGP cards in general - Under Windows 95 you will need OSR2.1 (with USB
support installed), as well as a special VXD provided by your mainboard's
chip vendor. Many graphics card vendors are automatically installing Intel's
VXD driver with their display driver, but this will only work with Intel
core logic. If you have one of the new Socket 7 AGP boards from VIA, SiS
or ETEQ, you will need to ensure you have the appropriate GART manager
installed.
Non-DDI compliant drivers - Some display drivers report support for
downloadable gamma ramps, when in fact this support is not implemented and
may, in fact, result in a GDI illegal instruction error. To circumvent this
problem, you may need to manually add a "No-DDI=1" switch to the [Options]
section of the pstrip.ini file.
ATI - PowerStrip refresh rate support will not work with ATI cards under
Windows 95/98 unless you are using a Microsoft driver. Because of ATI's
PLL settling characteristics, programmable refresh rates are not supported.
S3 ViRGE/GX2 - PowerStrip TV output controls for the GX2 under NT
requires BIOS version 2.16.08 or a later release.
Matrox MGAs - PowerStrip refresh rate support will not work with
MGA cards under Windows 95/98 unless you (1) configure the Matrox
PowerDesk to use a native Windows monitor, or (2) use a Microsoft driver,
or (3) select a standard Matrox VESA monitor type. Under NT, if you select
a Matrox monitor using the PowerDesk, your refresh rates will be limited to
the ones you define using the PowerDesk. Also G100/G200 hardware support
is pending Matrox's release of register data books.
Voodoo Rush - The PowerStrip has been tested and approved for use
with the AT3D and AT25 only. While the program can detect earlier Alliance
chips like the AT24 and 6422, timing characteristics are likely to be very
different. BIOS version will not be reported.
Trident ProVidia 96xx - The PowerStrip is designed for use with the 9685.
It is unlikely to work correctly with earlier Trident 9660/9680 chipsets.
Under NT, the PowerStrip may occasionally set an incorrect custom refresh
rate.
Cirrus Logic Alpine - The PowerStrip contains optimized code for the
5436/46 and 5480; earlier 5430/34/40 chipsets are also supported in API mode.
Intel740 - The PowerStrip should *not* be used with Asus drivers for the i740,
under Windows 95/98.
Dedicated 3D Acceleraters - PowerStrip support for dynamically switching
between primary and auxiliary D3D devices has been tested with 3Dfx Voodoo
Graphics I and II, and Matrox M3D/Videologic PowerVR cards only. Note that
for PowerVR support, you must be using driver release 4.0 or higher.
KNOWN LIMITATIONS
=================
Icon Corruption after Changing Color Depth On-the-fly
-----------------------------------------------------
Under Windows 95 it is possible that icons (even PowerStrip icons)
may be corrupted after switching color depth dynamically.
Multi-language Support
----------------------
Some of the translated text strings may be either too long or less than
accurate. If you encounter a translation error and/or can suggest a
more accurate or abbreviated translation, we would appreciate your
input. Naturally, we apologize in advance for any translations that
are inaccurate. Translations are not available for extended Plug and
Play monitor information.
Support for Windows NT 5.0 Beta
-------------------------------
Low-level hardware support under NT 5.0B1 is fully enabled in this
release. Please report any problems to support@entechtaiwan.com.
HISTORY
=======
2.25 - 08/18/98
Revised monitor calc
Fixed V2k refresh rates
Added DPMS command-line support
Added DDC disable switch
Relaxed Riva memory timing optimizations
Added specific FPU code word support
Revised GX3 support and added D3D switches
Added G100 and G200 support
2.24 - 07/14/98
Updated monitor database
Added some hardware support for ATI and Matrox
Improved 3Dfx support under Win98
Added support for flat panel controllers
Added timing optimizations for i740 and Riva
2.23 - 06/25/98
Updated monitor database
Added support for 100MHz ZX parts
Added polygon mipmap support for Rendition ICD
Fixed CRTC/VClk conflict under NT
Expanded PCI latency support to cover all PCI devices
Revised monitor and cursor dialog boxes
2.22 - 06/12/98
Added multi-monitor support
Optimized NT hardware calls
Improved (?) installation
2.21 - 05/30/98
Added Savage3D support
Fixed up some Voodoo and PVR methods
Improved non-admininistrator support under NT
2.20 - 05/20/98
Added DDI and CLUT color calibration
Revised Verite clock and other controls
Shifted some routines to secondary threads
Fixed compatibility problem with SiS 6326 NT driver
Fixed broken associations with color depth
Fixed GX2 PAL uder/overscan support
Added Voodoo support for NT
2.17 - 05/01/98
Added 3Dfx Voodoo I and II controls
Revised D3D HAL selection
Revised NT DPMS support again
Added PowerVR controls
Revised RivaZX support
2.16 - 04/17/98
Fixed up broken GX2 TV-out support
Revised 3Dimage and i740 MClk
Added I/O access to PCI configuration registers
2.15 - 04/12/98
Added overview
Revised 3Dimage and i740 support
Reduced default monitor to 75Hz/48kHz
Added support for NV3T
Added PCI device enumerator
Moved some code to new pstrip.dll
2.11 - 03/21/98
Added non-administrator support under NT
Revised DPMS support under NT
Fixed 3Dfx D3D bug under 95/98
Revised monitor override support
Changed Rendition methods under NT
Added support for Permedia P2v and P2a
2.10 - 02/26/98
Initial shareware release
Download Driver Pack
After your driver has been downloaded, follow these simple steps to install it.
Expand the archive file (if the download file is in zip or rar format).
If the expanded file has an .exe extension, double click it and follow the installation instructions.
Otherwise, open Device Manager by right-clicking the Start menu and selecting Device Manager.
Find the device and model you want to update in the device list.
Double-click on it to open the Properties dialog box.
From the Properties dialog box, select the Driver tab.
Click the Update Driver button, then follow the instructions.
Very important: You must reboot your system to ensure that any driver updates have taken effect.
For more help, visit our Driver Support section for step-by-step videos on how to install drivers for every file type.