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Diamond Fire GL1 Graphics Accelerator for DELL Workstations
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Please read the entire contents of this document. Information in this
file may not appear in printed documentation or online help.
This READ-ME file contains the following information:
1. GENERAL INFORMATION
1.1 List of Product Files
1.2 Driver Information
1.3 Installing the Diamond Fire GL1 Graphics Accelerator
2. INSTALLING THE DIAMOND Fire GL1 VIDEO DRIVER
3. CHANGING THE VIDEO SETTINGS
3.1 Setting Resolution
3.2 Choosing Display Refresh Rates
4. UNINSTALLING THE DIAMOND Fire GL1 VIDEO DRIVER
5. CONFIGURATION FEATURES AND INFORMATION
5.1 Diamond Information Dialog
5.2 Diamond Configuration Menu (for experienced users only!)
6. NOTES, PROBLEMS, AND LIMITATIONS
7. SERVICE, SUPPORT, AND SOFTWARE UPGRADES
8. SUPPORTED RESOLUTIONS, COLOR DEPTHS, AND REFRESH RATES
1. GENERAL INFORMATION
----------------------
1.1 List of product files
-------------------------
The following files are on the Fire GL1 Windows NT 4.0 Drivers
diskettes:
DISK1
FIREGL1.INF Driver installation script
VERSION.TXT Information about current driver version
READ-ME.TXT This file ( English )
FIREGL1.DL_ Display driver
FGL1EXT.DL_ Display driver extension
FIREGL1M.SY_ Miniport driver
DMONITOR.??_ Diamond Monitor control panel
DSMON???.HL_ Diamond Monitor control panel context help
DMONITOR.IN_ Diamond Monitor data base
DSMINFO.??_ Diamond Information control panel
FGL1CFG.??_ Diamond Configuration control panel
F1CFG???.HL_ Diamond Configuration control panel context help
DSNTHSER.EX_ Diamond fan control service
FGL1DEL.EX_ Diamond driver uninstall utility
DISK2
FIREGL1.INF Driver installation script
FGL1OGL.CAB OpenGL driver
VERSION.TXT Information about current driver version
FROMCAB.EXE Diamond cabinet file extractor
DISK3
FIREGL1.INF Driver installation script
FGL1OGLS.1_ OpenGL driver
FGL1OGL.DR_ Driver for 3D Studio MAX/VIZ
MAXINST.EX_ 3D Studio MAX/VIZ driver install utility
VERSION.TXT Information about current driver version
DISK4
FIREGL1.INF Driver installation script
FGL1OGLS.2_ OpenGL driver
VERSION.TXT Information about current driver version
1.2 Driver Information
-----------------------
Version: 4.00.1381.1088
Date: 12/28/1999
Product: Diamond Fire GL1
Intended Operating System:
Windows NT 4.0 with Service Pack 4 installed
Languages: Support for English, French, German, Spanish, Korean, Japanese,
Traditional Chinese, and Simplified Chinese
NOTE: This adapter requires Windows NT 4.0 with Service Pack 4 installed.
1.3 Installing the Diamond Fire GL1 Graphics Accelerator
-------------------------------------------------------
Your computer shipped with the first/primary Diamond Fire GL1
Graphics Accelerator and its drivers factory-installed.
Refer to the following directions and information only if you plan to
install additional Fire GL1 cards.
Refer to the User's Guide of your computer to install the Diamond
Fire GL1 Graphics Accelerator in your system.
NOTE: If you want to install the Fire GL1 card to replace your
existing graphics solution it may be helpful to set your display driver
to standard VGA before you shut down your PC and remove a previously
installed card.
The drivers are designed exclusively to
support Fire GL1 Graphics Accelerators with the Windows NT 4.0
operating system. The drivers DO NOT SUPPORT any other type or brand of
graphics card or operating system.
2. INSTALLING THE DIAMOND Fire GL1 VIDEO DRIVER
-----------------------------------------------
NOTE: This device driver requires Windows NT 4.0 with Service Pack 4
installed. If you do not have Service Pack 4, proceed to
http://www.microsoft.com, locate Service Pack 4, and install it before
you install the Fire GL1 driver.
Your computer system shipped with the graphics software drivers for the
Fire GL1 card pre-installed.
You need the information in this section on re-installation of the basic
driver software for Windows NT only if you are re-installing the
operating system.
For your convenience the following procedures describe how to install
the graphics driver software.
NOTE: Before installing the Diamond Fire GL1 video driver, please
close all open application programs and disable any anti-virus
software that is running on your computer until the driver
installation is complete!
1. Click 'Start' - 'Settings' - 'Control Panel'.
2. Double-click the 'Display' icon, select the 'Settings' tab and click the
'Change Display Type' button.
3. Click the 'Change...' button in the 'Adapter Type' field and in the 'Change
Display' dialog box select 'Have Disk...'
4. Insert the 'Windows NT 4.0 Drivers' diskette and click OK.
5. Click 'Fire GL1' in the 'Change Display' selection window and OK to
install the drivers.
6. Click 'Yes' on the 'Third Party Driver' confirmation window.
7. Click the 'Test' button to test the new driver and then click OK.
8. When the installation is completed, exit the Display Properties menu and
restart your system.
3. CHANGING THE VIDEO SETTINGS
------------------------------
The dialogs in the 'Display Properties' menu allow setting and
adjusting the video settings to suit your requirements best.
Settings: set resolution and color depth
Monitor: choose monitors, display refresh rates, and Gamma correction
To access the 'Display Properties' menu:
1. Start Windows NT 4.0.
2. After Windows NT 4.0 has finished starting, click on the START
button, select 'Settings,' and then click on 'Control Panel.'
3. Double-click on the 'Display' icon. The 'Display Properties' window
appears.
Note: You can also display the 'Display Properties' window by
right-clicking the Windows Desktop background and then
selecting the 'Properties' option from the pop-up menu.
3.1 Setting Resolution
----------------------
Select the 'Settings' dialog in the 'Display Properties' window.
Set the resolution and color depth that best suit your
requirements and your monitor's performance. Also set the refresh rate
for your monitor.
NOTE:
Check the documentation of your monitor and make sure that your monitor
supports your resolution and color depth setting.
3.2 Choosing Display Refresh Rates
----------------------------------
1. Select the 'Monitor' dialog in the 'Display Properties' window.
You can find more information on setting up the monitor in the
context sensitive online help.
2. Set the desired operation mode for the selected monitor:
Select from list
----------------
Use resolution/refresh rate settings optimized for your specific
monitor.
Select the appropriate Dell monitor type, or DDC Monitor.
If you do not have a Dell or DDC Monitor or are not sure, choose the
Generic Monitor selection.
A list on the right menu panel displays resolutions and - for each
resolution - the maximum refresh rate, as supported by the selected
monitor. If the current video mode (specified in the 'Settings'
dialog) is not supported by the selected monitor, the resolution/
refresh rate setting will be automatically reduced.
Select the desired refresh rate in the 'Refresh Rate' section. All
refresh rates supported by the monitor for the currently
selected resolution are displayed.
Click the 'Apply' or 'OK' button to enable your monitor selection.
DDC Monitor
-----------
Select this option and click the 'Apply' or 'OK' button if you want
the driver to automatically decode the monitor's DDC (Display Data
Channel) information on each reboot/NT 4.0 start.
To detect a new DDC monitor immediately, click the 'Detect now'
button. An error message will be displayed if the connected monitor
does not support DDC.
The 'Refresh Rate' section displays the maximum refresh rate
supported by the monitor for the currently selected resolution.
Gamma Correction Adjustment
---------------------------
Adjust the monitor's gamma correction for optimal brightness.
When this slider is changed the gamma correction table modifies each
pixel's color value.
The brightness produced at the face of the display is proportional to
the input voltage raised to the power gamma. This nonlinearity must be
compensated to achieve correct reproduction of the image's brightness.
The effect of display gamma is to darken the midtones relative to the
dark and light regions. The gamma correction adjustment affects the
entire screen display. Changes to the gamma correction are saved on
system level, independent of the currently active application profile
The possible setting range is 0.3 - 4.0. The default setting is 1.0.
3. Click the 'Apply' or 'OK' button to enable your monitor settings.
4. UNINSTALLING THE DIAMOND Fire GL1 VIDEO DRIVER
---------------------------------------------------
This section describes how to properly remove your Diamond Fire GL1
software from your system should you need to do so.
NOTE: Before removing the Diamond Fire GL1 video driver, please close
all open application programs and disable any anti-virus software
that is running on your computer until the driver de-installation
is complete!
1. Select Start > Settings > Control Panel > Add/Remove Programs.
2. Select 'Diamond Fire GL1.
3. Click on the 'Remove the Product' button.
4. Click 'Next'.
5. When the uninstall is complete, Windows NT will automatically reboot.
5. CONFIGURATION FEATURES AND INFORMATION
-----------------------------------------
5.1 Diamond Information Dialog
------------------------------
Check the 'Information' dialog in the 'Display Properties' window for
detailed hardware and driver information on your Fire GL1 card. This
data may be helpful when contacting Dell's technical support.
You can display the 'Information' dialog by
right-clicking the Windows Desktop background and then selecting
the 'Properties' option from the pop-up menu. Then select the
'Information' tab.
5.2 Diamond Configuration Menu (for experienced users only!)
------------------------------------------------------------
If you experience problems with your application, or if you want to try
to optimize the performance of your system on specific applications, you
may modify the configuration settings.
Select the 'Configuration' dialog in the 'Display Properties' window.
You can find more information on the settings in the
'Configuration' dialog in the context sensitive online help.
You can display the 'Configuration' dialog by
right-clicking the Windows Desktop background and then selecting
the 'Properties' option from the pop-up menu. Then select the
'Configuration' tab.
For some of the most popular applications the optimal configuration
profile is factory-set by default. Select the application from the list
in the 'Configuration Profiles' section. This will change the necessary
Windows NT registry settings.
Click 'Apply' and then restart Windows NT.
1. Click the 'Add' button in the 'Configuration Profiles' section and
enter the new application for which you want to set the configuration
parameters.
2. To modify the configuration settings of a specific application, for
example, Softimage, select the application from the list in the
'Configuration Profiles' section and click the 'Modify' button.
3. In the 'Settings' section select or clear the following checkboxes
according to your requirements:
Overlay Planes
4-Bit double-buffered
Use 4 bit double-buffered overlay planes in the depth buffers. The
driver exports pixelformats with 4-bit double-buffered overlay
planes for OpenGL applications.
8-Bit single-buffered
Use 8 bits of each 32-bit frame buffer pixel as single-buffered
overlay planes.
Force copy swap
Force blit copy from back to front buffer.
Wait for vertical retrace
Buffer swap 'synched' to vertical retrace. This improves the
picture quality but reduces the view performance in, for example,
benchmark testing.
4. Click the 'Apply' or 'OK' button to enable your Configuration
settings.
6. NOTES, PROBLEMS, AND LIMITATIONS
-----------------------------------
Driver Errata
4.00.1381.1039
Known issues
- Pro 3DPaint (PTC) has wrong pixels when you zoom in many times
- Pro Designer (PTC) , sometimes cursor disappears
Fixed issues
- 3D Flower screen saver Box wrong triangle problem is fixed.
- QuickTime 3.0 Dr. Watson issue is fixed.
- Simplecap missing triangle issue is fixed.
- Unigraphics bonding box issue is fixed
- IDEAS Simulation problem is fixed.
4.00.1381.1040
Known issues
- Pro 3DPaint (PTC) has wrong pixels when you zoom in many times
- Pro Designer (PTC) , sometimes cursor disappears
Fixed issues
- WHQL conformance test (ViewPort) failure is fixed.
- Sense8 , RealiMation application wrong triangles issue is fixed.
4.00.1381.1048
Known issues
- Screen corruption in Softimage Marquee (Beta 1.5)
Fixed issues
- Optimizations Cadalyst benchmark.
- Optimizations INDY 3D benchmark.
- Optimizations ViewPerf benchmark.
- SIMD information is added into Information Tab.
- Optimizations for ProE 20.
- Lighting code is optimized.
- Microstation wrong rectangle problem is fixed.
- PTC Pro Designer cursor problem is fixed
- PTC 3D Paint paint/fill problem is fixed
- Texture problem on 1920 mode is fixed
- Exceed 6.1 buffer swap problem is fixed.
- Driver is changed to meet the OPC requirements (e.g. Immediate mode produce same image
with display list mode)
- Texture management code is tuned.
- Japanese translation problems in Config Tab is fixed.
- Monitor timing parameters are tuned.
- Sense8 , RealiMation application wrong triangles issue is fixed.
- DDC monitor wrong refresh rate list problem is fixed.
4.00.1381.1049
Known issues
- Screen corruption in Softimage Marquee (Beta 1.5)
Fixed issues
- Driver is changed to meet OPC requierments.
- Dell P1690 , 1600x1024@76Hz mode problem is fixed.
4.00.1381.1056
Known issues
Fixed issues
- Softimage Marquee wrong lighting issue is fixed.
- Screen corruption in Softimage Marquee (Beta 1.5) is fixed.
- AutoCAD 2000 extensions are added.
- AutoCAD 2000 profile is added.
- Open Inventor 3D viewer hang-up issue is fixed.
- Optimizations for ProCDRS benchmark.
- Catia wrong buffer problem is fixed.
- 3DStudio Max underlying 3d window is not updated issue is fixed.
- Copter wrong lighting issue is fixed.
4.00.1381.1058
Known issues
Fixed issues
- ProE 20 optimizations for APC ProE 20 benchmark.
- CATIA wrong triangle color bug is fixed.
- 10% speed improvment for SolidWorks
- 10-15% speed improvment for CATIA
4.00.1381.1062
Known issues
Fixed issues
- Overall performance improvments.
- ProE 20 optimizations for APC ProE 20 & bench99 from ProE magazine benchmark.
- OpenGL P-Buffer support is aded Softimage Marquee and Softimage|3D
- Wrong lighting problem in DELCAM PowerSHAPE issue is fixed.
- RealPlayer G2 bluescreen issue is fixed.
- 3DStudio Max x.x optimizations.
4.00.1381.1066
Known issues
Fixed issues
- Side Effects Houdini missing triangle issue is fixed.
- IronCAD disappearing triangle issue is fixed.
- Softimage Marquee wrong lighting issue is fixed.
- New ISV profiles are added to DIMD Config TAB.
4.00.1381.1072
Known issues
Fixed issues
- Optimizitions in Lighting routine for display list applications.
- Maya wrong menu items problem is fixed.
- Catia V wrong lighting problem is fixed.
- AGP 2X mode is switched on.
4.00.1381.1077
Known issues
- Maya 2.0 wrong lighting with some models.
Fixed issues
- Lotus SuperOffice2000, figure gets out of shape in Screen Show.
- Performance Enhancements.
- Alias Wavefront Maya 2.0 vertex alpha problem.
- Pro/DESKTOP incorrect clipping for certain primitives when two clip planes are enabled.
- SoftImaage Marquee Redraw problems in Color Picker window when moved off the screen.
- Alias Wavefront Maya 1.0 missing or wrong characters in Maya Hotbox or menus.
- MineSight incorrect clipping problem.
- UniGraphics 14 strange behavior of the translucency when rotating the object.
- AutoCAD 2000, the solid model content behind the clipping plane becomes darkened to the point that it is almost black.
- MicroStation95 Transparency (and Reflection) Quality not good enough.
- ProE20 wrong shading if SPOT light added.
4.00.1381.1084
Known issues
- Master Series 7.0 wrong color with Simulation test.
Fixed issues
- Special driver for 3D Studio MAX 3.0 / VIZ added. Driver automatically detects the application
in the system and installs itself with user prompt.
- MAYA 2.0 disappearing menu problem is fixed.
- Alias Wavefront Catia V RC3 Dr. Watson problem is fixed.
- FreeForm Dr. Watson problem is fixed.
- SoftImage|DS crash problem is fixed.
4.00.1381.1085
Known issues
Fixed issues
- DDC monitor detection issue is fixed.
- Master Series 7.0 wrong color with Simulation test.
4.00.1381.1088
Known issues
Fixed issues
- Viewperf, ProCDRS wrong pixel problem is fixed
7. SERVICE, SUPPORT, AND SOFTWARE UPGRADES
------------------------------------------
For information on how to contact Dell Computer Corporation's
technical support, refer to the Getting Help section in the Diagnostics
and Troubleshooting Guide that shipped with your system. You can
also contact Dell's technical support via the World Wide Web at
www.dell.com.
8. SUPPORTED RESOLUTIONS, COLOR DEPTHS, AND REFRESH RATES
----------------------------------------------------------
The resolutions and refresh rates supported by the Fire GL1 are
dependent on the monitor that is selected. To display the resolution
that are supported and the maximum vertical refresh rate for your
monitor, refer to the 'Monitor' dialog in the 'Display Properties'
window. You can display the 'Monitor' dialog by right-clicking
the Windows desktop and selecting 'Properties' and then
selecting the 'Monitor' tab.
The table below is showing screen resolution, pixel size, horizontal
line rate and refresh rate for all modes supported under the MS NT4.0
operating system, all modes are providing full screen double buffering
using the OpenGL API.
+==========+=======+=======+===================+
|Resolution| Color | Alpha | Refresh Rate |
| | Bits | Bits | (Hz) |
+----------+-------+-------+-------------------+
| 640x480 | 24 | 8 | 60, 75, 85 |
+----------+-------+-------+-------------------+
| 800x600 | 24 | 8 | 60, 75, 85 |
+----------+-------+-------+-------------------+
|1024x768 | 24 | 8 | 60, 75, 85 |
+----------+-------+-------+-------------------+
|1280x1024 | 24 | 8 | 60, 75, 85 |
+----------+-------+-------+-------------------+
|1600x1200 | 24 | 8 | 60, 75, 85 |
+----------+-------+-------+-------------------+
|1600x1024 | 24 | 8 | 76 |
+----------+-------+-------+-------------------+
|1920x1200 | 24 | 8 | 60, 76 |
+==========+=======+=======+===================+
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All product names listed are trademarks or copyrights of their
respective owners.
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Diamond Multimedia Systems, Inc. (c) 1993-99, All Rights Reserved
Professional Graphics Division
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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.