drivers

Hello I have nvidea drivers;do I go there or to the Dell site to download. If a new video card is installed should the Dell site still be able to recognize the pc by service tag with the new video driver? Thank you

it really doesn't matter but if you want the latest stable or beta drivers or you've installed a just released graphics card then the nvidia site is really the one to goto, i'd say goto the makers site for drivers usually tho, just because they should have all the drivers your going to need for any hardware that came in your pc saving you the need to search lots of different sites for them. the makers sites usually have a hardware searching app now that would recognise the graphics card and point you to a driver for it.

Hello How do you handle having a new model video card installed. As a relative novice I would only guess the Dell site would recognize the pc but not the new card. I probably have to know the driver by looking in the device manager then go to the site like ATI or AMD or Nvidia and download there. Perhaps knowing the drivers name from device manager would allow me to find it at Dell also? Thank you

dells site would probably ask you to run a hardware scan of your pc before recommending/installing a driver, personally i just install the new card let the operating system find and install a driver for it to get to the desktop, then uninstall any old drivers that might be installed, go to the relevant site ati/nvidia and enter the details of my card in the driver search engine, which will point me to the latest stable driver for it, download and install it, reboot and thats it.

Thank you, Terry. I very much appreciate the information and now have a good idea of the path to folow..

If it's a newer card XP will probably not have a driver for it so will use a default VGA driver that will lock you into 800x600 resolution and lower color. Surely you will know the make and model number of a new card when you're ready to install it? If so, it may even come with a driver CD and if not the manufacturer web site is the place to go as Terry said. Dell doesn't care one way or the other about your Video card. Why does this raise a concern for you. Not trying to be obtuse here, I just don't understand so I'm looking for clarification.

Win 7 x 64 When Dell techs arrive to install hardware like video cards, they do and leave. There are no cds. There are no discs or software support or any questions about drivers answered. For people like me whose exposure to drivers is limited it is hard to know what to do. Yesterday the tech reassenbled the pc because they needed an adapter to install a different model video card. When I booted up this a.m. my old drivers ATI, are now Dell and resolution is awry. When the adapter arrives they are coming back to install the new card. I don't think the average consumer knows about drivers and feel the company who sold a defective card should do both hardware and sofware. The software being sure the proper driver is installed. This is the 4th card, a motherboard, 6gb ram and power supply. This is the fourth house call and I am requesting a new but different machine if this new Nvidia does not work out. AMD ATI have said there was a widespread issue with display starting with xp and running thru WIn 7. I was just asking about drivers as part of trying to learn what I can do properly to ensure the pc runs as it should. Looking at this from a pc educated person's point of view is one thing, but from a normal consumers point of view it is another. Another way of looking at this is,"What happens if the tech pops in a card and leaves - period.?" If the answer is the job is complete than I am worrying about nothing, but, if there is more to be done…..

Okay, that makes a bit more sense now. You had not mentioned a Dell tech was doing this for you. The easiest thing to do is ask the tech where the driver for the new video card can be found in case you ever need to download it again. Other than that, the manufacturers web site is a good place to get it if it is not available on teh Dell web site. Also note that Windows 7 has the best driver coverage of any OS to date, so simply doing a Windows Update may get you the latest driver. If not, check Optional Updates.

Okay, that makes a bit more sense now. You had not mentioned a Dell tech was doing this for you.

The easiest thing to do is ask the tech where the driver for the new video card can be found in case you ever need to download it again. Other than that, the manufacturers web site is a good place to get it if it is not available on teh Dell web site.

Also note that Windows 7 has the best driver coverage of any OS to date, so simply doing a Windows Update may get you the latest driver. If not, check Optional Updates.

>>I see how my omission can make a diffence in context -sorry.
I think I will let he/she istall the card and ask them questions as you suggested.
Then, if there is an issue, I shall have both Driver Sweeper and the appropriate driver on the desktop. I went to Nvidea and saw the two choices for locating drivers. I have the one given me by Dell but will confirm it once the crad is in with the automatic process.
I will uninstall the old driver in device manager or add/remove then in safe mode will run both 'dispays' [two appear in Driver Sweeper]to rid any remnants and boot into normal mode where I will install the driver.
After that if there is any trouble I will call Dell Core # for a different machine based upon 5 field techs and continued problems.
Everthing kid folks like you contribute makes the upcomig job easier, so thank you again.
Peter

if a techs installing it, he will install any drivers and make sure it's working perfectly fine before he leaves, or should anyway. i'd of demanded a new pc on the 3rd tech i think.

if a techs installing it, he will install any drivers and make sure it's working perfectly fine before he leaves, or should anyway.

i'd of demanded a new pc on the 3rd tech i think.

When the tech is here, he makes it clear they can only install the hardware. I am not surprised in the present environment. We all know Dell does not play fair but I cannot build my own; the others are gouging also.
I feel badly for those who know even less than I do.
The underlying theme from Dell is to have you call software for $ per incident.
It is not an easy task to get another machine from them. I have not experienced it personally but do know of cases where it is next to impossible. You really need a law degree.
If this new card works, I will be ok with it. Lose a penny, find a penny.
Have a nice weekend.

Drivers also called device drivers are software programs that controls the particular device attached to your computer. These device can be printers, Cd-Roms readers etc. Without the device drivers the hardware is unable to run. The drivers identify and the run the related hardware. Many device drivers are built into the product. The drivers can be downloaded from the websites or can be installed using CD-Roms. A device driver files generally have the extension of EXE or DLL.

>I may, then, already have the driver in the card and could go to device manger to see if it is there?
I know it by name.
Is there any other way I can put your information to use?
Thank you

drivers are not part of the card or any hardware, they are programs that allow the pc to actually communicate with the new hardware after installation, that's why when you buy new hardware you'll usually get a cd with it, this'll hold the driver and any software program that you may need to get it to work.

The following excerpt from your message made me think the way I did. " Many device drivers are built into the product." I thought this meant that a driver may be part of a card. I think I have it now. I am glad you mentioned a cd as it would be a good thing to at least start with. I have been accustomed to getting cds with programs and even some cds say drivers and utilities when you buy a new pc.. Thanx again.

Okay, that makes a bit more sense now. You had not mentioned a Dell tech was doing this for you.

The easiest thing to do is ask the tech where the driver for the new video card can be found in case you ever need to download it again. Other than that, the manufacturers web site is a good place to get it if it is not available on teh Dell web site.

Also note that Windows 7 has the best driver coverage of any OS to date, so simply doing a Windows Update may get you the latest driver. If not, check Optional Updates.

Z - Could you please suggest an easy way to clean my hard drive as I am gettting another machine from Dell, finally.
I ask because I do not understand how you can wipe my single partition/disc clean if the program is running on it.
I noticed that Revo has an application that is supposed to do it. I looked at Ccleaner's app but I could not put a check in the O.S. - I think that is where it belongs. I Binged the idea but did not want to get into discs unless necessary. I have a disc that will format the pc and rstore it to factory settings but I have read formatting is not enough. I have no sensitive data in the machine but have done banking etc in the past so the passwords may be accesible with the right software.Thank you
Peter