CATALYST 4.2 available now

Discussion in 'AMD Graphics Cards' started by CATALYST maker, Feb 12, 2004.

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  1. CATALYST maker

    CATALYST maker ATI driver guru

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    Just wanted to inform you (or your readers) that CATALYST 4.2 is now available. This update provides a new driver (now up to version 7.98) and a new multimedia center (now up to version 8.9). The quick link to the XP drivers is http://www.ati.com/home/online/CatalystXPdriver.html

    Furthermore I wanted to let you know that ATI in conjuction with Beyond3d.com and DriverHeaven.net have released a "SMARSHADER Effects" tool. This innovative new concept will let users create their own shaders and load them up on CATALYST. Both Beyond3d.com and Driverheaven.net will be hosting this tool as well as having great end user contests to get peoples creative shader juices flowing. These can be found here and I highly recommend checking them out http://www.beyond3d.com/misc/atiss/ and http://www.driverheaven.net/smartshader/

    Also please vote on the usual DH poll about the the quality of this driver
    http://www.driverheaven.net/showthread.php?s=&threadid=37717
     
    Last edited: Feb 12, 2004
    CATALYST maker, Feb 12, 2004
    #1
  2. HardwareHeaven

    HardwareHeaven Administrator Staff Member

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    To get the full info on the changes, fixes, improvements please read the full details at ATIs site but here is a little taster.

    Performance Improvements
    As with most CATALYSTâ„¢ releases performance has increased in various situations. This release of CATALYSTâ„¢ provides performance gains to the ATI DX8 product family. These products include the RADEONâ„¢ 9200, 9000, and 8500 series. Performance gains are noticed throughout the following software:

    Framerates in Unreal Tournament 2003 is up by 15%
    A performance gain of between 5 and 10% is noticed in Aquamark3
    A performance gain of between 2-3% is noticed in ShaderMark scores
    Framerates in Halo is up between 3-4%
    A performance improvement of 2% is noticed in Tomb Raider

    Resolved CATALYSTâ„¢ Driver Issues
    This section provides information on CATALYSTâ„¢ driver issues that have been resolved in the latest release of CATALYSTâ„¢. These include the following:

    Logging on as an Administrator under Windows XP and doing a fast user switch to limited user no longer results in display corruption when playing a DVD using WinDVD version 4 or 5
    User defined colour setting are now retained when exiting a 3D game or application
    The ATI Control Panel no longer fails to launch when attempting to enter the Advanced options of the primary display adapter after disabling extended desktop support
    The Cancel button found in the ATI 3D tab is now working properly when switching between a user defined profile and the default setting
    Enabling the CRT as the primary display and turning the TV off in the Display page no longer results in a general protection fault under Windows ME
    The Anisotropic Filtering custom setting is now retained under Windows XP with an ATI RADEONâ„¢ 7200 installed
    The D3D panel now retains the user defined AA/AF setting under Windows XP when a RADEONâ„¢ 8500 series is installed and the main setting is set to High Quality

    Component Video Output Enhancement
    The latest ATI software driver now allows the user the choice of using panning mode or a center-timing mode in which the image would appear in the center of the TV screen when using the Component Video output on an HDTV display. This option is found in the ATI Control Panel and is supported under the Windows XP, Windows 2000, and Windows ME operating systems. This feature is available on the ATI RADEONâ„¢ 8500 and higher class of products.

    Direct3D Setting Enhancement
    Previous versions of the ATI display driver required the monitor going blank for up to 8 seconds when applying Direct3D settings. The latest ATI software driver for the RADEONâ„¢ 9500 and higher class of products now allows for the Direct3D setting to be applied without the monitor's display going blank.
     
    HardwareHeaven, Feb 12, 2004
    #2
  3. JLP

    JLP New Member

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    Still no 64-bit drivers :(
    But the Celestia problem on Radeon 8500 is finaly fixed. Or so I hope. I'll have to check it out when I install them.
     
    JLP, Feb 12, 2004
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  4. toddsmack2k

    toddsmack2k It Never.....

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    Okay guys please give us your feedback and rate the 4.2 Catalyst drivers.

    Vote HERE .
     
    toddsmack2k, Feb 12, 2004
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  5. BWX

    BWX get out and ride

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    Wow, that was fast.
     
    BWX, Feb 12, 2004
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  6. Hkhalid

    Hkhalid New Member

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    These drivers can be used on Windows 2000 as well ??
     
    Hkhalid, Feb 12, 2004
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  7. Roadee

    Roadee Never forgotten

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    YES
     
    Roadee, Feb 12, 2004
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  8. Skinner

    Skinner New Member

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    It looks like ATI really sticks to their policy about 64 bits drivers :tears:

    Well, thanx for the improvements anyway, the first impressions of these are good, great work :)
     
    Last edited: Feb 12, 2004
    Skinner, Feb 12, 2004
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  9. Banditgr

    Banditgr New Member

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    Banditgr, Feb 12, 2004
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  10. Cyan007

    Cyan007 New Member

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    Figures as soon as I kickup the money for a 9800pro they go ahead and improve my 8500! :duh:
     
    Cyan007, Feb 12, 2004
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  11. scobywhru

    scobywhru DriverHeaven Senile Member

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    Sweet, new drivers, thanks guys gonna go try them out right now
     
    scobywhru, Feb 12, 2004
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  12. Max Powerz

    Max Powerz New Member

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    Cool, DX8 performance increases baby! Anyone see a performance increase in UT2003?
     
    Max Powerz, Feb 12, 2004
    #12
  13. SkyBum

    SkyBum New Member

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    HUGE improvement in NFSU for my tired 'ol AIW 8500DV. No more stuttering. That was driving me nuts and online I was running max low settings because it seemed to reduce the stuttering quite a bit. Just ran a few laps online with everthing maxed except for headlights turned off. Smooth as glass. Unbelievable.

    I would have never guessed a driver update for such an old card would be packing such a punch. Never seen such an obvious improvement in a driver before. GREAT job ATI!


    ----------------------------------------
    Asus A7V-266E
    Athlon XP 1800+
    512 DDR
    AIW 8500DV
    Seagate Barracuda Raid
    XP
    Klipsch 5.1 Ultra
     
    SkyBum, Feb 12, 2004
    #13
  14. CATALYST maker

    CATALYST maker ATI driver guru

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    glad you like it! make sure you vote on the poll. All your feedback is invaluable to us. It's the only way we have of knowing how we are really doing.

    http://www.driverheaven.net/showthread.php?s=&threadid=37717
     
    CATALYST maker, Feb 12, 2004
    #14
  15. germanjulian

    germanjulian Back in London

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    dam YEAH! you did fix my NFSU performance issues too!. weird. thanks
     
    germanjulian, Feb 12, 2004
    #15
  16. BWX

    BWX get out and ride

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    I think it's awesome that ATI is still concentrating some effort on improving older graphic cards' performance like the 8500 series.. Even though I have a 9700pro- it still makes me think ATI is on the right track, because not all people have the fastest hardware- Soon the R420 will be out and maybe by then I'll have a 9800p or XT- but I'll still want ATI to improve performance for those cards in the future.

    Also the improvement where the changes made in the D3D control panel doesn't blink the monitor is a welcome change..

    Now, if we can only get an option to force AA on on all games, (even as an option, maybe in the "compatibility tab" and default will still be how it has been since the 3.8's for compatibility issues)
    It would just give the user more control in some games where AA doesn't work. Maybe a warning could go along with the setting saying that if this causes problems, then turn it off, then it wouldn't compromise the overall stability of the driver. The Customer always benefits from more control over the way the driver works. Just a thought.
     
    BWX, Feb 12, 2004
    #16
  17. TotenMaske

    TotenMaske New Member

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    oh something else new about the drivers

    Well after installing the new 4.2 drivers I looked in OpenGL Extension Viewer and discovered that these drivers add full support for all extenstions (1.5 shadow_funcs are supported finally). Very nice release, good job ATI.


    ___________
    Pentium 4 3.40Ghz 800Mhz
    2 Gb DDR Ram
    160Gb
    120Gb
    ATI 98000 XT 256
    Catalyst 4.2
    Windows XP Pro
     
    TotenMaske, Feb 12, 2004
    #17
  18. BWX

    BWX get out and ride

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    Re: oh something else new about the drivers

     
    BWX, Feb 12, 2004
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  19. Warpy

    Warpy Well-Known Member

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    Huge improvements with the following for me:

    Far Cry beta
    NFS Underground
    Chrome
    Far Cry demo
    Rainbox Six - Ravenshield
    Broken Sword 3

    I had to do a double take at my monitor this morning to see if I was seeing things "ATI catalyst 4.2" ;)

    I have voted in the poll.

    Funky Monkey
     
    Warpy, Feb 12, 2004
    #19
  20. HardwareHeaven

    HardwareHeaven Administrator Staff Member

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    Thanks for voting guys, it really is a good indication to Terry and the guys in ATI just what you all think, they do take records of the results.
     
    HardwareHeaven, Feb 12, 2004
    #20
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