CompuServe Thread

#STEALTH 64 VRAM

11 messages in this thread
#182311From: Nik Grant [adesk]Jul 26, 1995 5:21 PM
"Please add my name to the list of people having trouble with Diamond's new Stealth 64 Video VRAM card and the 3DS Vibrant drivers. Has anyone heard an updated on when we might see new drivers?" Have you seen the thread on this? – the STBIOS.EXE file might take care of your problems. This was reported by some non-Autodesk/Vibrant folks. "Nik, >>I got good news for all of you Diamond Stealth 64 Video users! Vibrant has written a fix for folks using AutoCAD with the "Stealth 64 Video" video card. The fix also works with 3D Studio. (at least it works for me.) To get the fix, go on the Vibrant BBS 512-918-3411 and download the file stlbios.exe. It needs only to be run once. It worked for me! This file will not work for anyone having problems with the older S3-964 based Stealth 64. It only works with the newer S3-968 based "Stealth 64 Video" This seems to take care of any Stealth problems. Worked for me!"
#182453From: David StinnettJul 27, 1995 11:11 AM
>>STLBIOS.EXE… Tried it and it pretty much trashed my 1024 display. I still haven't had time to go in and really tweak it, but stlbios.exe certainly wasn't the quick fix I had hoped. David, BLUR
#182481From: Jul 27, 1995 2:08 PM
David: >> >>STLBIOS.EXE… >> Tried it and it pretty much trashed my 1024 display. Are you sure you have a 928 chip? It will NOT work with the 924. We are using it here with no problems, FWIW. Greg Pyros
#182559From: David StinnettJul 28, 1995 12:14 AM
>>Are you sure you have a 928 chip? They're brand spanking new "stealth 64 video vram's", although I will admit I have yet to look at the chip itself. We need to spend a little while tweaking the systems and seeing exactly what res's work and what don't, as well as trying Vibrants little fix in all modes. When I ran the exe, and saw that 3ds's display was screwed, I just quit and rebooted, not wanting to deal with it right now. Maybe late next week…? At least things are in a usable state as is, which is why I keep putting it off. (I seem to be real good at that.:-)) David, BLUR
#182747From: Mark YankeeJul 29, 1995 7:43 PM
Greg, << Are you sure you have a 928 chip? It will NOT work with the 924. >> It's 968 and 964. Mark
#182498From: Nik Grant [adesk]Jul 27, 1995 3:40 PM
"Tried it and it pretty much trashed my 1024 display. I still haven't had time to go in and really tweak it, but stlbios.exe certainly wasn't the quick fix I had hoped." Sorry you ran into this. I think I had posted this before, but here's from Vibrant (about 2 or 3 weeks ago): > Apparently, either Diamond or S3 revised their BIOS, so some Vibrant > modes work with their latest cards, and some don't. Diamond provides > a TSR BIOS with their cards that will allow all modes to work, but it > doesn't work on all PCI machines. > > We're working on a more complete write up, which should be > finished later today. We're also looking into the problem and plan > to have a solution in time for the 1.0.8 driver release. So, what I expect is that Vibrant has a souped up STLBIOS or something, that works in the cases that the Diamond- supplied STLBIOS doesn't. I'll see if I have the latest info.
#182560From: David StinnettJul 28, 1995 12:14 AM
Thanks for checking. David
#182597From: Nik Grant [adesk]Jul 28, 1995 10:36 AM
Here's some more info I just received from Vibrant. I received a file at the same time (which takes a day or 2 to get posted here) called vg000004.vdc. It should be on the Vibrant BBS though (512/918-3411). "This will fix the blank screen problem on both the Stealth 64 VRAM and Stealth 64 Video VRAM cards. We've discovered a separate problem with dashed lines on the Video VRAM cards, but I don't know if it happens in 3DStudio. STLBIOS.EXE is for the Video VRAM (968) cards, and S64BIOS.EXE is for the Stealth 64 VRAM (964) cards. They don't work on all PCI systems." Also, some instructions on how to use a vibrant.VDC file "How to use a Vibrant loadable VDC Vibrant VDC loadables are versions of the Vibrant driver code that can be loaded at runtime, instead of being compiled into the product. The main advantage of this approace is that the driver code can be updated independently of the rest of the Vibrant application. Using a loadable VDC is very easy. (1) Copy the loadable VDC file (which will have a name in the form of VG0000??.VDC). It is suggested that you put it in the same directory as your Vibrant application. (for example, D:\SOFTENGN) (2) Set the environment variable VDCPATH to the directory containing the loadable VDC (for example, set VDCPATH=D:\SOFTENGN). That's it. When the loadable VDC is in the directory specified by VDCPATH,(or in your current directory), you will load that version of the driver, instead of the version in your Vibrant application." Hope this new info gets you going (let us know, thanks). Nik
#182696From: David StinnettJul 29, 1995 3:10 AM
>>We've discovered a separate problem with dashed lines on the Video VRAM cards, but I don't know if it happens in 3DStudio. I'm not sure what they mean by dashed lines, but in 1024, 8 bit main display, if I move a dummy in the keyframer, it will leave a trail of multi-colored copies behind it, until the screen is redrawn. I'll try to try the VDC on monday and let you know what happens. Thanks for the info. David, BLUR
#183133From: Tim j. MillerAug 1, 1995 10:53 PM
>>I received a file at the same time (which takes a day or 2 to get posted here) called vg000004.vdc. It should be on the Vibrant BBS though (512/918-3411). I noticed that that file has not been uploaded here yet, and I can't find anything of the sort on Vibrant's BBS. Do you know where I can get it so I can try it out? Or will it show up here soon (I can wait a couple of days if need be….)? Thanks. David, BLUR
#183798From: Heinz SchullerAug 6, 1995 5:13 PM
Hi Nick, ->"Have you seen the thread on this? – the STBIOS.EXE file might take care of your problems" Thanks! I'll check the thread on this. Too many projects have prevented me from spending time online lately. I really appreciate your help. Cheers, -Heinz.