I'm seeing spots. I'm pretty sure it's not my monitor because the spots "drag" and create streaks in the images when I move them around. So I'm thinking it could be my video card (NVIDIA GeForce4 MX 440 with AGP8X), my video settings, or WinXP (somehow). These artifacts didn't show up until after my upgrade to XP and I can't figure out what the problem is.

I just downloaded and installed the latest drivers for my video card directly from NVIDIA's website and the problem hasn't gone away. And I couldn't find anything about this on their website.

Does anybody have any idea what the problem could be? I created a "simulation" of what I'm seeing below so you can get an idea.

Spots (http://home.comcast.net/~wcatherall/trouble/spots.jpg) (a typical image, note the pattern)
Streaks (http://home.comcast.net/~wcatherall/trouble/spots2.jpg) (the image after dragging it slightly)

I've currently got my video set to 1024 x 768 resolution, 32 bit color, 85 Hz refresh (all of which is supported by both the video card and monitor).

Gnats inside the monitor?

Seriously though, here's how I would troubleshoot it.
1) Try different resolutions, color depths, refresh rates. Does the problem appear only on certain settings or on all?
2) Does the problem appear in Safe Mode?
3) Does the problem appear on another monitor?
4) Does the problem appear with another video card in the machine, or with that video card in another machine?

Try to isolate the problem to a single set of circumstances--if you do "this" and "this" it will happen but not "this" and "that". If you can't actually fix it, at least this gives you much more to tell nVidia's tech support. Often they will have beta drivers or other undocumented fixes they can provide.

Thanks. I'll give those a try.

Does your monitor have adequate space for cooling (if a CRT)?
Is the inside of your tower choked with dust?
Is there adequate room around your video card for the on-chip fan to do it's job? (or Do you have good airflow in your tower?)

There's plenty of space for cooling for both my CRT monitor and the fan on the video card. The computer box isn't choked with dust as I just opened it a few weeks ago and cleaned it out (when I did my upgrade). I did disable the two case fans that were being used for case cooling because they're just too loud, and I'm not totally convinced they've been necessary.

However, I don't think heat is an issue because I've had my computer off for several days and the artifacts were still there when I turned it back on yesterday, before anything really had a chance to heat up.

I've tried just about every possible resolution, color setting, and refresh rate possible with no difference whatsoever. I will change out the video card when I can remember where I put my old one. I can't try a different monitor until I can find someone willing to let me borrow theirs...I only have one in the house.

How do I switch to Safemode with XP?

How do I switch to Safemode with XP?
Same as always: reboot, hit F8 before the Microsoft logo appears.

Oh! Do you get the problem when you boot into Linux?

Nvida cards are issue-prone. Mine over heated and acted up on a regular basis - while my system itself maintained a happy temp. I say chuck the Nvida and get something else.

Note: Not an "ATI" card - they have an inherent flaw in their flash memory and thus are buggy too.

Marktips basically just advised against buying any currently available video card. Pretty much every video card currently available is based on either NVidia or ATI chipsets...

-Jeff

Im talking more "brand" than chipset, but yes, the ATI chipset has issues overall. The Nvida branded cards are expensive and once considered "the best" but soon discovered to be a buggy overheating mess.

Oh! Do you get the problem when you boot into Linux?
I haven't reinstalled Linux yet. Maybe this will be my little incentive to finally get around to it.

I still haven't figured out what the problem is, but I'm thinking that it is indeed the video card. Last night I installed our Hobbit game and it had major graphics problems. It worked fine before, but last night it wouldn't render polygons. All the characters were invisible. Texture maps didn't render correctly either.

Any recommendations on a good, but fairly inexpensive video card?

Well, I went to Fry's and bought a new nVidia card. I didn't need anything fancy but didn't want to be scraping the bottom of the barrel either. I got a GeForce4 4400 with 64MB RAM for about $50. After installing it the computer gave me a long beep followed by two short beeps indicating a video error. No display either. So I had to return that card and get a different one.

I wasn't sure if it was just a problem with that one card or all of the cards by that manufacturer so instead of trying my luck I just grabbed a different card. For about $15 more I got an ATI Radeon 9200 SE with 128MB RAM. That installed flawlessly and now all the problems are gone. I didn't have a lot of time to thoroughly test it or adjust the settings, but there are no more dots and 3D renders properly in The Hobbit game once again. It also has some nice video adjustment controls.

One interesting feature is that it has a DVI output for connecting to an HD ready TV which wasn't listed on the product package and I really didn't expect it on a card that's less than $100. Unfortunately I don't have an HD ready TV anyway.

The other useful thing about video cards with DVI outputs is that you can usually set up dual-head (two monitors with extended desktop) from the single video card. The card may have come with a DVI to 2xSVGA splitter, or you can pick one up. Dual-head extended desktop is the Best Thing Ever.

The other useful thing about video cards with DVI outputs is that you can usually set up dual-head (two monitors with extended desktop) from the single video card. The card may have come with a DVI to 2xSVGA splitter, or you can pick one up. Dual-head extended desktop is the Best Thing Ever.
Both monitors from the single DVI connection? I did not know that. Cool.

The driver gives control for 2 monitors, but I figured monitor 2 was for the S-Video output (that's also on the card) and monitor 1 was either DVI or VGA. The card didn't come with any instructions or manual. :rolleyes:

So how does the extended desktop work with DVI? Is it considered a single monitor with a wider aspect ratio or 2 monitors with individual resolution controls?

So how does the extended desktop work with DVI? Is it considered a single monitor with a wider aspect ratio or 2 monitors with individual resolution controls?
On mine (ATI Radeon VE), I see separate controls for each monitor. That means I could have 16-bit color at 1024x768 on one and 32-bit at 1280x1024 on the other. I could also do different refresh rates for each monitor; I've found this useful with monitors whose shielding is not quite what it could be. Setting one to 85Hz and one to 75Hz eliminated some interference.

Sweet. Thanks!