3D BLASTER LATEST INFORMATION
=============================

This file contains information that's not available at the time of
printing of the User Manual.

The topics in this file are:

    1.   3D Blaster Installation.
    2.   High-interrupt problems.
    3.   Installing new hardware after the 3D Blaster has been installed.
    4.   Available screen resolutions.
    5.   Systems with PnP BIOS.
    6.   Installing the Win95 drivers yourself.

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1.  3D Blaster Installation.

    Refer to the User Manual for help in starting the installation for
    the various platforms -- DOS, Windows 3.1, Windows 95, Windows NT.

2.  High-interrupt problems.

    Some games running on the 3D Blaster may experience problems when
    the board is set to the high interrupts (IRQ 8-15).  This is due
    to limited support for these interrupts in the DOS4G/W DOS
    extender used by these games.

    The solution is to set the 3D Blaster to a low interrupt to run
    these games.  You can do this by:

    a)  Running the Intel Configuration Utility if you're using the
        Intel Configuration Manager (ICM); or
    b)  Running the CONFIG3D program if you're not.

3.  Installing new hardware after the 3D Blaster has been installed.

    Scenario:
    1)  You successfully install the 3D Blaster and are able to run 3D
        Blaster software and games.
    2)  You now install another piece of hardware into the system.
    3)  The system now locks up while booting.

    This scenario could happen if the new hardware installs the Intel
    Configuration Manager (ICM).  An undocumented problem in the ICM
    causes the 3D Blaster to hang unless appropriate steps are taken.

    To solve this problem:
    a)  Reboot the system and bypass the system startup files.   You
        do this by hitting <F5> immediately when the "Starting
        MS-DOS..." line appears on bootup.
    b)  Change to the 3D Blaster directory (usually C:\3DBlast).
    c)  Run the CONFIG3D utility.
    d)  CONFIG3D will process the CONFIG.SYS and insert appropriate
        lines to resolve the conflict between the ICM and the 3D
        Blaster.

4.  Available screen resolutions.

    The screen resolutions available to the various display drivers
    (Windows 3.1, Windows 95 and Windows NT) are determined by the
    amount of VRAM on the 3D Blaster board.  The following table shows
    the available resolutions:

                       3D Blaster          3D Blaster + memory upgrade
                  (1MB VRAM+1MB DRAM)         (2MB VRAM+2MB DRAM)

                8-bit   16-bit   24-bit       8-bit   16-bit   24-bit

    640x480      YES     YES      NO           YES     YES      YES
    800x600      YES     YES      NO           YES     YES      YES
    1024x768     YES     NO       NO           YES     YES      NO
    1280x1024    NO      NO       NO           YES     NO       NO

5.  Systems with PnP BIOS.

    On certain systems that are equipped with older PnP BIOS's, the 3D
    Blaster will lock up during boot time.  If this happens:

    a)  Power down the system.
    b)  REMOVE the 3D Blaster from the system.
    c)  Restart the system (without the 3D Blaster card).
    d)  Change to the 3D Blaster directory (usually C:\3DBlast).
    e)  Run the CONFIG3D utility, which will detect the PnP BIOS
        system and prompt you accordingly.
    f)  Set the jumper on the board per CONFIG3D's instructions (also
        see the User Manual under "Troubleshooting" for more detail).
    g)  Power down the system again.
    h)  Re-insert the 3D Blaster, and restart the system.

    Note: if you have the ICM also installed, it will pause after
          reporting that the 3D Blaster is configured, and say that "0
          out of 1 devices are configured".  Simply hit any key to
          continue.  This is normal behaviour.

6.  Installing the Win95 drivers yourself.

    We strongly recommend you to use the INSTALL program to install
    the 3D Blaster Display driver.   However, if you wish to install
    the drivers yourself, please use the following steps:

    a)  Run the program CMPATCH.EXE which can be found on the diskette.
    b)  Shut down the system.
    c)  Insert the 3D Blaster card into the system.
    d)  Restart the system.
    e)  When prompted for drivers, insert the diskette into the floppy
        drive and enter the drive letter.
    f)  Windows 95 will copy the drivers and then prompt you to restart.
    g)  After restarting, disable the other display adapter drivers.


       ==========  End of README.TXT  ==========

