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Updated Nvidia Drivers for Inspiron 5160
I have a 3 years old Inspiron 5160 Notebook computer with the standard integrated Nvidia graphics chip.
I love to play SecondLife which was no problem until SecondLife Client version 1.19.0(5). However, starting with SecondLife Client version 1.19.1(4) even after changing SecondLife Grapfics preferences the SecondLife client crashed within minutes all the time.
Similar problems for Nvidia graphics adapters in general are known. Therefore, Linden Lab, the manufacturer of SecondLife, recommends to update the drivers to its latest version and provides a link to Nvidia's driver downloads from their web site.
However, I'm unable to install the latest drivers. A message appears, telling that I have to install the drivers from Dell which is rather annoying since the latest available drivers are older than my Notebook. Any ideas what can be done?
It's important to not only download the drivers but also Larry's INF for DELL and follow Larry's instructions. Rename the actual nv_dispw.inf file before copying Larry's inf file (I used nv4_17640.inf) to nv_dispw.inf in the install directory. Make sure to replace the version section in the new .inf file by the version section from the new drivers original nv_dispw.inf file.
Before installation you have to uninstall the old drivers and reboot your computer. Make sure to prepare the installation before uninstalling the old drivers, because the pc might crash with a black screen (happened to me) when fiddling around too fast with the intermediate drivers.
After istallation you have to reboot again. If after reboot and initial configuration everything is slow, make sure to configure the driver for less quality but better performance. Be aware that all this is not supported and you do it at your own risk.
Message Edited by pgloor on 08-08-2008 04:49 AMRegarding SecondLife, it's important to note, that only the lowest quality in the SecondLife client settings delivers acceptable performance. To achieve correct color representation a higher quality setup is required.
Unfortunately, you cannot have both, acceptable color quality and acceptable performance.
Message Edited by pgloor on 08-11-2008 07:40 AM
ejn63
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Posted August 7th, 2008 09:00
Try laptopvideo2go.com -- this model is long end of life, so Dell won't have any updates for it.