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Fire GL 8800 64/128 MB
User's Guide
© Copyright 2001, by ATI Technologies Inc.
All rights reserved, including those to reproduce this guide or parts thereof, in any form without the
express written permission of ATI Technologies Inc.
Products may not be exactly as shown. Features, performance, and specifications may vary depending
on operating environment and are subject to change without notice. Trademarks and/or registered
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Disclaimer The manufacturer (MFR) reserves the right to make changes to this document and the products which it describes without notice. The MFR shall not be liable for technical or editorial errors or omissions made herein; not for incidental or consequential damages resulting from the furnishing, performance, or use of this material. The MFR makes no representation that the interconnection of products in the manner described herein will not infringe on existing or future patent rights
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Table of Contents Getting Started .................................................................. 1
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Reference........................................................................... 40
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1 CHAPTER 1 Getting Started Experience the speed and reliability of the FIRE GL™ 8800 workstation board. Based on the revolutionary next generation geometry and rendering technology from ATI, it delivers affordable high-end workstation 3D/2D graphics acceleration. FIRE GL™ 8800 has an optimized high-powered OpenGL® driver to provide outstanding 2D and 3D performance. Perfect for MCAD, 3D game development and other demanding applications, the FIRE GL™ 8800 will increase your productivit
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2 Getting Started Using this Guide For your convenience, this online User’s Guide has been formatted as ® ® an Adobe Acrobat PDF file. This format gives you great flexibility when using this documentation. Many hyperlinks provide easy access to any information you may want. To make it useful in a printed format, too, a - hyperlinked - table of contents and page numbers are provided. Because it was designed to be used online and printed, some of the images may not print clearly or appe
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Getting Started 3 Viewing the User's Guide Online You can also read the User's Guide online—important hypertext links, such as Table of Contents entries, World Wide Web, and email addresses are active. Place your mouse cursor over Table of Contents entries or main headings. If the hand icon changes to a pointing index finger, simply click and you will move to that place in the document. Some email or World Wide Web addresses inside this manual may be active as well. Go directly to a W
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4 Getting Started Fire GL 8800 Features • RADEON™ 8800 GPU and 64 MB or 128 MB DDR memory • CHARISMA ENGINE™ II supports full Transformation, Clipping and Lighting (T&L) at 75 million triangles/second peak processing capability • PIXEL TAPESTRY™ II, the 3D rendering engine, powers 2.4 Gigatexels/second for fast fill rates in 32-bit true color resolution • VIDEO IMMERSION™ II, industry leading video technology • Full DirectX 8.1 support • High resolutions up to 2048 x 1536 • DDC1/2b
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Getting Started 5 System Requirements and Tools TM • Pentium® 4/III/II/Celeron ; AMD® K6/Athlon® or compatible • 128 MB of system memory Computer 256 MB for best performance system • Motherboard with free AGP 2x/4x slot • CD-ROM drive • Windows® NT 4.0 with Service Pack 5 (or higher) Operating • Windows® 2000 with Service Pack 1 (or system higher) • Windows® XP You must be running Windows NT 4.0, updated with Service Pack 5 (or higher) prior to installing the Fire GL 8800 dr
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6 Getting Started Quick Installation • Brief instructions on how to get to work with the Fire GL 8800 in the shortest possible time. • Recommended for experienced users and system administrators only. • For more detailed information on installation and operation of your graphics accelerator, please refer to the corresponding sections of the Fire GL 8800 User’s Guide. Installation Steps 1 Un-install the drivers and software for your old graphics card. 2 Set the display driver to St
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7 CHAPTER 2 Installing the Hardware and Software IN THIS CHAPTER Installing the Hardware on page 7 Installing the Software on page 20 Installing the Hardware The hardware installation includes the following steps: • Preparing your Computer • Installing the Card • Connecting the Cables and Completing the Installation Preparing your Computer Turn off the power to your system and discharge your body’s static electric charge by touching a grounded surface—for example, the metal sur
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8 Installing the Hardware and Software Information Before you Start What do you need to System Requirements and Tools use your Fire GL • Motherboard with free AGP 2X/4X 8800? slot. • 128 MB of system memory 256 MB for best performance • System interrupt (IRQ) which is free. This may have to be reserved in the computer’s BIOS. For help with this subject, refer to the manual for your mainboard TM • Pentium® 4/III/II/Celeron ; AMD® K6/Athlon® or compatible • Supported operating
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Installing the Hardware and Software 9 What type of monitors Your Fire GL 8800 is optimally configured do you need? to be combined with digital flat-panel (DFP) TFT LCD displays and digital CRT displays. You can also connect the Fire GL 8800 to high-resolution MultiSync or multi-frequency monitors or other VGA monitors. To connect a VGA monitor to the DVI connector you may use the provided VGA- to-DVI adapter. Notes: (1) You need a Plug-and-Play monitor that supports VESA’s Display
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10 Installing the Hardware and Software Are you planning a • You may connect two monitors to multi-monitor system? the Fire GL 8800. • If DDC support is available, the respective resolution and refresh rate for each monitor is automatically detected. • Desktop Management utilities TM HYDRAVISION DualScreen Are you installing your Before you install your Fire GL 8800 card, Fire GL 8800 in place we recommend that you first uninstall the of a card from another the driver for your
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Installing the Hardware and Software 11 Setting the Display Driver to Standard VGA To avoid possible driver conflicts between your old and new graphics card, install the standard VGA driver for your operating system. Install the standard VGA driver before you shut down your computer and remove the installed (AGP, PCI, or ISA) VGA card. Note: Installing the standard VGA driver is not required for Windows 2000 and Windows XP. Installing the Standard VGA Driver for Windows NT 4.0 1 From
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12 Installing the Hardware and Software Installing the Card To install your graphics accelerator card, follow these steps: 1 Switch off your computer and all external options (monitor, printer, and others). Then disconnect all cables from the back of your computer. Unplug all power cables from the electrical source. Note: If you are disconnecting a peripheral from the computer or are removing a component from the system board, wait 10 - 20 seconds after disconnecting the computer f
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Installing the Hardware and Software 13 2 Remove the computer cover. If necessary, consult your computer system manual about removing the cover. 1 Power Supply Remember to discharge your body’s static electricity by touching the metal surface of the computer chassis 3 Remove any existing graphics card from your computer. If the old graphics card sticks rock it gently from end to end. Remember to save the screw. If your computer has any on-board graphics capability, you may
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14 Installing the Hardware and Software 4 Insert the card into the AGP slot. Note: You can use the Fire GL 8800 in either AGP 2x/4x or AGP 2x slots. • Locate the AGP 2x/4x slot. Compare the expansion slots in your computer with the following illustration: • If necessary, remove the metal slot cover from the AGP slot. Save the screw to secure the graphics card later. • Align the Fire GL 8800 with the AGP slot, and press it in firmly until fully seated. 1 Fire GL 8800 car
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Installing the Hardware and Software 15 5 Replace the screws to fasten the card in place. • Align the slot in the mounting bracket of the card with the screw hole in the rear panel of the computer case. • Use the screws you removed from the expansion slot cover or a previously installed graphics card to secure the card in place. 6 Reassemble your computer. • Secure ribbon cables and gently push them down and out of the way before you replace the system cover. • Replace the comput
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16 Installing the Hardware and Software Connecting the Cables and Completing the Installation Connecting the Monitor Cables You may connect one or two monitors, either analog VGA or DFP/digital CRT to the Fire GL 8800. The Fire GL 8800 supports the following monitor combinations: • single monitor – VGA • single monitor - DFP/digital CRT • dual monitor - VGA + VGA (you need the provided DVI-to- VGA adapter) • dual monitor - VGA + DFP/digital CRT The Fire GL 8800 does not support th
