Geforce 98xx

In the game requirements it says nothing of the newer Geforce 9xxx cards of which i am probably buying the 9800 GT version.
The 9800 GT card isn't THAT new, but not listed.
I would like to know if my new techtoy will handle SL or if it is a nono.

Why isn't the whole 9xxx series yet mentioned in the requirement and or supported list?

Sincerely,
Amon Dragonash

Don't know why they are not listed as supported, but my 9600 card runs SL very well. If you search these forums for "9800" I'm pretty sure I've seen people saying that the card works, although there can be problems with some recent Nvidia drivers, especially if you're running Linux I believe.

yups i seen that post too after i placed this one but i will be running on WxpPro.
It is not really that i am doubtfull about if it will keep up. I know Geforce and the x6xx and x8xx cards always run well as compared to their budget version so 9800 should be fine. Just flabbergasted by the fact that a game that screams digital evolution, a game that has updated clients so often, does not list the newest series of the main graphics card brand.
Chances are big one of the lindens is actually using that card so maybe a little review?

I suspect LL only list GC's that have any newer driver support for the OpenGL platform. Updates to OpenGL drivers has been stagnated for nearly a year now, since the drivers for Vista were released.

From my experience the 9800 runs SL like a dream....

It's still really new, and it uses the same drivers as the rest of the modern geforce line except on Windows.

Not supported=Not officially tested to work, not "won't work."

It depends on the platform. The Linux drivers seem to be more up to date outside the Windows world on ATI and nVidia; it seems Windows isn't getting developer attention like it used to. For example, VBO doesn't work at allon the ATI drivers for Windows, but works like a charm on Linux.

No issues with either my 9600 or 9800 here

Agreed, thats why I mentioned Vista, and as the OP was about nVidia cards, I didnt mention ATI.

All the time we have to use a bespoke Client for each OS and system setup, LL are going to have a huge overhead in development. If they adopted a pluggin for a browser, this would be reduced.

How do you figure? If anything, you're adding an un-necessary level of complexity by introducing the browser as another layer.

I am using a Zotac (nvidia) gForce 9800 GTX+ under windows XP, most of the time without problems...

From time to time, my computer freezes when i put my avatar to fly or it is flying... but the same happened to me about a month ago with another computer (with an integrated S3 graphics controller)

And i am very happy with my new gForce...

woolich

GeForce 9800M GTS and Vista Ultimate SP1 works.

Not adding another layer, actually by using a Browser pluggin, you remove the bespoke client layer, with all its complexities trying to control every part of the process. Many of the up and coming VR environments are going down this route. In fact, historically, VR environments grew from that point. You will see this method being adopted more and more in the future.

Of course, pretty much every other VR environment out there has also failed. I can't help but to think that it's the wrong way to go mostly because of the exceptional difficulty of writing a plugin that has decent performance across all platforms. Just look at the problems Adobe's having with Flash: It drove Macromedia out of business, and they're not even trying to do anything requiring 3D acceleration with a browser plugin!

/me picked up a BFG 9800GT today to replace her aging 7800GT. Actually got a 9800GTX+ first but the damn thing won't fit into my case and I had to return it.. :\

What's the popular thinking on the best XP drivers for these things? Nvidia doesn't show any non-beta drivers earlier than 177.79.. I see they released 181.20 just last week - anybody try that yet?

With the exception of the palletized texture issue, the latest drivers are fine. If you're running the RC viewer, you have nothing to worry about. Otherwise, disable palletized textures with CTRL-ALT-F7 as soon as you login.

TY! 181.20 it is then. Now if they'd just let me back onto the grid so I can see how this puppy runs..

Depends on your needs... SL is a social environment, not truly suited to business as the vast majority have a slow upgrade process with hardware. There are many existing environments available that are perfect for business, that use the browser pluggin method. I started in VR internet environments with a bespoke client, which was developed into a browser pluggin, it was cleaner, less overheads but with all the functionality. I am exploring that same method for our own environments.

Ask yourself this... is the SL client a bit overkill for the average user, with its multi-functionality? Like the Office products, the statistics say that less than 10% of the functions are used by the average OFFICE worker. SLim went too far in one direction, what is needed for the average user is something in between. Finding the right level is key to maximise productivity. No reason why there cannot be 2 or more levels of browser plugin/client systems out there.

When you are sold a car, you arent given a manual and toolkit to strip it down, blueprint it and rebuilt it. Same is true for most products.

The reason the vast majority of VR environments have 'failed' is because this is a new frontier. Similar top the crash and boom 90's when the web started to reach the masses, a lot of companies and individuals rushed to attain a presence, when they got there, they looked around and said 'now what'. Define the purpose, setout the long term benefits, supply the user friendly tools, and then it will grow. There is a second wave of innovators developing other environments, especially business related ones. Your average SL user will doubtfully even know they exist.

The 9800 series is in fact listed internally (gpu_table) as supported and defaults to high graphic settings. Someone probably forgot to update the knowledge base .

Please also note that an 9800 card is nothing else than an "older" 8800 (and that is listed). NVidia just played some marketing tricks with a rebranding exercise. Technically they are the same.

Key message - it will work well with SecondLife .

The best driver is still 175.19. All newer ones suffer from the palletized textures issue that should be fixed in the 1.22 viewer when it becomes official. It is not fixed in the RC.

http://www.nvidia.com/object/winxp_175.19_whql.html
http://www.nvidia.com/object/winvista_x86_175.19_whql.html
http://www.nvidia.com/object/winvista_x64_175.19_whql.html

I have been using 178.13 with my 9800GTX+ and I am not having any issues.
I always look for drivers at Guru3D: http://downloads.guru3d.com/

/me plurks at Ana, smiles and waves

http://jira.secondlife.com/browse/VWR-9358

Lucky you

TY! It's been running happily on 181.20 for a couple days, though I'll download one of the older ones as backup in case it starts choking.

/me plots to steal Ana's case, which seems to have far more legroom than mine..