Need help badly. Please!

I spent most of the day running through my options. My computer is too old, so it doesn't have a AGP slot. All of the listed working graphics cards need a AGP slot to be installed. The best i could do with this computer is a PCI card, but it wouldn't be overly too much better than what i have.

My real question.. the message you get when your card does not meet standards "SL requires True Color 32-bit" etc etc. "Alternatively, if you choose to run full screen..."

Is there any way to bypass this message? What is this full screen option they speak of? I'm just a stubborn guy.. i'd rather load the game, realize it doesn't work and let it crash than just recieve this message and shut down. Please help.

you could get a nvidia pci, but wouldnt recommend it ~.~ why? pci is not very fast, nor would id want someone to spend money on that, agp/pci-e mostly recommended...

To those who think agp is going away think again, new 7xxx cards already popping up on agp :>

Not to sure if having a -noprobe , in shortcut bypass this or not

Is it sad that i want to play this game so badly, that i am buying a new computer?

Sad perhaps for you. Your computer dealer may not be so sad.

Ah well, i was only procrastinating to begin with. Clearly i need a new one. I found quite the steal, though.

P4 Intel 2.66GHz 533 FSB,
512meg DDR ram,
(2x) - 40 gig WD HD,
ATI 9800 Pro 128meg AGP video card,
LG CDRW
on board sound and NIC
Floppy
3 PCI slots
4 USB (at back of Desktop)
Keyboard and mice

Only $400CDN. I'm pleased.

Is there something wrong with a PCI-express 6800 card? Mine worked fine until the 1.7 "upgrade".

NO! Of course not!
When shopping for my new notebook, "Will it run SL" was my first criterion. Any machine that couldn't just wasn't an option.

Try unchecking the AGP Acceleration box. Something is odd with the 6800 series PCI-e cards and that option. Its like a 50/50 chance from what I've seen that the AGP option will slow down 6800 PCI-e cards.

I asked nVidia about that and they said it involves the coding updates for SLI on the drivers versus games that have special AGP acceleration options, whether or not you're using SLI. You'll do much better to uncheck the AGP box.

On that rig, that machine will still lag. The P4 will handle SL so-so, but the problem will be your video card. People having ATI card issues litter the forums every day. Consider adding the cost of a better, nVidia card. For $80-$100 USD you can get the nVidia 7300 GS, which is a HUGE improvement over the Radeon 9800 pro. Plus you get SM3, which is much better in games that have a lot of shadows (or soft shadows, like F.E.A.R).

Or have CorvusTech build your machine for Lindens/Paypal.

I was more focused for the time being on the fact that the Radeon 9800 alone, in Canadian stores, is $169 thus giving me that whole computer for less than $300.

Given the fact that my old Dell will probably spot me about $50, i can probably just trade the ATI 9800 for a nVidia 7300. Time will tell. I'm still haggling with the guy, because apparently somebody wants to buy the ATI 9800 seperately in which he would replace with a nVidia 5700, making it lose alot of its value.

I sell the 7300 GS for 30K L$. That's shipped to Canada. So if you've got the Lindens I wouldn't worry too much about the video card. I can also split that with PayPal.

Thusfar i have not once been able to get SL to actually load to the log-in screen due to my lack of proper computer, so i still only have L$250.

I want to get a custom tower case eventually, though. Perhaps you sell those. Could be an idea for the future.

We're already doing custom builds. Hopefully by the time you're ready, we'll also be doing custom computer case designs. Just keep us in mind and IM me if you need parts.

You know, normally I wouldnt recommend this, but on the cheap, just go to Wal-Mart (ugh!) and buy an eMachines. I believe they all come equipped with an AMD Athlon XP processor (socket939) and a PCI-E card now.

Make sure to Check the specs!!!!! if you decide to go this route. You should be able to get a decent machine for around $500 USD. Of course, if you dont live in the US, you should be able to order from emachines's website (I believe it is still www.e4me.com).

*The reason I wouldnt normally recommend this is that, in my opinion, cheap PCs are more suceptable to breakdowns. Just food for thought, of course you will get a 90-day warranty, and 24-hour tech support.

Suggestion from me if you go this route: disable the onboard Geforce 6100 and get yourself a 6600GT or a 6800GS to replace it. Trust me, the onboard one sucks and you may run into problems. Plus it eats up available memory for its own use.