128 or 256?

How do you check if oyu have the 256mb 8600GT? I don't know why, but I just feel like my computer isnt as smooth as it should be.

 

You can use software like Astra32 to check hardware of your computer

 

Download rivatuner.

Also, why do you feel that the gpu is causing your computer to not be as smooth as it should be? Maybe you don't have enough ram, maybe your hard drive is slow, maybe you have a lot of processes and spyware on your computer.

I would worry about those first before blaming the possible lack of 128MBs of video ram for your system's sluggishness.

 

I blame the card cause I think iTunes cover flow is causing it to be a bit sluggish. I have 2gigs of ram, a 5400 HDD with about 25gigs used and I have 30 processes with no crazy virus scanner running in the background.

 

Hey madflava (cool name!)

Ask anyone who:

a.) Uses Vista
b.) Uses iTunes
c.) Uses Cover Flow album feature

...and you'll find that "laggy", "choppy", or like you said, "sluggish", will all be terms used to describe how it is at this point. Whether it's an iTunes issue, Vista issue, or whatever, everyone has it and it's nothing to worry about. Don't blame your 8600! It's a great card.

Oh, and to answer your question, if you have an 8600, it's 256mb. The 8400 is the option available with 128.

-Brian

 

Oh thanks! Yeah, it shows as an 8600 in the Display part in Device Manager. I actually use XP with iTunes and cover flow album feature. I guess I'm just hoping someone with iTunes and a Vostro 1500 reads this thread

 

Oh! I use iTunes on both my Vista Home Premium and XP install. I find cover flow sluggish on both, so again, no worries!

Actually, if you really want to get a smooth cover flow experience, you should see Songbird's cover flow on my Ubuntu Feisty installation. Much smoother than iTunes.

 

(Looking for a graphic card model in Device manager is not always absolute because it's possible to make this model vary by changing drivers)

 

best way to check is using the Direct X diagnostic tool..

Go to Start, run, type "dxdiag" hit enter.
Go to the "display" tab...bingo, there's your GPU info

 

This seemed like it did the trick. Said Approx Mem is 512 so I guess it's 256...

Thanks!

 

If you don't mind me asking, what driver do you have for your card and how do you check the version?

Thanks

 

If it says 512MB and you have the 256 MB 8600M GT, it means you have 256 GPU memory + 256 hypermemory (virtual memory)...
probably some kind of nvidia gimmick, lol, i dont know how much of a difference it makes, but every little bit helps..

I'm using the 163.44 drivers from www.laptopvideo2go.com
You would normally check your driver by going to device manager, double clicking on your video card in the list and looking at the 'driver details' tab.