8-bit, 16-bit, 32-bit, or 64-bit: This will determine how fast the card can send information to your monitor. The higher the number, the better. 16-bit or better is a good place to start.

ISA, EISA, VESA, or PCI: Your PC will determine what type of card you must purchase. Check your motherboard and find out what type of expansion slots you have. Newer PCs generally use VESA or PCI. Older PCs use ISA or EISA.

Plug and Play: If your PC supports PnP, buy a PnP video card. They are easier to install.

Video accelerator card: This video card includes a video coprocessor which relieves your PC's CPU of the graphics processing it normally performs. This speeds up the display of images on your monitor by 15-25 percent.

3-D processor: Another type of coprocessor that applies shading to a picture improving texture and depth. Highly recommended for games and other software requiring 3-D effects.

Video RAM: This determines how many colors the video card can send to the monitor. The higher this number the better. 2 MB is a good place to start. You can buy cards with RAM, VRAM, or EDO RAM. VRAM is a good choice because it is faster than conventional RAM but cheaper than EDO RAM.

Video drivers: Make sure the card you buy will support your software and operating system. The video drivers that come with the card determine this.