PC World 2001 January/PCWorld_2001-01_cd.bin/Software/Topware/sandra/data1.cab/Sandra.tip

Text File | 2000-11-28 | 19KB | 347 lines

;
; SiSoft Sandra - Performance tips internal information file
;
; WARNING: Do not mess up this file! But you can delete it if you want...
;
; Compiled for SiSoft Sandra by [e-mail]
;
; Credits: P.Kinnaly, P.B.Madsen, Craig Hart
;
; Version=100

[Tip]
; Warnings
1=Please read the help file and make sure you know what you're doing before proceeding.
2=For more information about tips, press F1 and scroll to the Tips section.

; CPU & BIOS Tips
200=SMBIOS/DMI Interface not supported. Check for a BIOS update.
201=System BIOS is old. Check for an update.
202=CPU is slow. Windows runs optimally on 5x86 class or better CPUs.
203=Use a Plug & Play system BIOS. Check for an update.
204=Generic CPU. Some high-performance applications may have problems.
205=A MMX processor is recommended for modern multimedia applications and games.
206=Intel Pentium floating-point flaw detected.
207=A SMBIOS/DMI 2.3 or later compliant BIOS is recommended. Check for a BIOS update.
208=BIOS does not support the EDD (Enhanced Disk Drive) specification. Check for an update.
209=PC is not NEC PC98 compliant.
210=Mainboard supports faster CPUs, so the CPU can be upgraded when needed.
211=BIOS is flash-able and socketed so it can be upgraded when needed.
212=BIOS can be shadowed so check whether it is.
213=BIOS cannot be updated (flashed). All new mainboards should support this function.
214=BIOS is flash-able but surface-mounted. An unsuccessful flash may be fatal.
215=CPU temperature is too high!
216=CPU fan has failed! Check it.
217=Enable ECC on L2 cache for stability.
218=A 3DNow! processor is recommended for modern multimedia applications and games.
219=A SSE(2) processor is recommended for modern multimedia applications and games.
220=The CPU Serial Number is enabled.
221=The CPU Serial Number is disabled.
222=CPU speed higher than rated speed! Reduce CPU speed.
223=CPU rated speed is may be innacurate.
224=SMBIOS/DMI information may be inaccurate.
225=CPU is not a production version but ES.

; Video Tips
300=Unknown monitor. Install the driver for the monitor (or similar model) for optimum performance.
301=Install more video memory. Modern video cards need 4MB or more for optimum performance.
302=Use at least 256 colours. 16 colour modes may be incompatible with modern applications.
303=Use a 32-bit colour depth instead of 24-bit for better performance if available.
304=A desktop resolution of at least 640x480 is required for modern applications.
305=Use a 32-bit Windows video driver. Check for a driver update.
306=Use a Plug & Play/DDC compliant video driver. Check for a driver update.
307=Video acceleration is not fully enabled. Enable it and see if it works.
308=A VESA video BIOS may be required for DOS games. Check for a VESA TSR emulator.
309=A VESA 2.0 video BIOS may offer better performance/support. Check for an update.
310=DirectDraw support is required for Windows games or multimedia titles. Install DirectX.
311=Direct3D support may be required for Windows games or multimedia titles. Install DirectX.
312=OpenGL support may be required for 3D rendering applications or games. Install OpenGL.
313=Font smoothing reduces video performance.
314=Video BIOS is too old. Check for an update.
315=Use a 16-bit colour palette instead of 15-bit for better performance/support.
316=Use a Energy Star (DPMS) power saving monitor.
317=Video card is not VGA compatible. DOS VGA programs may be adversely affected.
318=A larger/better monitor is recommended for this video mode. Consider reducing the resolution.
319=A refresh rate of at least 75Hz is recommended. Increase it if possible.
320=The hardware cursor is disabled. Check that it was not disabled by mistake.
321=Enable the Linear Frame Buffer for maximum performance. See the driver manual.
322=Turn off screen savers. Use the monitor power saving mode.
323=Remove the desktop wallpaper to save memory and improve performance.
324=You are running the driver that came with Windows. An updated driver may be available from the video adapter manufacturer.
325=Turn off window animation to reduce delays.
326=Turn off animated cursors to conserve memory and improve performance.
327=Reduce colour depth to improve video performance. 16-bit may be enough.
328=Reduce resolution to improve video performance.
329=Use True Colour (24/32-bit) for video playback if available.
330=Use small icons to maximise usable desktop space.
331=Use small fonts to maximise usable desktop space.
332=Use a Plug & Play/DDC compatible monitor and video adapter.

; Printer Tips
400=Printer driver is obsolete. Check for an update.
401=Printer resolution may have been set too low. Check settings.
402=Print quality may have been set too low. Check settings.
403=Print to an EMF data type to improve printing speed.
404=Use print spooling to regain control of the computer sooner.
405=Use printer's built-in fonts for faster printing.
406=Use a lower resolution to increase printing speed.
407=Optimise Postscript print driver settings.

; WinSock Tips
500=Update to WinSock 2.02 or later for better performance.
501=Remove the IPX/SPX protocol if it not used to conserve memory.
502=16-bit WinSock stack not found. Legacy applications may not work.

; Sound Card Tips
700=No sound drivers are installed! Games or multimedia titles may not run at all.
701=No wave recording driver installed. Sound recording is unavailable.
702=No wave playback driver installed. Games or multimedia titles may not run at all.
703=No MIDI input driver installed. External MIDI devices are not supported.
704=No MIDI playback driver installed. MIDI playback is unavailable.
705=No mixer driver installed. Sound devices are muted.
706=No auxiliary driver installed. Some sound devices may be unavailable.
707=8-bit sound devices are obsolete. Use a 16-bit sound device for better sound quality.
708=Mono sound devices are obsolete. Use a Stereo sound device for better sound experience.
709=Low sample rate device. Use a 44.1kHz sampling device for better sound quality.
710=Driver may be obsolete. Check that it is the latest version.

; Mouse tips
800=Uninstall Accessibility Features if you don't use them to conserve memory.
801=DOS mouse driver version is obsolete. Check for a mouse driver update.
802=Double-click speed may have been set too low.
803=A mouse with wheel is recommended for better control.
804=A USB or PS/2 mouse is recommended.

; Keyboard tips
900=Uninstall Accessibility Features if you don't use them to conserve memory.
901=Non-standard keyboard detected. Check that this is correct.
902=The Keyboard.sys driver is required for non-US systems in DOS mode.

; APM tips
1100=Disable APM from the BIOS if you don't use it. Performance may improve.
1101=Using APM on desktops may result in reduced performance or delays.
1102=Clock slowdown may reduce performance.
1103=Battery level is low. Find a mains supply!
1104=An APM BIOS Ver 1.02 or later may offer better performance/support. Check for a BIOS update.
1105=Drive spin-down time may be too low. Generally a value of 30-60 min is recommended.
1106=Drive spin-down may be unnecessary on desktops or while on AC power.
1107=System does not support ACPI. Check for a BIOS update.

; PCI & AGP tips
1200=PCI Ver 2.20 or later offers better performance/support. Check for a BIOS update.
1201=Early versions of hardware may contain bugs or incompatibilities.
1202=Device does not support bus mastering.
1203=VGA palette snooping seriously reduces video performance. Disable it if you don't need it.
1204=Slow device. Bus efficiency may be reduced.
1205=AGP Ver 2.00 or later may offer better performance.
1206=PCI latency too high. Device could hog the bus for too long.
1207=AGP Ver 2.00 devices may be incompatible with early AGP 1.0 boards.
1208=Video card shares an interrupt with other PCI device.
1209=Video card does not have an interrupt assigned.

; Windows Tips
1300=Enter your company name or "Home" instead of "Unknown".
1301=Enter your name or licence holder's instead of "Unknown".
1302=Double-Buffering is only needed for real mode SCSI devices.
1303=DoubleSpace & DriveSpace are only needed if you use disk compression.
1304=Install the MS-Plus! pack or Internet Explorer 4.0+.
1305=Restart Windows. Running it for too long may reduce performance.
1306=Shrink the Win.ini configuration file. Remove orphaned entries.
1307=Clean-up the registry. Remove orphaned entries by running RegClean.
1308=Boot without the Windows logo to reduce boot delay.
1309=Set task-bar to auto-hide to maximise available desktop space.
1310=Install the Windows 95 OSR1 patch (950a+).
1311=Upgrade to Windows 98.
1312=Shrink the System.ini configuration file. Remove orphaned entries.

; Ports Tips
1400=An 16550AF+ UART is recommended for good Windows comms.

; Processes Tips
1600=Program was written for an older version of Windows. Check for an update.
1601=Program consumes a large amount of memory.

; Modules Tips
1700=Module was written for an older version of Windows. Check for an update.

; Drives Tips
1800=Increase free disk space. Some programs may run out of disk space.
1801=Disk compression may reduce performance or introduce incompatibilities.
1802=Large cluster sizes waste disk space. Break drive into smaller partitions or use FAT32.
1803=Increase max. disk cache. It should be at least 25% of system memory.
1804=Decrease min. disk cache. It should be at most 25% of system memory.
1805=Change typical role to 'Network Server' to improve disk performance.
1806=Change typical role to 'Mobile Computer' to increase usable memory.
1807=Increase read-ahead buffer size to improve disk performance.
1808=Large cluster sizes waste disk space. Break drive into smaller partitions or use NTFS.
1809=Reduce CD-ROM cache size to increase usable memory.
1810=Use a 32-bit Windows disk driver. Check controller settings as well.
1811=Turn off troubleshooting options. Performance may be adversely affected.
1812=Reduce Recycle Bin size. Free drive space is low.
1813=Scan drive for errors at least weekly.
1814=Optimise drive at least monthly.
1815=Change typical role to 'Desktop Computer' to improve performance.
1816=Check CD-ROM cache optimise pattern setting to improve CD-ROM performance.
1817=Backup drive at least weekly.
1818=Scan drive for viruses at least weekly.
1819=Image drive at least weekly.
1820=Update virus definition files at least quarterly.
1821=Label (name) drive.
1822=DMA transfers improve performance. Enable it if possible.
1823=SCSI drives usually offer higher performance.
1824=Empty the Recycle Bin. Free drive space is low.
1825=Consider compressing the drive. Compress or delete unneeded files to increase free space.
1826=Clean your drive of unneeded files to increase free space.
1827=Adjust BIOS drive settings. Performance may improve.
1828=Increase CD-ROM cache size to improve CD-ROM performance.

; DOS Memory Tips
1900=Increase free base memory. Remove DOS device drivers/TSR programs from the configuration files.
1901=EMS support may be required for older DOS games or applications.
1902=DPMI support may be required for new DOS games or applications.
1903=Increase free DPMI memory. See DOS program settings.
1904=A EMS page-frame is required for compatibility with EMS 3.2 or older DOS applications.
1905=Load DOS into HMA (High Memory Area).

; Windows Memory Tips
2000=Install more memory. Windows runs optimally on machines with 16MB RAM or more.
2001=Low system resources. Close down some applications or restart Windows.
2002=Memory load is at 200%. Close down some applications.
2003=Use a larger swap file or install more memory. The swap file usage is over 90%.
2004=Swap file is too large. The swap file should be around 2.5 times system memory.
2005=Use a fixed-size swap file. This is faster than a variable-size swap file.
2006=Increase free base memory. Remove DOS device drivers/TSR programs from the configuration files.
2007=Use a 32-bit swap (page) file driver. Check that the drive uses a 32-bit driver.
2008=Move swap file to a disk with more free space.
2009=Disable/Uninstall memory compressor to improve performance. Install more real memory.
2010=Update the memory manager. It appears to be obsolete.

; DOS Dev Tips
2100=EMM386 may not be needed. Remove it.
2101=QEMM may be incompatible with some programs. Remove it.
2102=SETVER is not needed. Remove it.
2103=DoubleSpace compression may reduce performance or introduce incompatibilities.
2104=DoubleBuffering is only needed for DOS SCSI disk devices. Turn it off if not needed.
2105=DOS SoundBlaster drivers are no longer needed. Remove them.
2106=DOS SCSI drivers are no longer needed in Windows. Remove them.
2120=DISPLAY is not needed. Remove it.
2121=ANSI may not be needed. Remove it.
2122=DOS CD-ROM drivers are no longer needed in Windows. Remove them.

; DirectX Tips
2200=DirectX support is required for multimedia titles or games. Install DirectX.
2201=DirectDraw support may be required for Windows games or multimedia titles. Install DirectX or check for a video driver update.
2202=Direct3D support may be required for Windows games or multimedia titles. Install DirectX.
2203=DirectSound support may be required for Windows games or multimedia titles. Install DirectX or check for a sound driver update.
2204=DirectPlay support may be required for multi-player Windows games. Install DirectX.
2205=DirectX version is obsolete (DDv2 not supported). Install DirectX 5 or later.
2206=DirectX driver does not support Direct3D. Install DirectX 5 or later.
2207=Video card does not have 3D accelerated hardware. Consider upgrading.
2208=Bank-switching reduces performance. Enable the Linear Frame Buffer.
2209=Too little free memory for Direct3D. Increase video memory or reduce display resolution/colour depth.
2210=DirectInput support may be required for multimedia titles or games. Install DirectX.
2211=No hardware colour-space conversion support.
2212=No hardware stretch support.
2213=No hardware overlay support.
2214=No mip-mapping support.
2215=No texture-mapping support.
2216=No Z-buffering support.
2217=No dithering support.
2218=No alpha-blending support.
2219=No perspective-correction support.
2220=No transparency support.
2221=Driver is not certified.
2222=No fog support.
2223=DirectX version is old (DD4 not supported). Install DirectX 6 or later.
2224=DirectX version is old (D3Dv3 not supported). Install DirectX 6 or later.

; Modem (Comms Devs) Tips
2300=Modem does not seem to be PnP.

; Mainboard Tips
2500=Slow Windows system. Install more memory or upgrade the CPU.
2501=Lack of L2 cache greatly reduces performance. Install some.
2502=Pipeline-burst cache improves performance. Replace it.
2503=512KB of L2 cache is recommended for large memory systems. Some memory may not be cached.
2504=1MB of L2 cache is recommended for very large memory systems. Some memory may not be cached.
2505=System does not support memory error detection. Some memory errors may go unnoticed.
2506=System does not support memory error correction. System will stop if memory errors are found.
2507=Mainboard has too few memory slots. Upgrading the memory may be difficult or expensive.
2508=All memory slots are full. Upgrading the memory may be difficult or expensive.
2509=Front side bus speed seems low. Increase it while keeping the CPU speed constant.
2510=Chipset may not be able to cache all the physical memory installed.
2511=Some memory slots are free so the memory can be easily upgraded.
2512=USB Host is obsolete. Some USB devices may not work.
2513=AGP Bus is unused. An AGP card would improve 3D performance.
2514=Memory read timing is high. Performance may be low.
2515=Memory write timing is high. Performance may be low.
2516=SDRAM, BEDO or EDO memory is recommended for optimum performance.
2517=60ns or faster memory is recommended for optimum performance.
2518=Mainboard temperature is too high!
2519=One of the system fans has failed!
2520=PCI bus speed is too high. Reduce FSB speed or FSB/PCI multiplier.
2521=AGP bus speed is too high. Reduce FSB speed or FSB/AGP multiplier.
2522=SDRAM, HSDRAM or RDRAM memory is recommended for optimum performance.
2523=Memory bus speed exceeds memory rated speed. Reduce memory bus speed.
2524=AGP Aperture size should be less or equal to system memory.
2525=Current AGP data rate not optimal.
2526=ISA/DMA bus speed is too high. Reduce PCI speed or PCI/ISA multiplier.
2527=Compensation was added to external temperature sensors.
2528=System monitor device implementation is known to vary.

; SCSI Tips
2600=SCSI version does not adhere to ANSI. Probably EIDE/ATAPI device.

; Font Tips
2700=Too many fonts. Consider removing some.

; 3D Video Tips
2800=Glide version is obsolete. Install Glide 3 or later.

; Dial-Up Tips
2900=No phone number specified. Possibly incorrect data.
2901=Use IP header compression if possible.
2902=Use software compression if possible.
2903=Use PPP framing protocol instead of SLIP.
2904=Consider a script file to speed up access if the connection supports it.

; CPU Bench Tips
5000=CPU utilisation is too high. Close all running programs.
5001=Low Dhrystone index. Check ACPI/APM settings, cache settings and BIOS settings.
5002=Low Whetstone index. Check ACPI/APM settings, cache settings and BIOS settings.
5003=Benchmark has measured single-processor performance only.
5004=Synthetic benchmark. May not tally with 'real-life' performance.
5005=Use dynamic load balance in special cases only.
5006=Only compare the results with ones obtained using the same version!
5007=SMP system with non-SMP kernel in sigle CPU mode.
5008=To change benchmarks, click Options.
5009=SSE2 Whetstone not standard test.

; Video Bench Tips
5100=Low Video index. Close all running programs.

; Drives Benchmark Tips
5200=Increase Free Space. Test result may be inaccurate.
5201=Low Disk index. Check drive & controller settings.
5202=Use cache on to measure Windows performance.
5203=Bypass cache to measure controller/disk performance.
5204=CPU utilisation high. Check DMA bus-mastering is enabled.

; CD Benchmark Tips
5300=A 600MB+ VideoCD or DVD is recommended for thorough testing.
5301=A 600MB+ data disk is recommended for thorough testing.
5302=To test VideoCD/DVD performance, use a VideoCD or DVD.
5303=To test data read performance, use a data CD.
5304=Low CD-ROM index. Check drive & controller settings.

; Memory Bench Tips
5400=Low memory index. Check BIOS memory read wait states.
5401=Low memory index. Check BIOS memory write wait states.
5402=Low L2 cache index. Check CPU cache settings.
5403=Tests using MMX/SSE(2) are not standard STREAM.
5404=May need to rerun for stable result.

; CPU Multi-Media Bench
5500=No MMX/SSE(2) support, integer test executed on the ALU.
5501=No 3DNow!/SSE(2) support, floating-point test executed on the FPU.