AGP Graphics cards....worth it?

[vi5]

If only for the lack of drain on the processor is it worth it to install one?

I'm assuming set up involved is minimal and graphics automatically start going through the card and using it's resources rather than draining the processor.

Anye experience or advice on the matter. I'm mostly doing video editing, and even with 1 gb of ram I'm finding it a drain on my system and more slow moving than I would like.

[trotsky]

1. So you currently have a PCI card, or is it integrated in the motherboard?

eom

[vi5]

2. Integrated

[trotsky]

3. Do you know if the integrated controller is already AGP?

If so, did you try increasing the AGP aperture size in the BIOS?

[vi5]

5. How can I tell?

[trotsky]

6. Go into the BIOS, it will generally have it listed in there

If you see a way to change AGP aperture size, your onboard is AGP. Default may be 64MB, bump it up to 128 and see if that helps.

AGP aperture will allow the onboard AGP to borrow up to the aperture amount of system RAM for additional video processing. This may or may not help, depending on what is choking your current controller.

[vpigrad]

4. It just depends...

What kind of integrated card do you have and what type of AGP card are you thinking about replacing it with? Also, do you play games? If that answer is no, then the integrated will work just fine.

[aden_nak]

7. Holy hell, an INTEGRATED graphics card for video editing?

That's barbaric. That's like performing oral surgery with a rusty screwdriver.

[vi5]

8. Exactly...although it does perform o.k....

I'm surprised honestly. My only complaint is that it's a bit slow in patches. My computer is only 1 year old and I've upgraded almost everything else on it. Just wondering if it's worth it to do the video card and if I go with the AGP how complicated it is.

[aden_nak]

9. It's stunningly easy.

You buy an AGP graphics card. You plug it into the slot (there is only one it is even the right size for). Then, on some computers, you go into the BIOS and turn off the Integrated Graphics Adapter. On others, the machine does that for you. Then you do what you would do with any other new hardware, install the drivers and all that jazz.

Really, it's no more difficult than installing a sound card, and a whole hell of a lot easier than installing a modem.

[vi5]

10. Then I probably will do it....

Like I said my comp is only a year old so everything I have installed so far to upgrade it (larger auxilliary hard drive, new dvd burner, memory upgrade) have installed without me having to do anything other than attach them and close up the box. I had some issues with the slave drive setting but other than that.

So if it's as easy as doing those things then I will probably make the upgrade.