Skip to Content
Windows XP in a Nutshell
book

Windows XP in a Nutshell

by David A. Karp, Tim O'Reilly, Troy Mott
April 2002
Beginner
640 pages
27h 54m
English
O'Reilly Media, Inc.
Content preview from Windows XP in a Nutshell

Name

DirectX Management Tool — \windows\system32\dxdiag.exe

Synopsis

Test, diagnose, and tweak DirectXdrivers.

To Open

Command Prompt dxdiag

Description

DirectX is the system that allows applications, usually games, to directly access graphic, audio, and input devices to maximize performance. Unless you’re experiencing a problem with DirectX or a program that uses DirectX, you should never need to use the DirectX Management Tool. If you do indeed encounter a problem, such as poor performance, an apparent glitch in a game, an error message, or some other compatibility problem, use the following steps to diagnose and treat the condition:

  1. DirectX relies on hardware drivers, so the first thing you should do whenever you encounter problems with DirectX is make sure you have the latest drivers for your display adapter, sound card, and game controller (if applicable).

  2. Next, go to http://www.microsoft.com/directx/ and see if there’s a more recent version of DirectX than the one installed on your system. To determine the currently installed version of DirectX, open the DirectX Management Tool and read the DirectX Version on the bottom of the System tab. The initial release of Windows XP ships with DirectX 8.1.

  3. If you’re experiencing problems only with a certain application or game, check with the manufacturer of that software to see if there’s an update or compatibility issue with your specific hardware. Often, manufacturers will post workarounds, patches, or other fixes on their web sites. ...

Become an O’Reilly member and get unlimited access to this title plus top books and audiobooks from O’Reilly and nearly 200 top publishers, thousands of courses curated by job role, 150+ live events each month,
and much more.

Read now

Unlock full access

More than 5,000 organizations count on O’Reilly

AirBnbBlueOriginElectronic ArtsHomeDepotNasdaqRakutenTata Consultancy Services

QuotationMarkO’Reilly covers everything we've got, with content to help us build a world-class technology community, upgrade the capabilities and competencies of our teams, and improve overall team performance as well as their engagement.
Julian F.
Head of Cybersecurity
QuotationMarkI wanted to learn C and C++, but it didn't click for me until I picked up an O'Reilly book. When I went on the O’Reilly platform, I was astonished to find all the books there, plus live events and sandboxes so you could play around with the technology.
Addison B.
Field Engineer
QuotationMarkI’ve been on the O’Reilly platform for more than eight years. I use a couple of learning platforms, but I'm on O'Reilly more than anybody else. When you're there, you start learning. I'm never disappointed.
Amir M.
Data Platform Tech Lead
QuotationMarkI'm always learning. So when I got on to O'Reilly, I was like a kid in a candy store. There are playlists. There are answers. There's on-demand training. It's worth its weight in gold, in terms of what it allows me to do.
Mark W.
Embedded Software Engineer

You might also like

Windows XP in a Nutshell, Second Edition

Windows XP in a Nutshell, Second Edition

David A. Karp, Tim O'Reilly, Troy Mott
Windows XP Professional: The Missing Manual

Windows XP Professional: The Missing Manual

David Pogue, Craig Zacker, L.J. Zacker
Microsoft® Windows® XP Unleashed

Microsoft® Windows® XP Unleashed

Terry William Ogletree, Walter Glenn, Rima Regas

Publisher Resources

ISBN: 0596002491Catalog PageErrata