All PCs have a number of devices that are connected either permanently or as required. Some of these devices may be fitted as integral parts of the system while others are connected externally. Common to all these devices are device drivers or PC drivers, which act as a link between the operating system and the devices. They interpret operating system commands so that devices can understand them, enabling the operating system to issue high level commands that take no account of the actual device to which they are connected.
Most PCs have a dedicated sound card fitted, which provides the audio from your computer, ranging from warning beeps through to speech and music. A sound card may also need to handle audio input through a microphone, such as voice input to a dictation application or where voice commands are enabled. It may additionally have to deal with audio input and output together if you have a telephone connected in order to make VOIP (Voice Over Internet Protocol) telephone calls.
In some cases, there is no separate sound card and all audio output is handled by a chipset on the computer’s motherboard. This does not give the same quality of sound as a dedicated sound card and audio input is not handled. Every sound card or audio chipset will have a special kind of device driver or PC driver, known as an audio driver, which ensures that the sounds that come out of your computer are as they should be and that input sound is interpreted correctly.
Audio Input and Output
Depending on what you use your computer for, sound may be emitted through a variety of devices — possibly speakers built into the PC’s display screen, dedicated speakers connected to audio ports or a complete home theatre speaker system. When sound is handled by the motherboard only, output audio will be via internal and limited speakers. You will know if your PC has a sound card fitted because, if it has, there will be marked input and output sockets at the rear of the computer’s case. Here you can plug in headphones, speakers and microphones. If you have a VOIP telephone, this will plug into a USB socket.
Clearly, your PC’s sound card or chipset, and their associated audio drivers, need to be able to handle all the different possibilities.
Why Audio Drivers are Needed
There are a large number of sound cards and motherboard chipsets available from various manufacturers. Additionally, there are very many devices that can be connected to sound cards and various programs that can input or output through them. This gives a tremendous number of possible combinations that an operating system simply cannot handle.
The answer to the problem is to provide audio drivers for the various cards and devices. These are specific to the device and have versions for particular operating systems. When a sound is to be emitted through a device, the operating system will output the sound and a high level command that states what is required. This is interpreted by the audio driver so that the command sent to the device is in a form that the device can understand. Similarly, when sound is input, it is sent with a processing request that the audio driver translates before passing it to the operating system.
In addition to solving the problem of multiple sound cards and devices, an audio driver also deals with different sound formats (such as WMA and WAV). It may handle playback and recording at the same time if a duplex sound card is fitted, may cover various input and output streams (16 bit, stereo, 48 kHz) and could cater for different formats (such as high definition audio).
Audio Driver Problems
Sometimes audio drivers can cause a problem, which may become apparent when there is poor sound quality. One way to resolve this may be to let Windows reinstall them when you restart the PC. To do this, access Device Manager. Depending on the operating system you use, this may be available from the Control Panel or by right-clicking My Computer then choosing Manage.
The Device Manager will list the types of devices in the right pane and you need to delete all devices under the ‘Sound, video and game controllers’ heading, then reboot. If this doesn’t work, update the drivers by re-selecting the device through Device Manager. Click Properties, select the Driver tab and click the Update Driver button to download drivers and install the latest version on your PC. When you complete the process, restart your computer.
If the sound level is not correct, select Sound at the Control Panel, choose the playback and recording device and click Properties. Then set the required volume at the Levels tab.
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May 19th, 2009
Your PC will have several devices connected, both internal devices such as disk drives and sound cards, and external ones such as printers and scanners. Each of these devices will have a device driver or PC driver that interprets the operating system’s commands so that they can be carried out correctly by the device.
Why You Might Need to Rollback Drivers
When you get a new PC, it will have a certain number or device drivers installed and, as you add further devices, you will install device drivers that are supplied with them. Over time, device manufacturers will issue new PC drivers that are designed to fix known problems, improve security or enhance the performance of the device. You should, therefore, download and update drivers frequently to ensure you have up-to-date versions and everything works as it is intended to do.
As with any software, a new version of a device driver can cause problems. It may conflict with something else you have installed or may not work properly for some reason. Because of this, you should always backup drivers before installing new versions so that you can, if necessary, go back to a previous version that worked.
One way to backup drivers is to create a restore point before you update your drivers. This is possible with certain operating systems, such as Windows Vista. An alternative is to try to back them up manually but this is fraught with danger since you’ll probably not get them all. They are generally somewhere like C:\Windows\system32\DRIVERS — the Device Manager will give you the exact location of each one. The good news is that, if you use Device Manager to update your drivers, it will keep a copy of the old version.
If you start to experience problems after updating a driver or after updating software that may have come with new device drivers, then the driver may well be the cause of the problem. The hardware may refuse to work or may not operate correctly. This may be because it is not compatible with the version of the operating system that you are using.
When you experience problems in these circumstances, the best solution is usually to rollback drivers to their previous versions and see if this cures the fault.
How to Rollback Drivers
If you have created a restore point, you can simply go back to that point so that you use the device drivers before the update was done. None of your data will be affected by this and you can rollback several PC drivers in one operation. To go back to a restore point, select System Restore from the Control Panel and choose to restore to the latest or a previous restore point.
When you have taken a backup of drivers, you can copy these versions back in place of the updated ones. However, the alternative and much safer method is to rollback your drivers individually, which will identify the driver causing the problem if you have updated several device drivers together. To do this, access Device Manager. Depending on the operating system you use, this may be available from the Control Panel or by right-clicking My Computer then choosing Manage. Device Manager will list the types of device in the right pane and you need to open up each one to see the actual devices you have connected.
Right click each device and click Properties in the popup menu, then click the Driver tab to see details of the installed device driver.
Click the Roll Back Driver button and then confirm the action to set the driver back to the previous version. On completion, you will be prompted to restart your computer. Choose to do this and then check that the fault has been corrected. If not, you may need to rollback other drivers until things are back to normal.
Outdated PC Drivers?
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May 9th, 2009
All computer hardware needs device drivers to communicate with the operating system. In Windows quite a few device drivers are included with the installation. But for a lot of hardware, special device drivers are required. If drivers are corrupted or not installed properly, Windows will report a device error. One of the device errors that the Windows Device Manager can report is a code 10 error, indicating that the device cannot start.
A code 10 error means one of the following:
- A hardware compatibility issue
- Missing Windows software updates
- Incompatible, outdated, or corrupted device drivers
- Device configuration issues
To fix code 10 errors, the first steps are always to check if your hardware is compatible with your Windows version. Next, make sure your Windows version is up to date with the latest patches and service packs installed. If all this is done, the next step is to update and install your drivers. If code 10 is caused by driver issues, updating the drivers is going to solve it. You can use the Windows device manager to uninstall any currently installed driver for the device and the reinstall the latest driver.
If you do not have the drivers for the device in error, you could try using a device driver update program to find, download and update the drivers for you.
Other Causes For Code 10 Errors
If you are running Windows XP with SP1 or SP2, the error code 10 can also occur for FireWire, or IEEE 1394 devices. In that case, you need to install a hotfix from Microsoft.
If the code 10 error occurs for a DVD driver, there could be a problem with your registry. In most cases this is the result of installing or uninstalling software for DVD creation or burning, like Nero or Roxio.
The result is a corrupt registry. Sometimes simply uninstalling the CD burning software helps, but in most cases you also need to delete some registry entries. More specifically the UpperFilters and LowerFilters of the DVD device class. Luckily Microsoft again has a simple solution for this, which includes instruction for manually editing the registry as well as a tool to fix the problematic registry keys.
With external devices, the connection can also be a problem, so make sure you try different ports if possible (especially with USB devices), check or change cables, and remove USB hubs if used. Removing and reinstalling the drivers for all USB controllers can also help in the case of USB devices. Simply uninstall the USB controllers in the Device Manager, restart Windows and let the devices and drivers be reinstalled.
A last possible cause for code 10 errors is that the device has configuration problems. Alwasy try the hardware with the default settings first, and then install the drivers. Configuration errors can also be found in the Device Manager, by checking the resource assignments for the device. Any conflicts between devices can cause one of the devices not to start.
May 8th, 2009
Your PC can have lots of devices connected to it. These may be devices that are:
- connected permanently because they’re built in to the machine; these devices can include hard disk drives, CD-ROM and DVD drives, network cards and sound cards
- normally connected to the PC, such as printers, scanners and broadband routers that are usually switched on when the machine is running
- plugged in occasionally to transfer data, such as digital cameras and MP3 players.
A device driver, sometimes also known as a PC driver, is a means of communication between the PC and a particular device.
Why Device Drivers are Needed
It is possible to connect a huge range of devices to a PC — any number of printers, storage devices and communications equipment. Each of these devices has different requirements and characteristics while your PC’s operating system may also vary, with separate versions of Windows, Linux and the Mac operating system having different ways of working and a whole range of commands.
The problem is that all the various operating systems need to be able to talk to each device, or at least most of them, so that they can be used on the PC. They need to issue requests and receive responses so that everything works. But with so many variations, with literally thousands of devices being available, the permutations and combinations are impossibly high.
The answer to the problem is a device driver, which is developed for a specific device and has versions for the various editions of operating systems. The purpose of the device or PC driver is to serve as a bridge between the PC and a device, interpreting requests from the operating system and passing them to the device, then handling responses from devices in the opposite direction. As a result, the operating system can issue generic commands and receive generic responses, without needing to know or care about the specific device to which it is connected. The operating system only needs to know that is it a laser printer, hard disk or whatever, and can issue high level commands accordingly. The device driver simplifies the whole process.
How Device Drivers Work
Most computer processing is concerned with handling data and, depending on the type and use of the data, there are different programs to deal with it. Word processors cover letters and documents, spreadsheets handle data in tabular form, there are drawing applications, video editing products and all kinds of software.
Each of these programs will generally need to communicate with devices, reading data from a disk and outputting a report to a printer, for example. All communications go via the computer’s operating system and device drivers are used to interpret the command so that the device can understand it.
If a database program wants to output a report, it will send the data and print command to the appropriate printer via the operating system. Since the printer has device drivers loaded, the operating system only needs to issue a high level command to the printer without bothering about what type of printer it actually is. The device driver will interpret this command, breaking it down into low level commands that are specific to the printer, before passing them on.
When the printer or other device receives the commands, because they have been interpreted and translated by the device driver, it understands them and can act accordingly. Once the command is successfully completed, or if there are problems, a suitable response is sent back. This response is picked up by the device driver and again interpreted by it, this time converting it from a device-specific command into a high level command that is passed to the operating system and then to the program so that the outcome is known.
Much computer processing involves a whole series of commands and responses being passed backwards and forwards. Each one is picked up and translated by the appropriate device driver so that it is meaningful to the recipient. Device drivers, therefore, have a vital role to play in the smooth operation of a PC.
Got Outdated Drivers?
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April 11th, 2009
For a company that’s lost a lot of profit over the past year, Intel is not one to back down from trying new products and marketing them heavily. Just recently, they released two versions of its Xeon processors for servers, and already companies have started to bundle them with stand-alone packages. In an attempt to get back what it’s lost, they’ve continued the momentum by announcing two new brands of processors.
First, a new brand of processors for storage products and embedded applications, coded-named Jasper Forest. Not a lot of information has been shown thus far about the products, but it will come in single-, dual-, and quad-core flavors. According to Owen Fletcher, “The input/output hub on Jasper Forest has been integrated right onto the chip,” something that hasn’t been tried with previous processors of this type.
Second, a new version of the popular Atom microprocessor line for mobile devices and netbooks, this time with 2 GHz speed. While it’s definitely the edge that Netbooks are going to need if they want to attract more sales in the upcoming year, having a 2 GHz Atom inside a Palm Pilot or Blackberry would make it a lot more efficient than the majority of the processors built for these devices. Equally awesome, the entire line of Atom products will support Windows 7 right out of the box, great news for those who want to plunge right in to the new OS when it gets released.
The overall news is pretty vague, but it’s a good sign that Intel’s not ready to lay low and wait for the tide to clear before making more products.
April 8th, 2009
There are two new $250 graphics cards out on the market, one from Nvidia, the other from AMD. While they both have their ups and downs, there’s almost always a way to get an older card to do what you want, albeit risky. I’m talking about overclocking, or forcing the part to work harder than intended, your computer. There’s the real way: getting into your BIOS and figuring out what speeds you need or can handle, but there’s also a lazier way that just gets the job done right, using a freeware product.
The kind I’m going to dive into is RivaTuner, which I use for my Nvidia GeForce 9600 GT. It’s a very simple program that lets you set up your speed right inside Windows. It may not be as powerful or useful as actually digging into your BIOS, but it will definitely get the job done for most of us. Using the product, I was able to overclock the 9600 GT by over 10%, as well as my DDR2 RAM. This is more than enough to get that extra kick of quality, making my time spent a lot more enjoyable.
The key is to figure out how high you’ll be able to go before your card can’t take it anymore and crashes. Slowly increase the clock speeds of your graphics card and memory, by checking with the same game. I knew I was in trouble when green bars started showing up unexpectedly and crashed the game, but your system may end up doing all sorts of things when it’s begging for mercy. Just bring it down a notch, and you’ll notice a far superior product. After you find a speed you’re comfortable with, have Windows launch the program at start-up, just so that you don’t have to worry about opening it every time you want to play a game.
Note that every card has its limits, and eventually you will need to upgrade if you plan to keep playing newer games. This will make the wait to cross that bridge much longer.
April 3rd, 2009
We’ve got a double-shot of netbook action today! For starters, long-time computer maker Hewlett-Packard announced that it may end up choosing Google Android, a Linux-based operating system that’s currently being used for mobile devices, for its upcoming lineup of netbooks. The article by CNet seems to site licensing costs by Microsoft as the driving force for the decision, not to mention that putting a sub-$200 console in today’s market would be an incredibly wise move to make, as analysts predict that 2009, and the next few years, will become a record-breaking time in netbook sales.
Given Google’s track record of quality products left open to the public, it’s not surprising that HP will likely make a deal with them in order to save money from purchasing Windows 7, or even left-over licenses from Vista. Plus, given Google’s great name in the IT world, it makes it a much more attractive Linux-based platform than a freeware-OS like Ubuntu would. Expect other companies to jump on this bandwagon in the coming months, or Microsoft to come up with a great idea to counteract them.
Next up, Tom’s Hardware caught a glimpse of Dell’s soon-to-be released netbook, capable of 720p output, or 1366×768 resolution, on a sleek widescreen that still utilizes the minimalistic attitude that netbooks offer. They do mention the caveat of a measly maximum 1 gig of RAM, which doesn’t seem to fit well with the idea of high definition video and gaming. One can’t help but wonder if the Mini 10′s widescreen and output defeats the purpose of the netbook: a cheap computer that’s super portable and does the bare essentials.
These are both huge steps in the new platform, the potential is really coming alive for these products in the near future. Being able to do more with less has always been an attractive selling point, and with all sorts of companies jumping on board, there’s simply going to be no stopping them any time soon.
April 1st, 2009
File this one under Gloating. A few weeks ago, we reported the rumor that Microsoft’s Internet Explorer 8 would be the final stop in the series, and given the reception of the just-released web browser, those suspicions just might be true.
PC World was reporting (using a tracker by Net Applications) that the new IE8 has failed to bring a significant amount of users from different browsers. In fact, they’ve lost some of their market share, which now stands at around 67% of the Internet, compared to almost 75% a year ago. Now, this isn’t an “abandon ship!” call, as 67% is obviously still the majority, but consider this: FireFox’s audience has grown almost 5% in that same time frame, with Apple’s Safari gaining a small audience from IE as well.
What does this mean? It means that IE8 was unable to innovate against the new market and bring some of the FireFox faithful onto their side. With Apple’s growing audience, Safari will be a surefire gain in the coming years. Google, obviously being Google, will definitely see a growth in their browser usage when enough word gets out about it. All of the aforementioned companies have spent significant resources upgrading their platform, making it more user-friendly while adding a bunch of neat features. What has Microsoft done?
Allowed users to remove IE8 from Windows 7, of course!
Obviously Microsoft will still own a very significant portion of the Internet browser share for as long as people own Windows operating systems, since the vast majority of users won’t mind some of the differences between IE8 and one of the competitors, but the question remains: just how long will that last until Mozilla finally takes most of the market share, and then what will Google accomplish later on?
March 25th, 2009
Almost three months after Intel started Beta support of Windows 7, and not too long after Nvidia updated its GPUs as well, their big rival has finally stepped up and released a driver that gives the support of its library of GPUs to the new OS today. AMD’s Radeon collection will now work with Windows 7′s beta as well as DirectX 10.1, and should keep their aim set on updating their line of processors somewhere down the line.
It’s interesting to note that since AMD has been steadily losing some much-needed ground to both Intel and Nvidia over the past few years, they wouldn’t begin supporting the new OS much sooner. This isn’t a whole lot to be concerned over, since it’s still in beta and doesn’t have a confirmed release date yet (but is rumored to be out sometime this year), but it would make sense on both the business scale and their consumers’ confidence that they would have all the pieces worked out for its line of products to avoid what happened back when Vista was released.
All in all, good show. Another company signs up and is willing to back up Microsoft in its new platform. As long as we’re not going to see another bombshell like last time, we’ll be satisfied with how this OS turns out.
March 20th, 2009
Xandros Presto seems like a really neat idea: being able to get on your computer to do a few simple tasks without waiting for Windows to boot is a smart time saver for people on the go. But in reality, that’s all it accomplishes in its Open Beta. The 483 MB download and quick installation basically attaches itself to your motherboard, and works just like putting a second operating system onto your hard drive, allowing you whether to boot Presto or Windows when you start your computer. This is a similar approach enjoyed by Mac owners who prefer Windows operating systems, only a with much less space and a whole lot faster.
I was impressed by the fact that it booted relatively quickly. My computer (2.66 Intel Core 2 Duo, 4 Gigs DDR2 RAM) boots Vista from turning the computer on to letting me get to work in 53 seconds, which is not terrible considering…that it’s Vista. Presto was able to embarass the boot speed by booting in 27 seconds, almost half of what it takes to get Vista going. And with the bare bones approach: Firefox, Skype, the ability to chat using any other IM service, and being able to pull up existing files using Open Office, I was able to get started on whatever I wanted to right away. So for people on the go with laptops and netbooks, Presto gets my recommendation.
Desktop users may want to avoid it, however. A 26 second difference isn’t going to be huge for a lot of people, and Presto doesn’t pick up on most devices. So your camera, iPod, even your wireless connection, are compeltely out of the picture when using Presto. Putting drivers in conjunction with Presto seems to be a big hassle as well, since there won’t be much of a market for developers to have their products work with a small-scale developer like Xandros. It’s easy to tell that Presto is built from the ground-up using Linux, cutting as many corners as possible to achieve a fast bood speed. The convenience is no match for actually being able to do things on your desktop.
Another thing that bugged me was how ugly the interface looked. There wasn’t nothing but a stoic grey background, accompanied with a few buttons on the left side of the screen that was stretched out because of my widescreen monitor. Xandros 4.1 doesn’t look that bad, why can’t Presto look a little more like that? Widescreen support would be nice, but the target audience seems to be those with laptops and netbooks, the latter which doesn’t offer any widescreen format for the sake of its compactness.
I honestly don’t see any desktop users picking up the full product, but there should be plenty of gold to mine with the laptop and netbook crowd. The Open Beta will at least look at getting some of the bugs out of the way for the April 13 launch, hopefully Xandros will work on getting it to work with wireless connections and devices more efficiently. The product will retail for $19.99.
March 17th, 2009
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