"Could Not Create Offscreen Surface"

[Bill Poje]

Hello and Happy New Year!

So...I have the pinball system working and am playing games fine. Separately Windows 7 tells me that there is a problem with my graphics card. So...I go to my graphics card company website and run the auto detect program and run the updates for the software.

Then...later in the day...I decided to play a game... and I get the error message that states "Could not create offscreen surface." Then the Windows message the "Visual Pinball has stopped working" appeared after I clicked on OK on the error message.

I did a full PC reboot but the situation did not change. I tried a couple of different tables but it made no difference.

My desktop is a Windows 7 Dell Optiplex 380. I run Windows 7 64 bit. My graphics card is an ATI Radeon HD 4300/4500 Series. My desktop Monitor = Dell Generic PnP Monitor aka…Dell 2405 FPW with resolution set at 1280 x 960.

Separately...even after running the Radeon update...Windows 7 stills tells me in Action Center a message "Solve a problem with AMD - Display Adapter - ATI Radeon Graphics Card." yet, when I click on the "solve this" it goes to control panel\action center and I get told "the solution could not be downloaded." So I am not sure what is going on there!

So...any assistance is appreciated!

Thanks

Bill

 

[GSGregg]

Yo, Bill!

"Could Not/Can't Create....." errors are usually from insufficient video RAM; if your card is a one-gigabyte model, things should work, but a 512MB is going to be taxed by newer tables with higher-res graphics---and 256MB? Fageddaboudit! Did the vendor's auto-detect program tell you what model of 43/4500 card you have?

Also, are you still running only VP8? I've encountered ball stutter on some VP8s that have (for instance) PacDude's Fading/Flashing Lights (the parts of the playfield being lit and then unlit several times per second are being redrawn with each change, and that greatly increases processing demand. In VP9, that demand can be reduced by going to Preferences > Video Options and selecting a lower Maximum Texture Dimension, moving the Alpha Transparency Slider to the left and (for some AMD gfx cards) turning off Hardware Rendering. VP8 has no provision for adjusting these.

Another issue could be from changing tables without closing and reopening VP before opening the next table.....referred to, I believe, as a 'memory leak'; with each additional table selected, available memory is gradually reduced.

What did you find out regarding the 'double vision' on Jamin's Roadshow?

And finally, what'd you think of Oklahoma's 'redistribution' of the Crimson Tide?



GSG

 

[Bill Poje]

Great game

The Sooner win was very exciting. It's been a year of some really good football games starting with the Duke\A&M game. It was kind of a blah bowl season until the Chick Fil-A Bowl and then there have been a series of great games. The pool was heavy on Alabama so the game didn't matter a lot for Social Wealth Redistribution. As a person from Michigan I can state that the Rose Bowl was wonderful and that I hope we don't have a bout of "Clemsoning" tonight.

With respect to the table doubling...that never went away. But, my brother looked harder on his new machine and found that the files had been transferred over from his old machine. I don't know where you found the Pac-Dude Road Show to play but we seem to be missing finding games on the Pinball Nirvana site that once were there. "Addams Family" and "Fish Tales" as well as the Pac-Dude "Road Show" are gone from the site when we look for the games.

Anyway, I was able to play the Pac-Dude "Road Show" OK even with the heads being doubled...the rest of the table played fine. The table has been playing fine but my playing ability has been off. I can barely play the slot machines in Las Vegas ("There goes Friday's Paycheck") or get past the tornado in Kansas City ("A Storm is coming...TAKE COVER NOW!")!

My graphics card should be fine memory wise...the game was playing. I didn't pay attention to what the auto run software did...why would I think that the manufacturer would have software that misdiagnoses what graphics card I have and "dumbs down the memory."?

With respect to repetitive game use or table use...I've never run into that before. Plus I have rebooted so I would think that this would clear out the table memory...and I have only run a couple tables at this point in time.

I guess I can revisit the graphics card website and recheck that. I guess I can also uninstall and reinstall the Visual Pinball 8 and see if that fixes the situation. I have only run VP8

 

[faralos]

are you running vp9 pins with vp8?
that may be your problem as the newer revisions have things in them
that get put into the pins that may not work at all with vp8
vp8 and vp9 pins are for the most part NOT interchangeable
that means that if it was made with vp8 it should only be played in vp8
same goes for any vp9 pins they are even worse due to all the revisio0ns made in vp9
some work with older revisions like 544 some only work with the newest build

 

[Bill Poje]

I only have VP 8 running....

have not downloaded VP9

 

[GSGregg]

VPForums.org ('VPF') is where I've gotten most of my meager collection. They do require registration (free) before downloading, and free members are limited to ten downloads per 24-hour period. On the down side, if you mess up a DL (your fault or not) or just change your mind it counts against your limit; on the up side, Essential Files, Roms, and maybe Tutorials (not sure, as I am a subscriber) uncharged.

Road Show ( PacDude VP8 ): http://www.vpforums.org/index.php?app=downloads&showfile=2020

Bad Cats ( JPSalas VP8 ): http://www.vpforums.org/index.php?app=downloads&showfile=1952

And of course there are a few others.....


The only Road Show that gave me double imagery is Jamin's VP9, which is a direct conversion of his VP8 table; the eyes look fine, but the slingshots (your 'bumpers above the flippers') and inlane/outlane dividers show double. Gameplay, though, is as you said; unaffected.


Today's Cotton Bowl is the only remaining game I'll be able to watch at home (no Cable TV) but I know how to find ESPN Radio.....

Monday is a different story, though, as I may decide to grab a taxi and 'rent' a seat at a bar or restaurant (*hic*) and get my first full glimpse of the Seminoles, who it seems were always televised regionally and not here in Calif. Undefeated, and they sneaked right on by. And Auburn with their "Which of us has the ball" offense.....worth a few cocktails, I'll bet.

 

[Bill Poje]

After uninstall and reinstall...

The Cotton Bowl should be good but so should the Orange Bowl.
============

Ok...I uninstalled and reinstalled the Phoenixx install guessing that maybe something in the setup changed with the software.

I also re-ran the AMD program and noted what card it found and the exe program it sent for the driver.

I still get the "Could Not Create Offscreen Surface" error.
I posted the AMD log below which...I believe...shows the specs required for debug

<TABLE class=MsoNormalTable style="WIDTH: 100%; mso-cellspacing: 1.5pt; mso-yfti-tbllook: 1184; mso-padding-alt: 1.5pt 1.5pt 1.5pt 1.5pt" cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0> <TBODY> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 0; mso-yfti-firstrow: yes"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: #f0f0f0; BORDER-BOTTOM: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 1.5pt; PADDING-TOP: 1.5pt; PADDING-LEFT: 1.5pt; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-RIGHT: 1.5pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent" colSpan=2>

Catalystâ„¢ Install Manager
Installation Report
01/03/14 15:40:59fficeffice" /><O></O>​

Hardware information<O></O>
<TABLE class=MsoNormalTable style="BORDER-TOP: black 1pt solid; BORDER-RIGHT: black 1pt solid; WIDTH: 100%; BORDER-BOTTOM: black 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: black 1pt solid; mso-cellspacing: 1.5pt; mso-yfti-tbllook: 1184; mso-border-alt: solid black .75pt" cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=1> <TBODY> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 0; mso-yfti-firstrow: yes"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent" colSpan=2></TD></TR> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 1"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">Name<O></O>
</TD> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">AMD Radeon Graphics Processor<O></O>
</TD></TR> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 2"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">Manufacturer<O></O>
</TD> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">Advanced Micro Devices, Inc.<O></O>
</TD></TR> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 3"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">Device ID<O></O>
</TD> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">0x954f<O></O>
</TD></TR> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 4"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">Vendor ID<O></O>
</TD> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">0x1002<O></O>
</TD></TR> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 5"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">Class Code<O></O>
</TD> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">0x030000<O></O>
</TD></TR> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 6"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">Revision ID<O></O>
</TD> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">0x00<O></O>
</TD></TR> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 7"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">Subsystem ID<O></O>
</TD> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">0x2143<O></O>
</TD></TR> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 8"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">Subsystem vendor ID<O></O>
</TD> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">0x1002<O></O>
</TD></TR> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 9; mso-yfti-lastrow: yes"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent" colSpan=2>Other hardware<O></O>
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 1"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: #f0f0f0; BORDER-BOTTOM: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 1.5pt; PADDING-TOP: 1.5pt; PADDING-LEFT: 1.5pt; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-RIGHT: 1.5pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">Existing packages<O></O>
<TABLE class=MsoNormalTable style="BORDER-TOP: black 1pt solid; BORDER-RIGHT: black 1pt solid; WIDTH: 100%; BORDER-BOTTOM: black 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: black 1pt solid; mso-cellspacing: 1.5pt; mso-yfti-tbllook: 1184; mso-border-alt: solid black .75pt" cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=1> <TBODY> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 0; mso-yfti-firstrow: yes"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">AMD Catalyst Install Manager<O></O>
</TD></TR> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 1"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">AMD APP SDK Runtime<O></O>
</TD></TR> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 2"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">AMD Display Driver<O></O>
</TD></TR> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 3"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">HDMI Audio Driver<O></O>
</TD></TR> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 4"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">AVIVO<O></O>
</TD></TR> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 5"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">Microsoft Visual C++ 2010 Redistributable<O></O>
</TD></TR> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 6"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">HydraVision<O></O>
</TD></TR> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 7"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">AMD Accelerated Video Transcoding<O></O>
</TD></TR> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 8"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">AMD Drag and Drop Transcoding<O></O>
</TD></TR> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 9"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">AMD Media Foundation Decoders<O></O>
</TD></TR> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 10; mso-yfti-lastrow: yes"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">Catalyst Control Center<O></O>
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: #f0f0f0; BORDER-BOTTOM: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 1.5pt; PADDING-TOP: 1.5pt; PADDING-LEFT: 1.5pt; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-RIGHT: 1.5pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent"></TD></TR> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 2"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: #f0f0f0; BORDER-BOTTOM: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 1.5pt; PADDING-TOP: 1.5pt; PADDING-LEFT: 1.5pt; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-RIGHT: 1.5pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">Packages for install
AMD Catalyst Install Manager<O></O>
<TABLE class=MsoNormalTable style="BORDER-TOP: black 1pt solid; BORDER-RIGHT: black 1pt solid; WIDTH: 100%; BORDER-BOTTOM: black 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: black 1pt solid; mso-cellspacing: 1.5pt; mso-yfti-tbllook: 1184; mso-border-alt: solid black .75pt" cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=1> <TBODY> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 0; mso-yfti-firstrow: yes"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">Final Status:<O></O>
</TD> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">Success<O></O>
</TD></TR> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 1"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">Version of Item:<O></O>
</TD> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">8.0.877.0<O></O>
</TD></TR> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 2; mso-yfti-lastrow: yes"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">Size:<O></O>
</TD> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">20 Mbytes<O></O>
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>AMD Display Driver<O></O>
<TABLE class=MsoNormalTable style="BORDER-TOP: black 1pt solid; BORDER-RIGHT: black 1pt solid; WIDTH: 100%; BORDER-BOTTOM: black 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: black 1pt solid; mso-cellspacing: 1.5pt; mso-yfti-tbllook: 1184; mso-border-alt: solid black .75pt" cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=1> <TBODY> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 0; mso-yfti-firstrow: yes"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">Final Status:<O></O>
</TD> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">Success<O></O>
</TD></TR> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 1"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">Version of Item:<O></O>
</TD> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">8.970.100.1100<O></O>
</TD></TR> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 2; mso-yfti-lastrow: yes"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">Size:<O></O>
</TD> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">90 Mbytes<O></O>
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>HDMI Audio Driver<O></O>
<TABLE class=MsoNormalTable style="BORDER-TOP: black 1pt solid; BORDER-RIGHT: black 1pt solid; WIDTH: 100%; BORDER-BOTTOM: black 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: black 1pt solid; mso-cellspacing: 1.5pt; mso-yfti-tbllook: 1184; mso-border-alt: solid black .75pt" cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=1> <TBODY> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 0; mso-yfti-firstrow: yes"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">Final Status:<O></O>
</TD> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">Success<O></O>
</TD></TR> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 1"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">Version of Item:<O></O>
</TD> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">7.12.0.7708<O></O>
</TD></TR> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 2; mso-yfti-lastrow: yes"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">Size:<O></O>
</TD> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">1 Mbytes<O></O>
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: #f0f0f0; BORDER-BOTTOM: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 1.5pt; PADDING-TOP: 1.5pt; PADDING-LEFT: 1.5pt; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-RIGHT: 1.5pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent"></TD></TR> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 3"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: #f0f0f0; BORDER-BOTTOM: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 1.5pt; PADDING-TOP: 1.5pt; PADDING-LEFT: 1.5pt; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-RIGHT: 1.5pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent" colSpan=2>
Other detected devices<O></O>
</TD></TR> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 4"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: #f0f0f0; BORDER-BOTTOM: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 1.5pt; PADDING-TOP: 1.5pt; PADDING-LEFT: 1.5pt; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-RIGHT: 1.5pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent" colSpan=2> <TABLE class=MsoNormalTable style="BORDER-TOP: black 1pt solid; BORDER-RIGHT: black 1pt solid; WIDTH: 100%; BORDER-BOTTOM: black 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: black 1pt solid; mso-cellspacing: 1.5pt; mso-yfti-tbllook: 1184; mso-border-alt: solid black .75pt" cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=1> <TBODY> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 0; mso-yfti-firstrow: yes"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent" colSpan=2></TD></TR> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 1"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">Manufacturer<O></O>
</TD> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">Advanced Micro Devices, Inc.<O></O>
</TD></TR> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 2"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">Device ID<O></O>
</TD> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">0xaa38<O></O>
</TD></TR> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 3"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">Vendor ID<O></O>
</TD> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">0x1002<O></O>
</TD></TR> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 4"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">Class Code<O></O>
</TD> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">0x040300<O></O>
</TD></TR> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 5"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">Revision ID<O></O>
</TD> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">0x00<O></O>
</TD></TR> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 6"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">Subsystem ID<O></O>
</TD> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">0xaa38<O></O>
</TD></TR> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 7; mso-yfti-lastrow: yes"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">Subsystem vendor ID<O></O>
</TD> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent">0x1002<O></O>
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 5"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: #f0f0f0; BORDER-BOTTOM: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 1.5pt; PADDING-TOP: 1.5pt; PADDING-LEFT: 1.5pt; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-RIGHT: 1.5pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent" colSpan=2>
Error messages<O></O>
</TD></TR> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 6; mso-yfti-lastrow: yes"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: #f0f0f0; BORDER-BOTTOM: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 1.5pt; PADDING-TOP: 1.5pt; PADDING-LEFT: 1.5pt; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-RIGHT: 1.5pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent" colSpan=2> <TABLE class=MsoNormalTable style="BORDER-TOP: black 1pt solid; BORDER-RIGHT: black 1pt solid; WIDTH: 100%; BORDER-BOTTOM: black 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: black 1pt solid; mso-cellspacing: 1.5pt; mso-yfti-tbllook: 1184; mso-border-alt: solid black .75pt" cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=1> <TBODY> <TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 0; mso-yfti-firstrow: yes; mso-yfti-lastrow: yes"> <TD style="BORDER-TOP: black; BORDER-RIGHT: black; BORDER-BOTTOM: black; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; PADDING-LEFT: 0.75pt; BORDER-LEFT: black; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent"></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>​

<O></O>

 

[Itchigo]

Ok, the offscreen surface error is different. It means you dont have enough video ram, or you ran out because your card can't handle the graphics. Try a different table. One without hi rez pic in it.

 

[faralos]

is it possible that the images are too large for the vp8 editor?

 

[Itchigo]

I don't think they're too large for the editor, just his computer/laptop. That's why I said to try an old crappy looking one. Just so we know it works.

 

[GSGregg]

So...I have the pinball system working and am playing games fine. Separately Windows 7 tells me that there is a problem with my graphics card. So...I go to my graphics card company website and run the auto detect program and run the updates for the software.

Then...later in the day...I decided to play a game... and I get the error message that states "Could not create offscreen surface." Then the Windows message the "Visual Pinball has stopped working" appeared after I clicked on OK on the error message.

So, in this order(?):
1)Last week's problems rectified or deemed tolerable, pinball is being enjoyed
2) W7 detects GPU problem
3) Software updated (Driver?)
4) "Could Not Create...", then VP stops working; has to shut down

This seems to point back at a possible VRAM deficiency; as if the vidcard has been on the edge and is now falling off. I'm looking into a couple of memory testers for GPUs; I used memtest86 in April 2011 when a bad RAM module scrambled my hard drive, and it may be at least informative to apply similar tests to the vidcard, which the Device ID 0x954f indicates is a Radeon HD4350 (but doesn't state memory size, though. A tester will provide that).

Windows 7 stills tells me in Action Center a message "Solve a problem with AMD - Display Adapter - ATI Radeon Graphics Card." yet, when I click on the "solve this" it goes to control panel\action center and I get told "the solution could not be downloaded." So I am not sure what is going on there!

Neither am I; Action Center was called Windows Security Center in XP, and didn't concern itself with anything but firewall, malware and anti-virus, etc.
===============================================

The Cotton Bowl WAS good.....not the most prolific offenses, but all hell broke loose in the fourth quarter, right up to that last sack

 

[Bill Poje]

More updated data

Hello Everyone:

I would like to take a second to thank all of you for the replies. This has been a learning experience.

GSGreggs 4 step list of what has occurred is correct and succinctly summarizes the situation.

I took Itchigo's tip and tried a few different lower level games. The 1950's games I chose were interesting to play. Air Aces...ah...the arcade memories. Same for the Kiss game...disappointed I don't see an old Captain Fantastic...used to rack up games on that.

So...whatever the AMD driver update did screwed me. I'll be going over to their website and posting in the forum there to seek assistance.

I also received a Microsoft Windows Forum reply about the "Action Center" message. They suggested a driver re-install of the AMD card (done) and running System File Checker from the Command Prompt. I did that and it came back clean...no issues.

The last suggestion they have is to "uncheck drive status and device software" from Maintenance Messages. I replied to them...before doing that...that this appears to be a solution of not solving anything. It is just saying "don't check for the problem" (!). I am curious what the reply will be.

I'll advise what happens with AMD...this should be good when I get around to it.

 

[Itchigo]

Ok, I read up top again, and here's what I have. You have a Dell Optiplex 380, right? I don't know what processor that is, but I'm sure it's not real fast. VP likes a high clock speed, 3.0 or better. It will work with less though, not always well.

I would say upgrade the video card to a better one, but with your setup, it's not worth it. Your mb, and processor will only handle so much, even with a better card. If you wanted a new computer, now's the time..

Running Windows 7 on an old machine will slow it down. It's better than Vista, but not as light as XP. If it were me, I'd make a partition , and install xp on it, just for vp. No updates, just bare windows. Don't even have to validate that.

If you can't do that, you can rightclick the vp8.exe, and do: Properties/ Check "Run as Admin, AND "Compatibility Mode" for XP. That makes a big difference on my laptop.

Oh, and IRPinball.org has many lesser vp8's you should be able to run.

The offscreen Surface Error will happen whenever you run a table your computer can't handle. It doesn't mean anything is wrong.

 

[Bill Poje]

PC Info

Hello Itchigo:

I understand what you have stated.
The thing about the OptiPlex and the video card is this:

1) The XP machine of my brother's that we used to play the machines on worked for all games and we never had any issues...and the processor was 2-3 years older than what my OptiPlex uses. So...while a new PC would certainly have better capabilities everything used to work fine with lesser capabilities.

2) until I ran the AMD update the software was working. This leads me think that the newer operating software for the video card changed something that blew up the higher level games.
================

I don't want to take the time to partition and install XP on the pc I use now. The PC has been a trooper and the days of use are very possibly numbered but...with what I have going on with my own business...I really don't want to mess with all the steps that a new pc would entail when some other events in my business life may change in a couple of months anyway.

I also don't want to destabilize an older pc with backup and peripherals with a partition and second OS running. I know...it shouldn't make any difference at all but...then again...running the AMD update should not have mattered either...and it did.

I'll contact the AMD world and advise what they say. I can always play a lower level game at the moment or hop on the other pc at the house to drive Red & Ted's bulldozer across the country until a solution presents itself! :)

 

[Itchigo]

Well vp8 really shouldn't be too bad in general. Running vp9 seems to take a lot more. I'm guessing the new update may have changed the settings in the card. Or you could uninstall/reinstall the card and drivers for it.

 

[sleepy]

I would try Itchigo's suggestion. Try setting Compatibility Mode to XP.
And in Visual Pinball, click Preferences > Video Options and try a lower Max Texture Dimension setting and a lower Alpha Ramp setting. In the Video Options menu, and there is also a Reorder Playfield Objects for ATI setting, but I don't think that would affect the issue with offscreen textures. The Offscreen Textures can run out of video RAM and system RAM if the image filesizes are too large, like GSGregg said.
A long time ago I saw the Offscreen Textures error when I was out of hard drive space on a computer that only had 64 Mb. system RAM and a video card that only had 4 Mb. RAM. The hard drive was only 200 Mb. in size running Win 98.

So you can also try setting the Windows Virtual Memory (the amount of hard drive used to store data amounts larger than the system RAM) to use more of the hard drive. Running Windows XP or later and a VPM table can easily use more than 1 Gb. system RAM, so there the Virtual Memory size becomes important.

 

[faralos]

I am running with a Optiplex GX 520
with a radeon x1300 series card with only 256 megabytes on it
and the older tables work just fine
it is the newer ones that don't work at all
or stutter too much with the ball travel as to make playing them impossible

 

[sleepy]

Also make sure that Cache Rendered Tables is Unchecked.

You can also try unchecking Enable Hardware Rendering, or try enabling it.
When you do, then Exit/Close Visual Pinball and then re-open it to test the new setting(s).

 

[Bill Poje]

Updated info

AMD finally got back to me...they had "lost" my "ticket."

Key phrase from AMD: "Dell customizes our cards for use."
Translation...no wonder the AMD update blew up the card...it blew up the customization.

This sent me to a chat session with Dell who can only offer using the System Restore utility...which restores EVERYTHING to the point of restore.

Well...I am not running any System Restore utility until I find someone I personally trust who has performed this work before. I'm not risking accidentally blowing up something else without someone with experience guiding me.

 

[GSGregg]

Yo, Bill! Welcome back; I thought you had gone in for surgery or something---and forgotten to return.

System Restore isn't a bad thing.....unless the selected restore point wipes out subsequentially-installed stuff that you need. Do you know which driver was installed back in the days when everything worked? Maybe you have a disc that came with your vidcard, and you can reinstall the card's original driver? Sometimes updates support new features while forgetting about older stuff.

 

[Bill Poje]

Update

Ha ha...yeah well...my system still does function so I was not going to be pushy with AMD. But...the fact that Dell reconfigures the graphics card now makes the situation make sense. I could not understand how just running a standard upgrade could kill the card; it just made no sense at all. Now I get it.

There is no disc that will work. I realized almost immediately that the configuration I bought was not what I wanted; the Dell salesperson didn't understand my requirements and since I don't buy a computer but once every seemingly eon I didn't think to get a higher level graphics card. So the card shipped separate a couple days later and I did manual install and I think downloaded the software from someplace.

I understand that using System Restore should be "no big deal." Ask yourself this question: "How many times have you done something that people say is "no big deal" and it doesn't work as planned and now you are really screwed?" Especially with IT items?

I have a contact who has a lot more experience in these matters than I do....someone I have worked hand-in-hand with on a major ERP installation I oversaw that was the most incredibly complicated project anyone ever worked on. It was partially complicated because everyone would say at key points "this is no big deal" & "it will just work fine" and then things didn't work out that way. We were left holding the bag to solve the "it's no big deal issues." Anyway...when we are both ready to walk through the restore process then we will do that...probably sometime in the next 2 weeks. I want to schedule a clear mind and a few hours where nothing needs to be done just in case something blows up and there is time to deal with it right away.