This is probably an easy question for you guys with good video cards but this is my first (high end video card virgin here) anyways I figured out why my GeForce 5200 ultra card wasn't working... VGA mode isn't enabled. I can temporarily enable it by pressing F8 on bootup but when I reboot it disables it. I'm running windows XP ... how do I enable it so it stays enabled all the time?

Looks like you're gonna stay a virgin, cause that ain't no high-end video card you got there.

Now on to the real topic. I'm not quite sure what you are saying as regards enabling VGA mode. All you need to do is make sure you disable any onboard vga chip in the bios (because you are using an add-on video card), and that's it. Your PC should boot and video should eminate from your card. Pressing F8 during boot simply allows you to select 'safe mode', which is normally used when you are experiencing problems such as misbehaving drivers. You shouldn't need to do this at all normally.

Well compared to my 8mb video card that I took out. I think a 128mb card going in is alot higher end. Anyways....

The thing is is when I hit F8 on bootup theres all kinds of options...one is to "enable VGA mode" and when I choose that one it boots right up... if I don't do the F8 thing on bootup I get a blue screen error I don't know what this one says becuase it pops up so fast then the computer automatically reboots. But before I formated and tried to install the card it said something about an infinite loop. Where can in disable the onboard VGA? I don't think there is one though cause theres no onboard video card.

I think I know what you're saying now. You upgraded your old video card for a better one, but you forgot to uninstall your old video card drivers before fitting your new card. Can you get back into windows (use F8 if you have to) and then uninstall the old video drivers. Then restart and get ready to install the drivers for your new card. If you are still having problems doing this, then put your old card back in, boot windows, uninstall the old drivers, shut down, fit your new card, then start her up again, and install the drivers for your new card.

I've tried that... still doesn't work... I still get the blue screen on startup. I'm going to try and install the card on a diffrent computer and see if ti's the card or just my gay old computer. wish me luck.

You have a software problem. If nothing else works, try (the easy way) a format . Not mouch help, but sometimes there is nothing else to do.

Maybe playing around with system restore could help.

If all else fails, then reinstall windows over your existing install (upgrade). This will keep your current software settings while installing your new hardware properly.

This "VGA Mode" you reffer to is just windows running with some default/reference drivers so you can get into windows and fix any problems you might have. In this case, as Nic says, you have to get rid of your old video drivers. Go into VGA mode, uninstall anything related to your old video card, software utilities, hardware drivers, etc. Reboot again, enter VGA Mode again and then install you new hardware drivers and utilities. If this still doesn't work, then something really got messed up and fixing it will probably be more troublesome and take longet than doing a reinstall as Nic also mentions...

I already thought of formating... and I did... still jacked up... I installed it on my girlfriends computer and the card was still giving a blue screen... so I'm thinking it's the card becuase when I get the blue screen error the words and stuff are all tweaky and glitchy... like it'll say somethin like "thiss is ablu escreen of dea th"... anyways... I"m taking it back and getting a GeForce FX5600 256mb.

If you have tried a component that you suspect as being faulty in 2 computers, and its still doing the same thing, then its broken.

I think you're right. The card is duff.

...UNLESS you've not eliminated the possbility that its crappy drivers - that you have already disproved that by trying updated drivers, or your g/f's machine runs a different OS than yours. Then you know its not just an issue of driver release X was buggy on X OS, etc. If you have removed all other factors other than the graphics card itself, then you have found your problem.

goto: start, run, and type in "c:\boot.ini". You should see a line somewhat like multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1)\WINDOWS="Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition". After this line there might be switches (/fastdetect); add "/basevideo" to this line. That should do it! Now every time you boot up it will automaticlly start up in vga mode. Click here for more switches. I found this article while googling, so I figured I add an answer that was worth something!!!! hope it helps!!!! . . . flame this :hotbounce bitches :hotbounce

ohh, you can also goto: start, run, msconfig to do this as well!