AMD has graced Radeon owners with two driver updates today: one with Microsoft's blessings and another for the venturesome among us. The WHQL-certified Catalyst 11.12 drivers introduce a bevy of changes, including OpenGL 4.2 support, the ability to enable AMD HD3D when using a 3x1 Landscape Eyefinity configuration, and improved Dual Graphics controls in the Vision Engine Control Center.

Judging by the release notes, 11.12 doesn't contain the speed boosts found in the 11.11c preview driver. There are a ton of bug fixes, however. Graphical anomalies and other hiccups are resolved in Dirt 2, Dirt 3, Portal 2, Shogun 2: Total War, Lost Planet 2, S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Clear Sky, Tom Clancy's EndWar, Enemy Territory: Quake Wars, Doom 3, Crysis 2, Far Cry 2, Dragon Age 2, Homefront, Metro 2033, BioShock 2 and more.

Download Catalyst 11.12
Desktop: Windows XP 32-bit | Windows XP 64-bit | Windows Vista/7 32-bit | Windows Vista/7 64-bit
Mobile: Windows Vista/7 32-bit | Windows Vista/7 64-bit

Download Catalyst 12.1 Preview
Desktop: Windows XP 32/64-bit | Windows Vista/7 32/64-bit

If you want all the performance optimizations, features and bug fixes in Catalyst 11.11c and 11.12, you'll need the 12.1 preview release. In fact, AMD specifically recommends this version for gamers, who would otherwise be missing out. Not only does it contain all of the desired changes, but it offers a few additional perks, including an additional 10-15% speed boost in Skyrim for certain HD 6900-series configurations. Version 12.1 also delivers:

• Support for 1080p@30Hz displays via HD3D over HDMI 1.4 (up from 24Hz)
• Improved UI for adjusting video quality and color settings in the control panel
• A new control panel feature that lets you create application-specific profiles