The Inquirer is reporting that new ATI Catalyst drivers will be a 40MB plus download thanks to a newly designed interface.

You also need the .NET framework, an additional 23MB to prior driver download. Users may then find themselves downloading almost 65MB of data first time round. The new ACE driver's hefty download size may put obstacles in the path of dial-up users, who may be forced to order the update on CD to get hold of it.

23 MB for Dot Net Frame Work
40 MB for Driver
?? For MMC..........................
?? For DVD Software ...........
?? For Misc Other Ati software .......

There crazy and having to install Microsoft dot.net framework

The new drivers do look real sweet. Fantastic new interface with preview screens. Can't wait.

This is so stupid; since when do drivers have to have a nice GUI? What are they going to do next, add skins support to the control panel? Maybe an mp3 player. I do like their hardware but I'm sorry to see that their software is becoming so bloated. It might be time to take a look at the other side of the fence and see what nVidia has been up to lately.

Don't you think having nice features, such as a preview screen, where you can see the effect of any changes you make to the settings, is a good idea? Certainly much better than having to load up a game, unload, make some changes, reload, unload again, apply more tweaks, reload, etc ... Unfortunately progress does come at a cost, but its one most users will be pleased with. You only have to buy a PC magazine to get the drivers on the cover CD, so downloading on dial-up shouldn't be much of a problem unless you must have new drivers immediately on release. Bring em on ...

Not really, I already know what the settings do. Just makes for a huge download and more things to go wrong. Just my opinion though

Ditch the whole skin/gui ordeal, and stick with a classic windows skin, but the preview is nice.

i agree with nic on this one. i think its a great idea and cant wait for the new software. granted i have cable internet. but hey, i would download them overnight if i had dial up. good work ATI!

If you're not used to downloading 65 meg files by now then it's just a shame. Also, who doesn't have the 1.1 framework installed yet? So nix that and we're back down to 40 meg - so what? How often do new drivers come out? Even if they released as often as nVidia it still wouldn't be a big deal.

... I fear your comment is biased, LNCPapa.

I wonder if there should be a Catalyst Full Version and a Catalyst Lite Version like Winamp.

I like the addition. I would have to see how good it is. I am optomistic.

Hmm.. For Linux, the latest Radeon driver is 3.96 MB. The latest driver for BeOS is 179 kB. I have to agree with that bloated comment (pun not intended).

But Linux/BeOS don't support Direct-X, and driver features tend to be more basic.

I'm siding with agissi on this one.

The only thing I like about this is the preview option, but at 40mb?!?

And why oh why do they have to use the "¤"#%& .NET framework? I've been doing my best to avoid it up until now, but now they use it with their drivers?!?
I can't really avoid that unless I'm willing to stick with older drivers

Guess I'd better send in a report asking them to create a non .NET version in the future...

What is it that you don't like about the .NET framework? Personally, I think its the best move Microsoft ever made, and makes a programmers life so much easier. Higher quality, better, more powerful software is the result. There are tons of commercial apps already written using the .NET framework, and they are all much better for it. Less bugs, higher quality, better features, more secure, no more memory leaks, no more BSOD, etc., the list goes on. If you ever get the chance to program using the .NET framework, you'll soon see why developers love it. I certainly wouldn't switch to Java or C++ as an alternative. This is progress and the only issue is the size of the download file. This is likely a result of the enhanced driver features, rather than the .NET framework, which generally tends to result in smaller program size because of the shared class libraries.

I know someone that has sold his soul ... hehe

BTW I upgraded to the 4.8 Cats and even tried the 4.9 beta but I ddidnt see the 60 MB download and there is no fancy control panel ... I just dont understand

If the fancy GUI were optional it'd be a lot easier on all ATi customers. If you want the drivers and the old-style simple interface, download a 4-10MB (hell if I know what it is, I have a GF6800) driver. If you want a fancy GUI, go the 65MB route.

Let's not get into this .NET business. Most likely a flame war is going to start.

The new control panel will be in the next official Cats release or the one after that, I think (4.9, 4.10?, 5.1?, ATi's numbering scheme is weird).

Whats wierd?

4.1 = January
4.2 = February
4.3 = March

...etc

that was their plan, to release a driver every month.

the Linux drivers have OpenGL DRI support in them, and the BeOS driver has every non-3D feature supported across the entire line - from TV-Out on the Radeon (original) to the TV in on the newest Radeons with Rage Theatres on them.