ATi Catalyst Installation Guide

Introduction

A little over a year ago nVidia ruled the graphics card roost and ATi was starting to release some interesting though somewhat problematic hardware and drivers. Fast forward a year later and ATi is now considered to be on top in the graphics hardware stakes, and the ATi "Catalysts" have rapidly matured into a very stable and well-performing driver set.

Given the general criticism of ATi drivers in the past, the Canadian company has taken great pains to genuinely improve the Catalysts, and now releases a new WHQL certified driver set every month - typically packed with bug fixes, performance improvements and new features.

With that kind of introduction, you'd think I'm on ATi's payroll...of course I'm not (but I am open to offers). Yes, I am the proud owner of a Radeon 9800 Pro, but I'm not blind to the many people still making their frustrations known at problems they're having with their ATi hardware. These people often lay the blame squarely on the Catalysts.

I however strongly believe that the vast majority of these problems are caused by badly installed drivers, driver "residue" and poorly configured settings both during and after setup. Yes, that's right, I'm blaming you! But don't worry, I've written this quick guide to take you step by step through the best method for doing a so-called "clean install" of the Catalysts, and the associated steps in minimizing potential driver-related problems.

I know some of you may doubt me, but the truth of the matter is that from my own personal experience I know that there are virtually no problems with the recent Catalysts or ATi hardware - most of it is related to driver setup.

How much for a high-end Radeon graphics card?