Compaq Laptop and DVD player

[Lycia]

I have a Compaq Armada 7800 Laptop that came with a DVD drive. Now when I got this I didn't have a recovery CD and the thing was having waaaay to many problems. So I reformated and installed WindowsME. I was using the Compaq Edition of WinDVD which is ok. But lately I notice that there is lots of skipping or pausing like in a game of Multiplayer Quake and a 33.6 modem. Anyhoo, thinking it was just not a very good player, I got another, PowerDVD, which has great color and hardly any jaggies, still pauses. I recently installed Win2k. But problem is still there. So I was watching the system resource metere and noticed that the CPU utilization was almost alway at 100%. Any Ideas on how the DVD can be run smoother.

Buying another Laptop is out of the question, the only reason I have this is a long story.

Anyway the specs are:
PII 300
128 megs
S3 Virge MX
8 gig IBM drive
ESS 1869 sound
DX8

[Damned Angel]

was it working fine on a fresh install (no other programs loaded yet). If so, its probably just something loading in the background that is causing it. An anti virus scanner would be the first place I would start, then on to shutting down anyother programs (services under 2k) that are running until it runs smooth.

BTW...the resource meter under win2k is fubar...on a fresh install without any drivers loaded on a intel celeron 700 with 256mb it showed 100% cpu as well, but it dropped to 5% cpu when ever you move the mouse....gotta love MS coders....

[Lycia]

I'm fairly new to Win2k. How exactly do I tell which is running in background. Nothing shows up in Task manager.

I don't have any Virus software or other programs. It was a upgrade from WinME. I may try removing then reinstalling just Win2K.

[Larommi]

Originally posted by lycia69:
I have a Compaq Armada 7800 Laptop that came with a DVD drive. Now when I got this I didn't have a recovery CD and the thing was having waaaay to many problems. So I reformated and installed WindowsME. I was using the Compaq Edition of WinDVD which is ok. But lately I notice that there is lots of skipping or pausing like in a game of Multiplayer Quake and a 33.6 modem. Anyhoo, thinking it was just not a very good player, I got another, PowerDVD, which has great color and hardly any jaggies, still pauses. I recently installed Win2k. But problem is still there. So I was watching the system resource metere and noticed that the CPU utilization was almost alway at 100%. Any Ideas on how the DVD can be run smoother.

Buying another Laptop is out of the question, the only reason I have this is a long story.

Anyway the specs are:
PII 300
128 megs
S3 Virge MX
8 gig IBM drive
ESS 1869 sound
DX8

Your 7800 is the same specs as my 7400. Problem is DVD drive speed and lack of cpu. These things use software rendering for DVD playback and it is a hog. 300 seems to be about the minimum for playback. I have seen a 366 run no prob with exactly the same specs. I am not sure what you can do, I have tried about every program out there and I cannot get it to play smootly. The only think I would recommend is shutting everything down in the background. Does not solve the prob but it helps.

[Lycia]

Thanks, what I did was remove the upgraded version of Win2k and reinstalled a fresh copy, that seemed to help a bit. The picture is still jerky, but a lot smootehr than it was. It really only happenes when a lot is going on in the scene. Take Blade for instance, in the very beginning when Rachel (Tracy Lords) is driving the guy to the Bloodbath the scene shows the streets flashing by, that is when the system gets hit...

Oh well, the Laptop was free, so I'll live with it. I only use the DVD for trips on Amtrak anyway, otherwise its a good PC.

Thanks for the advice.

[Larommi]

You could reduce the screen size. If I get the urge to watch a movie I usually use about half screen. I know what you mean though...lots of action and lots of sounds equals a slide show.

[Lycia]

Since the Mobile PII 300 is the very least of which should be used, can they be exchanged for a faster Processor??

[Larommi]

Originally posted by lycia69:
Since the Mobile PII 300 is the very least of which should be used, can they be exchanged for a faster Processor??

I have been checking into it but not finding anyluck. The laptop runs on a 66mhz bus and the fastest they ran was a 366mhz. I am not sure if the chip is replaceable and Compaq won't tell me. If I find out I will post the answer or email you. I don't know if it would be worth the hassle for 66mhz but if a celeron would go in and the lack of cache would not make a difference, it would be nice. I am not counting on it though.

[Lycia]

Hey thanks, email is [email protected].

[melmo]

suggest upgrading video drivers as there should be some acceleration coming from there
otherwise buy faster laptop

[cyberhh]

What about a hardware decoder card - they are PCMCIA and can be found on ebay for under $100.

[Lycia]

Originally posted by melmo:
suggest upgrading video drivers as there should be some acceleration coming from there
otherwise buy faster laptop

As I stated in my original post, buying a laptop is out of the question. Constructive help is all I am seeking. Also, drivers are the first thing I looked at upgrading even before posting here.

As for a decoder card, I had just found out that they are available for laptops. I did not know that. I doubt I would buy any off ebay, does anyone know a company that makes them?

[Larommi]

Originally posted by lycia69:
As I stated in my original post, buying a laptop is out of the question. Constructive help is all I am seeking. Also, drivers are the first thing I looked at upgrading even before posting here.

As for a decoder card, I had just found out that they are available for laptops. I did not know that. I doubt I would buy any off ebay, does anyone know a company that makes them?

http://www.margi.com/products/dvdtogo.html