In order to run a computer properly, a user must have some sort of graphics card installed and working smoothly. This is how information is displayed by the system. Graphics cards started out as something almost entirely different than what we find now. And though they are easy to add to computers today, in the past they were a lot simpler and thus, harder to choose.
Graphics cards are referred to in several different ways. They might be called graphics accelerator cards. They can also be termed display adapters, as that is why they are crucial to computers. The name video adapter fits as well. A graphics card is a chip inside the computer that works to convey information onto a screen or display monitor. Over the last twenty years, this important piece of every computer has truly evolved.
The very beginning of video adapters started in the 1980s, when it became important for computers to focus on digital output for information. The MDA or monochromatic display adapters that computers used weren’t required to reproduce images, moving or otherwise. They were typically trying to fill black screens with words, so an MDA only needed to have one colour and 4kb of memory. One couldn’t imagine using such a card in today’s world of computers and games.
Later on in the eighties, a more refined adapter for visual displays came out. As programming abilities increased and games were made for home computers, the VGA or video graphics array was able to offer 256 colours and 2mb of memory. This was quite an improvement over the last MDA. Major corporations involved in computer technology began to work with this VGA and improve it steadily. As the technology increased, so did consumer demands on what graphics cards could do.
In the nineties, the Voodoo card was introduced. This card brought with it all the latest graphics developments, such as mip-mapping, z-buffering and anti-aliasing, things the latest 2D and 3D cards were learning to keep as standard. However, the Voodoo card was so much more powerful than computers at the time that it tended to bottleneck the PCI slot. PCI stands for peripheral connect interface and was how graphics cards were connected to the computer’s insides. To handle the newer line of cards, Intel came up with the AGP or accelerated graphics port. Computers could now offer display adapters a dedicated connection to more power and bandwidth.
The two main companies that have set the bar high for video cards are Nvidia and ATI. Nvidia created a line of graphics cards called GeForce. The GeForce was able to bring memory capabilities of cards up to 128mb, easily. Now, of course, the best cards offer at least 1gig of memory. As soon as Nvidia makes something, ATI competes. And if ATI creates a higher or more powerful card, Nvidia finds a way to outdo them. As long as these two are at tech-war, consumers will continue to reap the benefits.
From being just display adapters to video adapters that reproduce movement and refresh displays, to the modern 3D rendering monsters of today, graphics cards move forward constantly. What they can offer a consumer may be different than what they can offer the elite gamer. However, modern graphics cards are designed to serve many types of consumers. And as the major companies continue to try and one-up each other, consumers get more choice and more quality.
Learn more about graphics cards and how they can assist in giving you an enhanced experience on your computer. Adding a graphics cards adds to the visual experience. There are graphics cards of all sorts and you can know more about their specifications before you choose one for your computer.
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