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Issues, Workarounds & Localization

 
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Game wasn't working well (Windows 8.1 to blame?), but NVIDIA update made it worse.

Author
Miaki Alleile
Doomheim
#1 - 2014-01-09 07:10:06 UTC
Hello. I was having some problems after starting an Alt account this morning. Basically, windows in the UI would suddenly disappear and the game camera would lock for a while. Sometimes it would come back to normal after a few moments of waiting, sometimes it wouldn't. During a mission, I then experienced the entire background going white. Hostile NPCs were still visible, and so was a big rock formation in the mission site, and the problem was "solved" by changing camera angle and zoom.

Anyway, I asked the Help channel and they said I might need to update my drivers. Off I went and got the latest driver: 332.21 WHQL (whatever that means - I'm not computer expert). Now whenever I get into the game I experience a MASSIVE framerate drop, even on lowest graphics settings O.o. I'm not sure how to roll back the driver and I know even less about how to roll back my OS. I'm definitely considering buying Windows 7 though, so rest assured I'm aware that it is the best solution for the problem that is Windows 8.



I run Windows 8.1, have an i5 dual core Intel processor, and my GPU is an nVidia GeForce 720M. The game worked perfectly when I first got this computer. Windows 8.1 problems not withstanding, today was the first day I had real issues with the game, and I updated to 8.1 about 3 weeks ago.

Thanks for your help.

Maki.
John Holt
State War Academy
Caldari State
#2 - 2014-01-09 07:50:50 UTC
Miaki Alleile wrote:
Hello. I was having some problems after starting an Alt account this morning. Basically, windows in the UI would suddenly disappear and the game camera would lock for a while. Sometimes it would come back to normal after a few moments of waiting, sometimes it wouldn't. During a mission, I then experienced the entire background going white. Hostile NPCs were still visible, and so was a big rock formation in the mission site, and the problem was "solved" by changing camera angle and zoom.

Anyway, I asked the Help channel and they said I might need to update my drivers. Off I went and got the latest driver: 332.21 WHQL (whatever that means - I'm not computer expert). Now whenever I get into the game I experience a MASSIVE framerate drop, even on lowest graphics settings O.o. I'm not sure how to roll back the driver and I know even less about how to roll back my OS. I'm definitely considering buying Windows 7 though, so rest assured I'm aware that it is the best solution for the problem that is Windows 8.



I run Windows 8.1, have an i5 dual core Intel processor, and my GPU is an nVidia GeForce 720M. The game worked perfectly when I first got this computer. Windows 8.1 problems not withstanding, today was the first day I had real issues with the game, and I updated to 8.1 about 3 weeks ago.

Thanks for your help.

Maki.


The disappearing windows is a known problem. Alt Tab out of game and back in and they will appear again. The white screen happens with operating systems other than 8.1 as well. I believe it is a known issue as well. File a bug report.

Done my time in null sec, now I'm just a Privateer wandering around High and Low Sec.

Ruskarn Andedare
Lion Investments
#3 - 2014-01-09 09:27:40 UTC
John Holt wrote:
Miaki Alleile wrote:
Hello. I was having some problems after starting an Alt account this morning. Basically, windows in the UI would suddenly disappear and the game camera would lock for a while. Sometimes it would come back to normal after a few moments of waiting, sometimes it wouldn't. During a mission, I then experienced the entire background going white. Hostile NPCs were still visible, and so was a big rock formation in the mission site, and the problem was "solved" by changing camera angle and zoom.

Anyway, I asked the Help channel and they said I might need to update my drivers. Off I went and got the latest driver: 332.21 WHQL (whatever that means - I'm not computer expert). Now whenever I get into the game I experience a MASSIVE framerate drop, even on lowest graphics settings O.o. I'm not sure how to roll back the driver and I know even less about how to roll back my OS. I'm definitely considering buying Windows 7 though, so rest assured I'm aware that it is the best solution for the problem that is Windows 8.



I run Windows 8.1, have an i5 dual core Intel processor, and my GPU is an nVidia GeForce 720M. The game worked perfectly when I first got this computer. Windows 8.1 problems not withstanding, today was the first day I had real issues with the game, and I updated to 8.1 about 3 weeks ago.

Thanks for your help.

Maki.


The disappearing windows is a known problem. Alt Tab out of game and back in and they will appear again. The white screen happens with operating systems other than 8.1 as well. I believe it is a known issue as well. File a bug report.


Indeed I've had the white screen far more often on Win 7 than on Win 8 / Win 8.1
Miaki Alleile
Doomheim
#4 - 2014-01-09 10:41:58 UTC
K thanks.

Sorry (to the admins especially) for not filing a bug report. As I said, I'm not a computer expert... I barely even know how to make one. I'll be reading the guide now but it seems I need to roll back my graphics card driver to make this thing work. Or install DX11? I have no idea. The framerate drop is insane, and it's even slowing down the music playback. No idea how this happened.

Reinstall EVE??
Romeo Deluxe
School of Applied Knowledge
Caldari State
#5 - 2014-01-09 11:07:58 UTC
There seems to be quite a few problems with DX11. One possible solution:
In the game Launcher, click the gear icon top right.
DirectX tab > DX 9

Maybe the game will work better for you in DX 9. With multiple clients this has helped me the most.
Miaki Alleile
Doomheim
#6 - 2014-01-10 00:29:28 UTC
Thanks Romeo, that sounds like a good workaround. I'm reinstalling the game right now, I'll see how it goes.
Miaki Alleile
Doomheim
#7 - 2014-01-12 00:02:13 UTC
The solution suggested by Romeo fixed the problem. After re-installing the game, I clicked the gear button (settings) and changed it to use Direct X 9. All problems solved, and the game is running smoother than ever.

Thanks for your help!!
Rroff
Antagonistic Tendencies
#8 - 2014-01-12 02:17:35 UTC
DX9 fixes this issue for some but for others seems to just delay it.

So far the best fix I've found is using fixed window mode instead of fullscreen - its not ideal as it doesn't spin your GPU upto full clocks (only really a problem for people on low to mid-range hardware) but its rare to have these issues happen if at all then.
Dante Chusuk
Sebiestor Tribe
Minmatar Republic
#9 - 2014-01-12 07:53:29 UTC
Rroff wrote:
DX9 fixes this issue for some but for others seems to just delay it.

So far the best fix I've found is using fixed window mode instead of fullscreen - its not ideal as it doesn't spin your GPU upto full clocks (only really a problem for people on low to mid-range hardware) but its rare to have these issues happen if at all then.


If you have a Nvidia GPU (which the OP does) go into Nvidia control panel (usually a right click on a blank section of desktop) -> manage 3D settings -> global settings and change "power management mode" from "adaptive" to "prefer maximum performance". All games should have power management mode at "use global settings" but you can check this in the individual game settings in the program settings tab.

This will cause the driver to tell the graphics card to maintain full clock speeds (GPU and memory) even when not processing any 3D information. This also seems to have helped some people with Windows restarting the driver when it "times out" (according to Windows not necessarily from what your GPU is doing), this is identified by the monitor seeming to lose display and then come back on again.

Also disabling the bullt in audio in Nvidia cards (presuming you don't use HDMI and speakers built in to a monitor or TV) seems to help with a multitude of sins. Best guide I've found is on EVGA forums, only do this if you are certain that your sound is coming from another source (i.e. you've plugged speaker or headphone cables into the PC or use USB audio)

http://forums.evga.com/tm.aspx?m=586183

Miaki, I appreaciate you're not a computer expert so I'd suggest going through my paragraphs one at a time and become familiar with the screens I'm talking about before you change anything. It may seem daunting at first but it will get you familiar with your hardware and you'll hopefully become more confident at trouble shooting things.
Rroff
Antagonistic Tendencies
#10 - 2014-01-12 15:17:59 UTC
^^ I'm already using prefer maximum performance - fixed window for some reason (I kind of understand why but its a bit long for a post here) only ramps the cards upto the 1019 base core clock instead of the normal 1188 boost clock, on my old 470s it would only spin upto 500MHz in 3D with fixed window instead of the 800MHz I had them overclocked to. IIRC its "low power" 3D state when the drivers think they detect you don't need full performance but seems to happen with eve regardless of using adapative or not :|

I never install the HD Audio portion of the drivers, back in the day they caused all kinds of issues as you stated and as I don't need any of the functionality I've not bothered using more recent versions to see if they've fixed them.