The Display is Scrambled or Distorted
This is one of the common problems with Windows 3.x: you want to change
the video settings to get more colors or a higher resolution, and you end
up making Windows unreadable. Fortunately, there is usually an easy way
out.
If you are in Windows already, then you need to get out of it. Try closing
Windows blindly. If this doesn't work, then the only thing left to
do is restart the computer. Hold down <Ctrl> and <Alt> and
press <Delete> twice. Then, as soon as the computer says "Starting
MS-DOS", press the <F5> key to keep it from starting Windows.
When you're at the DOS prompt, type:
CD \WINDOWS
SETUP
to get to the Windows Setup program. From there you can select the display
type and change it to the standard "VGA". You may need
your Windows setup disks to make the change. After this is done, Windows
will once again run properly (restart the computer if needed.)
Why it didn't work
When you go into Windows Setup and look at the display setting, you
will notice that there are dozens of lines that have different names and
resolutions. Most of these names are brand names for different types of
video cards, and those will only work with a specific card and no others.
The VGA driver is the only one that will work with all VGA-compatible
video cards, and if you have Windows for Workgroups, the Super VGA
driver will work with all SVGA-compatible video cards. If you try any other
driver that does not match your video card, it will fail.
Another reason it might not work (more common for distortion problems)
is if the video card is not configured correctly for your monitor. When
you have a resolution of 640x480 (standard VGA), all monitors will display
it properly at 60MHz, so no adjustments need to be made. At higher resolutions,
however, you need to make sure your video card is using a frequency your
monitor can handle. Most modern video cards will have a utility program
you will need to run to specify the frequencies for each possible resolution.
You will need to consult your monitor's manual
for the proper frequencies.
Next time you want to change the display settings for Windows, refer
to the manual for your video card for instructions.
