Windows 95 Multimedia Questions and Answers

• Microsoft Windows 95

SUMMARY

This article contains questions and answers about multimedia in Windows 95.

MORE INFORMATION

1. Q. My sound card is supported by Windows 95, but Setup did not detect it. How do I install it?
   
   A. Use the Add New Hardware tool in Control Panel. If the sound card is not detected, make sure its real-mode drivers are loading in the Config.sys and Autoexec.bat files before you run the Add New Hardware Wizard again.
   
   If Windows 95 still does not detect the sound card, there may be a conflict between the sound card and another device. Use the right mouse button to click My Computer, click Properties on the menu that appears, then click the Device Manager tab. Examine the properties for each device to see if Windows 95 reports a device conflict. Once any device conflict is resolved, run the Add New Hardware Wizard again.



2. Q. Windows 95 does not have a driver for my sound card. How do I use it in Windows 95?
   
   A. To use your sound card in Windows 95, install its Windows 3.1 drivers. You may also want to contact your sound card manufacturer about Windows 95 driver availability.
   
   If the sound card driver files include an Oemsetup.inf file, use the following steps to install the driver:
   
   
   1. Click the Start button, point to Settings, then click Control Panel.
   
   
   
   2. Double-click the Add New Hardware icon, then click Next.
   
   
   
   3. When you are prompted "Do you want Windows to search for your new hardware?" click No, then click Next.
   
   
   
   4. In the Hardware Types box, click Sound, Video And Game Controllers, then click Next.
   
   
   
   5. Click the Have Disk button to install the sound card driver.
      
      If the sound card driver files do not include an Oemsetup.inf file, use the sound card's Setup program to install it. If there is no Setup program, contact the manufacturer for assistance.
   
   
   



3. Q. The sound from my Creative Labs SoundBlaster sound card is scratchy. How do I fix it?
   
   A. This problem can occur when the SoundBlaster's DMA setting does not match its DMA setting in Windows 95. To correct this, follow these steps:
   
   
   1. Use the right mouse button to click My Computer, then click Properties on the menu that appears.
   
   
   
   2. On the Device Manager tab, click Sound, Video And Game Controllers, then click Remove. When you are prompted to restart your computer, click Yes.
   
   
   
   3. Click the Start button, point to Settings, then click Control Panel.
   
   
   
   4. Double-click the Add New Hardware icon, click Next, then click Next again.
   
   
   
   5. Restart your computer when the Add New Hardware Wizard finishes.
   
   
   



4. Q. When I play .avi files they don't seem to play smoothly. How can I correct this?
   
   A. Try the following tips to smooth out .avi file playback:
   
   
   • Do not run the file over a network.
   
   
   
   • If you are playing the file from a CD-ROM, and the CD-ROM drive uses protected-mode drivers, use the following steps to increase the size of the CD-ROM cache:
     
     
     1. Use the right mouse button to click My Computer, then click Properties on the menu that appears.
     
     
     
     2. On the Performance tab, click File System, then click the CD-ROM tab.
     
     
     
   
   
   
   • If the CD-ROM drive uses real-mode drivers, load SMARTDrive in the Autoexec.bat file.
   
   
   
   • For additional information, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

     Q127139 Troubleshooting Video Problems in Windows 95

   
   
   



5. Q. Why does Windows 95 not detect my SCSI CD-ROM drive?
   
   A. Windows 95 detects only proprietary CD-ROM drives (such as Panasonic, Mitsumi, and Sony CD-ROM drives). Although Windows 95 does not detect CD-ROM drives on SCSI controllers, it does detect supported SCSI controllers. Your SCSI CD-ROM drive is accessible because the enumerator for the SCSI controller also enumerates the CD-ROM drive.



6. Q. Does Media Player support MPEG?
   
   A. No. Windows 95 does not include an MPEG driver for Media Player. However, there are third-party products you can use to view MPEG files in Windows 95.



7. Q. Some of the sounds played by my sound card sound fine, and others sound scratchy. How can I correct this?
   
   A. Try the following tips to improve the sound playback:
   
   
   • Make sure you are using the proper DMA settings. Some sound cards use a High and a Low DMA setting.
   
   
   
   • Make sure the format of the wave file is supported by your sound card. For example, you cannot play a 16-bit wave file on an 8-bit sound card.
   
   
   



8. Q. My program that uses QuickTime does not work properly. What can I do to fix this?
   
   A. Make sure there is only one version of QuickTime on your computer. If you continue to have problems, add the line "optimize=driver" to the [Video] section of the Qtw.ini file in the Windows folder and then restart your computer.

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