Check Your Computer Configuration

To view the summary of the computer configuration you need to go

go to start> run> cmd
this will take you to command prompt

go there and type systeminfo.exe press enter.

[BUT THIS WILL NOT SHOW IN DETAILS. FOR DETAILS CHECK BELLOW]

If your not sure what’s under the hood of your PC, here’s how to find out.

First, go to Start>All Programs>Accessories>System Tools>System Information
Under the System Summary Tag you will find:

(System model's value part actually is the Mother Board Model Number)

OS Version (i.e. Service Pack 2 in this example). If you have XP it’s best to upgrade to SP3.

Processor type and speed rating. This processor is 3391Mhz or about 3.4Ghz You’ll need a minimum 800Mhz processor for HDTV support.

Physical Memory – you’ll need at least 256Mb, 512Mb would be a lot better such as this one.

Next, under Components, click on the “+” to expand the listing, then click on “USB”.

You’ll see several USB Devices. If one of them says "USB Enhanced" (such as the one in the example highlighted above), you’ve got USB 2.0. This is important if you want to use a USB tuner or if you want to use an external hard drive to record HDTV shows. USB 2.0 is required for these functions. If you only have USB 1.1, all is not lost. You can buy a four port USB 2.0 PCI card for under $30.

Next go to Conflicts/Sharing under Hardware Resources. Although this is no prefect way to determine your type of video slot/card (AGP or PCI-e), this is probably the best method.

The above is an example of an older AGP board.

This is an example of PCI-e board.

NOTE: Onboard graphics may not use DxVA. This means your main CPU will be doing the MPEG-2 decoding. Most older Intel onboard graphics are non-DxVA.

You’ll also need to run DirectX 9.0. Vista has DirectX 10 loaded automatically, but if you have XP, to see what DirectX you currently have, select “Tools” at the top of the System Information screen, then clink on “DirectX Diagnostic Tool”.

Or to reach directly there, go to start> run> type"dxdiag"without qoutes>ok.>system tab, you will get all your system details there.

You’ll see the current DirectX version in the middle of the screen as highlighted in the example above.

To check your hard drive size and free space, go to the main Windows menu and double clink on “My Computer”. Move your cursor on top of your hard drive(s). The total amount of drive space and the amount free will display. Remember, an hour of recorded HDTV will take up 8-9 Gb of disk space.

MONITOR CHECK

To check your montior resolution capabilty, go to Start>Control Panel>Display>Setting
You should see the following screen:

Move the slider in the highlighted area to the desired resolution and click "Apply". The monitor should change to the desired resolution. If there is a problem, it will go back to the original setting after 15 seconds.