Graphics issues with my mac

[joeymozzer 0]

I see roads in the sky, faces in the ground/edges of region/ sidewalks. and i also do not get a crisp clean view of all my buildings, smoke, water and cars in movement. they appear almost fuzzy or grainy. ill post what i think are the specs for my mac.Hardware Overview:

Model Name:re"> iMac

Model Identifier:re"> iMac8,1

Processor Name:re"> Intel Core 2 Duo

Processor Speed:re"> 2.66 GHz

Number Of Processors:re"> 1

Total Number Of Cores:re"> 2

L2 Cache:re"> 6 MB

Memory:re"> 2 GB

Bus Speed:re"> 1.07 GHz

Boot ROM Version:re"> IM81.00C1.B00

SMC Version:re"> 1.29f1

ATI Radeon HD 2600 Pro:

Chipset Model:re"> ATI Radeon HD 2600 Pro

Type:re"> Display

Bus:re"> PCIe

PCIe Lane Width:re"> x16

VRAM (Total):re"> 256 MB

Vendor:re"> ATI (0x1002)

Device ID:re"> 0x9583

Revision ID:re"> 0x0000

ROM Revision:re"> 113-B2250L-259

EFI Driver Version:re"> 01.00.259

Displays:

iMac:

Resolution:re"> 1680 x 1050

Depth:re"> 32-bit Color

Core Image:re"> Hardware Accelerated

Main Display:re"> Yes

Mirror:re"> Off

Online:re"> Yes

Quartz Extreme:re"> Supported

Built-In:re"> Yes

Display Connector:

Status:re"> No display connected

[sim-Al2 4]

I'm no expert with Macs, but we were going to add a 2600 AGP XT to this PC I'm on. However, it was so horrible to deal with (crashing, updated drivers galore) that we ended returning the card.

[toxicpiano 125]

Originally posted by: sim-Al2

I'm no expert with Macs, but we were going to add a 2600 AGP XT to this PC I'm on. However, it was so horrible to deal with (crashing, updated drivers galore) that we ended returning the card.quote>

The 2600 in all iMacs are PCI express.

There is a graphics patch on the Aspyr website, try using that and see how you go. Otherwise try switching software/hardware mode etc.

[unityx 1]

See other threads, there is not a fix for this issue. Might be 10.5 related.

[joeymozzer 0]

what is 10.5? im very new to this whole thing. where and how do i get a new version?

[mediaguru 0]

Originally posted by: joeymozzer

what is 10.5? im very new to this whole thing. where and how do i get a new version?quote>

10.5 is short for version 10.5 of Mac OS X ("Leopard&quot.

I think that there is something that has changed with the video drivers in 10.5, because I have had terrible graphics problems with Aspyr SC4 Deluxe on my Intel MacBook Pro since applying the last two or three 10.5 updates (10.5.x - where "x" is the minor number of the latest update, currently at #6, or 10.5.6).

I don't think you can get new versions of supported video drivers for Mac OS outside of the updates Apple provides.

[unityx 1]

^^ Correct. There are two issue with graphics, or there seems to be. I wish I had more time to investigate. ISSUE 1: cars dissolving, disappearing, very choppy scrolling, waves dissolving just like cars. These issue may come up all together or just a couple. I was able to fix most of it by modifying a graphics rule. Very easy to do, just took a little time to figure out the issue. The listed issue can still happen but generally when one scrolls they clean up. ISSUE 2: some point in game play clouds turn to roads or other images, road disappear, empty zone tiles develop round icons, buildings appear "sideways", etc. Seems a zoom level change can cause this one faster. This seems to be linked, as mediaguru said, to a recent update to 10.5 Leopard. BOTH issue stem from Intel based hardware.

[bluegoose 2]

I'm running OSX (Leopard) and have no issues with graphics. I don't wish to send you down a rat hole but have you pondered the graphics card you're using?

According to C-Net: http://reviews.cnet.com/graphics-cards/ati-radeon-hd-2600/4505-8902_7-32489776.html

ATI Radeon HD 2600 XT

The good:Excellent HD video image quality; easy installation with no internal cable connections.

The bad:Subpar 3D performance, even for a midrange 3D card.

The bottom line:

If you're looking to build a home theater PC, we recommend ATI's Radeon HD 2600 XT as the midrange card to use, thanks to its nearly perfect HD video image and its no-fuss installation. But for 3D gaming, you'd be much better off looking for a good deal on a faster, older graphics card.

[mediaguru 0]

I've heard that the ATI cards have some issues, and of course, the newer Macs are now using nVidia cards. I suspect that updated ATI drivers in 10.5 are to blame for some problems, because I had no issues with SC4 on earlier versions of 10.5 or even 10.4 "Tiger" before that.

I wish there was some easy way to figure out what changed in the later 10.5 releases. Aspyr seems less than willing to provide patches to fix the problems. I'm intrigued with editing graphics rules, etc., but I'm not sure where to start...

[VIPStephan 0]

I have no issue on the latest Mac mini with OS 10.5.6

[mediaguru 0]

Originally posted by: VIPStephan

I have no issue on the latest Mac mini with OS 10.5.6quote>

But your Mac mini has nVidia graphics, correct? The texture glitches seem to be happening with ATI cards and 10.5.x.

[unityx 1]

Is everyone here running Intel Macs? If not, 10.5 does not apply as the issue. I do believe is a 10.5 issue in conjunction with certain cards IF people are indeed running Intel hardware with the latest 10.5.

[mediaguru 0]

Unityx, it appears most of the problems posted, including mine, are indeed with Intel Macs.

As far as 10.5 is concerned, the specific issues I have had (colored road textures appearing in zoned areas and huge, mismatched mouse cursor) appeared on my Intel Mac only after installing recent 10.5 updates. Given all the same variables (Intel Mac, ATI, 10.5), my copy of SC4 ran without any problems on the original release of 10.5.

[TEG24601 32]

Originally posted by: mediaguru

Unityx, it appears most of the problems posted, including mine, are indeed with Intel Macs.

As far as 10.5 is concerned, the specific issues I have had (colored road textures appearing in zoned areas and huge, mismatched mouse cursor) appeared on my Intel Mac only after installing recent 10.5 updates. Given all the same variables (Intel Mac, ATI, 10.5), my copy of SC4 ran without any problems on the original release of 10.5.

quote>

Perhaps 10.5.7 will fix it, otherwise we may need to send a report to Apple regarding this.

TEG

[unityx 1]

I dont think its an Apple issue, I think its an Aspyr issue and how poorly cobbled the game was assembled.

[TEG24601 32]

Well, I just did some testing.

All versions on my system have the job producing landmarks, industry quadrupler, and the RH update

Under the PPC version on my parents' Intel iMac (Late 2008)

[unityx 1]

Cool, keep us updated. I did similar things but still had issues. In fact the UB patch usually made things worse. Maybe I should apply the patch and in conjunction with the new OS updates issues may be more resolved...

[mediaguru 0]

There are definitely issues that *look* like plugin conflicts, but I think they are in fact more serious issues caused by changes in MacOS X 10.5.4 and higher.

I started with 10.5.6 and completely trashed my old SC4 Deluxe folder, trashed the old preference file, copied a new instance directly from the DVD, and launched the new copy of the game. The texture problems appeared after just a few minutes of road building, zoning, and zooming. As I noted before, I have a MBP 2,2 with ATI Radeon X1600 256 MB video adapter. SC4 Deluxe worked without problems on earlier versions of 10.5 and on 10.4. I'm beginning to suspect that the people having problems meet the following criteria:

* Intel Mac * certain ATI Graphics chipsets * MacOS X 10.5.4 or higher

[unityx 1]

Thats what I was figuring. Dang

[TEG24601 32]

So, after spending several hours on both the PPC and UB versions under 10.5.7, I'm not seeing nearly as many problems as I would see in the past. Clouds, Smoke, and Waves all appear to be operating properly, and I'm not seeing any particles in the sky. However, some piece are mis-represented at certain zoom levels and certain angles, but no more that before, infact some of the problems, like with lots, are gone completely. I have had one or two buildings replaced with parts of other buildings and props, but nothing a complete map rotate didn't fix. All in all, I'm finding SC4 playable and enjoyable again on the iMac, but will still be going back and forth with my PowerBook for the foreseeable future.