benchmark question???

[spin03]

i have seen some benchmarks for cs:s, and i am a noob with computer gaming. i was wondering what anti aliasing is, because i see a huge difference in fps when it is turned on. if anyone can help me with this it would be greatly apprieciated. i am looking for a new graphics card and i just wanted to know what it was because if i dont need it turned on i will go with a 9600 xt, but if i need it turned on i might need the 9800 pro. thanks

 

[seinfeldrules]

Go with a 9800 or better. It smooths out objects so they dont have jagged edges.

 

[spin03]

do u know what anti-aliasing is tho

 

[Roland Deschain]

do u know what anti-aliasing is tho

Here's a guide for the lay man: summery, AA simply makes edges smoother:

http://www.widearea.co.uk/designer/anti.html

 

[Uh-Oh]

Even with a 9800pro, I wouldn't suggest more then 4x AA.
If you are playing in higher resolution, 2x is usually the best performance / image quality ratio.

Also, try AF (ansiotropic filtering) it works wonders. For a 9800 pro, 8x should be good. I'm in a hurry so I can't explain what it does (and I'm not good at explaining either) but the gist is, it makes textures stay sharper and more detail for a longer viewing distance (has to do with having more mip maps, like 8, instead of 2 or 3).

 

[spin03]

what do you recommend to do with a 9600xt? is it worth it to anti-aliase something if i might go from 50 fps to 30-40? what would be better medium graphic settings with AA at 4x, or high graphic settings with no AA or maybe 2x