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Questions tagged [drivers]

Drivers are the middleware that allow computer programs to use resources of a specific hardware device.

A driver, also called a device driver or software driver is software that allows higher-level computer programs to interact with a hardware device. When a computer program requests interaction with a certain hardware device, the driver will handle instruction and output translation between the device and the computer program invoking the driver.

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Why do my headphones not require drivers?

When I plug a new mouse or printer into my Mac, I need to install a new driver. However, I recently plugged new head phones into my computer, and they just worked. Why don't I need to install a driver for my head phones?
David Faux
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What is different about GPU drivers from other device drivers, that allows for performance optimizations?

It seems like the big two GPU makers are constantly releasing updated drivers that have a small performance boosts here and there. When they're for the same game, I bet it adds up over time. With that in mind, why is it that we never hear about…
Louis Waweru
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Computer with no information at all ?-- where to start?

A friend of mine gave me his old computer ..(bougth 2002-2003) He gave me everything exept his HDD. So i installed a HDD in and installed Windows XP on the System : The Problem : The System is running slow, because of the lack of drivers . ( No VGA…
n00ki3
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Detecting hardware and installing drivers in Windows XP

I have on my desk a computer that I am reinstalling. I have just completed the Windows XP install , which is professional service pack 3. I have also installed an AV package. Now it is time to install the audio and display drivers. Windows Update…
JL.
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Difference between Intel MEI and Intel ME

I have a 8th series Intel CPU and I want to Install the drivers for it but there are some programs similar to each other. one of them is Intel ME 1.5 MB and 5 MB and MEI. I searched for them and it appears that (5MB) version of ME has more features…
user430418
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3 answers

What is a driver, and how does it work?

I recently reintalled the OS on my computer, and had to install a number of drivers to get everything to work. It made me wonder, what is a driver, how does it work? And is there a difference between for example a printer driver, and a graphic card…
Thomas
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Has anyone tried Driver Robot - or are there similar free tools like this?

Has anyone used Driver Robot and if so is it any good. Just trying to find a quick and easy way to find all the out of date, critical drivers I need for all the PC's I have lying around here.
Vidar
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Finding missing, mystery drivers

What steps do you take to find missing mystery drivers? I.e. You have new machine, and after installing a new OS, the audio or video or memory card reader doesn't work. How do you find the correct drivers?
Spongeboy
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Can I install unsigned Windows drivers to work without test mode or disabling driver signing and without buying a code signing certificate?

Can I sign drivers with a "self-signed" certificate, to work just with this PC, of course, and not have to use DDISABLE_INTEGRITY_CHECKS, TESTSIGNING or Test Mode? Many modded drivers for legacy devices (e.g., ppjoy) are unsigned don't work in x64…
William C
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How do i tell if my drivers are up to date on Acer?

My computer crashed with a blue screen the other day after trying to load sandboxie. For this reason, I think it is conflicting with something. I checked that the drivers of my Acer Aspire One AOD270 were up to date on this intel based site. The…
joe
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Intel Driver update utility

I am trying to run the Intel Driver Update Utility but in Opera, Firefox and Chrome I get nothing, while in IE8 the pllugin is installed and when it runs it gives an error "" The NTVDM CPU has encountered an illegal instruction." .... Anyone got…
Jena
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Linksys WMP54G setup file crashes?

I am reformatting and putting a fresh installation of windows on 3 machines for a daycare. They each happen to have a PCI wifi adapter. There is not a driver for this from the desktop's manufactuer. So I took it out to see if it had a brand name…
CT.
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Is there anyway to get a free driver for an old keyboard?

I have tried several sites but they all give you the scan for free then want to charge you. I was given a Mitsumi keyboard & cannot get it to work on my laptop.
user76785
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What are the potential roadblocks for driver support when it comes to using older hardware on newer OSs?

At work, I provide end-user support for imaging devices like printers and scanners for a specific manufacturer. Every once in a while, I'll have a customer demanding an explanation as to why his 15-year-old device doesn't have a driver for a recent…
Llade
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Why device drivers are not stored in the device itself?

In order to use a hardware, the specific driver for that particular hardware for the particular OS the device will be interacting with must be installed on the computer. My question is, why aren't drivers for a particular device stored on the device…
Utku
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