Links Extreme: How to Improve Game Performance

This article describes several methods you can use to improve game performance in Links Extreme.

To improve game performance in Links Extreme, use the following methods:

Quit Unnecessary Programs

To increase the amount of available system resources, quit all programs that are running before you start Links Extreme.

Disable Software Wavetable MIDI Playback

If the computer is configured to use a software wavetable driver to play MIDI sounds, reconfigure the computer to use a general MIDI or FM MIDI driver to play MIDI sounds, or disable MIDI playback in Links Extreme.

To configure the computer to use a general MIDI driver, follow these steps:

1. Click Start, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel.
2. Double-click Multimedia.
3. On the MIDI tab, click Single Instrument, and then click an instrument with a name that contains "General MIDI" or "FM Synthesis."
4. Click OK, and then close Control Panel.

Select A Lower Screen Resolution and Color Palette

If Links Extreme is configured to run at a screen resolution higher than 800 x 600 or with a color palette greater than 65,000 colors, select a lower screen resolution and color palette. To do this, follow these steps:

1. On the Links Extreme startup screen, click Options.
2. Click Display Setup.
3. Under Display Mode, click 800 x 600 (16 bit 65 thousand colors).
4. Click OK, and then click Close.

Disable Sound

To disable sound in Links Extreme, follow these steps:

1. On the Links Extreme startup screen, click Options.
2. Click Sound Setup.
3. Under Sound, click to select the Off check box.
4. Click OK, and then click Close.

Defragment the Hard Disk

To defragment the hard disk on a Microsoft Windows 95/98-based computer, run Disk Defragmenter. To do this, click Start, point to Programs, point to Accessories, point to System Tools, and then click Disk Defragmenter.

To defragment the hard disk on a Microsoft Windows NT 4.0-based computer, install and run a third-party disk defragmenting program.

Increase Available Hard Disk Space

For information about how to increase the amount of available space on your hard disk, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: