What are drivers?
Drivers tell your operating system how to communicate with
the hardware in your computer. A large variety of drivers
come bundled with most operating systems. All operating systems
will need drivers to interact with the hardware in the computer.
The problem with the drivers that come bundled with the operating
system, is that they are old and do not alway's take full
advantage of the hardware, perhaps compromising efficiency
with reliability. New hardware purchases may also lack drivers
on the operating system CD, and drivers shipped with new hardware
are often fairly old as well.
Manufacturers tend to ship drivers they know to be reliable,
therefore less chance of a bad first impression for the customer.
Newer drivers will have bug fixes, perhap's more efficient
coding, and will make better use of hardware features.
In many cases, you will be well advised to upgrade your drivers
to newer versions. The internet is ideal for this, new drivers
are available on the manufacturer's web site as soon as they
become available.
All you need to do is establish the exact make and model
of the hardware in your computer, and go to their web site
and look for new drivers. Make sure you get the correct driver,
as installing an incorrect driver will cause problems.
Of course, don't forget the old saying... "If it ain't
broke, don't fix it". If you're happy with the performance
of your computer or you're not confident enough to attempt
upgrading the drivers, then you shouldn't fiddle.
Look on the Search
Engine page of the Internet section for help on searching.
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