A couple of thoughts:1) Installing new graphics card drivers really shouldn't be such a pain in the backside, especially with ATI's new Catalyst Uninstaller utility. You run that once, follow the prompts (which will ask you to reboot) and then install the new drivers, follow the prompts (which will ask you to reboot again) and then you're set. Having said that, it is a bit unlikely they are the cause of your problems so I guess you may be right in keeping them as is.2) Have you tried reinstalling FS9? I know it's a pain but so is getting the "Out of Memory" error message so I'd still give that a try.Edwin

We'll see what happens after tonight when I try another flight using the system managed page file instead of the setting I had set for it.

If youre goinhg to install new drivers get driver cleaner pro, its free. it will remove everything the uninstaller leaves behind which is usally quite a lot; thus ensuring a clean install of the new drivers and no conflicts. Just using the unistaller isnt good enough.

>>In my experiences changing the drivers of your video card to>other than the one supplied is generally a pain in the behind>not to mention they generally don't help...lol. I've tried it>many times and it doesn't make the g-card or pograms run any>better. That's why I went back to the original drivers. I'll>probably get blasted for saying that, oh well.>Sorry but updating drivers for all your hardware is a must if you want things to work correctly. It may not run "better" but new drivers fix issues such as graphics bugs, performance issues, crashes, etc.

Correct....If they are running incorrectly. Mine are just fine.

This issue has some resonance with me. I have a very similar system:Dell XPS Gen 23.2 Pentium IV2.0 GB RAM (4 x 512) DIMMATI 9800 XT 256 MBXP Pro SP2Her 3DMark score is right where it should be, but my frame rates are very poor for this system. Like 20-30 at cruise with Active Sky (256 textures) and the PSS Airbus panel. Like 5 fps landing at KDTW with Imagine Sim scenery.Granted, I really put a load on everything, particularly with AI traffic. I have over 5,900 AI aircraft installed, and the traffic at a large airport hammers my system. With smaller airports it's not bad. Like I could actually fly the aircraft going into Imagine Sim's KMSY.I don't think ActiveSky contributes much to the problem. I tried the tiny texture files with no perceptible change in frame rates. And those crashes were on very VFR days.More on point, I've had FS fail to launch because of not enough memory. This is not uncommon when I'm repainting and have Photoshop CS2 running. I just close CS2 and try again.I went into KDTW six times in the last week or so, and FS crashed twice within a mile of the runway threshold. No window. Just that blank, black screen followed by the "send error report" crap. That screen makes the hair stand up on the back of my neck just thinking about it. Like Billie Gates is actually going to do something about it.I've been concerned that my RAM is not performing, and I've just been through the page file routine above. We'll see if that helps.The hard drive has lots of free space, it's defragged, and the ATI drivers are updated. The last time was the worst experience I've ever had updating drivers. A total disaster. And I'd been thinking that updating ATI wasn't as dangerous as nVidia. That Catalyst Control Center is flat-out trouble - and worthless.I try to give her all the help I can. Like getting off the Net, disabling Mr. Norton and using FSAutoStart to shut down services.What is "defragging memory" about? FSAutoStart has always failed on that step, which concerns me.Hopefully, this adds some info for the thread.Dave WilkinsFalcon307

I think it's actually the FS WX engine that puts the hurt on users system.Anyways I've just tried 2 flights but they were only about 1 hour each with no problems after changing back to system managed page files. I'll try a 2+ hour tomm.