Hello all. I use Windows XP with SP2. My computer is an IBM, Pentium 3 Coppermine @ 1GHz. My video card is the Nvidia GeForce 5200. All drivers are up to date. I can play complex games such as Halo and all other games with no problems. When I try to use FlightGear, the frame rate is very low, to the point of not being able to do anything at all. Why is this? It seems that this software should be as any other would be. Why is it so hard to get FlightGear to work as it should? Oddly enough, FlightGear worked for one evening, then not ever again. What happened? Nothing was changed in the computer or the software. It just suddenly stopped working. I have re-installed it several times now, but no change. I checked all my video settings, no change. I use no added features, with a resolution of 800X600. Still no change. The error report says something about an unsuported openGL extension 'WGL_ARB_extensions_string'. I have no idea what this means. It also says that it can't find a certain runway, but it is a runway that I did not ask it to go to. Very strange. Is anyone else having problems using this software under Windows?

Can you post the parameters that you are running FG with?

I tried using my normal screen resolution of 1024X768 once, but the frame rate dropped to about one frame per second. I then switched back to 800X600 but the frame rate would not improve. I tried to use full screen as well as windowed view. I do not have any of the extras checked in the setup. I am running it bare bones, so there should be no reason for frame rate to drop. No 3D clouds... nothing. I use the most recent Nvidia drivers as well. I cannot understand why it would not work when first installed, then suddenly out of the blue (no pun intended) it worked, then suddenly didn't work again. I tried rebooting the computer...everything I could think of. I am really at a loss here. Could the program somehow become corrupted after being used for a short time? With this thought in mind, I re-installed it, but no change in functionality. Very confusing indeed!

I have a feeling you have the color depth set to 16 bpp. Try setting it to 32.

You are correct. I do have the color set to 16. I will try the 32 setting and post the results.

Well, I changed the color depth to 32. Once again, the program worked for a little while. A few flights. Then, it started doing the low frame rate again. To eliminate RAM as the problem, I shut the computer down for a few minutes, then booted up again. Still the problem remained. It claims it doesn't have access to openGL, but the GL files are there in the windows system folder. No other programs have a problem, so I have no idea what is going on. It would appear there is a cumulative problem with the software, as it works for a few flights, then it doesn't. If I need a super computer to run the software, then I am just out of luck I suppose.