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The first thing you need to know as a gamer using Vista is that Vista has enabled special folders and directories specifically for the gamer. The first folder you should get to know if you are a gamer on Vista is of course your Games folder. In the Games folder you will find an outstanding repository for all of your gaming needs. From here, you can update your games with the most up to date patches, launch your games, enable your parental controls to protect your children from games with dangerous content, and do so much more. All you have to do to launch your Games folder is to click on the Start menu, and hit Games.
Another thing you want to know about is the Vista directory known as Saved Games. This is located in your personal folders, and is a directory where all of your games can be saved. If you like to migrate any saved games onto your hard drive for later use, the Saved Games directory is going to be one of your very best friends in Vista.
You will also want to familiarize yourself with Vista’s Direct X9 folders and files in order to improve compatibility with your games. Some games will run on one operating system well, but not on another. Vista has removed this frustration for you with Direct X9. While Direct X9 does not come with your Vista, it is available from Microsoft direct. Download Direct X9 to improve your gaming compatibilities. With games such as 3Dmark06 or FEAR, Direct X9 is essential. However, if you are an avid gamer, having Direct X9 on your system will ensure you won’t have to pick and choose what games you can play, as Vista will take out all the guesswork for you, and let you play your favorite games at the same time.
Even with Direct X9 installed, you may find poor game performance with specific games. Some newer games are only compatible with Direct X10 for example. You can attempt playing the game with the Direct X10 compatibility, but if you are still experiencing problems, try running your game through Direct X9 instead. Go to your Games Folder, and click the icon that is set to start your X10 game. You will be prompted with a “Play Direct X9” option. Click this and you should be able to play your game. With this option, you may give up some of your bells and whistles on this specific game, however, the frame rates will more than likely be better anyway.
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