# How do you find out what video card you have? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 7, 2003, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-find-out-what-video-card-you-have/186691 "2003-07-07T02:47:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Tallayan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Tallayan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tallayan)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2003, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-find-out-what-video-card-you-have/186691/1 "2003-07-07T02:47:07Z")
Sorry if this sounds like a stupid question but i did not buy the computer i am using. However it is a compaw presario 6000 if anyone knows what that has off the top of their head, and am also running XP. i checked the compaq site and did not find it. This site [http://pubs.logicalexpressions.com/Pub0009/LPMArticle.asp?ID=161](http://pubs.logicalexpressions.com/Pub0009/LPMArticle.asp?ID=161) Has a way to check, but i just get gibberish, no video card info. ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2003, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-find-out-what-video-card-you-have/186691/2 "2003-07-07T02:55:38Z")
Try right-clicking My Computer, click Properties and select the Hardware tab. Click the Device Manager button, then click on Sound, Game and Vidio Adaptors. That should tell you what it is. ---
**Author:** ![Desmostylus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c57346/32.png) [@Desmostylus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Desmostylus)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2003, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-find-out-what-video-card-you-have/186691/3 "2003-07-07T02:57:15Z")
Run msinfo32. Under “Componenets” -\> “Display”, you should see the name. Or, right click on the desktop and call up “Display” Go to “Properties” -\> “Advanced” -\> “Adapter” ---
**Author:** ![gotpasswords](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c57346/32.png) [@gotpasswords](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gotpasswords)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2003, 2:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-find-out-what-video-card-you-have/186691/4 "2003-07-07T02:59:38Z")
Right-click on the desktop, then click on Properties and click on the Advanced tab. About midway down, you should see something like \*\*Display: Something on Whatever \*\* “Something” is ideally the kind of monitor you have, but will probably be “Plug and Play Monitor” or “Super VGA” “Whatever” will be roughly the video board you’ve got. Let us know what comes up, and we can help translate. ---
**Author:** ![Tallayan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Tallayan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tallayan)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2003, 3:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-find-out-what-video-card-you-have/186691/5 "2003-07-07T03:04:45Z")
I used desmostylus’s way and got Intel 82845G graphics controller, does that sound right? And sorry if this is a stupid question, never got the hang of hardware ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2003, 3:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-find-out-what-video-card-you-have/186691/6 "2003-07-07T03:07:12Z")
That’s an integrated video adaptor which is part of the [Intel 845G chipset.](http://www.intel.com/design/chipsets/845g/) ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2003, 4:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-find-out-what-video-card-you-have/186691/7 "2003-07-07T04:49:38Z")
Presario 6000’s come with a few different chipsets onboard. You can find yours by referencing the precise model series number on the Compaq website. The previously referenced Intel and the S3 Pro Savage graphics are the main chipsets for the older 6000 series. The ATI Radeon is in some of the newer units.