Before I installed the docking station software, the display drivers worked. As soon as I installed the docking station, the display drivers stopped working. Message: Hardware accelereation is eithr disabled or not supported by your video card driver, which could slow game performance. Make sure you have the latest video card driver installed and that hardware acceleration is turned on. Failed to create Direct X device. I know that this is your fault because I just returned a computer for this failure. Started up the new one, everything worked fine, no errors such as the above. Then, 1 minute after I installed your software I tested this and the errors ocurred. Another problem is that the touchpad on the laptop stops working properly.
Hi Anna - Thanks for posting. We’re very sorry! Let’s work to get this fixed up.
The DisplayLink drivers interact closely with the GPU drivers. It sounds like you may have an nVidia or ATI GPU with recent drivers. First step is to install DisplayLink drivers that are also as recent. Please go to http://displaylink.com/support/downlo… and download the latest version 5.5 M1 drivers (Dec 3, 2010) - and let us know if that helps.
If things seem well then, run Microsoft’s Windows Aero troubleshooter to make sure Windows has everything turned on http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/wi…
The touchpad is more worrisome. It’s just another USB device on your system, and there’s no reason why the docking station should affect it (other than the docking station being a collection of other USB devices). Please let us know if after getting the graphics working, there is still any problem with the touchpad - we’ll work to figure out what might be going wrong there.
Again, sorry for the frustration. Thanks for letting us know how the steps above go. We’ll get the drivers working on your system, or get them of and get you a refund. You won’t get stuck with anything that’s not working!
Thanks again,
Bernie
Hi Anna - Have you had a chance to try the suggestions above?
If your system is still having this problem, please contact us - we’re here to help! You can also email support@plugable.com anytime.
Thank you!
Bernie
Display seems to be working properly now. I don’t know how to explain how awful it is to have a brand new computer not work as advertised and not to be able to fix it. I must have spent 12 hours on the phone/chat with Dell trying to fix this. Blamed Dell, replaced mother board, computer. Finally tracked it down to your out of date drivers. Can’t you set up some way such that we don’t have this grief. Could you inform Dell that the drivers you ship break their software? Can’t you set things up so that when one installs your software, there is a check for updated drivers?
Hi Anna - we’re very sorry! That’s extremely frustrating to lose all that time and energy on a problem - especially when it turns out to have a quick solution.
Unfortunately, running the latest drivers is essential for using these USB graphics devices, because of the dependencies they have on the OS & main graphics drivers. But it is frustrating.
We try to do everything possible to get the latest drivers to customers, by encouraging users to skip the CD and get the latest drivers automatically from Microsoft’s Windows Update (by just plugging in the device and letting Windows search for drivers) or download online.
Both Microsoft’s Windows Update and DisplayLink’s software itself have an ability to push updates also - But those mechanisms are not aggressively used.
I think you have a good suggestion that those mechanisms should be used more consistently to get the latest drivers out, to avoid pain like you just went through. DisplayLink has the ability to influence Windows Update and control their own update mechanism - and we’ll push them on this, partially driven by your experience here.
If you can send an email with your Amazon order number to support@plugable.com, we’d also like to send you an Amazon discount, since you spent all that time solving the problem without our help.
Again, my apologies for the frustration.
Best wishes,
Bernie
Hi Anna,
We’d like to make sure everything is going well now with the updated drivers. Can you let us know if all’s well or anything is wrong?
Thanks!
Bernie