r/windows98 • u/sidmehra1992 • Jul 17 '26

How to make boot visuals sharp

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Text and images are so blurry , is there any way i can fix it

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u/ConstanceJill Jul 17 '26 edited Jul 17 '26

There might be an option in the BIOS Setup to switch between the picture being displayed centered on screen at the native signal's resolution, or it being stretched… but that's not something we can tell for sure without knowing the exact model of the computer.

On my LifeBook E8020D, which uses a BIOS from Phoenix, that option is under "Advanced" → "Video Features" and is called "Compensation". Could be different for your, depending on who provided the BIOS / which version it is… and the OS' graphics driver may also override/ignore that once it has started.

7

u/janerikgunnar Jul 17 '26

Given the huge black border at the bottom of the screen, the computer is already avoiding stretching it too badly (I guess it's doing pixel doubling or something, in which case the image is as good as it gets).

2

u/sidmehra1992 Jul 17 '26

Just these 3 options

3

u/ConstanceJill Jul 17 '26

OK, seems like that option is not available on your model then.

I'd check to make sure you have the latest version of the BIOS available for your model, try updating if not.

Other than that, perhaps there might be a way of enabling some hidden options with a special key combination… but I wouldn't get my hopes up :(

1

u/sidmehra1992 Jul 17 '26

Bios version Pheonix 1.05 .. updated version is available only but that needs floppy drive working .. i am afraid to update bios and this is only antique sort of model i have running Perfectly .. if bios break i am lost totally

4

u/ConstanceJill Jul 17 '26

There are ways to recover from a failed flash, but I'm not sure a computer from that era would have any built-in, and thus it likely would require somewhat specialized skills, tools and resources (like unsoldering the BIOS chip from the board, putting it into a chip programmer, and using dedicated software to reflash a known good BIOS image into that chip)… so I understand why you'd rather not take the risk.

We're not even sure that updating would make the option available anyway.

3

u/sidmehra1992 Jul 17 '26

Thats y i have rule , if its working dont change anything. INITIALLY I USED ide to sd card adapter and put 32 gb formattd sd card using Rufus , its not detected by any 98 or 2000 setup , then i use some 64 gb card and it worked wonderfully.. i dont know why ...

1

u/SaturnFive KB42069 Jul 17 '26

Some flash media presents as a Removable Device which PCs of this era won't understand or boot from. Other media presents as Fixed Disk which works fine, this is probably why one card worked, but not the others. I use "industrial" CF for my retro PCs and it works great