PhotoModeler Pro assert fails or shows a DirectDraw error message every time I bring up the 3D Viewer.

*This applies to PhotoModeler Pro 4.0 only.

• Get the most recent drivers from your video card’s web site and install them. Look specifically for anything that has to do with DirectDraw or Direct3D. You can also bug the manufacturers of the card to make sure they have drivers that work with PhotoModeler (in particular 24bit texturing).
• Lower the video acceleration level on Windows 95 and 98:
  • Open the Windows Control Panel
  • Open the System icon
  • Select the Performance Tab
  • Click on the Graphics… button
  • Move the slider on the h/w acceleration control all the way to the left (lowest setting)
  • Close the dialogs and reboot
  • Test to see if the system is more stable

  If this makes a difference then retry the above with a higher setting. You want to find the highest setting that keeps the system stable.

• Turn off Hardware acceleration in XP, Win2000 and ME:
  • Click Start / RUN / and type in dxdiag.exe. Click OK. This will bring up the DirectX Diagnostic Tool.
  • Click the Display tab
  • Click the Disable button next to “Direct 3D acceleration”

  The status should now indicate “Disabled”.

• Try different resolutions and bit depths. For example, if you are running 1024×768 resolution at 16million colors, try 1024×768 at 65,000 colors. Try other combinations also.
• If you are running a Pentium MMX machine under Windows 95 you should download the mmxtog.exe program to turn off Microsoft DirectDraw MMX extensions. This fix is for Windows 95 only and will not work on other versions of Windows or on NT.
• If you are running Windows 95, Windows 98, and Windows 2000 you can get the DirectX 8.0 installation from the Microsoft web site. Installing this will sometimes correct the problem, as DirectX 8.0 is the most stable version. PhotoModeler Pro 3.0 installs DirectX 3.0a. PhotoModeler Pro 4.0 contains DirectX 7. Windows NT 4.0(sp3) has DirectX 3.0 built-in and it cannot be upgraded to DirectX 6.0.
• If you have installed Direct X 6.0 or greater you can try turning off DirectDraw Hardware Acceleration by using the DirectX utility installed at: C:Program FilesDIRECTXSETUPDXDIAG.EXE.
• If you have not installed Direct X 8.0 try reinstalling the DirectX components from the PhotoModeler Pro CD (called dxsetup.exe) and pick the “no hardware acceleration option”. Beware that this can revert your system to older DirectX drivers if you have installed new DirectX software or hardware since first installing PhotoModeler.
• As a last resort try a different video card and preferably one that does not have 3D acceleration or a Direct3D driver.