Display Driver confusion

I recently installed an updated driver for my display (the driver is dated 17 Oct 2013), but when going into Windows' Device Manager, I see that the old display driver is still installed. It is dated to 10 Nov 2011, which is the same date that SIW gives for my display driver as well.

I just installed this, and got no error messages at all. I rebooted after installing the driver. Why does my system not recognize this new driver? Is it possible that I installed the wrong driver?

I did this because I was having a problem with the display dimming much more than the dim that normally happens after x mins of inactivity. Since I updated the driver, I haven't had this problem, so I'm sure I did something right.

 

Thanks for the suggestion. Not wanting to spend hours on this, I'll pass.

I wonder if there is one location I can check. In the Device manager, there was a "Monitor" driver, listed, that was dated to 2006, so that can't be it.

Anyways, the version number of the driver in the device manager is 8.911.6; the driver version in the one I downloaded and (thought I) installed is 13.x.

 

Just to clarify, do you really mean "Display" driver, or do you mean "Display adapter "? There is a big difference. The Display driver is for your monitor and the Display adapter is the graphics card (or motherboard's integrated graphics).

And the difference is greater than most people think for the "monitor" driver is not a driver at all! Windows does not use monitor drivers because Windows does not communicate directly with monitors. That's the graphics card's job. Windows (or Linux or whatever OS you are using) sends graphics information to your graphics solution (card or integrated) not to your monitor.

All the [so called] Display driver does is report the monitor's maker and model number, and resolutions it supports, and "presets" the system to the "Recommended" resolution. And that "Recommended" or "native" resolution is based solely on the screen size and ratio (4:3, 16:9, 16:10, etc.). So when you look at the Display settings from the Control Panel Display applet, you see the maker and model number and "unsupported" resolutions are not visible or are grayed out.

If you don't install the [so called] Display driver, you will see something along the lines of "Generic PnP Monitor" and all the resolutions supported by your graphics card are displayed. As long as you select one of the supported (preferably the "recommended" resolution), the monitor's performance and image quality is exactly the same as it would be with the [so called] display driver installed.

The "sleep" modes are determined by (1) the graphics driver working with the OS and (2) the monitor's internal programming - that is, when it goes into "standby mode" when "no signal" is received.

I don't understand what you mean there. "PC" monitors don't "dim" as "dim" suggests the displayed image is still there, just "less bright ". When Windows detects no activity after X number of minutes, Windows signals to the graphics card (or integrated) when to "Turn off the display ". This is set by the "Power Options" applet in Control Panel. Once the card is told to turn off the display, it stops sending a signal to the connected monitor(s). And then based on the settings set by the monitors internal programming, the monitor then goes to sleep (into "standby" mode).

Note I emphasized "PC" monitors because notebook monitors may "dim ", or rather, the notebook's graphics solution may send a signal with less intensity to a notebook monitor to extend battery run time when in "battery" or "energy savings" mode. But that's a different issue.

 

Here are teh Toshiba drivers:

http://support.toshiba.com/support/modelHome?freeText=3093575

I downloaded the one at the top, after you click on "Display" on the left side:

AMD Display Driver
Posted Date: 2013-10-17 | Version: 13.151.1.1_130826a-161616C-Toshiba | Size: 279.37M

I'm not sure what a Display Adapter would be in that list. Can you help find it?


As far as PC, no what I have is a laptop.

 

That might explain a few things. Many notebooks, by design, dim (decrease brightness) on the display to conserve battery power. On my Toshiba, it is part of the "Eco" settings and I can activate that even when connected to the power supply/charger.

The AMD Display "Driver" is the software component used by the operating system to communicate with the Display "Adapter ". Understand operating systems don't communicate directly with monitors. They communicate via the display adapter using a specific driver. The adapter is the hardware component - which is either integrated with the motherboard (typical with notebooks), or a separate adapter or "card" (typically on PCs).