n modify but the two which are most likely to solve the problem are the AGP speed multiplier and fast writes. AGP can support speed multipliers of 8X (eight times), 4X, 2X, and 1X. The higher the multiplier, the faster it transfers data. You can try to fix AGP instability by using a slower multiplier. If you're running at 8X then try to turn it down to 4X or even slower. The other AGP parameter worth modifying is fast writes. Fast writes provide a faster way for the CPU to write data to the video card. You can disable fast writes to see if your video card becomes more stable. If you are using an ATI video card, then you can use SMARTGART to modify the speed multiplier and fast writes. If you have an NVIDIA card, then you can try CoolBits or RivaTuner. For other kinds of video cards you can use PowerStrip. Detailed instructions on slowing down AGP ports are here.

Fix #5: rig a desk fan to blow into your computer

If your video card crashes, hangs, stutters, or gets display corruption a few minutes after you start a game, it may be overheating. It may also be a chip on the motherboard or the power supply which is overheating. If games fail pretty consistently after a longer period like twenty or thirty minutes, then the inside of your case may be overheating. You can tell by opening up the machine and aiming a desk fan at the inside of the machine. If the games stop failing or take longer before problems occur, then you have an overheating problem. You may be able to fix the problem by underclocking as shown in fix #6 or you may have a mechanical problem which you can handle as shown in fix #7.

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