AMD catalyst 14.7 is here: Also win8 support ends

[Dietrichw]

for some reason the 14.7 driver won't install. well they do but after restarting it still says I have 14.6 drivers

[Guest]

for some reason the 14.7 driver won't install. well they do but after restarting it still says I have 14.6 drivers

I wouldn't worry about that, there's a long running bug where for some users when upgrading catalyst, it won't show the updated catalyst version number when you go to software information, even though the driver installed fine. If you look at the actual d3d and opengl driver versions you should see that those have changed.

[deathjester]

DirectX 11.2 is Windows 8.1 only which has tiled resources which would make a huuuuuge difference if devs start using it.(They already use it on Next Gen consoles)

 

 

AMD Mantle can do tiled resources as well and it can do it on Win 7, so for someone with a AMD GPU, they literally have no reason to get 8 unless they like the UI. Witcher 3 isn't using it. They had an article about it. Then again CDPR knows how to optimize a game unlike Ubisoft, and Crysis 3 makes Watch Dogs look like dog crap, so no problem. 

 

Tiled Resources can help VRAM requirements in poorly optimized games. That is about it. Seeing that Ubisoft isn't going to use it any time soon (a developer who could give a damn about PC optimization) and no developer will use it due to market share? 11.2 might as well be a dead API.

 

AMD Mantle has a bigger market share than systems with DX 11.2. Prob why it is getting a ton of games for it and 11.2 is getting nothing.  

 

As to why AMD is cancelling 8 support? Because there is zero reason for someone to be on 8 when 8.1 exists. Not worth bothering with the OS. If you are going to be on Win 8 you might as well be on the better version. 

 

BTW a game like infamous Second Son has access to 4.5 GB of ram total for VRAM/Sysram. Rest is locked to the OS, just like 2 cores of the console are locked to the OS. 

[Hawx]

DirectX 11.2 is Windows 8.1 only which has tiled resources which would make a huuuuuge difference if devs start using it.(They already use it on Next Gen consoles)

 

BF4 uses it, I think.

[Guest]

BF4 uses it, I think.

BF4 doesn't use it, it uses dx 11.1

[Hashiyan]

I still run Windows 8. Only for the fact that I have Start is Back installed. I rather just not mess with it anymore lol. 

Since, my girlfriend run's 8.1 on her Asus ROG laptop and it blue screens ever few months of so. It had 8 on it before and never had a problem. 

[ajoy39]

I still run Windows 8. Only for the fact that I have Start is Back installed. I rather just not mess with it anymore lol. 

Since, my girlfriend run's 8.1 on her Asus ROG laptop and it blue screens ever few months of so. It had 8 on it before and never had a problem. 

Start is Back has a Windows 8.1 version and your license carries over.

Source: Use 8.1 with start as back, no issues whatsoever

[AnnoyedShelf]

Still haven't updated past like 12.4 because whenever I do I get a BSOD.

[ajoy39]

Still haven't updated past like 12.4 because whenever I do I get a BSOD.

What card are you running? And have you already cleaned the old driver before installing the new one?

[Xorbot]

Are people still using the Start Menu and/or Metro Menu?

 

I've been hitting the Windows key, typing mostly 2, but sometimes 3 keystrokes in one swoop to launch my applications and games.  I've been doing this since Windows 7, even.  Therefore I am shocked to hear people still bickering which menu is better when in actuality both menus are inferior to a quick tap of 3 keys, especially if done on a daily basis.

[AnnoyedShelf]

What card are you running? And have you already cleaned the old driver before installing the new one?

AMD Radeon HD 7770 GHz Edition Overclocked (by default) from Diamond, and yes, tried that 4 times.  I think it's just my aging CPU though.

[papeles]

I still run Windows 8. Only for the fact that I have Start is Back installed. I rather just not mess with it anymore lol. 

Since, my girlfriend run's 8.1 on her Asus ROG laptop and it blue screens ever few months of so. It had 8 on it before and never had a problem. 

So, by your logic, the bsod happens because it's windows 8.1? lol

[Admire]

What security issues? These are AMD GPU drivers not Windows security patches. Also it's not like it's hard to update to 8.1 unless you own a pirated copy, if so then tough luck. Besides, If you really want the latest Catalyst and you're still on 8, there's nothing stopping you from updating to 8.1.

 

I was not talking about myself...I use W7. But any non updated driver is a security risk...A person who doesn't update would probably already be at risk but im just saying.....Seems a very short period to offer support.

[Guest]

I was not talking about myself...I use W7. But any non updated driver is a security risk...A person who doesn't update would probably already be at risk but im just saying.....Seems a very short period to offer support.

I can't ever recall hearing of any malware using a video driver related exploit.

 

and in any case, they are only dropping support for windows *8.0*. 8.1 is a free update from windows 8. Not really any reason for one not to upgrade to 8.1 if they are running windows 8.

[Admire]

I can't ever recall hearing of any malware using a video driver related exploit

 

Fair enough. I was under the impression that such a thing was dangerous. My mistake.

[Admire]

I can't ever recall hearing of any malware using a video driver related exploit.

 

and in any case, they are only dropping support for windows *8.0*. 8.1 is a free update from windows 8. Not really any reason for one not to upgrade to 8.1 if they are running windows 8.

 

i agree but there are people who haven't updated...probably due to ignorance.

 

You are probably right about malware in video drivers...I did find this

www.itnews.com.au/News/358265,research-detects-dangerous-malware-hiding-in-peripherals.aspx

 

But don't know if that is relevant....

[MEC-777]

Never had a single problem with the stable catalyst drivers - ever. Don't know why people complain or say they have issues. Maybe with older crossfire setups? Idk.

[brownninja97]

Never had a single problem with the stable catalyst drivers - ever. Don't know why people complain or say they have issues. Maybe with older crossfire setups? Idk.

The 6000 series mainly 6800 and above was a rough time in amds or atis life. There hasnt really been too many issues following that

[MEC-777]

The 6000 series mainly 6800 and above was a rough time in amds or atis life. There hasnt really been too many issues following that

I guess people like holding a grudge if they still complain about catalyst so many years and a full generation+ later.