(NOTE - Older news posts below and links often are no longer valid now)

iMac Game Wizard Voodoo2 Drivers page (from the June 10th, 2003 www.xlr8yourmac.com news page - updates here have been non-existant since 3dfx sold out to nvidia years ago).
As mentioned in the past here (older Voodoo2 articles, past news pages at my www.mac3dfx.com site, FAQ, etc.), unlike the PCI Microconversions (and other PCI Voodoo2 cards) - the Mezzanine slot iMac Game Wizard card must be used with the original Microconversions Glide 2.x extension that is included on the CD that came with the card.
If you've lost your CD, a reader (thanks Chun lei Chen) sent a link to a web page that has the driver downloads for the iMac Game Wizard. See http://homepages.ihug.co.nz/~rojaws/game_wizard/downloads.html. That page also has links to the original PDF manual, test program and a link to Apple's OpenGL 1.2.1.
Notes on OS/OpenGL Compatibility: There are no current OS X drivers for any 3dfx card and as mentioned previously here, the OpenGL 1.2.2 version installed by OS 9.2.x is not compatible with 3dfx cards - use OpenGL 1.2.1 or earlier (and I recommend disabling the OpenGL ATI extension if you want the 3dfx card to handle OpenGL games). I've added the iMac game wizard drivers page to the previous FAQ's 3dfx section item on sources of 3dfx card drivers. (See the sidebar links here for the latest driver sources I know of for the PCI 3dfx mac cards.)

(info from June 2001 and before follows)

The 6/26/2001 xlr8yourmac.com news page had a Voodoo3 owner report on problems with the Tomb Raider Chronicles Level Editor. Ray Swartz, former programmer at 3dfx (and ATI) wrote with comments on the issue:

" I don't have any solutions for you concerning 3dfx and the TR Editor, but I did want to clear up some misunderstandings.

The Voodoo 1 & 2 drivers were built on top of Glide2, which was only full screen. But beginning with the Voodoo 3, all the drivers were built on top of Glide 3, which supports windowed mode and 32-bit color. This includes the RAVE and OpenGL drivers.

From my experience trying to support multiple-window RAVE apps, like 3D World and the French Touch modelers, there was a bad bug in Glide 3 which often gave various "fifo" errors when more than one window was being rendered to. These bugs were never fixed. Sorry.
Ray Swartz
Macintosh 3D Engineer formerly with 3dfx & ATI. "

One Voodoo3 owner noted similar errors with some of the Setting Sun OpenGL screensaver modules (but not all of them). [6/27/2001]

Petition to Nvidia for 3Dfx OS X Drivers: I know petitions don't have a great track record, but as 3dfx owners we have nothing to lose by signing the petition at www.PetitionOnline.com/3dfxosx/petition.html. [5/7/2001]
(News has been light here since the 3dfx closing, but check the main www.xlr8yourmac.com site and discussion forums - one man site here buried in email and work so I don't get to update this page often.)

Voodoo3 Beta13 Update: The Dec 28, 2000 xlr8yourmac news page had info on an unofficial Beta13 ROM/driver update for Voodoo3, (Also see this www.xlr8yourmac.com Video articles page Voodoo3 beta13 driver feedback and links) as well as more feedback on the Voodoo4/5 1.1.3 beta drivers. [12/28/2000]

WaterRace and Jetski Demo Tips for Voodoo3 Owners are listed on the Dec 27th, 2000 xlr8yourmac news page. [12/27/2000]

Voodoo5 Maps for Quake2 and Quake3 - I've not tried them on the Mac yet, but www.3dfxliveson.com had a downloads page with Voodoo5 Quake2 and Quake3 Maps.

More Feedback on 3dfx Driver v1.1.3 beta: - The 1.1.3 beta drivers feedback page has been updated with more reader comments on the latest beta drivers. A Lightwave 3D user reports the problems are still not resolved.

Motion Blur/T-Bufffer Voodoo5 Q3Test Demo (PC Only) Although it's a PC only version, the "Reverend" (3D Pulpit web site) has a story and download link on a T-Buffer enhanced (Motion Blur) version of Quake3 test that was previously unreleased. Read the article which has a download link to the appx. 50MB Q3 version at www.3dpulpit.com/Q3Arena/3dfx/ (link removed after page removed)

(Ex-)3dfx Employee's Site: - An article at the register yesterday noted a link to a 3dfx employee (or ex-employee) web site at www.x3dfx.com. They seem to have shut it down now, at least temporarily, but there were comments on starting a new company perhaps (unless I misunderstood something). I hope all the Mac programmers at 3dfx are hired by either Nvidia or ATI. I hear many will be. [12/22/00]

Working Link to 3dfx 1.1.3 beta Drivers (Revised 2002): - As of 3:45PM 12/20/2000, the only working link to the 1.1.3beta 3dfx drivers are at ftp://ftp.ausmac.net/pub/mac/Games-SW/MacGameFiles/updates/MacVoodoo.sea.bin. Get them while you can.

If this fixes problems or boosts performance for you, let me know. [12/20/2000]

Last Chance for Voodoo4/5 Driver Update? (v1.1.3b) (News item removed since 3dfxgamers.com deleted the listed posting.)

Quake3 1.27 Update, How-To Run Team Arena on Mac: - see the Dec 22nd 2000 xlr8yourmac news page or Game news page for details, as well as download links to new demos for Elite Force, and more. [12/19/2000]

Brian Burke of Nvidia Comments on 3dfx Buyout: I asked Nvidia's Brian Burke (who recently left 3dfx) for comments on the buyout noted earlier today:

Any comments on the purchase of 3dfx assets/products?

NVIDIA and 3dfx have signed an agreement for NVIDIA to purchase the core graphics assets of 3dfx. Those assets include all the patents, pending patent applications, trademarks, brand names and chip inventory related to the graphics processor business of 3dfx. The agree does not include their products. This is a purchase of their core assets and not their current product line. The remaining 3dfx entity is responsible for their current product lines and retail channel. Check those details with 3dfx.

We are very excited about getting an instant influx of award-winning graphics technology and to end the litigation between the two companies.

Will you continue to sell Mac voodoo cards?

The remaining 3dfx entity is responsible for their current product lines and retail channel. It is best to check those details with 3dfx management. I do not know their plans. NVIDIA is not announcing any future plans related to the Macintosh market at this time.

Any other comments?

The combined expertise and technology of the two companies will give NVIDIA even more technical strength than we have today.

Brian Burke
Senior PR Manager
NVIDIA Corp."

When asked about future driver updates for 3dfx cards, Brian indicated that was 3dfx's responsibility and he could not comment for them on that issue. (I've asked Bryan Speece of 3dfx for comments on future driver updates/support, but if the company closes, then the answer would be obvious unless they license or sell the rights to another company.)

3dfx to Sell to NVIDIA and Dissolve business: is the title a press release at Yahoo. There's also another one titled "NVIDIA To Acquire 3dfx Core Graphics Assets. (links removed after PR pages removed) The press releases indicated 3dfx has sold their "core business" including technology, company and product brands and other assets and that the 3dfx board of directors has recommended the dissolution of the company over the next few months. [12/15/2000]

Driver Demo Tips - Extra Missions: The www.xlr8yourmac.com game news page has tips for extra missions in the Driver demo from MacSoft. (Also added to the Games section of the FAQ).

Voodoo4 AGP Card in Mac! Rene posted a topic on sunday night in the forums here on flashing a PC Voodoo4 4500 AGP card with the Mac Voodoo4 PCI rom, noting it worked.

" Hi,
I've flashed a PC Voodoo4 AGP with a Mac ROM and it works in my G4-400 AGP Someone already tested it with a Voodoo5 AGP but failed.

The Voodoo4 Flasher can be downloaded here: http://www.coolmedia.de/Voodoo4Flasher.sit

The Mac ROM are NOT included in this archive. The ReadMe file tells you how you can extract the ROM images of 3Dfx MacTools.

Would be interessting to see if a Mac Voodoo4, relfashed with a PC ROM will enable the DVI connector when used in a PC....
Rene "

Warning on Flashing PC Voodoo5 AGP Cards w/Mac Firmware: I was the person that tried flashing a PC Voodoo5 AGP with the Mac Voodoo5 PCI ROM and it *DID NOT WORK*. All I got was a gray screen and attempting to reflash the PC ROM back in hung the installer (repeatedly). The card would not work in a PC after this, so beware flashing PC Voodoo5 AGP cards with the Mac ROM - you'll end up with a card that doesn't work in a Mac or PC in my experience. The issue of AGP not supporting 2 devices must require an AGP specific firmware/workaround (despite the fact the VSA-100 chip is a PCI device). (Note ATI last year said that AGP macs could not support their dual chip AGP card. 3dfx says they have a working Mac Voodoo5 AGP, but it's unknown when or if it will be released.)

Flashing Voodoo5/Voodoo4 With Previous ROM Version - If you've had problems with the firmware update included in the 1.1.2 drivers. [11/27/2000]

Voodoo5 Driver v1.1.2 Released: Get the update via the 3dfx control panel. No word yet on what v1.1.2 is supposed to fix. (link removed to direct download link to v1.1.2 drivers.) Remember to open the control panel after rebooting with the new drivers to update the ROM (assuming there is a ROM update included). Let me know if the drivers fix any bugs or offer improved performance for you. (Include your system details in any reports). [11/20/00]

Voodoo5 PCI Price Drop to $229.99 See the www.xlr8yourmac.com Friday news page for links and news on the price drop of $100 on the Voodoo5 PCI card for Macs. Includes a link to an online price of $205 delivered! [11/17/2000]

Mac Voodoo4 4500 Review: www.xlr8yourmac.com Reader Mark Anthony wrote a review of the Mac Voodoo4 PCI. The review includes comments on the install, tests in 2d apps, 3d games and comments on FSAA and image quality. Check it out. [11/10/2000]

OpenGL 1.1.5 and Voodoo5 Cards: I posted a reminder at www.xlr8youmac.com's Thursday's news of problems I saw during the ATI Radeon AGP review with my Voodoo5 using OpenGL 1.1.5. I could not use the keyboard or mouse in Quake3 for instance. Since the ATI Radeon/Rage128 1.0 driver update includes OpenGL 1.1.5, I wanted to remind readers to make sure they keep a copy of 1.1.3 handy. A voodoo3 owner reported poor performance with OpenGL 1.1.5 also in the 11/9/2000 www.xlr8yourmac.com news page. [11/10/2000]

$50 Rebate on Voodoo5 (Mac and PC) Lucian Fong send word on a $50 rebate on the 3dfx Voodoo5 graphics card:

" Hey again Mike!
I just found out that 3dfx is offering a $50 (yes, FIFTY) on the PC and Mac versions of the Voodoo 5 (PCI and AGP). This is supposedly an "exclusive" deal for subscribers to an online gaming magazine (Daily Radar), but no where on the rebate PDF do you have to have proof of that. I'm seriously thinking about buying one now since Onvia has them for $300, which nets for $250 after the rebate.
(Link to rebate PDF removed after it expired)
Lucian"

The Rebate PDF file notes the offer is good only on purchases made between Oct 20th, 2000 and Oct. 31st, 2000 and is valid only in North America.

The www.xlr8yourmac.com game news page had notes and links to new/updated Quake3 mods (Weapons Factory Arena 2.0 and PaintKeep Arena). [10/23/2000]

Voodoo5 Drivers v1.10 Available: Use the Voodoo5 3dfx Control panel to get the 1.10 driver update. Remember to open the 3dfx control panel after rebooting with the new drivers to update the Voodoo5's ROM. (The Control Panel will not flash the Voodoo5 ROM file in a Voodoo3 card however - I only mention this since one reader expected otherwise.) I was told recently the 1.10 update is primarily a bug fix release, not a performance optimization. Lightwave 3D v6 and Cinema4D issues not fixed yet however. (3dfx later wrote:)

The 1.1.0 fixes include:

• Voodoo3 2D fix
• Lock up issues in some games while playing videos
• 32bit Bugdom/RAVE fix

I welcome feedback on any changes you see. (I don't think these drivers will be available at their web site; only using the control panel update feature.) [10/6/2000]

Quake3 for MacOS X Beta From OmniGroup: [10/2/2000] See the main www.xlr8yourmac.com news page for links to and results from tests with Omnigroup's patch for Quake3 v117 for OS X beta.

MacQuake 1/GL Quake Editing Tools: [10/2/2000] While checking for updates to Mac Quake3 I spotted a news item about a site that covers Mac GLQuake/Quake1, engine mods and MacQuake editing tools. Check out www.planetquake.com/paroxysm/ for more details.

First ATI Mac Radeon Game Performance Tests vs. Voodoo5: The main www.xlr8yourmac.com news page tonight has results from a G4/500 Cube owner with OEM Radeon card. included are comparison scores from a Voodoo5 PCI in my G4/500 (single CPU) tower system. The Radeon owner used Quake v1.0 however, so I did a clean install of Quake3 1.0 for comparison tests with the Voodoo5. Of course the Radeon system has a later OpenGL version than my G4/500 which supports some of its advanced features like hardware transform (which Quake3 uses I assume even in v1.0). There are Unreal Tournament cityintro (simple flyby test) results there as well. [9/29/2000]

Tests in 9500 Show both VSA100 Chips Working w/New Drivers: See the late update to the Friday news at www.xlr8yourmac.com tonight for Quake3 FPS tests showing the new drivers do have both VSA100 chips working in my Genesis/9500 system.

New Mac Voodoo5 Drivers Released: - I was leery when a reader sent a note on a driver update (due to past false alarms) but apparenly from a post in the forums there is a new version out.

" I just downloaded version 1.08 ROM version 1.3.3 Voodoo 5 drivers. Now has MPEG support, All drivers seemed to have been updated "

I've not had time to install the Voodoo5 again and verify these drivers but I welcome any comments on what issues this update fixes and if performace is improved.

There's also a 1.03 Diablo II update noted in the main www.xlr8yourmac.com news tonight. [9/22/2000]

Shogo Demo for Mac Available: There's a 41MB downloadable demo of Shogo Mobile Armor Division

3dfx Announces AGP Voodoo5: 3dfx announced they are planning to offer an AGP version of the Voodoo5.

Unofficial Voodoo5 Tips/Bugs Page: (9/14/2000) Reader Bill Gundlach has posted a page summarizing info gathered from the forums here and at 3dfxgamers.com at personal.www.umich.edu/~gundlach/Unofficial_V5.html. Includes general compatibility info and tips for specific games including Deus Ex, Diablo 2, Falcon 4, Quake3, UT, and more. For other issues with the current drivers and notes on 3D apps like Lightwave 3D, see the compatibility info on the summary page of my Voodoo5 review.

3Dfx Card Tip For 4x4 Evolution Beta/Demo: A reader sends a tip for Voodoo card owners running the 4x4 Evolution beta demo that doesn't require deleting the metal.ini file:

" Hey Mike,
I notice that no one seems to have hit a elegant solution on the head in the 3dfx forums. I think I may have one.

Instead of deleting the metal.ini just edit the "rendererDLLPath=trigl.dll"
to read "rendererDLLPath=TRIGlide.dll".

Works like a charm on my system voodoo3.
Josh Wisenbaker
Sr. Systems Engineer"

Voodoo5/Lightwave 3D v6 Issues: [9/7/2000] I've updated the review of the Voodoo5 5500 PCI with notes on problems in Lightwave 3D v6 as well as updates on compatibility. (See the 3D performance page and summary page compat. info for details).

Voodoo3.var Tweaks: I've added a reader's Voodoo3.var file tweaks which include gamma (brightness) adjustments to the 3dfx section of the FAQ.

Diablo II Expansion Pack Preview: [9/5/2000] Gamecenter.com has an exclusive preview of the Diablo II expansion pack due early next year. Looks impressive

Diablo II Performance Tip: [9/4/2000] I think this has been noted before, but one of the latest reader Game Reviews of Diablo II noted the following performance tip:

" Performance Tip!
If the game is stuttering for you, especially when loading levels, here's a surprising culprit. In addition to a full install, you should *manually* copy the music file (320+ megs) to the hard drive (why the "full" install doesn't do this is beyond me). Once you do this, you should notice an immediate performance boost.
Erik A. Giberson"

I've added this tip the the Game section of the FAQ as well.

Voodoo5 1.02 Driver Post was Hoax: [8/31/2000] As I feared, apparently the post on Voodoo5 1.02 drivers due soon was someone posting under Bryan Speece's name again. The thread from their 3dfxgamers.com message board has been removed now. Bryan Speece says to ignore any post with his name at the 3dfxgamers message board until further notice.

Voodoo5 Contest Winner Announced: [8/22/2000] - I just received word that Scott R. was the xlr8yourmac reader that won the Mac Voodoo5 PCI card in the giveaway contest. Congrats Scott!

Speaking of Voodoo5, I've added it to the list of video cards in the Game/Video Card Performance (FPS) database. If you're a Voodoo5 owner, send an entry on your card's game performance (of course other card/brand owners are also welcome to add their results, the database has almost 2000 entries now including PB and iMac owners to Dual G4 systems and most every video card made for the Mac.)

Voodoo3 SST Eprom Flasher: For those that are having problems flashing a Voodoo3 card, you might try the 'unoffical' flasher available at http://www.geocities.com/jhurshman/. [link expired as of 2002.] I've added this to the question on V3 flashing problems in 3dfx section of the FAQ for future reference. Readers with SST eprom Voodoo3 cards have said this flasher worked.

Unreal Tournament v425a Released: - A new update for Unreal Tournament Mac, version 425a has been released at http://www.westlakeinteractive.com/download0020.html. According to Westlake, this update only installs over a installation of 425 (previous versions need to update to 425 first), and contains two small Mac-only fixes. Problems with demo recording and using skeletal animations in some mods are fixed."

Voodoo5 Driver Conflicts: - I welcome Voodoo5 owner reports on any extensions or control panels that conflict with the Voodooo5 drivers. So far there have been two reports of Symantec's Disklight being a definite problem. Another reader reported problems with Palm Desktop and Via Voice. I've updated the compatibility info on my Voodoo5 review summary page with this info. [end of 8/20/2000 update]

Voodoo5 Preview Updated: [8/13/2000] I've updated the game tests page of my Voodoo5 preview with notes on further tests with the card in my 9500 (Genesis) system. As noted in the review originally, officially only Beige G3 and later Macs are warrantied/supported with the Voodoo5. It appears from game tests (visual and FPS) as well as temperature checks, that only one VSA100 chip is fully functional when the Voodoo5 is used in my 9500. (A 9600/350 owner reported similar results, so this may be common on any pre-Beige G3 Mac.)

Mac Diablo II v1.03b Patch Available: There's a new Diablo II 1.03B patch that is said to address potential problems with Rave or OpenGL mode, and lockups when running on Macs with low memory. Get it at ftp.blizzard.com/pub/diablo2/patches/.

iMac Game Wizard/Diablo II Tips: [8/12/2000] The FAQ's 3dfx section updated with reader tips on getting Diablo II to work with the iMac Game Wizard.

Voodoo5 Driver/ROM Update: As noted at the main www.xlr8yourmac.com news last week, owners should use the control panel update feature (see 'About' dialog) to get the 1.01 drivers/1.3.1 ROM update. The update primarily addresses bugs like the monitor switching issues some have seen. Performance improvements are said to be in the works. One note to older Mac owners (pre-Beige G3), as noted in my review tests in the 9500/Genesis, it appears 4xFSAA is not working in 'unsupported' machines (pre-Beige G3). 2xFSAA does seem to work in my 9500.

[End of 8/12/2000 update]

Mac Voodoo5 Review: [July 2000] I've posted my Mac Voodoo5 review, which includes games, apps and movie tests as well as important compatibility info.

Fly2K DLL Update for Voodoo3: There's an updated TRIGlide.dll extension that fixes the Voodoo3 issues (use the support page at www.iflytri.com to request the update until they post it online). Reader Pedro Chamorro said he posted it in the Fly forum (Mac area) but I did not see it there. I've also added this tip to the Voodoo3 compatibility page.

3dfxgamer's Mac Page: 3dfx's gamer's web site now has a area on Voodoo Gaming On The Mac. [link removed after 3dfx's site closed when they went out of business.]

Voodoo3/Railroad Tycoon Tip: I've updated the Voodoo3 compatibility page game section to note a reader tip for Railroad Tycoon. (Also added to the 3dfx section of the FAQ.) [7/5/2000 update]

Reader Comment on Voodoo3 Flashing Problems/EPROM Types: Michael L. Waddell wrote that he thinks he's isolated the reason why some Voodoo3 cards won't flash on the Mac. If your Voodoo3 has an SST EEPROM (near the heatsink usually), then it may not take the flash based on reports. The Atmel EEPROM (most common chip) is fine. The chip in question is usually near the heatsink (same side as the PCI bracket). I've added this info and an alternate flasher to the 3dfx section of the FAQ.

New RainBow 6 Mod: There's a huge (10MB) ITF8.2 mod for Mac RainBow 6 at myhome.hananet.net/~powerisc/rainbow6.html. No description of the mod there, but the same page has the Nato mod that Simon Purl reviewed in issue#4 our RainBow Six Column some time back.

Updated Quake3 v117 Fixes Installer/Slowdown Issue: Tom Koons posted in the 3Dfx/gaming forum here that the revised 117 update fixes the previous problems.

Quake3 117 Release: ID has released a new update to Quake3 Arena for Mac and PCs that reportedly fixes "a fairly serious security flaw". (Thanks Hieu)

Updates have been light here for awhile as I've been swamped with other work, including prepping a new server.

Voodoo3 B12 Driver Feedback: See the Saturday news at www.xlr8yourmac.com for comments on the new drivers and tips for Quake3 and more. Our 3dfx/Gaming forums also have many threads on the new drivers. (Forums now removed)

Beta Gigapixel Silicon 3D Chip Performance: See the comments on impressive Gigapixel graphics chip performance in www.xlr8yourmac.com's Mar 31, 2000 news.

3Dfx to Acquire GigaPixel: (Updated) I've posted a page at www.xlr8yourmac.com with tidbits from a 3dfx/Gigapixel conference call and Byran Speece's comments on the benefits of Gigapixel's innovative 3d graphics technology for future products. Included are answers to questions on notebook graphics chips and performance of Gigapixel's prototype graphics chip.

Mac Rainbow 6 Single/Multi-Player Tips: Issue 6 of the Mac Rainbow Six column covering tips and strategies to help you stay alive.

3Dfx Voodoo5 Demo at MW Tokyo Show: See the photo gallery at www.xlr8yourmac.com for pix of the Voodoo5 card demo at MW Toyko.

Holywars Mod for UT: Paul Lipps posted in the 3Dfx/gaming forum that there's a great Holywars Mod for Unreal Tournament at www.planetunreal.com/flatware/hw_info.shtml. Works well in botmatches also he said.

Quake2 Update w/Better Voodoo3 Support: William Perez posted a note in the forums with some info on the update:

"make sure you read the notes first! fixes Voodoo 3 gamma/brightness problem, improved multi-monitor support, accessing the InputSprockets config dialog, mouse sensitivity, etc.

There is a new ref_gl.lib GL Renderer library included with this update. Please replace any previous ref_gl.lib (normal/MESA/bigmem) with the new 1.0.3 ref_gl.lib. It is a unified release that supports both the ATI and the native (not Mesa) 3dfx OpenGL drivers (b11 or later). You should be running OpenGL 1.1.2 or later. There are a couple new console variables allowing for fine-tuning of the GL Renderer operation. "

Get the update at: ftp.logicware.com/pub/quake2/q2mac103update.sit.bin.

Voodoo2 Beta5 Drivers: Almost missed the Voodoo2 B5 update. (With 3dfx closing their driver links may evaporate at any time - see sidebar for working link)

What’s new in 1.0b5 Beta5 (OpenGL 1.0b11)

• Fixed problem with double-buffering on Rainbow Six.
• Fixed problems with darkness on Quake3 related to gamma settings.

Game Doctor: Bob Friede sent a note about the Mac Game Doctor, a shareware app with tips, cheats, walkthrus, patches and more. They claim to have over 100 game patches not available anywhere else. Check it out at members.aol.com/illumesoft/doctor.html

2 Rainbow Six Mods Reviewed: Rainbow Six Column Issue #4 reviews 2 weapons mods.

Mac Nintendo Emulators: William Perez sent a review of Mac N64 Emulators True Reality and 1964 including compatibility notes with ATI and 3dfx cards.

The xlr8yourmac.com site today has a review of the PowerForce G4/350 CPU card upgrade.

Unreal Tournament FPS Test How-To: Thanks to a reader I've updated my Mac Game/Video Card Framerates page (entry removed now due to spam) with a procedure to help ensure uniform FPS entries for UT. Please use this procedure for any UT entries and also note that you did so in the comments for your entry. Thanks!

BTW - Jeremy Hansen said the new Myth II update for Voodoo3 cards works great (see below for link)

Myth II/Voodoo3 Patch: Bungie has released a voodoo3 patch to reportedly address the issues with the game and a Mac Voodoo3. Get it at www.bungie.net/downloads/patches.shtml (Thanks to Matthew Van Z/Jeremy H/Sean B. for the heads-up).

Rainbow 6 Column Issue #3: Simon Purll sent Issue #3 of our new Mac Rainbow Six column covering Multi-Team Assault Tactics and a strategy guide/walkthru for the Operation Angel Wire mission.

Rainbow 6 Column Issue #2: Simon Purll sent Issue #2 of our new Mac Rainbow Six column covering keyboard assignment and a strategy guide/walkthru Mission 2:Cold Thunder.

TombRaider II Update Boon for Voodoo3 Owners: William Perez posted a note that the TombRaider II 1.03 update fixes the following issues:

• Fixed crashes when playing movies on VooDoo3 cards.
• Added support for higher resolutions on VooDoo3 cards.
• Added ability to set refresh rate in 3Dfx mode (in setup application).
• Fixed problems with game not recognizing game pads on systems running InputSprocket 1.7 or later.

Mac RainBow Six Column: Simon Purll sent Issue #1 of our new column covering tips and strategies for Mac RainBow Six. Included are tips on weapons and strategies for the first mission.

FAQ Reminder: I'm getting lots of mails that on 3dfx questions that are already answered here in the sidebar links or in the site's FAQ topic area (3dfx cards, DVD, Games, etc are separate areas there). Since I can't begin to answer/read all email (hundreds daily), please check these sources first. Often you'll find your answer quickly.

The Winner of the 400MHz G3/CarrierZIF card is Dan Martens. All the names of those that sent site design entries were used for a random drawing and Dan's name was drawn.

Updated 3Dfx Voodoo3/Voodoo2 drivers: Jason Wong sent a note about the updates. As mentioned here previously the Voodoo3 drivers should have the fix for Lightwave 3D Opengl hardware acceleration. (Note - 3dfx site driver links are vanishing now after the announcement of selling assets to Nvidia - links may not work in the future so see the www.xlr8yourmac.com FAQ's 3dfx section for the last working links I know of.) [links removed to 3dfx's site since it closed/shut down after they went out of business. See sidebar links here for the last sources I know of drivers.] The drivers they say have "Lots of OpenGL bug fixes and performance improvements". See the Readme docs with the driver download for more info. [8:30 PM update]

Voodoo3 and DVD: A reader responded to a post I had last week on Voodoo3 cards and DVD noting he's running the Wired4DVD PCI Decoder fine with his Voodoo3 card.

" Dear Mike,
Saw that you've been getting emails about the Voodoo3 and DVD decoding. I have a Voodoo3 2000 PCI and Wired 4DVD card and they both work great together.

The Wired software has and auto calibration feature which it runs every time you flash the ROM of the V3. This auto calibration doesn't work perfectly with the V3 and there is some picture instability, this can be fixed by manually adjusting the stability setting in the Wired preferences.

One more advantage of having a hardware based decoder is that there is hardly any load put on the processor, with a software based decoder most your processing power is consumed by the DVD decoder. This is only useful if you like watching The Matrix whilst surfing :)

Ta again for a crackin' site.
Chris Ridley
PowerMac G3 Classic 433MHz, 256Mb SDRAM, Voodoo3, DVD"

I reviewed the Wired4DVD Card at the main site video cards page, tested in a G4/AGP system with a Voodoo3 Card (no ATI card installed).

See my FAQ's DVD topic area for sources of the Wired4DVD card and kits with DVD ROM drive (IDE and SCSI).

V3 ROM Flashing Tip: Some Voodoo3 owners (rare - 2 so far) are reporting problems flashing their ROM (unknown EEProm error). See the www.xlr8yourmac.com FAQ 3dfx section for an alternate flasher which readers say works.

More on iMac Game Wizard/3Dfx drivers: Several readers reported the tips below worked, but only at 640x480 mode. Joel sent a follow-up to his tips:

" Just to confirm: native OpenGL works (thru GlideLib 3.x) for Q3Test, Rainbow Six. Glide works (thru MC's Glide driver) for Myth, Myth 2. Rave Quake works great thru 3dfx RAVE. Altogether a good solution! Now if they could just fix the bug that means that you're limited to 640x480... "

iMac Game Wizard/3Dfx Driver Tips: A reader sent some tips for using 3dfx's beta3 Voodoo2 drivers with the iMac Voodoo2 Game Wizard card:

" Dear Mike,
The recently released 3dfx drivers for the VoodooII which include native OpenGL supprt DO work with the discontinued MicroCoversions GameWizard - sort of. You have to leave the MC drivers installed, and install everything of the 3dfx except the GlieLib 2.x. This will mean that your Glide games will run through the old driver, and the OpenGL ones run through the new GlideLib 3.x. Of course, you have to completely disable Mesa. Also, you'll need a Voodoo2.var which includes

SSTV2_GAMMA=1.9

because the 3dfx drivers default to a very low gamma.
See the discussion boards on 3dfxgamers for more info.
Thanks for a great site
Joel Hopwood "

Ken Dyke of 3dfx noted the Voodoo2 gamma tip in the earlier post here.

I want to personally thank 3Dfx for supporting the Mac with Voodoo3 and Voodoo2 drivers. I hope they do the same with their next generation products as well.

In my opinion, having 3Dfx provide Mac drivers is the best thing for the Mac market and 3Dfx. For too long the Mac consumer and marketplace has been strangled by companies offering 3Dfx cards at prices as much as 3 times higher than the PC version. Adding insult to injury, there were often extended periods of time where the cards were not available even to those willing to pay the price.

In my opinion some companies didn't seem to have the resources to properly develop, market or support the product. Thankfully that era looks to be coming to an end and the future of Mac gaming looks brighter than ever.