laptop graphics firmware problem

[majordom]

help please - i have a problem with my graphics firmware

my laptop is a sony vaio vgn-tz21wn running vista business sp1

i think the cause is as follows - a few days ago i was changing some display options (left click on an empty part of the screen) and there was one to rotate the display 90deg - curiosity go the better of me - it didnt work and it screwed my graphics control up
(this may not be the cause but its my best guess)

i updated the graphics driver from the sony site but this has had no effect - rebooting has no effect

anyway the symptoms are

1 igfxsrv takes 40-60% of cpu

2 cursor when not on an open widow is the blue rotating busy symbol (thus i cannot click on any icons)

3 none of the standard screen savers work - i get this message

"The screen saver cant run because it requires a newer video card or one thats compatible with Direct3D"

4 i cant change any of the display settings or options - i get this message

"The currently selected graphic display driver can not be used. It was written for a previous version of windows, and is no longer compatible with this version of windows. The system has been started using the default VGA driver. Please contact your hardware manufacturer to get an updated driver or selct one of the microsoft provided drivers"

otherwise apart from being slow everything else seems to work

i do not have restore point and am VERY reluctant to do a system recovery

i will answer any qyestions or queries promptly - any help greatfully received thanks

[MatEpp]

Did you uninstall the previous graphics driver before installing the new one?

I have been told that this is important. I have never bothered to do it before so you will need to find a tutorial for a proper explanation and guide.

That's all I can think of. Good luck.

[majordom]

no i didnt - ill try that and let you know thanks

[majordom]

that solved it thanks !

a few heart stopping moments whn the screen was all blank
but i stuck with it