PassMark PerformanceTest V2.0a
Copyright (C) 1999 PassMark Software
All Rights Reserved

Overview
========
Passmark PerformanceTest is a software tool that
allows everybody to quickly assess the performance
of his or her computer and compare it to a number
of standard 'baseline' computer systems.
This program is a little difference to another
benchmark programs because it designed to be small
enough that it's possible to run from a floppy
disk. This means you can take it with you when you
go out shopping for a new or second hand PC. The
other major advantage is the built in base line
results that enable a reasonable comparison to be
made between computer systems.
The results are presented as easy to read bar
charts so that you don't need to spend hours
studying the numbers to know the result.
Timing for the tests is done using high resolution
timers, which are accurate to approximately
1 millionth of a second on most PC's.

For more details see the online help

Installation
============
1) Uninstall any previous version of PerformanceTest
2) Unzip the Zip file to a temporary directory
3) Double click on setup
4) Follow the prompts
5) Use the Windows start menu to run PerformanceTest

The single biggest problem people have getting
PerformanceTest to run is getting Microsoft's
Directx software installed correctly. This is mostly
a problem in Windows95 (DirectX is built into 98).
Messages like "ddraw.dll" not found relate to this,
so get DirectX from Microsoft (it's a free download).

UnInstallation
==============
Use the Windows control panel, Add / Remove Programs

Requirements
============

Windows 95 or 98 or NT
DirectX 3D software from Microsoft (Window98 has this build in)
16Meg RAM
2 Meg of free hard disk space 
(plus additional space to run the Disk test)
MMX compatible CPU for MMX tests

Documentation
=============

All the documentation is online. It can be accessed from
the help menu.

Support
=======
For technical support questions, suggestions, Mail us at
support@passmark.com

Status
======
Shareware. Feel free to distribute (but not sell) the
unregistered version.

Ordering / Registration
=======================
All the details are in the online documentation, or
check out our web page, under sales
http://www.passmark.com


Version History
===============
V2.0a  16/Jan/2000
------------------
Minor bug fixes to correct two significant issues
 There seems to be a bug in DirectX that causes the textures
required for the 3D tests not to load on a very small number
of computers (this fault may even be associated with a particular
video card / driver). V2.0a has a patch to work around this problem.
The error message associated with this problem is, "..Error loading
the required texture Bitmap file from disk..".
 With a small minority of video cards, the unfilled shapes test
doesn't run for the correct amount of time and the result for
this test is too low. This is often associated with the filled
rectangles (bitmaps) test returning a result that is too high.
The problem is related to the speed of the 2D hardware acceleration
and the CPU speed. The problem can occur if the CPU can request
the display of images a lot faster than the video card can display
them. V2.0a corrects this problem.
 A number of error messages were also improved.

V2.0  1/Nov/99
--------------
Major release with a lot of improvements over version 1.0. A lot of these changes were a direct result of the feedback from users such as yourself. Keep the suggestions coming, (Mail them to support@passmark.com)

 A button to run all the tests sequentially was added
 When several disk tests are run, the test file is not recreated
  for each test. This means that the tests can be completed quicker.
 New disk tests were added, these are cached sequential access and
  cached random access.
 The disk tests now read and write information in larger blocks.
  In version 1.0,  1KB blocks were used. In this version the cluster
  size is determined and all disk reads and writes are done a cluster
  at a time. The cluster size varies from computer to computer. The
  average is around 32KB. This makes the test closer to the real life.
  Transfer rates are still reported in MB/Sec.
 It's now possible to export the results in several "text" formats.
  This includes HTML, Comma separated values, and tab separated values.
 Added a registration button on the tool bar.
 Extra information is now saved with each baseline. This includes
  Drive size, Driver letter (eg. C:, D: ).
 Some code was reworked to improve compatibility on early Windows95
  machines. We have even run PerformanceTest on some old 486 machines
  using the original Windows95 (+Directx)
 It's now possible to view baseline results without re-running all
  the tests.
 Multiple Baselines can now be viewed on the screen at one time.
  Up to 20 computers can be compared to each other at a time.
 The Select Baseline window was introduced to managed the addition
  and removal of baselines from the screen and display information
  about all the baselines available.
 The graphics on the display was improved and graphs now re-size
  themselves to the window size.
 The size of the notes field (in the Save as Baseline window) was
  increased to allow the user to add more information.
 Some tests display information about their environment. The graphics
  tests display the color depth next to each baseline. The disk tests
  display the drive letter.
 A problem with the Microsoft C++ compiler that caused inconsistent
  results for the MMX tests was worked around. The problem was to do
  with the alignment of 64bit numbers on the stack and caused some
  computers to report low MMX results.
 The printing was improved to handle the differences between
  landscape and portrait. A page header and page numbers are also included.
 The online help was updated and improved
 Scrolling is now smoother. The Home, End, Page up and Page down
  keys now also work.
 The save as image option was enhanced to save Bitmaps (BMP) and
  GIF files. This is a great feature for those that want to publish
  their results on the web.
 The shareware trial period was increased to 30days. (from 15)
 A single overall result figure is now calculated. We called this
  the PassMark Rating. It's a weighted average of all the other test
  results.

V1.0a  3/June/99
----------------
Minor patch to correctly report speed for high end AMD CPU's

V1.0   16/May/99
----------------
First version released to the world.
Wins numerous awards.



Enjoy..
The PassMark Development team