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Troubleshooting Windows Video Hardware

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Troubleshooting Windows Video Devices Determining the Microsoft DirectX Version

Troubleshooting Windows Video Devices

If you are having trouble using the Image Acquisition Toolbox software with a supported Windows video acquisition device, follow these recommended troubleshooting steps:

1. Verify that your image acquisition hardware is functioning properly.

   For Windows devices, run the application that came with your hardware and verify that you can receive live video.

   You can also verify your hardware by running the Microsoft image capture application, AMCap.exe, which is included with the toolbox distribution. Go to the matlabroot\toolbox\imaq\imaq directory, where matlabroot is your top-level installation directory, and double-click AMCAP.exe.

   If you can start the utility, run the utility, and close the utility without encountering any errors, the toolbox should be able to operate with your image acquisition device. If you encounter errors, resolve them before attempting to use the toolbox with the device.

2. If your hardware is functioning properly, verify that you are using hardware device drivers that are compatible with the toolbox.

   • Find out the driver version you are using on your system. The Image Acquisition Toolbox software is only compatible with WDM (Windows Driver Model) or VFW (Video for Windows) drivers. Contact the hardware manufacturer to determine if the driver provided with your hardware conforms to these driver classes.

   • Verify that the version is compatible with the Image Acquisition Toolbox software. For the correct driver information, check the list of supported drivers on the Image Acquisition Toolbox product page at the MathWorks Web site (www.mathworks.com/products/imaq).

   If you discover that you are using an unsupported driver version, visit the hardware manufacturer's Web site for the correct drivers.

   Note   The Windows Video driver is a generic interface and should only be used if you do not have a more specific driver to use with your device. For example, use the device-specific driver if your device has one. If your device is a DCAM or FireWire device, use the DCAM driver. Only use the Windows Video driver if there is no more specific option for your device.

3. Make sure you have the correct version of Microsoft DirectX installed on your computer. The Image Acquisition Toolbox software is only compatible with specific versions of the Microsoft DirectX multimedia technology and is not guaranteed to work with any other versions.

   • Find out which driver version you are using on your system. To learn how to get this information, see Determining the Microsoft DirectX Version.

   • Verify that the version is compatible with the Image Acquisition Toolbox software. For the correct version information, check the Image Acquisition Toolbox product page at The MathWorks Web site (www.mathworks.com/products/imaq).

   If you discover that you are using an unsupported version, visit the Microsoft DirectX Web site (www.microsoft.com/directx/) for the correct version of DirectX.

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Determining the Microsoft DirectX Version

To determine the version of Microsoft DirectX you are using, run the DirectX Diagnostic Tool. You can access this software through the Windows Start button.

Select Start > Run.

In the Run dialog box, launch the DirectX Diagnostic Tool by opening the dxdiag program.

In the DirectX Diagnostic Tool, the Microsoft DirectX version is listed on the System tab under the System Information section.

DirectX Diagnostic Tool

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