ati ....

[Gutwrench]

i am using a toshiba satellite. its got this ATI mobility radeon 9000 IGP video thingy..works greta for alot of things but  not starwars galaxy's.seems to cause a lot of lag and impossible to even think about playing. any suggestions on how to replace or beef this thing up? laptop has a pentium 4 3.3 cpu. 512 mb ram

[Carskick]

I hate to say it, but I wouldn't count on getting such a graphically advanced game to run smoothly on a 9000IGP chip, despite the other specs without lowering the graphics settings to something about medium 800x600. The only thing you can improve on that laptop that might help the game is extra RAM. Other than that, reduce the running programs, and optimize the graphics settings both in game and out of game in the card drivers. Adjust them low, then work your way up until the game gets to be a sufficient balance between speed and quality. Make sure AA and AF are off, as they would be terrible for FPS on that system. Good luck!

[query]

There is some attempt to standardize notebook video cards to make them interchangeable, but so far the major players haven't taken that route.  Chances are there is no upgrade for your video.  

Basically, if you want to keep up with the latest games, count on replacing a gaming notebook every 18 months-2years or so - although some offer limited upgradeability, most do not, and every new generation of games pushes the envelope of graphics design.

Even if nVidia and ATI manage to standardize card form factors, it may not help much - unlike desktop systems, notebook system BIOS need to be written to recognize new cards and work with existing displays  - most manufacturers would rather you buy a new system every couple of years, so they do not do this.

[Carskick]

When you buy a laptop, you have to make sure your getting one with a good video chip, and prefibly dedicated memory. Currently, a 9600mobility or higher would run your game fine. Dad's P4 3ghz came with the 9600 w/128 dedicated, as he needs it for CAD. And he plays games occasionally. Usually only the higher end laptops will have better video, and the highest end ones may have interchangable video chips.