Why is my video playback ugly?

RealPlayer shows video in whatever color resolution you have Windows set to display. If your settings are below 16-bit, you will not get good results trying to view video clips. You should increase your screen resolution to 16-bit (65,000 colors) or 24-bit (over 6 million colors).

To change your screen resolution in Windows95/98:

1. Choose Settings/Control Panel from your Start button.

2. Double-click Display.

3. Click the Settings tab.

4. Change the Color Palette setting to High Color (16-bit) or True Color (24-bit).
   (You may not be able to go to a higher color setting depending on the desktop area you have selected and your video card. Windows will only allow you to select choices that are appropriate for the installed video driver)

5. Click Apply.
   (You may have to reboot to have the changes take effect, Windows will inform you if you do.)

Additionally, Zoom Mode is very CPU intensive. Whether or not you have a high bandwidth connection or very good connection isn’t as important a factor for Zoom as having a fast computer.