Quote Originally Posted by eccentricity
ToranagaSama: Can you please post the information that I was looking for? I still cannot find it on the search engine here, thanks.
Well Oaty posted the contents of his preferences.txt file, so I'll try to highlight the sections that might be appropriate to for you, though it would help if you would be more descriptive in terms of "ommph". Do you want the game to look better, perform better or both. Also, you NEED to post your system specs! I'll note what effects you can turn off for better performance:

SMOKE:TRUE (turn off for better performance)
DESYNC:TRUE (turn off for better performance)
SPLASHES:TRUE (turn off for better performance)
GLINTS:TRUE (turn off for better performance)
REFLECTIONS:TRUE (turn off for better performance)
SHADOWS:TRUE (turn off for better performance)
VEGETATION:TRUE (turn off for better performance)
DETAILED_UNIT_SHADOWS:TRUE (turn off for better performance)
GLOSS_MAPPING:TRUE (turn off for better performance)
STENCIL_SHADOWS:TRUE (turn off for better performance)
MULTI_TEXTURE:TRUE (turn off for better performance)
AUTO_SAVE:TRUE
SHOW_BANNERS:TRUE
UNIT_SIZE:80 (use normal or low unit size)
MASTER_VOL:100
SPEECH_VOL:100
SFX_VOL:100
MUSIC_VOL:100
CAMERA_ROTATE:50
CAMERA_MOVE:69
CAMERA_FOV:75.000000
ENABLE_AUDIO:TRUE
ENABLE_MUSIC:TRUE (you might want to turn this off)
ENABLE_UNIT_SPEECH:TRUE
DISABLE_BACKGROUND_FMV:FALSE
DISABLE_ARROW_MARKERS:TRUE (turn off for better performance)
AUDIO_3D_PROVIDER:Creative Labs EAX 2 (TM)
CLOUD_TRANSITIONS:TRUE (turn off for better performance)
GRASS_DISTANCE:75 (not sure, but you might want to lower this)
AA_QUALITY:AA_LOW (you definitely want this low; I don't remember, but mine is low probably cause I noticed little difference at highest)
STRATEGY_RESOLUTION:1600x1200 (change for higher resolution)
STRATEGY_32_BIT:TRUE (better to set to 16 bit for better performance)
BATTLE_RESOLUTION:1600x1200 (change for higher resolution
BATTLE_32_BIT:TRUE (better to set to 16 bit for better performance)
UNIT_DETAIL:SUPER_HIGH ( set to lower for performance)
BUILDING_DETAIL:ULTRA_HIGH (set to lower for performance)

[Everyone feel free to correct]

You do NOT need to alter:

SAFE_REFRESH:FALSE
USE_TRIPLE_BUFFER:FALSE

unless you are having a specific problem.

Now, if you turn things off, the game won't look as pretty, but will play faster. If you've got a low-level system then its just the tradeoff; if a high-level then you turn everything to highest; if a mid-level system, then you've just got to experiment to determine what works best for your system and your taste.

Experiment with turning music off/on. It may make a performance difference, but it entirely dependant on the quality of your soundcard in conjunction with your CPU power.

OH! BTW, to complete changing the resolution, if I recall there is another file that needs to be modded. I believe the name of the file is:

descr_auto_optimise_options.txt

You'll find it in the Data folder. The file is a bit difficult to read properly. If you can you might want to open it in a spreadsheet program, like Excel. Though, you don't really need too.

DO NOT mod this file until you are sure what to do. First thing make a copy of it for backup. If you truly want to change your resolution, then ask again, and I'll search the forum and try to find the instructions.

Give us your systems specifications.