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1.  Minimum System Requirements
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Minimum System Requirements:

Required – Internet Connection
OS – Windows XP (SP3) / Windows Vista (SP2)/ Windows 7
Processor (XP) – Intel® Pentium® 4(HT) @2.4 GHz
Processor (Vista/Windows 7) – Intel® Core™2 Duo @ 1.8GHz
Memory (XP) – 1.0 GB RAM
Memory (Vista/Windows 7) – 2.0 GB RAM
Hard Drive – 2.0 GB
Video Card (XP) – NVIDIA® GeForce® 6800, ATI Radeon™ X1300, or Intel® GMA 950 (See "7. Troubleshooting" for support list)
Video Card (Vista/Windows 7) – NVIDIA® GeForce® 7600, ATI Radeon™ HD 2000 series, Intel® GMA 950 or better
Sound Card – DirectX 8.1 compatible
DirectX – Version 9.0c
Network Connection – 128 kbps Cable/DSL connection
Online Multiplayer – 512 kbps Cable/DSL connection; 2-8 Players
Input – Keyboard, Mouse, Supported Game Controllers (See section “8. Controller Information” for complete list)

*Recommended video chipsets:
Windows XP – ATI Radeon™ X1800 XT 512MB or greater; NVIDIA® GeForce® 8600 GT 256MB or greater.
Windows Vista/Window 7 – NVIDIA® GeForce® 8600 or better; ATI Radeon™ HD 2600 or greater.
Laptop versions of these chipsets may work but are not supported.
Updates to your video and sound card drivers may be required.

*NOTE - To install the game properly on Windows XP/Windows Vista, you will need administrator access to your machine.
Consult your Windows XP/Windows Vista documentation for more information.

Required Software:
        DirectX 9.0c
 
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2.  Installing Need for Speed™ World
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a) Run the Need for Speed™ World setup, and follow the installation instructions
b) Windows XP - Run the Need for Speed™ World shortcut
    Windows Vista/Windows 7 - Run the Need for Speed™ World icon in the Games Explorer (Or select 'Play' from the context menu)
c) Log in with a valid Email Address and Password
d) Wait for the patcher to download the game data
e) Press Launch

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3.  DirectX 9.0c
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DirectX 9.0c needs to be installed before playing Need for Speed™ World.

a) Installing DirectX

The game will install DirectX 9.0c automatically. Alternatively, DirectX 9.0c can be downloaded directly from here:
 www.microsoft.com/windows/directx/

Please follow the steps that guides you through the installation.

b) DirectX and supported hardware

We recommend that Need for Speed™ World be run with DirectX 9.0c compatible
sound cards and video cards.

We also suggest you update your sound card and video card driver to the latest
release from the vendor or chipset website. 

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4. Uninstalling Need for Speed™ World
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For Windows XP, you can uninstall Need for Speed™ World
by accessing "Add/Remove Programs" in the Control Panel. 

For Windows Vista or Windows 7, you can uninstall Need for Speed™ World by
accessing "Programs and Features" in the Control Panel.

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5.  Basic Keyboard Controls
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The basic keyboard controls required to play the game are:

Up Arrow
Down Arrow
Left Arrow
Right Arrow
1 Key
2 Key
3 Key
4 Key
M Key
Enter Key
Escape Key
Spacebar

Default In Game Controls:                      

                        Primary Key

Accelerate        Up Arrow
Steer Left        Left Arrow
Steer Right        Right Arrow
Brake/Reverse        Down Arrow             
Hand Brake        Spacebar
Gear Up            Left-Shift
Gear Down        Left-Ctrl
Look Back        E
Change Camera        C
Take Screenshot        Print Screen
Options            Esc
Reset Car        Backspace
Chat            Enter

Safehouse        H
World Map        M
Profile            U
Friends            O

Power Up 1        1 key
Power Up 2        2 key
Power Up 3        3 key
Power Up 4        4 key


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6.  Network
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To avoid poor online performance, be sure that you close
any file sharing, streaming audio or chat programs prior to entering
gameplay. These applications can monopolize your connection’s bandwidth,
causing lag or other undesirable effects.

Need for Speed™ World uses the following TCP and UDP port(s) for
connecting to the game servers:

TCP:

TCP 12683, 443, 5222, 5223


UDP:

UDP 31928, 5222, 5223


Please consult your router or personal firewall documentation for information
on how to allow game related traffic on these ports.  If you are attempting
to play on a corporate Internet connection, contact your network administrator.

Need for Speed™ World supports only broadband connections.
When logging in, you are logging into the EA servers.
To play online, you may use an existing EA Online account or create a new one.
 
SETTING UP AN ACCOUNT
=======================
An EA online account is required to play.  You can create
an account at EA.com and use that to enter the game.


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7.  Troubleshooting
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DEFAULT GRAPHICS SETTINGS
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The first time you run Need for Speed™ World, the game will automatically detect and set the best video options based on your system hardware. Display settings can be adjusted at any time through the Video menu in the Options.
 
VIDEO CARD SUPPORT
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Need for Speed™ World only officially supports Direct3D for certain 3D accelerator
devices. While other devices running Direct3D may function in Need for Speed™ World,
their behavior cannot be predicted and may lead to an unstable PC Environment.

The following major video card chipsets are supported:

ATI
ATI Radeon™ X1300
ATI Radeon™ X1650
ATI Radeon™ X1800 XL
ATI Radeon™ X1800 XT
ATI Radeon™ X1950 Pro
ATI Radeon™ HD 2400 XT
ATI Radeon™ HD 2600 XT
ATI Radeon™ HD 2900 XT
ATI Radeon™ 2900 XT Crossfire
ATI Radeon™ 3470
ATI Radeon™ 3650
ATI Radeon™ HD 3850
ATI Radeon™ HD 3870
ATI Radeon™ HD 3870 X2
ATI Radeon™ 3870 X2 Crossfire
ATI Radeon™ HD 4550
ATI Radeon™ HD 4650
ATI Radeon™ HD 4670
ATI Radeon™ HD 4830
ATI Radeon™ HD 4850
ATI Radeon™ HD 4870
ATI Radeon™ HD 4870 Crossfire
ATI Radeon™ HD 4870 X2
ATI Radeon™ HD 4890
ATI Radeon™ HD 5770
ATI Radeon™ HD 5870
ATI Radeon™ HD 5970

NVIDIA
NVIDIA® GeForce® 6800 GT
NVIDIA® GeForce® 7600 GT
NVIDIA® GeForce® 7800 GT SLI
NVIDIA® GeForce® 7900 GS
NVIDIA® GeForce® 8600 GTS
NVIDIA® GeForce® 8800 GT
NVIDIA® GeForce® 8800 GTS
NVIDIA® GeForce® 8800 GTS SLI
NVIDIA® GeForce® 8800 GTX
NVIDIA® GeForce® 9600 GT
NVIDIA® GeForce® 9800 GTX
NVIDIA® GeForce® 9800 GX2
NVIDIA® GeForce® 9800 GX2 SLI
NVIDIA® GeForce® GT 220
NVIDIA® GeForce® GT 240
NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 250
NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 260
NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 280
NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 295

Intel
Intel® Graphics Media Accelerator 950
Intel® Graphics Media Accelerator X3000
Intel® Graphics Media Accelerator X4500HD

S3 Graphics
Chrome S27
GammaChrome™ S18
Chrome 440 GTX

***NOTE: Laptop versions of these chipsets may work, but are not officially supported. 
NVIDIA GeForce MX series not supported.
 
SOUND CARD SUPPORT
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Need for Speed™ World supports DirectSound. If your sound card
driver does not support DirectSound you may experience choppy or
stuttering sound or sound that cuts in and out. Always obtain the
latest device drivers from your sound card manufacturer.
 
DEVICE DRIVERS
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It is highly recommended that the latest versions of all device
drivers (i.e. video and sound card drivers) be obtained and installed.
Please consult your card manufacturer for their newest drivers. Also,
be aware that video chip manufacturers sometimes provide drivers
in addition to the card manufacturer.

If you are experiencing issues with an unstable PC environment please
make sure your Motherboard drivers (AGP, miniport) are up to date. For
further information please contact your Motherboard manufacturer.
 
VIDEO & GRAPHICS PROBLEMS
=========================
If you are experiencing performance problems on the default graphics
settings, try lowering the video resolution or other graphics settings.

This game requires DirectX 9.0c.through download by going to:

                www.microsoft.com/windows/directx/

Graphic Cards: Graphical settings and features available in-game are
dependant on Graphics Card capabilities. Settings not supported by your
Graphics Card hardware are disabled in the Options Menu to prevent
adverse effects on the game and your computer.
 
BACKGROUND PROGRAMS
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Avoid running other programs in the background, behind Need for Speed™ World.

Programs that start up automatically can cause Need for Speed™ World
to lose control of the screen, keyboard or mouse and possibly cause an
unstable PC environment. We strongly recommend that you close or suspend,
applications that startup automatically or programs that automatically run
other applications at specified times, before running Need for Speed™ World.
These include, but are not limited to:
        - Windows System Agent
        - Windows Task Scheduler
        - Windows "Disk Cleanup" utilities

Similarly, message boxes and dialog boxes from other programs or from
Windows itself can cause Need for Speed™ World to lose
control of the screen, keyboard or mouse and possibly cause an unstable PC
environment. We strongly recommend that you shut down all other
applications before running Need for Speed™ World.
These include, but are not limited to:
        - Email programs
        - Calendar, appointment or contact applications
        - Network or Internet chat programs

Also, connections to/from non-dedicated servers can be disrupted when
background programs or screen-savers launch.  We recommend that you shut
down other applications and run Need for Speed™ World by itself whenever possible.
 
POWER MANAGEMENT SUSPEND/SLEEP MODES
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Systems (such as laptops or other portables) that automatically power
down into "sleep" or "suspended" modes can cause Need for Speed™
World to lose control of the screen, keyboard or mouse and possibly
cause an unstable PC environment. We strongly recommend that you
disable these features before running Need for Speed™ World.
 
WINDOWS VIRTUAL MEMORY ISSUES
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If you experience any Virtual Memory issues while running the game, try increasing
the page file size on your hard drive.  Please consult the Microsoft Windows help
pages to determine how to change your virtual memory settings.


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8.  Controller Information
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CONTROLLER SUPPORT
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The following controllers and racing wheels are officially supported:

Microsoft
Xbox 360 Controller for Windows

Logitech
Logitech® ChillStream™
Logitech® Rumble Gamepad F510
Logitech® RumblePad™
Logitech® Rumblepad™ 2
Logitech® WingMan® Cordless Gamepad
Logitech® Cordless Rumblepad™ 2
Logitech® Dual Action™ Gamepad
Logitech® G25 Racing Wheel
Logitech® G27 Racing Wheel

Thrustmaster
Thrustmaster® Universal Challenge Racing Wheel

CONTROLLER PROBLEMS
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To correct any controller problems, properly configure and calibrate the device
from the Windows Control Panel.  If the problem continues to persist,
disconnect the device from your computer before playing Need for Speed™
World. Always ensure the latest manufacturer drivers are installed for
your device.

Examples of Controller Problems:
        - Menu items are automatically scrolled through with no user input.
        - Your car makes erratic movements that are not intended (such as
        continually turning).
        - Certain movements do not occur when the proper direction is pressed.
        - Sluggish response on slower machines.

Visit http://world.needforspeed.com/home for more informations