You will have to tell us a little more about the problem. First, attach a copy of your computer's dxdiag.txt. Next, what video format are you working with and what modifications have you done in PD? __________________________________
CORNBLOSSOM

I've attached my DxDiag. The video format I'm working with is .avi and I've made no modifications.

Hi Kirkman -

I had a look at your DxDiag. Thanks for posting that.

You'd probably realise that your laptop is not really a video editing machine. It's going to need to be nursed through the whole editing process, and probably won't bring you much joy. That's evidenced in the problem you're having at the moment.

Short of upgrading to something more powerful, you should update your GPU driver - dated September '08. This could be done at the ACER site http://support.acer-euro.com/drivers/notebook/as_5535.html
or at AMD http://support.amd.com/us/gpudownload/windows/Pages/radeonmob_win7-32.aspx

What's the source of your AVI files? Camera? Screen capture software?

Cheers - Tony
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Thank you for the quick reply. I use screen capture software (ZD Soft, to be exact). I'll be sure to update my GPU driver. Thanks again.

The ZD captures & outputs in AVI or WMV format. The AVI files would be significantly larger (file size not resolution). WMV may be a better way to output your captures for your PC.

For you current project, I'd suggest converting the AVI to (say) MPEG-4 in FormatFactory http://www.pcfreetime.com/ and editing the converted file. Your laptop might handle that better.

Cheers - Tony
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I converted it from .avi to .mp4 and now everything works perfectly. Thank you very much for the quick replies and valid help.