for tearing graphic it's r_swapinterval 1
not 0 It's because you have probably Win XP

and in this windows the Vsync are automaticaly remove when start a game with the Quake 3 engine

Really weird thing happened the other day. I got the same tearing you are talking about .. but I have been playing this game since last August and it's never happened before. All of a sudden I could see thru the pillars on Shop2 .. I finally figured out that vsync being turned on it would stop it ... but then my maxfps dropped to 60mhz.

Now I am reading thru this thread ttrying to figure out what would help me go back to the way it was.

My max refresh on monitor i think is 85mhz but when I change to this it will only max at 85 fps  

I have win xp. The only thing I can relate to it (happening around the same time) was d/l the new det 43.00 drivers.

PLZ HELP!!!

vsync does what it says, maintains vertical sync with the monitor, eg it only sends a few frame every time the monitor refreshes so if the monitor only refreshes 60 times a second u get 60fps, if its only 85times per second its 85fps,
withouht this on then the graphics card just sends new frames when they are redy, but if it sends a substansualy diferent frame while the monitor is drawing 1, then the 2 halfs dont match and it appers as tearing.

so either live with the tearing or the 85fps

thx for the answer spike .. it kinda makes sense

I just wondered why the sudden change? I have been playing with 100+ fps ingame up until now, then the other day all of a sudden I can either use vsync (max60) or have MAJOR tearing making me blind (125fps)

How can it go from one to the other without hardware change or anything?

well u did say u upgraded ur drivers, nvidia can do a lot with there drivers  

I'm having the exact same problem...and I don't have nvidia.

I have an ati 9700 pro
p4 2.8
1 gb kingston ddr 333
xp home
sb audigy 2


I updated all my drivers and I'm experiencing the same problem.  I never use to have this tearing effect..then all of a sudden...bam..I noticed it like crazy.  My fps hits 60 at its absolute lowest...it is usually at 125.  I get the tearing effect all the time...I haven't even touch vsync because this wasn't happening in the past.  I cannot recall doing any one thing to change my system when it started.  If I had updated a critical driver...I would have paid attention, but I didn't.  I just booted up one day and I started noticing it.  Someone figure this out...I've been messing around for the past 2 weeks and still can't figure it out.

Just turn on the #### vsync unless your video card is so bad you don't need it to get rid of the tearing (or if you want to benchmark). And if your fps is higher than your monitor's refresh rate, you will NOT see those extra frames, they will just corrupt others and decrease visual quality, like Spike explained.