Yay. Welcome back! Are you using a laptop? Laptops usually have a motherboard integrated GPU which sometimes takes over in 3D apps instead of the dedicated NVIDIA card. You can use your NVIDIA control panel to force Max to use the dedicated GPU.
Dedicated Server They've switched over to a new system for hosting dedicated servers. I haven't messed with it much yet, but it seems to be a welcome improvement over previous gen source games.
Laptops typically have an integrated GPU which is not as good as a dedicated Nvidia or AMD GPU. You need to use the dedicated GPU's driver to force apps to use it instead of the integrated one.
If you are motivated and dedicated enough to make a school like flashpoint worth it, then you are motivated and dedicated enough to do it on our own. Go to a traditional art school, I wish I did.