27||0|1813|0|yes 0|0|0|||||My machine has much wang...|megazone||01:49:45|11/24/2001|...but for a while it looked like it might not.%0D%0A%0D%0ALet me tell you a story. A month or more back I bought a bunch of stuff to put together a new machine%3A%0D%0A- ABit KG-7-RAID MB%0D%0A- AMD Athlon 1.4GHz%0D%0A- 4x256MB registered DDR SDRAM%0D%0A- 30GB ATA100 EIDE HD%0D%0A- Pioneer DVD-116 ATA66 EIDE DVD-ROM%0D%0A- IOmega 250MB EIDE ZIP drive%0D%0A- Creative Labs SoundBlaster Live%215.1 w%2F Live%21Drive IR%0D%0A- 3Com PCI 10%2F100 Etherlink%0D%0A- nVidia GeForce2 Ultra 64MB AGP video%0D%0A- Full tower case with 300W power supply%0D%0A- WinME%0D%0A- Red Hat 7.1 Deluxe Workstation%0D%0A%0D%0ATo add to this I had some bits from previous machines%0D%0A- 30GB ATA100 EIDE HD%0D%0A- 6GB EIDE HD %28old%2C probably ATA33%2C maybe ATA66%29%0D%0A- Adaptec Fast%2FWide SCSI card%0D%0A- IOmega 2GB SCSI internal Jaz drive%0D%0A- Dell P1110 21%22 Trinitron%0D%0A- Altec Lansing 3 speaker %28L%2FR%2Fsub%29 system%0D%0A- 104 key keyboard%0D%0A- Logitech TrackMan Marble%2B%0D%0A%0D%0AMy plan was to create a dual-boot box to play games on %28WinME%29 and to develop on %28Linux%29. But before I got around to putting it all together I got busy with a couple of small jobs - being unemployed any money is good money. But that occupied me for most of three weeks%2C four counting the week after which was spent catching up on email%2C news%2C forums%2C etc.%2C that had stacked up while I was busy away from the net.%0D%0A%0D%0ABut Monday I decided to get on with it%2C in part to get on with updating the forums. So I spent Monday night putting the box together%2C which wasn%27t too hard.%0D%0A%0D%0ATuesday was the day I%27d wire it into my work area and install things. Well%2C it didn%27t work that way. When powered on it just beeped. No POST. Nothing but BEEP-BEEP-BEEP... That%27s not a good sign. So I worked on it for a while and it just wasn%27t happening. So I started pulling things out of it to see if it was a card or something. I got it down to MB%2C CPU%2C RAM%2C and video and it still had the same beep. Just MB%2C RAM%2C and CPU - same beep. So I decided to pull the heatsink and CPU. No beep. Ok. Then I did something very%2C very dumb.%0D%0A%0D%0AI put the CPU back in and turned the box on.%0D%0A%0D%0ANote I did not say I put the CPU %2AAND HEATSINK%2A back in.%0D%0A%0D%0ADo you know how fast a 1.4GHz T-Bird core Athlon will fry itself without a heatsink%3F Here%27s a hint%3A Don%27t blink%2C you%27ll miss it.%0D%0A%0D%0AOf course%2C I realized what I was doing as I did it - which was too late. After that even with the CPU in%2C no beeps.%0D%0A%0D%0AOk%2C I figured the CPU was dead - but I had no way to know for sure if it was the CPU or the MB. %0D%0A%0D%0AThen my buddy Jer volunteered to play %27swap the CPU%27 with his 1.4Ghz box. So I trucked my box from Waltham to Worcester. We took my CPU and put it in his box - nothing. Pretty much confirming my CPU was fried.%0D%0A%0D%0AThen we put his CPU in my box - and it beeped again. Ok%2C so back to where we started. We couldn%27t figure it out%2C so I decided I%27d give up and take it to a small repair shop a few blocks from my house. So we put my CPU back in my box.%0D%0A%0D%0AThen we put Jer%27s CPU back in his box - and nothing happened. After many attempts to sort it out%2C it was still dead. I seemed to have a killer touch.%0D%0A%0D%0AI%2C of course%2C felt like a total asshole for managing to fry a good friend%27s box while he was trying to help me. I hate breaking other people%27s stuff. Jer was cool about it%2C he just wants it fixed. But I still felt lame. And%2C of course I was already stressed out and a bit depressed over my box being broken in a mysterious way.%0D%0A%0D%0ASo now I trucked both boxes back to Waltham with me. On Wednesday I took them into the local repair shop. They called me up shortly after I brought them in to tell me %2Aboth%2A CPUs were dead - mine was fried%2C as expected%2C and Jer%27s was physically cracked. It must have happened when getting his heatsink back on - it was a real pain to get latched. They said it wasn%27t too unusual to happen with the Athlon%2C they%27d done it themselves building systems.%0D%0A%0D%0AGreat.%0D%0A%0D%0AWell%2C they had a new Athlon XP 1600%2B %28that%27s the Palomino core %40 1.4GHz for the non-chipheads%29 that my MB would handle with a BIOS upgrade. And they turned up a Thunderbird core 1.4GHz chip for Jer%27s box - which is the same as it had been running. Ok%2C so I had them go ahead and install them.%0D%0A%0D%0AWednesday night I schlepped Jer%27s box back to Worcester. We connected it and turned it on%2C and it booted fine. Great.%0D%0A%0D%0AExcept that it would hang after a random period of time%2C in both Linux and Win2K. After much consternation it remained broken. So I hauled it back to Waltham. The repair center has been closed for the holidays%2C but it%27ll go back once they%27re open again. And I feel lame for not having it fixed yet...%0D%0A%0D%0ASo%2C onto my box. After I got home I was nervous about it - afterall%2C we thought Jer%27s box was ok. So I tried to do my install.%0D%0A%0D%0AI installed WinME and it went ok. Then I tried to install the video drivers that came with the card. Reboot - and suddenly WinME was broken. Out of memory errors%2C and other bizarreness. Ok%2C I redid the install%2C and tried again. Now Windows would start - but NOTHING was running. Ctrl-Alt-Del would bring up the program manager box - which was empty. I tried this several more times with no luck. I tried installing the drivers from the CD%2C I tried letting WinME look for them %28it would find them online%29%2C and I tried downloading the latest from nVidia. No luck.%0D%0A%0D%0AI tried it with first installing the AMD AGP miniport drivers that came with the system%2C and without. I tried it with the current version downloaded from AMD%27s website. I tried it with%2C and without%2C installing the PCI-to-AGP bridge drivers. Basically I tried every combination I could think of%2C working all night%2C growing increasingly frustrated%2C and not getting anywhere.%0D%0A%0D%0AHalfway through this I tossed in the RH7.1 disks and did a generic workstation install - which went perfectly%2C recognized the card%2C and let me set things as high as 1600x1200. So it didn%27t seem to be the HW.%0D%0A%0D%0AAfter posting this on a private news server I share with friends%2C a few of them replied that WinME had driver problems and that was probably it. Ok%2C I gave up in disgust and frustration and went to bed.%0D%0A%0D%0AThanksgiving wasn%27t a fun day. I spent most of it home alone%2C but that%27s not pertinent here. I don%27t care for the holiday mainly due to personal history. I did make attempts at the install again%2C but it was just as fruitless as before. My friend Rat emailed me to volunteer to come over Friday with various Windows install media to try.%0D%0A%0D%0ASo Friday he showed up with Win98SE and Win2K Pro install discs.%0D%0A%0D%0AFirst we tried Win98SE - and we got the same results. Everything was fine%2C until you tried to install the video drivers. At that point we figured the 98%2FME AGP miniport of PCI-AGP bridge driver must be broken.%0D%0A%0D%0ASo we tried Win2K.%0D%0A%0D%0AIt worked.%0D%0A%0D%0ALet me say that again.%0D%0A%0D%0AIt worked.%0D%0A%0D%0AIt recognized the hardware and the drivers worked. Larger resolutions and true color worked. Golden.%0D%0A%0D%0AEmboldened by this we %28Rat%2C Gryphon%2C and I%29 decided to head out for dinner - and to buy a copy of WinXP Home Edition for my box. Yes%2C I actually do buy software and don%27t use warez. %28Ok%2C ok%2C %2Amost%2A of the time... nearly all.%29 I also decided to bag a copy of Norton AntiVirus for XP - remember folks%2C don%27t run a machine without it.%0D%0A%0D%0ASo%2C after feasting at California Pizza Kitchen %28%2Aplug%2A%29%2C we returned home and did the final install. WinXP on one HD%2C RH7.1 on the other - with the small HD mounter under RH as a kind of sratch space. Dual booting is working. Both OSes have been updated. And I%27m posting this from NS4.79 under WinXP.%0D%0A%0D%0AI am very%2C very relieved to finally have this damn thing working. It has meant spending several hundred dollars%2C which I don%27t really have to spend%2C though it does mean I have a slightly faster CPU than I started with. And a lot of time wasted. But now I can actually try to get some work done.%0D%0A%0D%0AI%27m not fully relieved%2C since Jer%27s box remains to be fixed%2C but at least something has gone right. %28Knock on wood.%29%0D%0A%0D%0AAnd that has been my week...%0D%0A%0D%0A-MegaZone%2C megazone%40megazone.org%0D%0APersonal Homepage http%3A%2F%2Fwww.megazone.org%2F%0D%0AEyrie Productions FanFic http%3A%2F%2Fwww.eyrie-productions.com%2F%0D%0A%5Blink%3Acgi6.ebay.com%2Faw-cgi%2FeBayISAPI.dll%3FMfcISAPICommand%3DViewListedItems%26userid%3Dmegazone%2540megazone.org%26include%3D0%26since%3D-1%26sort%3D2%26rows%3D0%7CSee what I%27m selling on eBay%5D 1|1|0|||||RE%3A My machine has much wang...|Shadowhavoc||03:46:19|11/24/2001|%0D%0A%3EAnd that has been my week... %0D%0A%3E%0D%0A%0D%0AI didn%27t understand the technical details of it%2C but that sounds like one hell of a week. %0D%0A%0D%0ATempted to ask if you sell Jem tape copies... 2|2|1|||||RE%3A My machine has much wang...|megazone||05:30:41|11/24/2001|%3ETempted to ask if you sell Jem tape copies... %0D%0A%0D%0ANope. I might copy the %27taped from TV%27 tapes I have - but they%27re nth generation already and I don%27t know that the copies would be viewable.%0D%0A%0D%0AI haven%27t gotten around to watching all%2C um%2C 65 I think%2C episodes of those tapes myself...%0D%0A%0D%0A-MegaZone%2C megazone%40megazone.org%0D%0APersonal Homepage http%3A%2F%2Fwww.megazone.org%2F%0D%0AEyrie Productions FanFic http%3A%2F%2Fwww.eyrie-productions.com%2F%0D%0A%5Blink%3Acgi6.ebay.com%2Faw-cgi%2FeBayISAPI.dll%3FMfcISAPICommand%3DViewListedItems%26userid%3Dmegazone%2540megazone.org%26include%3D0%26since%3D-1%26sort%3D2%26rows%3D0%7CSee what I%27m selling on eBay%5D 3|3|2|||||RE%3A My machine has much wang...|Shadowhavoc||13:25:49|11/24/2001|%3E%3ETempted to ask if you sell Jem tape copies... %0D%0A%3E%0D%0A%3ENope. I might copy the %27taped from TV%27 tapes I have - but they%27re nth %0D%0A%3Egeneration already and I don%27t know that the copies would be viewable. %0D%0A%3E%0D%0A%3EI haven%27t gotten around to watching all%2C um%2C 65 I think%2C episodes of %0D%0A%3Ethose tapes myself... %0D%0A%3E%0D%0A%0D%0AHnh%2C which band did you prefer%3A Holograms%2C Misfits or Stingers%3F%0D%0A%0D%0A%0D%0A%22I%27ve Got The Last Laugh%22 is stuck in my head 4|4|3|||||RE%3A My machine has much wang...|megazone||16:13:32|11/24/2001|%3EHnh%2C which band did you prefer%3A Holograms%2C Misfits or Stingers%3F %0D%0A%0D%0AKimber and Stormer%27s side project. %3B-%29%0D%0A%0D%0AOf the three%2C um%2C probably the Holograms - but the Stingers we ok. Mainly they were introduced in the last season and never had many songs since the show was dropped.%0D%0A%0D%0A%3E%22I%27ve Got The Last Laugh%22 is stuck in my head %0D%0A%0D%0AThe one SotS story got %22Twilight in Paris%22 stuck in my head.%0D%0A%0D%0A-MegaZone%2C megazone%40megazone.org%0D%0APersonal Homepage http%3A%2F%2Fwww.megazone.org%2F%0D%0AEyrie Productions FanFic http%3A%2F%2Fwww.eyrie-productions.com%2F%0D%0A%5Blink%3Acgi6.ebay.com%2Faw-cgi%2FeBayISAPI.dll%3FMfcISAPICommand%3DViewListedItems%26userid%3Dmegazone%2540megazone.org%26include%3D0%26since%3D-1%26sort%3D2%26rows%3D0%7CSee what I%27m selling on eBay%5D 6|5|4|||||RE%3A My machine has much wang...|Shadowhavoc||22:46:40|11/24/2001|%3E%3EHnh%2C which band did you prefer%3A Holograms%2C Misfits or Stingers%3F %0D%0A%3E%0D%0A%3EKimber and Stormer%27s side project. %3B-%29 %0D%0A%3E%0D%0A%3EOf the three%2C um%2C probably the Holograms - but the Stingers we ok. %0D%0A%3EMainly they were introduced in the last season and never had many %0D%0A%3Esongs since the show was dropped. %0D%0A%0D%0AA pity on that%2C for some bizarre reason I really like the originality of the show. Very creative for something that was blatantly made to sell toys %28such was the eighties%29. When it was cancelled%2C I think the writers were gonna start portraying Jem as more of an actress in Hollywood or something.%0D%0A%0D%0A%3E%3E%22I%27ve Got The Last Laugh%22 is stuck in my head %0D%0A%3E%0D%0A%3EThe one SotS story got %22Twilight in Paris%22 stuck in my head. %0D%0A%3E%0D%0A%0D%0ASame here.%0D%0A%0D%0AWas tempted to post the lyrics... 5|1|0|||||RE%3A My machine has much wang...|goldenfire||18:17:51|11/24/2001|Whew%21%0D%0A%0D%0AGlad to hear you got it all fixed%2Fworking%21%0D%0A%0D%0AHope you have luck with Jer%27s machine.%0D%0A%0D%0AI can relate to heisenbug-type hardware problems. I think I mentionned it elsewhere%2C but my current board %28A7A266%29 has issues with DDR memory...but only some brands%2C and only if you have 2 sticks in...%0D%0A%0D%0ADon%27t%27cha just %5Bi%5Dlove%5B%2Fi%5D technology%3F 7|1|0|||||RE%3A My machine has much wang...|satyap||00:02:23|11/25/2001|I had an AMD K6-2. It had problems with Win95. they were fixed with Win98.%0D%0A%0D%0AI couldn%27t play %5Bi%5DThief%5B%2Fi%5D on the AMD -- graphics problems due to 3DNow %28%3F%29technology.%0D%0A%0D%0AWinME is the worst Windows ever%2C according to the local Microsoftie.%0D%0A%0D%0ANo%2C I don%27t know how this helps. 8|1|0|||||RE%3A My machine has much wang...|Xervis||12:10:58|11/26/2001|you should get the %22worst week since 1944%22 award%21 And I though going a week with no sleep working on homework and craming for exams was bad%28yes%2C last year I went one whole week with only two%5B 2 %5D hours of sleep%2C dont ask me HOW%2C I just did%29%21%0D%0A%0D%0AXervis %0D%0AAKA %0D%0AThe Chrono Shifting Trigger%0D%0A%0D%0AIf death is only the begining%2C then %0D%0Awhat is the end%3F%0D%0A%0D%0AMe 9|1|0|||||RE%3A My machine has much wang...|StaticdashPulse||16:13:55|11/26/2001|What%27s her name%3F%0D%0A%0D%0AStatic-Pulse%0D%0A - the most impulsive post alive%0D%0A%5Ba href%3D%22http%3A%2F%2Fwww.darkbeast.com%22%5DDarkBeast.com%5B%2Fa%5D 15|2|9|||||RE%3A My machine has much wang...|megazone||22:51:35|11/26/2001|%3EWhat%27s her name%3F %0D%0A%0D%0AThe machine%3F Actually it is Gendou Mk.II - the last workstation I had was Gendou.%0D%0A%0D%0A-MegaZone%2C megazone%40megazone.org%0D%0APersonal Homepage http%3A%2F%2Fwww.megazone.org%2F%0D%0AEyrie Productions FanFic http%3A%2F%2Fwww.eyrie-productions.com%2F%0D%0A%5Blink%3Acgi6.ebay.com%2Faw-cgi%2FeBayISAPI.dll%3FMfcISAPICommand%3DViewListedItems%26userid%3Dmegazone%2540megazone.org%26include%3D0%26since%3D-1%26sort%3D2%26rows%3D0%7CSee what I%27m selling on eBay%5D 27|3|15|||||RE%3A My machine has much wang...|Lostboy||00:59:19|12/09/2001|%3E%3EWhat%27s her name%3F %0D%0A%3E%0D%0A%3EThe machine%3F Actually it is Gendou Mk.II - the last workstation I had %0D%0A%3Ewas Gendou. %0D%0A%0D%0A....%0D%0A%0D%0AAny wonder the thing hates you%3F %3BP%0D%0A%0D%0A 10|1|0|||||RE%3A My machine has much wang...|Star Ranger4||16:21:25|11/26/2001|%3EI am very%2C very relieved to finally have this damn thing working. It %0D%0A%3Ehas meant spending several hundred dollars%2C which I don%27t really have %0D%0A%3Eto spend%2C though it does mean I have a slightly faster CPU than I %0D%0A%3Estarted with. And a lot of time wasted. But now I can actually try to %0D%0A%3Eget some work done. %0D%0A%3E%0D%0A%0D%0AI gotta ask... how much Won did this much Wang set you back%3F I%27m wondering because my two machines are now so far behind the curve that Its now to the point of replacing%2C rathter than upgrading. Right now the specs I%27m looking at are%3A%0D%0A%0D%0AATX case W%2F300 watts%0D%0ASlot 1 or A motherboard ATX formfactor%0D%0A800 - 1.4 gig clockspeed on the CPU%0D%0A256k ram%0D%0AAGP%2C 3 PCI%2C 1 ISA slots minimum%0D%0AEIDE%0D%0A%0D%0AIn order to save money I%27m looking at transplanting the Disks%2C monitors and keyboards I%27m using now.... and I don%27t want to loose the data I%27ve got. I need to put together 2 of them%2C too%2C on a very limited budget.%0D%0A%0D%0A___________________%0D%0A%0D%0AJer told Vaughn about me. I am once again a victim of Murphy%27s law... 11|2|10|||||RE%3A My machine has much wang...|Offsides||16:24:21|11/26/2001|%3E256k ram %0D%0A%0D%0AHmm... I think I have a spare XT motherboard around here%2C but it%27s got at least 512k onboard%2C probably 640k. Might be a little too expensive for your taste... %3A%29%0D%0A%0D%0A%28Sorry%2C I have people do that to me all the time and it%27s a reflex by now...%29%0D%0A%0D%0AOffsides%0D%0A%0D%0A%23include %3Cprefix.h%3E 12|2|10|||||RE%3A My machine has much wang...|Juunanagou||18:26:09|11/26/2001|%3EI gotta ask... how much Won did this much Wang set you back%3F I%27m %0D%0A%3Ewondering because my two machines are now so far behind the curve that %0D%0A%3EIts now to the point of replacing%2C rathter than upgrading. Right now %0D%0A%3Ethe specs I%27m looking at are%3A %0D%0A%3E%0D%0A%3EATX case W%2F300 watts %0D%0A%3ESlot 1 or A motherboard ATX formfactor %0D%0A%3E800 - 1.4 gig clockspeed on the CPU %0D%0A%3E256k ram %0D%0A%3EAGP%2C 3 PCI%2C 1 ISA slots minimum %0D%0A%3EEIDE %0D%0A%0D%0AI got my Abit KT7A and Tbird 1.2 from %5Blink%3Awww.bzboyz.com%7CB-Z-Boyz%5D for a very reasonable price- with the latest BIOS%2C you can get the 1.2 up to a 1.4 very easily %28the Abit SoftBIOS III is very easy to use for overclocking. Be sure to get a good HS%2FF though%3B the standard one is a bit on the weak side%29. If you decide to go with the KT7A%2C be sure to get the 1.3 series or later boards%3B they%27ll support up to the AthlonXP 1600. Also%2C the KT7A doesn%27t like you to use all 3 DIMM slots%3B 2 in any combination of the 3 slots will be fine%2C but 3 will crash the system on boot.%0D%0A%0D%0AFor about %24700 %28including shipping%29I put the following box together%3A%0D%0ACyclone Case %28with 350 watt Fortran power supply%29%0D%0AT-Bird 1.2 %28overclocked to only 1.333 because I%27ve been too lazy to flash my BIOS%29%0D%0AAbit KT7A %281.2 series%2C no RAID support%29 %28AGP%2C 6 PCI%2C 1 ISA%29%0D%0A1- 256 MB%2C PC133%0D%0AWinCAK copper HSF combo %28basically%2C 1 lb. of copper and a great big fan.%29%0D%0A%0D%0ANote that my case was almost as expensive as the mobo%2FCPU combo%3B I knew I was going to overclock and use the case for my next several main gaming boxes.%0D%0A%0D%0AAbout the T-Bird CPU%3A I%27ve had several friends crack their cores when putting on the HSF%3B that sucker is fragile and seating the HSF can be tricky without a flathead screwdriver or similiar tool. The CPU itself will also burst into flames at the slightest provocation%2C so a good HSF is a definite must. %28My WinCAK is about 4 times the size of the aluminum one that came with my combo%29.%0D%0A%0D%0AT.H. 17|3|12|||||RE%3A My machine has much wang...|megazone||23:16:06|11/26/2001|%3EAthlonXP 1600. Also%2C the KT7A doesn%27t like you to use all 3 DIMM %0D%0A%3Eslots%3B 2 in any combination of the 3 slots will be fine%2C but 3 will %0D%0A%3Ecrash the system on boot. %0D%0A%0D%0AI think this is only with certain types of RAM - like with my ABit KG-7%2C it has 4 DIMM slots but you can only use 2 with unregistered DIMMs. You need registered DIMMs to use all 4.%0D%0A%0D%0A%3ET-Bird 1.2 %28overclocked to only 1.333 because I%27ve been too lazy to %0D%0A%3Eflash my BIOS%29 %0D%0A%0D%0AWith the speed of processors today I don%27t really see the need to overclock. I did it with an old K6-2 system I had.%0D%0A%0D%0A-MegaZone%2C megazone%40megazone.org%0D%0APersonal Homepage http%3A%2F%2Fwww.megazone.org%2F%0D%0AEyrie Productions FanFic http%3A%2F%2Fwww.eyrie-productions.com%2F%0D%0A%5Blink%3Acgi6.ebay.com%2Faw-cgi%2FeBayISAPI.dll%3FMfcISAPICommand%3DViewListedItems%26userid%3Dmegazone%2540megazone.org%26include%3D0%26since%3D-1%26sort%3D2%26rows%3D0%7CSee what I%27m selling on eBay%5D 20|4|17|||||RE%3A My machine has much wang...|Juunanagou||01:29:58|11/27/2001|%3E%3ET-Bird 1.2 %28overclocked to only 1.333 because I%27ve been too lazy to %0D%0A%3E%3Eflash my BIOS%29 %0D%0A%3E%0D%0A%3EWith the speed of processors today I don%27t really see the need to %0D%0A%3Eoverclock. I did it with an old K6-2 system I had. %0D%0A%0D%0AI agree- I overclocked it mainly because the option was available and didn%27t really cost anything extra in either time or resources. I had to set the multiplier anyway when I reset the CMOS jumper. It was also a good excuse to play around with the SoftBIOS. %28It%27s not like I was expecting a huge performance increase going from 1.2%7E1.33 anyway %3A-%29%0D%0A%0D%0AT.H. 14|2|10|||||RE%3A My machine has much wang...|goldenfire||22:43:00|11/26/2001|%3EI gotta ask... how much Won did this much Wang set you back%3F I%27m %0D%0A%3Ewondering because my two machines are now so far behind the curve that %0D%0A%3EIts now to the point of replacing%2C rathter than upgrading. Right now %0D%0A%3Ethe specs I%27m looking at are%3A %0D%0A%3E%0D%0A%3EATX case W%2F300 watts %0D%0A%3ESlot 1 or A motherboard ATX formfactor %0D%0A%3E800 - 1.4 gig clockspeed on the CPU %0D%0A%3E256k ram %0D%0A%3EAGP%2C 3 PCI%2C 1 ISA slots minimum %0D%0A%3EEIDE %0D%0A%3E%0D%0A%3EIn order to save money I%27m looking at transplanting the Disks%2C %0D%0A%3Emonitors and keyboards I%27m using now.... and I don%27t want to loose the %0D%0A%3Edata I%27ve got. I need to put together 2 of them%2C too%2C on a very %0D%0A%3Elimited budget. %0D%0A%0D%0Awell%2C other people are suggestion%2C so I%27ll chime in too...%0D%0A%5Blink%3Awww.united-micro.com%7CUnited Micro%5D is very nice. Their configurator lets you mix%27n%27match %28and leave out%29 parts as you like. Personally%2C I%27d recommend the %22INWIN Q500%22 case...it%27s a full tower %28don%27t know if you go for that%2C but I hate anything smaller%29 that is %5Bi%5Dreally%5B%2Fi%5D nice %28both sides and the top come off independantly%2C and the backplane slides out with 2 screws%2C for easy assembly...assuming your heatsink isn%27t too tall %3A%29%0D%0A%0D%0AThe two beefiest machines I have currently %28me and SO%29 are both in this case... 18|3|14|||||RE%3A My machine has much wang...|megazone||23:25:32|11/26/2001|%3EPersonally%2C I%27d recommend the %22INWIN Q500%22 case...it%27s a full tower %0D%0A%3E%28don%27t know if you go for that%2C but I hate anything smaller%29 that is %0D%0A%3E%5Bi%5Dreally%5B%2Fi%5D nice %28both sides and the top come off independantly%2C and %0D%0A%3Ethe backplane slides out with 2 screws%2C for easy assembly...assuming %0D%0A%3Eyour heatsink isn%27t too tall %3A%29 %0D%0A%0D%0AThe case I picked up locally is like that. A full tower%2C 300W PS - floppy bay %28well%2C 3.5%22 bay which invariably is used for a floppy%29 and 5 5.25%22 bays in front%2C 4 3.5%22 HD bays internally. Both sides come off with 2 screws each %28I%27m thinking of getting thumb screws to make it easy%29. The MB is on a slide-out subassembly held in my two screws. Makes it easy to work on it - mount the CPU%2C HS%2FFan%2C cards%2C etc without having to work inside the case. It also has mounts for 3 case fans %28plus the PS fan%29 - which I filled.%0D%0A%0D%0A-MegaZone%2C megazone%40megazone.org%0D%0APersonal Homepage http%3A%2F%2Fwww.megazone.org%2F%0D%0AEyrie Productions FanFic http%3A%2F%2Fwww.eyrie-productions.com%2F%0D%0A%5Blink%3Acgi6.ebay.com%2Faw-cgi%2FeBayISAPI.dll%3FMfcISAPICommand%3DViewListedItems%26userid%3Dmegazone%2540megazone.org%26include%3D0%26since%3D-1%26sort%3D2%26rows%3D0%7CSee what I%27m selling on eBay%5D 16|2|10|||||RE%3A My machine has much wang...|megazone||23:10:38|11/26/2001|%3EI gotta ask... how much Won did this much Wang set you back%3F I%27m %0D%0A%0D%0AWell%2C if I hadn%27t fscked up%2C I think it came in less than %241K. And costs have dropped a bit - look at http%3A%2F%2Fwww.pricewatch.com%2F%0D%0A%0D%0A%3EATX case W%2F300 watts %0D%0A%3ESlot 1 or A motherboard ATX formfactor %0D%0A%3E800 - 1.4 gig clockspeed on the CPU %0D%0A%0D%0AIf you%27re going Athlon it%27ll be Socket A - they don%27t do Slot A anymore. Though there are still some old Slot A chips out there - 700-750-800MHz. 850MHz-1.6Ghz are all Socket A. At this point you%27d probably want an Athlon XP. I%27d recommend that instead of an older Athlon - the XP has the Palomino core which performs a bit better for a given clock speed%2C runs a bit cooler%2C and has an extended instruction set.%0D%0A%0D%0AIf you went with Intel %28why%3F%29%2C it wouldn%27t be Slot 1. The P4 has a new Socket %28Socket 4-something-or-other%29%2C and the PIII went to sockets too. %0D%0A%0D%0A%3E256k ram %0D%0A%0D%0AMy advice - with the price of RAM right now%2C buy as much as you can afford. If you%27re going with an Athlon you%27ll get better performance if you buy a MB that uses DDR SDRAM instead of SDRAM%2C especially with a 266MHz FSB instead of 200MHz. You%27ll pay a bit more for DDR%2C but not that much - and%2C in any case%2C RAM prices are WAY down right now. My board will take up to 4GB of RAM%2C but the price curve swings sharply after 256MB DIMMs%2C so it wasn%27t worth it. Besides%2C like I%27m going to do anything that would use more than 1GB anyway.%0D%0A%0D%0A%3EAGP%2C 3 PCI%2C 1 ISA slots minimum %0D%0A%0D%0AISA%3F Why%3F Most of the better boards these days don%27t have ISA anymore. Better to just get all PCI unless you have an old ISA card you just can%27t give up. My board has 1 AGP and 6 PCI%2C a lot of them have 1 AGP and 5 PCI.%0D%0A%0D%0A%3EEIDE %0D%0A%0D%0APretty much any MB will have that - look for ATA%2F100 and get drives that are ATA%2F100 if possible.%0D%0A%0D%0A%3EIn order to save money I%27m looking at transplanting the Disks%2C %0D%0A%3Emonitors and keyboards I%27m using now.... and I don%27t want to loose the %0D%0A%3Edata I%27ve got. I need to put together 2 of them%2C too%2C on a very %0D%0A%3Elimited budget. %0D%0A%0D%0AWell%2C monitors%2C keyboards%2C mice%2C etc should be no problem. Well%2C as long as the KB and mouse is PS%2F2 - pretty much all systems have those connectors.%0D%0A%0D%0A-MegaZone%2C megazone%40megazone.org%0D%0APersonal Homepage http%3A%2F%2Fwww.megazone.org%2F%0D%0AEyrie Productions FanFic http%3A%2F%2Fwww.eyrie-productions.com%2F%0D%0A%5Blink%3Acgi6.ebay.com%2Faw-cgi%2FeBayISAPI.dll%3FMfcISAPICommand%3DViewListedItems%26userid%3Dmegazone%2540megazone.org%26include%3D0%26since%3D-1%26sort%3D2%26rows%3D0%7CSee what I%27m selling on eBay%5D 13|1|0|||||RE%3A My machine has much wang...|TRB||22:35:14|11/26/2001|I built a very similiar box recently myself%2C MZ. WinME%2C Athlon 1.4 T-Bird%2C same mobo%2C not nearly as much RAM B-P %0D%0AI got the dreaded beeps myself%2C though mine actually ran at first. Then it would slowly destabilize and whether or not it would reboot was random chance. Eventually%2C it stopped rebooting at all. Beep%2C beep%2C ad nauseaum. %0D%0ATurns out I didn%27t stuff my RAM in the slot tight enough. DUH. %0D%0AAnother difference is I%27m also running a GeForce 3%2C rather than a 2. It%27s been giving me fits. It%27s a blazing hot card%2C but incompatabilities and crash bugs with some older games are apparent. After your post%2C and several hours of tweaking trying to unscrew Half-Life%2C I%27m pretty convinced it%27s ME. ME was all I had when I was putting it together%2C though. So I dealt with it. Now I have a copy of 2K Pro%2C but I%27m loather to either install it over ME %28bad bad karma to install Windows over Windows%29 or to suck the 12 gigs of crap that%27s already accumulated on my HDDs out and reformat them. %28Where does it all come from%3F%29 Anyway%2C like the rest%2C I%27m glad you got it straight. Headaches aside%2C it beats buying some crap generi-box from Best Try%2C that if you want to not suck you%27ll have to dump a grand into anyway and hope the fucking proprietary case design doesn%27t screw you. %0D%0A%0D%0ATRB%0D%0A%0D%0A%22You are... what you do... when it counts.%22 -The Masao 19|2|13|||||RE%3A My machine has much wang...|megazone||23:29:45|11/26/2001|%3EHalf-Life%2C I%27m pretty convinced it%27s ME. ME was all I had when I was %0D%0A%0D%0ASome other folks have suggested that ME doesn%27t like more than 384KB%2C maybe 512KB%2C or RAM either. I don%27t know for sure. Maybe that%2C or maybe just busted drivers.%0D%0A%0D%0A%3Einstall Windows over Windows%29 or to suck the 12 gigs of crap that%27s %0D%0A%3Ealready accumulated on my HDDs out and reformat them. %28Where does it %0D%0A%0D%0AYou could pick up something like Partition Commander%2C create a new partition and move the stuff you want to keep there - then reformat the C%3A drive and reinstall.%0D%0A%0D%0A12GB%3F Geez%2C collect MP3s%3F%0D%0A%0D%0A-MegaZone%2C megazone%40megazone.org%0D%0APersonal Homepage http%3A%2F%2Fwww.megazone.org%2F%0D%0AEyrie Productions FanFic http%3A%2F%2Fwww.eyrie-productions.com%2F%0D%0A%5Blink%3Acgi6.ebay.com%2Faw-cgi%2FeBayISAPI.dll%3FMfcISAPICommand%3DViewListedItems%26userid%3Dmegazone%2540megazone.org%26include%3D0%26since%3D-1%26sort%3D2%26rows%3D0%7CSee what I%27m selling on eBay%5D 21|3|19|||||RE%3A My machine has much wang...|TRB||06:03:39|11/27/2001|%3ESome other folks have suggested that ME doesn%27t like more than 384KB%2C %0D%0A%3Emaybe 512KB%2C or RAM either. I don%27t know for sure. Maybe that%2C or %0D%0A%3Emaybe just busted drivers. %0D%0A%0D%0AI don%27t know about the RAM issue. I%27m thinking you meant Megabytes%2C not Kilos%2C but in that case I%27ve only got 256M so. New reference drivers from Nvidia got HL unscrewed%2C but the Ghost Recon demo still acted funny. Bad breakup when I%27d first start a game%2C when%2Fif it settled out the guys on my squad were invisible men%2C floating guns and helmets and webgear with no bodies holding them up. Kinda funny%2C actually. Alt-Tab to desktop and come back in straightens is out in 32bit color%2C but there%27s no workaround in 16bit. %0D%0A%0D%0A%0D%0A%3EYou could pick up something like Partition Commander%2C create a new %0D%0A%3Epartition and move the stuff you want to keep there - then reformat %0D%0A%3Ethe C%3A drive and reinstall. %0D%0A%0D%0AGood idea. Thanks. %0D%0A%0D%0A%3E12GB%3F Geez%2C collect MP3s%3F %0D%0A%0D%0AWell%2C I have to get the music for the cues in Eyrie works somewhere B-%29 %0D%0ABut seriously%2C that%27s only circa 1.5 gigs of it. I think most of it is various sundry utilities%2C my roommate%27s raw .wav and .bmp remixes and artworks%2C anime music videos %28downloaded a lot of those since I got my cable in way back whenever%29and%2C big surprise%2C games. Game installs are ludicrous nowadays. Add in mods%2C maps%2C utils%2C and whatnot%2C it adds up. Sierra has the oh-so-endearing habit of sticking mods I don%27t want or play in with required upgrades%2C too. I%27ve lost track of the times I%27ve deleted the TeamFortress Classic folder. %0D%0A%0D%0ATRB%0D%0A%0D%0A%22You are... what you do... when it counts.%22 -The Masao 22|4|21|||||RE%3A My machine has much wang...|Shadowhavoc||10:20:15|11/27/2001|%0D%0A%3E%3E12GB%3F Geez%2C collect MP3s%3F %0D%0A%3E%0D%0A%3EWell%2C I have to get the music for the cues in Eyrie works somewhere %0D%0A%3EB-%29 %0D%0A%0D%0ATry Kazaa%2C you can find a lot of things on it%2C it%27s free.%0D%0A%0D%0AStill thinking... 23|1|0|||||RE%3A My machine has much wang...|jer||01:07:16|12/08/2001|%3EI%27m not fully relieved%2C since Jer%27s box remains to be fixed%2C but at %0D%0A%3Eleast something has gone right. %28Knock on wood.%29 %0D%0A%0D%0ASri-Syadasti is up and running . although I did have to underclock%0D%0Ait to make it stay up stably. I can deal with a 1GHz CPU %2810.5 %2A 100MHz%29%0D%0Athat won%27t crash.. %0D%0At%27ain%27t perfect%2C but it%27ll do. Gweeping from bed rocks.%0D%0A%0D%0A-- %0D%0Ajer%40gweep.net%0D%0ACeci n%27est pas une .signature 24|2|23|||||RE%3A My machine has much wang...|megazone||02:42:31|12/08/2001|%3ESri-Syadasti is up and running . although I did have to underclock %0D%0A%3Eit to make it stay up stably. I can deal with a 1GHz CPU %2810.5 %2A %0D%0A%3E100MHz%29 %0D%0A%3Ethat won%27t crash.. %0D%0A%3Et%27ain%27t perfect%2C but it%27ll do. Gweeping from bed rocks. %0D%0A%0D%0AI wonder if it is that CPU they put in there then...%0D%0A%0D%0A-MegaZone%2C megazone%40megazone.org%0D%0APersonal Homepage http%3A%2F%2Fwww.megazone.org%2F%0D%0AEyrie Productions FanFic http%3A%2F%2Fwww.eyrie-productions.com%2F%0D%0A%5Blink%3Acgi6.ebay.com%2Faw-cgi%2FeBayISAPI.dll%3FMfcISAPICommand%3DViewListedItems%26userid%3Dmegazone%2540megazone.org%26include%3D0%26since%3D-1%26sort%3D2%26rows%3D0%7CeBay listings - updated 12%2F05%2F01%5D 25|3|24|||||RE%3A My machine has much wang...|jer||08:39:27|12/08/2001|%3EI wonder if it is that CPU they put in there then... %0D%0A%0D%0Amm.. it%27s possible it%27s a borderline CPU .. %2Ashrug%2A %0D%0A%0D%0A-- %0D%0Ajer%40gweep.net%0D%0ACeci n%27est pas une .signature 26|4|25|||||RE%3A My machine has much wang...|megazone||11:10:37|12/08/2001|%3E%3EI wonder if it is that CPU they put in there then... %0D%0A%3Emm.. it%27s possible it%27s a borderline CPU .. %2Ashrug%2A %0D%0A%0D%0AI suxx0r.%0D%0A%0D%0AHmm%2C Gryph is talking about building a new box. I could order a new CPU for you to try - if it works for Sri you keep it%2C if not%2C Gryph could buy it since he%27s thinking of that anyway.%0D%0A%0D%0AHmm%2C I don%27t know if they flashed your BIOS or not in the end now that I think about it. Maybe check that - if they did FLASH the BIOS%2C maybe something changed. If not you%27d probably need to FLASH it to support an XP properly.%0D%0A%0D%0A-MegaZone%2C megazone%40megazone.org%0D%0APersonal Homepage http%3A%2F%2Fwww.megazone.org%2F%0D%0AEyrie Productions FanFic http%3A%2F%2Fwww.eyrie-productions.com%2F%0D%0A%5Blink%3Acgi6.ebay.com%2Faw-cgi%2FeBayISAPI.dll%3FMfcISAPICommand%3DViewListedItems%26userid%3Dmegazone%2540megazone.org%26include%3D0%26since%3D-1%26sort%3D2%26rows%3D0%7CeBay listings - updated 12%2F05%2F01%5D