i am upgrading an old pc. i acquired a used dfi865PE motherboard w/478 processor. NEW hd and ram and agp card, power supply on the way. i REMOVED the old one and i'm sure i can install the new one. my question is: what is the first thing i have to do to get it READY for the os? i don't have the mobo driver. i went to dfi to dl the driver, but not sure what to dl. nothing says mobo driver. there is utility driver and audio driver. any help WOULD be welcomed. i'm not even sure that this mobo is good.  i don't know how to test it first. at any rate the old one is too old to use at all. (200mgb). thanks.Just fire it up & install your OS first.
that simple?  don't i need the mobo driver first?Nope, you only need your bios to recognise your HDD & cdrom.
What OS are you installing?i only have a 98SE that i can let go with the pc when i sell it, so the answer is win98se
i have another off the wall question. i really like playing around with these crazy pc's, so if i were to occationally fix an old one up and upgrade it and sell it, how do you acquire os for them that don't cost an arm and a leg?Win98SE is bootable from the cdrom so your install will be easy.

Give them linux.thank you.  that was helpful and took away most of my worries.how do i know if the mobo is bad?  the cpu fan gives a 1/2 turn and that is it.  i have a sata hd, agp video car, 256 memory.  won't do a thing.  took the mobo out and put is on a pc cardboard and still nothing.  i'm hoping that it is the power switch. is that a good start?No.         so where do i start.