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Trying to trouble shoot an issue here. When I plug my tower in (the CPU) I get a relatively noticeable electrical humming noise. I do not notice this on my other computers in the house.

This is while the computer is "off" and just plugged in.

Machine was recently shipped ACROSS country with original foam cushioning and lots of BUBBLE wrap. Did not notice any other damage. PC does BOOT up fine. I'm worried about the noise because the computer is "off" while this is happening (although I understand that the current is still going to the device).

I'm leaning towards a hunch it's a power SUPPLY issue. Any other ideas?

If it is the power supply, can it cause any damage to the computer or data files if it goes out before I can get it fixed?
Power supplies do this when they are unhealthy. Sometimes the electrolytic capacitors when failing will start to make this noise. I'd replace the power supply to avoid a fire, although the powersupplies generally have fail saves in them to prevent fire, but I have seem them fail and STINK up the place.

hello there

I found one of these messages in device manager
Windows cannont start this hardware device because its configuration information (in the registry) is incomplete or damaged (code 19)

I reinstalled the hardware, which was a fugifilm camera's software and everything was back to normal.

But this only happened when i installed a memory card READER as well, so the next time i hooked the camera up i could not use it, and thats when i went to device manager and saw this message.

Code 19
Windows cannot start this hardware device because its configuration information (in the registry) is incomplete or damaged. To fix this problem you can first try running a Troubleshooting Wizard. If that does not work, you should uninstall and then reinstall the hardware device. (Code 19)
Recommended resolutions

A registry problem was detected.

This can occur when more than one service is defined for a device, if there is a failure opening the service subkey, or if the driver name cannot be obtained from the service subkey. Here are some things that you can try to resolve this problem.

Uninstall and reinstall the driver

Uninstall the driver from Device Manager and scan for NEW hardware to install the driver again.

You may be prompted to provide the PATH of the driver. Windows may have the driver built-in, or may still have the driver files installed from the last time that you set up the device. However, sometimes, it will open the New Hardware Wizard which may ask for the driver. If you are asked for the driver and you do not have it, you can try to download the latest driver from the hardware vendor’s Web site.1. On the device Properties dialog box, click the Driver tab, and then click Uninstall. Follow the instructions.
2. Restart your computer.
3. Open Device Manager, click Action, and then click Scan for hardware changes. Follow the instructions.

So doe's this mean that i have basically two devices doing the same thing, and that i should only stick to using one device like the memory card reader.....

thanks for any replys.

windows xp pro....I'm ASSUMING these are both USB devices correct ? ?
Travel to Device Manager and right click each of them and select "remove"...you will get a warning...ignore it.
Then go to Add/Remove Programs and also remove any software that was installed with it.
Do a few re-boots.
Unplug both devices.
Install the software for the card reader first...it will prompt you when to plug the device in. After finishing this successfully again do a few re-boots and check Device Manager to insure there are no yellow !!'s.
Power down and unplug the card reader.
Repeat the above installation process for the camera making sure it is not plugged in until the driver software asks for it.
Again do a few re-boots and double check Device Manager.

You should be good to go now.

P.S. I forgot to ask you to mention the orientation of these devices ...i.e. plugged into front/rear ports or are you using a USB hub for both ? ?

P.S.S. You may need to assign Drive letters that are not being used to each card reader ( they sometimes show up as individual drives ) in Disk Management and then assign a drive letter to the camera ( which should be listed as a mass storage device )

To enter Disk Management right clik My Computer and select Manage...then Disk Management.

Make sure to pick letters a few CLICKS down from existing drives...i.e. if your current last drive is E: or F: start with J: or K: leaving the open letters foe thumb drives.Quote

P.S. I forgot to ask you to mention the orientation of these devices ...i.e. plugged into front/rear ports or are you using a USB hub for both ? ?

Then go to Add/Remove Programs and also remove any software that was installed with it.

Install the software for the card reader first...it will prompt you when to plug the device in. After finishing this successfully again do a few re-boots and check Device Manager to insure there are no yellow !!'s.
Power down and unplug the card reader.
Repeat the above installation process for the camera making sure it is not plugged in until the driver software asks for it.
Again do a few re-boots and double check Device Manager.

You should be good to go now.

I would always suggest using the Safely Remove Hardware approach even if you got lucky once and didn't lose data...
Glad to hear you are fixed up.

Hi all. New pc Tower with Intel E7300 2.66Ghz core 2 Duo, G-B EP31-DS3L P31 MB, 2x A-Data 1 GB DDR2 800 RAM, ASUS PCI-E 512MB 8400GS, SATA W.D. 500GB HDD, LG SATA 22xDVD RW (x2 two), Coolmaster box and power supply, 22" LCD screen and MS Windows XP Home edition OS. Winfast DVT2000 H capture/tuner card.
My problem is I can get TV on pc via tuner card with no problems with sound. I can tune/set FM RADIO frequencies but when I GO to listen to FM radio there is no audio. I have volume of the onscreen controller up full and mute off. The speakers of my system are on and up full.
Second issue is also audio related. I have VCR input via the red. yellow and white RCA leads from the capture card. I can get picture up on screen of Winfast DVT2000 H software on pc for RECORDING PURPOSES but no audio at all, like the FM radio component of system. I have the BLUE jack of Capture card lead plugged into blue line in on rear of pc. I have selected line in as part of capture card settings as per instructions. The tuner part of my card appears to function well except for FM radio audio.
I am not sure of why I am having audio issues. Has anybody had these issues and solved them? Maybe I need to go through some software settings if anybody is using the Winfast DVT2000 H capture/tuner card with complete sucess. Posted with thanks to all that may give some assistance.

My name is Bob, and I am looking for some help. Last night i got stupid and changed some settings in the system BIOS on my home system and now I can't GET the system to boot. I cannot SEE what is going on because all I get is a blank monitor. The monitor is working and so is the VIDEO card. Can someone please give me some help so I can reboot my system and RESTORE the system setttings?. I have troubleshooting guides but unfortunately they do not give any help on this topic. I am hoping that someone more knowledgeable than me can help me out.Try clearing CMOS , If you dont know where there jumper is remove the battery for at least 20 min. & reinstall.POWER OFF

I have a HD from a Windows 98 machine (C drive-3.71 GB, D drive- 9.53 GB). I want to take it and make it into an external HD using a KIT of some kind with a USB plug on it. Then, use it to back-up a 55.8 GB HD in a newer computer with Windows XP, only 16.5 GB is presently used. It has home business information that I need backed up on a regular basis. I don't need to save the information on the old HD. Do I need anything special like additional RAM? SOFTWARE for the BACKUP to the external HD?
Thanks for your help in advance. you can use a USB to IDE adapter (find it on e-Bay), it will connect any hard drive, cd drive, flopy drive etc, etc, to any computer with an USB port, if you are using Windows XP all you have to do is pkug it in. I hope this helps.Sorry I ment Plug It In.... Backing up a 60G drive on a 12G external is going to be tight...even if the main drive is not full.
How often do you do backups ? ?
Have you considered a disk imaging program such as Ghost or Acronis True Image ? ?
The images can be burned to CD/DVDWe do back ups every 2-3 days.

Have not considered a imaging program like ghost. Would that be a better way to go?

This USB to IDE adapter that you talk about on ebay LOOKS like a cable only and I thought that it was a kit of some kind that you put an internal HD in (like a box of some kind) and that it has the USB cable coming out of it!

I have an HP Special Edition Notebook L2000 CTO: AMD Turion 64 ML-34 1.8 Ghz processor with 1x1GB of memory. I am interested in finally upgrading the RAM since prices are pretty reasonable.

I contacted HP's support via chat. The person with whom I chatted appeared to not know specifics about the computer, although I was able to verify that there are 2 memory modules.

I understand from the computer manual that I need 333MHz, PC2700 DDR-1 RAM. The woman in the HP Chat said it's DIMM; that doesn't seem as though that can be correct from the research I've DONE. Will it matter if it SO-DIMM or DIMM?

Thanks!

[Saving space - ATTACHMENT deleted by admin]Try the below link.

http://www.memory.com/net/System.aspx?model=36448Are those actual HP parts on that website or third party? I found Crucial memory for $13 a/r with free shipping. http://www.buy.com/prod/crucial-1gb-pc2700-333mhz-200-pin-ddr-sodimm-laptop-memory-ct12864x335/q/loc/101/10393180.html

Choice based on review: Quote

I am totally satisfied with my upgraded memory. The rebate OFFER made for an especially attractive value ($30 back on 1 GB). I was REFERRED to Crucial by HP, the manufacturer of my laptop. What I found most impressive about Crucial were the tools they have available online, especially their automated detection for product compatibility. Never having installed memory, the detailed instructions were also very helpful.

I have 2 dell computers. One is a dimension 2400. The other is a dimension 4500. I'd like to swap the processors because the 4500 has an AGP slot, but a slower processor. I'm trying to meet the minimum specs for a couple games.

The 2400 is a P4 @ 2.4 GHz. It is a 845GV.
The 4500 is a P4 @ 2.0 GHz. It is a 845E.

If I can swap them, then I assume I'd need to go into the bios and make some changes?

Thanks.
DaveWelcome to the forums Dave.

You should be able to swap the CPUs, but the cooling may not be sufficient.
What games are you wanting to be able to play?Calum,
Thanks for the quick reply. Command and Conquer Red Alert 3. I used www.systemrequirementslab.com to determine the specs.

By more cooling, WOULD I need a bigger CPU fan or case fans? I think I read that the 4500 has a variable speed fan based on temp. I guess I could just monitior the temp to start with? What about bios settings?Although C&C 3 is a strategy game it's fairly demanding on your hardware and especially the CPU, despite the 30fps cap.
You would be able to coax it ALONG on either of those CPUs, provided you have, say, 1GB or more of RAM and a 6800GS or equivalent graphics card, but to turn up the detail and RESOLUTION you'd need something better, preferably a dual core.

I'm looking at doing my first build. I'm looking at a budget machine capabile of moderate GAMING and future expandability. Please let me know your opinions of my components.

Case: Antec THREE Hundred Mid Tower $70
Power: Antec True Power 650W $70
MB: ASUS P45 P5QL Pro $90
CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 @ 3GHz $120
RAM: G.Skill 2GB (2 x 1GB) PC2 6400 $35
Video: ATI HD4670 512MB $80
OS: Vista Premium 64bit $80
Hard drive and Optical drives, whatever I find a good price on.

Thanks,
DAVE

I have a dell that has a Nvidia GEforce 5200 integrated card in it.

When the computer boots up, it will not GO into normal mode. After the windows logo
comes on, the screen goes blank, then the monitor shuts off,(the yellow light comes on).

Now if I hit F8 , I can get into safe mode and networking and all that just FINE.

Device manager states that the graphics card is working fine, and I even updated the driver
for it from Nvidia.

A few people suggested that the CMOS battery could be going, as the clock on the internet never
stays set, and the Bios wont let me change the boot order....and IM unable to boot from CD to do a
windows repair...


My ? is, can a bad battery affect the graphics to where I cant boot into normal mode?
Any help will be appreciated.

Thanks!If it runs in safe mode but not normal mode then you have the wrong driver installed...
Never TRUST Windows to locate the proper driver for any device.
Might as WELL replace that CMOS battery but i doubt it's the cause of this issue.Hello..ok, I put a new battery in, the time is correct now, but I am unable to still get into the bios. I hit F2 to get to setup and
it just takes me to the black screen where I can pick how I want to boot up.

I go to change bios order, I hit from CD, and it doesnt hold.

I was able to do a System file checker, amazingly, and that didnt seem to help any.

My system info on Assessories wont show me any info, thats corrupted
Cant get any info from RUN for msinfo or msinfo32, as windows says there is an error.

I unseated the graphics card, and put it in firmly, checked all connections, there is not another slot for me to put it in.
I also uninstalled old driver and downloaded an updated one, direct from NVidia

The heatsink is running fine, but the fan above doesnt start when I put the computer on, at some point, it does come on.

Is there any way the BIOS is fatally corrupted?

I can get onto Last know good configuration now, where I couldnt yesterday. This happened after I did all the tweaking above.

So, I cant see it being a graphics issue, but PERHAPS Im wrong.

So, again, why the heck can't i get into normal mode? LOL....

Just to let you know, the diagnostic lights on the back of the dell are in good order..apparently the computer thinks its
running fine.

thanks for any future help.

I BOUGHT a new additional 1Gb Ram for my laptop HP Compaq Nx9010 with pentium 4 2.86ghz having 256mb CARD. when i FIX new ram to the additional slot, it is not detectecting. please help me to SOLVE this matter.Is it compatible?
What type of RAM?
What BRAND?
Where did you buy it?

I have two gtx 280's, Is it possible for me to run a three 22inch monitors with the two CARDS? Or do I NEED 3 280's?

I am NEW to this MULTIPLE monitors stuff.

Thanks,
-jeff

"This had been an issue with a very tiny portion of old OEM computers. However, today this issue does not exist with any computer or case manufacturer."

I have a X-man gamers case, that I know the MAIN power button is bad.
It is a lot looser, flopy? than when new.....I need to check for tightness MAY be a bad ground, and SHUTDOWN is no problem because I have the power off feature built-in

My question; Is it harmful to use the smaller warm re-boot button, until I correct this?

Mfr:
Custom

Model:
Board: K8M800-8237
Bus Clock: 200 megahertz
BIOS: Phoenix Technologies, LTD 6.00 PG 01/18/2006

Type:
Desktop
Case X-man gamers Model number CPXMAN-01
CPU:
1.60 gigahertz AMD Mobile Sempron
128 kilobyte primary memory cache
128 kilobyte secondary memory cache

Installed RAM:
2048 Megabytes Installed Memory
Slot 'A0' has 1024 MB
Slot 'A1' has 1024 MB

OS:
Windows XP Professional Service Pack 2 (build 2600)

Disk Drives:
WDC WD800BB-00JKC0 [Hard drive] (80.03 GB) -- drive 0, s/n WD-WCAMD5028173, rev 05.01C05,
SMART Status: Healthy

_NEC DVD_RW ND-3550A [CD-ROM drive]

Lexmark USB Mass Storage USB Device [Hard drive] -- drive 1

Optional Info:
VIA Rhine II Fast Ethernet Adapter, Networking Dns SERVER,
Microsoft - Internet EXPLORER Version 7.0.5730.13 Build 75730

I am buildijng a computer and will put Win XP PRO. on it.

I remember when I did this last time and it gets to the screen that asks what File Format you want to use you pick NTFS.

What I would like someone to explaine to me is the one screen that TELLS you I think how BIG you Clusters will be or is it how MANY Clusters there will be.

I think it may be how many Clusters the Hard Drive can support and it gives you some NUMBERS in a Box.

And you can keep it or change it.

I never new what this was.

Those kind of choices come up when the installation gets to the part about partitioning your drive -- whether you want one partition, more than one partition, and how large you want to make each partition.

okay i got me a confusing problem with my monitor

i have 2 comps and when i use my main both the built in vid card and new one i bought wont read 90% of the time...keeps saying no messsage received or what ever... i just turned it on and i came on but if i was to turn it off it may not come back on....its really confusing cuz i thought it was my monitor at 1st but i SWITCHED the 2 around and it WORKED on my old 1 but my main 1 didn't so i thought it was my new vid card... switched ports to my built in videocard and it worked....
moved all STUFF back into place and plugged my main comp back together and used built in port and it didn't work.... thru all the routes it seems that i guess my ports and or video cards are messed up....the new videocard is around 4 months to 5 months old...don't know if that means anything...both comps use windows XP

sorry if this is a bit of a messed up question or a REPEATED one...
any help or input would be great..
You may have a short in your monitor cable. Have you tried another one?thanks the new cable is WORKING....gess i missed a simple thought yet again...blah just moved so haven't had internet for a few weeksAlways check the simple things first.
Glad you got it working

I have ahd this laptop for a year now and its been pretty good.But Im concerned about my lid wobbling. Once my laptop montior went blank but than it CAME back. I WANTED to knwo if there is anyway i can tighten the lid or fix this somehow. Thank you.I have a wobbly lid also, but I'm almost positive it's because there's a few screws missing. LOOK around the case for missing screws, if you FIND ONE, there's a good chance it's because of that. Otherwise, you may need to tighten some.Thanks for the advice.If I do need to tighten any screws,which ones would those be? I dont want to accidentally break anything.I have a wobbley lid too, but then again, I already knew I had some screws [emailprotected]@

I have a 4gb sd CARD and my pc won't READ it. Read's all others below that. I tried to download the patch from MIRCROSOFT it tells me the patch is older than what i ALREADY have and refuses to install... what do i do? and when i INSERT my 4gb card and insert others, it won't read them until i reboot.

HLPE

Im looking to build a computer while looking around for motherboards i came ACROSS these.

Asus p5e-vmdo at Scan £65-76 the same board at Ebuyer £92-94.

Asus p5e-vm hdmi ig35 Scan £92-94 the same board at Ebuyer £77-06.
The first board is more expensive at Ebuyer the second board is more expensive at Scan.

Could anyone advise me on which is he best board to go for, or can advise on any similar boards.
Thanks fr any dvise jhaddWhat's your budget/rest of components/use for computer?Im looking to spend £300 to £400 the computer is for family use and home video editing probably occasional gaming.
The PLANNED build is
CPU e5200 dual core £62-03p
http://www.ebuyer.com/code148715

Asus p5e-vmdo Scan £65-76 code ln24832
" " Ebuyer £92-35 code 150552
or
Asus p5e-vm hdmi i35 Scan £92-94p
" " Ebuyer £77-06p code142654

ocz 2gb kit ddr2-800mhz/pc6400 £28-83p
http://www.ebuyer.com/code116755

coolermaster elite330extreme power
with 460w psu £51=99p
http://www.ebuyer.com/code135101

Samsung spinpoint 500gb hdd £44-40p
http://www.scan.com/code ln226642

gigabyte 512mb hd4670 gpu £62-63p

http://www.scan.com/ codeln24472

Samsung dvd rw l/scribe £18-55p

Thanks for any help its the conflicting prices of the two motherboards THATS baffling me the cheaper board at Scan is the more expensive board at Ebuyer and visa versa.
Which in your opinion is the best board,
Do you need onboard graphics? Both of those boards have onboard graphics chips, the VMDO has the Intel X3100 and the HDMI has the X3500.
If you need onboard graphics and definitely want one of those, the HDMI model has the better chip.
If not, save a few pounds and go for something like this - http://www.ebuyer.com/product/148024 - or this - http://www.ebuyer.com/product/149274
Both better boards, other than the lack of onboard graphics.
Looks like a nice build there too.Which one of the boards do you recommend i will be downloading videos from my camcorder so i need firewire ive got the card in my old computer so i WOULD transfer it to this.
Do you think the build would be suitable for editing home video.
Thanks again jhaddAll of those boards are good . . . if you don't need onboard video I'd choose the Asus P5QL, the last one I linked to.
I think that build should be fine for editing home video.Thanks i shall ORDER the parts in the next couple of days.
jhaddYou're welcome, good luck and enjoy the new build.

I bought a xfx nforce 790i ultra SLI motherboard and 4 "CORSAIR xms3 - 2048 mb 1600mhz" memory stick. the system will RUN fine with 2 memory sticks in DIMM Slott 0 and DIMM Slot 1. Place all 4 memory sticks in the the computer and the system wont start. When I power up I get a series of long beebs with a Post Code C1. Not sure what needs to be done. So you have 8G installed in that machine ? ?
What OS are you RUNNING ? ?

You may NEED to consult your MBoard manual for how to set this up properly...

P.S. The first 3 reviews i read on this board all related to problems it had recognising RAM properly...

We have WIFI in the house. My computer is supposedly WIRELESS. So I bought a wireless adaptor and plugged it in to the USB port, but I can't get online. Shouldn't I be able to with this computer?
Yes.
Travel to Control Panel/Network and set up the card so it sees both your machine and the Network/What specifically should I do once I get there?

I did go into device manager, where I noticed that there is a question mark next to the USB port, which I clicked on, and it then SAID a driver was not installed. When I clicked install driver (or search for driver, not sure), after a few moments of searching it said the proper driver was already in use.

I have been able to use this computer to get online before, but I had a card that slipped into the body of the computer itself, and then I plugged the cable that goes to the router into the card. But my housemates and I DECIDED to go wireless, so I needed an adaptor, and bought the item in this auction, which said it would get me online:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=310101254355&ssPageName=STRK:MEWN:IT&ih=021
But I have not been able to get on.
Did it come with a Driver CD ? ?
It could also be DOA.
Any lights on it to show it is on ?

Very hard to tell from your link since there are many items on that page.It did not come with a CD.

And the item for sale in that auction is the wireless adaptor. Check the title and the picture in the auction itself, not the ADS at the top.
Adaptor does have a light on some of the time when I plug it in.
It more than likely needs drivers installed...travel to the manuf. site and check out the SUPPORT sectionQuote from: patio on November 25, 2008, 02:49:17 PM

It more than likely needs drivers installed...travel to the manuf. site and check out the Support section

Hello everyone. This is my first post here on the forums. I hope this is in the correct forum, if not I'm sorry. I am 19 years old living by myself and going to school. I finally saved up the money to buy myself a NICE new laptop; It's a Dell Studio 17. I read the reviews on it and they were all pretty good. I CUSTOMIZED the computer, and below is the hardware. Basically has anyone else bought a Dell Studio 17 laptop? If so, how do you like it? Is the hardware I customized it with below half decent? I spent 1,300 dollars on it. It has more features then I listed below(some other bells and whistles) but I only listed the hardware because that's all I really care about. Any feedback would be appreciated. Thanks!

Studio 1735, Intel Core 2 Duo T8100, 2.1GHz, 800Mhz, 3M L2 Cache

4GB, DDR2, 2 Dimm

Hi Resolution, glossy widescreen 17.0in LCD (1440x900) w/ 2.0M pixel Camera

Intel Graphics Media Accelerate

320G 5400RPM SATA Hard Drive

Microsoft Windows Vista SP1 Home Premium Edition, English

8X Slot Load CD / DVD Burner (Dual Layer DVD+/-R Drive)

Integrated Sound Blaster Audigy Advanced HD Software Edition

Dell Wireless 1510 802.11n Half Mini Card

Integrated 2.0M Pixel Webcam

McAfee SecurityCenter 15-month

85 WHR 9-cell Lithium Ion Primary Battery

You have chosen a Windows Vista Premium System

Intel Core 2 Duo Processor

sorry, I'm still learning computers. But I think that 4 GIGS of memory might be a little more than you need.
And you might experience some slowdowns if you don't have a high end video card to go with Vista. to fix this follow these instructions:
http://www.howtogeek.com/howto/windows-vista/disable-aero-on-windows-vista/Why would I have slowdowns? Because my Memory is too high?that seems like a rip off. $1300 and you don't even have a good graphics card
Here's some high end laptops for that price and there a lot faster
http://www.alienware.com/products/notebook-computers.aspx


I don't believe you'll have a slow down with that RAM, because you have a descent processor.
More RAM is always better. But over 4GB doesn't really make much difference. So you made a good choice there.

If you're only using the laptop for stuff like Word, surfing the web ect then you'll be fine with that laptop. Alienwares are mainly for games, but if you laptop can run a high end game then it will be great at everything else Quote from: Jesse88 on November 22, 2008, 09:45:24 AM

320G 5400RPM SATA Hard Drive

Alienwares are mainly for games, but if you laptop can run a high end game then it will be great at everything else

Alienwares are mainly for games

(Intel was never too hot in graphics cards, they're a processor company!)

Hi,
Further on with my last thread, have got the replacement hard drive and put it into the computer ( hd103uj ) This replacement is acting very different to the original in that when i put the vista oem 64 BIT home premium disc in, it goes to the point where it asks for the driver to be installed, i BROWSE and there is nothing, cannot format it or anything, so i put the old one back in with the new one, booted up, went into my computer, saw that a message dvd rw drive ( d: ) 0 bytes free of 3.53 gb ( new hard drive by the way is a 1tb hd ) If i right click on this there is a list where one of them is format. QUESTION, if i click on format will this format the new disc and everything is well, however I saw SOMEWHERE that a troubleshoot query, there was something similar about formatting a hard drive where it says 0 bytes free of 3.5 gb, and its like looking for a needle in a haystack. I do not WANT to do anything rash so hence the new post. Hope this makes sense and can anyone help. Thanks in advance. Its alright folks have done it.It was done automatically by computer, all i had to do was click on new, computer did the rest, that plus put the sata cable in the slot where the old one was. So am up and running again.

Does anyone around here experience problems erasing DVD+RW disks? My CDburnerXP tells me that my DVD+RW disk is "not rewriteable" when I try to ERASE it. I've only burned to the DVD+RW disk 1 time.

......and someone told me that DVD+RW disks are actually "write only" disks because of a technicality with the makers, or something else.

Is this the same drive you were looking for a firmware flash for ? ?
I think it's time for a new drive...
Dual-layer DVD burners are down to less than 40 bucks shipped from newegg if you are in the States...Yes it is the same drive...

Although I agree that I need a new drive, I would still like to know if DVD+RW disks are erasable, with respect to my initial post. A tech. from another forum told me that because of some technicality in DVD+RWs, they cannot be erased and that is why CDburnerXP will not erase my DVD+RW disks.

The tech. also told me that the reason my RW drive will not read some DVDs, even whe they are bran new, is becasue of a possible collaboration between movie makers and the DVD writer companies, to make it more difficult to copy original disks.
DVD+RW is Philips and DVD-RW is Sony. Both +RW and -RW are eraseable and Re-Writeable.
Here is a quote from a real good discussion on the subject ..

Quoted from Dave Taylor with help from Robert LeBlanc..
"Well, there are REALLY only two "families" of DVD at the moment (unless you want to count the red laser vs. blue laser stuff that's starting to come on to the market at the high end), and one "outcast". You've got the "minus" ("-") formats (DVD-R, DVD-RW) and the "plus" ("+") formats (DVD+R, DVD+RW), then there's the older DVD-RAM format that's harder to find these days. All of these are for data, of course -- all but the newest DVD video players will choke on those, in the same way early CD players choked on CD-R discs.

A DVD-R is a write-once format: once you've burned the data onto that DVD platter, the disk is forever frozen with that information. Add the "W" to that, and you'll find that DVD-RW can be erased or rewritten up to a thousand times. Seems kinda weird, but if you can do so, DVD-RW obviously has significant advantages over DVD-R. DVD-RAM was even more flexible, however, since it let you erase and rewrite sections of an existing DVD, something that you cannot do with DVD-RW.

Moving to the plus side is where things get a bit confusing, because DVD+RW came before DVD+R. The plus formats have the same data storage capacity as the minus formats (4.7GB), but DVD+RW offers faster writing, better internal linking (a technical obscurity you don't have to worry about), and support for drag-and-drop desktop files, which makes it easy to compose the contents of a disk. DVD+R is a write-once format intended to be more compatible with more DVD players, though at this point it seems to be about even with DVD-R, which remains the most compatible computer-burned DVD format.

In your case, since your drive is a DVD-RW, you're effectively limited to DVD-R and DVD-RW format discs. Stay away from any of the "plus" formats, as those won't work with your drive (and being newer, they cost more anyway). As to whether you want to USE DVD-R or DVD-RW, that depends on what you want to use them for. DVD-R is a write-once format, just like CD-R, and you can't erase the data once it's written. DVD-RW is rewritable, so you can use it somewhat like a 4.7GB floppy disc, for all intents and purposes. In general, I suggest that you use DVD-R for archival purposes -- stuff that isn't going to change, and DVD-RW for more fluid data. DVD-RW discs are more expensive than DVD-R discs, so that may also influence your decision.

How do you confirm what format your drive works with? One way, if you're on a Mac, is to use the System Profiler application. You'll find this useful utility in Applications -> Utilities. Launch it, then click on the "ATA" item on the list. If you have an internal DVD burner, you'll SEE something like what I get: "PIONEER DVD-RW DVD-106D". If it's an external DVD drive, you might find it in SCSI, USB or FireWire, depending on how you hook it up.

As far as your second question, your data-burning application definitely has to be aware of the DVD format you want to use (i.e. DVD-R or DVD-RW in your case). For Windows, you can use GEAR for burning CDs, but you'd need to upgrade to GEAR Professional Edition to be able to burn both CDs and DVDs. Toast Titanium does burn DVD-R and DVD-RW so you should be set in that DEPARTMENT".

BTW, Sorry for the huge post but it seemed relevant. If this is a "No No" please let me know..thanks, much

my son has gone and deleted files and family photo,s from of our computer ..can anyone please help ..is there AWAY they can be found and restored on my pc ? is there some kind of hack ? ..dave we are not allowed to mention any hacking types if we do now any stated in the fourm rules. There are recovery programs that you can GET cant recommened any but you can google for them shearch for like recovery programs for what ever version of operating system linux windows then try it. Someone will help aid you more soon.did you check the recycle bin yet any files you delete will automatically GO into the recycle bin so that if you want to you can restore those files try that first, mite still even be there.Recuva: http://www.recuva.com/update/?v=1.11.257&l=1033Thanks all have got some pic,s back ..but there are files i cannot open ? any ideas What did you do to recover pictures?i used this program "C:\Program Files\EASEUS\Photo Recovery 2.1.1 Demo\PR.exe"

Good call Broni, have you TRIED what he had suggested?Thanks for posting back
I've heard about that program...Here's another sites that has some cool tools for recovery. Their PROFESSIONAL software is expensive, but they also have some inexpensive recovery software for home users.

http://www.digitalintelligence.com/software/stepanet.php

http://www.computercop.com/

I want to build a new PC for christmas for like 450$ (Not including Monitor, Keyboard, and Mouse) and I was wondering if you guys could help me. I play World of Warcraft and I want the computer to be able to run the game pretty well without having to lower the graphics (or even being able to play with higher graphics on it). I need Vista on this PC too. I dont mind if any of the pieces are refurbished EITHER. I know a decent about about PCs because I took a half a year course about it so I should know how to put one together. I just need to get the list to my dad soon so he can order the pieces before christmas. All your help will be appreciated. This will just be my first computer im building so I dont wanna mess it up . Well any help I get is greatly appreciated. With a decent case , power supply,OS [Vista] motherboard, ram ect, $450. ISNT going to cut it. Do not buy 2nd hand!!! Go to newegg.com to get a idea on what is out thereCant you give me something? lol... I mean I can UPGRADE it more after Christmas when I get more money but can I get something I can atleast start out with and it can be okay? Well with a $450 budget, you'll probably find yourself UPGRADING your parts again pretty soon, which will cost you more in the LONG run. But if you are only planning on playing games like WoW and other mmorpgs then I can try to peice one together for you. It's always nice to look for parts that will over you some type of upgrade path.

I would also advise you to STAY AWAY from ebay computers, they skimp on motherboards and psu's quite often.

Edit: I just tried building one for $450 and failed miserably. $450 gives a $350 budget when you take out the $100 vista is going to cost. With a motherboard and processor your adding at least 160 which gets you down to about 190. A decent graphics card will run you about $100 (that's about the price of an 88gt from what I can see) Then you have $90 for ram, a hard drive, a case, and a PSU.

Is there any way you could take some parts from an old computer? Or just begin your upgrade path for christmas? Maybe I'm coming at this wrong and should look for cheaper parts but I honestly can't seem to get one together. You could put in a card like an 8600gt but those are like $40 less and an 88gt and endlessly weaker. I just don't want you to have to end up needing an upgrade every month or so to keep up with the times. I always found it better to buy a decent computer the first time instead of having to upgrade continually, saves you time and money.Well im just going to play WoW and probably surf things like myspace and youtube but thats about it. If the specs you give me are over 450$ by some it would probably be okay but definately not over 550$. If you could piece one together for that though I would really really appreciate it though. I'll look around for a build when I have a little more time. The best thing I can suggest is to search around newegg for all of your parts they generally have the best deals/pricing.Okay thanks and I will

I suppposedly BOUGHT a "New" outdated asus mobo - when I RECIEVED it, it just CAME in a box with no userguide or support disks of any kind... Can I still boot my comp without any of this UTILITY stuff??
..... This newborn beginner apreciates any advice..Yes: Go to asus site and get the specs for your board ram ECT. After you build the unit you will be able to enter the bios, load your operating system & drivers.Download the drivers from the asus site,onboard sound, ect

Hi, all. I'm in the process of trying to pick components to build a computer from, and I think I have it all tied together. However, while I've worked with computers a lot, I've never started from scratch, so I'd appreciate another set of eyes. I'd like the budget to be around $600, and I was using NewEgg for pricing. Gaming, internet, and I'd like to do some home renovation modeling once I get the software (let's call it light CAD for kicks).

Case: Apevia X-Telestar-JR (ATX mid-tower) (I keep BOUNCING on this, but I like how the Apevia's look)
Motherboard: ASUS M3A78
Processor: AMD Athlon 64 X2 6000+ dual core
Power: RAIDmax hybrid 2 RX-630SS
Memory: Kingston 240 pin DDR2 800 (somewhere between 2-4 GB; I can always increase this)
Video: Visiontek Radeon HD 3870 PCI express
Sound: probably some creativelabs card
HD: Seagate Barracuda SATA 3.0 GB/s (I was thinking 80 GB as the boot drive, then maybe add a 250 GB as a second drive)
NIC: do I need one anymore? Motherboard looked like it had it included...

I'll keep my 18" LCD for now, and pick up some speakers somewhere. I feel pretty good about the processor/mboard and the case. Not sure if the power is oversized, and the video card is a crapshoot. I already have a copy of Vista 64bit home premium that I will install (new). If I'm missing anything or have made some serious mis-calculations, I'd appreciate some FEEDBACK. I'm sure I'll be checking in when it comes time to power up too.... Thanks in advance for the help!!

Well - I am not the guru on this but - just a few observations.

For video I'd think it best to get an AGP suitable card to gain most benefit for rendering ... as against just a PCI. A high end Radeon would be good. (this assumes you'll have a AGP on that mobo).

The PSU power rating cannot really be too high - don't worry on that score. More is better when it comes to power handling - nothing is ''wasted''!

IMO make the system drive plenty large - so lots of free space - 80Gb should do but more is even better IMO - 100Gb plus I'd choose. Second drive yeah - sounds OK.

Sound ..... creative usually good - a reasonable soundblaster.

Don't know that mobo - so can't comment.

Don't know the tower but - big is good - more space and chance to add extra fans - always useful.AGP is outdated. PCI express is now the way to go. That setup should PERFORM ok, but will not be good for some of the newer games. You will need a much better video card for that. (not sure what type of games you play. ) I would also just go with 1 large hard drive for starters. You can always add one later if needed.

The Mother board you have listed has on board sound. I would try it before buying a separate audio card. On board sound used to be junk, but that has changed. Many are quite good. He has selected a PCI-e card already...and the MBoard supports it.... Quote from: hejlik on November 18, 2008, 02:28:01 AM

AGP is outdated. PCI express is now the way to go. That setup should perform ok, but will not be good for some of the newer games. You will need a much better video card for that. (not sure what type of games you play. ) I would also just go with 1 large hard drive for starters. You can always add one later if needed.

The Mother board you have listed has on board sound. I would try it before buying a separate audio card. On board sound used to be junk, but that has changed. Many are quite good.

NIC: do I need one anymore? Motherboard looked like it had it included...[/color]

I have a MOTHERBOARD that has a Socket AM2+ and the CPUS it supports are.

AMD PHENOM / ATHLON 64 X2 DUAL CORE / ATHLON 64 / SEMPRON

What is the Pin NUMBER 780

I KNOW the Pentiames are 775Hi,
referring to the motherboards you have mention I think the 780 is not the socket pins,
but it is the CHIPSET version.

Hope I am not misleading youBoth the AM2 and the AM2+ are a 940 pin array.

As you can tell by my name I am a computer noob. I just got a HP Pavilion Elite A6560T. It has 3 GBs DDR2 Ram,INTEL Quad Core Q9300 2.5ghz. I want to know if a Radeon HD 4850 X2 2GB will work on my computer. It said something about th motherboard COMPATIBILITY. Any help WOULD be great.DLoad and install Everest Home and have it run a scan.
Save the file as a .txt file and post the computer summary portion here and we'll have a looksee...

I did use the eMachine web site and updated from there with the ATI Radeon Xpress 200 series driver.Well, in that case, it looks like on-board video is SHOT. You may need to buy real video card.Thanks, any suggestions?

Is this something I can pick up at Micro Center and do you about how much the card costs?

If you can please list a specific card that I should look for. Is this easy or hard to replace?

Thanks again,I don't know what Micro Center is, but if it's some store where computers are sold, video cards will be there, too.
Almost any video card will do. You may ask sale PERSON for recommendation. Make sure, it has at least 256MB of RAM.
It should be no more than $50.
It's easy to install after OPENING computer case.
Post back, when you get card. We'll want to know what type of card it is, and we'll tell you what to do.Thanks, I will go buy a card tomorrow. I'm sorry I thought Micro Center was national chain. No problem You are LUCKY to have a Micro Center near you...
Great pricing; service and a better than average Return Policy ...one of the better brick and mortar stores out there.Installed new card and now the monitor works fine. Thanks for the help.
The card I used is Verto 8400 GS 512MB DDR2 PCI Graphics Card
COST was about $54.00

Thanks again Beautiful
Thanks for posting back.

I'm sure this is software related, but don't know exactly where to place this post.

Problem is that my CD drawer won't open! I keep pushing the button - even while rebooting - and only occasionally does it work (during a reboot). Going to My Computer and trying it with the EJECT command also doesn't work.

This happens when no programs referencing the CD are running.

I am running XP sp3.

Any ideas?You can open the tray by using a paper clip , push the open END of the clip into small hole in front of the drawerDo you have access to a spare CD drive to throw in?Try:

When the CD, CDRW, will not open, turn the computer on and try the following:

1. Double-click My Computer, right-click the stuck CD, CDRW, or DVD drive, and then click Eject.
2. If you have a multimedia keyboard, press the CD Eject key on the keyboard. The Eject key is usually placed by the volume knob and is marked by a triangle pointing up with a line underneath it.
3. If the drive door button is a long clear plastic bar, press firmly on the right side of bar.
4. If the drive door button is part of a cosmetic door on the front cover, open the cosmetic door or SLIDE the door down and press the eject button on the faceplate of the drive.

If the door still won't open, do the following:

A. Close all programs, and shut down the computer.
B. Unplug the power cord and press the POWER button. This releases stored electricity.
C. Locate the manual RELEASE hole in the CD Writer faceplate. This is a small hole under the door that is a little bigger than the diameter of a paper clip.
D. Insert a straightened paperclip into the manual release hole and apply pressure until the drawer opens.
E. Remove the paper clip and gently pull out the drawer until the disc is accessible.
F. Remove the CD, plug the power cord in, and turn on the computer.Syke, everything you've suggested has already been tried....Thanks guys, I haven't tried the paperclip option.

This was the same problem I had with this PC before I decided to reformat and reinstall the OS. That wasn't the reason I did that, but I FIGURED this problem would go away once I did.

I'll work on the paperclip method.


Even though the paper clip will work ,you will have to replace the driveindeed- sounds like there is something wrong with the button or something along those lines.Yes, sounds like a new drive is in order.

Hard Drive Size Times Cluster Size will give me the Numer of Clusters on that Drive or will it give me how Big the Clusters will be??HD size times cluster size won't give how big the clusters are, because you already would have to know that and use it in the equation, I guess...

Wouldn't HD divided by cluster size be amount of clusters?Say you are going to Format another Hard Dive by useing Windows.

What I meen is you go into Controle Panle and RIGHT Click on the other Hard Drive you want to Format.

You have a Dropdown List for Alocation Size that would be the Size of your Clusters.
This is what I don't get what if say you picked something from the list like 512 Bytes and you are going to Format it as FAT 32 and the Hard Drive is say 800 GB

Is it not going to OVERRIDE what you just put in fromn the list and make the Clusters the Size they should be???

If so why give us the Dropdown List to pick from???XP won't let you format FAT32 drives larger then a certain size- not sure what it is, I believe it's around 32GB or thereabouts.


hard disk size DIVIDED by cluster size will give you the number of clusters. The number of clusters cannot exceed a certain value (32767, I believe).

So as long as your number of clusters don't exceed that value, you should be able to use any cluster size.

In any case, it doesn't matter- the smallest possible cluster size is the only size that should be used.Quote from: BC_Programmer on October 31, 2008, 06:10:21 PM

hard disk size DIVIDED by cluster size will give you the number of clusters. The number of clusters cannot exceed a certain value (32767, I believe).

Now I know Hard Drive Size 32 GB Divided by 16 kB = 2,000,000 Clusters.
So this telles me that I will have 2,000,000 Clusters on my Hard Drive by I don't get how this tells me OK you can make every Cluster 512 or OK you can make every Cluster 1 kB and so on.

PS......I know I can just pick make Cluster Size as Defalt but I just wanted to know.

hello guys.I have an Eee PC series laptop.I was made to reformat it because the partition is not enough for me to use it. the partition are (3G c: and 15G d:).but i dont LIKE the partition done by the supplier.So i reformat it and move the OS to D drive with the higher partition. After im done with it, i notice that the performance of the my laptop is no longer the same with the previous performance. I mean my laptop seems to freeze everytime i access files or access website.Everytime i open an application, it freezes up.

Why is that so?could anybody help me please.im so worried about my laptop.

specification:
Processor Intel Celeron (M)
900MHz
1G RAM

Is there something wrong with processor in that case?Not sure why the performance has changed. I'd set it up the way the manufacturer had it ( I know you don't like it ) and see if it changes back to the way it was.

Alan <>< Also did you remember to reinstall the MBoard drivers ? ?You might want to do another format. This time delete both partitions and create one big C drive. I didn't know those Eee PCs came with Cd drives now.Thanks for the reply guys.

Ok, to patio, i made to install the MOTHERBOARD and all needed programs and its accessories. To JJ3000, i couldn't delete all partition.It states there that there are two SSD attached into my pc.One is 4G in capacity and other is 16G in capacity. So, when i am going to delete the partition, I can either use the 4G or 16G.Does it affect the performance of my pc?WELL if i were you, i would use the four gig drive for the operating system and the sixteen gig drive for storage. Use the four gig drive just for operating system files and the sixteen for everything else. The Eee PCs come with two HARDDRIVES, both solid state, one 5GB one 15 GB.

The original plan would have been this: the 5GB is the C: drive, where the OS is installed, while the 15 GB is free for you to install other things.

There is actually no need to partition, because the OS is installed on the 5 GB drive. so i have no idea why did you partition the harddrives,Thanks. But when i tried formatting it, it turns out that the software that is being installed will get an EXTRA space in the system that is why i wanted to transfer the OS from the 5G to the 15G due to the risk that sometimes it will prompt me that disk is low. Why is that so?Maybe because the machine is designed to run Linux which is nowhere near as bloated as an MS operating system...

I have TRIED to reinstall a simulator addon from FSD International several TIMES, each attempt resulting in an error code (69) which asked me to reinstall a license code, when presumably I should be able to activate the download.

The final attempt resulted in error code 7, which says that I have activated the download too many times.

FSD International have said that I tried to activate on SIXTEEN different computers (completely wrong) and have given me a log which I attach:

Adrian,

Our License server records show that you are submitting multiple computers
simultaneously for activation against this SOFTWARE License :

Date/Time Computer ID
6/28/2008 9:36:41 AM 129308800 OK
11/26/2008 1:09:37 PM 1523437 OK
11/26/2008 1:10:18 PM 1523437 OK
11/26/2008 1:16:33 PM 1523437 OK
11/26/2008 1:39:00 PM 131405593 DECL

Our License server records show that the most recent of these was declined
in view of the volume of activation demands being submitted. If you are
having some sort of difficulty installing this software please let us know
what that is. In the meantime, please note that the terms & conditions of
the License which do not provide for the simultaneous use of this software
on multiple computers.

You can see that their log gives two different computer IDs for my PC

Can anyone tell me how my computer ID can CHANGE in the space of ...erm...25 minutes without any changes being made by me? Can anyone tell me where the computer ID is to be found?

I could, of course repurchase the Addon but I would much rather sort this out.The only way this would HAPPEN is if there are more than one OS installed on that machine and/or you did a re-install...

I have a 42" LG HD LCDTV. I just noticed the other DAY that there was something that looked like a dead PIXEL on the screen, but when I GOT up close, it was actually a little scratch on the TV. Normally, I wouldn't care THAT much, but this scratch is actually adversely affecting the TV. Is there anything TOPICAL that can fix this or am I screwed?Can't fix a scratch, sorry.http://www.partstore.com/Search/Model/LG+Electronics+Incorporated/LG+Electronics%2fZenith.aspx

Enter your model and see what the screen costs.

Hi All,

I have a Simpletech drive that I use for work. I formatted it in ex Fat thinking I could use it on a MAC as well as PC. I used my laptop with Vista while doing all this. It won't read on MAC but thats no really my problem now. At home I have an XP machine and another Vista machine. This drive will only read on my laptop. On the other machines it shows the drive being there but says that it needs to be formatted?? What??? The drive cannot be corrupt if it works, reads and writes perfectly off my laptop. Also it automatically instals the drivers. On the other Vista PC it shows that the drivers are installed. Why is it not working on other pc's? I really want to remove files off this drive and can't do anything.

Any one have any thoughts?

ToddI'm not familiar with a file system called "ex fat".Extended file allocation table (exFAT) is a new file system that is better adapted to the growing needs of mobile personal storage. The exFAT file system not only handles large files, such as those used for media storage, it enables SEAMLESS interoperability between desktop PCs and DEVICES such as portable media devices so that files can easily be copied between desktop and device. In addition, exFAT can be adopted with minimal effort.

This was the only FAT format that was available to format the HD in. New to me as well. I only did it because I thought that a MAC could read it. But I don't know why my laptopn reades and writes to it FINE but my other computers won't. I can see that maybe the XP OS wouldn't but not another Vista.Alright- Did a little diggin for YA...

XP can only read FAT, FAT32, and NTFS. (well, we all know that, don't we?)

Vista With no Service Pack cannot read ex FAT either. are both your vista computers running SP1, or just the one used to format?


I suggest simply backing up the drive and formatting with NTFS.

I found that connector you were looking for
Cindy, is this the thing you were looking for?
www.liangdianup.com/computeraccessories_1.htm
It's on the list of computer accessories and parts. They have the DVI VIDEO thing to convert that jap monitor to work with your other computer. Just about any other kind of wire adaptor, usb connectors, monitor extension wires, ps2 extention wires, and all kinds of female and male swap connectors and things that I think would help your shop. If that above link don't work then goto www.lducompany.com and click on computer accessories. Let me know if that is what you need and give me your email address again.
Quote from: hdmyg8586 on November 18, 2008, 10:31:06 PM

I found that connector you were looking for
Cindy, is this the thing you were looking for?
www.liangdianup.com/computeraccessories_1.htm
It's on the list of computer accessories and parts. They have the DVI video thing to convert that jap monitor to work with your other computer. Just about any other kind of wire adaptor, usb connectors, monitor extension wires, ps2 extention wires, and all kinds of female and male swap connectors and things that I think would help your shop. If that above link don't work then goto www.lducompany.com and click on computer accessories. Let me know if that is what you need and give me your email address again.

Hi there,

I have a 32GB Hisun Flash Drive.
The problem that am facing is'i can easily load data into the drive. But if i want to open it from another PC it shows all folders became empty.All media files copied from this drive are not executing.'
Please help me in this issue.I found that connector you were looking for
Cindy, is this the THING you were looking for?
www.liangdianup.com/computeraccessories_1.htm
It's on the list of computer accessories and parts. They have the DVI VIDEO thing to convert that jap monitor to work with your other computer. Just about any other kind of wire ADAPTOR, usb CONNECTORS, monitor extension wires, ps2 extention wires, and all kinds of female and male swap connectors and things that I think WOULD help your shop. If that above link don't work then goto www.lducompany.com and click on computer accessories. Let me know if that is what you need and give me your email address again.

Hopefully a quick fix - my graphics card cooling fan STARTED acting up, so I decided to get a new one. I put the new one in, and it seemed not to work. So, I put the old card back in (there was no problem with the graphics, just the fan seemed to be going out) and it didn't work. The fan still turned on, but no signal went to the monitor. I figured I did something to the MOTHERBOARD, so I bought a new one, and moved all the hardware to a new tower. The card still has the same result - the fan turns on, but no signal to the monitor. I guess my question from this scenario in two parts is - can you fry a graphics card and still have the fan TURN on, and without the ability to switch between computers to assess this, how do you know if the card is fried?

Suggestions?

Here are some specs:

Card - XFX PVT84JUDD3 GeForce 8600GT XXX 256MB 128-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 SLI Supported Video Card

Mobo (new) - DFI LANPARTY DK P35-T2RS LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX Intel Motherboard
Mobo (old) - ECS NF650iSLIT-A (V1.0) LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 650i SLI ATX Intel Motherboard

Thanks! Is the power lead long enough to reach a fan header on the MBoard ? ?
I had to do this once and i just spliced on a lead from a BROKEN fan to get it to reach.
You need to CONSULT the MBoard manual to find which header is on all the time...Yes you can have a inoperative graphics card with the fan still spinning. In fact, you can also have the converse- a operating card with a non-functional fan. Chances are that it won't be operating for long without a fan, depending on age.

The fact is- the fan is merely powered by electricity. that electricity still flows to the fan even in the case the graphics processor isn't working.


As for actually being sure it's a dead card- especially considering you have no way to test it in another machine- difficult, really- do you get any beep codes from the computer? Have you tried a minimal config? (no drives- just mobo with video card and a keyboard).

One way would be acquire an older card- for example- a Rage pro, or something along those lines. (IE- one without a fan) and see if it posts. Also, try another bus type of card if you can. (PCI as opposed to AGP or PCI-E).


One last thing to consider- does the new (or old) board have built-in graphics?

Quote from: JJ 3000 on November 24, 2008, 11:02:04 PM

Oh man! You are having a really hard time with your computer. Lets try this:

Boot to the windows CD and press R to load the recovery console. It will ask you which installation you want to repair. If there is only one type 1 and press enter. Then it will ask for a passsword. If there is no pasword just press enter. At this point you should see this prompt: C: \Windows>
We want to get to root directory here so type in CD\
Now you should just see a standard C prompt. Here type this:
Code: [Select]copy d:\i386\ntldrthen type
Code: [Select]copy d:\i386\ntdetect.com That code assumes that your CD drive is D if it is another letter substitute the CD drive's letter.
I hope this helps. If it doesn't, let us know.

A: 3 1/2 Floppy
C: Local Disk/40Gb HD
D: CD-R Drive
E: Disk2_VOL1/80Gb HD
F: DVD-R Drive
G: WD My Book Essential, 250Gb External USB HD

you would need to perform a clean install- you would lose all program settings via that method. On the other hand, it should boot properly.

You will also need to acquire the drivers for your motherboard,graphics... and most importantly, your network interface card.

UPDATE: I don't know what it going on. There is something wrong; I am getting a lot of errors associated with the installation process.
1) Setup was unable to verify drive C:. Your computer may not have enough memory to examine the drives, or your windows XP CD may contain some corrupted files. I clicked ENTER to continue with the installation.
2) Setup cannot copy the file: driver.cab
3) Setup cannot copy the file: netsetup.exe
4) Setup cannot copy the file: layout.inf
5) Setup cannot copy the file: ntfs.sys
6) Setup cannot copy the file: ntprint.inf
And all of this with and authentic, store-bought copy of XP Pro.


I can't figure out why the computer can't access them for set up.

Try this, set your operating system hard drive as master and plug it into the primary IDE controller without a slave. Set your CD drive as master and connect it to the secondary IDE controller witout a slave. Now you should just have one hard drive and one CD drive connected to your motherboard. Can you boot into windows now? Can you do a repair now?

Windows XP

Ethernet connection on my sister's PC does not work, she SAYS it blew off, can it be REPLACED? If so, can you HELP me with replacing it? Is there a card to be added or cables to attach? I'm in the dark. If the pc is a DESK top? not knowing the extent of damage you can add a ethernet card into a pci slot if you have a empty one.what do you mean by "it blew off" was there an explosion? a strong gust of wind?THANKS for your help!

As far as "blew up" I don't know what she means. She just told me "I blew it off." I assumed she meant it didn't work for some reason.

Anyway, if I can add an Ethernet card to a PCI slot, I'll just to that. For that I imagine I just need to add the card plus drivers, right? so- have you seen it? is it damaged physically?

I switched my old fried motherboard for a new one.. The connections are all made.. My ignorant *CENSORED* expected to just plug & play.. But that was not the case..the Good part is I have an image on my monitor but it states (4) things.. My date/ time is wrong,, the CMOS is not set,,,press F1 to set,,,,pressF2 to set defaults and continue.....my lazy *censored* pressed F2 And all I got is a black screen with a blinking "UNDERSCORE cursor"...what do I do???re-boot, press F1 and do you bios SETUPS...especially date/time

ok so here are 2 good deals
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817814002&Tpk=17-814-002
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817814013

but people are telling me not to get these

and here is another one
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371009

what i WILL BE running
2 4870s (some point in the future) 1 for now
overclocked q6600
2 ccfls
6+ fans
2 hard drives
dvd- rom combo drive dvd+\-rw
1 pci sound card

would a 750 watt crosair be enough for all this? some people are saying YES others no
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139006&Tpk=17-139-006

or this
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817256011

everyone i ask is telling me different things! HEELLLPPP


The Tagans are good, as is the Antec.
A 750W Corsair may not run that setup - with all that EXTRA stuff, I'd say at least a 900W unit would be best.The queries on all this new equipment would have been well served all in one Topic instead of scattered about in different Forums...
Just a thought.people told me that a 750 watt crosair would work and the total power outdraw would be 600 wattsYou can take the advice given here or listen to the people...i did a power supply calculatar and it said a total of 732 watts but they said that the crosair has a really high amperage so it wont matter?What PSU calculator was used for this ? ?
There are a few of them.some one suggested i get a gtx 260 216 and even though i dont have an sli motherboard i was READING about it and this card is sounding realllllllyyyy good which means that i wouldnt NEED a bigger psu and a crosiar 750 watt would work! anyways the psu calculator was
http://extreme.outervision.com/psucalculatorlite.jspok they just told me that
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371012&Tpk=17-371-012%3Cbr/%3E$129.99
is $130 on cyber monday so ill get that thenI give up.

I'm replacing the MOBO and CPU in a EMachines PC with:

ASUS M3A78-CM Micro ATX MB and a AMD Athlon 64 X2 5000+ Brisbane 2.6 Ghz dual core processor and 2x1GB DDR2 SDRAM RAM Modules.

I have a Seagate 160GB HDD that was provided by EMachines. Is there any problem using the HDD since it was a OEM from Emachines if I do a clean boot from XP.

My XP disk does not CONTAIN SP2. What problems can I expect to run into?

I will be installing a new Thermaltake 430W PSU.



you should be okay but I would update windows to sp2 when you can get online. The hard drive you can put in any computer it will work so you should be okay Just to clarify the drive will NOT boot properly in the new machine without doing a Repair Install of XP.
A clean install provided you have an XP CD should be no problem at all...for registration use the #'s from the XP CD.
SP2 and SP3 are available for download at MS's site...install at least SP2 to start with.
Make sure to install your MBoard drivers first and drivers for any other hardware on the machine.I downloaded to CD SP2. Do I need a registration # for the SP2 I downloaded? I have a authentic XP CD with a key code. Is the key code what you speak of when you mention registration #? If I do a Repair install will that retain then data on the HDD?When you say the drivers for other hardware on the machine do you mean peripherals? Will I need a driver for the HDD or CD drive?Repair Install of XP

This is if you want to retain your data on that drive.

Make sure to read the instructions fully paying special attention to the Warnings...
Done properly all your data and programs will be retained.
Done improperly your data and apps will be gone but you will wind up with a clean install of XP.

I also suggest printing out a copy for reference

The CD key is all you will need to register with MS.
Service packs do not need registration.

As far as drivers here's a list of things that need drivers to run:
MBoard
Video chip or card
Sound chip or card
Network chip or card
Printers

Basically any device that runs off the computer uses drivers.
Hard drives do not need drivers unless they are SATA drives...these are installed very early on in the XP install.

CD/DVD drives do not require drivers.

You may want to get some assistance from a friend who has experience building PC's for this project if it's your first time...this can save alot of grief.

GOOD Luck and keep us posted.

P.S.
The other OPTION you have would be to hook your hard drive up to a working machine as a slave drive to copy/burn your important data...
Instructions Here

You can then just install the components and do a Clean Install of XP.OK, I tried to do the repair of XP. It chekced the disk, copied files,initialized win xp configuration, rebooted...................nothing. No screen, just sits there with a blank screen, HDD not working. I shouldn't have to change the boot priority back to the HDD, should I?

If I do a clean boot will it ASK for disks from the previous version? My previous version was an OEM version of XP. I had no disk, it was preloaded.If you remove the CD from the drive there is no reason to change the boot order...
Mine is set to :
Floppy
CDROM
HDD0
HDD1.
I've never had issues with this setup.
Obviously if you have a bootable CD in the drive it is going to do that first.

What type of XP CD was used for the repair install ? ?
Holograms or Sharpie ? ?First of all, that info you sent me was a great help! I don't kow what you meant by type of CD being a hologram or sharpie.

Regardless, I did a clean boot and everything is working fine. Thanks for your help. Good news indeed !

7.1 channel SOUND card and i have an 18" SUBWOOFER and a RECIVER i tried hooking up the SUBS to the reciver but they MADE a little quite noise and i figured tghat this may be because it wasnt the right type of like channel for instance for a car sub you would get a class d amp and that is just not outputting the right thing so what i though of was to take the reciver plug in the sub to the reciver and plug the reciver into the subwoofer output on my computer will this work?

if it doesnt make scence tell me

Haha, nice idea Quote from: Calum on October 30, 2008, 09:32:47 AM

Haha, nice idea

can any1 tell me if my BFG ES-800 Power SUPPLY will be ABLE to power my rig...
VIDEO Card: BFG NVIDIA GeForce GTX 280 OCX
Motherboard: BFG NVIDIA nForce 680i LT SLI
CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E8600 Processor
Computer Case: NZXT NEMESIS ELITE Gaming Case
i assume that PSU is rated at 800w.
that should be pretty fine according to me.yea it is 800w and thx

I haven’t built a computer in a million years, so saying I’m rusty is an understatement. Definitely not confident on RAM, and I'm not sure if I can/should recycle my power supply. Help me out a bit?


MotherBoard: XFX nForce 750a SLI (MDA72P7509)
CPU: AMD Athlon 64 X2 5400+ Black Edition Processor 2.80GHz
CPU Fan: Ultra X-Wind Socket 2200rpm K8/AM2
Hard Drive: Seagate Barracuda 7200.11 ST3160813AS 160GB SATA
Power Supply: 450watts PS2 ATX12V (Just because I have it – something better?)
RAM: Corsair Dual Channel XMS2 4096MB PC8500 DDR2 1066MHzIf you've not bought any components yet, give us a budget and we can see if we can work out something better for you, if you like.
I wouldn't really like that build myself actually, and I also wouldn't recycle the pwoer supply unless it's a good one.
You're missing a video card too.processor speed and size of ur ram must be balanceQuote from: ecxzqute on November 10, 2008, 04:13:19 AM

processor speed and size of ur ram must be balance

If you've not bought any components yet, give us a budget and we can see if we can work out something better for you, if you like.
I wouldn't really like that build myself actually, and I also wouldn't recycle the pwoer supply unless it's a good one.
You're missing a video card too.

Edit: OK, here goes.

Intel Core 2 Duo E7300 CPU - $122.99.
G.Skill 2GB 800MHz RAM - $22.99.

My computer randomly crashes with the monitor turning black and switching from Analog to Digital.

I tried everything to get it back but im sure its crashed as the keys and everything dont work.

I just recently tried fixing the cords but i listen and found out most of the times my computer crashed my video card tiny fan makes a faster spin as i heard.

Could this be connected with my problem? And if it is please tell me what i should doDownload and install Speed Fan.
Post the temperatures it reads.

Also, can you try another monitor?Fan1:1714 RPM


GPU: 53 C
Temp1: 35C
Temp2:63C
Tempt3:123C
HD0:37C
Temp1:80C
Core0:40C
Core1:42C
Core:52C

Speed01 100%

VCC3V:3.39V
Vcore: 1.14V
VRAM 1.43V
VChipset 1.43V
+5V: 5.05V
+12V: 12.14V
VCC1.5V: 1.27V
VSB3V: 3.36V
Vbat 3.30what card and whats your PSU?Pretty high temperatures there.

Try another monitor, as well as a fan to bring down the temperatures:
i have a 1 foot by 1 foot fan blowing into the side of my tower, with the side cleanly off. it takes my temps from 32 to 24-25, you might want to try it, your temps are HIGH

and um, that pic you showed was a space heater.... BAD ideaQuote from: yuki953 on November 27, 2008, 01:10:59 AM

and um, that pic you showed was a space heater.... BAD idea

well thats another problem i can pull it out without my motherboard being pulled out too. I cant find whats holding it in.

How do i keep the proccesor and JUNK the heat sink? im puttin in a NEW 1What?the heat sink+fan is stuck to the proccesor.... and i was replacing the heatsink, when ipicked it up, there was my PROCESOR just HANGIN in the bottom

http://www.google.co.nz/search?hl=en&q=removing+processor+from+heatsink&btnG=Google+Search&meta=oh thanks

ATI 4800 ISNT NEARLY as good as an Nvidia 8800 or 9800

if your going for ATI IDE recoment 4870 or 4850Quote from: yuki953 on November 26, 2008, 06:30:33 PM

ATI 4800 isnt nearly as good as an Nvidia 8800 or 9800