My Computer

jmasterj

Hey Guys,

Now this post is just me sounding off. If you have a response fine.
My computer is named Tracy. She is a AMD-K6 500Mhz wonder with a 19" monitor. When I fire her up the picture on my wallpaper is so fine my tongue hangs out. I would have sex with this machine if I could. Problem is she's a woman and just like a woman she's a trip. Sometimes she in a good mood, we surf the web and sift through my personal **** collection, and everythings fine. Then sometimes she has an attitude. I mean won't act right for she--at. I love her though. When I thought about getting a new computer, started going to Dell, and, Gateway looking for a replacement, of corse she was fine, no problems, as soon as I quit looking she wants to start acting up again. I have to take the cover off and put a fan on her because she's hot. I don't want to spend money on her all I do is surf the web, and check e-mail. But I'm tired of pampering her ****. She looks good but damn is it worth it. Fine woman = high maintainance.:mad:

brettw22

I'm hoping that some form of alcohol has run all through this post of yours.......;)

jmasterj

I might have had a few... too many !

geekmedic

I'm amazed that someone who is into home theatre systems would want to purchase a computer from Dell, Gateway, hp, etc.

Build your own. Trust me, you'll get a lot of satisfaction out of it! If you enjoy building home theatre systems, audio setups, etc., then you'll love building your own computer. It's not that hard. Plus, you get to pick the best parts for YOU. When you upgrade, it's a lot cheaper. (I originally build a 1900+ AMD system. Just upgraded to a 2700+. Cost? The price of the chip only! Very cheap!)

Build and rejoice!

nadams

Unfortunately, you can't really upgrade that particular system much more.... The K6 (-II) series only went up to 550mhz and the k6-III procs only hit 500mhz. Therefore, you'd be best off upgrading the whole thing. However, here's something to think about...

Have you reinstalled Windows lately? Oftentimes, if you've run a computer for a long time without a reinstall, files will get corrupted and it'll just run like crap. The hardest problem then would be backing up all your ****.

But seriously, I'd try that before upgrading. Also, the K6 series (all of 'em) always ran pretty hot compared to anything from Intel from that era, so make sure that the processor is getting plenty of air...

Instability can also be caused by pretty much any of the hardware components. Your RAM could be going bad.... or maybe your power supply just isn't putting out enough power for the system to run perfectly. If you're getting random restarts and stuff like that, I'd blame either the RAM or the powersupply first off......

Just a few things to think about...

nadams

geekmedic

Originally posted by nadams
Unfortunately, you can't really upgrade that particular system much more.... The K6 (-II) series only went up to 550mhz and the k6-III procs only hit 500mhz. Therefore, you'd be best off upgrading the whole thing. However, here's something to think about...

Buy a new motherboard if it won't support the latest Athlon XP processors.

phuz

You can get a new processor, ram, fan, and motherboard for $200 or less. Thats all you really need to upgrade as long as your case and power supply will accept the new hardware.

If you buy new, I'd get a Dell.

I'm with nadams. One of the most common misconceptions about computers and their performance is that it's the hardware when it is almost always software. If all you need it for is email and web stuff (no 3D gaming, or intense graphics/etc) then do this....

Back up your data (if you need to), format the hard drive with NTFS, then install windows 2000 or XP. You'll be really suprised. It'll be like having a completely new computer again. (make sure you have at least 128MB of RAM min., preferably 256 or more - RAM is CHEAP these days) - I usualy go through this process once a year or so or when my puter gets sluggish.

I'm still using a PIII 500 with 256MB of RAM with Windows XP and my system still screams.

wangotango68

what is the benefit of having more ram? i have 256 and would like to add another 256.

scott:cool:

geekmedic

Originally posted by wangotango68
what is the benefit of having more ram? i have 256 and would like to add another 256.

Extra memory is good if you run multiple programs at one time.

I have 1 gig of DDR-DRAM (PC2700 - 2.7 GB/sec) mainly because I do a lot of work with Photoshop.

I develop websites and do desktop publishing, so there are many times that I have multiple memory-intensive programs running. Usually IE, Outlook, and messenger programs (AIM, MSN, etc.) are running continuously, but these do not take up much memory. Throw on top of that Adobe Photoshop, ImageReady, GoLive, and MS Frontpage at one time, and it really helps to have a lot of memory.

Most people rarely ever need in excess of 512 MB. If all you do is surf the web and stuff, then 256 is probably fine. Upgrading to 512 may improve your speed. Upgrading to any higher probably won't give you much improvement unless you actually need the memory.

phuz

Originally posted by wangotango68
what is the benefit of having more ram? i have 256 and would like to add another 256.

scott:cool:

That depends on your OS and how much you do with your computer daily and at any given time. 256MB is plenty for daily web surfing and email etc.

Random Access Memory is basically where everything that you do is temp. stored while you do it. Programs, large files, and system services can eat up that RAM. When you use it all up, then your system starts to use it's virtual memory (hard drive space used as RAM) and this will really slow your system down. As it was said already if you use Photoshop or other graphics programs or play intense games the 512 total would help a bit. I've had IE, email, and a couple of other apps open and then tried to launch photoshop with 256MB of RAM and my system chokes. (still works, but just crawls)

If you are one of those people that has tons of CRAP on your computer then extra RAM can help overall performance. But really all you would need to do is remove the CRAP.

However if you are like me or some others you might have lots of applications running constantly on your system, and leave your system on 24/7 - this would be where it is good to have more RAM. The more RAM you have, the more can go on at the same time and continue to go on at the same time. I keep chat programs, a TV tuner, several browser windows, email, winamp, and various other programs open at the same time so I occasionaly run out of RAM and my system just starts to crawl. In that case I have to close some apps, and depending on what apps I was running I might have to reboot to get my resources (read: RAM) back. This is a pain since I hate to reboot and only do it every 2-4 weeks when I absolutely must.

Damn, thanks for reminding me that I need to upgrade.

:mad:

phuz

Oh yeah, if you are using Windows ME it will help to get more RAM (512). It's a notorious resource hog.

goingganzo

here is the short you can upgrade your system all you need to replace is your case mobo and prossesor. the case is from 30-120 co small 120 full tower with huge powersuply. mobo motherbord from 75-200 cheap and ot that many optons to the latest and greatest. recomend 100-120 range. prossesor go with amd much cheaper and more bang for the buck. a amd xp-2000 1.5 gigherts around 99 . and stick of ram 50-200 how much ram you get. i upgraded my system from a 1200 amd to a 1800 mp for about 300 that was with a full tower and a 100 buck mobo and a 99 buck prosesor. but priceses have droped sence i upgraded. if you need any more stuff i would recomend a full system. and going to a good local computer shop. it will be less and you can chose what you want in terms of case and other stuff.

geekmedic

You can always go overboard with your case like I did.

It certainly attracts a lot of attention because of the green glow. :cool:

jmasterj

Thanks Guys,

I'll look into some upgrades for Tracy, and we'll see what happens.

Strong Bad

I looked at Dell, Gateway, etc...and decided I could not get what I wanted on the budget I had. I built my own!

Here's the lowdown:

P4 2.0ghz
512 mb DDR Ram
G-Force 4 video card w/64 mb DDR Ram
80 gb 7200 RPM HD
DVD Rom
52X CD-RW (This thing screams! Burn a copy of a music CD in less than 3 minutes!!!)
Soyo motherboard (sorry, can't remember all the specs)
400 watt power supply
Antec case w/ 2 fans
MAG 19" monitor 25 dpi
MS Intelli-mouse
MS Internet Keyboard

All totaled, it ran about 1400.00. What I REALLY should have done was shop on the net for all the parts. Could have saved even more.

If you have the knowledge to do so, build your own. If not, Dell is excellant.

John

goingganzo

jmasterj did you do that yourself with the plexi mod? i have the same case with the solid side pannel but i kkep mine on the right side. i do have a neon in mine i can see light comeing out if the vents in the front. but i did get me a external cd-rw caues mine sits so far awayfrom me.

geekmedic

Ganzo, I assume you are replying to me about the case mod.

That particular case was purchased at Xoxide. The window was pre-cut.

A system I recently built for a friend has a much cooler looking side panel that I cut myself with a Dremel. I ordered a template from ZXMods. It looks really, really cool. In fact, I've thought of buying another case and duplicating his. I liked his so much that I was tempted to switch case doors while I was building.

Xoxide has some cool laser etched glasses now. Take a peek at them. www.xoxide.com I think they're pretty small though.

Shizelbs

I built my own computer this Summer, and while extremely daunting, afterwards, I realized it was one of the easiest things I have ever done. It really was very easy. It cost me less than $700, and its a great computer that will run well for at least 3 years. It has to, I will get out of school at that point. The research will take you the longest, but you will learn the most from that. Putting it together is so easy. Its like putting together a puzzle where each piece obviously goes in only one spot. There are a lot of good resources on the web that will walk you through the finer aspects of it. I suggest buillding your own.
Also, I hate Dell. I think they, and their computers are terrible. To the web surfer, their computers may be okay, but to me, a gamer of some sort, they blow. They skimp on the motherboard and the graphics card, and they save, and make, a lot of money by doing so. Also, their CS is inept, rude, and dumb. I would give examples, but it would send me into a fitful rage and I would not sleep tonight. Their prices are decent, but you can do so much better yourself. Email me if you have any questions.
Good luck.

Shizelbs

John D Strong, unless you are using the Ti4200, you really need a new video card. If you got one of the MX cards, you are really doing your computer a huge injustice. Your computer sounds really nice, but man, get a real video card.

phuz

Originally posted by Shizelbs
John D Strong, unless you are using the Ti4200, you really need a new video card. If you got one of the MX cards, you are really doing your computer a huge injustice. Your computer sounds really nice, but man, get a real video card.

Unless he's doing some intense 3d gaming or rendering whats the point?