Random Questions...

[Taxman]

@Taxman

Does it restart randomly from the moment you first turn it on..assuming it's been off for hours before hand?

Sounds like a mobo failing or PSU. That sort of thing is hard to narrow down without more details, but I don't really know what else to ask about.

Could also be some other hardware part that is failing.

No, it'll just restart at random points while I'm using it. Sometimes it's when the clock changes hour, when the TV goes to commercial, or sometimes, just randomly.

 

 

 

Damn, I wish I had my computer back.

[Wolf68k]

What I mean is; if it's been off for a good while and then you turn it on and you can let's say use it without a problem for 2 hours, then it starts restarting on it's own and after that it'll restart every 15-30mins (or however long).

Or is it restarting itself from the moment you turn it on no matter how long it's been off?

[KillaPenguin]

So how f*cked am I?

 

Was brining my laptop downstairs tripped over some random piece of crap which i must have cursed 100000 times. Bassically drop my laptop, kinda got hung up on my headphone cords which may have softened the blow a little... certainly bent the sh*t out of the jack. But no other physical damage on the outside can't even tell it was dropped. But at first it started with not being able to play games without it cutting off a few mins into the game but i could easily restart it and run it for hours just running a few programs... basically get my business done but today it only lasted an hour. Im still under warranty but its a really sh*tty warranty / the only one they offerred, 1 year and its gotta be a defect with the product.

 

So how obvious is it gonna be this was dropped if i send it back... i'd look to see myself but cant open it without voiding the warranty anyways. It's an ABS by the way...

 

also got the error when windows loads cli.exe failed to run yadda yadda maybe have something to do with it? Cut off during a virus scan

 

 

 

this sucks

[Wolf68k]

Was the laptop up and running, on but closed (hybernate mode) or completely off?

 

If it looks ok from the outside, just tell of the basic problem no details and hope they'll fix it as defective.

 

Use Scandisk and do a surface scan. I'tt take a long time but atleast you'llsee if the HDD is bad or not

[CtrlAltSupr]

Nevermind. Sorry.

Edited November 30, 2005 by CtrlAltSupr

[Sillyhed2000]

Yo.

 

So, I've got a Geforce 6600 GT and am trying to capture some video off my VCR and onto my PC using Windows Movie Maker. I've got the appropriate cords set up, the yellow plug hooking into the 'video in' outlet which in turn hooks in to my computer, but I keep getting the error "A video capture device was not detected. Verify that the device is turned on (..)". I tried updating my graphics drivers, but to no success.

 

Help, please?

 

Nevermind. My new graphics card doesn't support tv in!

 

HOWEVER. Don't stop reading yet - new question. Are there converters where one end plugs into firewire/usb and the other into the VCR's AV cables, and acts like a tv in? If so, how much?

Edited November 30, 2005 by Sillyhed2000

[CrazyDude]

I'm connecting my home surround sound system to my computer by going from the computer's line out, through a splitter cable, to an input spot on my reciever.

I'm hearing a very consistent hum. Do you know of a audio filter that can take care of this or some other solution?

[KillaPenguin]

Hibernate mode

 

will try scandisk now

 

then pray that they think its defective too

 

thanks

[Lazlowrocks.]

What's a free, online shooter I can play on 128mb of RAM?

[KillaPenguin]

Counter strike 2d? i think thats free maybe a little lame, americas army but i doubt it... check out multiplayer shooter demos found some really fun good games that way. Might ask / search in the gaming chat to

 

disk scan came back fine, did a system restore to earlier date dunno why... but now i dont get cli.exe error and its been of since about my other post with no probs. Gonna look at cpu temp monitors, maybe it'll even do a virus scan without cutting off, i hope its fixed but i doubt it. Worst comes to worst ill do a complete format i really dont want to have to ship it out cause of money issues

[Lazlowrocks.]

Counter strike 2d? i think thats free maybe a little lame, americas army but i doubt it... check out multiplayer shooter demos found some really fun good games that way. Might ask / search in the gaming chat to

 

disk scan came back fine, did a system restore to earlier date dunno why... but now i dont get cli.exe error and its been of since about my other post with no probs. Gonna look at cpu temp monitors, maybe it'll even do a virus scan without cutting off, i hope its fixed but i doubt it. Worst comes to worst ill do a complete format i really dont want to have to ship it out cause of money issues

AA crashes on me, I plan on buying more ram soon though.

[Wolf68k]

@Sillyhed2000

You're basicly look for an external TV capture device.

I know using newegg.com doesn't help you much (assume you're in AU by the flag) but this should give you an example of what to get.

Dazzle - this is nice if you want to easily take it from system to system or are using a laptop. personally I like internal TV capture cards better, but to each their own

 

 

 

@Pilate

Sounds like what's called 'ground hum.' The audio cable is along side a power cable. Move it away from any power cables.

 

 

 

@Lazlowrocks.

You're running Windows XP and 128MB of RAM. You're lucky you can do anything. To run XP and other programs they say you truely need atleast 256MB however I say 512MB. Running XP and games 'they' say you need atleast 512MB however I say 1GB.

If your mobo support dual-channel RAM then get what is called "twin pack" or "dual-channel kit" RAM. This is basicly 2 sticks each are half of the total you're trying to get to. Let me break that down; if you want 1GB of RAM then get a 2x 512MB twin pack. This way the RAM sticks are matched and will perform better than a single stick of 1GB.

[Gta Gamer.]

This might seem like a stupid question, but is it possible to install games onto an external HD, and if so is there any performance issues. (ie slower loading times or anything like that)

 

[[email protected]]

Can anyone help me?

 

Sometimes when booting succesfully, the screen goes black and the power light flashes constantly. I don't know what the f*ck goes wrong, but after letting the system cool down for a minute or so it works again.

 

Weird sh*t but I bet it has to do something with the PSU, anyone has a clue?

 

Should I post my specs?

[Wolf68k]

@Gta Gamer.

Yes you should be able to. During the install of the game or anything else it'll ask you were to install, in some cases you might have to select the custom or expert install.

As for speed; it depends on the interface of the external; USB 1.0 or 2.0, Firewire or what (not that there is many more after that usually).

Firewire will give you the best performance, followed by USB 2.0 and lastly USB 1.0.

After that it's all on the speed of the HDD.

 

 

 

@[email protected]

You'll boot up with no problem from a cold system. Then what, like an hour or so later the system just dies?

Sounds like a fail mobo or PSU or something else.

In my case it turned out to be the mobo.

[Lazlowrocks.]

 

@Lazlowrocks.

You're running Windows XP and 128MB of RAM. You're lucky you can do anything. To run XP and other programs they say you truely need atleast 256MB however I say 512MB. Running XP and games 'they' say you need atleast 512MB however I say 1GB.

If your mobo support dual-channel RAM then get what is called "twin pack" or "dual-channel kit" RAM. This is basicly 2 sticks each are half of the total you're trying to get to. Let me break that down; if you want 1GB of RAM then get a 2x 512MB twin pack. This way the RAM sticks are matched and will perform better than a single stick of 1GB.

Just ordered 512 mb. Bought BF2 and got pissed because one of my comps has the RAM needed and the other has the GFX card

[Wolf68k]

Trust me when I say you'll wish you had gotten 1GB if you're going to play BF2

[Forfit]

Trust me when I say you'll wish you had gotten 1GB if you're going to play BF2

I agree. I played the BF2 demo with 512mb and it lagged. Bought another stick and then it didnt stutter during the loading process or anything anymore (pretty sad i know even when the menu of the game lags) sorry Lazlow.

[MiNdLeSs]

Wolf, can you send me those settings? I save settings and it says this:

 

Sending account settings, please wait...

Done sending account settings.

 

then I try to connect and I get same error as last time:

 

WinSock 2.0 -- OpenSSL 0.9.7g 11 Apr 2005

[R] Connecting to 192.168.0.102 -> IP=192.168.0.102 PORT=21

[R] Connected to 192.168.0.102

[R] Connection failed (Connection lost)

[R] Delaying for 120 seconds before reconnect attempt #1

 

could my router affect this at all? I'm accessing it from inside of it so it should be fine.

[Black-hawk]

Can someone clear this up for me?

When I had my PC built a year ago, it was set with 2x 256 MB Ram (512 in total), I later added another, single stick of 512 Ram. So that makes, 1 gig. But, like, 2x 256 + 1x 512. Does that seem a bit funky?

[CrazyDude]

I just put 1gb of memory into my laptop, and everything seems to be running at the same speed. Start up takes the same time. Firefox takes the same to load. Infact, I don't really see a difference at all...

Is there a reason, or was I wanting the memory to do something it doesn't do.

Infact, what is the memories purpose in the running of an application?

[Wolf68k]

@Mindless

Sorry but you're going to have to remind me what settings for what you're talking about. I forget and don't feel like searching the topic for it.

 

 

 

@Black-hawk

Shouldn't be anything really wrong with it. It does add up to 1GB.

If all of the sticks are the same speed then you're good there. You don't have to worry about spending money on, let's say, a PC3200 512MB stick but it only runs at the same speed as the 2x256MB sticks at PC2100.

Assuming they are all the same speed, the only worry then to get the best results, if you're running the RAM in dual-channel mode if they aren't matched you won't get the best result. But you won't really notice difference too much.

 

 

 

@Pilate

Unless you're doing something on that laptop that really uses the RAM then you're not going to notice any speed difference with Windows or basic apps.

MS says XP requires atleast 128MB to run; yeah and that's about all that will run, after XP apps run like crap

Some of the "experts" will say XP is better with 256MB and basic apps. True but their idea of "basic apps" are things like Notepad and minesweeper. XP will start up noticablely faster, but that's about it really.

Running XP and MSOffice, then you'll need atleast 512MB. This is about the most you'll need for a basic system. XP will start up a bit faster than compared to 256MB but not really that you'dnotice much without a stopwatch. A basic system to me is MSOffice, Quicktime, WinAmp, WMP, web surfing and cd ripping...ALL at the same time.

1GB on a laptop; if that laptop is working with things like Photoshop or video editting or even gaming.

[Edwards]

 

Can someone clear this up for me?

When I had my PC built a year ago, it was set with 2x 256 MB Ram (512 in total), I later added another, single stick of 512 Ram. So that makes, 1 gig. But, like, 2x 256 + 1x 512. Does that seem a bit funky?

Not at all. 256+256+512=1024. You might have lost some dual channel speed, but I'm just going to tell you not to worry about that. More is generally better than faster.

 

Pilate, all memory does is hold the applications that you're running at the time, and in some cases hold frequently used files to make them load faster. Adding more should give you two benefits: If you often use more memory than you physically have, it'll go to swap, which is much much slower - adding more RAM will make it happen less often, if it ever did happen. The second benefit is that it'll add more room for holding files to make them load faster. One example being that if you load firefox the first time it might take 10 seconds, but the second time might only be 2 seconds (arbitrary numbers pulled out of the air) because it's been sitting in memory.

 

edit: This is the part where I verbally abuse wolfy.

Edited December 3, 2005 by Edwards

[Forfit]

I downloaded SpeedFan to monitor my temps today.

 

Well, first off, i checked my bios awhile back and it says that my CPU Temp is running 62-63 C, but Everest and speedfan show 54-55C, who should i believe on this one?

 

Also, When my CPU would hit 60C or so (according to everest/speedfan) it would bump the fans up 100% to cool it off, and get loud and what not, but ever since i downloaded Speedfan they seem to run at 40% speed and the temps can reach about 66C during intensive games and the fans never seem to speed up anymore. How do i need to configure Speedfan to keep my PC Cool and have the fans kick in when needed like they originally did?

 

 

Forfit goes outside and waits for Wolf68k Edited December 4, 2005 by Forfit

[Lazlowrocks.]

Trust me when I say you'll wish you had gotten 1GB if you're going to play BF2

I was short on money, and Rayo Puno said he plays it on 512 without problem.

[ACA]

I downloaded SpeedFan to monitor my temps today.

 

Well, first off, i checked my bios awhile back and it says that my CPU Temp is running 62-63 C, but Everest and speedfan show 54-55C, who should i believe on this one?

 

Also, When my CPU would hit 60C or so (according to everest/speedfan) it would bump the fans up 100% to cool it off, and get loud and what not, but ever since i downloaded Speedfan they seem to run at 40% speed and the temps can reach about 66C during intensive games and the fans never seem to speed up anymore. How do i need to configure Speedfan to keep my PC Cool and have the fans kick in when needed like they originally did?

 

 

Forfit goes outside and waits for Wolf68k

The BIOS temp is what you should always go by, as software sometimes misreads the temperature reading chip and can produce a slightly different temperature readout.

 

Now, what you're going to want to do is just go into the BIOS and disable the variable fan speed setting so that the fans are running at 100% all the time. I really reccomend this, as 60 degrees on a CPU is quite hot. If the noise is too much of a bother, set it to only slow the fans down until the noise is bareable.

 

As for with SpeedFan, just make sure the fans are set to 100% in the main window, and that you have "automatic fan speed" un-checked.

[Wolf68k]

I usually try to trust the BIOS for the temps. However when the differences are that far off, and I've never seen Everest read it wrong even on cheap crappy mobos, then I would want to get a reading from a external source.

The chances of the external getting it wrong is usually going to be very slim.

[ACA]

I usually try to trust the BIOS for the temps. However when the differences are that far off, and I've never seen Everest read it wrong even on cheap crappy mobos, then I would want to get a reading from a external source.

The chances of the external getting it wrong is usually going to be very slim.

I believe the reason his temperatures were way off like that may be because in the BIOS, the CPU is always under a bit more load than in Windows. They could both be telling the correct temperature.

 

However, the BIOS will always be the most reliable reading you can get without actually placing a probe near the heat spreader of the chip. I'd believe it before I'd believe everest or speedfan.

[Forfit]

Thanks for the information.

 

Another thing i forgot to mention is that When in Everest, say the temp. is 54C, then i would remove the side of the case and it would drop to 47-48C. But when i was in the BIOS and it said about 61C and i took off the case, it would stay the same. Weird.

 

(i'm leaving the sidecover off for now)

[ACA]

Thanks for the information.

 

Another thing i forgot to mention is that When in Everest, say the temp. is 54C, then i would remove the side of the case and it would drop to 47-48C. But when i was in the BIOS and it said about 61C and i took off the case, it would stay the same. Weird.

 

(i'm leaving the sidecover off for now)

Does it just gradually lower in temp over time when you remove it, or is it instantanious?

 

The fact that when you remove the side panel that it actually goes down in temperature suggests that there is very little airflow in your case. Normally when you remove the side panel, the temperature should go up a touch because the airflow would be disrupted.

 

What you're going to want to do is clean up the wires in your case. Just re-route them in an orderly fasion so you get a clear path from the front ventliation holes (where air comes in), then up towards the power supply and rear exhaust fan (if you have one). This is the ideal air flow.

 

Take a look through the post your desktop/pc thread. I'm sure theres a few tidy cases that have been posted in there if you want an example.