CrackHead

Hey guys, I've been searching high and low lately for CD sleeves that will go into a two ring binder and have had little luck. What I would really like is something similar if not identical to CD sleeves you receive from Microsoft when you order one of their volume licensed products. For those who don't know, it's a single sided square CD sleeve with plastic front and a fabric back with holes punched in the side for a binder. Anyone have any idea where to find such an item? - CrackHead Edit: Checked OfficeMax, OfficeDepot, BestBuy, NewEgg, TigerDirect, and CDW...

Booted up the computer today and a different message than usual came up during post. Hoping my eyes were playing tricks on me I opened the intel storage manager only to find the same message! Before I completly loose my mind I figured to run it by OCC and get y'alls opinion on it. Drive Model: ST3750330AS Serial #:5QK0EWH0 Port: 1 Is it an omen of whats to come in the near future... drive failure?

Thanks for all your suggestions, based upon my needs of a cooler that is slightly better than the stock Intel one I was thinking of something of a smaller profile. I feel that heatsinks of such magnitude like the ones y'all recommended seem to be more cooling than necessary (overkill). Do you guys know of any others you can suggest? Also what about thermal paste is AS5 still top dog?

I was wondering what aftermarket heatsink would ya'll recommend for my Intel Core2 Duo CPU E8400. I ask as because my temps seem a little high for a non overclocked system; 40*C Idle - 53*C Load. I'm using the stock heatsink with with Arctic Silver 5. I've tried resetting it a couple times now and have seen no improvement. Its been so long since I have had to buy an aftermarket heatsink that I haven't the faintest idea what works these days. To make matters worse the my Gigabyte GA-EP35-DS4 motherboard has a somewhat robust Silent-Pipe. Any advice or suggestions you can give me would be greatly appreciated... Thanks again, CrackHead EDIT: Is AS5 still the best thermal paste to use?

Me + Overclocking = Fire Hazard lol...

Sweetness that answers that....Finally last question of all; In your opinion which card would you prefer? XFX PVT88GYDD4 GeForce 8800GTS (G92) OR EVGA 512-P3-N845-AR GeForce 8800GTS (G92) KO (It's a toss up for me as I've owned an XFX but on the other hand have heard nothing but good things about EVGA) Thank you everyone for your help as I sure as hell wouldn't have made it this far without your guidance. Its hard to describe the amount of relief you feel when you invest your money into something your knowledgeable instead of having to go in blind, ultimately leading you to regret your purchase down the road!

Thanks to everyone's suggestions and some digging of my own, I think I'm going to go with one of the 8800GTS. I was leaning towards EVGA 640-P2-N829-AR GeForce 8800GTS however everywhere I look people are saying to make sure and get the 512mb version but don't explain why. Can anyone elaborate on this?

Thanks everyone for you help thus far, I had a couple of quick questions though: What on earth is PCI Express 2.0 x16? Is it backwards compatible with PCI Express x16 Aside from it be the next generation, are there any significant benefits to using it? Would it be wise to buy a card that is capable of this new format for future upgrades? Hypothetically speaking lets say I choose to run crossfire, would two low end cards ~$125/each out preform a single mid range card ~$225? Keeping in mind that my motherboard only supports one slot at x16 and the other at x4. I know that is a hard question to answer due to the number of variables, but I figured it was worth a shot. Can anyone point me in the direction where I might find how each card stacks up against the other. Or at the very least explain the hierarchy of ATI / Nvidia? What brands would you recommend? Are there any brands that I should avoid?

Here's the setup; about a month ago I upgraded my motherboard, processor, and memory but funds were a little tight so I decided to hold off on the video card. Due to low resell value for the parts that were replaced and since my folks Dell 8200 is struggling to satisfy their needs, I choose to go ahead and build them a "new" computer. The only issue was I didn't have a spare video card to give away. Rather than purchasing them a low end model I was able to convince them to pickup the tab for a mid range video card that I would use and they would get my old XFX GeForce 6800GS. That being said I was wondering if any of y'all had any advice or suggestions on which video card to go with as I am completely in the dark and can't find that freaking light switch. Although I have 2 x PCI Express x16 slots I more than likely not being running dual GPUs as I rarely game anymore, and the amount of time in between graphic card purchases. All in all, I'm looking to spend around $225 for this new video card (the lower the better). Approximate Budget: $150 - $225 Operating System: Windows Vista Ultimate Motherboard: GIGABYTE GA-EP35-DS4 LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX Power Supply: Antec TruePower Quattro TPQ-1000 ATX12V / EPS12V 1000W Thanks in Advanced...

True but too much can have adverse effects! Processor with Artic Silver 5 Heatsink with Artic Silver 5 Perfect examples of what not to do...Thus proving you should not only read but follow the directions as well when dealing with computers!

YGPM... Edit: Do you happen to know the model number? Better yet, can povide a link to somewhere with a list of the cards specs?

Thanks for all y'alls help. Especially cchalogamer, who endured a barrage of ridiculous questions and having to explain everything in a way that even I understood! The guidance and hard work of my fellow OCC members has once again helped me through yet another problem. Be sure to check out my latest post located in the system builds section of the forums. System Upgrade: Motherboard, Processor & Memory Thanks Again...

After months of toying with the idea of upgrading my system, I have once in for all now is the time...Before I do so I wanted to run a couple of possible ideas by yall and see what happens... A lot has changed in the world of computers since my last system upgrade leaving me sorta in the dark on a lot of things. Rather talking about something I know nothing about, let me tell you what I do know and hopefully we can meet somewhere in the middle. First of all is that my computer just isn't cutting it for me anymore hence the reason for this post. Aside from the occasional gaming, I primary use my computer for digital imaging, video encoding/decoding, and school work. Despite AMD's incredibly low prices, not to mention my previous issues with their competitor, I decided to go back to "light side" of Intel once again. All in all, I'm looking to spend around ~$550 for this upgrade endeavor of mine (the lower the better). With that being said, here is what I have come up with thus far: Power Supply: Antec TruePower Quattro TPQ-1000 ATX12V / EPS12V 1000W $0.00 - Left over from CompUSA closing sale Motherboard: GIGABYTE GA-EP35-DS4 LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX $169.99 Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 Wolfdale 3.0GHz 6MB $209.99 Memory: G.SKILL 4GB(2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 $144.99 Hard Drives: Western Digital Caviar 320GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb $0.00 - Comming out of current system Graphics Card: XFX GeForce 6800GS 256MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 $0.00 - Comming out of current system Sound Card: Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeMusic $0.00 - Comming out of current system Keep in mind I'm not the guy who knows the inner workings of a component, but instead just your everyday user with a little bit of experience; try and keep your answers as idiot proof as possible lol. As always what I am really looking for is; your thoughts on the parts I have choosen, any possible issues that I need to be aware of, changes you would make, and will it work! Thanks in Advanced... BUDGET: ~$550 --------------------------------------------- Current System Power Supply: Antec Neo HE 550-Watt Motherboard: DFI LANPARTY UT nF4 SLI-DR Processor: AMD Athlon 64 X2 4400+ Memory: G.SKILL 2GB (2 x 1GB) DDR 400 Graphics Card: XFX 6800GS

Anyone know the difference between Gigabyte Model GA-P35-DS3R & GA-EP35-DS3R. Also what about the southbridge ICH7, ICH9 or ICH9R? Some additional information that I would find useful Latest Gigabyte Model: Most Stable / Common Model: Major Pros/Cons to Gigabyte: Edit: I am not ruling out other brands, its just that seems to be the consensus that everyone has come to thus far Thanks Again!

Reading back over my original post I noticed I was lacking some important details; sorry about that. The basic blueprint for my motherboard's needs/capibilities is as follows... Price: Around $150 CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 Wolfdale RAM: 2GB of GPU: XFX Nvidia 6800GS ----- Concerns: Upgrade-ability Support the latest quad core processor Support the latest graphic card ----- I have enough problems as it is with computers, so more than likely I will not be overclocking my system. I will not have any real need of SLI due to the fact that I rarely game anymore, and the amount of time in between graphic card purchases. Also I would rather spend a few extra buck now, than be stuck with a system that is obsolete in a couple of months with little or no room for upgrade