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Getting Help Building Your Computer
An anonymous reader submitted an excellent story about getting help when assembling a PC from scratch. I'm sure many readers here know how harrowing the experience can be, and will appreciate this entertaining tale of lilliputians helping
in this rite of passage.
Here the first time i put my machine together i was worried to death about cracking my processor or pushing to hard. this guy has time to make a slide show out of it. Showoff.
The last time I told someone that a bunch of little green (and other colored people helped me put something together, it took me 3 weeks to get out of observation.
OS Software is like love: The best way to make it grow is to give it away.
I am the editor for the category on DMOZ.
o s_and_Tutorials/Build_Your_Own_PC/
http://dmoz.org/Computers/Education/Hardware/HowT
Any additional submissions would be more than welcome!
...but how much static electricity did those little feet pick up?
Kudos to the mirror host, by the way.
Yeah, I have a webcomic...
The Oil Change
Linux User: "Fuck them, let them figure it out themselves and get their hanks cut on a cheap case. My modded nitrogen boxen runs great. Gentoo rocks! vi is best!
Vax User: "What? All computers come with COLOR? Heaven bless! CGI for everyone! 4 colors should be enough for anyone."
Lindows ala-Walmart User: "YeHaw! Easier than building my own plow! Ya'll come back now, ya hear?"
Windoze User: "Dude, I got a Dell. Let's run Windoze Update and watch TechTV."
Spend the extra 50-60 bucks on a good case, cheap cases suck, and nothing ever lines up right (i.e. Motherboards, Cards, etc). Make sure there is plenty of room inside the case, a removable motherboard tray is nice for when you are installing the heatsink on the processor and when you are installing memory!
I want my rights back. I was actually using them when our government stole them after 9/11.
came in a kit, circiut board, and components.
I had to soldier it together.
Its really pretty easy these days, espcially compared the the DOS 3 days.
We do live in a time where I can put together a system, and have linux up and running in about 45 minutes.
The Kruger Dunning explains most post on
http://www.nothlit.com/lego/lego.html
http://lego.dave.dk/
http://www.osuweb.net/~ahaning/lego.html
http://home.attbi.com/~andy0058
http://www.chaos.lu/lego.html
Just a few more mirrors for when this site goes down...
Oh.. and if I am not totally mistaken, at one time there was a "letter of protest" from the "lego workers union" or something similar actually posted on Andy's home page. It is not there now, don't bother checking, but if anyone happens to have a copy and wishes to post it, go for it!
Oh come off it, don't try to fool people with that old 'static electricity' scam. I bet you try to get people to stick their razor blades under a pyramid to sharpen them.
The whole thing was a crock we invented back in the 80s when the yields of the fabs was not exactly good. We told the customers who rang up to complain about a bad one 'static electricity'.
Then we hit on the idea of these stupid wrist bands. The guy who 'invented' those later on went on to 'invent' the abdominizer and magnasoles. They were originally made to sell to people visiting executions down in Florida when they still used the electic chair as part of a 'share the experience' package. Kindof a sicko idea I suppose.
If you don't believe me go put on your best rubber soled shoes and run up and down on a nylon carpet then ground yourself on the cpu of your PC that you removed earlier. Oh and while you have the thing out you can remove some of those sharp spiky pins we put on the back of them. No IC ever needed more than 8 pins, its a fact, we only added the others because it makes them look cool, you can remove the others with a pair of pliers.
Something else that most people don't know, you can fry most CPUs in a microwave for long periods of time without damaging them. Just make sure you wear a wrist band while you do so.
Only thing to watch out for is that you don't accidentally discharge the battery backup for the microcode while you are doing all this. That might cause your CPU to misfunction so experiment at your own risk!
Looking for an Information Security student project suggestion?
Try http://dotcrimeManifesto.com/
.. and hook up the video card.
:-P
I have a 1800 Althon system with the GeForce 4200 card that runs like a top with XP.
Although Intel would have you believe that the P4 is what makes the net "come alive", it's really your graphics card and internet connection.
As a previous poster stated, get a good case from newegg.com
I recently built my system, spending ~700 bucks and had no problems with any of the parts I purchased from them. As always, check the guides at tom's hardware, sharkyextreme, anandtech.com
Good luck and remmeber not to run on the carpet before you build it together. Personally, I never had a problem with static electricity except for one time I touched the bottom of HD and fried it. Good thing it was a work computer though
Live web cams
Well everyone else is suggesting stuff so I figure I will too. I'm looking to buy a PC in the UK sometime soon and for the past couple of months I've kept my eye on the prices. Here's my contribution:
Dabs.com
Tried and trusted. I've bought plenty of stuff from these guys in the past with 100% satisfaction. Their site is a little annoying but they have the widest selection of stock by far. Their prices are very good if not the best. Product information (when available) is not terribly informative so you should know what you're looking for before you arrive.
Aria.co.uk
Only bought a couple of things from these people and had no problems. Less stock than dabs but their prices are good. Specifically, they've got the best prices on Athlon XPs (1800 - 2100). And their CPU coolers & PSUs are cheap too. Product info on this site is poor and the design isn't much better.
Overclockers.co.uk
Bought one thing from here and again no problems. Not a great deal of stock but the stuff they do have is top notch (in most cases). Their prices are slightly off-par, however they've currently got the best price on some CDRWs, HDDs and sound cards. Good product info available. These guys know their stuff. Their site design leaves to be desired.
Overclock.co.ukOverclockingstore.co.uk
Not bought anything from here yet. Their prices are reasonable but I've not found anything I wanted cheaper here. A large selection of overclocking stuff available and a pretty poor selection of regular components. Good looking site.
Tekheads.co.uk
Bought stuff from here without any problems. Their site is good and prices vary. Mostly reasonable and sometimes better than dabs. They've currently got best prices on sound cards. Product info available is ok.
Kustom.co.uk
Nasty site but they have a selection of stuff you'll have a hard time finding elsewhere. Mainly oriented towards cases and accessories. Bought a couple of things from these guys, again, without any problems.
Crucial.com/uk
OK, this isn't a retail site, but Crucial sell their RAM online at price up to £30 cheaper than elsewhere. If you're looking for ECC Registered 512MB PC2100 DDR chips like me, then you'll appreciate the £119.69 price tag.
CCLComputers.co.uk
Not bought anything from here yet but I certainly plan to. Simplistic site but very navigable. A good selection of stock and they've got the best prices on some CDRWs, AIW Radeons and the sweet sweet Iiyama Pro 452.
EBuyer.com
Not bought anything from here either. Not too keen on their site but they're one of the few who offer Antec PSUs, with a reasonable price too.
Scan.co.uk
Found this thanks to other posts in this discussion. Have to say I'm very impressed. A tasteful cut-to-the-chase design with decent product information. I was surprised to see just how wide a selection of stock they have. Not as large as dabs but they stock some decent stuff. I was surprised to find the dual Athlon Gigabyte mobo on there. Their selection of hard drives leaves to be desired but the rest is OK. Best prices on Enermax PSUs.
There are other sites out there too, such as Simply.co.uk, Action.com, Globaldirect.co.uk, Dcsplc.co.uk, Stuff-uk.net, Insight.com and Jungle.com but I've yet to be impressed. In particular, Jungle.com is probably worth avoiding. I've heard some horror stories.
So to wrap things up I'd have to say that if you can build your own PC it's definately worth doing so. The pre-built systems you can get may be cheaper and may have an amazing "2GHz P4, 60GB HDD DVD, Scanner etc.. etc..", but on the inside the components will be from Happy Shopper or Value Land and you'll get about as much performance out of your system as a frightened donkey.
However, if you're going to build your own PC you need to know exactly which components you need/want beforehand. These sites will have the stock you want but in most cases won't give you accurate or useful product information. It's a lengthy process but it's worth consulting newsgroups and/or online reviews. Storagereview.com, for example, has a leaderboard where you can get up to date on the decent and not-so-decent hard drives.
There are countless hardware review sites out there. It's worth searching for the product comparisons. Tomshardware.com and Anandtech.com are popular sites worth a look.
Good luck!
a
I live in a giant bucket.
A very good point indeed. Always RTFM.
Here are some more points for would-be computer-builders.
- You need a thermal interface compound between the heatsink and CPU. Don't just assume you can get by without one. Some heatsinks come with wax on the bottom which is slightly better then nothing. But it you want to step up a notch, get yourself a Thermaltake or Thermalright as opposed to the silly "Cooler-Master" HS that came with your machine and some Artic Silver 3 thermal compound. If you want to go hardcore, get an Alpha 8045 HS for Athlons or a Thermalright SLK-600/800 for P4's plus AS3.
[I fully expect 1-2 followup posts from people who cooked their CPUs by not using a thermal interface compound.]
- Don't put one hard drive right on top of the other in 3.5" mounting slots. They generate too much heat unless you've got a fan right on top of them.
- Always set the master/slave jumpers of CD/DVD and HDD drives BEFORE you install the drive because it is hard to access/see the jumpers when the drive is mounted in the machine. Make sure you plug in CD-Audio cables before the drive is mounted.
- Don't immediately install the motherboard into the case. It is often easier to install the CPU + heatsink, plug in the HSF (heatsink fan power cable) plus set any jumpers and check for any cable orientations BEFORE you install the mobo. (The necessary connections may be behind the power supply after the mobo is installed.
- Remember that in some cases, you have to flip the orientation of the data cable for the a-drive floppy and use the IDE cable that has the twisted wire in it. (You'll know it when you see it.)
- Bundle up the wires in twist-ties and keep them out of the way so that they don't vibrate in the breeze from fans. It only takes a small touch to disrupt an HDD power cable. Some, but not all, also say that this will improve airflow. It will definitely make your case look tidier and make later work inside it more easy.
- The first time you turn the box on, be looking at the heat sink fan and make sure it starts spinning, otherwise your CPU may come to a quick death. If it spins, immediately enter the BIOS and check the temperatures and make sure they are not insane.
- Don't close the case when you're done setting up the system. This is because you probably forgot to do something and it's annoying to have to remove the screws again.
Star Wars figures and Legos?!
WTF is that about?
I want to see a computer assembled by topless blondes that take breaks to make out with each other and have whipped cream parties.
Lego figures my ass.
There are some odd things afoot now, in the Villa Straylight.