- you don't mention the OS, but you do show 4GB of RAM. 2GB is all you need for XP...can't recommend Vista for gaming until SP1 comes out next spring Next spring? Try next month...Microsoft's shooting to get it out by the end of this August. They're pretty hush about it, but that's the most recent ...

1: When I eventually have 2 8800GTX's running will having a cheaper monitor make the high video card expense moot? If you know how to manipulate anti-aliasing, then no. It will also help with upcoming, graphics-hungry games. 2: Using the SATA Raid supplied by my Mobo, will I have better read times? ...

$160 - PSU Thermaltake 750W W0116RU (quietest 750W I've found) It's not silent, but it is quiet. You also don't need it; you'll be lucky if you can draw 300 watts with that hardware. $180 - MoBo ASUS P5N32-E SLI Plus (*Question about this below) I'd get a 650i motherboard, because there is no drawba...

Yeah, I imagine Times Beach was more a media disaster than anything else, if anything, because it apparently involved the media. Normally I'm no econut, and I only recycle because the bin is there, why not, right? and I really, really wish we had more nuclear power (only so much stuff to burn for po...

ATI HD 2000 video cards have more passive options and better video acceleration, for the same price. The low-end 7-series NVIDIA cards aren't better, nor do they require less power, and have other drawbacks. I'd stick with a current-generation card. If you're not going to overclock or play games, yo...

1) Does it still have a Registry? Yes, and registries are a staggeringly better alternative to dependencies, which even OS X uses. 2) Do you still have to deal with [.dll]s... .dlls and their alternate OS counter-parts cannot be avoided, no matter which OS you choose, unless* 3) Does it allow drag-a...

Why don't you open the unused PCI slots (I think they already are) tape closed the opening above the motherboard's I/O plate, and force all the air coming in past the video card? Your CPU temperatures will climb a little, but it's probably going to be an overall improvement. Also, even if the card i...

But didn't they dig up all the streets and incinerate them? I thought that was how Superfund got started. It occurs to me that, because the dioxins were mixed with used motor oil and tar, that the rate of decay would have been affected, accelerated. Also, it sort of makes sense that the area wildlif...

A Gigabyte DS3 or DS3R will do you very well if you intend on overclocking. There are also rumors about the P35 getting official SLI support (in addition to Crossfire, not instead of) so that definitely opens doors. But yeah, i945 chipsets aren't renown overclockers. As far as video card coolers go,...

when passive temps are 55C++ in SmartGuard

That's a good, low temperature. Chipsets get HOT and can easily hit 80 degrees Celsius. It's just not a problem unless the computer crashes.

...and learn to speak Queen's English. Heh, which queen? Seriously, there was a drastic change in spoken English after Elizabeth I--more accurately, the Elizabethan period--when during the industrial revolution (and particularly the Edwardian period with its option to buy title) the newly-rich soug...

I don't think it's in a condition to be sold. It was my workhorse for more than a year, and would need to be taken apart, cleaned, and re-painted at a minimum. I should get rid of the case and the video card, though.

By the way, one of the most commonly-known polychlorinated benzodioxins is Agent Orange. It dissolves more than leaves...

It doesn't have to be a latex or rubber allergy that causes the burn, though it is highly suspect that an allergy could last that long. The extent of the burn is plausible, but not the duration. On the flipside, it would have to be unique to a small percentage of the thongs, otherwise a lot of peopl...

Yeah, that's if you're honest. "Computer parts, used, $20". I have a friend in Brazil...

I was cleaning my room, looking for the TV remote, thinking, boy this laundry's really gotten out of hand, when I found: 7800GT with a Zalman Fatal1ty heatsink, Seasonic S12 500W, Cooler Master CM Media 281, and an IDE to USB adapter. I should do laundry more often. I still haven't found the remote.

Actually, I'm disappointed with my laptop's fan. It has a 40mm blower that ticks, frequently; the AC is on, because it's the summer, but it gets annoying late at night when I've got everything shut off except my fingers. I've measured the space, and I can fit a 60mm regular fan in there, and assumin...

You can probably get someone in the US, like maybe a SPCR forum goon, to buy one from Newegg and ship it to you, as long as you're willing to pay for everything.

I wouldn't use glue, unless you use real TIM on the center of the die and super-glue at the corners. Thermal epoxy is about as conductive as regular epoxy, only it doesn't hold nearly as well. I'd go to the hardware store with the CPU heatsink bracket to gauge the spacing right, and find a way to fi...

Is it, uhm, filthy? Funk can fuck up fans; finely feathered fuzz is a fair-weather friend at best, face, er, falue.

Should I say that I don't think your temps are bad? Yes, they're high, but you have a lot of computer in that machine. You're also overclocking. . . I mean, you can always pick up a Thermalright 120 Ultra. They're almost as good as watercooling. Or hey, you can get a Gigabyte Galaxy 3D II, they're e...

I like checkers more than chess. There's something about it that strikes me as checkers being a little more complicated. I've heard the statement bandied about by checkers fanatics, too, but I sometimes wonder how true it is. In any case, this goes to show that it is at least 100% matched, no matter...

And right this moment they're selling low-power, passive, low-profile video cards.

http://www.woot.com/Default.aspx

Oh yeah, and I use 64-bit Vista wherever possible. I have not noticed any drawbacks.

I wanted to ask a question about Vista, though. Why use it now? XP can do everything and is cheaper (ebay), isn't it? Well, you can find OEM versions of both from Newegg for about $140, and I wouldn't trust eBay for something like licensing. But that is neither here nor there, as the important poin...

Lawl, it says in my post. I'm using the Zalman VF700-Cu...

That's, like, the second time in two days that I've done that. I must be dying or something.

Heat is never an issue unless it impacts stability. In the case of ICs like southbridges, which are probably 130nm parts, they can run freakin' hot. People are often alarmed at how hot their chipsets get, but unless you're overclocking or actually seeing the system crash, the heat isn't worth your c...

Thermaltake Mozart TX is an incredible piece of shit.

http://www.thetechlounge.com/article/32 ... nter+Case/

Yeah. Other stock sticky stuff removers are: rubbing alcohol denatured alcohol (these solve different goo, so you should try both) lighter fluid citric acid goo remover (like GooGone, but careful with this on, it can dissolve some plastics) penetrating oil (WD-40) acetone (also dissolves many plasti...

Yeah, Creative and NVIDIA don't know how to code drivers for Vista. The hardware works, but not as well as it does in XP. It's not a x64 thing, it's just the companies' shortcoming. Realtek isn't great with their Vista drivers, but at least the things don't pop and scratch. I'd be likely to stick to...