My new homebuilt PC is DOA (Dead on Assembly). Athlon dual core with an ASUS motherboard, GeForce 9500 and 2 GB of RAM. It is a barebones kit from Tiger Direct, so I shouldn't have any imcompatible parts. [more inside]
posted by COD on Dec 12, 2009 - 9 answers

My external hard drive has been making some very odd noises for a while and I’m looking for a good replacement. Your input would be appreciated. [more inside]
posted by The Lurkers Support Me in Email on Nov 18, 2009 - 12 answers

Which monitor would you recommend in place of the Apple Cinema Displays which are too expensive?? [more inside]
posted by stevyb on May 5, 2009 - 22 answers

What's the normal lifespan of a wireless router for home use? [more inside]
posted by jon1270 on Jan 7, 2009 - 34 answers

I'm looking for inspiration on how to reduce computer clutter. I run a lot of machines and make them do a lot of cool things, but in a 92sqm apartment where we're also trying to manage massive DVD, magazine, and book libraries, and where my previous work station (which was never all that orderly) has been conquered by my girlfriend's rampaging makeup and sewing stuff, it ain't easy. I want to compartmentalize, organize, and speed up the process of accessing my stuff. Ideas? [more inside]
posted by saysthis on Nov 29, 2008 - 10 answers

How do computer speeds vary with different core counts? Is a twin core 3000 as fast as a single core 6000? What about a quad core? Is there any point in multicore chips for home use and gaming, or does this need fancy threaded software to take advantage of it?
posted by talitha_kumi on Jul 31, 2008 - 11 answers

Is there a website that tests computer hardware like Tom's Hardware does, but publishes comprehensive comparison artilces more regularly? [more inside]
posted by ErWenn on Jun 9, 2008 - 7 answers

I bought a new motherboard and a new video card, and now my computer beeps and won't boot to Windows. Which one is to blame? [more inside]
posted by Who_Am_I on Jun 6, 2008 - 14 answers

I need a skinny, possibly fanless video card for a 1 U server. Linux drivers, PCI Express, very little room for it to live. [more inside]
posted by everichon on Apr 16, 2008 - 7 answers

I’m building my first desktop system in many many years now and getting back up to speed on all the hot topics is taking a while. I’m leaning towards getting the GIGABYTE GA-MA78GM-S2H which is based on the 780G northbridge so it has the integrated graphics with the hybrid crossfire feature (and also is miniATX size and has audio optical out, HDMI…). Review here and here continued... [more inside]
posted by joshgray on Mar 11, 2008 - 4 answers

I have a chance to request a new hardware set up for work (web production). I want to strike a good balance between having good tools to do my work but not asking for way more than I need (I work at a non-profit, and while we are a large non-profit, we are still a non-profit). What should I ask for? Details inside! [more inside]
posted by unsigned on Sep 12, 2007 - 7 answers

BSODFilter: I tried to install a RAM upgrade in my girlfriend's Dell Inspiron 1100 laptop, and got nothing on screen after powerup. So I replaced the old DIMM, and got the BSOD -- the file that was missing was a driver for the Intel video adapter. Long story short, it's still not working. [more inside]
posted by YoungAmerican on Aug 2, 2007 - 10 answers

Does anyone have experiences with Gillware for recovering data from a dead hard drive, aside from user bhance? They are cheaper than the big enterprise-level data recovery companies, but I'd like to see comments from more than one person if possible.
posted by matildaben on Jun 17, 2007 - 3 answers

Looking for GNU or similar idea temperature monitoring software. [more inside]
posted by occidental on Apr 15, 2007 - 6 answers

Can you identify this connector? It's actually for bluetooth in the Mac Pro, but I want to figure out what this 10-pin connector is officially called so that I can buy a male analog of it. [more inside]
posted by floam on Jan 27, 2007 - 16 answers

I want to put a new HDD in an old PC and would like to know how. (But please teach me to fish...) [more inside]
posted by Busy Old Fool on Jan 13, 2007 - 17 answers

I'm looking for a good computer-parts store in or around the DC Metro area; 'good' meaning one that has "junk bins" of parts that can be pawed through, lots of used gear, no salespeople, etc. Specifically not a big-box store. [more inside]
posted by Kadin2048 on Dec 28, 2006 - 6 answers

Shopping for a cheap used laptop: What are the minimum specs I should be looking for with respect to CPU, RAM, HD? I'm planning to use WinXP (maybe I'll settle for 2K), Open Office, and FireFox (including some AJAX-heavy web sites such as gmail, Google Docs, del.icio.us), with a wifi card. And not much else. I want to avoid "I'm always waiting for this stupid slow computer!" but not spend much more than the minimum needed to avoid that.
posted by Leonard of Vince on Dec 18, 2006 - 24 answers

Why is my USB storage device lying to me?? [more inside]
posted by angryjellybean on Dec 17, 2006 - 11 answers

What is the most powerful AGP video card I can use with a 200W power supply? [more inside]
posted by Willie0248 on Nov 22, 2006 - 9 answers

How can I fix my CD-R? [more inside]
posted by gregb1007 on Nov 19, 2006 - 14 answers

My campus has a pile of (maybe 40) dual 1GHz G4 PowerMacs that have reached their "end-of-life". Usually we ship them off to a recycler, but that seems like a sin for what are perfectly good systems. What should be do with them? There's a little bit ... [more inside]
posted by roue on Aug 15, 2006 - 44 answers

My Windows 2000 system has started spontaneously reducing the key-repeat rate and the rate at which windows scroll, slowing each to a crawl. Other weirdness accompanies this. [more inside]
posted by Tubes on Apr 4, 2006 - 9 answers

Building a cheap computer for Civ IV. [more inside]
posted by Tlogmer on Feb 15, 2006 - 17 answers

What do you or your company do regarding physical destruction of hard drives? [more inside]
posted by TuxHeDoh on Feb 3, 2006 - 36 answers

What type of router typically has a gateway of 10.1.9.1, I'm used to seeing the typical router use 192.168.*.* but I'm trying to figure out what routers the local apartment unit is using to run their wireless.
posted by skEwb on Jan 30, 2006 - 18 answers

I'd like to upgrade my 4 year old Dell Dimension 8200 computer, while hopefully getting components that I could use later, should I decide to build a whole new system in a few months. Sadly, I know nearly nothing about computer hardware. [more inside]
posted by Elpoca on Jan 5, 2006 - 23 answers

Help me, a hardware ignoramus, upgrade my computer... [more inside]
posted by deafmute on Nov 29, 2005 - 9 answers

I need to replace the hard drive in a G3 iMac. What type of disc will I need? [more inside]
posted by kenchie on Aug 27, 2005 - 5 answers

Is there a website to quickly get up to speed on the latest computer hardware? [more inside]
posted by TheOnlyCoolTim on Aug 22, 2005 - 7 answers

Where can I get customized USB thumb drives for a good price? [more inside]
posted by jeremias on Aug 1, 2005 - 5 answers

Extremely odd and specific Microsoft Works word processor text entry problem... [more inside]
posted by attercoppe on Aug 1, 2005 - 5 answers

What does is mean when my G3 white iBook's sleep light flashes very quickly when I am either booting up or trying to shut down? [more inside]
posted by yesno on Jul 31, 2005 - 5 answers

My DVD-ReWritable drive and my regular ol' CD-Rom drive are all of a sudden not working anymore. They worked fine last night, but now the computer doesn't even see them to list them. [more inside]
posted by NoMich on Jul 24, 2005 - 18 answers

A tech support survey: [more inside]
posted by mic stand on Jul 22, 2005 - 11 answers

My Powerbook (15" G4 1.25 Ghz) is criminally hot. Temperature Monitor reports that my Processor/Controller Bottomside temp. is 140°F, Power Supply Bottomside is 142.2°F, Battery is 95°F, and my Hard Disk is 104°F. The metal bottom of the "laptop" is too hot to touch for more than a moment. Is this reasonable? Is my computer broken? [MI] [more inside]
posted by maniactown on May 12, 2005 - 29 answers

Out of boredom, I have decided to cobble together a bare-bones computer (read: pile of wires and parts on a desk). Something seems to be atwitter with the BIOS on the motherboard, and it won't progress beyond the standard bios screen. We are not talking anything life threatening, just the end of my boredom buster, but does anyone know how I might identify the motherboard, and prod the BIOS back to life?
posted by potch on Mar 30, 2005 - 3 answers

I have a Pioneer DVD-ROM drive and it was quite good at playing DVDs. I didn't use it for playing movies for a long while and eventually installed a DVD-burner (Pioneer too, actually). Now I can't play movies on my original DVD-ROM drive. It just spits them back out with an unceremonious "No Disc Detected". Data discs, even burned DVD-Rs work fine, as I use the drive for my main drive. Playing them on the burner works fine. Is this copy protection at work or just a strange coincidence? [MI] [more inside]
posted by ontic on Jan 29, 2005 - 10 answers

My PC resets whenever I boot from power-off state. [MI] [more inside]
posted by XQUZYPHYR on Dec 6, 2004 - 16 answers

What software/hardware do you use in creating mashups? [more inside]
posted by buriednexttoyou on Dec 4, 2004 - 7 answers

Remember when AskMe was all about product recommendations? Everything old is new again. What's a good portable music player that supports ogg files and works, officially or not, with Linux? [more inside]
posted by kenko on Nov 29, 2004 - 8 answers

Let's say you had a wooden box you wanted to turn into a PC case. Where would you buy a metal 5.25" bay assembly? I'm talking about a U-shaped piece of flat metal that will screw onto the wood box wherein a couple of drives can be mounted. There's just way too much noise in Google on this one. Thanks!
posted by scarabic on Nov 19, 2004 - 7 answers

Plextor CD-R - Copying files to harddrive sloooowwwws computer way down. [mi] [more inside]
posted by pissfactory on Nov 1, 2004 - 3 answers

Printers: I am looking at photo printers and have pretty much narrowed it down to the Canon i9900 and the Epson Stylus Photo 2200. Which should I choose? (Output continues inside) [more inside]
posted by TedW on Oct 29, 2004 - 2 answers

I've been told the computer hardware industry is based on holding back the release of existing technologies so that people upgrade in small increments. Is this true? If so, wouldn't the first company to break the rule get a chance to dominate the market? Is there some kind of backroom deal going on?
posted by Pretty_Generic on Oct 11, 2004 - 9 answers

I have and Nvidia GeForce2 MX/Mx 400 64Mb video card and work a lot in AutoCAD and 3DSMax 6 in 3d.
I understand there is a software patch that allows you to trick the card into thinking it's a higher end card (Optima, I believe) and taking advantage of the 3ds-specific drivers made by Nvidia, without cracking the case, soldering anything, etc.
Does anybody have any experience doing this kind of thing? I am using XP Pro, 0.5 Gb, 1.5 Ghz.
posted by signal on Sep 8, 2004 - 3 answers

My old PC (Celeron 466, 128 MB RAM) died after many years of loyal service. I inherited a gutted computer case (mother board, power source, a Pentium III processor, nothing else.) Can I cannibalize my old PC for parts to build a new computer? More inside... [more inside]
posted by zaelic on Jul 29, 2004 - 12 answers

LaptopRepairFilter: I need to remove the bezel on a Fujitsu Lifebook C-series (C-6530) to measure and replace the cold cathode lamps that have failed. I've Googled off and on for a few months now, looking for service or dis-assembly manuals, with no love to be found. (Much more inside) [more inside]
posted by loquacious on Jul 28, 2004 - 3 answers

Strange sounds from my computer: a beep, followed by a click, followed by a beep. Not at startup, but while I'm booted into Linux (but not Windows!). [more inside]
posted by mr_roboto on Jul 25, 2004 - 4 answers

VCD headaches. I used to be able to burn VCDs (or super VCDs) that would play on multiple DVD players until recently. Its not the drive as I've tried two different ones. I'm suspecting the media. Anyone know who makes good blank CDRs nowadays? Or if there's a brand that is DVD player friendly? [more inside]
posted by skallas on Jul 19, 2004 - 10 answers