The General "Computer Issues" Thread

[defunctzombie]

I thought it was the heatsink because this part used to clip there:

[xspoiler=big picture]

[/xspoiler]

The processor is held down like normal, but the heatsink just sits on top of it because of the broken tab. I thought it would be repairable, but it's a slow pc and I'm not out much if it's broken.

 

[En Sabah Nur]

I thought it was the heatsink because this part used to clip there:

[xspoiler=big picture]

[/xspoiler]

The processor is held down like normal, but the heatsink just sits on top of it because of the broken tab. I thought it would be repairable, but it's a slow pc and I'm not out much if it's broken.

Are you sure? A Heat sink (intel) has 2 big black clips on ether side of it, the small metal clip on the mobo is for the cpu only.

The processor is held down like normal

define normal? what holds the cpu in place?

 

[defunctzombie]

define normal? what holds the cpu in place?

That little slide bar that you pull up to take the celeron out? Honestly I am puzzled when it comes to that computer. The insides don't look at all like the one I am using now. The one I am on now has the black clips. Not that broken one. That heatsink I am holding is the only thing on top of the cpu. The only thing black is the fan stuck on top of it.

 

[En Sabah Nur]

That little slide bar that you pull up to take the celeron out? Honestly I am puzzled when it comes to that computer. The insides don't look at all like the one I am using now. The one I am on now has the black clips. Not that broken one. That heatsink I am holding is the only thing on top of the cpu. The only thing black is the fan stuck on top of it.

oh, ok i just started to remember the days of celerons. lol sorry. Yea you are right, cpu was held down by the slide lock and the heat sink was held down by the metal clip. in that case, you are back to square one, 3rd party heat sinks will not fit that board, they are designed for heatsings that have 2 black clips and a black frame atached to the motherboard. You would have to remove that frame out in order to use the same holes to put the new heatsink in, you your connections are too out of date, it wont fit sorry. Changing your mobo,and RAM, and CPU and your power suppy (new power supplies have 24 pin power connectors vs 20 pins as before) is the only way.

 

[defunctzombie]

It's okay. I only use that pc to hold files anyway.

 

[PowerZord]

Most likely the its the power issue. the times it happens, do you usually head the normal windows sounds when it starts up? Does your keyboard lights blink when you pressthe power button? It cant be he monitor because your keyboard does the same thing, it cant be the video card because your keyboard would not be afected. It could be your HDD (unlikely) and it could be your power supply (very likely and an easy fix). Power suppy might be giving out and not sending enough juice to all the pc components needed to POST correctly. By cycling power (turning the pc on and off) it might push enough power to start it. How many watt is your Power Suppy?Before getting a new one, there are power suppy testers out there (usually under $30) that can diagnose the problem if its the power suppy.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16899705003

Can't hear the windows sounds. Only hear the components running(Like the processor and stuff) The keyboard doesn't blink sometimes when the problem happens.

 

[En Sabah Nur]

Can't hear the windows sounds. Only hear the components running(Like the processor and stuff) The keyboard doesn't blink sometimes when the problem happens.

Sounds like your power supply is failing. You need your Power supply tested.

 

[Mynd Hed]

do a simple fix, run an 3.5mm extension cords from the back of your pc (both mic and audio) to your pc table, that way you will have easy access to switch between devises easily and the ports wil be easily accessible. You can get those extensions in any electronic store, radio shack, pc store. And they are usually under $10. If you want to order them online, chose between these: (these are 6ft, but longer are available)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16882021050
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16882123078
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16882339036

Yeah, there's always that option. My desk just doesn't need any extra cord clutter is all. (-: Well, I ordered a front panel dealie (at something like fifteen bucks, the real extra cost is in the hassle of installing it, not in the money) so we'll see how that works. I can always run out to the store and buy some extender cords if it's too much trouble getting it working.

 

[En Sabah Nur]

Yeah, there's always that option. My desk just doesn't need any extra cord clutter is all. (-: Well, I ordered a front panel dealie (at something like fifteen bucks, the real extra cost is in the hassle of installing it, not in the money) so we'll see how that works. I can always run out to the store and buy some extender cords if it's too much trouble getting it working.

well i would think that getting 2 cords would be cheaper and simpler, not to mention faster, and you can rum them where its convenient for you, so you don't have to reach to your pc front panel all the time. BTW can you link the product you got?

 

[Mynd Hed]

well i would think that getting 2 cords would be cheaper and simpler, not to mention faster, and you can rum them where its convenient for you, so you don't have to reach to your pc front panel all the time. BTW can you link the product you got?

Oh yeah, definitely cheaper and simpler, but I use my computer enough (and swap what's connected to my audio port enough) that I don't mind going to a little extra trouble for what will hopefully be a better long-term solution. Well, we'll see.

I'd post a link, but Amazon seems to be down right now (that happens sometimes when you're up at four in the morning-- that seems to be when lots of sites do their maintenance). I'll edit it into this post tomorrow if I remember to.

It's just a generic brand front panel, but it combines a multi-card reader, audio ports, a couple extra USB ports, and I think FireWire too (not sure, I don't own any FireWire devices so that feature's not important to me).

Edit:

Here's the link for anyone who's still interested.

I got it installed in about half an hour, including booting up my girlfriend's computer to get on the Asus web site and find the PDF manual for my motherboard so I could figure out what the heck I just unplugged from it by accident and where to plug it back in (turned out to be the reset switch and power light) and removing and then replacing a PCI card that was in the way of USB cords. Other than that, no issues so far (although I haven't tried out all the functions yet.)

The important thing is that I now have working front panel audio connectors again. Music sounds like liquid sex compared to the tinny distorted left-channel-only sound I've been putting up with from my busted ports for the last couple days.

Also, my mobo is now almost completely maxed out: all the USB, IDE, and SATA ports are full, and there's only one PCI slot left. And my case has no free external drive bays and only one free internal. Yay? (-: Well, at least I can say I'm not paying for features I never use.

I like that the three USB ports are very widely spaced. My case had two built-in front-panel USB ports, but they're RIGHT close together so certain larger USB devices will block the adjacent port.

Don't know when I'll have occasion to use the eSATA port, but I went ahead and hooked it up anyway since my mobo had a free slot and you never know when it might come in handy. I suppose someday when I have money I might spring for an external terabyte drive. The TB and change that I already have internally would be massive for most people, but since I do so much video editing it's just barely enough.

 

[HellCat]

Whilst moving my laptop just now, I found that a part had broken off the right hinge. It seems to have been held in place by 3 short black rods which end in a thin plastic disc and for some reason the discs have snapped off. I can very roughly put the piece back, but obviously can't adjust the screen without coming off. Obviously this is a problem as without these piece, the internals of the monitor section are exposed

http://i594.photobucket.com/albums/tt30/HC86/P1000342.jpg

What's the safest way to fix this? I'm assuming I'd be best taking it to a repair place.

(Please don't reply to say 'Just get rid of it' because that isn't an option for me. It's the only computer in the house, I'm unemployed and we're still paying for this one)

 

[Shawn Hopkins]

My cousin recently gave me an old Dell Dimension 2400. It's old and was a budget computer even when it was released, I know, but it was a big upgrade from my eight-year-old HP Pavillion that I hav to make four attempts at starting before sucessfully getting it to start once.

What I have is what's in the picture, except with a CRT monitor, less memory and I think a smaller hard drive. The processor is a 2.4 ghz Celeron that runs slower than than the 1.73 ghz Pentium M in my laptop. Why is that, are there considerations other than the listed speed?

http://reviews.cnet.com/Dell_Dimension_2400/4505-3118_7-30824846.html

http://support.dell.com/support/edocs/systems/dim2400/en/sm_en/specs.htm

I'm wondering if there are some cheap things I could do to make this computer run Web sites, especially Hulu, a little zippier. I have no delusions about playing Crysis on it. I've already decided to spend about $50 giving it another gig of Ram, but I'm not sure what kind. I'm also not sure what to do with the 256 megs it already has, would that need to be taken out or could it run along with a one gig stick?

Anything else I could do for cheaper than just going out and getting a new budget PC? Keep in mind that the Dimension only has PCI slots, so getting a cheap AGP video card is out. Right now it has 64 megs of integrated Intel Extreme graphics memory. My Pavilion had integrated Intel graphics and I could not figure out how to get it to play nice with the PCI graphics cards I tried to install in it, everything ran more stuttery with the new cards than it did on the integrated graphics.

The only card I've looked at so far is this, which appears to be the most popular one on Amazon for vanilla PCI:

http://www.amazon.com/EVGA-256-P1-N400-LR-GeForce-6200-Graphics/dp/B001U3YIT0/ref=dp_ob_title_ce

 

[En Sabah Nur]

My cousin recently gave me an old Dell Dimension 2400. It's old and was a budget computer even when it was released, I know, but it was a big upgrade from my eight-year-old HP Pavillion that I hav to make four attempts at starting before sucessfully getting it to start once.

What I have is what's in the picture, except with a CRT monitor, less memory and I think a smaller hard drive. The processor is a 2.4 ghz Celeron that runs slower than than the 1.73 ghz Pentium M in my laptop. Why is that, are there considerations other than the listed speed?

http://reviews.cnet.com/Dell_Dimension_2400/4505-3118_7-30824846.html

http://support.dell.com/support/edocs/systems/dim2400/en/sm_en/specs.htm

I'm wondering if there are some cheap things I could do to make this computer run Web sites, especially Hulu, a little zippier. I have no delusions about playing Crysis on it. I've already decided to spend about $50 giving it another gig of Ram, but I'm not sure what kind. I'm also not sure what to do with the 256 megs it already has, would that need to be taken out or could it run along with a one gig stick?

Anything else I could do for cheaper than just going out and getting a new budget PC? Keep in mind that the Dimension only has PCI slots, so getting a cheap AGP video card is out. Right now it has 64 megs of integrated Intel Extreme graphics memory. My Pavilion had integrated Intel graphics and I could not figure out how to get it to play nice with the PCI graphics cards I tried to install in it, everything ran more stuttery with the new cards than it did on the integrated graphics.

The only card I've looked at so far is this, which appears to be the most popular one on Amazon for vanilla PCI:

http://www.amazon.com/EVGA-256-P1-N400-LR-GeForce-6200-Graphics/dp/B001U3YIT0/ref=dp_ob_title_ce

There is not much you can do to upgrade your celeron pc. Its simply too old. If you do decide yo get more RAM, take the old one out to remove compatibility issues, and make sure the new ram has the same specs, including the speed. You can try to see if you can find a cheapo celeron cpu thats faster than yours but thats a long shot. Hulu needs a decent graphics card to play, not to mention a better cpu. Getting more RAM is not a problem, but the chance of it being a major improvement is slim. You might need a new budget pc, or if you want portability, the new Netbooks are really cheap, under $400.

 

[En Sabah Nur]

Whilst moving my laptop just now, I found that a part had broken off the right hinge. It seems to have been held in place by 3 short black rods which end in a thin plastic disc and for some reason the discs have snapped off. I can very roughly put the piece back, but obviously can't adjust the screen without coming off. Obviously this is a problem as without these piece, the internals of the monitor section are exposed

http://i594.photobucket.com/albums/tt30/HC86/P1000342.jpg

What's the safest way to fix this? I'm assuming I'd be best taking it to a repair place.

(Please don't reply to say 'Just get rid of it' because that isn't an option for me. It's the only computer in the house, I'm unemployed and we're still paying for this one)

assuming gluing it back is not an option, how bad is it without it? is the laptop workable without it? Or is the screen in danger of breaking off?

 

[Shawn Hopkins]

There is not much you can do to upgrade your celeron pc. Its simply too old. If you do decide yo get more RAM, take the old one out to remove compatibility issues, and make sure the new ram has the same specs, including the speed. You can try to see if you can find a cheapo celeron cpu thats faster than yours but thats a long shot. Hulu needs a decent graphics card to play, not to mention a better cpu. Getting more RAM is not a problem, but the chance of it being a major improvement is slim. You might need a new budget pc, or if you want portability, the new Netbooks are really cheap, under $400.

There's a Pentium 4 version of the Dimension 2400. Why wouldn't a Pentium 4 work in mine? You can get those online for $50.

http://www.google.com/products/cata..._catalog_result&ct=result&resnum=2#ps-sellers

Can you give me a better explanation of why I should ditch the old RAM? Seems like a waste.

Also, I've read that most of the netbooks, even ones with the Intel Atom processor are laggy with Hulu in fullscreen and trying to play HD on them is just sad, so I might wait for them to speed up a bit before I make the plunge. I just bought a $300 Netbook, but that was for my mom.

I would love to have a netbook with HDMI as sort of an Internet TV server that I could hook to my HDTV and play Hulu, Netflix on Demand and various network video sites like CN video through, though. I do that sometimes now with my laptop, but it's my work computer so I can't just leave it connected.

 

[HellCat]

assuming gluing it back is not an option, how bad is it without it? is the laptop workable without it? Or is the screen in danger of breaking off?

The computer works without it, but without it there there's a big gap leading up from the support to the inside of the monitor where dust and such can enter.
I don't think glueing it is an option because I believe it's designed to be free moving slightly as the monitor half is adjusted.

 

[En Sabah Nur]

There's a Pentium 4 version of the Dimension 2400. Why wouldn't a Pentium 4 work in mine? You can get those online for $50.

http://www.google.com/products/cata..._catalog_result&ct=result&resnum=2#ps-sellers

You have to absolutely sure that the P4 cpu is compatible with your mobo, you have to go into your mobo specs or find it online to see if it supports your cpu, otherwise, even if your cpu socket fits P4, you can burn out your cpu and your mobo. Sure the Dimension has the P4 variant, but it can be using a different mobo insde.

Can you give me a better explanation of why I should ditch the old RAM? Seems like a waste.

Sure, RAM is notorious for its incompatibility with anything other than what you have there now. Different brand, speed, everything can throw it off. Heck I have seen RAm didnt play together even though they were the same brand, same specs and clock speed. You are better off taking out the old and putting in the new to save yourself a headace.

 

[En Sabah Nur]

The computer works without it, but without it there there's a big gap leading up from the support to the inside of the monitor where dust and such can enter.
I don't think glueing it is an option because I believe it's designed to be free moving slightly as the monitor half is adjusted.

Yea i figured as much, it seems like your only option is to take it to get repaired ( costly) because its a cosmetic job, not a PC hardware job. I don't know what you can do besides that. Its not something you can get a replacement on.

 

[Zack]

http://i594.photobucket.com/albums/tt30/HC86/P1000342.jpg

Is that a Compaq Presario? 'Cause it looks exactly like my laptop.

I do several problems with my laptop. A light which comes from inside the monitor is always shining whenever I'm doing something. It's distracting and I have no idea how it happened and how to get rid of it. And a hinge in the same laptop came loose and I have no idea how to push it back in.

 

[Shawn Hopkins]

You have to absolutely sure that the P4 cpu is compatible with your mobo, you have to go into your mobo specs or find it online to see if it supports your cpu, otherwise, even if your cpu socket fits P4, you can burn out your cpu and your mobo. Sure the Dimension has the P4 variant, but it can be using a different mobo insde.

Sure, RAM is notorious for its incompatibility with anything other than what you have there now. Different brand, speed, everything can throw it off. Heck I have seen RAm didnt play together even though they were the same brand, same specs and clock speed. You are better off taking out the old and putting in the new to save yourself a headace.

How do you change RAM? Just take it out and put in the new one? Closest I've ever come to this is accidentally knocking mine loose in my Pavilion once.