DescentBB

Getting back on topic.....how's your machine coming along?

Well, i am really low on budget right now. I'd have to wait roughly a month in order to purchase this:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6820211066

The other stuff would include this:
OS
Vid card

Maybe this one:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6814150171

I maybe forgetting something.

EDIT: Ahh, yes. Thermal paste

Krom wrote:I just recently got a notebook PC, standard no big frills (except the 17.1" screen). AMD X2 1.8 GHz, 1 GB RAM, 160 GB 5400 RPM drive, Geforce Go 7600. Unfortunately it came with Vista loaded on it, I was rather appalled when it took almost an hour to sort it's crap out and boot for the first time. And further appalled when it still took more than 3 minutes to boot normally even after I removed Norton Internet Insecurity. Even without running Aero it was sluggish on almost everything, even the graphical clock gadget would sometimes miss a tick or two. And it was Vista 32 bit, didn't even have any of the advantages.

It took a couple hours to format the drive and install XP Professional and dig up all the relevant drivers, now it boots in under one minute. And runs like a real machine, does everything I want with no hassle. It even gives several of the desktops around a serious run for their money.

I hate to go off-topic again, but it might help his decisions about the OS.

I basically have the same laptop now, just with a lesser hard disk, and minus the GeForce Go 7600. Almost an hour to boot?!?! Three minutes?! Something is seriously wrong either with you or the manufacturer of your computer. =P Mine only took a few minutes to get all its junk together and boot the first time, and now it boots fast, within maybe 15 seconds or so. o_O I doubt there's something wrong with you, so maybe you should talk to the manufacturer. =P ^_~

Oh, by the way. Aggressor Prime is right about one thing, at least: if you do decide to get Vista, don't get Home Premium. Get Vista Ultimate. There are just so many things that Home Premium can't do. And you'll be shortchanged in the end when you need those features. Inability to put your computer on a domain, no Encrypting File System, etc. Microsoft always does that, though. They release lesser versions of their OSes, and the users who don't know any better buy them and get shortchanged in the end. That was me when I switched to XP from 98. =P At least this time around, all of the versions of their OS support multi-cores. >_<

XP Home supports dual-core systems. It doesn't support dual-processor systems, though. (Yes there is a difference, arbitrary as it may seem.)

Are you sure? I've heard that it only supports two virtual processors (i.e., Hyper-Threading)

(to the original poster) BTW, I just had a problem where I needed to hide stuff from the admin. =P The Home editions (and starter edition) won't let you do that. Just about everyone in this house has the admin password, so I had to use WinZip for cryin' out loud. =P

Speaking about dual processors. I've heard there is an adapter that you can put two actual processors on to actually double what you would have performance wise. Sure beats overclocking without all of the risks.

Neo wrote:Are you sure? I've heard that it only supports two virtual processors (i.e., Hyper-Threading)

(to the original poster) BTW, I just had a problem where I needed to hide stuff from the admin. =P The Home editions (and starter edition) won't let you do that. Just about everyone in this house has the admin password, so I had to use WinZip for cryin' out loud. =P

i have a link somewhere ( ill have to find it, its from another forum i visit ) that allows you to get the same features as Pro in the Home edition.

EDIT: Here we go:

how to set File Security. Unfortunally this only applies to Windows 2000pro/XP pro systems.
XP Home Edition also has this function, but it is hidden, thus requiring you to boot into safe mode and then log in as 'Administator'.
There is a much more easier way to make sure you got access to the tab without booting and into safemode.
Go to: ftp://ftp.microsoft.com/bussys/winnt/wi ... tools/scm/
Download the SCESP4I.EXE file. Safe it somewhere to your harddrive.
Ones it is download dubbleclick on it and let it extract to a location of your choice. Then right click on the 'setup.inf' and choose install. Let it install and then reboot to let the changes have affect.
Now you can set File Security in XP Home Edition without having to boot into safemode.

cool! now how do I enable the CTRL+Alt+Del required during login again? Isn't it \"control userpasswords2?\"

I got Vista for free and let me tell you, I wont use it even for free.

After installation, it just sat there for over an hour or so thrashing my hard drive to death. Why? I thought installation was supposed to be short and thus the idea that you can start using your computer right away when you were done. BS. Did some research and found out it was System Restore and some other 'helpful' crap which I promptly disabled. Then I proceeded to shut down my computer because I had spent that entire night trying to get a working Vista install in under an hour (which took 3 hours instead) and it was time for sleep. It took a half hour of hard drive thrashing while at the message \"shutting down...\" before I finally got pissed and hit the off button.

Weeks later, I installed Ubuntu on an old computer I had put together from scrap. Up and running in 45 minutes. No thrashing, no memory hemorrhaging, and when I proceeded to shut down the computer, it did so in 30 seconds.

Future proof? Good luck getting all of your ★■◆● to work. While you are playing around with your toy of an OS, actual work will be done by a comparable computer running XP. Good luck, youre gonna need it (and a clue).

Nergen-Ak1-Defender wrote:Speaking about dual processors. I've heard there is an adapter that you can put two actual processors on to actually double what you would have performance wise. Sure beats overclocking without all of the risks.

No such device exists. For starters, alot of motherboards these days have capacitors surrounding the CPU socket. Such a device, if it actually existed, would have to rise above the socket to clear the capacitors (talking about an inch above the socket minimum). THEN it would have to withstand the force put on it by not one, but TWO heavy heatsinks trying to pull it off the motherboard. Thats alot of stress to place on your motherboard. If you went c2d, then the device would not only have to withstand that, but also the force put on it by the mounting system of the stock heatsinks. These suckers pull so hard that they literally warp the motherboard.

I have a question. My MSI motherboard has driver discs. But, the thing is in the manual, it says those drivers are for xp. Would i install those drivers during the vista installation anyway or after vista is installed? because i think i am supposed to install them after the vista installation. I am unsure what i would do here.

I am getting vista 64 anyway, so please do not try to convince me not to purchase vista. There really is no choice for a proprietary operating system. I am not getting am mac ether. I have spent too much on parts anyway so far to be turning around and getting a mac instead.

don't install them. vista should have drivers for your motherboard, if not, get vista drivers from MSI.

what about the audio drivers? That as well?

Correct.

If the driver disk is for XP only... throw it out, Vista and XP drivers are impossibly incompatible, the disk is useless for Vista.

it should.

don't install XP drivers in Vista, period.

I really suggest you bookmark this link.

... wandering around ... still a little off topic ...

Krom wrote:Vista == ME

How very, very true.

Sirius wrote:ME was killed by the subsequent emergence of Windows XP and the competition with Windows 2000, both of which were far better.

Not quite accurate. Yeah, 2000 and XP are way better than ME, but ME was "killed" but it's incompatability with oh so many products used/desired by the very consumers ME was intended for ... along with ME's horrid stability.

Long ago, I lost track of how many people I knew that replaced their ME with Win98SE and never looked back. Win2000 often wasn't a choice for those people. ME was already "dead" before XP was half way through it's beta cycles.

MD-2389 wrote:I really suggest you bookmark this link.

I install these after the the BIOS is configured and the OS is installed? I install these while online right? I think i will download them, put them on disc, then install them when i am ready (to avoid viruses and dangers)

Nergen-Ak1-Defender wrote:

MD-2389 wrote:I really suggest you bookmark this link.

I install these after the the BIOS is configured and the OS is installed? I install these while online right? I think i will download them, put them on disc, then install them when i am ready (to avoid viruses and dangers)

Actually, you're supposed to install the drivers before you format the hard drive.

The question is: can you run Descent on Vista?




I think the answer is no and therefore you must go with XP.

Most accounts agree - Vista has some potentially useful functionality, looks great, blah blah blah. Unfortunately that's not WHY it was released. Vista was released in a cynical bid to secure Microsoft's place as the platform of choice for displaying protected HD content. It's MS's answer to, and attempt to one-up Apple's iTunes.

Interestingly enough, it is my understanding that it is still next-to-impossible to display HD content properly on Vista, as fully HDCP-compliant hardware is rare indeed, not to mention a few eensy little bugs getting in the way.

Of course, once they overcome those hurdles, there is still the fact that all content is transported encrypted from the media, decrypted and then re-encrypted for transport to the display. That really speeds things up I'm sure....

Money! wrote:The question is: can you run Descent on Vista?

I think the answer is no and therefore you must go with XP.

If true, I agree with your analysis as well.

Money! wrote:The question is: can you run Descent on Vista?




I think the answer is no and therefore you must go with XP.

Wrong, Descent runs in Vista.

What is wrong with microsoft? It's too bad linux cannot be an industry standard. Always the proprietary crap in the lead of software and support.

The latest and greatest people... Bought Thermal paste, Memory. The IT Guy said i should put linux on it until i have enough money for vista. I still need A video card and an optical drive.

More pics?

The thermal paste is below the MSI box. The memory is below the CPU cooler. What do you want more pics of?