I am DVD ignorant....

[Axel]

there ain't nothin wrong with an 8 speed CD drive - don't toss it - chances are you'll use it again in this system or in the next PC you build.....

never hurts to have a known good back-up after a lightening strike.......

[ScaryBinary]

I decided it's about time to add some new junk to my computer, and thought a DVD-ROM would be a nice addition (I'm still using an old 8x CD-ROM Drive! I know, I know... http://sysopt.earthweb.com/forum/smile.gif). I'm a little confused, though. Can I just get a drive, or do I also need to buy a decoder card or something? I have an Athlon 500MHz on an Abit KA7 and an Asus V6800 video card, if it matters.

Thanks!

[canit]

To watch it on your monitor all you'll need is a software DVD decoder. However if you want to watch it on your tv you will need a video output from either your video card or a dedicated card. Here's a good DVD site; http://www.digital-digest.com/dvd/index.html

[Szech]

Well, with a powerful processor, you won't need a decoder card, because the processor will be fast enough for a software decoder. I honestly don't know if a 500 Mhz Athlon system is enough... maybe someone else here can give their input. But with a decoder card, I have seen DVDs play smooth on old school 200 Mhz systems. And if you plan on doing anything else while a DVD plays, get the card.

[scourge]

That processor and that vid card will work just fine by themselves. Get a software DVD player (I recommend Cyberlink's PowerDVD 2.55 or higher) and the DVD drive. That's all you'll need. By the way, if you bought that vid card retail it should have come bundled with some DVD player software.

[ScaryBinary]

Yes, the vid card did come with some DVD software and other goodies. I had just seen hardware decoder cards on various sites and wondered if I needed one. I guess I'll just stick with the software for now - I can always get the card later if my system's too slow! Thanks to everyone for the advice.

[jl123]

Well I always thought the purpose of a dvd decoder card was so it can take off stress off your cpu so that you can do other things while watching dvds. Also some video cards have built in dvd decoders.

~Joel