how to

[CaptainHollywood]

There is a web site where they explain step by step how to built a system,iam a neophyte,but i think with some try we can get experience,even if we encounter majour trouble.thanks.

[alan]

forgive me for asking but what is a neophyte?
me just dumb..
ta
alan

[ctaylor]

Building a system is nto all that hard. Just use the installatin manual that goes with the board. Be forewarned that there can be several revisions to the same installation manual so I would use the manual that shipped with the board. Be sure to discharge any static on your hands before touching the processor chip. (This can be done by holding onto the case for a couple of seconds.) Double check all the jumper settings before plugging the power cord into the back of the power supply. If you get confused about how to plug the cables into the back of your hard drive, floppy drive etc, check another computer. Apart from that you should be able to build a machine without any real problems. Older BIOS chips (built into the mother board) require that you explicitly state the geometry of the hard drive (# of cylinders, # of sectors, and # of heads) to be recognized, but newer BIOS chips come with an auto detect capability. The only other thing to note is that some BIOS chips have difficulties seeing a hard drive larger than 520Meg, 2.1 Gig or 8.0 Gig in size. Newer BIOS chips will allow you to overcome these barriers. Hoep this helps.

[ctaylor]

The only othe radvice I can give is to watch the POST screen when you first boot up the PC. make sure that the processor speed displays the speed of the chip. If it shows a number larger or smaller than what the chip was designed for, than you run the risk of damaging the processor chip. Once you get the chip working at its designed MHz rating correctly you can play with overclocking. I wouldl NOT try overclocking the chip until I knew I could get it working correctly as designed. If you do want to overclock, remember to add additional fans inside your case to help dissipate the additional heat.

[socalgal]

Hi CaptainHollywood

Also, check out SysOpt's Guides section:


How to Build Your Own PC

and some other Guides as well.

[CaptainHollywood]

Ok thanks...hehe just...you can laugh at me if you want eheh,i plugged wrong cable onto the cd rom and that made a short cut i think,and my computer died for some days

was a power cable i think,was tinny and black,so i plugged it onto an audio port i think,what do you want...this cable can fit on this little hole. :\

[CaptainHollywood]

When we buy the case,must we buy the power supply or its included on it?

and can i make something wrong,apart a power cable onto an audio device ,(iam just watching for dont make any fatal mistake taht can cost another mb )

P.S this place is cool ,tons of advices

Thanks!

[Tom Pico]

I love building my own -- I started years ago with a 486/33, then a 586/100, then a P166@200, then Celeron 266@400, then a PII 400, now a P3 550E@733. But be prepared for days of frustration.
It is amazing the things that jam you up. Its all very logical, there is always an explanation -- but it can take you (me, anyway) days to figure it out. I can't tell you how many times I've removed and replaced PCI cards (in different slots!), how many times I formatted my hard drive to erase everything and start all over again. Aaaghhh!
Three advices. 1)Don't install you audio card until everything else is working. 2)Keep old video cards to plug in when your new hot card won't even show a POST screen --just to make sure its not the new card causing the problem. 3) Don't put your fist through the monitor -- it won't help.
Frankly, with new PC's costing so little its hard to justify the hours/days it can take to put together your "dream" system.
Once when I was really screwed up, I went out and bought a eMachine Celeron 400 for $475 (Office Depot-w/o monitor) just to be able to get on the net, get advice and download latest drivers, etc. -- also to get my business email!(Of course, being a nut, I upgraded the ram and put in an old VooDoo2 card). I swore then that I was through with "dream" machines. But, well, I couldn't resist a P3 550E@733MHZ, an Abit BE6-II, a Matrox G400 Max, a Diamond Monster MX300 w/ subwoofer and four speakers, a DVD player, 20 gig IBM Deskstar UDMA66 -- there really ought to be an AA for computer junkies.

[catcow]

When you buy a case a standard PSU normally comes with it but it wouldn't hurt to ask before you buy.