Troubleshooting Computer woes

Computer woes

I just came back from a very bad disappointment at the electronics store. I finally had enough money saved up to get a ATI 9600. However, it turns out that my Compaq Presario 6330, despite it's Pentium 4 CPU 2.00GHz and 766MB RAM, with an 80gb hard drive doesn't have a AGP port (only PCI ports). Right now it has an : Intel 82845G/GL Graphics Controller which I figured was just not up to snuff for playing the game. But they told me that they don't even have any PCI port cards that would be helpful. And of course, I can't afford to buy a new computer (or a new motherboard with the appropriate AGP port).

Any ideas?

 

One thought is save up a bit more and just disassemble the Compaq (strip it to its bare parts) and reassemble it into a new system.

 

Computer woes

Unfortunately, they said I'd need a completely different motherboard because the PCI ports are hardwired to it. I don't know enough about computers to know what can be stripped and what can't. Can the processor and hard drive be removed and a new motherboard substituted? (If so, then I could save up some if it's not too much and just keep the video card I bought.) How much do motherboards cost?

Wouldn't you know it, this durn thing is just a year old. If I had only known...

 

CPU and memory should generally be salvagable. Same with the hard drive. Motherboards can be changed, but remember you will also need to get a new case. Generally you would be getting a brand new system.

Other things that should be salvagable... like Optical Drive, monitor, keyboard.

 

Computer woes

That's essentially what I thought. I guess I'll just have to start saving again...

Thanks for your help, Josh!

 

Update

It looks like I can get an Asylum Geoforce FX5200 256 which will work with a PCI card. It won't render things quite as fast, but it's less expensive than the ATI 9600 that I wanted and I won't have to essentially get a new computer to run it. So, I'll make do with that until I can afford a whole new system. (In a few years I may have more money and the computers will be better by then. I'm trying to think philosophically about this.)

 

Well you could wait a bit. There's a whole line of technology that will be coming out in May that will slash prices a lot.

I think maybe for about 600 dollars, I think I can arrange for a brand new computer and it comes with a powerful video card .

 

Computer Woes, redux

I'm thinking I might just wait. I thought that they had already released the new cards, but from what you are saying it's not until next month.

I'm also getting very confused. My gaming friends are saying that if I can't get a computer that I could probably make do for a while with a Asylum Geoforce Fx5200 256. (The 128 sounds kind of wimpy, though.) However, Snooty was saying that the FX5200 was consistently outperformed by one of the ones I was told was very lowend. (Was it the 128 that Snooty was referring to?)

My husband is looking at me like "honey, we just don't have the money for a new computer no matter what." (He did give me permission for the $200 ATI card, but I knew that was pushing it. I'm the one who sends out the bills so I what our outgo is and what we have that's spendable.)

But still, I'm curious: what kind of system were you talking about?

 

PCI-Express should be out this month as you can visit sites like http://www.nvidia.com and http://www.ati.com they are all talking about it.

I've already called around a few Tier 1 Distribution companies and prices are starting to drop already.

I strongly suggest avoiding investing now and wait a bit later to invest into a better system. This way you don't have to spend money twice.

 

Computer redux

Thankyou, Josh. I think I'll take your advice. It's hard waiting (especially since I've been trying to learn MayaPPL right now and I'm rather concerned about what's going to happen when I get to the rendering stage.) But another month at least is not going to be that bad. (I need to do my reading first anyway. And I'm hoping to get the workbook tutorial for it rather than the "textbook" I have.)

Again, thankyou.

 

I'm hoping to learn Maya myself.. I really hope I get some time off my busy schedule to do it. And No Problem

 

Maya

I haven't seen anything like that in the Maya textbook I have, but it's for beginner/intermediate level. So, it might have something like that but just not that is my book.

There are several books on the alias website. If you don't already have the site, it's: http://www.alias.com/eng/index.shtml

There is a beginner's workbook/tutorial that I want to get. It's only $20 (before tax and shipping) but it comes with MayaPPL (if you don't already have it.) I have _The Art of Maya_ which is a textbook, which I thought was a "coffee table book" when I bought it. Lots of pretty pictures of what Maya can do. But it has MayaPPL on a disc too. But I'd like to have the tutorial which takes you step by step through the process to get me started.

In one of the chats the arts guys were talking about Maya vs Gmax, but they didn't say anything about an interface. But there are some little things I've noticed in reading the textbook where it hints that you can use other programs with it. (Just doesn't say specifically how to do it.)