OT - Need Some PC Advice

[Xrati]

AT, not all the reviews at Eggheads are included in the product descriptions. There are many products that work great , BUT because people have no problem with them they never come back to post a "Thank You" or "Good Product" report. People always get pissed and write, when they have problems. Soooooo just take that with a grain of salt and look for the few complaints and read what actually happened. Just as your mobo was replaced by ASUS (which I also use) other manufacturers are also very good about taking care of their customers. As competition in the industry gets tougher, these companies want to mkae sure you look at their products next time your going to purchase!
Get the mobo that best fits the system you currently have.

Make sure you update the drivers for the board. WinXP should have no problems with configuring itself with the new mobo. Just be prepared to wait, while XP refreshes its registry files.

[Atrocities]

Thanks man. I will let you know how it goes.

[Xrati]

Yea, let me know how it works out. REMEMBER to use ESD proceedures so you don't fry your board!!!
Gotta wonder how many people who write about component problems did that and blame the manufacturer for their carelessness. This is what I'm talking about when I say to 'read the bad reviews' and find out what the actual problem could have been... I've purchased a couple of 'problem products' (customer reviews) from Eggheads and because I use proper care when installing them, I've had no problems.

[dumbluck]

Esd?

[Xrati]

Electro Static Discharge A small electric discharge into a component you're handling. They can be so tiny you won't even know or feel them, BUT your electrical equipment will. Especially like a processor or a mobo.

[Atrocities]

I got the new board today. I haven't had a chance to pull it out of the packaging yet but will do it later.

ESD - will do.

Make sure you update the drivers for the board.

Um what did you mean by this? And how would I do it?

[Xrati]

Check the ASUS site and then check for the latest drivers for your chipset on the mobo and for the mobo itself (this may be on an installation disk with the board, just check for current versions). Look for any processor drivers also (may not need one)! Download anything you find (related to your mobo, processor and chipset) and put it in storage, just incase you need to update later.

Good luck AT and remember to have fun. If you don't have ESD strap or gloves, make sure you ground yourself on the power supply (power off) by touching it frequently...