Posts by Eku

Thanks, jdekker.
Yep, the RAM issue is concerning - I'd read about that in the reviews. The sticks I bought don't appear exactly on the QVL list from Asus - they left out the "TWIN" part of the designation - but Corsair PC2 6400 does appear in the list. My previous mobo choice was the Foxconn C51XEM2AA...I'm really not sure why I switched, other than the Asus name and the fact that some of the gaming comp companies use the Asus board.

greets, all
I'm awaiting the delivery of my first ground-up PC build, and I wanted to post here to get some pre-help...basically, I just want to know if anyone here has run into problems with any of these components' compatablility, or known issues with the build, so I don't waste a lot of time and $'s. (And, keep in mind, I've purchased this stuff, so comments like "dude, you shoulda checked out the xxxx mobo, it rocks way better than that piece of crap" are not very helpful.:P And yes, I know about the summer price cuts that will change the world; I needed to get this computer up and running last week, so I couldn't wait for the Phenom, or for the Intel quad core to become so cheap that it's the free prize in a box of cereal.) I've posted in the motherboards et al section only because there isn't a "system builds" section here; seemed like the appropriate place, since the mobo/cpu/ram combo is really the heart of the system. OK, here goes:

CPU: AMD Athlon 64 X2 6000+ Windsor 3.0GHz
MOBO: ASUS M2N32-SLI Deluxe Wireless Edition
RAM: 2x CORSAIR XMS2 2GB DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400)
PSU: SILVERSTONE SST-ST75ZF ATX 12V 2.2 & EPS 12V 750W
V-CARD: EVGA 320-P2-N815-AR GeForce 8800GTS 320MB
CASE: LIAN LI PC-61 USB Black Aluminum ATX Mid Tower
HD 1: Western Digital Raptor WD1500ADFD 150GB 10,000 RPM
HD 2: Western Digital Caviar …

Yes, mark it solved. Thanks for your help!

Did the HJT, did the deletion. Internet seems to be running along great. I did notice when I deleted the .exe you mentioned, there were two other files next to it with the same icon called alcrmv.exe and alcupd.exe (the icons look like blue crabs.) Was the one I deleted a spoof of these files, or are they relatives of the ALCXMNTR?

Afterward, I did a scan with Norton, and here's what he found:

2/22/2006 7:22:23 PM,Virus scanner,Dialer.DialPlatform,Manually deleted,File,N/A,N/A,200602150006,10.0.1.13,Default,MAIN,",Threat category: DialerSource: C:\Documents and Settings\Parents\Local Settings\Temp\bnlncpmd.exe,Description: The file C:\Documents and Settings\Parents\Local Settings\Temp\bnlncpmd.exe is a Dialer threat."
2/22/2006 7:22:23 PM,Virus scanner,Dialer.DialPlatform,Manually deleted,File,N/A,N/A,200602150006,10.0.1.13,Default,MAIN,",Threat category: DialerSource: C:\Documents and Settings\Parents\Local Settings\Temp\kiojppmd.exe,Description: The file C:\Documents and Settings\Parents\Local Settings\Temp\kiojppmd.exe is a Dialer threat."
2/22/2006 7:22:23 PM,Virus scanner,Adware.Istbar,Manually deleted,File,N/A,N/A,200602150006,10.0.1.13,Default,MAIN,",Threat category: AdwareSource: C:\Documents and Settings\Parents\Local Settings\Temporary Internet Files\Content.IE5\VSG8T1F2\init[1].js,Description: The file C:\Documents and Settings\Parents\Local Settings\Temporary Internet Files\Content.IE5\VSG8T1F2\init[1].js is a Adware threat."
2/22/2006 7:22:23 PM,Virus scanner,Adware.IEPlugin,Manually deleted,File,N/A,N/A,200602150006,10.0.1.13,Default,MAIN,",Threat category: AdwareSource: C:\Documents and Settings\Parents\Local Settings\Temporary Internet Files\Content.IE5\O12VKPIR\webplugin[1].cab,Description: The file C:\Documents and Settings\Parents\Local Settings\Temporary Internet Files\Content.IE5\O12VKPIR\webplugin[1].cab is a Adware threat."

As you can see, I deleted the four files Norton found. Then, just to be thorough, I rebooted and did a scan of just the ..\Local Settings folders for all users, and it came out clean.

I knew going into this process it wasn't going to be easy, but wow!

Here's the latest HJT log:

Logfile of HijackThis v1.99.1
Scan saved at 3:01:46 PM, on 2/22/2006
Platform: Windows XP SP2 (WinNT 5.01.2600)
MSIE: Internet Explorer v6.00 SP2 (6.00.2900.2180)

Running processes:
C:\WINDOWS\System32\smss.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\winlogon.exe
C:\WINDOWS\system32\services.exe
C:\WINDOWS\system32\lsass.exe
C:\WINDOWS\system32\svchost.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\svchost.exe
C:\WINDOWS\system32\spoolsv.exe
C:\WINDOWS\system32\drivers\CDAC11BA.EXE
c:\Program Files\Common Files\Symantec Shared\ccSetMgr.exe
C:\Program Files\ewido anti-malware\ewidoctrl.exe
C:\Program Files\Conversions Plus\FORMATM.EXE
C:\Program Files\Alias\Maya7.0\docs\wrapper.exe
C:\WINDOWS\system32\nvsvc32.exe
C:\Program Files\Alias\Maya7.0\docs\jre\bin\java.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\svchost.exe
c:\Program Files\Common Files\Symantec Shared\ccEvtMgr.exe
C:\WINDOWS\Explorer.EXE
C:\windows\system\hpsysdrv.exe
C:\Program Files\HP\Digital Imaging\Unload\hpqcmon.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\hphmon05.exe
C:\HP\KBD\KBD.EXE
C:\Program Files\Common Files\Sonic\Update Manager\sgtray.exe
C:\Program Files\Common Files\Symantec Shared\ccApp.exe
C:\WINDOWS\LTMSG.exe
C:\Program Files\Multimedia Card Reader\shwicon2k.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\spool\drivers\w32x86\3\hpztsb08.exe
C:\Program Files\Java\j2re1.4.2_03\bin\jusched.exe
C:\Program Files\HP\HP Share-to-Web\hpgs2wnd.exe
C:\Program Files\QuickTime\qttask.exe
C:\WINDOWS\system32\RunDLL32.exe
C:\WINDOWS\ALCXMNTR.EXE
C:\Program Files\Common Files\Real\Update_OB\realsched.exe
C:\Program Files\Maxtor\OneTouch\utils\Onetouch.exe
C:\PROGRA~1\Dantz\RETROS~1\RetroExpress.exe
C:\Program Files\Common Files\Real\Update_OB\rnathchk.exe
C:\Program Files\Logitech\MouseWare\system\em_exec.exe
C:\Program Files\HP\HP Share-to-Web\hpgs2wnf.exe
C:\Program Files\Messenger\msmsgs.exe
C:\Program Files\Adobe\Acrobat 6.0\Distillr\acrotray.exe
C:\Program Files\palmOne\Hotsync.exe
C:\Program Files\HP\Digital Imaging\bin\hpqtra08.exe
C:\Program Files\Conversions Plus\MacName.exe
C:\PROGRA~1\Dantz\RETROS~1\retrospect.exe
C:\PROGRA~1\Dantz\RETROS~1\retrorun.exe
C:\WINDOWS\system32\wuauclt.exe
C:\Documents and Settings\Default\My Documents\Computer Files\Virus022006\hijackthis\HijackThis.exe

O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [HotKeysCmds] C:\WINDOWS\System32\hkcmd.exe
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [CamMonitor] c:\Program Files\HP\Digital Imaging\Unload\hpqcmon.exe
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [HPHUPD05] c:\Program Files\HP\{45B6180B-DCAB-4093-8EE8-6164457517F0}\hphupd05.exe
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [HPHmon05] C:\WINDOWS\System32\hphmon05.exe
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [KBD] C:\HP\KBD\KBD.EXE
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [UpdateManager] "C:\Program Files\Common Files\Sonic\Update Manager\sgtray.exe" /r
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [AutoTKit] C:\hp\bin\AUTOTKIT.EXE
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [Recguard] C:\WINDOWS\SMINST\RECGUARD.EXE
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [ccApp] "c:\Program Files\Common Files\Symantec Shared\ccApp.exe"
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [LTMSG] LTMSG.exe 7
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [PS2] C:\WINDOWS\system32\ps2.exe
…

OK, I have the scans.

Kaspersky gave me this (original is html, so the formatting is weird):

Tuesday, February 21, 2006 8:56:32 PM
Operating System: Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition, Service Pack 2 (Build 2600)
Kaspersky On-line Scanner version: 5.0.78.0
Kaspersky Anti-Virus database last update: 21/02/2006
Kaspersky Anti-Virus database records: 178009


Scan Settings 
Scan using the following antivirus database extended 
Scan Archives true 
Scan Mail Bases true 

Scan Target My Computer 
A:\
C:\
D:\
E:\
F:\
H:\
I:\
J:\
K:\
L:\
M:\  

Scan Statistics 
Total number of scanned objects 169781 
Number of viruses found 12 
Number of infected objects 47 
Number of suspicious objects 0 
Duration of the scan process 02:49:05 

Infected Object Name Virus Name Last Action 
C:\Documents and Settings\Default\Local Settings\Temp\ajgocpmd.exe  Infected: Trojan.Win32.Dialer.ay  skipped  

C:\Documents and Settings\Default\Local Settings\Temp\kohbhpmd.exe  Infected: Trojan.Win32.Dialer.ay  skipped  

C:\Documents and Settings\Default\Local Settings\Temporary Internet Files\Content.IE5\HXEHKH09\gdnUS2161[1].exe  Infected: Trojan-Downloader.Win32.Small.ayl  skipped  

C:\Documents and Settings\Parents\Application Data\Sun\Java\Deployment\cache\javapi\v1.0\file\omfg.class-43756bb5-691be12c.class  Infected: Trojan-Downloader.Java.OpenStream.y  skipped  

C:\Documents and Settings\Parents\Local Settings\Temp\bnlncpmd.exe  Infected: Trojan.Win32.Dialer.ay  skipped  

C:\Documents and Settings\Parents\Local Settings\Temporary Internet Files\Content.IE5\7BU5HRZX\gdnUS2161[1].exe  Infected: Trojan-Downloader.Win32.Small.ayl  skipped  

C:\Documents and Settings\Parents\Local Settings\Temporary Internet Files\Content.IE5\VSG8T1F2\init[1].js  Infected: Trojan-Downloader.JS.IstBar.af  skipped  

C:\Program Files\Norton AntiVirus\Quarantine\02C26968  Infected: Backdoor.Win32.Agobot.gen  skipped  

C:\Program Files\Norton AntiVirus\Quarantine\164830C8  Infected: Backdoor.Win32.Agobot.gen  skipped  

C:\Program Files\Norton AntiVirus\Quarantine\1AE55FBC  Infected: Trojan.Java.Needy.c  skipped  

C:\Program Files\Norton AntiVirus\Quarantine\1CAB2F40  Infected: Trojan.Java.Needy.c  skipped  

C:\Program Files\Norton AntiVirus\Quarantine\1D34664E  Infected: Backdoor.Win32.Agobot.gen  skipped  

C:\Program Files\Norton AntiVirus\Quarantine\1F530FB9  Infected: Backdoor.Win32.Agobot.gen  skipped  

C:\Program Files\Norton AntiVirus\Quarantine\2690798C/Beyond.class  Infected: Trojan.Java.Needy.c  skipped  

C:\Program Files\Norton AntiVirus\Quarantine\2690798C/BlackBox.class  Infected: Trojan.Java.Needy.c  skipped  

C:\Program Files\Norton AntiVirus\Quarantine\2690798C/VerifierBug.class  Infected: Trojan.Java.Needy.c  skipped  

C:\Program Files\Norton AntiVirus\Quarantine\2690798C  ZIP: infected - 3  skipped  

C:\Program Files\Norton AntiVirus\Quarantine\2690798C  CryptFF: infected - 3  skipped  

C:\Program Files\Norton AntiVirus\Quarantine\26C16F57  Infected: Trojan.Java.Needy.c  skipped  

C:\Program …

Thanks, swatkat! I'm on my work computer right now, I'll do those scans this afternoon and post back.

Greets!
Working with XP, SP2, connect via modem. Have Norton 2004, fully updated, Ewido, CWSweeper. Followed instructions in the sticky that heads up this forum for cleaning out my machine as best I could (removed .tmp, history, cookies, etc) in safe-mode.
Problem: I get a pop-up window asking me to "For Instant Access Please click yes" when connected to the internet for a few minutes. My current dial-up disconnects, and the virus creates a dialer that keeps trying to connect. This dialer eventually goes away, and it doesn't bother me again. Web search turned up that this was something called a DialerPlatform.
Norton initially caught the Gaobot, the ByteVerify, and the DialerPlatform. Below is a modified HJT log, cleared of all the items I know are legit, after a thorough cleaning of my system by all of the programs listed above. Of note: what is "lich.exe"?Doesn't show up anywhere except in HJT. Also note the winlogon entry...hmmm.
Please let me know if any more info is helpful. If a full HJT log is needed, I can post it.

Logfile of HijackThis v1.99.1
Scan saved at 11:19:03 PM, on 2/20/2006
Platform: Windows XP SP2 (WinNT 5.01.2600)
MSIE: Internet Explorer v6.00 SP2 (6.00.2900.2180)

Running processes:
C:\WINDOWS\System32\smss.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\winlogon.exe
C:\WINDOWS\system32\services.exe
C:\WINDOWS\system32\lsass.exe
C:\WINDOWS\system32\svchost.exe
C:\WINDOWS\system32\svchost.exe
C:\WINDOWS\Explorer.EXE
C:\Documents and Settings\Default\My Documents\Computer Files\Virus022006\hijackthis\HijackThis.exe

O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [HotKeysCmds] C:\WINDOWS\System32\hkcmd.exe
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [CamMonitor] c:\Program Files\HP\Digital Imaging\Unload\hpqcmon.exe
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [HPHUPD05] c:\Program …

As Zachery implies above, if you have "onboard" graphics (meaning, your motherboard has integrated video), it will steal some of your RAM in order to function. If you install a video card in the motherboard's AGP, PCI, or PCIe slot, you probably won't see this problem...IF that's indeed what's going on. If there are other issues at work, I'm not the fellow to ask - lots of great advice is available from the "gurus" on this site!

(BTW: if you do decide to install a graphics card, make sure to search the forum or the web on the issues with compatability, and with regard to disabling the onboard video.)

Very encouraging. I'd been looking at the 9800pro, glad to know it actually worked in your (our) machine. Still haven't figured out the compatability issue, but I'd bet I'm wasting my time on any of the X700 series, given what happened with the 6600gt, so the 9800Pro is probably as good as I'll be able to get. Good price range, too.

Thanks!

[sorry to post on an old thread, but it makes sense to do so]

So...I was able to import a .dxf into Blender, and though I didn't actually do any work on it, I could see how to work it into a model. (My previous efforts went wrong only because the plan imported into a far-reaching corner of the drawing I never saw...duh. :rolleyes: ) The renderer, especially with the yafray rendering program, is quite powerful. AND its free. So I'm going to see what I can do with it.

Also: I installed Gmax, and it is quite limited in the files one can import/export. Have not seen a plugin for further compatability...my google has failed me. But it is a very nice program, basically 3dMax 4 or so, and hey, I can do Quake III mods! :cheesy:

Thanks for the input, gents.

I've just been taken for a ride by a vid card...take a look here for the saga. The 6600GT is going back to newegg for refund, and now I'm wondering...

I found a thread on VIAarena, a fellow named ktr managed to install an ATI 9600xt into his a420n (just like mine, see above link), so I'm thinking I'll pick one up. Old card, but someone made it work! Question is, is it that much better than my currently-working Geforce4 MX4000? Is it worth the risk?

Also, I've read that the card memory - 128MB vs 256MB might be of issue in compatability (the 6600GT was 128MB, btw) so going with 256MB is yet another risk, but I've read that Vista will work better with 256MB on the card. Opinions?

Brand name PCs suck!

Yup. But what sucks more is that they sucker folks like me into thinking they CAN be upgraded! If only I'd found this forum before I'd bought my HP. Oh well, we learn from mistakes, eh? :rolleyes: At least I'm fully functional now with my MX4000, now that I know the proper standard computer maintenance procedures. (Again, thanks, forum gurus.)

I ain't done yet, though...SOMEBODY (VIA...are you listening???) will come out with a patch or something to make this work...the problem is just too common to ignore. I hope.

Ah yes...gotcha covered there. There is no -LA from Asus, since (I think) HP/Compaq has them made specifically for the Pavilion series and perhaps others. I downloaded the 3.10 update to the BiOS from HP for my mobo, and performed the update a while back. I was everso hopeful that it would help. :( One thing is obvious: the BIOS is extremely limited as far as options, almost like HP stripped it down so it couldn't be tinkered with. (Or am I being cynical?)

Using the 4in1 drivers from VIA was a bit risky, since they didn't come from HP, but so far my machine is now working quite well with the MX 4000.

Nope. No go. Black screen of death. Same exact problem.

The card came back from newegg today, (and I'm sure it was a different one) and I simply swapped out the MX for the 6600GT, as I'd been told to do by the eVGA people, since it uses the same driver. No change, the machine will not post, no beeps, though the fans and everything power up.

I've been cruising the forums, and it looks like the VIA KM400 chipset in my mobo is simply not compatable with the 6600GT. Period. Solution: buy a new, better mobo. :rolleyes:

[edit: NO, I'm not buying a new board! The computer isn't worth that much, I might as well start from scratch!]

If anyone knows anything more about this issue, PLEASE let me know. Otherwise, I'm thinking I'm going to have to send the card back and get something else. Total cost out-of-pocket for my trouble? Approximately $50 US (shipping twice + restocking fee.) :evil:

Update:
-did the driver cleaner, all's running smoothly.
-Tech support at eVGA informed me I could just keep the 77.77 driver active, and switch out the cards. We'll see when the new card gets here next week!

Odd...you'd think this question would come up all the time, given how nVidia uses the same drivers for almost all of their cards.

Just a note regarding the power supply: my sense has been that my Seasonic is a good brand, and when it says 350W, it means it. It has been performing well, as far as I can tell, though I've experienced the same problems with the MX4000 I was having before (blue screen with the "infinite loop" error, blaming the driver for the problem.)

I'm going to install the latest drivers for the MX4000, 77.77, and use Driver Cleaner in safe mode to make sure the onboard drivers are wiped, as well as all traces of the older nVidia drivers. Here's the question: when my RMA'd 6600GT comes back in a week or so, it seems to me I won't have to do a thing, just switch cards...they use the same drivers, according to nVidia. Will there be an issue with this?

Thanks, Catweazle. As I mentioned, I've RMA'd the card, so when it comes back, I'll try the above. I'll post my results.

Just for the record, I didn't really do a whole lot of messing around with the BIOS settings; in fact, all I changed was the AGP setting. (Updating the BIOS and clearing the CMOS were recommendations by the card support people.)

As far as the lengths to which I've gone: actually, its been VERY educational, so honestly, I don' t regret a thing, other than wishing I'd gotten better informed sooner.

Your Windows problems I would suspect are the result of 'net nasty' intruders.

NOOOO! :sad:
I 'spose now is the time to mention that my wife almost fell for a Paypal phishing scam a few weeks ago; got as far as entering her screen name and password into the fake site, but luckily didn't enter a credit card number. We did all the correct bank/card stuff, and for the computer I ran Spybot immediately afterward, and did a virus check, found nothing, but...

Thanks for your help. (Now where did I put that XP disc, anyway... :?: )

I just went through this process, so I can give you insights based on what I've discovered.

You probably have a "mid-grade" power supply that came standard with the Gateway, and its probably just good enough to give clean power to the system in the case. The 6600GT is pretty power-hungry, and I'm betting it won't be happy with what you've got. Look into the following:
-how many amps does the 12V rail supply? Anything less than 18A will be trouble, I'd guess, depending on the other gizmos in your case.
-do you have an extra 4-pin connector, directly to the PSU (not branching)? If not, again, trouble.

Since you already have the card, I don't think you can damage anything by trying it out, but I'd contact support at MSI to verify that.

That said, upgrading to a better PSU is really not that difficult or expensive. For about $50-$75 US, you can get a nice, name-brand power supply that will serve you well. Installation is not difficult, just do your research for the right size and form-factor. You'll need to make sure you have the P4 and SATA connectors. Google is your friend. The only issue: I'll bet you'd void your warrantee - check with Gateway.

Before you go nuts with all the various complicated fixes, make sure of the one simple thing: you are hooking up the monitor(s) to the video card, right? ;)

How long have you been using that installation of XP? A reinstallation can correct alot of registry, driver, and other miscellaneous problems. What is your reason for resisting? I can only think of losing time, losing small customizations, and having to reactivate the cd-key if necessary.
You can transfer 'my documents' and even your desktop shortcuts if you don't overwrite the old install.
Every minor error in Windows is a premonition of horror. It just depends how long you have until that horror arrives. Every installation of Windows is automatically doomed from the beginning, but a new installation has more life in it than an old sick decrepid installation.

Dang...I never knew. Well, I've only had this install for about a year and a half or so - it's really not that old. I am concerned about the numerous shut-down's caused by not really dealing with the MX4000 issue.

Anyway, we need more information.
1. Can you start up into safe mode? I assume you can startup XP since you mentioned the mouse was missing. I'm not sure why a video card would effect the mouse... It is possible you uninstalled more than you thought.
2. What do you mean disk cleanup? Do you mean the little program that it throws at you when you have 100MB of space left, or that you actively went around deleting things?
3. Did you plug your monitor into the card? You might have plugged it into a …

I recently tried to install a 6600GT video card, but got no POST, no mouse, nothin'. Here's the thread. I RMA'd the card, but in the meantime, I read that one of the fixes for the problem I had was to reinstall Windows XP. I don't want to unless I know its corrupt.

What I did, in order:
-flashed BIOS
-disk cleanup
-defragged
-cleared CMOS

Strange behavior since the defrag step was completed:
-lots of old programs (nearly half) in the start menu are highlited as "new programs"
-lost calculator and solitaire game that came with XP
-DVD's stutter and stop after playing for a while (prob'ly heat related, but..?)

These are minor, easily fixable annoyances, but do they indicate something larger? I've not experienced any other problems.

Sounds pretty bleak, Stoned_coder. They do TEST these things before they put them in the boxes, don't they??!! Anyway, your post convinced me to RMA it to newegg. I'll be out the shipping, and if the next one doesn't work, more shipping and another 15% of the cost if I have to return it. ATI 9800PRO 256MB sounds like the best for the price in the AGP line - anything better would be wasted in my machine anyway.

You don't have to be sarcastic. Have no friends or what?

Write to eVGA. They will tell you what to do. I don't think your card is dead anyways.

Didn't mean to come across as sarcastic, just making light of a situation that's got me going crazy. ('Course, "have no friends...? is kinda sarcastic, isn't it?) Anyway, don't get me wrong, I really appreciate all of the help you and others have given me, and I don't want any bad blood.

I have contacted eVGA for support. I await their answer. It sounds like someone needs to write a patch to make this card work.

ARRRRGGH! Take a look at this thread, on this very forum:

msi 6600gt

Am I an unlucky schmuck or what? (It could be said I should have done better research, I s'pose. :rolleyes: )

are you sure you got the card for the right port i think this card is both agp and pci-e. It could also be because this card was oddly designed to work in either slot(or at least that is wat i gather from this HSI thing it uses) but i am not sure how this works.

HSI? I'll look into it. But I'm sure its AGP. Says so both on the box and on the ISBN sticker on the card. (No, the sticker isn't over the contacts! :lol: )

[steps into time machine] "Ah yes, my mobo, case, and PSU have arrived...now all I have to do is assemble it with the other components, and I'll have my home-built computer! No proprietary stuff for me!" ;)

Fooey. Live and learn. I don't have access to a non-prop machine at the moment. But I did try uninstalling the drivers (see above) for the previous vid card. No go. Same problem. I've contacted EVGa support, FWIW. Onward...

Wait a sec...(still at work, so I haven't tried anything new to fix the problem). Aren't video drivers loaded AFTER the POST? I'm not even getting to the POST with the 6600GT - I get dead nothing, no keyboard, no mouse, just fans running and harddrive LED continuous. So the new drivers can't do jack for that, can they?

Just to avoid having to answer the obvious:
-I'm quite sure the card is properly seated; it clicks in quite well
-Yes, I attached the monitor to the card.
-I updated the mobo BIOS two days ago, so that should have taken care of video prob's, yes? (although, I did have some concern that I didn't load it properly - Everest is still suggesting an update..? I posted on this in the Windows section.)
-the Seasonic has 19A on the 12V rail. That's GOT to be enough, darnit!
-I tried the card both connected to the PSU and disconnected, same result

Some web-sites are suggesting I flash the card's BIOS, but I can't do that since I get no screen with the card in, no matter what I do. :rolleyes:

Oh no... :o I never uninstalled the original MX4000 drivers. I'm on my way to work now, but I'll take care of that and try 'er again.

Would that do it?

BTW: My HP proprietary BIOS doesn't have a setting to enable AGP, nor to change the AGP speed. It only gives me the option of setting the Display Adapter to either PCI or Onboard/AGP. Can't find AGP-setting anywhere.

OK, very long story, so I'll try to make it quick (I've posted a lot of questions lately...sorry!)

Computer is:
Motherboard: ASUS A7V8X-LA (AGP 8x, 3 PCI)
CPU: AMD Athlon XP 3000+ 2.16GHz
RAM: 512 MB
Power Supply: (just added) Seasonic Supersilencer 350W
Current Video Card, Added: BMG (NVidia) GeForce4 MX 4000
Monitor: HP mx703
OS: XP Home Edition, 2002, SP-2 added 7/05

MX 4000 Video card was giving me fits, lock-ups, etc. Wanted to upgrade anyway, yanked it without really trying to fix the problem. Bought new power supply (above), bought new RAM (not yet installed), bought evga 6600GT. Installed new power supply; worked fine. Uninstalled drivers and disabled VIA onboard video adapter, enabled AGP in BIOS. Put in the 6600GT: no signal to monitor, no beeps, keyboard and mouse do not respond, hard drive LED stays lit. Yanked 6600GT. Put in MX 4000. Works fine, so far.

Well? Any chance the new card is fine, and I've botched something here? :confused:

Ah, the frustrations of dealing with the big guys...

So I followed HP's instructions in updating my HP Pavilion a420n (A7V8X-LA motherboard) except for one thing: at one point, the HP web site tells me:

"8. If you see the following message during the restart of your PC, continue with the remaining steps; otherwise you are done with the update.

Default BIOS settings have been loaded due to BIOS update or checksum issue. Press to enter Setup. Otherwise, allow the PC to continue.
9. Press and hold F1 for a few seconds to open the BIOS Setup.
10. Press F5 for a few seconds, choose YES, and then press Enter to load the BIOS defaults. (Use the arrow keys to choose YES, if necessary.)
11. Press F10 for a few seconds, choose YES, and then press Enter to exit the BIOS Setup and save your changes. (Use the arrow keys to choose YES, if necessary.)
12. Press Enter to confirm the save.
13. If you see a System Settings Change message prompting you to restart your PC, click YES to restart the PC again.

However, I was not prepared for the fact that the screen where the above message comes up was a mass of text that flashed by for about 2 seconds, and I think I saw the above message, but didn't hit F1 in time. The computer booted up, no odd messages, and the BIOS version went from 3.05 …

That is REALLY frustrating! :evil: How the [expletive deleted] are normal, I-bought-it-at-WallMart folks supposed to know how to properly upgrade their vid cards? It does't tell you in the manual. (HP doesn't, anyway.)

Update:
I've done a bit of snooping around, and ended up at Biosman.com, a really great site for BIOS info. I also ended up installing Everest, which told me that I should update my 2-year old BIOS. Meanwhile, at Biosman, there is a blurb on how to put a BIOS onto a floppy (heh...remember those?) and configure an autoexec.bat to reload the BIOS from a floppy, should your BIOS flash go really wrong. Part of the solution, though, is to find the .bin file in the computer that holds the BIOS. That's got me stumped...Everest doesn't tell me, HP certainly wont, and the POST screen doesn't either. Where do I find it? (I've done a Search, with hidden files accessible, and found a whole LOT of .bin files...which one?)

Also: I've created a boot disc per Joel Rosenthal's PC Repair and Maintenance book...does the boot disc have a BIOS on it by default already, or will it simply try to load the corrupted BIOS from the computer, in the event I need to use it to flash a corrupted BIOS?

I hope all that made sense... :confused:

Heh, yeah...I noticed that Dell thing coming up in my research googling. I kept finding myself thinking "whew, at least I didn't get a Dell..." :) I also saw a few ideas for work-arounds, but (obviously) didn't bother to book-mark them.

At this point, the PSU is probably going to be in my hands Monday. No turning back, now, I'll know if it fits by connecting molex's! (Please don't fry, mobo, please...)

Try GMax (from the makers of 3DS Max), I think it can import ACAD directly (or through a plugin).
I notice it's now also an Autodesk product...
While not a renderer itself you can use it to create models for several popular games which can act as a renderer for you.

Thanks! I downloaded gmax, but haven't yet installed it. When I went to the Autodesk website that features it, there was a testimonial by a guy who's doing exactly what I want to do - find a simple technology to present/create "walkthroughs" for architectural space. Perfect! I'll keep ya posted. :)

aha...I just took the old malfunctioning vid card out. When it was in, it registered 512MB. Now, after I took it out to work off the old mobo onboard, it says 448MB . Thief! :)

My new card is coming UPS in the same box as the new RAM. So, what your saying is I shouldn't worry. Thanks!

Yup, command line is precise, and it's a good way to work. For the record, Blender does offer the option of entering coordinates. As I understand it (from the Forum mentioned above, not from experience...yet) the toughest thing is vertex snapping. My brief experience corroborates that, but perhaps I've missed it.

My issue isn't so much with how to use the program - I figure its like anything else, you learn by doing. My issue is the difficulty of converting an AutoCAD plan (which we use in the office exclusively) into a model for rendering. Not easy to do, and from the elysium forum, I can see a number of posts that address this. Get past this hurdle, and I'm in with both feet! :cheesy:

I just bought (2) 512MB sticks of Corsair RAM for my HP Pavilion a420N, which ships with a single stick of 512MB RAM in it (or so it says in the documentation). But it hasn't arrived yet.

Meantime...I looked at the properties today, and it tells me I have 448MB of RAM. WHA...? That's not possible, is it?

I just downloaded Everest 2.01 to check into it, (I'm on my work computer now) but in the meantime, if one of my slots has gone bad, is there anything I can do, or should I count on having to send it for repair? Remove/replace the sticks, or just wait for my new RAM and hope?

Thanks for da link! It looks like a good forum for noobs and non-noobs alike.

Let me just say that I really appreciate the fact that there are folks out there providing good programs for free download...lest my post above sound critical of Blender. My point is only that I'm so familiar with ACad, it's really tough for me to flail around in a new program. Once I get my rig set up for this 3D thing (my vid card recently bit the dust - new one on the way) I'll begin pluggin away at it again.

I've gone through the tutorial on Blender, and sheesh what a steep learning curve! I'm trained on AutoCAD, which I find to be intuitive at this point, if unfailingly goofy at times, and Blender is about as unlike ACAD as you can get. I'd love to use it at the office to do quick renderings and such, but translating from ACAD is rather cumbersome (.dxf files only)...but I'm just learning the program so perhaps there's hope?

What's the best (free!) forum for Blender and 3D programs in general?

You need to go through the bios settings very carefully.
Disabling the onboard video is not always as clear as one might hope.
Look at all the options for each setting...

Is this true of all on-board video? Is this also true for AGP and PCIe cards? Do you know of an on-line guide one might use to determine what edits need to be made to the bios to fix it?

BUT.....do you actually need this BIOS update? If your computer is puttering along just fine without it, then don't bother. It's not worth the hassle!

This all started when my vid card went south. (See previous thread "HP a420n card upgrade?") The BFG help desk said they'd help me only after I took care of any BIOS updates and driver updates. But, in the meantime, I went ahead and picked up a 6600GT from Newegg that is on its way as I type. (See posts in the power-source area, "psu help" and "well, I've done it...") So now, what I'm wondering is: if my card went south, was it because of a BIOS problem? I'd hate to have the same thing happen with my new card.

Thanks for your help, Mr. Monkey. :)

I think I've answered my own question with a bit of googlization...the a420n has an ATA-100 drive connection, not a SATA. I should be fine on that count, at least. Any comments on whether there might be other problems with this PSU would still be most welcome, tho. (Proprietary nonsense comes to mind... :mad: )

I bought a new power supply (and 6600GT vid card, and a gig of Corsair paired RAM) for my HP a420n computer from newegg. (Alienware it ain't :lol: but it'll work for me.) Its a Seasonic Supersilencer 350W. But I just read a review that made a point to say that this PSU doesn't have a SATA connector...now I'm worried. Pardon the doofus question, but will this be a problem? Is the SATA connector for adding a second harddrive, or is it required for my current one? :o

A while back, Catweazle posted:
"That HP Pavilion has an Asus motherboard which is specially made for HP. There is a BIOS update available here.

I'm unsure if the update adresses the problem you are having. It will contain previous updates, but the only item mentioned is a logo problem. I was unable to determine from the Asus website if earlier revisions addressed a graphics card problem. In any case, as the BIOS for the HP system is proprietary, you can only use a BIOS update downloaded from HP.

Can't hurt to try it, but be sure to print out the instructions and follow them TO THE LETTER! A failed BIOS update could render your system inoperable.

Before you install the BIOS update, reset CMOS. Power down and remove the power cord. Open the case and locate the CLRTC jumper which is near the corner of the motherboard beside the CMOS battery. It will have 3 pins and a jumper cap attached to two of them. With the power off, use needle-nose pliers to remove the cap, and refit it to 'short' the other two pins. (e.g. if it's bridging pins 2 and 3, fit it to pins 1 and 2).

Wait several seconds, then replace it as it was before.

That process physically resets BIOS settings to factory defaults."

I own such a machine, and have downloaded the BIOS update, but tweaking jumpers makes me nervous - what will resetting the BIOS …

HOLY SH...

Well, the dam broke...or at least the card did. It's sitting on my desk beside me right now. Hey, looks great, all nice 'n shiny.

I was working along just fine, and, as usual, the screen started to get funky, and then froze. So, I did the manual restart (push on button, hold, wait til machine goes off, push on again.) But this time, I got a few lines of text, some blips, and then...black. Repeated. Black.

Took out card, holding temper in check so as to avoid damaging motherboard. Turned on machine, and now I'm working off of the Asus default built-in graphics.

So...here's the strange thing...I was careful to remove the drivers for the default when I installed the old card, but when I booted up, there was nothing about "new hardware detected", nor was there anything about the old hardware (the vid card) gone missing. I have not uninstalled the nVidia drivers yet. Is this odd?

The real question is, now I'm pretty much in the market for a good card. What's your experienced collective opinion: do I go for a decent AGP 8x card, and spend the money/time to upgrade my PSU to handle the new load, or slum with, say, a GeForce FX 5200 (Newegg, USD 57), and simply upgrade to a new machine when funds allow to a nice PCI-E setup? (Not high-end gamer, but I work with 3D graphics a lot.) HELP!

I'm not looking for peak performance in gaming; I'll use the computer mainly for 3D graphics programs, so I need a good card, but not the high end. If memory serves, the GeForce 6600GT got fairly good press here in this forum, and it's in my price range. (USD 160 or so.) Prob'ly also throw some additional RAM in there, too.

My 'puter is a desktop, not a laptop, tho. :confused: The 400W is really overdesigned for future upgrades, since, in pricing out power supplies, the cost difference is really minimal. End of the day, I'm looking to spend a measly USD 250, once tax and shipping comes in.

I also note that there is a post below mine that is asking essentially the same thing I am: how do I know the specs for a new power supply? What do I need to factor in? Things like front-mounted USB and flash-card readers? Is there a web site out there that has a chart for each computer build, matching it to a power supply upgrade? (replacement parts, no problem...upgrade? problem.)

I posted a few days back in the video card area, asking if I'd need a new PSU, but doing my own research, I'm convinced I do. The question is, exactly what? I'm a noob to this mod thing, but I've been told that replacing a power supply isn't all that hard. SO...here's the specs:

Computer: HP a420n Pavilion
Motherboard: ASUS A7V8X-LA (AGP 8x, 3 PCI)
CPU: AMD Athlon XP 3000+ 2.16GHz
RAM: 512 MB
Power Supply: Bestec ATX-250-12ZD “Zinfandel 250W (I think…)
Video Card, Added: BMG (NVidia) GeForce4 MX 4000, driver updated 6/15/05
Monitor: HP mx703
OS: XP Home Edition, 2002, SP-2 added 7/15/05

I want to up the PSU to a 400W or maybe even higher so I can replace the graphics card with something that actually renders graphics instead of crashing my computer. :rolleyes: After searching around, I'm pretty concerned that whatever I buy won't have the right number of connectors or the pins in the right places. How can I know that what I'm buying is what I need to run this beast, without actually ripping out the existing one and comparing cables, etc? What brand to buy is pretty well covered out there in web-land, but the specs and the fit? Much harder. Good links and advice much appreciated!

Just a quick note for those of you who haven't done SP-2 and are still on a modem: :rolleyes:

I had to do the install over a modem (56K) and it took 7 HOURS! However, it lets you download in chunks, so you can go in for as many download sessions as you like. It worked fine for me, did about 4 different download sessions.

(If anyone in the "tech-guru" department knows any issues with this method, other than "get a DSL, ya dern fool", post away!) :)