Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Thunndarr]

So, the wife's computer decided one day that it didn't want to boot up. I got a weird post code which I couldn't decipher, then suddenly nothing. After some nifty detective work (dumb luck), I found that the processor was fried.

Of course, that was not until I'd already decided that the problem was a bad motherboard and bought a new mobo and case. (The old case was in a sad state, having gone through airport security 3 times.)

So, I was looking around Yongsan trying to find a Socket A processor to go into the Socket A motherboard I'd just bought. Well, apparently Socket A Athlons are pretty rare these days, as well as being overpriced. What to do, what to do? Since I'm such a tightfisted bastard, I didn't really want to spend any more money on the wife's computer, but on the other hand, I really couldn't have her messing around on my computer where she might stumble across the super secret porn stash. I definitely needed to get her computer up and running.

What I ended up doing, which is basically incredibly selfish, was donate the CPU out of my computer (which just happened to be Socket A, but only 2 years old) and install it in her computer.

So now, instead of tossing money at her computer, which was just being wasteful in the extreme, I got to spend even more on a justifiable upgrade of my computer.

I ended up getting an AMD 64 3000+ with the Venice core, an ASrock Dual SATA-2 motherboard, and an ASUS GeForce 6600 with 256 MB of ram.

Nobody will mistake any of this for top of the line gear, but it was pretty cheap and the motherboard has a solid upgradability factor. In any case, I'm hoping it will get me by for the next 2 years.

Installing all of this ended up being a huge pain in my ass. I've never installed a motherboard into a case before, but I took my time and followed all the instructions as well as I could. I got everything together and hit the power switch. Windows started booting, then gave me the menu where you can choose normal, safe mode, etc. I chose normal. It briefly started booting, then the computer reset for some reason and the process just repeated itself. Great.

(Those of you more experienced in system building have no doubt deduced the problem already.)

At this point, I naturally assumed I'd f'ed up when installing the motherboard. I was thinking in terms of bad connections, case metal touching the motherboard, things like that. So, I pulled everything out and re-installed it. Still no go.

I went to the trusty internet, did a google search about what to do when Windows won't boot. Due to my limited information at the time, and unbeknownst to me, I was using the wrong search parameters, so I spent hours looking through information that did basically jack squat to help me.

Finally (because, though I am slow, I am not completely stupid) I did a search about moving a hard drive to a new PC. DING DING DING DING! We have a winner folks. Of course, the information I received, which I will relate momentarily (and, once again, some of you already know) really pissed me off and gave me an incredible urge to punch Bill Gates in the nuts repeatedly.

So the deal is, when you move your hard drive containing Windows to a PC with a new chipset, you have to do a repair install with a Windows disk or Windows won't boot. That's it. That simple. Yes, I'm an idiot and all, but seriously. *beep* Bill Gates. Seriously. *beep*. Him.

I mean, why in God's name doesn't the start up message just f'ing tell you to put in the Windows disk instead of giving you that bullsh!t startup menu and the illusion that one of the choices there is actually going to help your problem instead of sending you into perpetual reset hell? Why?

So, ok, it's all done now. I did the repair install (which is also a cleverly labelled attempt to destroy your soul because when you use the Windows disk to boot one of the choices it gives you is to do a repair install. Seems simple enough, except if you choose it you'll start a chain reaction that will end up in a cpu sized thermonuclear reaction inside your case. And your dog will die. I'm not joking, to do a correct repair install, YOU MUST NOT CHOOSE THE REPAIR OPTION IN THE FIRST MENU!) F Bill Gates. F. Him.

And finally, with all that drama over with, my computer is up and running with a minimum of muss and fuss. After getting Windows to finally boot, installing all the mobo drivers and stuff was mercifully easy. And once again, I remember why I only do this kind of upgrade once every 2 years.

[Wrench]

Well if you had time to uninstall all devices before the computer went down then the swap would have worked flawlessly. Now you do realize that winxp was designed to work for a long time and when it breaks MS's assumption is that your an average computer user and not an enthusiast or hobbiest. They expect that you will take your comp to a pro to get it fixed.

Personally I have assembled so many comps I have completly lost count. I have some tricks which 95% of the time work when swaping hardware but there is that 5% chance that it will not work.

I've been using AMD stuff for a long time now and I found it that it was the least troublesome. Easy swaps never reintall. I have a computer still running at home that is used everyday that the OS was never repaired or reinstalled.


Oh and always skip the first repair option there is a 2nd repair option that you use.