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#1
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where can I find a list of compatible motherboard upgrades for myDell XPS 420?
Probably not worth the cost over a new desktop, but just curious if
there are any websites where I can find the subject question info. Thanks. |
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#2
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where can I find a list of compatible motherboard upgrades for myDell XPS 420?
On 25/12/2018 18:13, JBI wrote:
Probably not worth the cost over a new desktop, but just curious if there are any websites where I can find the subject question info. Thanks. Google is a great place to start! https://www.google.com/search?q=wher...y+Dell+XPS+420 Merry Christmas! :-) -- David B. |
#3
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where can I find a list of compatible motherboard upgrades for myDell XPS 420?
On 12/25/18 1:13 PM, JBI wrote:
Probably not worth the cost over a new desktop, but just curious if there are any websites where I can find the subject question info. Thanks. I fixed my dell 15R a few times with parts from. https://www.parts-people.com/index.php |
#4
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where can I find a list of compatible motherboard upgrades for myDell XPS 420?
On 12/25/18 1:42 PM, David B. wrote:
On 25/12/2018 18:13, JBI wrote: Probably not worth the cost over a new desktop, but just curious if there are any websites where I can find the subject question info. Thanks. Google is a great place to start! https://www.google.com/search?q=wher...y+Dell+XPS+420 Merry Christmas! :-) Thanks, but I already googled and it didn't help. Seems limited in any upgrading, cheaper to get a newer desktop, but I know here there are sometimes alternatives that never made it to google. |
#5
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where can I find a list of compatible motherboard upgrades for my Dell XPS 420?
On Tue, 25 Dec 2018 13:13:36 -0500, JBI wrote:
Probably not worth the cost over a new desktop, but just curious if there are any websites where I can find the subject question info. Thanks. Note that Dell is an OEM, and that means that it has an OEM copy of Windows on it, and that means that if you switch motherboards you will also have to buy a new copy of Windows. So you have to compare the price of a motherboard plus a copy of Windows against the cost of a new Dell (or some other OEM brand). To me that's an easy decision--buy a new computer; the extra price will be very small. |
#6
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where can I find a list of compatible motherboard upgrades for my Dell XPS 420?
On Tue, 25 Dec 2018 14:58:57 -0500, JBI wrote:
On 12/25/18 1:42 PM, David B. wrote: On 25/12/2018 18:13, JBI wrote: Probably not worth the cost over a new desktop, but just curious if there are any websites where I can find the subject question info. Thanks. Google is a great place to start! https://www.google.com/search?q=wher...y+Dell+XPS+420 Merry Christmas! :-) Thanks, but I already googled and it didn't help. Seems limited in any upgrading, cheaper to get a newer desktop, but I know here there are sometimes alternatives that never made it to google. Can you define what you mean by compatible? 1. Do you mean compatible with your existing CPU and RAM? 2. Do you mean compatible with your existing case? For #1, make notes of your CPU and RAM, as well as your current motherboard. Determine the exact CPU that you have so that you can determine the CPU socket that your current board has. If you're keeping the same CPU, you'll have to match the socket. Make a note of the form factor of your current motherboard because your replacement board will likely need to be the same form factor in order to fit the case. If there's any chance that your PC does not use a standard motherboard form factor, your options will be severely limited. Now you're ready to shop for a motherboard. As you narrow down your choices, verify that the contenders can use your existing RAM. For #2, determine the form factor of your current motherboard, then find the replacement that has the features that you like. See above for the part about not currently having one of the standard form factors. Neck and neck in the horse race is the CPU that you like, so that you're selecting the CPU and the board at about the same time. You need the board to be compatible, i.e., have the correct CPU socket, so that your new CPU fits. Lastly, once you've selected the board and CPU, check what kind of RAM it supports and add that to your order. For #1, your existing PSU may be fine, but for #2 you'd want to take a closer look to be sure it has the power that you need, (there are tons of online PSU calculators, all different, so use a few and average the results), and if you're getting a new board you'll need to make sure your existing PSU has the ATX12V or EPS12V power connectors. On newer boards, one or the other of those provides power to the CPU. You may see one or two power connectors labeled PCIE, but those are for powering graphics cards and forcing one of those connectors onto an ATX12V or EPS12V port will cause severe damage. Key word: forcing. It really doesn't want to fit. -- Char Jackson |
#7
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where can I find a list of compatible motherboard upgrades for my Dell XPS 420?
On Tue, 25 Dec 2018 15:20:03 -0500, Wolf K
wrote: On 2018-12-25 15:15, Ken Blake wrote: On Tue, 25 Dec 2018 13:13:36 -0500, JBI wrote: Probably not worth the cost over a new desktop, but just curious if there are any websites where I can find the subject question info. Thanks. Note that Dell is an OEM, and that means that it has an OEM copy of Windows on it, and that means that if you switch motherboards you will also have to buy a new copy of Windows. So you have to compare the price of a motherboard plus a copy of Windows against the cost of a new Dell (or some other OEM brand). To me that's an easy decision--buy a new computer; the extra price will be very small. In terms of price/performance ratio, the new computer will be a better buy anyhow. Yes, of course. That's why I said "To me that's an easy decision--buy a new computer," but I probably should have added that to my post. Thank you for adding it. |
#8
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where can I find a list of compatible motherboard upgrades formy Dell XPS 420?
JBI wrote:
On 12/25/18 1:42 PM, David B. wrote: On 25/12/2018 18:13, JBI wrote: Probably not worth the cost over a new desktop, but just curious if there are any websites where I can find the subject question info. Thanks. Google is a great place to start! https://www.google.com/search?q=wher...y+Dell+XPS+420 Merry Christmas! :-) Thanks, but I already googled and it didn't help. Seems limited in any upgrading, cheaper to get a newer desktop, but I know here there are sometimes alternatives that never made it to google. The motherboard in this example has a five character code "TP406". https://www.ebay.com/itm/Dell-XPS-42...2 7:rk:1:pf:0 The BIOS chip on the board, has a SLIC table that says "I'm a Dell" and that's how the Dell OS installation gets activated. A motherboard without the SLIC table could cause OS problems. An Asrock board would not activate a Dell Vista OS. It's possible your Win7 install is an upgrade (purchased retail) to the original Dell install, in which case you have more options for what to do next. A motherboard could still have a SLIC table, and have entirely different hardware and chipset, and this would cause a driver problem. You'd need drivers to retrofit something strange that also happened to be a previous generation Dell. The outer dimensions of your Dell motherboard may follow a standard, but the "chunk" cut out of one corner of the board helps ensure "fun" when retrofitting and making a Frankenstein of the machine. Maybe a MicroATX would fit, robbing you of two or three slots. ******* There was a generation of Dell systems with leaking caps problems. The very worst motherboard of that lot, had close to a 99% failure rate (i.e. just a matter of time until the thing starts crashing). It's possible some of those were Optiplexes, the worst of them. But the bad caps didn't play favorites from a branding perspective - the factory could have put bad batches in just about anything made at the time. One motherboard company had so much legal trouble because of this issue, they went bankrupt. I had an Antec power supply here, used once then put in a box in the junk room. Pulled two years later, it had failed. Opening the box showed caps with orange goo on the tops of the 5V output filtering stage. That's an example of how a "refurb board" sitting in some Ebay sellers livingroom, could be "rotting" as time passes. This is why we have to research "leaking caps", to get some idea of the odds of this being a recurring problem (install one refurb mobo after another, each one failing the same way). When shopping for "refurbs" for the very worst of such boards, you don't want a "refurb", you want a "recapped motherboard" where the capacitors have been replaced to extend the life of the motherboard. Homey used to do these for ~$50 a motherboard, until he'd inhaled a bit too much lead-filled solder smoke from his work. He quit the business and disappeared after that. There are probably people with the proper equipment and ventilation solutions doing this work. I could only find one brief reference to an XPS 420 owner with some sort of problem like that, but no details. If the thing was a basket case, there'd be more reports. ******* The TP406 is BTX (motherboard mirrored left-to-right) and the motherboard has a "chunk" cut out of it in one corner, for "increased fun" when thinking up new uses for a defective machine. The motherboard is from LGA775 era, and shipped with either E8400 or Q6600. It takes DDR2 RAM of some sort. Such a machine would still be powerful enough to run Win7 or Win10. It's not a dead loss out of the gate. But it was kinda like a Cadillac with Big Fins in terms of the feature set. An attempt by Dell to jack up the price, so you could have Big Fins. When they put an "Accelerator" in the machine, the golden rule is that "whizzy hardware is only worth having if there is software". If a hardware device follows a standard, and the standard is followed for a few years, you might get the value from it. If the hardware is a "home project" thing with just one driver and no more support, then it's a "Frisbee". I can give an example. I bought a video capture device once, with a SCSI bus interface on one side. It cost around $500. I was oblivious to the Frisbee issue, and that thing was obsolete faster than I can snap my fingers. I did do some captures from my VCR, but this was a board full of jellybean logic, before Conexant chips were available, and of course, from a software point of view was a dead duck. What usually happens with companies like that, is they go bankrupt before the paint dries on the product you bought. When I buy hardware now, I go into the purchases with some guesstimates as to support. The video card I just bought, will have a max of six years support, and the product was two years old when I bought it, which means I have four years support left. A blink of an eye essentially, in the hardware world. ******* If you buy hardware today, the hardware makers will do whatever they can, to make it not work with Windows 7. Your new machine purchase will be Win10... or Linux, your choice. Caught between a rock and a hard place, as it were... Who knows, a $40 gamble on an Ebay TP406 might be worth it. Even the person selling it, might not know just what shape the thing is in - some sellers are quite savvy and know when they're selling crap, but a few are as innocent as the driven snow. (For example, one dope was selling RAM for the wrong price, and was taking a bath. I don't think the RAM was stolen either, just a dopey individual as near as we could tell. People were buying the RAM because it overclocked quite well. He seemed to be able to get more of it.) If you're already an Ebay customer, then you're probably aware of the pitfalls of Ebay. I've never bought anything there. It's not that I don't like "adventures" or anything, but I try not to do stuff now that will raise my blood pressure :-) By entering "Dell XPS 420 motherboard" on Ebay, it may be possible to find multiple five character codes. Maybe there is more than TP406. You would endeavor to open the broken system and search for such a code, to help you find the right one. When multiple board types are claimed to be replacements, it's pretty hard to tell what is different on each one. To give an example of how evil the "SKU" issue is, some HP machines shipped with Intel or AMD motherboards, which means if you shopped by machine model number alone, you could easily get something that was entirely different than your original setup. I couldn't help a person in such a mess... too many variables... If I owned such a machine, I could easily be screwed when buying $40 boards off Ebay. And it wouldn't particularly be the sellers fault, as when you buy on Ebay, you use your own tech knowledge as the leverage. Paul |
#9
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where can I find a list of compatible motherboard upgrades formy Dell XPS 420?
Ken Blake wrote:
On Tue, 25 Dec 2018 15:20:03 -0500, Wolf K wrote: On 2018-12-25 15:15, Ken Blake wrote: On Tue, 25 Dec 2018 13:13:36 -0500, JBI wrote: Probably not worth the cost over a new desktop, but just curious if there are any websites where I can find the subject question info. Thanks. Note that Dell is an OEM, and that means that it has an OEM copy of Windows on it, and that means that if you switch motherboards you will also have to buy a new copy of Windows. So you have to compare the price of a motherboard plus a copy of Windows against the cost of a new Dell (or some other OEM brand). To me that's an easy decision--buy a new computer; the extra price will be very small. In terms of price/performance ratio, the new computer will be a better buy anyhow. Yes, of course. That's why I said "To me that's an easy decision--buy a new computer," but I probably should have added that to my post. Thank you for adding it. But that depends on whether you want to be stuck with Windows 10 or not. I installed an older version of Windows 10 yesterday as part of a dual boot experiment, and noticed that 14393 runs smoother than 17763. And this is not a hardware issue, but seems to be the software itself that has a problem. 14393 just seemed buttery smooth by comparison. (The same video driver was used for both OSes.) Once Windows 10 has switched to containers for stuff, I expect this trend (to Pentium III performance) to continue... Intel cannot crank the clock rate fast enough, to smooth over bad software design. And once the OS switches to containers, the OS will be... unmaintainable. Summary: "Not an easy decision" Paul |
#10
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where can I find a list of compatible motherboard upgrades for my Dell XPS 420?
"JBI" wrote | Probably not worth the cost over a new desktop, but just curious if | there are any websites where I can find the subject question info. | Thanks. You mean you want to upgrade as in newer, more recent onchip graphics and slots for more recent CPU/RAM? In that case you need to just think of it as a case. Your OEM Windows won't activate with a new board. You won't have drivers. The new board would need new CPU and RAM. There's little or nothing to salvage. You'd just be buidling a new box in a Dell case. If you want a new motherboard to match the old, they might sell it. But this is where the downside of Dell really shows up. They customize their builds and provide custom drivers from their site. They go to great lengths to prevent you from doing anything but using their computer, as they sold it to you. With any other brand you can generally mix and match parts. Dell are like Apple. They try to screw you if you take matters into your own hands. The first time I realized how bad Dell was I was salvaging a Win95 box and thought I'd save the graphics component. No go. It was a bizarre, square plug, the likes of which I haven't seen before or since. So I had to just throw it away. The up side of Dell is that they have good service and a usable website if you just need drivers for their product. But you trade enslavement for that convenience. |
#11
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where can I find a list of compatible motherboard upgrades formy Dell XPS 420?
Mayayana wrote:
"JBI" wrote | Probably not worth the cost over a new desktop, but just curious if | there are any websites where I can find the subject question info. | Thanks. You mean you want to upgrade as in newer, more recent onchip graphics and slots for more recent CPU/RAM? In that case you need to just think of it as a case. Your OEM Windows won't activate with a new board. You won't have drivers. The new board would need new CPU and RAM. There's little or nothing to salvage. You'd just be buidling a new box in a Dell case. If you want a new motherboard to match the old, they might sell it. But this is where the downside of Dell really shows up. They customize their builds and provide custom drivers from their site. They go to great lengths to prevent you from doing anything but using their computer, as they sold it to you. With any other brand you can generally mix and match parts. Dell are like Apple. They try to screw you if you take matters into your own hands. The first time I realized how bad Dell was I was salvaging a Win95 box and thought I'd save the graphics component. No go. It was a bizarre, square plug, the likes of which I haven't seen before or since. So I had to just throw it away. The up side of Dell is that they have good service and a usable website if you just need drivers for their product. But you trade enslavement for that convenience. You can still find local companies who will build up a PC from parts for you. And they can provide the knowledge to ensure it works properly. And put a "retail" OS on it for you. Eighteen years ago, the cost of that service was only $100. Over and above the price of the individual items needed to build the system. It's probably $200 by now. On the one hand, the Dell model may seem convenient. It's the long term prospects which are harder to take. (The "I'm saddled with junk" problem.) The only problem I have today with that, is I don't know how many computer stores have display models of empty computer cases for you to look at. You start with a computer case for your build, so it's big enough for the crap inside, and that's all part of having a nice and convenient platform for long term usage. For me, I would not accept a computer case today, unless it had hard drive trays you can slide-load when the door is open. Like my Antec Sonata. A lot of cases now, have room for liquid cooling solutions and the like, and for an email/web surf machine that would be overkill. Yet, you still want enough slots in the machine, to add "expansion" features. I've made good use on my typing machine, of two PCIe x16 slots with the second slot being used for "the toy of the week". You could drop into a computer (builder) store and pose a puzzle for them by asking for a "Skylake system to run Windows 7". That ought to set their hearts aflutter :-) They love requests like that. I'm sure there's a certain percentage of their customer base, who asks for that. The Skylake system could still run Windows 10 later if you want. Or whatever the OS of the era happens to be. Asking them to find you a Core2 LGA775 motherboard for your E8400 or Q6600, they'll just roll their eyes if you do that, as those would be hard to find. (Maybe used on Ebay etc.) The Skylake request is getting pretty close now to being eye-roll material, so don't be surprised if they refuse. Paul |
#12
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where can I find a list of compatible motherboard upgrades for my Dell XPS 420?
"Paul" wrote
| You can still find local companies who will build | up a PC from parts for you. And they can provide the | knowledge to ensure it works properly. And put a | "retail" OS on it for you. | Those are all gone where I live. I used to sometimes go to them to buy barebones boxes, with a board, CPU and power supply pre-installed. The nearest one to me had made some kind of unsavory deal with Intel, advertised Intel throughout the store, and refused to use AMD -- enthusiastically spreading the myth that AMD overheats when you look at it. But there were at least 2 other place that I knew of. They all closed years ago. (Recently I met an Intel salesperson in Best Buy. He was still selling the "AMD overheats" line. I pointed out that they fixed that many years ago. He tried to convince me it wasn't true. My FX-8300 is running at 102F at this moment.) And there's really only one parts store left. Microcenter. Good selection. Good prices. But it's really a discount store. Clerks generally don't know much. Boxes are often dented. And they're not always cooperative about returns. Then they try to browbeat me into giving them my personal info at the checkout. ("Really?! You don't want to give me all your personal info?! If you don't then you won't be able to return this item without a receipt!!") So I try to avoid them when possible. Dented boxes and fighting over faulty merchandise returns is not an auspicious combination. I'd been buying through TigerDirect for years. But then they were bought by PC Mall. Like Amazon, they're not really selling the stuff. Orders come from numerous small dealers, scattered around. So why am I paying TigerDirect AKA PCMall if I'm actually buying from Ed's Motherboards in Omaha? There doesn't seem to be a single, dependable dealer left anywhere. Cases? That's the least of my concerns. If the board fits and it has front USB jacks, that's good enough. If it doesn't look like some teenager's fantasy of a Klingon device then all the better. Usually I pay about $20 and end up with a basic sheet metal box that "looks cool" to a 10 year old. My current one is called "Cougar" and looks vaguely Klingonish, but not too bad. I'm also not as picky as you with parts, I think. My main box is XP, with a basic Asus board and an AMD FX-8300 8-core. I love it. And it was cheap. But I fear that by the time I'm ready to buy another I won't be able to get parts to suport Win7, much less XP. If that happens I might just have to hang up my toolbelt, get a Linux box to check email, and leave the Internet to the spies, advertisers and consumers. Already the medium is infested with "services". It's going downhill fast. Recently there was discussion on Slashdot of the increasing sleaze. There's a site called darkpatterns.org that shows examples. But they're churning outrage and coming up with overly clever jargon ("dark patterns") for what's really just old-fashioned, unregulated snake oil, elixir, and downright theft. The very first time I went online was on AOL. A popup blocked my way: "Order a credit card now." "OK" "Ask me later". From that moment I knew I wasn't in Kansas anymore and that I'd need to always keep one hand on my wallet. Today it's just more intense, systematic, and scientific. But some of the examples are interesting and/or funny: "Sign up now for our bikini body weight loss system." "OK" "Thanks but I already have a bikini body." I'm guessing there are a lot of shamed, embarassed women leaving that website, having clicked the "no thanks" button knowing full well that they couldn't pull off a bikini. For anyone who's curious, darkpatterns.org has a "hall of shame", showing lots of samples of typical sleaze. |
#13
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where can I find a list of compatible motherboard upgrades for myDell XPS 420?
On 12/26/2018 11:58 PM, Paul wrote:
Mayayana wrote: "JBI" wrote | Probably not worth the cost over a new desktop, but just curious if | there are any websites where I can find the subject question info. | Thanks. Â* You mean you want to upgrade as in newer, more recent onchip graphics and slots for more recent CPU/RAM? Â*Â* In that case you need to just think of it as a case. Your OEM Windows won't activate with a new board. You won't have drivers. The new board would need new CPU and RAM. There's little or nothing to salvage. You'd just be buidling a new box in a Dell case. Â* If you want a new motherboard to match the old, they might sell it. But this is where the downside of Dell really shows up. They customize their builds and provide custom drivers from their site. They go to great lengths to prevent you from doing anything but using their computer, as they sold it to you. Â* With any other brand you can generally mix and match parts. Dell are like Apple. They try to screw you if you take matters into your own hands. The first time I realized how bad Dell was I was salvaging a Win95 box and thought I'd save the graphics component. No go. It was a bizarre, square plug, the likes of which I haven't seen before or since. So I had to just throw it away. Â* The up side of Dell is that they have good service and a usable website if you just need drivers for their product. But you trade enslavement for that convenience. You can still find local companies who will build up a PC from parts for you. And they can provide the knowledge to ensure it works properly. And put a "retail" OS on it for you. Eighteen years ago, the cost of that service was only $100. Over and above the price of the individual items needed to build the system. It's probably $200 by now. On the one hand, the Dell model may seem convenient. It's the long term prospects which are harder to take. (The "I'm saddled with junk" problem.) The only problem I have today with that, is I don't know how many computer stores have display models of empty computer cases for you to look at. You start with a computer case for your build, so it's big enough for the crap inside, and that's all part of having a nice and convenient platform for long term usage. For me, I would not accept a computer case today, unless it had hard drive trays you can slide-load when the door is open. Like my Antec Sonata. A lot of cases now, have room for liquid cooling solutions and the like, and for an email/web surf machine that would be overkill. Yet, you still want enough slots in the machine, to add "expansion" features. I've made good use on my typing machine, of two PCIe x16 slots with the second slot being used for "the toy of the week". You could drop into a computer (builder) store and pose a puzzle for them by asking for a "Skylake system to run Windows 7". That ought to set their hearts aflutter :-) They love requests like that. I'm sure there's a certain percentage of their customer base, who asks for that. The Skylake system could still run Windows 10 later if you want. Or whatever the OS of the era happens to be. Asking them to find you a Core2 LGA775 motherboard for your E8400 or Q6600, they'll just roll their eyes if you do that, as those would be hard to find. (Maybe used on Ebay etc.) The Skylake request is getting pretty close now to being eye-roll material, so don't be surprised if they refuse. Â*Â* Paul The best computer parts store I have ever dealt with, They still have 13 brick and mortar stores plus a huge online selection, they built my Son an i7 950 8 years ago and the build price was $70.00 cdn, the system has run perfectly ever since, Beautiful job with immaculate layout and lacing, top of the line parts at that time, Parts cost was abut $1600.00 cdn. Too bad they are all located in western Canada, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia. Canada.Give their site a look at. https://www.memoryexpress.com/ Rene |
#14
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where can I find a list of compatible motherboard upgrades for myDell XPS 420?
On 12/26/18 8:11 PM, Mayayana wrote:
[snip] If you want a new motherboard to match the old, they might sell it. But this is where the downside of Dell really shows up. They customize their builds and provide custom drivers from their site. They go to great lengths to prevent you from doing anything but using their computer, as they sold it to you. I'm taking care of a Dell for a friend, and the power supply quit after a power outage. It was a unique design and the motherboard was made to work with it. A standard MS wouldn't fit in that case. If I couldn't find a used one of those odd power supplies on eBay, I'd never have been able to fix that PC. It's going to need a new fan (IIRC, a standard part but hard to replace) soon. Drives (hard, floppy, CD) and mouse / keyboard are standard parts. [snip] -- Mark Lloyd http://notstupid.us/ "It has been my experience that folks who have no vices have very few virtues" -- Abraham Lincoln |
#15
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where can I find a list of compatible motherboard upgrades for myDell XPS 420?
On 12/26/18 11:58 PM, Paul wrote:
[snip] For me, I would not accept a computer case today, unless it had hard drive trays you can slide-load when the door is open. Like my Antec Sonata. My first PC case had 4 drive bays, but it was really hard to get to those screws and almost impossible to use all 4 bays. New tower cases are almost always easier. [snip] You could drop into a computer (builder) store and pose a puzzle for them by asking for a "Skylake system to run Windows 7". That ought to set their hearts aflutter :-) They love requests like that. I'm sure there's a certain percentage of their customer base, who asks for that. The Skylake system could still run Windows 10 later if you want. Or whatever the OS of the era happens to be. I'd rather stay with 7, even using a VM if necessary. [snip] -- Mark Lloyd http://notstupid.us/ "It has been my experience that folks who have no vices have very few virtues" -- Abraham Lincoln |
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