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    Recommend passively cooled (probably ASUS) 1151 motherboard?

    I was set on the ASUS TUF Sabretooth Mark 1, but then it looks like it has a fan on it. I definitely want a passively cooled mobo if possible. It's for a build that will likely run 24/7, mostly for gaming and entertainment, trying to be as quiet as possible, with a 6700K. I may overclock as...
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    Recommend me a data-crunching computer build?

    I need to build a computer that will primarily be used for data analysis (so I assume multi-core, possibly multi-CPU?). Specifically, it will be using the program Gaussian (a chemistry analysis program), which does huge calculations for very long times... I've never built a computer like this...
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    What CPU (and mobo) to get for new build for data crunching?

    I'm going to be building a computer for a family member who wants to use it for software that has capability to utilize multiple cores (and CPUs) for data crunching (the program is Gaussian, an analytic chemistry program). So it will be running processor-intensive data analysis for long periods...
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    Help - explorer.exe eating memory and CPU

    Noticed the family computer lagging over the last couple days. Checked task manager today and it shows explorer.exe is using a ton of memory, and often a lot of CPU. I've tried: restarting, checking for Windows updates, running Norton full-scan, TSSDkiller. Everything seems fine. After...
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    Recs for *quiet* GTX 770 or equivalent...?

    Looking for a vid card for new gaming/HTPC system, around the 770 or equivalent in power, as quiet as possible. Having trouble finding reviews. Would like at least 3 GB of vid ram if possible, as will be playing heavily modded Skyrim as well as Bioshock, Shogun, others. Any...
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    Need recs for workstation computer ~$500

    Hey all, building a computer to be used as a workstation for a family member. I usually mid- to higher-end gaming rigs for myself, so any input on this type of build is appreciated. Budget: ~$500-600 Function: Office work, including data and number crunching, manipulating and processing Adobe...
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    Can't get any Nvidia driver to work; is this hardware or software?

    In December, I upgraded some hardware on my HTPC computer, but kept the video card and hard drive: New Hardware: Intel i5 2500K Asus P8Z68-VLE Seasonic SS-560KM PSU Patriot Signature 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3 1600 Old Hardware: Palit GTS 450 Intel X2 80 GB SSD Software: Windows 7 Pro...
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    Windows Media Center 7 keeps hanging/freezing

    I just rebuilt our HTPC and reinstalled Windows 7. Everything seemed to be running, but now when I try to use WMC 7 it keeps hanging after a few seconds. I'll load it up, and then within about 30 sec the little spinning wheel comes on and it locks up, no matter which menu or what I'm doing. I...
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    Reinstalled Win 7, now can't watch old TV recordings...any solution?

    I through in a new CPU and mobo to our HTPC and reinstalled Windows 7. Now the wife is unhappy because 75% of her recorded TV had the digital broadcast flag so that it couldn't be watched on a different computer than the one that recorded them. Of course it's the same computer, but the OS...
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    Problems downloading but not browsing

    I just rebuilt my HTPC using some new and old parts, and did a fresh reinstall of Windows 7 Pro, and I noticed a strange behavior. It freezes up on downloads, whether it's windows update or downloading firefox, for long periods of time, and then sort of kicks back in again. While freezing...
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    Unable to boot from HD in AHCI mode

    I reorganized my HTPC yesterday with some parts from some other computers, and tried to do a fresh Windows 7 install. En route to solving another problem, I discovered that if I put it into AHCI mode, I can't boot (it says BootMgr is missing). But even if I try to do a brand new install on the...
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    YAMMT (yet another mixing memory thread) - can I?

    I have two sticks G.Skill 1333 2 MB and two sticks G.Skill 1600 2 MB. Both are DDR3, both are 1.5 v, but the 1333 is 7-7-7-21 and the 1600 is 9-9-9-24. Can I safely throw both of these into a gigabyte P55M-UD2 mobo and use them?
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    Should I really install all the motherboard utilities...?

    Gigabyte's website lists 30 million utilities... :confused: Which would you definitely install or not? Are there any I just don't need or shouldn't care about? This is a new build with: Gigabyte Z68X-UDH3-B3 rev 1.3 mobo Intel 2500K OCZ Vertex 3 120 GB SSD as main HD 16 GB RAM Gigabyte...
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    *Relatively quiet* GFX card solution for BF3/Skyrim/others ~$300?

    Three questions: 1. Looking for a single graphics card to be able to play games like BF3, Skyrim (presumably after people get some texture mods up), Crysis 2, Civ V, etc. on either a 1900x1080 or 1900x1200 set up. Limit is about ~$300, +/- $50-60. The thing is I'd really like something a...
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    What's the best resource for learning Dreamweaver?

    What, in your opinion, is the best resource for learning Dreamweaver for a complete newbie to web design? I'm getting a book called "The Missing Manual: Creating a Website" and was thinking of grabbing their book on Dreamweaver in the same series. But a website or other resource would be...
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    [SOLVED] Help: problem with network adapter (causing blu ray stuttering)

    I have problems playing blu ray rips over my network on my new HTPC. I thought I had it fixed, but it keeps coming back. I think it's the driver to the network adapter on the HTPC; uninstalling it, restarting, and letting Windows 7 reinstall it once or twice seems to fix the problem for a day or...
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    [SOLVED] Notable hiss from audio in new HTPC - can it be fixed?

    New HTPC build has an irregular (sometimes there, sometimes not) audible hiss that is very noticable; makes it hard to enjoy movies and other things. I'm outputting my audio through the HDMI of my vid card to an Onkyo receiver (all relevant hardware below). It's not the source material or...
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    Where's a good place to find HTPC cases?

    I feel like there are a bunch of HTPC cases and HTPC cases out there, with no obvious source for reviews or links. Sure, Silent PC Review has occasional reviews, as does Anandtech, but is there any place with a good list of HTPC cases or case makers? The only two that I really know of are...
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    Why can't I delete old Windows folder on hard drive?

    I transferred a hard drive that had a copy of Windows 7 Home Premium installed on it to another computer so it could act as a backup drive. But now I can't delete the "Windows" folder off of the drive. Before you jump to the "did you set permissions and owndership?" question, yes, I have...
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    [SOLVED] Why horrendous blu ray stuttering when streaming? Help!

    Problem: When I mount a blu ray iso from my home server (running Windows 7 Pro) on my HTPC and play it, it stutters way past the point of being unwatchable. I don't know how to figure out what the problem is or how to address it. Here's what I've checked: CPU: when it's doing it, CPU...
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    What software do you use for Blu Ray playback? Any that integrate with WMC 7?

    Posted this in software a few days back, but this is probably where I should've posted. Is there any consensus on what software is best to play back blu ray (both rips and disks) these days? I was ripping my BR into iso files, mounting them to Virtual Clone Drive, and playing with an older...
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    What software do you use to play Blu Ray? Can it integrate with WMC 7?

    Is there any consensus on what software is best to play back blu ray (both rips and disks) these days? I was ripping my BR into iso files, mounting them to Virtual Clone Drive, and playing with an older version of Power DVD. Is that still pretty much where it's at? Anything that integrates...
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    How can I distinguish windows copies?

    I have three computers, and three copies of Windows 7 Home Premium. I'm about to rebuild two of the computers and will need to reinstall the OS on those two. The problem is I can't remember which computer I installed which copy on. :confused: How can I tell which copy is on which computer...
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    Android noob question - what is rooting? Why do it? Good places for app suggestions?

    1. Just got a Samsung Captivate, and I love it for the one day I've had it. So what is rooting, and why do it? I keep hearing about it. Quick searches don't turn up anything definitive. I'm sure there are detailed threads on what, why, and how. Please feel free to just direct me to them if...
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    What video card for HTPC/gaming that's quiet?

    I almost hate to post this, but after searching I couldn't find threads that addressed my needs exactly, so here goes. Looking for a video card that will be (in order of preference): (1) quiet, (2) excellent for flawless blu ray playback (no need for 3D), (3) quiet, (4) quiet, (5) good for...
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    What mobo for i3-550-based HTPC? What about micro-atx?

    Trying to pick out a mobo for a new HTPC build, that will probably be micro-atx, but maybe atx if I can find a nice case. I'm so out of the loop with mobos - what's recommended for use with an i3-550? Probably no OCing as this has to be a very stable, on-24/7 build. Thanks for any and...
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    Dumb memory question - remind me how to understand RAM

    So I'm trying to decide what RAM to get for a couple computers I'm building. I'm probably going to go with a mobo that supports DDR3. But what real difference does DDR3 800 vs 1066 vs 1333 make? And does DDR3 vs DDR2 really make any difference? What about the whole CAS latency thing? How...
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    Have questions about HTPC/Server builds - seeking advice/guidance

    So I want to build a moderately powerful HTPC to act as a media center hub (blu ray rips, music, internet browsing, and gaming). I'm seeking a high WAF score on this one, so was thinking of just offloading ALL storage outside of OS, basic programs, and a couple select games to another...
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    Does it matter what brand adapter to use with wireless router?

    Going to be connecting a desktop wirelessly to my network with a Netgear WNDR3700 router (which is dual-band, 300 Mbps). Does it matter what adapter I use for the desktop to connect? I mean, I guess I'd want to get a dualband adapter. It doesn't have to be Netgear, right? I'm assuming it...
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    Should I get a CableCard for my HTPC? Do you just plug it in?

    Trying to understand the pros/cons of a CableCard for an HTPC here, as I'm moving tomorrow and want to get cable and use it with my HTPC. Is it as simple as leasing a CableCard from TimeWarner and dropping it in my existing HTPC (which has Windows 7)? Does that make more sense than getting a...
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    Where's internet phone at? Do I still need a landline?

    Wife and I are finally moving next week. Trying to get all the services I need figured out now. As we're still on a limited budget for the next three years, I'm trying to figure out what we really need. We have cell phones, so do we really need a landline anymore? And couldn't we just use...
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    Why is this computer getting occasional BSODs? How to work-up?

    Problem: A 2 year-old computer with brand new OS installation is getting occasional BSODs (avg about once per day or two). The computer is on 24/7, and the BSODs seem to occur independently of whether or not it is being used (we'll just wake to find it had an unexepcted shut-down)...
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    What's the bottleneck - HD? Cables? Router? How do I know?

    So I want to maximize the efficiency of my home network, since I want to transfer very large files back and forth between three or four computers (pictures, blu-ray files). Typical transfer rates from computer to computer seem to be about 5-10 mb/s. Not sure how that it is, or what the next...
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    Computer can't start without installation DVD in drive...?

    Was having problems with this computer that I thought was due to a failed HD, so I installed Windows 7 Pro 64 on a different drive. Installed without obvious problem. Tried to restart computer without DVD in drive, and it keeps saying "DISK BOOT FAILURE, INSERT SYSTEM DISK AND PRESS ENTER"...
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    What's failing - HD or mobo...?

    Problem: Hard drive (a non-OS one) disappears, then computer starts slowly. The Story: So about a month ago, a computer I built, which has 4 HD, suddenly shows only 3 - one of the back up drives (which I keep my Documents, Music, etc. on, separate from the OS drive) disappeared. Everything...
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    Possible to get files off of dead Mac HD using PC...?

    Buddy has a dead Macbook laptop. Is this like a regular PC laptop that I could remove the hard drive and plug it into my desktop, and recover their files off of it (assuming it's not dead b/c the HD itself crashed)? I don't know anything about Mac laptops or the Mac OS. Does it use the same...
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    On start-up CPU fan wobbles, then stops...?

    On brand new build, when I power-on the CPU fan starts for just a second (meaning it wobbles) then stops and won't start, unless I manually spin it (yes, use my fingers to get it going), then it takes off and is fine. What's up with that? I'm using the stock fan on the Coolermaster Hyper...
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    So...no need for SATA 3 (6 GB/sec) right now, right?

    ...because I'm looking at a new build, and trying to decide if it's a feature I need. I will be getting one of the new SSDs, but it sounds like those cap out before 3 GB/sec anyway (like 250 MB/sec, according to Anand); so at this point, there's no need for SATA 3, right? I mean, if I decide...
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    Windows 7 Desktop Background Slideshow not working...?

    The pictures won't change, no matter what time interval I put for the switch, or whether shuffle is turned on or not. It doesn't matter if it's a custom slide show or one of the pre-installed ones (e.g., architecture). The only way it will switch is if I R-click on the desktop and say to move...
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    How difficult would it be to program something like this...?

    This guy made an amazing gift for his friends: a box that wouldn't open unless it was in the right spot, as detected by a GPS. The L.A. Times had a little post about it today. I would love to make something like this, but I have no idea how to code. How hard would it be to make something...