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    Question about networks/connecting multiple computers to the internet

    I am trying to connect two computers at home to the internet. One of them is already connected to the internet with a cable modem (from my ISP) and an ethernet cable. I want to connect another computer to the cable modem so it can access the internet, but the modem only has one ethernet port on...
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    Problem Installing Splinter Cell: Double Agent

    As the thread title says, I'm having trouble installing Splinter Cell Double Agent on my PC. The game disc is a DVD, and when I first put it in my DVD drive the game splash screen comes up and a menu with several options such as install, manual, etc. appears. If I choose any of these options...
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    BF2 account login error

    I have been playing BF2 regularly for the past several months with no problems, but all of the sudden I can't connect to my BF2 account anymore. When I type in my password and click the login button, the account screen just idles for awhile before displaying an error message that says "There was...
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    Battlefield 2 won't start

    Every time I try to start Battlefield 2, it briefly shows a splash screen with the Battlefield 2 logo and then the screen goes black for a second before crashing to the desktop. I have tried re-installing the game many times and upgrading to the latest patch with no success. I also tried...
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    F.E.A.R won't start- error message

    Whenever I try to start F.E.A.R, an error message quickly pops up saying: "The application or DLL C:\Windows\system32\d3dx9_27.dll is not a valid Windows image. Please check this against your installation diskette." Any idea what this means? Is the dll file it mentioned related to...
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    New setup randomly reboots

    I recently put together a new setup with the following hardware: A64 3800+, GA-K8NF-9, e-VGA 7900GT, 1GB PC3200, 1 SATA HDD, 2 optical drives, a 450W power supply from AMS, and 3 case fans. After some intial difficulty, I was able to install Windows XP. But the computer seems unstable and...
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    Power Supply Question

    I'm about to upgrade from an AGP video card to PCI-express video card. I still want to use my old PSU, but I don't know if the requirements have changed for the newer PCI-express video cards. Do I need a new PSU with certain types of connectors/cables or will my old PSU still work?
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    What to do with old PC parts?

    I'm getting ready to upgrade my PC soon, and this generally means I will no longer use some of my former components. With previous upgrades, I decided to take the older parts and use them to assemble PCs for friends and family. But this time, I don't need to use them towards building another...
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    Trouble with Windows Logo Testing & DirectX Install

    Every time I try to install DirectX 9.0c in Windows XP Home, it starts to install for awhile before displaying this message: "The software you are installing has not passed Windows Logo testing to verify its compatibility with Windows XP.... This sofware will not be installed". After...
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    Trouble Installing DirectX

    Every time I try to install DirectX 9.0c in Windows XP Home, it starts to install for awhile before displaying this message: "The software you are installing has not passed Windows Logo testing to verify its compatibility with Windows XP.... This sofware will not be installed". After the message...
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    Question about PC games in DVD format

    I recently bought a PC game that was a DVD-ROM, and all I have is a CD-ROM drive on my PC. Obviously, I could buy a DVD drive... but I don't want to buy a drive just for the sake of one PC game. This is the first DVD PC game I have ever seen, but my question is... will most future PC games use...
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    Laptop Gaming Questions

    I'm thinking about buying a laptop soon(going to college), but I have some questions about playing games on them. If I don't think playing games on a laptop would be enjoyable or even possible, I will buy a cheap one and save some money. Thanks for any input. -Is is difficult/annoying to play...
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    Radeon 9800 Pro Problem

    I recently finished installing some new upgrades, including a Sapphire Radeon 9800 Pro. I tested it out on some PC games and 3DMark2003, and I noticed some flickering lines/shapes that randomly appear. I can't figure out how to get rid of them. When I played Call of Duty, I didn't see the lines...
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    Upgrading Advice

    I am thinking about upgrading, but I?m not exactly up to date on the newest hardware. Is this a good time to upgrade? I know something better is always about to come out, but I haven?t upgraded anything for about two years. Basically, I want a new mobo, CPU, video card, and possibly RAM. For the...
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    Error Message- need help

    Recently I was playing a game online when I heard a small clicking noise and lost all the noise to my speakers. The game crashed to my desktop and then the computer seemed like it froze because i couldn't move my mouse. So i rebooted the computer and ever since I rebooted it, I keep getting the...
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    Online gaming/virus protection

    After getting attacked recently by that virus, I've become more aware of how vulnerable my computer is when I disable my firewall. Now I'm not very willing to disable my firewall in order to play online games. Is there any way to protect your computer while playing online?
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    Stopping Windows Messenger Pop-Ups

    Is there anyway to remove Windows Messenger from my computer? I am completely annoyed with the pop-up ads that keep bothering me while I'm in the middle of something. I can't even play some of my favorite games anymore because some lame ad appears on my screen and I have to exit the game to get...
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    CD drive doesn't work?

    My Lite-On CD drive will not read discs. I've tried several different discs- games, CDs, etc.- but it doesn't do anything when I put the disc in. I've had this CD drive for less than a year and never had any problems before. I never disabled autoplay either. When I put a disc in the drive and...
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    Removing Intel HSF with AS3?

    I'm getting a new mobo, but I want to use my old CPU and HSF. I used Artic Silver 3 on my Pentium 4, so I was wondering if there is anything I need to be careful about when removing the HSF and CPU? What do you reccomend for removing the AS3 from the CPU and HSF before applying a new coat...
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    Computer won't start-why?

    I've had trouble getting my computer to turn on lately and I can't figure out why. Sometimes I press the power button and nothing happens. If I hold the power button down for awhile it turns on sometimes. I've also tried turning my power supply off and on and that seems to help as well. Does...
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    New Motherboard/HD questions

    I'm thinking about replacing my old motherboard, but I have a few questions before I buy a new one. Will I have to reinstall Windows(I have Windows XP) and lose some of my important files if I install a new mobo? Is there a way to reinstall Windows XP without losing all of the data on your Hard...
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    Help- computer has trouble starting, strange noise

    My computer won't turn on right away if I press the power button sometimes. Sometimes I have to hold down the button for a little or press it 3-5 times, other times it will turn on the first try. Why does this happen? I don't think its a problem with my PSU, but I could be wrong. Once I get the...
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    AGP fastwrites???

    In my BIOS, there is an entry called "AGP fastwrites". I assume this has to do with the video card, right? What are fastwrites? Does it improve performance? I have it disabled right now, but should it be enabled for my GeForce4 Ti4400? Thanks for any advice.
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    O/C mobo recommendation for a P4

    I am thinking about replacing my Asus P4S533 so that I can overclock my P4 2.26GHz without any problems. I didn?t plan on overclocking when I built this computer since it was my first time, but now it just doesn?t feel fast enough. The P4S533 is disappointing because it has no AGP/PCI lock, so...
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    P4 overclocking/memory settings questions

    I am totally new to overclocking and just started to experiment with my 2.26GHz P4 yesterday. I?m using an Asus P4S533 with 512MB of Corsair XMS PC2700 memory. Right now I have my P4 set at 2.55GHz/150FSB with the voltage set around 1.5. I am using the default cooler and my idle temp is 40C. How...
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    Keyboard question

    Does a keyboard have to state that it is compatible with your OS even if your computer has the right type of connection port? My keyboard has been causing a strange problem with my computer ever since I started using it. It only requires a PS/2 connection, so I don't see why it wouldn't work on...
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    Strange keyboard/boot problem

    Ever since I built this computer, I've had a strange problem with my keyboard. During the boot sequence, my computer will try to get to my desktop, but it will get stuck at the screen that displays the Windows XP logo forever. The only way I can turn it off is by switching off the power supply...
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    Monitor Refresh rate problem

    I have been getting some strange flickerings in games recently and I thought maybe my video card was the problem, but when I checked my OSD menu, it said that the refresh rate was 59Hz! My monitor is a Hitachi CM721F and my video card is a GeForce 4 Ti4400. My desktop is set at 1024x728 at 100Hz...
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    Question about installing video card

    About two weeks ago I had to send away my new GeForce 4 Ti4400 to the manufacturer because it was defective. I am supposed to get a new card tomorrow, so I wan't to make sure I don't screw up the installation. The first time I tried my new Ti4400, it was the first card in the computer I just...
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    Round cable questions

    I need to buy some new case fans for my computer, but I am also considering buying round cables. Do round cables really help improve airflow and lower the temperature inside a computer case? How do you know what cable length to buy: 18 inch or 24 inch? Does it matter what length you buy?
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    What laptop to get for college?

    My sister is going to college soon and needs a laptop. She doesn't need to watch DVD's, burn CD's, or use it for anything but the internet and word processing. It would be nice to keep the price under $1,000 if possible. What type and brand do you reccomend?
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    Help... new video card won't work

    I just finished building my first computer, but I can't get my new Visiontek Ti4400 card to work. I had to use my old 16mb card to set my new computer up. I tried the Ti4400 with my old monitor and with my new monitor I just got today, but it doesn't work. I have always double checked the...
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    Please Help... New computer has display problems

    I just finished building my first computer and powered it up recently. The computer boots up and I can hear all of my fans, HD, etc, but my monitor is having display problems. The images in the POST and BIOS screen are too distorted to read and all of the words look separated and strange. Is...
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    How do I move files from my old HD to my new HD?

    I am almost done with building my new computer, but I have some files on my old hard drive that I want to keep. How can I move them from my old Hard Drive to my new HD? Most of the files are too big to fit on a floppy disk or CD. Do I need to buy a software program, or is there another way...
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    Help installing P4 with Artic Silver...

    I just got all of the parts for my computer and will start building soon. This is my first time building a computer, so I don't exactly know what I'm doing. I plan to use the retail HSF that came with my Pentium 4 along with Artic Silver III. I read the instructions on the Arctic Silver website...
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    Ti4400: unsharp, ghosting??

    I plan on buying the VisionTek Ti4400 for the system I am about to build, but after reading an article at Tom's Hardware(I'm sure you've probably read it), I'm a little uncertain. The article said most of the GeoForce 4 cards had unsharp and ghosting images, including the VisionTek card I want...
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    A few P4S533 questions

    I was just getting ready to buy all the parts for the computer I will build, but I looked at the Asus P4S533 specifications again and became a little confused. It says that the IDE ports support UltraDMA 133/100/66. What does this mean? These are the supported Hard Drive formats...
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    P4S533 & GeoForce4/Windows XP???

    The P4S533 seems like a popular motherboard and I might buy it soon. I posted a thread in the motherboard forum a couple of days ago and asked if the P4S533 was a good mobo. I need a mobo that will support DDR 333 and a Pentium 4. I also plan to put a GeoForce 4 Ti4400 in my mobo and use Windows...
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    Windows XP Home Edition Upgrade???

    I plan on buying Windows XP for the new system I am about to build(I currently run Windows 98SE), but I am wondering what version I should buy. I plan on getting the home version, but what is the difference is between the Windows XP Home Edition Upgrade and the full version of Windows XP...
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    My computer- opinions please

    I am going to build a computer for my first time and I will order my parts soon. Just to make sure, I want to hear your opinions and see if I need to change anything. I know that I will use a Pentium 4, even though some of you will probably tell me to go with Athlon. I don't know what monitor I...