is exact temperature that important?

[toph99]

i mean, i see people doing everything they can to get every last degree shaved off their temp, but is it important? like i'm gonna get a celeron 566 and push itto 860 hopefully, if the heatsink is just warm, is this ok? or do i need to know the exact temp? thanx

 

[Mday]

if the hs is JUST warm, that means the mechanical contact is probably not good meaning the HS is not working properly. the HS should be HOT... the core is always HOT... when in use, and since the hs is just warm... the core will burn. of course this depends on what processor.

knowing what temp tells you important things... a core that is too hot needs to be cooled MORE. if overclocked and the core is too hot, lower it... if way to hot, the computer should be turned off before the core is burned...

but it takes a HELL of a high temp for the core to get burned... and it will get that high if the hs is not working, or if a fan dies... or the hs sucks...

 

[toph99]

well for instance, the dell i'm using now has a PIII 500E, and it has a nice heatsink on it(installed by dell) with the power supply right above it, so it has it's own fan, and the exhaust fan pullin air thru it. it is just warm, but i can play 3 hours of unreal tournament and not have a lockup, so it must be doing it's job