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What Should I Do?

C

ChrisBond

Junior Member
O.k. Hello guys first time to the forums, so I don't know where to put this post.
So let me tell you my short story. I'm a high school student soon to graduate but I'm taking graphic design classes. I use Maya and some 3DsMax to do most of my projects. But I run a Dell 8300 @ 3 Ghz with 512 Mb and a Nvidia FX5200 128 Mb AGP graphics card with 120 Gb HDD at home. For some reason the programs run slowly and/or give the blue screen. Also the computer runs slow period and would crash periodically when im not doing anything. Sad So I told to buy an Apple to do the design work and also told to wait for the Intel versions to come out but I seriously don't have that kind of money to spend on those computers. So should I buy spring in and buy an Apple or build one or what do you guys think? I would be thankful if you guys could help me. My budget is $1500 or so and not including montior.

Thanks in advance.
-Chris

P.S. I'm also gamer but not extreme like SLI if that helps at all.
 
i think you would be fine with upgrading your ram to 2x512MB (1GB) or even 2x1GB (2GB)...you would probably even benefit from getting a better video card too and even an additional hard drive if you think you need the space.

i would suggest getting the geforce 6600GT/6800GS type cards for your kind of work. i recently got 2GBs of ram and the geforce 6600GT and my computer is much faster!

and btw, WELCOME to the forums!!!
 
Slow execution and notable bluescreening could also be a symptom of memory issues and/or infestation with malware.

Run a memtest cd in that sucker for a good while, and see if it pulls up any errors. It might also be worth cleaning or, better yet, reinstalling your OS and all the latest drivers.

That aside, secretanchitman's hardware advice seems wise.
 
A 3 GHz P4 shouldn't be that slow so you should be able to do a lot with your current machine.

1. Your problem could be spyware or some other malicious software. If you haven't already done so, get the free versions Ad-Aware and (NOT or) Spybot, update them, and run them. Also, make sure your AV prog is up to date and scan your system in Safe Mode.

2. Add more RAM. If you live near a Fry's Electronics, you can get 512 MB sticks for $30 - $40 each, or even better on a good weekend sale. Boost it to 2 GB, and you'll see some performance boost.

3. Do basic maintainance such as defragging your drive.

4. If you have a good regstry cleaner, use it. If you don't have something like WinDoctor in Norton System Works, you can download Registry Mechanic from PC Tools. Their demo will run and identify problems, but it won't actually repair them until you buy the program for $10. Well worth it.

If you're not looking for high speed gaming, your system should be fine for most general applications.
 
Increase the ram and think about dual core either Conroe or X2. Maya and 3DS don't need a high end GPU so the 6600gt would work great. The major difference you will see is in render times with dual core. Render time will decrease by as much as 80%. Even with an upgraded system, the software can get VERY greedy when you start adding models, light sources, textures etc. So, save often. Good luck with the animation and welcome.
 
Running memtest to check for RAM errors and running spyware/malware tools to clean up Windows might be all that you need.

Since money is an issue, do the above (which is free) before spending money for upgrades you might not need.
 
Check voltages & temps, make sure heatsinks aren't clogged up.& retainers are in place. I'd be wary of the Intel Mac's as some things have to run through Rosetta which slows it down. My daughter got one & after an auto update had lots of probs with Adobe & system crashes which AFAIK Apple has yet to acknowledge & Adobe isn't worried about it either.
 
blue screens and crashes does not mean your system is slow - it means there is some serious issue with your config - HW or SW. Slow is just slow, but without crashes.

sadly, most high end graphics programs and high end games require a quite considerable knowledge of PC tweaking for the user to be "happy". Most people "put up with" system non functional aspects, just as long as it runs somehow. However, yours doesnt even do that.

it is outrageous that PC's and their O/S today are still way to complicated/dysfunctional for average person on the street, and even the 1% lunatic fringe have to spend countless hours finding out things about their stuff too.

For example, when helping out a friend who teaches 3DMax at a local college, I had to spend about six hours to figure out how to even get the stupid progtam (Vers. 8.0) to install on his computer. As it turns out, it was all due to MS things he did not have up to date on his XP O/S.

In the old days, if you had Direct X 9.0c, then that was that - you were good to go. But no more. DirX comes with zipped cab files that it's installer uses. But now, MS issues new subversions every two months that have more cab files that go up in date from the last. Currently, they are up to Jun '06 cab files. 3DMax install was looking for a Dir X cab file that he didnt have, since his PC was 2 years old. (Dir X 9.0c comes with XP SP2) So, I kept getting error messages for DirX. In desperation I downloaded latest DX 9 from MS, but that only gave "already installed" message. You cant install DirX 9.0c over DirX 9.0c. It might LOOK like it went, but nothing happens. So I had to use a DirX uninstaller that brought it back to vers. 8.1 and then update to DirX 9.0c Jun '06.

Once I got past DirX error messages, then got new "installer" error messages. WinXP loads the old .msi installer utility when you install the O/S. I finally got it figured out (by googling the error message) 3DMax was looking for later version - runtime 3.0 or better. Then there was the latest MDAC (3DMax can be networked install) and of course, frame .net - latest.

Are you beginning to get the picture?

If I were you,I would try the latest Vista beta - 5456.5, 32 bit, as a dual boot with XP. It would have all the latest stuff. However, I am NOT sure 3DMax or Maya will run on Vista.
Havent tried it yet.

 

4. If you have a good regstry cleaner, use it. If you don't have something like WinDoctor in Norton System Works, you can download Registry Mechanic from PC Tools. Their demo will run and identify problems, but it won't actually repair them until you buy the program for $10. Well worth it.
Click to expand...


Where do you find this software for $10? I downloaded it and for a single computer use its $30.
 
Registry Compressor is another good utility that might help. It defrags the registry which helps prevent errors and improves system performance. Check it out.
 
1. Clean inside the PC and make sure all the fans are working.

2. Format the HDD and clean install Windows.

3. Upgrade RAM to 1GB.
 
folow everyones instructions and clean up any spyware/adware/viruses that are likley causing some of your problems. Then either go to 2gigs of ram, and buy a better graphics card and hard drive. $1500 is enough to build a pretty solid pc. Wait for conroe, then a good motherboard, 2 gigs of ram, a 6600, solid graphics card (7900gt or x1900gt), should all be within budget.
 
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