In my case right now, it’s 10x harder. After playing the latest DLC in Fallout, the game decided to crash on me. My video card was fine, topping at 75C but I’ve seen it do worst. What it seemed to be was the CPU as its temperature must have gone past 70C. I rarely check my CPU temperature because normally it hovers around 40-50C. This might explain why Sims 3 crashed on me as well. Now, this isn’t the end of the world. I could just forget about it and move on, but no.
I was bothered by the fact that my CPU was got that high and that it idled at 60C. I thought I’d get a new fan because the fan I bought long ago wouldn’t fit because HP decided to add a backplate to the PC while the one I bought is attached differently. Then I decided, you know what? Fuck it, I can do this. I can take that backplate off and remove the crappy heatsink with this highly rated one.
Well, turns out that I did it, but not in a way that allows my PC to work. I think the problem began when I decided to ignore my previous attempts at fixing technology (and having them fail). I started unplugging all the cables and what not from the motherboard because I had to flip it around. The second problem I ran into was remember what went where. I then unscrew everything and realize that my screwdriver end was a bit magnetic. Last I checked, magnets weren’t the best thing to be had around electronic gizmos.
I finally got all the screws off and flipped it around only to notice that the backplate is on there tight. So taking the screw driver, I started to pry the damn thing off, hoping that I don’t break anything. Easy enough.
I put everything back together and with high hopes, I turn on the power button. Success! It turned on, no beeping or anything! …and then it turned off, then it turned back on, then off and then I finally unplugged it and now I’m frustrated beyond all hell. Nothing I’m doing is working and it boils down to a broken motherboard or a dead CPU. Broken Motherboard is possible because of all the plugging and unplugging. Dead CPU because of the magnets or the heatsink isn’t working properly. Not sure why that’d be the problem to be honest.
So I’m screwed. My main super PC is dead. Thankfully my files are okay, though I don’t know how easily it’ll be to just switch harddrives to a new PC. But my main PC… My gaming rig, my video editing tool, my multitasking beast. I won’t give up yet, but soon I will have to either get a new motherboard which hovers around $100-200 or a new CPU which is about $200 to match the speed of my old one. I think I’ll try a new motherboard first and I might as well get a new case in the process because I want better cooling. Hopefully I don’t have to buy a new CPU.
And now I’m on the Eee PC that I’m constantly hating on because it’s slow, it can’t handle internet stream and because it can’t multitask all that well… But it’s all I got.
Damn, I was so proud of the money I saved but it seems like I’ll be set back by four weeks. At least I get paid this week.
