What is everyone talking about these "motherboard drivers??" Where and how exactly do you install motherboard drivers? Isn't it the bios revision that tells the motherboard how to work? What are the 4 in 1 drivers i here people talking about all the time? When you install the mother board in to your case, do you need to install drivers? Sorry bout this, I'm just a little curiosu and confused,
One more thing, what exactly is the purpose of the copper shim insert for amd athlon xp chips? Is it necessary?
You first: Have you ever built a computer? Do you ever plan to build one? Have you ever reformatted any hard drive? Do you understand why you would have to do it(format a HDD)? Have you ever upgraded a cpu? Have you ever used a AMD system? Do you know what a driver is?
I will answer your copper shim question: it is so the uneven pressure of the HSF clips do not crush/damage the cpu core. It is not necessary if you follow AMD's guidelines for HSF weight maximums. Using any shims, may also add extra heat(& burn out the cpu) & may also crush the cpu core if not used correctly. They are not reccommended by AMD for use with any of their cpu's.
To answer your questions, yes i reformat my hdd all the time . nothnig makes your comp run better the a fresh format and clean install. That being said, i have never haD to install any drivers for the motherboard or anything. Why would you ask me all these questions and not even touch on my main topic? I'm am not computer illiterate, im just wondering, as i have never had to install any mobo drivers. I am planning on building a new a7n8x / amd xp 2800 and am wondering what adventures i am going to go through..,. can anyone fill me in instead of ridiculnig me?
No i have never used an amd system, but they intrigue me.
If the coppers inserts are not recommended, should i get one or not????
"4 in 1" drivers are made by Via for Via chipset mobos. I believe they are 1: AGP drivers, 2: IDE Busmaster drivers, 3: PCI controller drivers & 4: onboard sound drivers. They are only used for Via chipset mobos. For most semi-older systems you did not need to install any mobo drivers, it was built into Windows 98 or ME. For a lot of mobos, by installing the mobo drivers you could see increased performance & stabillity. If you get a new mobo & it comes with a CD, check the manual to see what drivers are on it & if you have to install it.
Do not get a copper shim. Are planning to over clock this system? The only reason anyone should use a shim is if they plan to use a heavy HSF & they go to LAN Partys a lot. I don't think AMD has approved any HSF's for the XP 2800+ yet so if you can get one right now, you will be using the stock HSF. Don't waste your time & money on the copper shim.
By the way, good choice on the mobo, but if you have never used a AMD cpu, why not wait until the prices come down a little & see if the "Barton"(the Barton is a Athlon with a 512kb L2 cache) or "Hammer"(the Hammer Line of cpu's will most likely be called Athlon XP 64 & are not Socket A & are a 64/32 bit hybrid cpu designed for servers, but with desktop applications as well) lines are worth the price difference.
So with my new system it would be advised to install the drivers then? Right now i have a pentium 2 266. Really slow, i know. So after i reformat the hdd, and do a clean install of win xp, when would be the most advantageous time to install the mobo drivers? Like, is there a best order for installations of software? Such as, mobo driver, direct x 8.1, video card, sound card.. etc etc
yes i will be overclocking the system, but i am going to use a heatsink/ fan combo. I will not be using a radical method such as a watercooled system. What do u think would be a good combo for the 2800? Would i want a total copper heatsink, or just a copper circle the size of the die and the rest of the heatsink would be aluminim? i am willing to spend a fair bit of money on an excessive heatsink/ fan combo to get overkill on cooling for my chip so i can clock it up high. So i shouldnt get a shim then? What the hell is a lan party??? i would wait for the new generation amd's to come out, but how long will i be waiting?
If you get a totally new system based on the Athlon XP 2800+, most likely it is going to use mobo drivers. Just read the manual before hand & I am sure that you will be fine. The manual will explain which drivers & software you need to install & in what order. Most of the time you would install windows, then the mobo drivers, direct X8.1, & after that it doesn't matter too much what order.
Right now there is no certified HSF(heat-sink-fan) for the XP 2800+, so there are no reviews of what is out there. In fact the only source of XP 2800+ cpu's that I have heard of is in a complete system by Falcon Northwest. With HSF's, you have to ask yourself, how much noise can you handle every day, day in day out? As for what materials the HSF should be made of, it is not that easy. Just stay away from pure aluminium HSF's & read the reviews of the other ones.
A LAN party is a party in which everyone brings their own computer & connects to a wired network to play PC games against each other or as teams. A shim would be helpful to protect your cpu against the jars & bumps it might take while being moved.
As far as how long you will be waitting for the new AMD cpu's, I am not sure, as AMD has done soft launchs of it's higher end cpu's, with nothing for sale to the public. Your best bet is to read this everyday & scan for real news:
It has a number of major sources. I am going to guess, the Bartons will come out in Feb & the Hammer line in late Jan. This is just a guess. You should also keep a open mind to the new Intel P4's using the Spingdale chipset mobos. Good Luck
