New Computer Purchase!

[Photo-John]

I've been in denial. A month or so ago I came home and smelled a terrible, burnt electronics smell in my office. I have avoided dealing with it until yesterday, when someone asked me for some files that are on the drives in the dead machine.

So yesterday I opened up the case, and as expected, found some serious scorched circuitry in the power supply. Just so you know, a 250 watt power supply isn't enough for a machine with three hard drives. So I went to Frys and bought a new, 350 watt power supply. Unfortunately, after installation, the computer still wouldn't start up. That means that it's a pretty sure bet that the motherboard and who knows what else are cooked. And I need to buy a new computer.

What you see in the photo is what I bought today. I'll be building the machine myself - for the first time. I bought a nice, no-tools-required case, with lots of ventilation and front USB and FireWire ports. It's an Asus motherboard with 4 memory slots, a 3 GHz Pentium 4 processor, a 512 ram stick, and a sweet, double-fanned, 430 watt power supply. I'm hoping this machine will be a solid platform for the next 2-3 years. I'll be moving over an old video card and two of my old hard drives.

I'll keep you guys posted as I build it. This is going to be an interesting and educational experience. I wouldn't have tried to build my own computer a couple of years ago. But I know a lot more now and everything is plu-and-play. So I don't think it's going to be a big deal. Cross your fingers for me.