I am having a problem with the power on one of my computers. It is a Pentium II 266mhz on a Aopen AX6B motherboard (Intel 440BX) with 64MB RAM and 6.4GB hard drive running Windows 98SE. Before Christmas it was playing up, switching off by itself and then switching on at odd hours (no pattern). Even when shutdown correctly, it was prone to turning itself back on. This PC was set up on a home network but since the problems started I haven’t been able to get Internet Sharing to work at all. Furthermore, the data transfer between this PC and another is dreadfully slow (it takes up to 12hrs to copy 70MB!). Some advice I have been given about the power problem is, firstly, it is probably a sensor on the motherboard. In this case it is probably more economical to buy new motherboard as it will cost up to a $100 to have it checked it out and that money could be used to buy a new motherboard. Secondly, it may be the power switch on the case. To test this theory, I was instructed to disconnect the power switch from the motherboard and then short the two jumpers to see what happens. Thirdly, it may be the power unit. Buy a new one ($30 - $40) and see if that fixes the problem. Finally, try reinstalling Windows 98SE. Do you have any advice? (more…)

I would like to upgrade my computer so that I can have faster access to the internet and be able to run programs that my current system can’t handle. Not being very computer literate, I don’t know where I should begin. Price is also an issue. Any advice you could give me would be very helpful. My current operating system is Windows 95. (more…)

I am wondering about over-clocking my CPU. It is a PIII 450 MHz with Gigabyte GA-6BA motherboard. The case has little or no ventilation and I am wondering whether I can over-clock the CPU without it breaking down and whether the CPU should be fitted with extra cooling. Also, how much can I over-clock? My friend has the same chip and has over-clocked to 568 MHz with a bus speed of 122 MHz (he thinks). His case has more ventilation than mine and has run his PC that way for a couple of years without extra cooling for the CPU. Can I do the same to mine? (more…)

I have Windows 98 and am experiencing a problem with my PC clock not holding the correct time. It loses both date and time, and correcting the time manually does not help. I’m assuming there is something wrong with the BIOS or something else. How can I fix the problem and get my PC to keep the correct date/time? (more…)

I have a Pentium II MMX 350Mhz 64Mb RAM running Windows 98SE with all the MS updates. Bios is an Award Bios v4.51pg. I get the following message during boot up: ‘Award Plug and Play BIOS Extension v1.0A copyright 1998 ‘ The last line in <> is a new message which only has appeared recently. What does it mean and do I need to do anything about it? (more…)