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New to folding

D

delvryboy

2[H]4U
Joined
Feb 21, 2008
Messages
2,486
I have been doing some research and am really feeling supportive of the cause.

I'm picking up an old Dell next week. I believe its a p4 512mb ram, and some smallish vid card(agp). I was thinking of using it for a dedicated folder and was wondering what type of upgrades, if any, will need to be made.

Thanks
 
Hi! Welcome to the [H]orde!! :)

Any potential upgrade will depend on the type of processor the machine already has. What are the exact specs, do you know?

 
I'll be picking it up next week. I'm giving my parents my last build and bringing theirs home.
 
Welcome!

I would suggest cleaning out your computer. Blow out the dust.



 
Welcome to the team, glad to have you here...

As far as upgrades go, I can't really recommend any. I have a small borg of about 15 Dell's, most P4 3g boxes and some Celeron 2.8's.... they seem to do alright given the specs.

As said above, keep it clean... that will help with the temps...

 
welcome to the addiction! grab a beer and settle in for the long haul, once folding is in your blood it stays haha. feel free to ask any questions you have with the client setups and whatnot.




 
OK, here's the details....

P4 northwood, 2.4ghz, 512 ddr PC-2700(blah)

I may have a 1gb stick of 333 laying around somewhere.

Can't overclock(Dell) and a 128 DDR ATI Radeon 9700TX (pci)


Now should I run XP or linux?

I'm thinking about linux because any boxen I put together in the future will more than likely be linux due to $$$.

Thanks

 
delvryboy said:
OK, here's the details....

P4 northwood, 2.4ghz, 512 ddr PC-2700(blah)

I may have a 1gb stick of 333 laying around somewhere.

Can't overclock(Dell) and a 128 DDR ATI Radeon 9700TX (pci)


Now should I run XP or linux?

I'm thinking about linux because any boxen I put together in the future will more than likely be linux due to $$$.

Thanks

Click to expand...

Run notfreds Folding CD.

Download, burn, insert in CD-ROM, reboot. That's it.

Very good on the PPD with very little effort. If you want to save on power get rid of the HDD and vid card (if it has one)

linky: http://reilly.homeip.net/folding/cd.html

I run three systems this way.

(make sure to put your info in ;))


 
delvryboy said:
so would I reformat the drive first?
Click to expand...

nope, it's a live CD. Runs off the CD and RAM, nothing else. My three system above have no vid cards, no HDD. They use a usb stick for backup.

insert the cd and reboot, that is it. I swear :D

 
If your going to run the diskless cd, you don't need a hard drive, it boots from and runs off of the cd.

If it's a dedicated folding box, that probably is the way to go.. but you won't be able to use the boxen for anything other than folding if that's what you decide to do with it. Formatting your hard drive is not necessary, just pull it out of the machine and let it do it's thing..

EDIT... DAMMIT... You beat me to it:)

 
A video card is not needed? Even onboard video is not necessary?
 
APOLLO said:
A video card is not needed? Even onboard video is not necessary?
Click to expand...

only if you need to plug in a monitor to adjust you OC settings.

Just burn it, stick it in and hit reboot.

I have 3 boxen on a shelf in the basement with Cat5 strung to them and a power cable. That's it.

You can run a system for under 100 watts. (OC and proc make it +/-)

I defer to BillR for further info on that.

 
Kendrak said:
only if you need to plug in a monitor to adjust you OC settings.

Just burn it, stick it in and hit reboot.
Click to expand...
Sorry for being a bit ignorant about this, but I run server boards mostly, and I have yet to encounter one that will start without an error code if there isn't onboard video at minimum.
 
You should have a option in the BIOS to not halt on errors. Usually on the very first page.
 
Killer[MoB];1032194287 said:
You should have a option in the BIOS to not halt on errors. Usually on the very first page.
Click to expand...
I always have that option on.
 
1. Is there any way to monitor it?

2. Do I need to change anything on my current router?
 
delvryboy said:
1. Is there any way to monitor it?

2. Do I need to change anything on my current router?
Click to expand...

The Fold Cd also has a mini web server. You can type in the ip addy and a web page of stats will show up.

Very handy if you on a boxen that does not have FAHMon

 
delvryboy said:
OK, here's the details....

P4 northwood, 2.4ghz, 512 ddr PC-2700(blah)

I may have a 1gb stick of 333 laying around somewhere.

Click to expand...

If you can't find your memory I think I have 2 1 gig sticks DDR I can send you for free via snail mail. They are just sitting in a box of parts! (I'll verify tonight)

Oh and welcome aboard!!!

 
Sunin said:
If you can't find your memory I think I have 2 1 gig sticks DDR I can send you for free via snail mail. They are just sitting in a box of parts! (I'll verify tonight)

Oh and welcome aboard!!!

Click to expand...
Actually, my wife just reminded me that I gave that stick to my ex(12 y/o duaghter's mom). If you think it would be an improvement using nofreds folding CD, it would be much appreciated.

I'm not sure if this Dell can even run that much ram though.
 
I looked and I have 3 memory sticks... two of them I am not certain what they are... it has two notches by the pins.. it maybe PC133 or something I can post pics if desired. The other stick is 256 DDR 333. I'll gladly send all three for free just pm me... Toss what you don't need..



 
Kendrak said:
Toss boxen bits?! :eek:

Click to expand...

Ok Ok donate to someone :p hehehe I also have a SL7SM Pentium M 2ghz, 2m, faster than a p4 if anyone has or can use it, I know wrong forum its just sitting there waiting to be used :) Forget what I got a Super Pi on it but it was damn fast! OC'd very well :)
 
1 more quick question.... what is the life span of the cd-rom drive running like this? Would it be a wise move to throw in a new drive?

BTW - wife seems to be down for me building a quad core folding only rig next month. :)

 
delvryboy said:
1 more quick question.... what is the life span of the cd-rom drive running like this? Would it be a wise move to throw in a new drive?

BTW - wife seems to be down for me building a quad core folding only rig next month. :)

Click to expand...

I have never run a box without a HD but I would guess it only uses the CD ROM to boot and load the program. Everything else should run from memory.

 
Superdemon said:
I have never run a box without a HD but I would guess it only uses the CD ROM to boot and load the program. Everything else should run from memory.

Click to expand...

Bingo, The CD-Rom runs for 10 seconds max. And if you leave it on the only time it will ever hit that CD-ROM is it you reboot.

 
Pocatello said:
You should keep her. She sounds like a good woman.
Click to expand...

Xilikon said:
Agreed, you got a awesome wife :)
Click to expand...
Sorry to derail the thread guys, but I've read this so many times that I have to inquire about it. Why would anyone's spouse be upset at their partner's desire to build a computer? I've never been married, however all the people I know who are do not or would not have such an issue with their spouses. I can't understand why it seems to be a recurrent theme on this forum. It's your hard-earned money, do what you want with it.
 
APOLLO said:
Sorry to derail the thread guys, but I've read this so many times that I have to inquire about it. Why would anyone's spouse be upset at their partner's desire to build a computer? I've never been married, however all the people I know who are do not or would not have such an issue with their spouses. I can't understand why it seems to be a recurrent theme on this forum. It's your hard-earned money, do what you want with it.
Click to expand...

Sometime, they don't always see the same thing as you when it come to computer upgrades (or any other hobby expenditures). Some will bitch or ask for a trade-off... Good thing you don't have one because you can do what you want ;)

 
APOLLO said:
It's your hard-earned money, do what you want with it.
Click to expand...

Spoken like an un-married guy!

you see, when you get married, everything belongs to your wife. Your time, your money, your whatever... it is not yours anymore, it belongs to your wife.

SWMBO --- She Who Must Be Obeyed.
 
APOLLO said:
Sorry to derail the thread guys, but I've read this so many times that I have to inquire about it. Why would anyone's spouse be upset at their partner's desire to build a computer? I've never been married, however all the people I know who are do not or would not have such an issue with their spouses. I can't understand why it seems to be a recurrent theme on this forum. It's your hard-earned money, do what you want with it.
Click to expand...

When you're married and have a family, everything is a family decision. I just dumped $900 in
a new box last week. Of course my wife would ask what/why I would want to dump another $400 into a new box. ;)

Besides, we both contribute equally.
 
APOLLO said:
Sorry to derail the thread guys, but I've read this so many times that I have to inquire about it. Why would anyone's spouse be upset at their partner's desire to build a computer? I've never been married, however all the people I know who are do not or would not have such an issue with their spouses. I can't understand why it seems to be a recurrent theme on this forum. It's your hard-earned money, do what you want with it.
Click to expand...

It is mostly the fact that we want to stay married.

My wife is a softy and since it's for a good cause I have a bit of rope.... but not that much more.

There is no "my" money when you are married. There is "ours" and "hers" :p

 
There's also the issue of the unsightlyness of boxen multiplying. Doesn't matter what room they're in.

 
alan2308 said:
There's also the issue of the unsightlyness of boxen multiplying. Doesn't matter what room they're in.
Click to expand...
This I could very well understand. Actually, it's one of my biggest concerns since I started DC 7 years ago. I'm going to commence a project later this year that will increase my production without the consequent multiplying of boxen, and I'm not talking upgrades or optimizations either.

As for the joint financial issues with married folks, I guess it's a personal situation that may or may not apply to most people in a marriage. The majority of the married people I know don't have these kind of issues (for better or for worse - no pun).

I suspect an ethnic element may be at work here. People from my background don't usually concern themselves with such matters unless it gets way out of hand. A couple of hundred bucks spent here or there on personal affairs don't usually raise an eyebrow from the spouse. Unless their financial situations are dire, it's normally ignored. The amount would have to be far greater than that to raise alarms. I'm not stating this as an absolute, only a generality.

I guess everything is relative.
 
APOLLO said:
A couple of hundred bucks spent here or there on personal affairs don't usually raise an eyebrow from the spouse. Unless their financial situations are dire, it's normally ignored. The amount would have to be far greater than that to raise alarms. I'm not stating this as an absolute, only a generality.
Click to expand...

I wish it was only a couple hundred. :p

I spend that on the last proc I got, and they get lonely if they don't get a mobo home and RAM to play with :p

 
There is absolutely no way I would be able to contribute as much as I do without my wife's support.. she is really understanding and there have been several times that she has sacrificed something in one way or another to help me fold... but the line does get drawn from time to time...

Just thought I should add my two cents... so to speak:)

 
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