help choosing a video card fits

[oxoswiveloxo]

i want to play world of warcraft and counter strike, so i need a video card that has 3d shaders. ive found lots of them but i cant figure out if the conection part will fit in my computer. most new cards that ive looked at have the three sets of little gold connection things at the bottom, but my current video card has a different connections(i think).
please tell me what to do to find out what will fit.
btw: i have am nvidia tnt2 model 64(not sure if that helps).

[GX1_Man]

We would have to know what motherboard is in there. Run Everest Home and copy the report in here for further analysis.

http://www.majorgeeks.com/download4181.html

[oxoswiveloxo]

heres the hardware part.


Summary

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
      
  Computer:  
   Operating System   Microsoft Windows XP Professional  
   OS Service Pack   Service Pack 2  
   DirectX   4.09.00.0904 (DirectX 9.0c)  
   Computer Name   OURS (Damon's Computer)  
   User Name   Jedi Academy  
  
  Motherboard:  
   CPU Type   Intel Pentium 4, 1500 MHz (15 x 100)  
   Motherboard Name   Asus P4B-LA (3 PCI, 1 AGP, 3 DIMM, Audio, LAN)  
   Motherboard Chipset   Intel Brookdale i845  
   System Memory   512 MB (PC133 SDRAM)  
   BIOS Type   Award Medallion (08/28/01)  
   Communication Port   Communications Port (COM1)  
   Communication Port   Communications Port (COM2)  
   Communication Port   ECP Printer Port (LPT1)  
  
  Display:  
   Video Adapter   NVIDIA RIVA TNT2 Model 64/Model 64 Pro (32 MB)  
   3D Accelerator   nVIDIA RIVA TNT2 M64  
   Monitor   Dell D1025TM [17" CRT] (55341C171K48)  
  
  Multimedia:  
   Audio Adapter   Intel 82801BA ICH2X - AC'97 Audio Controller [C-0]  
  
  Storage:  
   IDE Controller   Intel(R) 82801BA Ultra ATA Storage Controller - 244B  
   SCSI/RAID Controller   SCSI/RAID Host Controller  
   Floppy Drive   Floppy disk drive  
   Disk Drive   Maxtor 4D040H2 (40 GB, 5400 RPM, Ultra-ATA/100)  
   Disk Drive   Maxtor 90432D2 (4 GB, 5400 RPM, Ultra-ATA/33)  
   Optical Drive   ARTEC WRR-4848 (48x/12x/48x CD-RW)  
   Optical Drive   GU3327Y EAG545O SCSI CdRom Device  
   Optical Drive   TOSHIBA DVD-ROM SD-M1502 (16x/48x DVD-ROM)  
   SMART Hard Disks Status   OK  
  
  Partitions:  
   C: (NTFS)   39069 MB (3576 MB free)  
   D: (FAT32)   4110 MB (1172 MB free)  
   Total Size   43179 MB (4748 MB free)  
  
  Input:  
   Keyboard   Standard 101/102-Key or Microsoft Natural PS/2 Keyboard  
   Mouse   PS/2 Compatible Mouse  
  
  Network:  
   Network Adapter   Intel(R) PRO/100 VE Network Connection (192.168.0.101)  
   Modem   Lucent Win Modem  
  
  Peripherals:  
   Printer   Lexmark Z53 Series ColorFine  
   USB1 Controller   Intel 82801BA ICH2X - USB Controller 1 [C-0]  
   USB1 Controller   Intel 82801BA ICH2X - USB Controller 2 [C-0]  
   USB1 Controller   VIA VT83C572 PCI-USB Controller  
   USB1 Controller   VIA VT83C572 PCI-USB Controller  
   USB2 Controller   VIA USB 2.0 Enhanced Host Controller  
   USB Device   Dazzle DVC100 Audio Device  
   USB Device   Dazzle DVC100 Video Device  
   USB Device   USB Composite Device  
  
  Problems & Suggestions:  
   Problem   Disk free space is only 9% on drive C:.  

[soybean]

Motherboard Name   Asus P4B-LA (3 PCI, [highlight]1 AGP[/highlight], 3 DIMM, Audio, LAN)

You need an AGP video card.

[oxoswiveloxo]

does it matter if its the 4x or 8x or watever those things are?

[GX1_Man]

That board takes a 4x card, but 8x cards are backwards compatible, so that should not be a problem there, but I wouldn't spend a fortune on the latest and greatest card available.

Is this an HP machine? If so, you may need to update the power supply if using some cards. This may or may not be easy.

So tell us the details about the actual machine. The make and wattage of the power supply in there would be helpful as well.

[oxoswiveloxo]

here is the entire report from everest

if u need nething else u gotta tell me how to find it.
im not to good at the harware part of computers.

[GX1_Man]

So it is, in fact, an HP.

You will have to open the case to see the Power Supply and read the info off of it, but you may find that it will not be enough for a gaming computer with a powerhouse video card.

[Track]

Hmm.. a card that wont be bottlenecked by a Pentium 1.5Ghz with a 100Mhz FSB..

Whats ur budget? Max u can spend is 200$.

[oxoswiveloxo]

all i need is a video card that meets these requirements

The minimum requirements for World Of Warcraft: A Pentium III 800 MHz or higher processor, 512 MB of RAM, A 3D video graphics card with at least 32 MB of RAM and four gigabytes of storage space

ive got the processor and the sstorage but not the video. what is there that i can get that dosent require me to upgrade nething else? (im not at home so i cant look at the ps)

[soybean]

I'm not a gamer but the stated system requirements you mentioned for video, "A 3D video graphics card with at least 32 MB of RAM", is really quite minimal.  128MB has practically become the minimum amount of memory on cards now on the market.  Something such as EVGA GeForce 6200 LE / 128MB DDR / AGP 8x / DVI / VGA / TV Out / Video Card, which would cost about $50 with shipping, would seem to be more than adequate for that game and, yet, not very expensive.  For more from the seller of the above card, see Video / Graphics Cards  AGP Video Cards

[Track]

all i need is a video card that meets these requirements

The minimum requirements for World Of Warcraft: A Pentium III 800 MHz or higher processor, 512 MB of RAM, A 3D video graphics card with at least 32 MB of RAM and four gigabytes of storage space

ive got the processor and the sstorage but not the video. what is there that i can get that dosent require me to upgrade nething else? (im not at home so i cant look at the ps)

I wouldnt get anything less than the 7300 GT.

[linuxlover]

all i need is a video card that meets these requirements

The minimum requirements for World Of Warcraft: A Pentium III 800 MHz or higher processor, 512 MB of RAM, A 3D video graphics card with at least 32 MB of RAM and four gigabytes of storage space

ive got the processor and the sstorage but not the video. what is there that i can get that dosent require me to upgrade nething else? (im not at home so i cant look at the ps)

I wouldnt get anything less than the 7300 GT.

That means 64MB is the least. 128MB is recommended. Anything with 128MB will work. For excellent performance, go for at least a 7300GS. (GT is more expensive with little performance difference). You'll need more RAM too. Otherwise the game will be unbearably slow. I'd recommend at least 768MB.

[patio]

Problems & Suggestions:  
   Problem   Disk free space is only 9% on drive C:.

I'm surprised this machine is running at all...

[Track]

Problems & Suggestions:  
   Problem   Disk free space is only 9% on drive C:.

I'm surprised this machine is running at all...

3.5GB is enough for any PC.  

[oxoswiveloxo]

i noticed that but i couldnt figure out y. i deleted lots of stuff but i 4got 2 empty the garbage can

[linuxlover]

Problems & Suggestions:  
   Problem   Disk free space is only 9% on drive C:.

I'm surprised this machine is running at all...

3.5GB is enough for any PC.  

So long as he doesn't try to install any new games

[oxoswiveloxo]

I'm not a gamer but the stated system requirements you mentioned for video, "A 3D video graphics card with at least 32 MB of RAM", is really quite minimal.  128MB has practically become the minimum amount of memory on cards now on the market.  Something such as EVGA GeForce 6200 LE / 128MB DDR / AGP 8x / DVI / VGA / TV Out / Video Card, which would cost about $50 with shipping, would seem to be more than adequate for that game and, yet, not very expensive.  For more from the seller of the above card, see Video / Graphics Cards  AGP Video Cards

EVGA GeForce 6200 LE / 128MB DDR / AGP 8x / DVI / VGA / TV Out / Video Card
so is that card a good one to get? i plan on getting a new pc after vista is all ready to go, so i dont want to spend that much.

[soybean]

Well, Vista is supposed to be available in retail stores by Jan 30, 2007.  With some such a short time horizon left before it's release, why not just just wait?  Why spend any money on your old computer?

Having said that, the video card I mentioned is one I believe would be a good, fairly low cost, short-term upgrade.  Now, Track, our resident video card expert, may have a different opinion.

[oxoswiveloxo]

all i need is something that will make wow play on my machine. thats all i need. thanx 4 all ur hlp guys

[patio]

How so ? ?

Windows minimum requirements are at least 15% free drive space to operate normally...

What does 3.5G have to do with that equation ? ?

[GX1_Man]

3.5GB is enough for any PC.  

Sorry, but I have to call "bullsh*t" on that.  

[Track]

3.5GB is enough for any PC.  

Sorry, but I have to call "bullsh*t" on that.  

Maybe u can call it something else? For the sake of being civil, u know.. or do u?

I didnt account for the game itself, 3.5GB is enough if ur not thinking of adding much more to the hard drive. 1024MB is usually the reccomended ammount to leave for virtual memory to use.

[patio]

3.5GB is enough for any PC.  

Sorry, but I have to call "bullsh*t" on that.  

Maybe u can call it something else? For the sake of being civil, u know.. or do u?

I didnt account for the game itself, 3.5GB is enough if ur not thinking of adding much more to the hard drive. 1024MB is usually the reccomended ammount to leave for virtual memory to use.

Virtual memory has nothing to do with free hard drive space...

[linuxlover]

Sure it does. Virtual memory gobbles up drive space. It turns a 160GB into a 145GB. Much cheaper (and slower) than a REAL 15GB though.

[Track]

3.5GB is enough for any PC.  

Sorry, but I have to call "bullsh*t" on that.  

Maybe u can call it something else? For the sake of being civil, u know.. or do u?

I didnt account for the game itself, 3.5GB is enough if ur not thinking of adding much more to the hard drive. 1024MB is usually the reccomended ammount to leave for virtual memory to use.

Virtual memory has nothing to do with free hard drive space...

Then where is the virtual memory?

[GX1_Man]

This topic sure has wandered away from the original question.  

[Track]

This topic sure has wandered away from the original question.  

Yeh, but it has been answered.

Can u BELIEVE what patio said? Har dee har har!

[patio]

This topic sure has wandered away from the original question.  

Yeh, but it has been answered.

Can u BELIEVE what patio said? Har dee har har!

You are confusing 2 different issues here...

Of course a swapfile uses unused HDD space, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to know that.

The issue i was addressing is the fact that if your free space on any drive regardless of size falls to less than 15% than Windows and any apps you are running will certainly struggle...

Since his report stated free space was at 9% i made the comment i made and i stick by it.

Feel free to dispute it if you will.

[homer]

you also need a minimum 15% of free disk space to defrag.

[Track]

This topic sure has wandered away from the original question.  

Yeh, but it has been answered.

Can u BELIEVE what patio said? Har dee har har!

You are confusing 2 different issues here...

Of course a swapfile uses unused HDD space, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to know that.

The issue i was addressing is the fact that if your free space on any drive regardless of size falls to less than 15% than Windows and any apps you are running will certainly struggle...

Since his report stated free space was at 9% i made the comment i made and i stick by it.

Feel free to dispute it if you will.

That dosent make any sense. The only reason why the system will struggle is because there is not enough RAM and the PC would need to use Virtual RAM, but since it has no more space on the HDD it will not be able to allocate anymore Virtual RAM.

That being said, ive been using my 2 PCs with less than 5% of free HDD space for months and i have not noticed any change. I cannot prove that they work the same, but can u prove that u need for 15%? I dont know where u got that, and i doubt anyone will be able to explain why u need it.

[GX1_Man]

Kelly has an explanation:

Note: The volume must have at least fifteen percent free space for Defrag to completely and adequately defragment it. Defrag uses this space as a sorting area for file fragments. If a volume has less than [highlight]fifteen percent free space[/highlight], Defrag only partially defragments it.

Here's the whole link.

http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/xp_defrag.htm

This just adresses the defrag angle of XP performance. There are many others.