Thread:Vorknkx/@comment-3547390-20170901233307/@comment-1496755-20170905234328

I was looking at various BIOS settings and I saw one related to how much memory the on-board video card should use. I wrongly assumed that the 7100 wasn't on-board because I hadn't studied it properly (yup, a pretty dumb mistake) and disabled this memory thing altogether, in order to free up more RAM (I had done similar things on other computers before). The result was an absolute failure to boot. Just black screen and blinking lights on the CD/DVD drives. Freaked out for a minute, then quickly dug out the motherboard's manual (good thing we kept it!) and checked the specs. A blood-chilling realization - the 7100 actually was on-board! And by messing up that setting I had effectively blocked it completely, preventing any chance of booting up. Luckily, I soon came across a schematic that showed the jumper used to reset the BIOS (+ instructions on how to use it). So I overcame my reluctance towards doing hardware-related stuff, grabbed a screwdriver and got to work. A triumphant happy end followed :)

I guess I should try to get more experience with hardware - can't always rely on other people to fix stuff for me. My dad is an expert on electronics and such stuff, so I'd always feel better if he was doing it (just like you do). But in extreme cases, I try to do it to the best of my knowledge, even though there have been times in the past that didn't end so happily...

This PC's case isn't very big. Disconnecting it is quite a hassle, though, because it's squeezed in a narrow space between two walls, a large set of heavy wooden cabinets, and the small table that the monitor & keyboard sit on. Connecting all the stuff back again is an even bigger hassle (cables just love getting all tangled up).

If I'm going to make an upgrade in the future, the first thing would probably be the video card. But it's not urgent, since most of my gaming is focused on older stuff, which runs perfectly even with lesser cards.