Too Upgrade or to Trash

SaintSAW

SaintSAW

New Member
Hi, I'm new to this forum and I was looking for some help so maybe you guys can or maybe not. I found a computer at a garage sale for $20 and it came with the whole system except for the hard drive, it also came with a monitor keyboard and mouse but that doesn't have a lot of bearing on this discussion.

Looking at this computer I knew it was old and for $20 what the heck. I'm learning about computers in my computer class and I'm very interested so at the least I knew I could donate it to my school. The computer itself is a Compaq Presario 6430NX. Here's a link showing the specs- Click Me. So my question is should I try to upgrade it or should I just use it as a learning tool for my computer class. I'd like to at least be able to run Counter-Strike fairly well and I'm interested in the new Warhammer Online game but that might be really pushing it as far as performance goes. Could I set this computer up well enough with a new hard-drive and new RAM and clock it high enough for these games?

Also because the man who sold it to me removed the hard-drive I need a new one so what is the best hard-drive for the money without going overboard?

Thanks in advance for your help I appreciate your time.
 
I assume you're planning on running XP on it... anyway, a 512MB stick or RAM and a decent AGP video card will do it for CS (Source, too), but Warhammer Online... no, no, no. It will be good for everyday computing, word processsing, internet surfing, music & movies, that kinda stuff, but for gaming you better get a new build.
 
i would not sugest upgrading it when u could build a new PC for around the same price as upgrading mabey a little more.
it u want t obuild whats your budget, what country are u in
 
So I guess first at zero_cool. If I were to buy those parts, install them and get it running, would I be able to Warhammer Online?

I think for the time being until I can save up either to start buying a high-end desktop I will buy a hard-drive, video-card and RAM. That way I can get the computer off the ground and at least have internet in my own room. What specific RAM sticks, Video card and HDD should I buy from New Egg in order to get this rig running. For now I just want to run Counter-Strike well. I can always upgrade later. Should I just buy a better HDD now and then I can just run it later?
 
They don't sell AGP graphics cards anymore, so you're gonna have a really hard time finding one out there, that is even capable of playing Warhammer on low. They used to exist. It's all PCI-E now.

Keep it, and use it to "learn". It's not bad for word processing, the internet etc. You might get some pre-2002 games running on the integrated AGP, but nothing else really.

If you need a hand building a new PC (would cost about the same as having to upgrade, would be a hell of a lot better, and new!), just post back here and someone'll pop along and help you out.
 
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I agree, learn with it and for internet and pre-2002 games, but not to upgrade. I have an older HP and it is NOT for games, even with a video card upgrade, and the processor is comparable to yours. CS source runs but is sluggish on my secondary computer.
 
lincsman said:
I agree, learn with it and for internet and pre-2002 games, but not to upgrade. I have an older HP and it is NOT for games, even with a video card upgrade, and the processor is comparable to yours. CS source runs but is sluggish on my secondary computer.
Click to expand...

I'm surprised it even runs. I knew it was lightweight, but I never though it was that scaleable.
 
Last question for now, I'm just going to buy a hard drive that way I can at least have a working comp. Will this hard-drive work?- LINK

And can someone point me in the direction of a video card that will work with this system?
 
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