Dropped and broke FRAGILE image bank

[Pennypincher]

Mines a 1999 model that came with nothing more than a 52x cdrm.Im interpreting your post as saying i could plug my internal hardrive into one of the 2 or 3 extra internal IDE receptacles inside my computer box and my existing hardrive would operate it recognizing it as a slave,so long as i plugged it into the IDE receptacle right next to the one the existing hardrive is attached to (both must connect to the same cord).

No other work or programing is required because plugging it into the slave receptacle sets it as a slave.
Well if thats wrong i guess id just be out $14.

This leads me to ask if i couldnt just order another bigger desktop internal hardrive (because im aware of how much cheaper they are than notebook hardrives) and connect it exactly the same way? I could try out the notebook first to see if im doing it right then move up from there?
Hope im not becoming a major pest with this.
thanx
Dan

Hope this helps..

Mike

http://www.cablesnmor.com/hard-drive-converter.html

Here is a write I did on the IB a few months back...

http://208.231.0.96/bedpan/IB/

Good luck..

Mike

Mike

As for what to do with the broken IB... I would suggest trying to
find a friend that has some electronics skills. There is a good
change the CF connector could be soldered back onto the PCB and get
it up and running again. Been awhile since I had my IB open, so I
don't recall if this connector is Surfance mount, or Pins... If it
is surface mount it might be a bit tougher (but not impossible) to
fix..

I will pay the shipping if you want to send it to me ;-)

Mike

Well after using my image bank just a few times in the safety and
security of my office area i apparently broke it.I sat it on a file
rack next to my desk which stood no higher than my desk (2 1/2 feet
) so i wouldnt have to step over the cord but immediatly caught the
cord with my foot and it fell the short distance into a bunch of
soft garbage.Looks like it landed on the CF card and memory stick
because the little tray i slide the CF card into looks detached
from the circuit board on one side and the cf card seems to slide
in deeper on one side than the other.The poer wont turn onIm sure
even fine china would have withstood the little tumble it
took.Unfortunatly since i have no power i cant tell if my files are
ok in the hardrive.My 90 day warranty expired 4 months ago and i
guess this wouldnt be covered.
Any tips or advice would be apreciated...seems like i should get
power at least.
I just ordered another Image Bank with power Bank but im not going
to be willing to erase my hardrive to formate it.
Disapointed
PS ,the top panel of my ms to CF card adapter popped apart a few
days ago when i was slidding in a memory stick.I know you must
think i must be some rough unco-ordinated 300lb turkey ...not so
...this stuff is fragile,very fragile.
Im sitting here with 5 ms sticks i want to see wondering if my
hardrive is erased and how much its going to cost to repair or
replace this junk
Dan

 

[Pennypincher]

Unfortunatly its the Image Bank.Weird thing...i got 3 screws in my image tank package (1 extra) and got 2 screws in my image bank package(1 short).To total the # i needed.Then its my image bank manual that allows me to get the hardrive in my image tank recognized.

Well i guess im listening to too much Art Bell...or maybe i need to listen more so i can put the clues together.
Thanx
Dan

Vasa
[email protected]

If you bought Image Tank from me I would replace it, with no
question asked, but you might try Image Tank people themselves,
they are extremely nice and serious business operator and I am sure
they will assist you. Is your Image Tank or Bank. Let em know what
exactly product you have and if I can assist you.

Vasa
[email protected]

Well after using my image bank just a few times in the safety and
security of my office area i apparently broke it.I sat it on a file
rack next to my desk which stood no higher than my desk (2 1/2 feet
) so i wouldnt have to step over the cord but immediatly caught the
cord with my foot and it fell the short distance into a bunch of
soft garbage.Looks like it landed on the CF card and memory stick
because the little tray i slide the CF card into looks detached
from the circuit board on one side and the cf card seems to slide
in deeper on one side than the other.The poer wont turn onIm sure
even fine china would have withstood the little tumble it
took.Unfortunatly since i have no power i cant tell if my files are
ok in the hardrive.My 90 day warranty expired 4 months ago and i
guess this wouldnt be covered.
Any tips or advice would be apreciated...seems like i should get
power at least.
I just ordered another Image Bank with power Bank but im not going
to be willing to erase my hardrive to formate it.
Disapointed
PS ,the top panel of my ms to CF card adapter popped apart a few
days ago when i was slidding in a memory stick.I know you must
think i must be some rough unco-ordinated 300lb turkey ...not so
...this stuff is fragile,very fragile.
Im sitting here with 5 ms sticks i want to see wondering if my
hardrive is erased and how much its going to cost to repair or
replace this junk
Dan

--
[email protected]

--
[email protected]

 

[Mike Flood]

You wouldnt happen to know where i could order that online do you?
Or maybe someone has a link?
thanx
Dan

Try http://www.compgeeks.com/details.asp?invtid=HD-108

--
Mike Flood
http://home.earthlink.net/~floodfoto/
http://home.earthlink.net/~floodfoto/tech/tips.htm
http://home.earthlink.net/~floodfoto/tech/image-tank-faqs.htm

 

[Mike Russell]

Hey Dan,

Not a problem at all....

Sounds like you are on the right track here...
So you have one internal Harddrive, and one internal CDROM drive..

So, you will most likely (not for certain though) find that your harddrive is setup as the master on the primary channel (the first IDE cable), and the CDROM is setup as the Master on the Secondary channel (second IDE cable).

So installing a new Harddrive be it a standard PC drive, or a laptop drive with an adapter you would then set the new drive as a slave, and attach it to the second connector (should be empty) of the same cable that attaches to your existing harddrive.

You can read a bit about this here...
http://www.pcmech.com/show/harddrive/43/

This is an IDE Cable



You can see how there are 3 connectors, 1 to the motherboard, 2 for devices (master and slave)

There are a few things you need to be aware of..

1) After the harddrive is installed you need to enter the bios and have it detect that there is a new drive installed

2) Some older PC's have a limit to the size of drive they can use. Sometime a bios upgrade will fix this, but not always

3) There is a chance your existing setup will have Your hardrive (master) and cdrom (slave) on the same IDE Channel. This just means the new drive would then be setup as a master on the secondary channel

Not sure what else to add here. Do some searching online there are lots of how to articles on doing this stuff. If you want to find out what if any your harddrive capacity limit is you will need to find either check with the vendor you bought it from (IBM, Compaq etc) or if its a no name PC you need to check with the motherboard maker. If you need some help in this area let me know. But you will at least need to determine the brand and model of motherboard you have.

Mike

Mines a 1999 model that came with nothing more than a 52x cdrm.Im
interpreting your post as saying i could plug my internal hardrive
into one of the 2 or 3 extra internal IDE receptacles inside my
computer box and my existing hardrive would operate it recognizing
it as a slave,so long as i plugged it into the IDE receptacle right
next to the one the existing hardrive is attached to (both must
connect to the same cord).
No other work or programing is required because plugging it into
the slave receptacle sets it as a slave.
Well if thats wrong i guess id just be out $14.
This leads me to ask if i couldnt just order another bigger desktop
internal hardrive (because im aware of how much cheaper they are
than notebook hardrives) and connect it exactly the same way? I
could try out the notebook first to see if im doing it right then
move up from there?
Hope im not becoming a major pest with this.
thanx
Dan
Mike Russell wrote:

 

[Pennypincher]

I have the manual in my hand...

it says PC 100 systemboard...slot1/socket 370...m741 Lmrt users manual on front.

The introduction page says you cannot install 2 processors on this mainboard....this mainboard has a slot-1 processor socket-370 for an intel ppga celeron processor.you can install either one(Pentium3 or Celeron).Pentium clock rate can go as highas 550 mhz clock rate.Celeron can go up to 466(which it has).(Did they see me coming?)

The mainboard uses the excel2000 chipset which provides CPU plug and play thru firmware...has built in 64 bit graphics acelerater...full set of atx I/Q ports including 2 ps/2 ports,2 usb ports,a parallel port,a serial port and a vga port..

this mainboard has all the features you need to develop a powerful ..bla bla bla...the board is micro-atx sized and has power conectors for atx power supply units so it can be installed in a micro-atx case.

Page 2 says "onboard IDE channels"...primary and secondary pci ide channels....support for pio modes...support for bus mastering and ultra dma 33/66 modes.

page 4 mentions it..provides plug and play forconfiguration of peripheral devices and expansion cards.

Does this tell you anything?I bought this as barebones,bought all parts separatly and paid a guy to put it together.I know its a slow poke already (overnite really) and i guess its to slow to use for editing and copying Mini dvc films...but if i could add a big hardrive i could use it between now and buying everything else ill need for my new computer...plus use the new hardrive in the new computer later.
Thanx
dan

Not a problem at all....

Sounds like you are on the right track here...
So you have one internal Harddrive, and one internal CDROM drive..
So, you will most likely (not for certain though) find that your
harddrive is setup as the master on the primary channel (the first
IDE cable), and the CDROM is setup as the Master on the Secondary
channel (second IDE cable).
So installing a new Harddrive be it a standard PC drive, or a
laptop drive with an adapter you would then set the new drive as a
slave, and attach it to the second connector (should be empty) of
the same cable that attaches to your existing harddrive.

You can read a bit about this here...
http://www.pcmech.com/show/harddrive/43/

This is an IDE Cable



You can see how there are 3 connectors, 1 to the motherboard, 2 for
devices (master and slave)

There are a few things you need to be aware of..
1) After the harddrive is installed you need to enter the bios and
have it detect that there is a new drive installed
2) Some older PC's have a limit to the size of drive they can use.
Sometime a bios upgrade will fix this, but not always
3) There is a chance your existing setup will have Your hardrive
(master) and cdrom (slave) on the same IDE Channel. This just means
the new drive would then be setup as a master on the secondary
channel

Not sure what else to add here. Do some searching online there are
lots of how to articles on doing this stuff. If you want to find
out what if any your harddrive capacity limit is you will need to
find either check with the vendor you bought it from (IBM, Compaq
etc) or if its a no name PC you need to check with the motherboard
maker. If you need some help in this area let me know. But you
will at least need to determine the brand and model of motherboard
you have.

Mike

Mines a 1999 model that came with nothing more than a 52x cdrm.Im
interpreting your post as saying i could plug my internal hardrive
into one of the 2 or 3 extra internal IDE receptacles inside my
computer box and my existing hardrive would operate it recognizing
it as a slave,so long as i plugged it into the IDE receptacle right
next to the one the existing hardrive is attached to (both must
connect to the same cord).
No other work or programing is required because plugging it into
the slave receptacle sets it as a slave.
Well if thats wrong i guess id just be out $14.
This leads me to ask if i couldnt just order another bigger desktop
internal hardrive (because im aware of how much cheaper they are
than notebook hardrives) and connect it exactly the same way? I
could try out the notebook first to see if im doing it right then
move up from there?
Hope im not becoming a major pest with this.
thanx
Dan
Mike Russell wrote:

 

[Mike Russell]

Hey Dan...

I think this is your Motherboard here..
http://www.pcchips.com.tw/M741LMRT.html

PCChips is not one of the better motherboard companies. There support leaves a lot to be desired.. Anyways.. I cannot find any reference to this board and maximum Harddrive size. As it is a custom chipset (non Intel/VIA/SIS/AMD) there is not a lot to go on... If I where to guess you should be fine with drives up to 20GB. Anything larger may cause you problems. It is however possible that the max capacity is 40gb or 80gb.... Tough to tell for certain.... How large of a drive where you thinking about installing? What size drive do you have in there now?

There is software available called drive overlays (comes with most harddrives of a larger capacity) that makes the harddrive look smaller to the bios then it is, but still get the full capacity in the Operating system. I however highly recommend against it as...
1) If the drive crashes it can be VERY tough to restore anything
2) It slows down performance of the machine

I suggest you email PCChips and ask about the max drive capacity (assuming you want to add a larger drive)... Otherwise you may buy a drive that will not work (without problems) in your system..

Keep the questions coming..

Mike

 

[Pennypincher]

Hello...

I wanted a very large drive,maybe a few hundred gb...but i like what ive heard that it can be connected so that only the master drive is at risk of a crash or problem and the slave which could be huge would be sheltered...i think i just read this could be done with an attachment to an external hardrive too (in that "the dirty little secret about digital" that was just posted near the back page.)
I guess they saw me coming.
Right now ive got 20gb that are all used.

You obviously know what your talking about and im ahead for having asked you...youve given me a direction to proceed in and im sure more questions will arise as this progresses.If i cant get ahold of PCchips ill just add the question to my long list of questions i need to ask the computer techn i plan to use to put my new system together.Hes given me a components list but its vague...maybe he figured he didnt need to be too detailed till he saw i was serious.Maybe you know where the best deals are on barebones units or on video capture cards? Im thinking New Egg.The tech i talked to says i need a good one like GE force but i can only find mx420 $72. mx440 and ti200 around $100.These are lower end now and i dont know if theyr both digital and analog combos (which i want) or if i need something that is faster?Im not pro (anymore) so im not distributing films but have about 100 or more in boxes i want to transfer.

Id sure like to at least add this extra 20gb to my current system with that first adapter you mentioned...but if 20gb is my max i guess ive hit my max?

Im also anxious to get my collection vcopied onto computer etc as i dont like having to worry about theft,vandalism,deterioration or having to lug around crates all the time.I also know that its best to copy and transfer a new film right away before the speed the camcorder runs at changes any due to gear wear or heads become weakened by what can cause heads to weaken.I got my camcorder dirty and im taking it to the shop for cleaning as if i damage the heads my films recorded on that camcorder wont be copiable with the same high degree of precision i can get if i copy them now.Maybe i dont know what im talking about but i know gears wear and camcorders may not move at the same speed they did a few years ago depending on how much youv used them or if they had a repair.
Thanx again
Dan

Hey Dan...

I think this is your Motherboard here..
http://www.pcchips.com.tw/M741LMRT.html

PCChips is not one of the better motherboard companies. There
support leaves a lot to be desired.. Anyways.. I cannot find any
reference to this board and maximum Harddrive size. As it is a
custom chipset (non Intel/VIA/SIS/AMD) there is not a lot to go
on... If I where to guess you should be fine with drives up to
20GB. Anything larger may cause you problems. It is however
possible that the max capacity is 40gb or 80gb.... Tough to tell
for certain.... How large of a drive where you thinking about
installing? What size drive do you have in there now?

There is software available called drive overlays (comes with most
harddrives of a larger capacity) that makes the harddrive look
smaller to the bios then it is, but still get the full capacity in
the Operating system. I however highly recommend against it as...
1) If the drive crashes it can be VERY tough to restore anything
2) It slows down performance of the machine

I suggest you email PCChips and ask about the max drive capacity
(assuming you want to add a larger drive)... Otherwise you may buy
a drive that will not work (without problems) in your system..

Keep the questions coming..

Mike

 

[Pennypincher]

$3.65 cents!
Looks like it can pay to be a Geek!(Like im not one already)
thanx
Dan

You wouldnt happen to know where i could order that online do you?
Or maybe someone has a link?
thanx
Dan

Try http://www.compgeeks.com/details.asp?invtid=HD-108

--
Mike Flood
http://home.earthlink.net/~floodfoto/
http://home.earthlink.net/~floodfoto/tech/tips.htm
http://home.earthlink.net/~floodfoto/tech/image-tank-faqs.htm

 

[Pennypincher]

I spent the whole morning looking for a photoset i noticed i was missing.1st i noticed not as many of my pix were labeled and thought maybe the info was lost when i disconnected before getting okd.But then i remembered actual shots i couldnt find in any set (sets are very similar).I had shot the same scene on3 occassions and finally hit perfection on the 4th memory stick on the 3rd shootout...but couldnt find it.I had downloaded stick 6 twice and stick 4 zero.I was very relieved to find a copy of it on my other hardrive.Copying everything on both hardrives caught my error and this "rescue happened the 1st time i used backup...and my sticks are numbered so i try to use them in order and download them in order.

So many times ive been set way back (this is trivial) then where i was looks so far ahead of where im standing all the sudden and i wonder why wasnt apreciating were i was at.(and why others didnt think much of it either.

Getting permission to shut down the Image tank can take eternity...?? I just cant wait.

I wrote to insider.com asking for my warranty and they said they didnt possess them yet...noone has gotten them.Iyear is advertised on theyr web page...i downloaded the page to be sure i had proof.Then they tell me my ms card slot is on the far left...i says i know where it is or i couldnt have told you the slot is defectivly small at 3/32nds width.They say they can replace it.
Thanx
Dan
Just another nut on a shooting spree!

Hey Dan...

I think this is your Motherboard here..
http://www.pcchips.com.tw/M741LMRT.html

PCChips is not one of the better motherboard companies. There
support leaves a lot to be desired.. Anyways.. I cannot find any
reference to this board and maximum Harddrive size. As it is a
custom chipset (non Intel/VIA/SIS/AMD) there is not a lot to go
on... If I where to guess you should be fine with drives up to
20GB. Anything larger may cause you problems. It is however
possible that the max capacity is 40gb or 80gb.... Tough to tell
for certain.... How large of a drive where you thinking about
installing? What size drive do you have in there now?

There is software available called drive overlays (comes with most
harddrives of a larger capacity) that makes the harddrive look
smaller to the bios then it is, but still get the full capacity in
the Operating system. I however highly recommend against it as...
1) If the drive crashes it can be VERY tough to restore anything
2) It slows down performance of the machine

I suggest you email PCChips and ask about the max drive capacity
(assuming you want to add a larger drive)... Otherwise you may buy
a drive that will not work (without problems) in your system..

Keep the questions coming..

Mike

 

[Mike Russell]

Hello again Dan!

Going to put most of my responce inline here are there are a number of questions...

Hello...
I wanted a very large drive,maybe a few hundred gb...but i like
what ive heard that it can be connected so that only the master
drive is at risk of a crash or problem and the slave which could be
huge would be sheltered...i think i just read this could be done
with an attachment to an external hardrive too (in that "the dirty
little secret about digital" that was just posted near the back
page.)
I guess they saw me coming.

My guess is that your internal IDE limit for you board is 20Gb.. It may very well be larger, PCChips will have to answer that...

I would not think of it as the master sheltering the Slave. These are two physical disks. If one crashes, it generally does not effect the other. They are mutually exclusive except they share the same IDE controller.

Sorry I had not thought of external storage for you earlier. This may be a great idea and save you some hassles.

If you where to purchase say an 80Gb, or 120GB drive, you could get an external harddrive casing. As it is external you will not be governed by limitation of your motherboard. If you do choose this option, and you are looking at a large capacity drive.. Do yourself a favour and invest in Firewire! USB1.1 is very slow moving data of this capacity. Not sure on particular products available. But there are lots of them around. Then when you get your new PC you can just plug in the drive and you are set. No Re-and-Re..

Right now ive got 20gb that are all used.
You obviously know what your talking about and im ahead for having
asked you...youve given me a direction to proceed in and im sure
more questions will arise as this progresses.If i cant get ahold of
PCchips ill just add the question to my long list of questions i
need to ask the computer techn i plan to use to put my new system
together.Hes given me a components list but its vague...maybe he
figured he didnt need to be too detailed till he saw i was
serious.

You may want to think about taking on the exercise of building the machine yourself. It sounds like you have the right thought process that you would be able to do it. Most system you can put together in under an hour these days. Your first one might take you the better part of a day. The hardware is reasonable easy, load the software and getting everything configured is the larger challenge.. Just a thought...

As for picking the hardware. I can help you just drop me an email..... [email protected]

Maybe you know where the best deals are on barebones units
or on video capture cards? Im thinking New Egg.The tech i talked to
says i need a good one like GE force but i can only find mx420 $72.
mx440 and ti200 around $100.These are lower end now and i dont know
if theyr both digital and analog combos (which i want) or if i need
something that is faster?Im not pro (anymore) so im not
distributing films but have about 100 or more in boxes i want to
transfer.

For the video card I would recommend looking at the ATI Radeon All in wonder cards. They come with a plether of options, tv in/out, Svideo, cable etc etc. The only thing that is really pushing the video card anymore is gaming.. Unless you a hardcore gamer I doubt you will need the latest and greatest video card. Look more for features, and less for speed..

Id sure like to at least add this extra 20gb to my current system
with that first adapter you mentioned...but if 20gb is my max i
guess ive hit my max?
Im also anxious to get my collection vcopied onto computer etc as i
dont like having to worry about theft,vandalism,deterioration or
having to lug around crates all the time.I also know that its best
to copy and transfer a new film right away before the speed the
camcorder runs at changes any due to gear wear or heads become
weakened by what can cause heads to weaken.I got my camcorder dirty
and im taking it to the shop for cleaning as if i damage the heads
my films recorded on that camcorder wont be copiable with the same
high degree of precision i can get if i copy them now.Maybe i dont
know what im talking about but i know gears wear and camcorders may
not move at the same speed they did a few years ago depending on
how much youv used them or if they had a repair.
Thanx again
Dan

Hey Dan...

I think this is your Motherboard here..
http://www.pcchips.com.tw/M741LMRT.html

PCChips is not one of the better motherboard companies. There
support leaves a lot to be desired.. Anyways.. I cannot find any
reference to this board and maximum Harddrive size. As it is a
custom chipset (non Intel/VIA/SIS/AMD) there is not a lot to go
on... If I where to guess you should be fine with drives up to
20GB. Anything larger may cause you problems. It is however
possible that the max capacity is 40gb or 80gb.... Tough to tell
for certain.... How large of a drive where you thinking about
installing? What size drive do you have in there now?

There is software available called drive overlays (comes with most
harddrives of a larger capacity) that makes the harddrive look
smaller to the bios then it is, but still get the full capacity in
the Operating system. I however highly recommend against it as...
1) If the drive crashes it can be VERY tough to restore anything
2) It slows down performance of the machine

I suggest you email PCChips and ask about the max drive capacity
(assuming you want to add a larger drive)... Otherwise you may buy
a drive that will not work (without problems) in your system..

Keep the questions coming..

Mike

 

[Pennypincher]

Ive got so many projects going i cant add building a computer.Im a cheap scape but i can only escape just so cheaply.I have to just be grateful i know to buy the components from the least expensive sourses and pay a bit to get it put together...its still much cheaper than buying elsewhere.I only paid $500 for this with monitor and i couldve easily paid over $1000 at the time..Thanx for the compliment though...but snags in smooth assembly of this type thing might be especially annoying for me...especially if my equipment is down.

Thanx for eagerly answering my questions...do you get paid for this?I know they profit from having experts on the board...no-one would use it if there werent people here who know more than we do.Im copying all this info along with your e-mail address.My plan is just to take some lists of parts ive downloaded from New Egg into the computer technicians store and ask him to circle components in a vicinity of what hell need to assemble what i want.That way he cant blame me if i bring in stuff recommended by someone else that he claims wont fit.Knowing which barebones unit to buy would probably tell me which components to get.
A few more questions come to mind after reading your response.

Can either of these 2 hardrive discs connected to the ide controler crash?...or is one guarranteed safe? Would i know which of the 2 hardrives i was putting info on?

Do all 80gb and 120gb hardrives come with external hardrive casings?Im wondering why you recommend thatsize when you know i want a larger hardrive?Do internal hardrives insert into external hardrive casings?Can i put a 300gbinternal hardrive into an 80 gb external casing and use it that way?

No model i should look for?I mean someone recommended a 50 gb tiny "Lecie" external hardive but im assuming the unit is built so the consumer isnt meant to ever remove it.(it has firewire which i know is more$$$).

Are the external hardrives protected from crash etc? Any programing to attach or detach them?Ive got into the habit of removing and locking up my hardrive when i leave the house since i have a quick slide out hardrive...it pretty much reboots itself or whatever.

Well thats a rapid fire line of questioning..but if i dont hear from you all i can say is youv already past the test
sincerely
Dan
Just another nut on a shooting rampage!

Hello again Dan!

You obviously know what your talking about and im ahead for having
asked you...youve given me a direction to proceed in and im sure
more questions will arise as this progresses.If i cant get ahold of
PCchips ill just add the question to my long list of questions i
need to ask the computer techn i plan to use to put my new system
together.Hes given me a components list but its vague...maybe he
figured he didnt need to be too detailed till he saw i was
serious.

You may want to think about taking on the exercise of building the
machine yourself. It sounds like you have the right thought process
that you would be able to do it. Most system you can put together
in under an hour these days. Your first one might take you the
better part of a day. The hardware is reasonable easy, load the
software and getting everything configured is the larger
challenge.. Just a thought...
As for picking the hardware. I can help you just drop me an
email..... [email protected]

Maybe you know where the best deals are on barebones units
or on video capture cards? Im thinking New Egg.The tech i talked to
says i need a good one like GE force but i can only find mx420 $72.
mx440 and ti200 around $100.These are lower end now and i dont know
if theyr both digital and analog combos (which i want) or if i need
something that is faster?Im not pro (anymore) so im not
distributing films but have about 100 or more in boxes i want to
transfer.

For the video card I would recommend looking at the ATI Radeon All
in wonder cards. They come with a plether of options, tv in/out,
Svideo, cable etc etc. The only thing that is really pushing the
video card anymore is gaming.. Unless you a hardcore gamer I doubt
you will need the latest and greatest video card. Look more for
features, and less for speed..

Thanx again
Dan

Hey Dan...

I think this is your Motherboard here..
http://www.pcchips.com.tw/M741LMRT.html

PCChips is not one of the better motherboard companies. There
support leaves a lot to be desired.. Anyways.. I cannot find any
reference to this board and maximum Harddrive size. As it is a
custom chipset (non Intel/VIA/SIS/AMD) there is not a lot to go
on... If I where to guess you should be fine with drives up to
20GB. Anything larger may cause you problems. It is however
possible that the max capacity is 40gb or 80gb.... Tough to tell
for certain.... How large of a drive where you thinking about
installing? What size drive do you have in there now?

There is software available called drive overlays (comes with most
harddrives of a larger capacity) that makes the harddrive look
smaller to the bios then it is, but still get the full capacity in
the Operating system. I however highly recommend against it as...
1) If the drive crashes it can be VERY tough to restore anything
2) It slows down performance of the machine

I suggest you email PCChips and ask about the max drive capacity
(assuming you want to add a larger drive)... Otherwise you may buy
a drive that will not work (without problems) in your system..

Keep the questions coming..

Mike

 

[Mike Russell]

Thanx for eagerly answering my questions...do you get paid for
this?I know they profit from having experts on the board...no-one
would use it if there werent people here who know more than we
do.Im copying all this info along with your e-mail address.

No pay.. just a bad habit I guess. I will setup a paypal account if you want though ;-)

My plan
is just to take some lists of parts ive downloaded from New Egg
into the computer technicians store and ask him to circle
components in a vicinity of what hell need to assemble what i
want.That way he cant blame me if i bring in stuff recommended by
someone else that he claims wont fit.Knowing which barebones unit
to buy would probably tell me which components to get.

I understand what you are doing. It may however be benificial if you are not assembling yourself to source everything from one shop. To have an overall warranty is a lot easier to handle. Might not be an option for you...

A few more questions come to mind after reading your response.
Can either of these 2 hardrive discs connected to the ide controler
crash?...or is one guarranteed safe? Would i know which of the 2
hardrives i was putting info on?

Nothing is every guarranteed.. Although the data is on two mutually exclusive drives, it is always possible something like a power supply failure or .... could destroy both drives.. Pretty unlikelly.. But when Murphy is around you never know!

Do all 80gb and 120gb hardrives come with external hardrive
casings?Im wondering why you recommend thatsize when you know i
want a larger hardrive?

The largest drives I am aware of right now are the 120gb.. There MAY be some 160gb out now.. I don't keep up to date to much any more. If you are to get an external harddrive housing for a 3.5" drive most any 1/2 height (all) harddrive on the market will fit. There are a few obscure drives around that might cause a problem.. But I believe any new drives should be problem free.

Do internal hardrives insert into external
hardrive casings?Can i put a 300gbinternal hardrive into an 80 gb
external casing and use it that way?

I suggest you buy an bare (empty) external harddrive chassis and add your own drive (much like the Image Bank). There maybe some limitations on the chassis in that it may have a limit of 80, 120, 160gb etc, but this would be on a per product basis.

No model i should look for?I mean someone recommended a 50 gb tiny
"Lecie" external hardive but im assuming the unit is built so the
consumer isnt meant to ever remove it.(it has firewire which i know
is more$$$).

To be honest I am not to familiar with these products. As stated earlier, try and find one that is empy and add your own drive. You can get either USB or Firewire (some have both)... Firewire will cost you more, but when you are dealing with these capacities it is a requirement. You could also look at USB2 if you are getting a new machine. Near as fast as firewire and a bit cheaper I believe. Maxtor has some harddrive/chassis packages available. You may want to look at some of there products

Are the external hardrives protected from crash etc? Any programing
to attach or detach them?Ive got into the habit of removing and
locking up my hardrive when i leave the house since i have a quick
slide out hardrive...it pretty much reboots itself or whatever.

Nothing to really "protect" then from crashing. Just like an internal drive there is always a chance.. Take care of it and you most likely will be problem free.

As for attaching/detaching.. With Firewire and USB you just plug it in. When you wish to unplug it, you select and icon to "stop" the device. Once that is done you can unplug it.. Or just shut down and unplug once the machine is powered off..

Well thats a rapid fire line of questioning..but if i dont hear
from you all i can say is youv already past the test
sincerely
Dan
Just another nut on a shooting rampage!

I am here and don't mind helping out. I don't generally take this active a role.. But I started.. I might as well finish!

Mike

 

[Pennypincher]

Well not many people are willing to answer very many questions...ive never been responded to when ive asked a poster how they post a photo to their forum thread...and if they have to pay a foto carrier for that special service...regardless of how many questions theyv already answered.Its fun to test it! I could look it up in the forum and research it but its easier just to ask...i just never get answered.

I think alotta times people just dont know the answers so they save face and dump the thread or just dont want to be bothered...probably all of the above.

Your probably right about hardrive capacities...i had all this stuff memorized last time i put together my computer but by the time i need to rebuild its a foreign language again.(Im not the sharpest pencil in the box).

So if i get a unit that has 2 internal IDE receptacles i can probably buy 2 120 gb hardrives or add a 3rd external hardrive since it wont be limited by motherboard capacities?Or i could have as many hardrives as i want and switch them in my external hardrive box?
I was just looking for that bigger hardrive and ran into this item..."

Portable 2.5" Hard drive enclosure:IDE to USB 2.0 retail box IDE to USB 1.1,IDE to USB 2.0 and IDE to IEEE 1394 interfaces available.Works with both notebooks and desktop PCs.Plug and play.Hot -swappable connection.Model ME-910u2 $55.00

That would definitly work for me now right?And fits your USB 2.0 reccommendation.

Tell me...could that 2.5 casing be cheaply adapted to hold a 3.5 notebook hardrive if i had one?How about a desktop hardrive?

Insider.com cant give me any definite date they can send me a hard copy of my alleged 1 yr warranty for the image tank i bought...though i lose my right to any refund in 30 days...i got more beefs about it but i just noticed how cheap some newer laptops are now...huge price drops,like way under $500 for PII and PIII grade with windows 2000 etc...im thinking maybe i should return the tank and spring for the laptop??I think its 6gb and has a 3.5 hardrive.If i want to use my 2.5 20gb notebook hardrive in it could i get an adapter?Or does its motherboard have limitations?Would the external notebook casing and hardrive work with it?

-In actual use of my camera ive noticed i can be totally off using my ev or led...the tiny camera screen to hit the right exposure...i really need a computer screen...i already have an older Dell laptop ive never even used but it has a lousy screen...like 1965 color on a 1965 tv set (if you remember) (i do).I think the ad i read for the newer used one said it had a 1065x 900 evx resolution screen(i know thats not exact) but does that sound like itd give me what id need? I figure i could shoot endlessly not having a clue how off target i am and not realize it till i get back to a computer screen,especially since i cant access my shots inside my image bank...if im using sticks and downloading into the bank so i can re-use theyr gone until vacations over.What do you think.At $2000 i should be worried about theft but at under $500 it wouldnt be the end of the world.

If i buy a laptop without an operating system would i be able to get away with making a copy of my windows 2000me and using it in both my systems?I might have my old windows 98 disk and im sure i have a windows 95 disk.

Im not sure buying everything myself will be cheaper than buying it thru e-bay or something...i have to know what ill need 1st and add it up.

Im guessing i have more trouble really getting my computer to completly shut down if i dont disconnect my image bank or tank from my computer before i shut down...but when i ask permission to disconnect the tank it may expect me to wait eternally...i dont think ive lost information yet from straight out disconnecting it...though it always tells me i may have.Does shutting the computer down then disconnecting it stop loss (like with the hardrive you mentioned?) What am i probably doing wrong to prevent me from getting permission to shut it down?

Well,once again im out of questions.Its a sad state not even being able to ask questions as fast as someone else can answer them!
Sometimes they dont get answered but asking is a cheap gamble.
thanx
Dan

Lifes short,shoot continuously from at least 6 angles.(it lengthens lifespan!)hehe

Thanx for eagerly answering my questions...do you get paid for
this?I know they profit from having experts on the board...no-one
would use it if there werent people here who know more than we
do.Im copying all this info along with your e-mail address.

No pay.. just a bad habit I guess. I will setup a paypal account if
you want though ;-)

My plan
is just to take some lists of parts ive downloaded from New Egg
into the computer technicians store and ask him to circle

limitations on the chassis in that it may have a limit of 80, 120,
160gb etc, but this would be on a per product basis.

Mike

 

[Jeff/UK]

Of course it had problems is it landed on the cf card and that acted as a lever to wrench stuff of the circuit board.

Also I thnk Image Tanks should have one year warranty. Why did you
say 90 days? Well in this case, it is your fault, it won't be
covered anyways.

Well after using my image bank just a few times in the safety and
security of my office area i apparently broke it.I sat it on a file
rack next to my desk which stood no higher than my desk (2 1/2 feet
) so i wouldnt have to step over the cord but immediatly caught the
cord with my foot and it fell the short distance into a bunch of
soft garbage.Looks like it landed on the CF card and memory stick
because the little tray i slide the CF card into looks detached
from the circuit board on one side and the cf card seems to slide
in deeper on one side than the other.The poer wont turn onIm sure
even fine china would have withstood the little tumble it
took.Unfortunatly since i have no power i cant tell if my files are
ok in the hardrive.My 90 day warranty expired 4 months ago and i
guess this wouldnt be covered.
Any tips or advice would be apreciated...seems like i should get
power at least.
I just ordered another Image Bank with power Bank but im not going
to be willing to erase my hardrive to formate it.
Disapointed
PS ,the top panel of my ms to CF card adapter popped apart a few
days ago when i was slidding in a memory stick.I know you must
think i must be some rough unco-ordinated 300lb turkey ...not so
...this stuff is fragile,very fragile.
Im sitting here with 5 ms sticks i want to see wondering if my
hardrive is erased and how much its going to cost to repair or
replace this junk
Dan

 

[Mike Russell]

Hey Dan..

Quick warning here... My response may be slow or not at all over the next few weeks.. Mother in Law just got in from Canada for the next 3 weeks, and we are head to Malaysia for some jungle treking and cave exploration next week. All guided tours.. But should be FUN!

The search tool is there for a reason.. Give it a shot. You may not always find what you are looking for, but I almost always find something of interest. As for posting your images within a message. A very breif explanation would be... Get the image on your screen, right click it and select properties. In the properties window you will see the address of the image. Put this address into you message and it should make the image appear. Keep in mind however that some hosting sites (yahoo, lycos etc) do not allow direct image linking (eg, you have to view to page to view the image)... So make sure you hit the preview before you post and see if it works.

I often do this myself. The one of the problems with all larger forums is you get people that will jump down your throat if you are wrong. PC, and PC hardware is something I know. I doubt there are many people here that would be able to "educate" me in this area. Photography on the other hand is something I have only taken up in the last 2 years... I am very niave in this area..

Even I am having troubles keeping up now. I am no longer working directly with PC equipment, but more consulting type work. Its though to keep up on the specifics. And I work in the industry.

Many new motherboards these days come with 4 internal IDE connectors. 2 drives per connector means you could have up to 8 drive internal harddrives in your machine. You could easily make 1 or more of these Swapable with your Drive bay kit... Or you could go external with Firewire or USB (2 is prefered here).

The device you where looking at (ME910u2) is meant only for laptop drives (2.5"). If you wish to install standard PC harddrive you will need an enclosure that support 3.5" drives. If you wish to install a CDROM or DVD drive you will need an enclosure that supports 5.25" drives.

http://www.extremeoverclocking.com/reviews/storage/External_Enclosure_1.html
http://www.xpcgear.com/35525exhardr1.html
http://www.xpcgear.com/12usb20expor.html

One quick thing I would note..

I have seen some of these enclosures in past that had both USB and Firewire. Something like this can be benificial in that if you try to connect the drive to another PC that does not have firewire you can still connect it.
Firewire is faster then USB2 is faster then USB1.1

Firewire is prefered to USB, but almost every modern PC has USB ports, not many yet have firewire.

Having a laptop does not in my opinion replace an IB (or similiar device). IB's can come with you everywhere. It is something you can drop in your camera bag and carry around. When I am jungle treking next week you can be sure I will have my IB with me and not the laptop. However Trips to other locations where I live out of a hotel I generally bring the laptop along and as well as the IB for backup. The laptop has the added benifit of immediate processing. However it is not as portable, and a lot more power hungry then the IB...

That said. Yes there are some GREAT deals around on laptops. Some low to mid range machines can be had for extermly reasonable prices. As for using your existing harddrive. Its the same story as your PC. There maybe some limitations on the max size for the laptop. If its a PII or better you can be confident though that the 20GB drive should work. It is still recommended that you check with the manufacturer though before making a large investment.

The thing to keep in mind with Laptop drives is that there are 2 sizes. Both are 2.5" wide, but one is 9.5mm thick, and the other is 12.5mm thick. The 9.5 will work in a 12.5 slot, but not the other way around. Something else to check with the manufacture.. What size drives it supports.

There are two main type of Laptop screens (many variations within these two though). DSTN and TFT. DSTN in the lower cost, slower screen. They have a very slow refresh rate and tend to look washed out. The TFT screens are generally very crisp but look slightly pixelated. The Flat screens that you can get for you home PC are all TFT based.

Would recommend a trying to get a resolution of 1024x768 in a TFT screen. But at the lower price you may have to get a smaller screen. Do not sacrfice on the TFT though. DSTN is an awfull technology.

Most laptops you buy will come with an OS already installed. Technically using you Win2k on 2 machines is not permitted. I will leave that to your own morals however. Once again though check the particular model for compatible OS's before you try to re-install or upgrade. It maybe an exercise in futility trying to get Win2k working to find out it is not compatible. Its also worth mentioning that getting an OS installed on many laptops is more work then installing it on your home PC. There is so much custom hardware in the laptops that a lot of additional software and drivers are usually required. I am a little biased here.. But I would highly recommend going with an IBM Thinkpad.

Sometimes saving $50 is not worth the aggrivation. But thats yours to decide

All harddrive using a caching method of writting. So when you copy a file to a harddrive it may report that it is completed, but in fact it is still in the memory on the harddrive (HD's have some memory for this cache purpose). By just unplugging it if there is anything in the cache, it will be lost. Shutting down the PC, then unplugging is fine becuase windows flushes the cache prior to shutdown.

Longest darn post I have ever made. I had to pull out all the quotations from your previous message to get this to fit in the 6000 character limit.. Keep them coming though.. I will help out where I can..

Mike

 

[Pennypincher]

I am questionless!
Temporarily!
And yet you plead for more.A glutton for punishment!

Well it sounds like its paying off for you...traveling the world with your camera,living the life most of us slaves only dream about.I notice you have 2 addresses countries apart.

I checked with some local electronics shops and only 1 heard of Image bank...they say they cant work on it cause they cant get parts or blue prints...only Sima can.So i called Sima and talked to a repair guy who seemed very friendly but couldnt find or remember the standard fee for such repair...just kept urging i send it.He mentioned that they only charge $99 to replace one if they couldnt repair it.He says my warranty is definitly expired...i know Simas was only 90 days but thought the store might have been longer.

Was mostly thinking maybe i should just keep the Sima and return the Tank for a laptop...not sure ill be able to decide.

Well i havent really absorbed your letters contents yet...no doubt thereyl be more questions but i cant complain about any delays or even a "get lost" at this point...youve been extremly generous with your expertise and time.
I guess ill give that thread posting thing a try.

well gotta run to the hardware store...i mostly work on tile floors,painting,plastering,plumbing,carpeting,cleaning...round and round.in this old apt building..
Ive got some overexposed shots in a gallery youv probably seen
http://www.pbase.com/ringo
ill probably run into more questions soon as i try to accomplish anything more
thanx
Dan
Film continuously from at least 6 to 8 angles...skip church if necessary!hehe

Hey Dan..

Quick warning here... My response may be slow or not at all over
the next few weeks.. Mother in Law just got in from Canada for the
next 3 weeks, and we are head to Malaysia for some jungle treking
and cave exploration next week. All guided tours.. But should be
FUN!

The search tool is there for a reason.. Give it a shot. You may not
always find what you are looking for, but I almost always find
something of interest. As for posting your images within a message.
A very breif explanation would be... Get the image on your screen,
right click it and select properties. In the properties window you
will see the address of the image. Put this address into you
message and it should make the image appear. Keep in mind however
that some hosting sites (yahoo, lycos etc) do not allow direct
image linking (eg, you have to view to page to view the image)...
So make sure you hit the preview before you post and see if it
works.

I often do this myself. The one of the problems with all larger
forums is you get people that will jump down your throat if you are
wrong. PC, and PC hardware is something I know. I doubt there are
many people here that would be able to "educate" me in this area.
Photography on the other hand is something I have only taken up in
the last 2 years... I am very niave in this area..

Even I am having troubles keeping up now. I am no longer working
directly with PC equipment, but more consulting type work. Its
though to keep up on the specifics. And I work in the industry.

Many new motherboards these days come with 4 internal IDE
connectors. 2 drives per connector means you could have up to 8
drive internal harddrives in your machine. You could easily make 1
or more of these Swapable with your Drive bay kit... Or you could
go external with Firewire or USB (2 is prefered here).

The device you where looking at (ME910u2) is meant only for laptop
drives (2.5"). If you wish to install standard PC harddrive you
will need an enclosure that support 3.5" drives. If you wish to
install a CDROM or DVD drive you will need an enclosure that
supports 5.25" drives.

http://www.extremeoverclocking.com/reviews/storage/External_Enclosure_1.html
http://www.xpcgear.com/35525exhardr1.html
http://www.xpcgear.com/12usb20expor.html

One quick thing I would note..
I have seen some of these enclosures in past that had both USB and
Firewire. Something like this can be benificial in that if you try
to connect the drive to another PC that does not have firewire you
can still connect it.
Firewire is faster then USB2 is faster then USB1.1
Firewire is prefered to USB, but almost every modern PC has USB
ports, not m
where I can..

Mike