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Shareware Supreme Volume 6 #1
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COLUM04.TXT
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1993-09-30
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HOW TO INSTALL AN UPGRADE CHIP
Submitted by: Gloria Short
Very carefully. In fact, you install an upgrade chip extremely
carefully. There are three basic steps to the process: find the
right upgrade kit for your system, pull the old CPU chip out of
the computer, and insert the new chip into the socket. Only the
final step is really easy, and you have to be careful with it,
too.
FIND THE RIGHT UPGRADE KIT Upgrade chips generally come in kits
designed to make the process of swapping out the chips as easy as
it can be. Some upgrade vendors sell kits designed for individual
models of computers. These are the easiest, because most of the
individualizing has already been done for you. With these kits,
you can literally pull the old chip, insert the new one, and
close the case.
Other vendors sell kits that cover whole classes of computers.
With these, you'll be altering jumper settings and occasionally
running software fixes. They can be a little more challenging.
Talk to the upgrade vendor and be sure the kit you're getting
will work with your computer. You may need to contact your
computer's manufacturer as well to get all the specs on your
current machine. Be sure you get a kit that's going to work--it's
worth being paranoid about this. Also find out if you need a BIOS
upgrade.
Another thing to check before buying is the location of the CPU
chip in your computer. If it's located under the hard drive or in
another crowded spot, the swap may be unduly difficult or even
impossible.
Of course, if you have an OverDrive socket in your computer, none
of this will be a problem. You don't even have to pull the old
chip out.
REMOVE THE OLD CHIP You'd think you could just unplug the old
chip, right? Read the instructions and use the chip-puller tool
that comes with the kit. Don't ignore the cautions about
grounding yourself and the computer before working on it. Take
them very seriously.
One corner of the old chip is notched where the right angle of
the corner has been cut away. This is to make sure you get the
right pins in the right holes. Note where the notch is and mark
it somehow so you can't possibly forget.
Experience shows that the chips rarely pop right out. After all,
these chips have 168 or 169 pins, all of which have to be firmly
seated for the computer to work. As you use the computer, the
chip heats and cools, expands and contracts, with every on-off
cycle. It tends to become firmly attached to its socket.
The chip puller is usually an aluminum many-toothed affair that
you slide between the pins of the chip. Pull it up gently and try
to ease the chip out of the socket. Move from one side of the
chip to the next, slowly easing up a fraction of an inch, working
around the chip. It may take three or four times on each side
before the chip comes loose.
If you're really lucky, you have a computer with a ZIF socket.
Zero Insertion Force sockets have a little lever built in that
lets you remove the old chip and reseat the new one.
Once you have this precious little computer brain out in your
hand, what do you do with it? Not much, it turns out. Your dealer
probably can't use it--after all, it's outdated and well used.
There's not much market for such merchandise.
INSERT THE NEW CHIP Be careful handling the new chip. If you
should bend a pin on the old chip as you remove it, that's not
too bad, but bending a pin on your pricey new CPU could be a
disaster.
Get the notch on the new chip aligned just as the notch on the
old one was. Set the chip into the socket, taking as much care as
possible to get the pins into the right holes. When you're sure
the pins are all aligned correctly, apply gentle pressure to the
chip to fully work it into the socket. Be sure it's seated
properly--firmly in place, thoroughly into the socket.
Then put the rest of the computer back together, and following
the directions from the upgrade vendor, power up the system. If
you don't get frying noises and smoke, you've done it right. Even
experienced technicians will tell you that they've fried an
occasional motherboard or chip by not getting everything just
right.
Experience also shows that despite their claims, many of the
upgrade kits aren't totally clear in their instructions. There
are too many variables with all the many varieties of clone
systems out there to get everything exactly right for every
system. Expect trouble, take care, and do the upgrade at a time
when telephone support will be available.
ENJOY YOUR SCREAMER If the chip upgrade path will work for you,
it can significantly extend the life and utility of your
computer. You, too, can have a true screamer--even in your old PC
case.