System Requirements

[Nephthys]

This thread hasn't been used for a month or so, so I hope someone notices. (I think they will. Ya'll have been awesome so far).

Yep, I have an old system. I was able to play all the way through Story Mode with only an occasional freeze. Now that I'm in Prospector, my system freezes almost every time. I have ordered another gig of memory from Newegg. I am hoping that will solve the problem. (Task Manager shows "Page File Use History" FWIW).  

But I have noticed that every freeze happens when I move the mouse just a tiny bit. For example, I click on the planet of choice, then the cursor moves a fraction & the system locks up. Or I am already IN the planet of choice & the same thing happens. I'm using a wireless mouse like the rest of the world. Would it have anything to do with the game settings in SetPoint?

Secondly, does anyone have any advice on a refurbished cpu from Newegg? There is one for $209.00 that is calling my name & I could probably squeeze into my tiny budget. (I am on disability & my income is extremely limited. $400.00 doesn't sound like much to many, but it is almost half of my monthly stipend. ~sigh~  And I am on my own $$ wise. Oops, tmi, sorry ). So, any advice on refurbished systems or mouse settings?

What is so frustrating is that sometimes I can play for hours with no problems. Other times I can't make it past planet selection. What is also so frustrating is that I have a lot of time on my hands & have become extremely addicted to CW3!  :)  

As always, advice is extremely appreciated!

EDIT: Also, fwiw, I'm using XP & FF.

[Grauniad]

I'm splitting it into it's own topic. :) You deserve your own topic. :)

Firstly, install and run Piriform's Speccy. Post the output of that here and we can start to understand your system.

Newegg often has quite good refurbished systems. Often, though, they are more business-oriented PCs than good low-end gaming PCs.  Best thing is to post a link to the system you have your eye on.

As for the gig of memory you ordered, if you were thinking of replacing, then you should have kept that money in your pocket until you were sure you were ready to commit to the old system. :)

How old is your PC?  Do you regularly (ever) clean it out? Dust is the enemy of old PCs.  THe dust accumulates, insultes then and subjects them to heat-related issues.  Target and Walmart sells compressed air in aerosol cans.

Last year I opened up an old laptop and hit the insides of the CPU, the fan and the air passage with some blasts from a can of this stuff and the temperatures dropped by 20C and performance noticeably improved. Just the other day I heard from another guy over on Craigslist that he has a similar drop on one of his PCs....

[Nephthys]

You are much too kind.

Ok, you will ROFL, but my system is ancient. Bought in 2005. (not a typo).

Here is the file you asked for, I hope. Ok, I can't figure out how to insert a link. So I am gonna copy & paste the txt file. It is smallish. Wait, it isn't smallish. I'm just gonna paste the first part.

Summary
      Operating System
         Windows XP Home Edition 32-bit SP3
      CPU
         Intel Pentium 4 515
         Prescott 90nm Technology
      RAM
         2.00GB Single-Channel @ 133MHz
      Motherboard
         ASUSTeK Computer INC. Goldfish2 (CPU 1)   58 °C
      Graphics
         hp f1503 (1024x768@60Hz)
         hp f1503 (1024x768@60Hz)
         Intel 82915G/GV/910GL Express Chipset Family (HP)
      Hard Drives
         149GB Seagate ST3160023AS (SATA)   38 °C
      Optical Drives
         LITE-ON DVDRW SOHW-1633S
      Audio
         Realtek High Definition Audio
Operating System
   Windows XP Home Edition 32-bit SP3
   Computer type: Desktop
   Installation Date: 3/26/2005 12:20:30 AM

If you need more, help me figure out how to post a non-hyper link.  :)

Also, I do clean my system frequently. In fact, I need to put the side cover back on from blasting with air spray the other day. lol   I left it off to see if it would help cool the system. I realize I am leaving it open to gather more dust. Will replace after this post!

The gig I ordered was $25. You're right. The thought crossed my mind that I should save it toward a new system. Too late.  :)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883256303  Here is the system I was looking at. You're right again. It is business oriented I think. Also, Windows 7, not 8.

[teknotiss]

well you can possibly return the RAM if it's intact in it's case, and if you are getting more stuff from the same vendor you should be ok to discount that against the purchase (if you need to)
i'd also advise running some system cleaning software. there plenty of freeware options that can do wonders for old systems, i use Advanced System Care from IObit systems. i only use the free one, but when i have some cash i'll be buying a full version because i've used their ware for years now, win 7 first though.
just do a deep clean option and leave it to it.
you can test the mouse theory, get a usb mouse and use it for a bit, if less crashes then it was partially the mouse (or triggered by it), if no crashes, it was totally the mouse, if same number of crashes for same reason, nothing to do with the mouse.
since you are running Win XP (as am i) i really do recommend you run a file/system clean, XP is messy and disorganised, something like ASC can help keep it all organised, it also check for malware spy etc. just ignore any warnings you don't have full coverage (the full version does more, but i doubt you'll need the full options, i don't), obviously other ware is available, just i'd have to learn those to help.

[Grauniad]

If you need more, help me figure out how to post a non-hyper link.  :)

Just click "Additional Options" at the bottom of where you compose a post and click on the then-visible button to select a file to upload.

Here is the system I was looking at.   You're right again. It is business oriented I think. Also, Windows 7, not 8.

Well, at the end of the day, you'll be thankful it was Windows 7 and not 8. :)

There is no mention whatsoever about graphics capability. It may mean that it relies on the Integrated Graphics that in those days (2008) was on the motherboard. You may have to invest in an additional graphics card for around $50 or morel likely less to be able to play CW3.  You can buy it, check it it plays CW3 and if not, check if the case supports a low-profile graphics card.  Low-end cards are as little as $24.

Chances are that it will play the game, but then, maybe not. Ditto for ability to add a graphics card.

Edit: Incidentally, here are the original HP specifications sheet: http://h18000.www1.hp.com/products/quickspecs/13029_na/13029_na.pdf

Edit2:  Buried in that spec sheet is this: Intel Q45 Express chipset featuring Intel GMA 4500 DirectX 10 graphics

While not spectacular, that should suffice.

[Nephthys]

Thank you both! I'll see what next month's expenses are & go from there. And yeah, I've heard bad things about Windows 8, so thanks for that advice. I might ask to borrow a little from my sister for a better system. Hey, early C'mas present! hmm, that might work.  :) Still prob'ly have to get something low-end/refurbished if the additional memory doesn't work.

That is a very good point about returning the memory stick unopened, but I really want to try it & see if it will help. Do ya'll think it is hopeless & a waste of money?

I ran Disk Cleanup (Windows) this weekend, but I will check out Advanced System Care. I can afford Free.  :) I also have MalwareBytes. McAfee told me to uninstall it, but I actually bought the disk (back b4 my credit card was maxed out. lol) & reinstalled it this weekend & ran it.  :P  It found some stuff & cleaned that up for me. I also ran defrag.

I KNOW I kept my old mouse that came with the system. I spent a good part of the weekend looking for it & came up empty. I'll check around some more if I can think of some place else to look. Besides, I doubt it is the mouse. Otherwise, tons of people would be having the same issue, yes?

Oh man, other people are reading about my woes!  :-[

[Grauniad]

I concur  with teknotiss that you probably should return the memory. Even if you only get $15 back, that's $15 off the price of whatever replacement system you get.

Incidentally, read back and see my additional edits on my previous post.

I'd suggest CCLeaner to clean up PCs.  Sometimes a re-install of Windows XP also worked wonders, but the re-download of Service packs and other updates are a real PITA. And you'd have to have something to do the re-install from, I don't know if you have a copy of the System or recovery disks.

[Nephthys]

I DO have system recovery disks, but again, from 2005. That would be about a gazillion hours of updates. ~sigh~

I think I've attached the full Speccy file, but it is hard to tell from preview. Plus, I think I'm SOL with this system anyway.  :)

Really appreciate the time ya'll have given me. And I WILL check out both clean up options.

[teknotiss]

as G says CCleanre is very good too, also try turning off McAfee (personally really dislike McA, not as much as Norton though ;)) and other anti virus/firewall ware for a go, it's possible that it's a clash over resources, McA is pretty heavy sometimes.
good luck with the cleaning ware, any more questions, just ask  8)

[Blaze]

This may help for a low resource Anti-virus setup.

Picture was bigger than I thought

[close]

I do not use this myself, so I don't know how well they work.
I use Vipre as my Anti-Virus, so far haven't had any issues with it, and it's blocked a couple nasty Trojans that slipped past me.
It's a pay to use though, my mother bought it and it was a ten pack, files on a USB with the key on the box, key has ten uses and lasts the lifetime of the PC.

I think we got like, six uses left, so I'm keeping them for my future computers since I rather like this program. ::)

[teknotiss]

ESET is a very poor bit of ware in my opinion (close to malware, definitely badware), and since there are so many low demand and high quality ones that NEVER require keys registration and so forth it's not necessary to use such shoddy software.

review websites in the sec-ware market are unreliable, too much paying for good reviews.
i can recommend AVG, Malwarebytes and or ASC for antivirus/malware etc. and zonealarm for a firewall.

@Blaze if you don't use them i wouldn't recommend them, personally i only recommend wares i or people i trust and use regularly

[Grauniad]

The one and only AV I use or recommend is Microsoft Security Essentials. It's free, lightweight, non-intrusive and well-maintained. It gets consistently good reviews, although it does seem that MS is stepping back from being  the "ultimate" AV provider in that space.

I also have a paid version of MalwareBytes Anti-Malware.

The Windows firewall is sufficient for my requirements.

[Nephthys]

Appreciate all the advice. McAfee comes free from my service provider, so it wins. I also have the paid version of MalwareBytes, as I think I posted earlier. I don't have complete confidence in McA as they insist no other Malware program is needed, when clearly it is, as MB finds all kinds of things McA misses. Although, I think I will check into Microsoft Security Essentials. Again, free is in my budget  :)

Aaaand water heater said seeya, so nothing new in the computer line for me next month! Always something. Just glad the water heater is in the garage & the house has heat even if the water doesn't. As my late Aunt Ethel (yep, Ethel Pearl) would say, "Life is great if you don't weaken".  :)

FWIW, I was able to play for quite a while today with only one freeze. I check to make sure McA doesn't have a scheduled update & as long as it doesn't kick in while I'm playing I seem to be okay.

As always, appreciate ya'll!!

[Grauniad]

I'm sorry about your water heater... house owners always have some sort of unexpected expenditure on a monthly basis.

If you trace the issues to scheduled runs of McAfee, then definitely at least try out Microsoft Security Essentials. Made sure to check McAfee website if they have a deep uninstaller. Many of these AV programs leave little bits when simply uninstalled via the normal uninstall process - Norton was notorious for that.

[Blaze]

Many of these AV programs leave little bits when simply uninstalled via the normal uninstall process - Norton was notorious for that.

I had Norton prior...
I used CCleaner to uninstall it, would there be anything left or am I okay?