Need computer help

[Broodwich]

So I built my parents computer for them and everything is going good until yesterday I notice, when the phone is in use they lose internet connection. Ah they have DSL; so the ethernet cable is plugged in but...

what kind of expansion card do I need to purchase so the DSL splitter will work? I've been looking around on New Egg but still not sure.

 

[DaveP]

Is this how you have it hooked up? The filter should be marked for wall jack, phone and computer. Make sure you have the right ones plugged to the phone and the DSL modem, then the network cable goes from the modem to the computer. If it's right and still doesn't work, you may have to call the phone company tech support and let them ring the circuit out for you to make sure DSL is turned on for your phone line.

All you need is the phone jack on the wall, a filter, and a modem. In your computer, you just have to have a network jack to plug in a standard network cable to connect to the modem. Make sure that the filter is plugged into the phone cord coming from the WALL, then the phone cable goes from the filter to the phone and the other cable from the data jack connects to the modem. What the filter does is filter out the high frequency data noise so you won't get that in the phone. The data jack on the filter is designated to feed the modem for DSL.

You aren't connecting the filter to the phone and then connecting the other jack on the phone to the computer modem are you? That could cause problems. Just follow the diagrams here and you should be fine.

 

[Broodwich]

I will swing by their house after work tomorrow and make sure I hooked it up correctly. After reading this I'm pretty sure I just hooked it up incorrectly. I'll update and let ya know how it goes.

Thanks so much for the reply with the pictures! Since this is the first PC I've built I figure I'm doing pretty well for this to be my only problem lol.

 

[skoot]

Since this is the first PC I've built I figure I'm doing pretty well for this to be my only problem lol.

It won't be your last either, I suspect. I've been DIY'ing my computers for years. I don't ever really buy a new computer anymore, just upgrade the bits and pieces. I have one box running in a case that's 12 years old.

 

[Iffy]

... in a case that's 12 years old.

Criminal or civil...?

Seriously, I used to be oh soooo into 'puters configs and programmin'. Now...

 

[skoot]

It's so easy these days. Pick your parts, order them from one vendor, screw it together, load an OS and you're up. Two hours. DIY can't beat the $500 low-end Dell desktops, but "Gaming Rigs Aren't Bought, They're Built."

 

[DaveP]

It's so easy these days. Pick your parts, order them from one vendor, screw it together, load an OS and you're up. Two hours. DIY can't beat the $500 low-end Dell desktops, but "Gaming Rigs Aren't Bought, They're Built."

Newegg is my favorite online supplier. Tiger Direct is good also, but they have a presence in GA and have to charge sales tax from online sales intrastate. Fryes is in Atlanta, but it's a 4 hour round trip.

These days I spend most of my computing time on a laptop. I've built desktops since the 80s and still have one left upstairs that's in dire need of an upgrade. I keep putting it off because it's AMD X2 4200+ still plays Halo CE just fine with a Radeon 3800 AGP card. Newegg has nice sales, but you need a new motherboard for a new CPU and a new PCI video card and memory for the new motherboard! My Antec 700 watt PS and the alien style case and fans are the only things I will be able to re-use when I build it again.

I'm looking at an 8 core AMD bundle and just procrastinating for the best deal on the highest performance numbers for the money.

 

[skoot]

Yup, Newegg has been my go to for years. IME the motherboard, CPU, RAM, video card and power supply come in under $1,000 for one step below cutting edge. I usually do this every couple of years but with my recent build I went to an SSD. I haven't been playing games too much these days, but for day to day stuff, even video work, it's a champ and three years old, except for the new drive. I cannot recommed SSD enough.

 

[Broodwich]

I used Newegg to build this one.

Anyways it was user error, had it hooked up wrong. Works now even with the phone in use. Thanks!

 

[DaveP]

Yup, Newegg has been my go to for years. IME the motherboard, CPU, RAM, video card and power supply come in under $1,000 for one step below cutting edge. I usually do this every couple of years but with my recent build I went to an SSD. I haven't been playing games too much these days, but for day to day stuff, even video work, it's a champ and three years old, except for the new drive. I cannot recommed SSD enough.

About the only game I play these days is Halo Combat Evolved with a clan I'm a member of. I don't play as much I once did, but enjoy it when I do. We have a scrim next Sunday with a clan in the UK. We do the headphone/mic thing and communicate as we play. It's a nice distraction to everyday life when I get to join in.

I'm finding these days that a good laptop is fine for 90% of the things I do and my Galaxy Nexus can handle most of the things I do online with the laptop if I really need to do them. The big thing is the REAL keyboard on the laptop. Teeny, tiny touch keyboards on phones are cute, but not for general use. I'll read my email and respond with one and two liners if needed.

 

[skoot]

I'd miss my 27" monitor!

 

[DaveP]

I'd miss my 27" monitor!

I like the 22" monitor on my desktop much better than the 14" display on my laptop. My wife upgrade to a 17" laptop and that's my next upgrade, also.

I'm also stuck on the IBM click type keyboard. I still have 2 or three of those in the closet for backup. I just can't get used to the lack of tactile feel on rubber membrane keyboards. Did I press it or not ... each time you type? Even my laptop keyboard just isn't optimal. I wore out one and ordered a new one from Ebay to replace it. You can feel the transition as the key actuates, so it's passable.

Anyone remember Chiclet keyboards of the 80's? Yuck!

 

[skoot]

A good friend of mine is the same way. He has a stockpile of them too, apparently they're hard to find these days.

 

[DaveP]

A good friend of mine is the same way. He has a stockpile of them too, apparently they're hard to find these days.

I lucked up on some free ones here and there when companies where I happened to be in my job were upgrading the computers. They'd all be stacked in a storage room. Can I have a couple of these? "Sure, grab 'em! They are off inventory"

Sometimes it's who you know and when you know them. My wife's company did away with several hundred IBM PCs in the early 90s, but they were approaching obsolescence at the time. She brought home a couple with the original Windows OS and an 8086 CPU with 512mb ram. It wasn't long before they became boat anchors. I used parts from them to fix friends' computers and then dumped them.