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Current Motherboard Ancient, Need New One, Don't Know How
Hi, I'm not very good with computers so I have posted here hoping someone more experienced would be able to help.
I just want to forewarn, if you use a lot of computer lingo I'll probably not understand what you mean. Yes, I really am that bad at computers.
I also have a couple of questions, one of which isn't exactly mobo related (or might be, I don't know) so I hope you don't mind me just putting them both in the same topic.
1) Before the main question, I'd like to ask about a small thing that happened recently. My computer has a big round power button. When you switch the computer on, it should light up. Now though, it only flickers for a few minutes before blanking out. I don't know if this is a symptom of anything, but my computer's performance has never been the same since (a wee bit laggy at times, and games are unplayable due to jerkiness - I regularly maintain my computer by clearing up, running scans and defragmenting and all that stuff). Does anybody know what this could be a hint of? A few people (not experts mind you) suggest it might be the mobo's time to kick the bucket, does this sound like a plausible hypothesis?
2) I want to get a new motherboard because the one I have is very outdated and I can't upgrade my computer much further where graphics are concerned since it is the primary limiting factor in upgrading. I could add a wee bit more RAM (both slots full but not maxed) and upgrade the buses, don't know about the processor. But my current graphics card is the best one that I can use on this motherboard and even then it's a bit crap.
I want to get a new one so that I won't run in to upgrading issues in the near future, since I do plan to upgrade a lot of things including graphics. Thing is... I have no clue how to go about it. I just... I dunno, I know this sounds vague, but I don't even know where to begin. What does changing the mobo entail? Is it a big job best done by a professional? Or is it something a computer illiterate like myself could pick up (I have only ever changed RAM and graphics before, nothing else)? How can I get one that will be compatible with other components in the computer when there is such a huge variety to choose from, and will I need to change the power supply (I don't know how to find out which type I have)?
3) Forum related: I keep getting logged out ever couple of minutes, even though I have remember me checked. This is the only site it happens with. Any ideas?
Lastly, here is a dxdiag file so you can see what I have:
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