Huh, I've had three Epsons and one Canon and have never had a problem that has caused me to retire them. Two of the Epsons are still in use and one of them does print jobs of hundreds of pages all the time. Maybe I've just got less problematic models. I've had an Epson laser printer I wasn't fond of however.

I've heard that the Epsons have fewer problems if you use them regularly. Ther last one I had, I wouldn't use sometimes for months at a time, and it developed chronic clogging and paper path problems. I just bought a new one, and I'm making a point of printing something every few days. No idea if it will help -- ask me in a couple of years -- but I figure it's worth a try.

So, a while back, a friend sold me a nice new PC, and I want to transfer as much stuff from the old machine on to the new one as I can. The old machine was a handbuilt box, so I'm not sure how to figure out what kind of memory it's got on the MB.

What are the possibilities of totally screwing up my new box by popping memory sticks from the old box into the new and just turning it on to see what happens?

You could fry the memory, or the sockets.

Best thing? identify the motherboard, look up the specs.

Hmmm.... this [link] may help.

Thanks, Daniel.

En route to looking up other things: [link]

How to make XP Home more, but not exactly, XP Pro.

With the power off, you can just check to see if the sticks physically fit in the sockets. That won't hurt anything and will eliminate a lot of research if they don't.

Or remove one of the existing sticks and see if they're the same--it'll minimise chances of damaging anything by trying to fit a little too eagerly.

That's a good idea.

Thanks, Daniel.

No problem. I must admit, the best case scenerio your ram will work or just not.