The Glade 4.0

As i've alluded to some my old rig (Celeron 2.4 1 GB Ram) is starting to go rear up. I'm thinking about getting new barebone to replace it and transfer my good drives over.

I see something about something called micro ITX? They use clone processors from what people tell me. Are they any good?

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I prefer to think of them as "Fighting evil in another dimension"

Should this be in the Tech Forum?

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Sure it's not micro ATX?

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"Aaaah! Emotions are weird!" - Amdee
"... Mirrorshades prevent the forces of normalcy from realizing that one is crazed and possibly dangerous. They are the symbol of the sun-staring visionary, the biker, the rocker, the policeman, and similar outlaws." - Bruce Sterling, preface to Mirrorshades

Rori,

Check your PMs

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"If you haven't got anything nice to say about anybody, come sit next to me." - Alice R. Longworth

"Good? Bad? I'm the guy with the gun." - Ash Williams

You're probably thinking of Mini ITX (or possibly nano or pico).

I don't know much about these form factors except that they're even smaller than micro ATX. They're designed for very small, low power systems like you mind find embedded in cars, etc.

Very few of them use "desktop" processors. Most use something like the AMD Geode processor. It's an Athlon-derivative that uses the x86 instruction set (32-bit). It uses considerably less power (and has significantly less processing power) than a desktop Athlon. This allows it to be passively cooled, thus saving space and noise.

Anyway, mini/nano/pico ITX is a specialty form-factor. Even assuming that you can find an ITX motherboard that supports desktop processors, I don't know why you'd want to. These boards don't offer expansion slots or anything that you would expect in a desktop system. You'd be stuck with whatever embedded GPU the board uses, which is definitely not going to be a 3D card of any sort. These things are mostly used as media servers, DVRs, etc., so they only need 2D capabilities. Finding a case, let alone a power supply for ITX factor is also going to be difficult since they really aren't so much a consumer product.

If you're going to build a desktop system, I highly recommend sticking to an ATX/EPS12V system, and a mid-tower case. Unless you have some really pressing need for a low-profile system, trying to cram everything into a tiny case using even Micro-ATX is just way more headache than it's worth. They're hard to work on, and you live in the perpetual shadow of thermal issues. If noise as a concern, you can still easily build a full-sized, fan-cooled desktop system that will run practically dead-silent.

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Reckless, O soul, exploring, I with thee, and thou with me;
For we are bound where mariner has not yet dared to go,
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