geekpryde Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 I love that everyone mentions the capacity of the harddrive, and not the speed or cache. :-P If are not sure what you have for hardware can download CPU-Z. If you have windows7, you can also type in "system information" at the start menu, and hit enter. That launches a little app that gives you basic hardware info, more so than just device manager. People should spend a little time before game release and get the latest firmware releases. If you have a Dell pc, its rediculously easy to update your BIOS firmware. Just type in your service tag number, and download a exe. If if you dont bother too look if you need it (by restarting your PC), you can download it, run it, and it will tell you your current bios version, and then optionally cancel out. Dell also will list various other updates/firmware that apply to your specific model and OS. I assume other large PC vendors make it easy too. dell updates If you are doing a clean install of windows, most definately install 64bit, there is no reason to opt for 32 bit. For those unsure about if they can handle Skryim, I would say dont spend money now (unless you have a lot of it), and just see how it goes on release day. If you find the game is unplayable, order a new graphics card then. No sense tossing an acceptable card now on a whim that it might not be good enough. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blu02 Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 People should spend a little time before game release and get the latest firmware releases. If you have a Dell pc, its rediculously easy to update your BIOS firmware. Just type in your service tag number, and download a exe. If if you dont bother too look if you need it (by restarting your PC), you can download it, run it, and it will tell you your current bios version, and then optionally cancel out. Dell also will list various other updates/firmware that apply to your specific model and OS. I assume other large PC vendors make it easy too. Why would anyone have to update their BIOS for Skyrim? :blink: That's something you consider if you're having hardware-problems or might want some extra functions or fixes in your BIOS. Anyone not using BIOS for overclocking or tweaking wouldnt gain anything from it, only possible trouble. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
geekpryde Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 Why would anyone have to update their BIOS for Skyrim? :blink: That's something you consider if you're having hardware-problems or might want some extra functions or fixes in your BIOS. Anyone not using BIOS for overclocking or tweaking wouldnt gain anything from it, only possible trouble. Hence I said it is rediculously easy if you have a dell pc. There is no downside, even if you perceive little upside. I maintain 50 Dell Precisions, and regularly update BIOS, in 8 years, never had a single bad flash. But, again, Dell make it easy, and not all vendors do this, and like you are saying it can be more hassle than its worth for if you have built your own machine, or your motherboard manufacturer does not wrap the firmware in an .exe like Dell does. Some Bios updates are critical, and fix issues / prevent issues from cropping up down the line. It's not about a performance increase, its about trying to prevent issues when you are placing your PC under max load (aka Playing Skyrim). It's also just a practical matter to stay current with patches of all kinds, hardware firmware, OS patches, etc. even if they dont directly impact Skyrim. For instance, people here may want to check out secunia PSI to see if they have all third-party security patches installed, if for no other reason (1) to be safe online (2) to do something with your PC while you twiddle your thumbs and wait for the game to be released. secunia Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShadowscaleB1980 Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 (edited) Why would anyone have to update their BIOS for Skyrim? :blink: That's something you consider if you're having hardware-problems or might want some extra functions or fixes in your BIOS. Anyone not using BIOS for overclocking or tweaking wouldnt gain anything from it, only possible trouble. I agree, this is completely unnecessary. For most people changing your videocard, or adding more RAM will have a more significant impact on gameplay that a BIOS update - if it takes a BIOS update does improve a computer's performance, I don't want to know what else may be wrong with the PC. Some Bios updates are critical, and fix issues / prevent issues from cropping up down the line. It's not about a performance increase, its about trying to prevent issues when you are placing your PC under max load (aka Playing Skyrim). It's also just a practical matter to stay current with patches of all kinds, hardware firmware, OS patches, etc. even if they dont directly impact Skyrim. For instance, people here may want to check out secunia PSI to see if they have all third-party security patches installed, if for no other reason (1) to be safe online (2) to do something with your PC while you twiddle your thumbs and wait for the game to be released. secunia Yes some BIOS updates are quite important, and no it isn't all about performance - but hardware developers go to great lengths to make sure any BIOS updates are available as soon as possible and integrate those BIOS updates on future production runs of the hardware. If a MOBO has stability issues right out of the box, then people aren't going to recommend it and the company that produces it is going to lose market share and money - simple economics. Edited October 25, 2011 by shadow_scale9180 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
geekpryde Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 I agree, this is completely unnecessary. For most people changing your videocard, or adding more RAM will have a more significant impact on gameplay that a BIOS update - if it takes a BIOS update does improve a computer's performance, I don't want to know what else may be wrong with the PC. You guys are funny. Could you maybe do both, I dont think someone is going to force you to do one or the other. Add ram/change GPU AND update your BIOS. Did I ever say updating BIOS would help performance? p.s. Updating your BIOS is free. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShadowscaleB1980 Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 You guys are funny. Could you maybe do both, I dont think someone is going to force you to do one or the other. Add ram/change GPU AND update your BIOS. Did I ever say updating BIOS would help performance? p.s. Updating your BIOS is free. Yeah we know BIOS updates are free, but there is a potential for inexperienced users to completely stuff up their computers if a BIOS update goes awry and some of the causes for such things aren't predictable - e.g. power failures. the only thing I would consider changing in my PC would be by adding another GTX580 next to the one I already have and running them in SLI. I haven't had an SLI rig in years - but this is the first time I'm using a fully watercooled rig, adding another videocard would potentially cause more problems with my cooling loop. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adrius2 Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 (edited) While we're talking about stuff that doesn't help Skyrim performance I can mention that spraying AXE on your motherboard also doesn't help. Edited October 25, 2011 by Adrius2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShadowscaleB1980 Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 I can also confirm for those who are using water cooling that adding red bull to your coolant doesn't give your CPU wings. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blu02 Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 DAMN YOU'RE ALL POSTING SO FAST :teehee: Anyways, I'm not saying flashing your BIOS is a bad thing, just that it might not be a good idea to tell inexperienced people to mess around with it, even if it's a simple ting with Dell. Since flashing BIOS doesn't just update it, but also resets any settings that anyone might've made to it earlier for certain hardware, and that could create unexpected and unnecessary problems for the current user. However, anyone buying themselves an SSD should definitely check for firmware-updates before installing anything on it! These are often very important updates that greatly affects their reliability. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BareFootScholar Posted October 26, 2011 Share Posted October 26, 2011 I'm really sorry, I've spent ages just studying up on all this computer jargon and reading through other's posts to find the answer, but I am just hopeless it seems. :unsure: I wanted to avoid annoying you guys by asking the same old question, but: how will Skyrim fare with these specs? Intel Core i7 CPU Q 840 @ 1.87GHz, 1863 Mhz, 4 Cores, 8 Logic 4.0gb ram, Nvidia Geforce GTX 260mDirectX 11.0 (Although other sources have told me I am using version 10?)Video RAM 2.7 GB I am confidant that I will meet the minimum requirements, but will I be able to exceed recommended requirements? It will be bothering to discover I spent so much money and time making sure I have the best possible laptop, when it gets outdated within a year. Again, I'm sorry for noobing all over you guys :tongue: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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