Well, I'll start with the site news first ^_^ Nats got the job in Texas so, I'll be moving with her to Texas in probably 2-3 weeks. Because of this, I'm going to have to temporarily close my store. I don't know when I plan to close it, but soon... nor do I know when I plan to reopen it... but that condition is based on when all my computer bits are shipped back to me in Texas ^_^
In other news, it's been quite an adventure for FF11 recently. Not the actual game, mind you... I like the game... but in order to play the game, I had to get a new video card. I had originally planned to get a Radeon 9600 since they were mid-range and decently priced. Not the all in wonder, not the XT, SE, Pro, or chocolate flavored varients... just a normal 9600.
So I look around online and check local stores to see if they carry the 9600. Nope. Just the 9700, 9800, 9600 XT, 9600 All In Wonder Pro, and the 9600 SE.
Now, I'm not really a computer guru (I lie) but I didn't really know the difference between the 9600 SE and the 9600. All the others were way out of my price range and the 9600 SE seemed reasonable. It cost me 120 (with a free copy of Half Life 2, whee) whereas the 9600 alone would have cost me 130. Seemed like a good deal. Poking around online I discovered that the 9600 uses a 128 bit bus and the 9600 SE used a 64 bit bus. In terms of performance, though, they ran the same numbers so I thought to myself, "Eh, why not. Free half life 2."
So I went to Fry's and picked up a copy of the SE and FF11. It worked all fine and dandy until Saturday.
I come home from the Alternative Press Expo and discover the Matrix has invaded my computer. Unable to use my computer, I notice that there seems to be a correlation between my computer's display and my mouse movement... which means that the computer was fine, there was just some display error. After a bit of messing with the card and the monitor, it started working again normally. Yay.
So today, I turn on my computer and notice that every other pixel on my screen seems messed up. After a lot of tweaking, I finally give up and go to Fry's to return my rental video card.
So after waiting in line at Fry's for a while, I get to the counter and ask to get my card exchanged. No problem. I go back into the store to find another 9600 SE to replace it with. No luck. I ask a sales rep to help me, and in a shocking surprise... he did O_o We both combed the shelves, he did an inventory check, found 2 in stock. With no luck with anything on the shelf, I returned to the return desk and asked if I could exchange the card instead and pay the difference for a different card. The guy said sure.
So I go back into the store with my store credit and lo and behold, I find a normal 9600. No SE, no XT, no Pro... just a normal 9600.
Of course, this means no free Half-Life 2, but whatever. Who knows when that's coming out anyway? ^_^
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