What's the last thing you bought?

[Pony]

I can't do anything until spring, the PC is in Ohio, I'm not.

But to answer some of your questions, no. I haven't tried any troubleshooting steps. Been too busy.

I did not remove the optical drive in device manager, just unplugged it.
Bios is always set on all my computers with SSD and HDDs first
Haven't tried taking the questionable drive back out, it's a PITA to get the tower and cables out from where they are, that's why I haven't messed with it.
The UPS is only because there are regular power "blips" and it was constantly turning the PC off. (repeated improper shutdowns). I don't know if the problems started because of the power grid issues or the HDD but I do know that twice when it did a repair scan, once it came back up, that drive was/is missing.

I'm aware of the Windows 7 issues, I should have done the free upgrade when it was offered.

And that's the dilemma, IF I had to pay for a W10 license, a better graphics card, probably replace all the ram to get it to 16 and maybe a power supply, is it still worth spending a few hundred bucks on an 11 YO PC with outdated hardware?

Thanks for taking the time to help!

[Pony]

BTW, It gets through BIOS fine, hangs on the Windows logo.

[DemonGeminiX]

I can't do anything until spring, the PC is in Ohio, I'm not.

But to answer some of your questions, no. I haven't tried any troubleshooting steps. Been too busy.

I did not remove the optical drive in device manager, just unplugged it.
Bios is always set on all my computers with SSD and HDDs first
Haven't tried taking the questionable drive back out, it's a PITA to get the tower and cables out from where they are, that's why I haven't messed with it.
The UPS is only because there are regular power "blips" and it was constantly turning the PC off. (repeated improper shutdowns). I don't know if the problems started because of the power grid issues or the HDD but I do know that twice when it did a repair scan, once it came back up, that drive was/is missing.

I'm aware of the Windows 7 issues, I should have done the free upgrade when it was offered.

Thanks for taking the time to help!

BTW, It gets through BIOS fine, hangs on the Windows logo.

That sounds like your drive is toast. You might want to do some disk testing to make sure.

And that's the dilemma, IF I had to pay for a W10 license, a better graphics card, probably replace all the ram to get it to 16 and maybe a power supply, is it still worth spending a few hundred bucks on an 11 YO PC with outdated hardware?

A newer power supply is worth it because it's not limited to anything. You could get a really good one and just put it in the old build then take it out and put it in the new build when you're ready to put it together and retire the old one. You could get a better graphics card for cheap, the only thing limiting you there are the PCI slots on your motherboard. I don't know what kind of board you're using, so I can't advise you on that. But I will say if all you have available is PCI Express v 2.0, then you can safely assume that you won't be able to use a video card made for PCI-e v 3.0-6.0+. But you could get an older video card for cheap if you look around. I found mine on Ebay. At this point, I wouldn't bother with the RAM. I've got DDR3 1333MHz in my system (24GB), but I looked around for better and all I could find was 1600MHz and it was expensive. It's not really worth it unless you're gonna overclock it, and I've never bothered with that crap.

As for a Windows 10 license...

https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews...heap,5717.html

Check out #5.

[DemonGeminiX]

I'm gonna catch hell for this, but whatever: If the drive's dead, don't buy a new PSU.

Forgive me, it's early.

[Teh One Who Knocks]

I didn't know that Penn State was available for sale

[DemonGeminiX]

I didn't know that Penn State was available for sale

Everybody and everything's for sale, man.

[PorkChopSandwiches]

Everybody and everything's for sale, man.

-Sandusky

[Teh One Who Knocks]

Pizza.

I didn't realize how expensive pizza has gotten. It's been quite a while since we last ordered pizza and we went with a local place instead of a chain. Two medium pies and with tip it was $53.00

[deebakes]

ooof, that's steep... must have had like 75 meats on it

[lost in melb.]

Pizza.

I didn't realize how expensive pizza has gotten. It's been quite a while since we last ordered pizza and we went with a local place instead of a chain. Two medium pies and with tip it was $53.00

Can you please clarify here, are you saying that you got two medium pizzas for $53??

[DemonGeminiX]

Pizza.

I didn't realize how expensive pizza has gotten. It's been quite a while since we last ordered pizza and we went with a local place instead of a chain. Two medium pies and with tip it was $53.00

Jesus, man. That's way too much money for pizza, especially medium pies.

[richard3280]

Oof! $53 for two medium pizza's? Geeez! Highway robbery. Dominos medium (12", two toppings) = $6; Hand tossed (what does that mean exactly and are children allowed to watch?) = $12
Off chain pizzas, if they are ordinary pizzas, not 'Gourmet', wood-fired, roquette with Turkey Cheese and hand rolled oyster eyebrows, might be $18 - 22 (Aus Dollar)

[Teh One Who Knocks]

It was $43 (with tax) if I would have gone to pick it up, but tack on the delivery fee ($3) and the driver tip ($7) and it brought it to $53. I looked at Papa Johns first, but their freaking delivery fee is more than $5 now, which is just crazy.

[DemonGeminiX]

What kind of pizza's were they? Were they supreme's or meat lover's, or what?

[Pony]

I switch back and forth from the budget chain pizza places to the "real" places. The independents are usually 16-22 bucks.

Papa Johns typically isn't on my list, not a huge fan. Still haven't had Dominos since they changes the recipe. Typically hit the local Georgios or Little Caesars for cheap food.
Good pizza places are all over my area back home, still looking for something decent here down south.