HTPC

So, I decided to build a Home Theater PC (HTPC). I ordered some parts online and bought a new hard drive at the local Microcenter. The items that I chose are:

Case: In Win BT610T
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-MA69GM-S2H
Processor: Athlon 64 LE-1620
Memory: Kingston 1GB ValueRAM Kit (2 512 MB modules) of DDR2 800
Hard Drive: Western Digital Caviar SE16 250 GB SATA-300
DVD Burner: Samsung SH-S202J
HDTV Tuner: Dvico FusionHDTV5 Gold RT

With all the parts in hand, I sat down today to put it all together. After I finished, I hit the power button and see and hear the fans start, but nothing else happens. Take it all apart, recheck everything, do this a couple more times and then give up. Joy of joy, the brand new motherboard was DOA. I checked Newegg's site and it looks like I have to pay the return postage, but they'll replace it and ship it back free of charge. Guess I'll have to do that Monday. Hopefully the next one actually works. What a dissapointing start to my new HTPC.

Better Weekend

This weekend seems to be a pretty normal one after two bad weekends in a row. Two weekends ago I found out that my grandfather died and then the following day I was struck with the stomach flu. Last weekend I went to the funeral for my grandfather and then two days later I was struck with the stomach flu again. So far this weekend is shaping up to be a typical weekend of just watching t.v., reading, and surfing the internet. Let's hope that it stays that way.