                 HOW TO INSTALL AN UPGRADE CHIP
                   Submitted by: Gloria Short


  Very carefully. In fact, you install an upgrade chip extremely
  carefully. There are three basic steps to the process: find the
  right upgrade kit for your system, pull the old CPU chip out of
  the computer, and insert the new chip into the socket. Only the
  final step is really easy, and you have to be careful with it,
  too.

  FIND THE RIGHT UPGRADE KIT Upgrade chips generally come in kits
  designed to make the process of swapping out the chips as easy as
  it can be. Some upgrade vendors sell kits designed for individual
  models of computers. These are the easiest, because most of the
  individualizing has already been done for you. With these kits,
  you can literally pull the old chip, insert the new one, and
  close the case.

  Other vendors sell kits that cover whole classes of computers.
  With these, you'll be altering jumper settings and occasionally
  running software fixes. They can be a little more challenging.

  Talk to the upgrade vendor and be sure the kit you're getting
  will work with your computer. You may need to contact your
  computer's manufacturer as well to get all the specs on your
  current machine. Be sure you get a kit that's going to work--it's
  worth being paranoid about this. Also find out if you need a BIOS
  upgrade.

  Another thing to check before buying is the location of the CPU
  chip in your computer. If it's located under the hard drive or in
  another crowded spot, the swap may be unduly difficult or even
  impossible.

  Of course, if you have an OverDrive socket in your computer, none
  of this will be a problem. You don't even have to pull the old
  chip out.

  REMOVE THE OLD CHIP You'd think you could just unplug the old
  chip, right? Read the instructions and use the chip-puller tool
  that comes with the kit. Don't ignore the cautions about
  grounding yourself and the computer before working on it. Take
  them very seriously.

  One corner of the old chip is notched where the right angle of
  the corner has been cut away. This is to make sure you get the
  right pins in the right holes. Note where the notch is and mark
  it somehow so you can't possibly forget.

  Experience shows that the chips rarely pop right out. After all,
  these chips have 168 or 169 pins, all of which have to be firmly
  seated for the computer to work. As you use the computer, the
  chip heats and cools, expands and contracts, with every on-off
  cycle. It tends to become firmly attached to its socket.

  The chip puller is usually an aluminum many-toothed affair that
  you slide between the pins of the chip. Pull it up gently and try
  to ease the chip out of the socket. Move from one side of the
  chip to the next, slowly easing up a fraction of an inch, working
  around the chip. It may take three or four times on each side
  before the chip comes loose.

  If you're really lucky, you have a computer with a ZIF socket.
  Zero Insertion Force sockets have a little lever built in that
  lets you remove the old chip and reseat the new one.

  Once you have this precious little computer brain out in your
  hand, what do you do with it? Not much, it turns out. Your dealer
  probably can't use it--after all, it's outdated and well used.
  There's not much market for such merchandise.

  INSERT THE NEW CHIP Be careful handling the new chip. If you
  should bend a pin on the old chip as you remove it, that's not
  too bad, but bending a pin on your pricey new CPU could be a
  disaster.

  Get the notch on the new chip aligned just as the notch on the
  old one was. Set the chip into the socket, taking as much care as
  possible to get the pins into the right holes. When you're sure
  the pins are all aligned correctly, apply gentle pressure to the
  chip to fully work it into the socket. Be sure it's seated
  properly--firmly in place, thoroughly into the socket.

  Then put the rest of the computer back together, and following
  the directions from the upgrade vendor, power up the system. If
  you don't get frying noises and smoke, you've done it right. Even
  experienced technicians will tell you that they've fried an
  occasional motherboard or chip by not getting everything just
  right.

  Experience also shows that despite their claims, many of the
  upgrade kits aren't totally clear in their instructions. There
  are too many variables with all the many varieties of clone
  systems out there to get everything exactly right for every
  system. Expect trouble, take care, and do the upgrade at a time
  when telephone support will be available.

  ENJOY YOUR SCREAMER If the chip upgrade path will work for you,
  it can significantly extend the life and utility of your
  computer. You, too, can have a true screamer--even in your old PC
  case.
