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.