This is why you never buy a pre-built machine

[Brinson]

about 2 years ago I was even poorer than I am now

I saw an ad for a GQ system at Fry's for $500 with LCD. I added up the parts on newegg....low and behold, it was CHEAPER than the parts were individually.

Naturally, I bought it.

A week ago my motherboard caught on fire.

I open it up...the motherboard is factor form.

So I think to myself "Okay, I'll just get a factor form motherboard." But then I check...the case was custom designed for this motherboard, the pin connections are one block, so I doub another MB will work.

Then, I remove my heatsink figuring I'll at least make sure the cpu isn't fried...

I've never seen a p4 cpu...I built my last 2 PCs with Athlon XPs

The cpu is tiny...this can't be normal. 1.5 inches wide...maybe...did they put a laptop cpu in my pc? wtf?

But, alas, at least they put a full size heatsink on...making the area around the cpu a kind of hidey hole for CAKES of dust...

Now, I have to:

1) Buy a new Case
2) Determine what is up with the cpu
3) Find a motherboard that supports it, and my ram.
4) Buy said Ram
5) Rebuild PC...

[lancec2c30]

Sounds like you lost all that money you saved buying that pre-build long-ago.

[CrazeD]

You seem a little lost here.

For starters, "form factor" is what type of motherboard you have. Form factor is not a type, it defines a type. ATX, mATX, ITX, etc are all different form factors.

I doubt the case was custom built for the motherboard. The motherboard is probably mATX, so it's smaller than normal.

Your CPU is not a laptop CPU, that is just how big P4's are. Athlon 64 are that size too.

The only problem with the main power plug (ATX) is that it might have a different pin layout. Otherwise, it will work with pretty much any motherboard. Though I'd recommend a new power supply anyway, because the ones that come with pre-built PC's are usually junk.

[Brinson]

I didn't mean the power one, I meant the pins for the controls on the front- they're prearranged into one block rather than seperate, making them useless for a motherboard with a different pin layout.

Yeah, maybe they're all form factors, but I've never heard someone referred to a "standard" sized one as form factor. The term is most commonly used with micro atx boards.

[CrazeD]

"Standard' is called ATX. The form factor is the size and layout of the motherboard.