Bitcoin Forum

Hello, have a couple of questions:

1) If I setup a crap computer I have to just use a CPU miner (4MHash/s), will this quickly destroy the computers CPU?  Or will it do no harm at all and not reduce the life of the computer?

2) I am having trouble setting up my home computer to GPU mine.

My video card: Asus HD 4350 512MB DDR2 DVI VGA HDMI Out PCI-E Low Profile Graphics Card

What is the easiest miner to use, any other advice?  Thanks

That doesn't look very profitable to me.
Also, I wouldn't recommend mining with a CPU.

Going with an ATI video card seems way better.

https://en.bitcoin.it/wiki/Mining_hardware_comparison (https://en.bitcoin.it/wiki/Mining_hardware_comparison)

I definitely don't have a definitive answer for the CPU question. But I sure hope not, I have a few chewing on my pc's around the house.

As to your question about GPU mining. Have you downloaded guiminer at all or tried getting it going ?

thanks guys, bump

 Umm I recommend this hardware guide. Much better imo

http://bitclockers.com/forums/index.php?topic=6.0

www.Bitclockers.com <-- Pool if you are interested
Your CPU will survive ;)

Short answer is no. While a CPU under constant load will reduce the potential life span of the CPU due to increased heat, the reduction will not be significant, nor probably relevant given that most people upgrade between 2-4 years. Thus, will it quickly destroy the CPU? No.

He has an ati/amd card , it's not great but I imagine it'll be better than the CPU. You need to download the ati streamer thing and guiminer. Google is you friend.

He also needs AMD APP SDK, because he has a 4 series card. (it enables OpenCL) I have a 4650 and i get like 32 mh/s

so I need to install the AMD catalyst suite even though I have a asus card, would that still work?

Although it's an asus they are using the ati gpu, it's like if you buy a dell over a HP pc, they are both probably using intel processors..

thanks for all the help guys, think I finally got it sorted :) 

does 7Mhash/s sound about right?

Yes. Go here for a comparison of cards for mining: https://en.bitcoin.it/wiki/Mining_hardware_comparison

If you can afford it you should get yourself an ATI 5850. You will then get around 300 Mhash/s. I'd also recommend joining a mining pool instead of mining on your own due to the high difficulty rate.

To work with any miner you'll need "AMD APP SDK" google can help you find it.

I thought that the 4XXX series didn't support OpenCL. At least it doesnt say anything about it here:

http://www.amd.com/us/products/desktop/graphics/ati-radeon-hd-4000/hd-4350/Pages/ati-radeon-hd-4300-specifications.aspx

CPU mining looks great at first because you think, "Ah, I can do that more easily: I've already got one!  Just a free software installation."  Then 15 hours later (or hopefully 1.5) you come across a thread casually mentioning the time to find your first block with a CPU could run into years.

It's disappointing it worked out this way.  GPUs are better at some things (hashes & spewing heat for the winter) and worse at others, so it's conceivable bitcoin's proof-of-work system could have been designed differently to keep more people in the game longer.  Bitcoin is turning more into a Pro-to-Peer network than P2P in some ways, with some businesses apparently devoting entire floors to racks of miners.

GPUs themselves may be left rather behind by ASICs (application specific ICs) created for btc hashing ... or just by the overall growth of the network (in which case slower, standardized-but-customizabe FPGAs could outcompete GPUs due to their much lower electricity costs).

All is not lost, as some posters on these boards claim they have moves afoot to provide ASIC devices to the masses.  I say "claim" because ASICs are fabulously expensive to develop and one wonders whether they will go through with their plans of creating them, or whether they may later decide to keep the results to themselves after all that investment.