@Zaid - Yes, AMD is doing a great job of sword play with Intel, no doubt. I was waffling on which way to go, especially since a friend can get me a 25% discount on AMD products (well, a 25% rebate) ... however, I found the smokin deal on the mobo and it sort of solidified my direction.

Unfortunately with the first mobo, "smokin'" was more or less what had happened with the mobo ... blew out whatever electronic part that was ... now I got what appears to be a new one.

mornign

@Pᴀᴜʟsᴛᴇʀ2 letting out the magic blue smoke is bad. Maybe they sell cans of compressed smoke at the office supply store! 😉

@BobCross - Wait ... I've seen those before. Aren't they usually right next to the muffler bearings?

No no, those are fake. At the office supply store, they’ll sell you cans of “compressed air.” Don’t let the name fool you, there’s a little bit of magic smoke in each of those cans. You just have to invert them before you pull the trigger. The trick is to get the magic smoke back into the electronics. It might take a few tries.... Good luck! 😉

@BobCross - Thanks man! I'd have never known! (The things you can learn on SE are ENDLESS!!!)

Hmmm ... does this figure into things for sidewall? It's still very subjective without being there in person to see it.

It's definitely sidewall-adjacent (like, for real!). The only real answer is "if it's only a scratch, sure. How do you know it's only a scratch?"