ok motherboard monitor tells me that my cpu is running 60 deg. c on just browsing the internet and goes up to 78 deg c playing games !!! ive seen it throttel before as well, what are the max temps i should run a pentium d duel 2.8ghz, i dont no alot about going in computers and adding or fans and stuff so i want to stay away from that any suggestions ?

im what they call a cool nerd

Probably you need to clean the dust from the heatsink, then clean & reapply the thermal compound

I didn't realize a 'cool nerd' would be so leery about opening up the case - - if so, you may require the services of a genuine computer nerd

I'm not one of those who think Bill Gates is the devil. I simply suspect that if Microsoft ever met up with the devil, it wouldn't need an interpreter.

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ok but the only problem with that is its brand new literally 1 week old it shoudnt have dust build up problems, im fine with opening the case its just, the computer cost me a hell of alot of money and i dont want to screw something up, while running pcmark05 it hit 81 deg c i no thats to hot what do u think the max temp i should be running at would be

im what they call a cool nerd

FYI, Precott P4s are not called hot potatoes for nothing, they're are infamous for running considerably high at idle & 60°C is not unusual with the CPU at such state. Also you cannot fry a P4 because of the built-in mechanism that throttles the CPU if it gets too hot.

Without investing in an elaborate aftermarket cooling package, there isn't so much you can do to tame that beast.

"the only problem with that is its brand new literally 1 week old"

As Sabertooth said, the Prescott is known to run hot, but as jboy pointed out, there may be a problem with the heatsink.

Where did you buy it? If you're too scared to fix it yourself, call & complain about the heat issue & see if they'll fix it.

Try making sure the fan is properly plugged into the motherboard properly, there should be a cord running from the CPU fan to the motherbord( make sure you read closely on the motherboard) it should say S_FAN or something like that