I have an AMD Athlon XP 2000+ running @1.67 Ghz.  What would be a safe
temperature for its operation?  I want to set my computer to warn me
when it gets too hot.

Hi there kjun!

The maximum operating temperature for your CPU as stated by AMD is 90
degrees celsius.

(Taken from: http://www.cpuscorecard.com/cpuprices/aaxp.htm )

However, this is the peak temperature, and if your CPU runs this hot
permanently, it will decrease the expected life of the chip
considerably.

Also, note that the temperature will fluctuate considerably depending
on what activity your computer is doing. Playing a 3D game will push
the temperature up by as much as 10 degrees celsius over, say, word
processing.

One more thing to note, is that the thermal sensor may not be mounted
exactly next to the CPU hotspot, so you should build in a margin of
error.

So I'd recommend setting an alarm if the CPU temperature exceeds 65
degrees celsius. See this thread for more:

http://www.computing.net/cpus/wwwboard/forum/4280.html

I hope this helps - if anything's unclear, or the links do not
function, then don't hesitate to request clarification before rating
this answer.

All the best,

--seizer

Search strategy:

safe athlon temperatures
athlon xp 2100 temperature