HELP! NEED COMPUTER

[thebes]

Go buy the latest issue of MaximumPC. They have a complete article on how to build your own, step-by-step and lay out three systems at different price ranges. You can get all the gear at NewEgg.com (best prices around), and of course buy some Promedia's for sound.

I've built several and they are no brainers, just a smidge more difficult than hooking up a HT system. It will take you about 3 or 4 hours with a few more to load in and configure all the software you had installed on the old one. As far as a scanner read the reviews under the individual scanners in NewEgg. Other good gear reviews sites are Tom's Hardware and AnandTech.

Even if you go new download Lavasoft's Ad-Aware and Spybot Search and Destroy (both free) an antivirus program, and enable the XP firewall and download the latest Windows security updates.

It's fun and you'll learn some things that will come in handy the next and inevitable time your computer acts up.

[meuge]

I totally agree with Thebes. If you're going to build your own, start at newegg. That's the place where I get all my gear. Also, here's A LOT of helpful guides to building PCs:

http://discuss.futuremark.com/forum/showflat.pl?Cat=&Board=techotherhardware&Number=634944&page=0&view=collapsed&sb=5&o=0&fpart=1

It really is quite simple

And one more thing - I would rather you disable the windows firewall and use Kerio Personal Firewall. It's free and fairly intuitive. But after you do all of this - do something extremely important - remove all Internet Explorer shortcuts, from your Programs and your Desktop. Do yourself a favor - switch to Firefox.

[Griffinator]

Nic - The only reason spyware and viruses are such a problem is because people fail to protect themselves.

Freeware solutions to the problem:

ZoneAlarm personal firewall (yes, you need a soft firewall even if you have a hardware unit, and no, the built-in firewall in Windoze XP is not a secure solution) www.zonelabs.com

SpywareBlaster - a firewall for ActiveX bugs, if you would. Prevents spyware routines (such as those coming from banner ads, search pages, etc) from ever being executed on your system, and therefore prevents the spyware from ever being installed. If it can't install, it can't bother you, nor can it track you. www.javacoolsoftware.com

[IndyKlipschFan]

But where would/do you go for a laptop? I could, like most of you, put together a computer. It would be fun and I am comfortable with that too.

A laptop, thats something else! Or is it?

[cluless]

BBB - Dude Get Yourself a Dell-

I have to say that BBB and MacIntosh OS would be a really bad match. I know that like myself, he relies heavily on the "casual" operational support. The support that is given between friends, on the phone, via e-mail, or forum support as is often given here, and the knowledge base just isn't there for the mac.

BBB- A short term (really cheap solution), is GO BUY A NEW KEYBOARD!

I spilled a 20 oz cupo coffee on mine at work, and I learned just how much I really use the digits...the 3 thought it was a 7 the 4 was dead and the 6 had a really bad repeat, repeat, repeat..

[Griffinator]

It's totally a different story with a laptop. You gotta buy a prebuilt, there's no avoiding it.

And no, the Apple Powerbooks do not hold a candle to the AMD and Intel-based laptops.

Personally, I avoid laptops like the plague. The only thing you can upgrade in a laptop is the hard drive, the RAM, and peripherals. Not my idea of smart investment, a computer that you will be forced to give up on for obsolescence's sake instead of changing out a couple parts...

[cluless]

I love my laptop -

It sits at my breakfast bar, it sits in the same room as the rest of my daily activities. It takes up little space. I don't have to wander back to my office as I did when I had the desktop. I drag in the printer (which is very light) when I need it. Is it the most cost efficient solution? Hell No! But is it the best solution for me...Hell Yes!

The amazing thing about computers these days...is that no one is actually "computing".

[meuge]

I don't think that way of laptops. My Dell Inspiron 4100 is damn near 3 years old, and it's no less useful to me now than it was then. I just made some smart choices when I was getting it. I got it with a single stick of RAM, which I upgraded first to 384MB of RAM, and then to 768MB. I also got a nice 1400x1050 screen and a CD-RW. The P3 1.13GHz that's sitting in it is still fine for pretty much anything. Adding a WiFi card also expanded its abilities and that's about all I've done to it. I don't really feel that I would benefit from an upgrade at this point. I didn't buy the laptop for massive amounts of storage, or for playing games - > I have a desktop for that. I bought the laptop to do work, and it's been faithfully serving me with no issues (well - one or two issues that Dell took care of very quickly). It's an investment into being able to carry a fully capable computer around with you.

On the other hand I wouldn't tolerate a 3-year old desktop. My P4 is running at a happy 3.2Ghz, with 1GB of ram, a 9800pro, dvd-burner and 240GB of total storage... and I think it's starting to show its age.

P.S. I also have a 400MHz PDA for smaller computing tasks, but I find it often superceded by the laptop. When I get tired of my laptop I'll probably get an ultra-slim one, or a TabletPC.

[BBB]

Well clu, I'll take your lap anytime ! he he he he Actually clu probably knows what programs I would use the most since we are on the same wave length as far as what I generally use my comp for.SCAREY, Ain't it ?!!!!

All kidding aside I just wanted to say Yikes!!! Wow ! As usual you people are terrific. The amount of information and its quality has been invaluable. Im leaning towards a Mac or a Dell. When it comes to audio/video gear I have a pretty good idea of what Im talking about but when it comes to comps Im sort of in the dark. I need to apologize for not responding to all of your suggestions sooner. As I mentioned before, my Internet connection and my phone lines are giving me a major head ache. I just need a new comp with lots of memory. The Mac products sound O.K. I knew I could count on my friends to steer me in the right direction. What drives me crazy is that I can dismantle my television or my speakers in order to get them to sound better or give me a better picture however the computer science world escapes me. Eventually Ill figure out how to use any new system but to put a new one together, that Im not familiar with, may be a task that Im not qualified to handle. As I said, all of your help is most appreciated. Thanks everyone, very, very much. Youre all great .Your friend, BBB .

[neo33]

Dell is synonymous with BOSE. LOL. Dell quality is mediocre at best. Don't go there, BBB. Unless you also buy a BOSE Wave Radio.

As for laptop, IBM makes the best freaking piece of black brick in the Milky Way galaxy!

[TheEAR]

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On 10/9/2004 4:29:52 PM SCOOTERDOG wrote:

BBB,

My son and I built his for about 1300 bucks and it kicks the crap out of any of the name brand machines. In fact you would need to spend about $3500 for an Alien PC just to get what we did for 1300.00.

Case $75 ( with 4 cooling fans and lots of colored lights)

Pentium 4HT 3.2ghz and motherboard $525.00

450 watt power supply $50.00

ATI 9600 256meg video card $179.00

Sony DVD $99.00

CD Burner $69.00

3.5 Floppy $10.00

1 Gig of Ram $150.00

Western Digital 80 gig hard drive $69.00

windows XP home edition $99.00

Then we also got back about $60 in rebates

He had a nice viewsonic 17" monitor and keyboard and mouse so we did not buy new ones.

Took us about 4 hours to put it all together and up and running. Kicks the crap out of my P4 1.7 system.

All components were bought from Fry's

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Why invest over $500 on a CPU and MOBO if you will pair with a 9600...non XT video card.

You could have purchased a 2.8GHz/Intel 865PERLL and got a 9800PRO 128 that would brutalise a 3.2Ghz on no matter what board with a 9600. No the 256MB on that 9600 will never be used like a real 256MB X800XT card would,as the GPU processing power and memory bandwith are low.128MB of fast DDR is preffered to a slow 256MB here.

And to top it all a tiny 80GB drive,when you can have 200GB Seagate(7200RPM,8MB cache/w 5 year warranty) drives for a few $ more!

Also a $3500 Alienware PC will have an AMD FX51(beats any Intel in most apps,a one sided brutal dispatching in games) an a 6800Ultra or a X800XT-PE,these video cards can run Doom 3 smoothly at 1600*1200 4AA/4AF with no trouble.Plus this level get you a Raptor 74GB boot drive and a 250GB WD for storage.

[formica]

Not sure how intensive your computer use will be... but from the comments posted so far, I don't see the need for a "killer" machine for a casual home user. Unless you post otherwise, I think a more realistic budget of 500$ plus WindowsXP and a Screen if needed (unless you go for a notebook).

One thing I've always had trouble understanding (that is a rhetorical remark) is the need for a killer video card like a 9800PRO or a GX-5950 ... matched with a cheepo 17in screen for the occasional "Sims" play??

I'm not saying these cards don't have their place with hardcore gamers... but a vast majority of people will not use the incredible 3D performance these cards offer. If you don't plan on gaming immediately with your video card... don't think it's an investment towards the future. Today's high-end video card will be near the bottom-end within the year.

Photoshop, AutoCAD, Premier (video editing) are video intensive applications which show little benefit matched with these high $$ cards versus less expensive ones with equal memory.

Even worse... many home PCs get used for non-intensive things like, word, excel, surfing, solitaire... lol...

Save your money, and get yourself a nice screen and some CDs...

Rob

[wheelman]

I don't know much about computers. I had lightning hit mine awhile back, and it was a gateway. I had trouble with it all the time before it got hit by lightning( a blessing in disguise). So I took the insurance money and bought a frankenstein computer that my computer repair man made. Now the real benefit to this is he can repair anything to it no problem. I paid like 250 or so for the tower keyboard and optical mouse. Not bad at all some said here on the forum. The one thing I know is if you go with a pc go with windows xp professional. I never even had a glitch since I got this computer. I never had a problem or ever needed tech support and I don't know much about computers. I do love the looks of Macs, and wouldn't mind having a mac screen if it would work with my tower. I am sick of this gateway monitor that is deep as my 30 inch television. I noticed alot of websites are using more quicktime lately. But I downloaded that and it works fine in my pc. I got a couple virus's a month ago or two and my internet provider caught them and let me read them and then just deleted them. The dumbest things like. "Oh really someone stole that" stuff like that. Wow was this any real help? I doubt it, but it's good to see you around BBB.

[BBB]

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On 10/11/2004 1:05:18 AM wheelman wrote:

Wow was this any real help? I doubt it, but it's good to see you around BBB.

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No, no, no wheelman. That was good advice about the XP professional.Thanks.

Ears, I know you have a great knowledge of comps. I can tell that just by reading some of your older posts.I just wish you lived next door to me to help me out.On the other hand I don't know if my pictures would stay on the walls knowing the type of bass equipment you have.he he he he

I'll figure it out one way or another.. Hmmmmm some great ideas coming in about this. Thanks everybody.

[007]

I say build your own. You'll get way better components for less money. You wont get that 3 yr warranty but its not really needed. Most parts in your pc are already covered. Your harddisk has 3 yr manufacture and so does your monitor and motherboard and even video card. The motherboard is generally the only problematic part, and if its bad, then it will be bad from the start.

When you build your own, you get to choose your case and components. Much of the stuff that dell and others cut costs on are the components which I value the most such as the noise reduction and aesthetics. My pc is fit and finished from the outside in. With rounded ATA cables and mesh wire sleeving to a practical Antec case. Remember, when you buy a Dell, part of what you pay for is the average fee for tech support. And you damn well know there are millions of newbies who have dells - millions!!! I just went down to Santa Barbra to visit my gf ( I built her PC). All 3 of here roommates have PC problems, the 4 girls next door also had pc problem. Out of the those 7 computers, 1 was a Compaq, 1 was emachine and the rest dell. My gfs PC was the only one w/o a problem, probably because she learned something about it because it was custom and she could open it up and look at the components and understand it better then most people. Of the other computers, all the problems were easy to fix, but if you can imagine that each person who buys a dell has 1 or 2 easy problems every so often, calling up tech support 10 to 20 minutes at a time, think of all the added cost DELL will add to their computers.

I just updated my PC, I spend 170 dollars on silence equipment. My PC is so quiet you cant even hear it walking into the room. Youll never find components like zalamn or coolermaster in a dell. If you care about youre PC, you would make it yourself.

[Marvel]

Since I do computer support at a small college, I have dealt with more Dells than most here. We have close to 400 Dells, and are still running some 266 Mhz models. Clear up to 3 Ghz and beyond. They have been incredibly reliable. The new ones are very, very quiet. I hate the new cases that open up like a clamshell. They flex too much. But once in place, they tend to go forever. There have been some lemons, most notably certain Inspirons. We have switched back to Latitudes for laptops. We have Dell servers and Sun servers. Dells service is better than Sun. Our newest servers have a four hour response time. Would that we could get service from Sun like that. And we have needed service for the Sun boxes, believe me.

Clu likes laptops. They serve a purpose. We have a lot of them, and they are not fun to support, no matter who makes them. IBM makes some of the best laptops, but we are going with one vendor (other than Apple, which the physics dept. uses in a small lab). Laptops get abused, just by the normal wear and tear. They still cost more for the performance you get out of them compared to a desktop. Certain of the Apple laptops are very nice. My daughter has a refurbished Dell Latitude that she took to college for the last two years she was there. It has held up well. They have replaced the CD drive. She needs a new battery, and a faster one would be nice, but she mostly uses it to write (screenplays and short stories)

Most people aren't going to build their own pc. When you do, you are the warranty. Doesn't matter if the parts have warranties or not, you'll end up being the one to fix it most of the time. I built most of the ones in my house. Both of mine are dual cpu Windows boxes. One is very cheap, the second was built for video editing. The case is built like a tank. It works fine. If it breaks though, I have to fix it. My youngest son's pc is a fine PC and been going strong. It's a PIV 2.5 Ghz computer. He uses it to run Lightwave 3D on. Works like a champ. Oldest son has a dual Athlon like mine. His has fried and sits dead at the moment. HE must call tech support, but I doubt they will replace anything. I may be mistaken. We have about 8 or 9 Windows PCs in our house; it would just cost to much to switch.

We haven't mentioned software. You want to switch to a Mac? You want to buy all new software? If you have special applications, go buy them again. Very few come on both platforms. Except for Adobe products, and they run just as well on Windows as they do on a Mac. Don't believe all the Mac hype about that one. You won't reboot the Windows PC as often when you do run those apps either. If you can get by with what ships with it, it won't cost as much overall. Decisions, decisions.

Did I mention I really like the new iMacs?

Marvel

[BBB]

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

EEEK IKE OOK ! EEK IKE OOK! EEK IKE OOK!

I'M GOING CWAZY HUMMA LA HUMMA LA HUMMA LA