OT- what computer should i buy
 

hi guys,
i always use my office computer, but was down for about two weeks due to a virus. i never wanted a computer at home because i didn't want to take any work home with me, but now i think i want to get one.

did anyone buy one recently? any awesome deals out there? what do i need as far as power?

sorry for OT, but i do not participate in any other forums.

please help.

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Daryl 964 Targa

How much moving around do you do? Also what are you planing to use it for? If itsn't stuff like gameing or graphics intensive stuff I just might concider a laptop. I know of several people who just have a laptop at home and love it. You just have to way the extra cost and lack of upgrade ability.

I would look at dell, they are getting the order for my next laptop.

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Ted Stringer
nuke3@juno.com
'84 911 Targa aka pocketrocket

Daryl - - - I am a strong supporter of Dell - not only do they assemble good boxes, but their service/support is, from my experience, outstanding and second to none. If I were in the market for another box, I would purchase a Dell Referbished unit. They are listed on Dell's web site. There are P4s there, up to 1.5mhz. Prices for all referb units range from about $500 to over $2,000 depending . . . . . You can purchase, for about $100, Dell's three year in house warranty. (Dell sent a tech to my house to swap out a mother board on my old Dell laptop!)
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The referb boxes come without monitors - you have to select your own. I like that. Monitors, like high end stereo speakers, are critical since they are the main interface with your senses. If you plan to spend long hours in at the PC, get a good one. If you get a glass tube, the dpi should not be any greater than .24. My Hitachi is a 19 inch .22 - great resolution - does not cause me any eye problems. Or get a 17 inch flat panel - The choice is unlimited. Lots of monitors for sale on EBAY.

Chuck

I'm typing on a compaq armada m700 laptop. I would personally never buy a compaq but, my co. gave it to me. I like the looks and feel but, it was a piece of crap before i rebuilt it. I also have a dell 3800 laptop and an ibm t20 laptop. I like the dell the best. I also have a g4 which i rarely use but, the graphic guys at work love them. I also have a dell gx1 w\dual 800 processors that i use as my everyday computer-great for games.
You will get all sorts of opinions-my choice is dell. Easy to work on, great website for downloading drivers. They seem to last forever.

[This message has been edited by lsolon (edited 09-28-2001).]

In my office I have a Penguin Computing dual-PIII 650Mhz, a Celeron 400Mhz that I pieced together myself with a Matrox G400 dual-head video card with two 19" Viewsonics, a Compaq Presario with an AMD Athlon 600Mhz (it runs Windows) and an Acer TravelMate 313T mini-laptop (bigger than a PDA - full-size keyboard - but much smaller than a laptop).

Out of all this junk, the one feature I recommend the most is the dual-head video card. If you've never used a system with two monitors, you don't know how good it works. I would recommend following others' advice - buy a refurb Dell from their website but see if you can get a Matrox G400 (or similar video card) or add a second video card. Win98, ME, and 2000 all support multiple video cards. Then buy two identical, high-end, refurb monitors. Dell might even sell those too. If not, I buy alot of stuff from http://www.compgeeks.com.

Oh yeah, to avoid VBS viruses, use the Opera Web Browser (http://www.opera.com) and Pegasus E-Mail (http://www.pmail.com). Take it a step further and use Sun OpenOffice (http://www.openoffice.org) instead of Micro$soft office. All of it is free and even though the software has some problems, it works well and avoids the security issues of MS software.

Oh yeah, as far as power goes, ignore the Mhz and MB. Don't spend more than $1000 on the CPU. Do make sure you get at least 128MB of RAM or more. Get a CD-RW. Spend your money on Cable Modem or ADSL - and your Porsche!

If you do get parts from Computer Geeks, stay on top of what you get. They have demonstrated a frequent tendency to mis-label things like motherboard bags and send you the wrong thing. The great prices come from buying in lots from people who have no use for the parts, ocassionally because the (low) quality of those is costing the seller in support calls and replacements.

You also want to look closely at what you are getting, many of their MBs are bare boards without cables. They have really good stuff and some real cheesy toys as well.

Not that I don't have components from them installed and working fine, but I've also wasted weeks trying to get correct/working components from them. They have always been good about being willing to remedy mistakes, if not always good at fixing the mistake.

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Charlie Baer
'79 Euro 911SC

[This message has been edited by thabaer (edited 09-28-2001).]

I will also recommend Dell. A few years ago, my first IT job was doing systems integration for a growing semiconductor company. That is a fancy way of saying when people ordered new computers, my group set them up to work with our network and instaled all the company software. While I was there, I put easily 300 Dell systems on peoples desks, with exactly 1 problem system. Dell cross shipped me a replacement with no hassle at all.

In my opinion, Dell has a good product, outstanding service, and good prices. Excellent prices if you get a refirb system.

When my friends or family are looking for a new PC, I always give the same answer: Dell.

That being said, depending on where you are located, and if (big if) you need no support at all, you can save a few bucks building a system from components. Here in the SF Bay area, there are a number of places that have great prices on hardware. The downside to this is the abysimal customer service, when it exists at all.

Hope this helps,

Tom



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82 911SC Coupe

I can't really say much for Dell, but I've wanted one since the 6th grade; I'm now a sophomore in college. Pretty soon I will be looking for a notebook computer, and Dell will be my only choice.

As far as what NOT to get? I'd never get a Compaq. We have two at home and they both are a PITA.

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Jeff
1976 911S Coupe

From my experience steer clear from the big names. This illusion of excellent technical support because they are backed by the big names is just that.

This is just a personal opinion, but AMD processors give you much better bang for buck. The current fastest AMD Athlon CPU at 1.4GHz is roughly equivalent to the much more expensive Intel Pentium 4 1.8GHz. Makes sure you get plenty of ram (256MB or more) and lots of hard disk space (60GB or more) so that you don't have to upgrade as soon. If you aren't bothered about playing games, don't worry about what video card it comes with.

When comparing systems, also look for included software (Microsoft Office/Windows XP), as these may cost hundreds more to buy later.

One final tip, a high quality, flat tube monitor will pay for itself over and over a few years down the line. Monitors are about the only computer item that dont lose all of their usefulness/value in about 3 years!

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Phil Garner
phil.garner@ukonline.co.uk
'72 911E Sporto

Do you have a MIS dept. at home?

Or you could upgrade and get a Mac running OS X.

"Or you could upgrade and get a Mac running OS X. "

Nice dig nostatic. :-)

I switched over from a PC to a Mac (during Windows 3.1) after years of trying to keep the computer running w/upgrades (e.g., SCSI w/DOS!). I learned and even memorized config.sys and autoexec.bat code and allocated memory in ways that I wish on no one. Being self-employed doesn't allow for a tech staff and a down computer requiring tech stuff doesn't pay the bills.

The Mac isn't trouble-free, but I can get back to fundamental income-producing work sooner with it than a PC although the later ones don't seem to crash as readily (I guess MS's strength is in emulating other company's technologies).

Let's all hope for a more competitive computer technology environment.

This is what I do for work, and I have, in past projects, rolled out Dell, Compaq, and HP workstations. I highly recommend the Dell PC's, and Compaq Armada laptops. Avoid Windows ME, but don't use less than Windows '98 (I don't even think you can get '95). Minumum you will be able to get is probably close to a gig processor and 64 MB of ram. I think 20 - 40 GB hard drives are common, so go with what comes standard. If you are planning to download movies, games, or porn, get a bigger drive. If games are your thing, spend the extra for a good video card. As for peripherals, get a decent printer and at least a 19" monitor. Stuff like DVD and CDRW are cool if you plan on using them, but if you are simply surfing the net, don't bother. Make sure you get cable or DSL! Don't fool around with dial-up. You can always add a scanner and the other stuff later, but get as much processor and memory as you caan afford. You really need to decide what you will do with it. If you are unsure, buy basic- good processor, memory and harddrive, and you can always add video cards, CDRW, DVD, scanner, etc.

Here's the opinion of a cyberidiot (me): Don't buy a computer from "4th Dimension Computers" in Olympia, Washington.

Two days after they sold me a computer, they said "We guarantee the individual parts in the system, but we don't guarantee the entire system." In other words, they can declare any problem 'not our fault' and I'm stuck.

It so happens they just fixed it again, and charged me an hour's labor. They said it was a "registry" problem with the Microsoft Windows 98 operating system. They sold me this system with the computer. Does this make sense to anyone except them?

I am not even willing to do 'free' business with this firm again.

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'83 SC

Lets talk screens.
Save your eyes. Your CRT has to go.
One needs to switch to the TFT flat panel monitors. The price of these are finally coming down. The one I recommend is the 770 TFT Samsung monitor. It has the most advanced image scaling. 160 degree view angle, no flicker, very little electromagnetic radiation. It has a dot pitch of .26mm which gives you extremely sharp and clear images.
Can't afford one? Buy a lessor computer and spend the difference on a TFT screen.
You'll be glad you did.
You eyes and body will thank you.

planter,

It comes down to computer support. I've had Macs when they were called apples and PCs when they were called XTs. I am just a normal user but I would not have made it without my "consultant" friends. If you own a computer and like it running, you will encounter problems. Work has their techs, but at home you are da man for both hardware and software. If you do not have any support you can rely on or offer a tech friend dinner to get him over to your house, then you should go with Dell as others have recommended. If you do have friends that are computer literate, then I would build one from scratch. One could build a system using better brands then the unknown brands used by dell and gateway for the same price. You should decide on whether your use is for gaming, business or web browsing. It will affect your final cost. DO NOT give your tech friends free reign of your checkbook....You'll end up with the most powerful system imaginable and no bucks for your p-car. http://www.pelicanparts.com/support/smileys/pc2.gif

My .02 worth

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'88 911 Cab

Blah, to heck with customer support. When I need help w/ my Porsche, the last ppl I ask is Porsche. I rely on BBS, mailing lists, etc. I am concerned about the best bang for the buck, and Dell, Gateway, etc. don't make the cut. I always custom build my own (or have one built for you). No customer support, but there is plenty of ppl out there willing to help you, and will do it better for than Dell free of charge. For example, I just today finally upgraded my AMD k6-2 300. I carried over my monitor, HD, and CDRW. I got a 1.33Ghz AMD Athlon, 256MB DDR RAM, DVD, case, modem for $400.

Colby

So what you are saying is, that if you bought a brand new Porsche, that is under warranty, any problems you have you would post the question to the board and fix it your self?

As I said, you can save a few bucks by piecing a PC together. If you can support your own system (or have friends willing and able to support you), and if you have the necessary software (or don't mind software piracy) you can get a lot of bang for your buck.

Or for slightly more, you can get a system with the same capability, plus 24x7 phone support, and licensed software, and you don't have to annoy your friends whenever you have a problem. http://www.pelicanparts.com/support/smileys/grin.gif

Tom
(who is tech support for everyone he knows)


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82 911SC Coupe

Hello

Planter91C2 should mainly think about the user profile ( usage and own skills ) and his budget. For surfing the net a simple used computer will do it. A simple Pentium will do it. Processor power isn´t important. You need RAM and those are dirt cheap right now. Best choice would be a pentium III BX board with 100 mHz FSB. In germany you can get used stations starting with 200$.

Or get a Mac and forget about fiddeling on computers.

I secound that Monitor and also Keyboard/mouse are the things to spend money and the have very long duty cycles.

Laptops are nice but have limitations and are not the best value package except you need one.

Grüsse,
Roland

I believe Falcon's position is the most reasonable. While I have rebuilt older PCs and upgraded my custom made box myself, I find I have less time running a home office for these fun activities. I currently have two desktops and a laptop networked and running out on a cable modem. When one is acting up, it is reassuring to turn to the one others to maintain work production. As I said, Dell replaced my laptop's mother board, no questions asked, in my home. I call that outstanding support.
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Two Oh - - curious to know the size of the Samsung 770TFT flat panel. At present, I am happy with my glass tube Hitachi 19", with 22 dpi. It has great resolution and is flicker free. This model still runs about $800.
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Chuck