OT Building new computer (DIY)
Seeking opinions of current parts.
CPU Motherboard Hard Drive (SATA) DVD (SATA) Monitor A friend ask me to build him a new system. (no problem) Windows 7 – clean install... If you've built a system in the last year or two or had one built for you I would appreciate your comments. Just the above parts are what I'm interested in. Been awhile since I built mine :-\ My work for him is free -- start to finish. |
OT Building new computer (DIY)
On Sat, 14 Jul 2012 14:53:57 -0700, Oren wrote:
Seeking opinions of current parts. This is the wrong group, I'm sure-- but the last 3 I put together were 'bare bones' from either Newegg or geeks.com. The last one was from geeks.com a few months ago-- A *de*branded HP- slimline tower- dual core E6700 processor 3.2GHz, 2GB ram, 750GB HDD, DVD burner- wireless keyboard & mouse- $200. It would have been a real breeze if I'd known that hardware could be OS dependent. I spent a couple days trying to figure out why it wouldn't work before I emailed geeks and asked for help. They sent me to the HP page with the driver set-- which was only available for Windows 7 -- So I bought a copy of windows 7, retired my XP CD- and I've got a pretty nice machine for $300-- and a Windows 7 CD for the next box. [I think my last monitor came from Walmart or Staples] Jim |
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On 07/14/12 05:53 pm, Oren wrote:
Seeking opinions of current parts. CPU Motherboard Hard Drive (SATA) DVD (SATA) Monitor A friend ask me to build him a new system. (no problem) Windows 7 – clean install... If you've built a system in the last year or two or had one built for you I would appreciate your comments. Just the above parts are what I'm interested in. Been awhile since I built mine :-\ My work for him is free -- start to finish. For years I've bought nothing but Asus motherboards, AMD CPUs and Seagate hard drives (except that I bought Hitachi drives for notebooks) -- almost all my dead drives are Western Digital. Most recently I've been buying G.Skill RAM but previously bought mostly Kingston. The DVD drives I've bought recently have been whatever was on sale at the time. My most recent purchases have been from NewEgg.com, but TigerDirect.com has occasionally had better prices. Perce |
OT Building new computer (DIY)
Oren wrote: Seeking opinions of current parts. CPU Motherboard Hard Drive (SATA) DVD (SATA) Monitor A friend ask me to build him a new system. (no problem) Windows 7 – clean install... If you've built a system in the last year or two or had one built for you I would appreciate your comments. Just the above parts are what I'm interested in. Been awhile since I built mine :-\ My work for him is free -- start to finish. Hi, I usually buy barebone kit from eBay and add thing as I need. I always had good luck with ASUS, or Gigabyte mobo, HDD, the bigger cache the better. And good video card is very important. |
OT Building new computer (DIY)
Oren wrote:
Seeking opinions of current parts. Usage (and budget) will dictate the best choices. For instance, do you need hard drive capacity or graphics performance. Personally, I'd get an SSD drive rather than a hard drive--but that is because I place a premium on performance over capacity. I think the Dell medium end monitors are a good value (on sale for $239 recently from $300, I think). Let me know if you are interested and I'll look up the model. tomshardware.com has LOTS of information on components. Good luck! CPU Motherboard Hard Drive (SATA) DVD (SATA) Monitor A friend ask me to build him a new system. (no problem) Windows 7 – clean install... If you've built a system in the last year or two or had one built for you I would appreciate your comments. Just the above parts are what I'm interested in. Been awhile since I built mine :-\ My work for him is free -- start to finish. |
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On Jul 14, 7:34*pm, Tony Hwang wrote:
Oren wrote: Seeking opinions of current parts. CPU Motherboard Hard Drive (SATA) DVD (SATA) Monitor A friend ask me to build him a new system. (no problem) Windows 7 – clean install... If you've built a system in the last year or two or had one built for you I would appreciate your comments. Just the above parts are what I'm interested in. Been awhile since I built mine :-\ My work for him is free -- start to finish. Hi, I usually buy barebone kit from eBay and add thing as I need. I always had good luck with ASUS, or Gigabyte mobo, HDD, the bigger cache the better. And good video card is very important.- Hide quoted text - - Show quoted text - When you can buy a whole system for $400, and given the problems that can arise, the idea of building a system for someone else out of parts doesn't seem like a very good idea to me. Also factor in that the $400 system comes with a legal version of Windows 7, a warranty and someone to go to for support. You can also typically get MSFT office for another $100, 3 years of antivirus for $40, etc. Just saying, sounds like aggravation and a good way to ruin a friendship. |
OT Building new computer (DIY)
Oren wrote:
Seeking opinions of current parts. CPU Motherboard Hard Drive (SATA) DVD (SATA) Monitor A friend ask me to build him a new system. (no problem) Windows 7 - clean install... If you've built a system in the last year or two or had one built for you I would appreciate your comments. Just the above parts are what I'm interested in. Been awhile since I built mine :-\ My work for him is free -- start to finish. It might be less frustrating to start with a bare-bones system or a used one, then upgrade. I saw some desktop Dells that came back off lease to a school district: * $99 - Intel dual core, 2.4GHz, 1GB DDR2, 160GB drive, CD-RW/DVD, WinXP-Pro * $148 - Pentium D dual core, 17"LCD monitor, keyboard, optical mouse, 1GB DDR2 memory, 80GM drive, LAN, XP Pro. Add $100 for a terabyte drive and $75 for 3 MB more of memory. * and so on The above were discovered at Directron in Houston. http://search.directron.com/newsearc...used&x=18&y=33 |
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On Sat, 14 Jul 2012 17:00:42 -0700 (PDT), "
wrote: When you can buy a whole system for $400, and given the problems that can arise, the idea of building a system for someone else out of parts doesn't seem like a very good idea to me. Also factor in that the $400 system comes with a legal version of Windows 7, a warranty and someone to go to for support. You can also typically get MSFT office for another $100, 3 years of antivirus for $40, etc. Just saying, sounds like aggravation and a good way to ruin a friendship. We disagree. Bought my bride a "system" for some bucks under or around $400. The system is full of OEM trash-ware, much of the software is useless or not used. I don't need stuff, except the OS. Built mine (for 20 years) from scratch without ALL the bloat ware.. As to warranty, any system can fail in a matter of days. Burn in is around 3 days. After that it will run for years. Windows 7 has *free* AV and Open Office is free (open source) and just as good (better) as MS Office, plus compatible. No cost, ever. PS. My friend will not be lost. He asked, because he trust me. I didn't mean to upset anyone. I appreciate this group for the intelligence and vast knowledge of common sense. In a few hours I can build a system for him as I WOULD want for myself or meet his expectations. I'm not looking for what an OEM "thinks" he needs. I think for myself. Hardware advice? |
OT Building new computer (DIY)
On Sat, 14 Jul 2012 17:00:42 -0700 (PDT), "
wrote: When you can buy a whole system for $400, and given the problems that can arise, the idea of building a system for someone else out of parts doesn't seem like a very good idea to me. Also factor in that the $400 system comes with a legal version of Windows 7, a warranty and someone to go to for support. You can also typically get MSFT office for another $100, 3 years of antivirus for $40, etc. Just saying, sounds like aggravation and a good way to ruin a friendship. Right. Unless you have "special needs" like gaming, fooling around with the hardware, etc, the cost curve went against building you own at least 10 years ago. I still do it, because I'm particular about that, and game and tinker. It's not cheap, because you pay retail for components. High end parts cost. Going with used eBay parts can make it work, but that has its own traps. You have to know the real values. Then, as you say, you'll be obligated to support it. Reminds me of what somebody on a another newsgroup years ago. Paraphrasing: "Why would somebody spend years writing a novel when you can pick one up at a bookstore for a few bucks." -- Vic |
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Oren wrote in news:kh2408drodq2ioric67lsmssf22702lcls@
4ax.com: Bought my bride a "system" for some bucks under or around $400. The system is full of OEM trash-ware, You probably bought a boxed unit from a chain store. Get one of those independent hole-in-the-wall places to build one for you. That way you get total control over hardware choice, partitioning, and software installs. Plus the builder then takes care of the burn-in and the warranty, and he'll be up on all the new hardware in a way you and I are not. Tiger Direct will also build-to-order, and they're probably better than the hole-in-the-wall places on account of their sales volume. I gave up rolling my own years ago. It just wasn't worth it any more. -- Tegger |
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On Sat, 14 Jul 2012 17:38:49 -0700, Oren wrote:
We disagree. Bought my bride a "system" for some bucks under or around $400. The system is full of OEM trash-ware, much of the software is useless or not used. I don't need stuff, except the OS. I've not built my own, but we have a guy we use for our computers for work and he has built mine for a number of years now. Yes, the big difference is all the crap that comes with the typical store bought system. Only thing worse is the Gook Squad that fine tunes them to the point they hardly run at all. |
OT Building new computer (DIY)
Oren wrote:
Seeking opinions of current parts. I replied earlier that you hadn't specified any system goals or a budget. One of the best arguments made against you doing this is that you become the "fix it" man when ANYTHING goes wrong and, as you must surely know, something surely will, and then you will likely be sorry. Build for yourself, maybe. For someone else, forgetaboutit! : ) I think you would be being a good friend if you located a system to consider. Good luck! Bill CPU Motherboard Hard Drive (SATA) DVD (SATA) Monitor A friend ask me to build him a new system. (no problem) Windows 7 – clean install... If you've built a system in the last year or two or had one built for you I would appreciate your comments. Just the above parts are what I'm interested in. Been awhile since I built mine :-\ My work for him is free -- start to finish. |
OT Building new computer (DIY)
"Oren" wrote in message ... Seeking opinions of current parts. CPU Motherboard Hard Drive (SATA) DVD (SATA) Monitor A friend ask me to build him a new system. (no problem) Windows 7 - clean install... If you've built a system in the last year or two or had one built for you I would appreciate your comments. Just the above parts are what I'm interested in. Been awhile since I built mine :-\ My work for him is free -- start to finish. Tell him to buy himself a laptop At the prices of laptops today, the savings for a desktop are not worth the effort. Plus the laptop provides a built-in backup power supply, aka battery. |
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wrote in message ... On Jul 14, 7:34 pm, Tony Hwang wrote: Oren wrote: Seeking opinions of current parts. CPU Motherboard Hard Drive (SATA) DVD (SATA) Monitor A friend ask me to build him a new system. (no problem) Windows 7 – clean install... If you've built a system in the last year or two or had one built for you I would appreciate your comments. Just the above parts are what I'm interested in. Been awhile since I built mine :-\ My work for him is free -- start to finish. Hi, I usually buy barebone kit from eBay and add thing as I need. I always had good luck with ASUS, or Gigabyte mobo, HDD, the bigger cache the better. And good video card is very important.- Hide quoted text - - Show quoted text - When you can buy a whole system for $400, and given the problems that can arise, the idea of building a system for someone else out of parts doesn't seem like a very good idea to me. Also factor in that the $400 system comes with a legal version of Windows 7, a warranty and someone to go to for support. You can also typically get MSFT office for another $100, 3 years of antivirus for $40, etc. Just saying, sounds like aggravation and a good way to ruin a friendship. Not to mention that for $400, you can get a decent laptop with a built-in emergency power supply. |
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"Oren" wrote in message ... On Sat, 14 Jul 2012 17:00:42 -0700 (PDT), " wrote: When you can buy a whole system for $400, and given the problems that can arise, the idea of building a system for someone else out of parts doesn't seem like a very good idea to me. Also factor in that the $400 system comes with a legal version of Windows 7, a warranty and someone to go to for support. You can also typically get MSFT office for another $100, 3 years of antivirus for $40, etc. Just saying, sounds like aggravation and a good way to ruin a friendship. We disagree. Bought my bride a "system" for some bucks under or around $400. The system is full of OEM trash-ware, much of the software is useless or not used. I don't need stuff, except the OS. Built mine (for 20 years) from scratch without ALL the bloat ware.. As to warranty, any system can fail in a matter of days. Burn in is around 3 days. After that it will run for years. Windows 7 has *free* AV and Open Office is free (open source) and just as good (better) as MS Office, plus compatible. No cost, ever. PS. My friend will not be lost. He asked, because he trust me. I didn't mean to upset anyone. I appreciate this group for the intelligence and vast knowledge of common sense. In a few hours I can build a system for him as I WOULD want for myself or meet his expectations. I'm not looking for what an OEM "thinks" he needs. I think for myself. Hardware advice? Bloatware can be removed |
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On Sat, 14 Jul 2012 23:46:35 -0500, "Atila Iskander"
wrote: Tell him to buy himself a laptop At the prices of laptops today, the savings for a desktop are not worth the effort. Plus the laptop provides a built-in backup power supply, aka battery. Laptops have a place, but for home use, I still prefer a big honkin' desktop with a 21 inch or larger monitor, keyboard that can be moved around, etc. When I want portability, my netbook has traveled to much of the US and Europe with me. Or it can sit on my belly when in front of the TV. |
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Ed Pawlowski wrote in
: On Sat, 14 Jul 2012 23:46:35 -0500, "Atila Iskander" wrote: Tell him to buy himself a laptop At the prices of laptops today, the savings for a desktop are not worth the effort. Plus the laptop provides a built-in backup power supply, aka battery. Laptops have a place, but for home use, I still prefer a big honkin' desktop with a 21 inch or larger monitor, keyboard that can be moved around, etc. When I want portability, my netbook has traveled to much of the US and Europe with me. Or it can sit on my belly when in front of the TV. but for home use, I still prefer a big honkin' desktop And I thought I was the last one... Must be a CT thing (OEM Stamfordite) :-) |
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Red Green wrote in
: Ed Pawlowski wrote in : On Sat, 14 Jul 2012 23:46:35 -0500, "Atila Iskander" wrote: Tell him to buy himself a laptop At the prices of laptops today, the savings for a desktop are not worth the effort. Plus the laptop provides a built-in backup power supply, aka battery. Laptops have a place, but for home use, I still prefer a big honkin' desktop with a 21 inch or larger monitor, keyboard that can be moved around, etc. When I want portability, my netbook has traveled to much of the US and Europe with me. Or it can sit on my belly when in front of the TV. but for home use, I still prefer a big honkin' desktop And I thought I was the last one... Must be a CT thing (OEM Stamfordite) :-) p.s. and also a "-ski". |
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On Jul 14, 8:44*pm, Vic Smith wrote:
Unless you have "special needs" like gaming, fooling around with the hardware, etc, the cost curve went against building you own at least 10 years ago. My old new thing was to buy an OEM package, wipe the HDD and install an OEM version of Windows. Even with the extra $100 I feel I'm ahead, short and long term. If I should decide I want a load of useless crap on my machines I can always find it all over the 'net. My newer thing is to buy an extra HDD and install the OEM Windows on that, ----- - gpsman |
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Oren wrote:
Seeking opinions of current parts. CPU AMD Phenom II X3 720 2.8GHz, 95 watt. I chose this because most bang for the buck for my purposes; X3 rather than X4 because of much lower power draw & heat. Motherboard ASRock AOD790GX, 140w OK, AM3 OK - $124.99. Chosen because compatible with CPU, decent price. No other reason, has been fine. Hard Drive (SATA) Western Digital Caviar Black WD5001AALS 500GB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s, OEM - $69.99, 5 year warranty. Fast, good cache, fast data transfer, great warranty (paid with MC to double it). Comes in bigger capacity too, didn't need more. Specs are even better now, eg 6.0 Gb/s. http://www.wdc.com/en/products/products.aspx?id=760 DVD (SATA) BURN LG|GH22NS30 22X SATA - OEM $24.99. No particular reason for getting an LG but it has been fine, very happy with it. Price was certainly right :) -- dadiOH ____________________________ Winters getting colder? Tired of the rat race? Maybe just ready for a change? Check it out... http://www.floridaloghouse.net |
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Oren wrote:
Seeking opinions of current parts. CPU Motherboard Hard Drive (SATA) DVD (SATA) Monitor A friend ask me to build him a new system. (no problem) Windows 7 - clean install... If you've built a system in the last year or two or had one built for you I would appreciate your comments. Just the above parts are what I'm interested in. Been awhile since I built mine :-\ Lots of luck. Thus far, you have a lot of basically useless comments and opinions, very little of what you asked for. -- dadiOH ____________________________ Winters getting colder? Tired of the rat race? Maybe just ready for a change? Check it out... http://www.floridaloghouse.net |
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On Saturday, July 14, 2012 4:53:57 PM UTC-5, Oren wrote:
Seeking opinions of current parts. CPU Motherboard Hard Drive (SATA) DVD (SATA) Monitor A friend ask me to build him a new system. (no problem) Windows 7 – clean install... If you've built a system in the last year or two or had one built for you I would appreciate your comments. Just the above parts are what I'm interested in. Been awhile since I built mine :-\ My work for him is free -- start to finish. I usually buy from Dell (4 new units, bought and sold many used ones). If you get a cheap Dell and it doesn't come with an OS disc for reinstall....you can ask them for one (in the US). https://support.dell.com/support/top.../backupcd_form |
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On 7/14/2012 5:53 PM, Oren wrote:
Seeking opinions of current parts. CPU Motherboard Hard Drive (SATA) DVD (SATA) Monitor A friend ask me to build him a new system. (no problem) Windows 7 – clean install... If you've built a system in the last year or two or had one built for you I would appreciate your comments. Just the above parts are what I'm interested in. Been awhile since I built mine :-\ My work for him is free -- start to finish. +When I started building my own computers, I would typically go to Newegg and check ratings and reviews for each of the components, then go with that advice. All of my original builds, I used the best Asus motherboards available at the time. P4PE, P4C800E-D, P5AD2E. These are Intel socket boards, and I used the best bank for the buck processor. I used Seagate hard drives. Those machines worked flawlessly, but ultimately all of the boards crapped out except the original P4PE. At the end of the day I'm not that happy with Asus After some time of not building anything, I needed to build another batch, these are within the last two years. This time I went with Gigabyte motherboards and I5 intel processors. I also switched to WD hard drives, just for a change, the Seagates were always good to me. All my machines are running continuously, some are gaming setups, and there hasn't been the slightest hiccup from any of them. |
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On 2012-07-15, Red Green wrote:
And I thought I was the last one... Must be a CT thing (OEM Stamfordite) :-) p.s. and also a "-ski". Nope. Lots of us. Better yet, you can pick up decent box fer zero $$. Ppl can't give 'em away, anymore. Actually costs $$ to dispose of 'em. I haven't paid for a computer in yrs. Granted, I'm not running the hottest gamer box in town, but running Linux gets me what I need for nada. Finally hadda kick out the jams and splurge fer an LCD monitor, no CRTs lying around. My new Acer 23" is killer. I may join the 21st century if I can find a decent box fer $200. Oh yeah, two days ago a 17" CRT turned up, fer free. With 2 keyboards and two mice. I passed. ;) nb -- vi --the heart of evil! |
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On 7/15/2012 9:32 AM, dadiOH wrote:
wrote: The main advantage of buying a name brand PC is you can usually get a driver disk that has drivers that will work together. Otherwise you are on a scavenger hunt looking for all the drivers you need and about half the time there will be one that won't play nice with another one. If a component needs software it comes with what you need. Absolutely, that's what ****ed me off about store bought machines. I was always groveling to Dell, or Compaq for information. Every component you buy, has all the information you need to make it work |
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On 2012-07-15, Oren wrote:
Open Office is free (open source) and just as good (better) as MS Office, plus compatible. No cost, ever. You might prefer to go with LibreOffice, as OO needs some plug-ins: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compari..._office_suites nb -- vi --the heart of evil! |
OT Building new computer (DIY)
"Oren" wrote in message ...
Seeking opinions of current parts. CPU Motherboard Hard Drive (SATA) DVD (SATA) Monitor A friend ask me to build him a new system. (no problem) Windows 7 - clean install... If you've built a system in the last year or two or had one built for you I would appreciate your comments. Just the above parts are what I'm interested in. Been awhile since I built mine :-\ My work for him is free -- start to finish. Oren, I have built a few systems for self and friends since '94. Still do upgrades, etc., but now it's less cost (and I have less time now) to just buy a complete basic system at one of the discount houses, swap out parts & sell the extra one on ebay. If I had more time, I would still be building them like you are. So, just for info, the place I hit first around here in Calif is www.frys.com. A few times a year they will have a basic system less monitor for $199. Typically it's a no-name brand, but I have bought a dozen over the years and never had trouble with any of them. Right now I'm using one called Great Value. (I knew it had to be bottom of the line. LOL!!) But ended up buying 3 total and all are still humming away. Only had one USB port go out on one of the, and a $15 USB card fixed that. Check out their specials -- they run full page ads in the paper which is better for me than searching a website. You can view them online also at www.frys.com -- click at the top on "See our ads". Bob |
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On Sun, 15 Jul 2012 09:27:26 -0400, "dadiOH"
wrote: Oren wrote: Seeking opinions of current parts. CPU AMD Phenom II X3 720 2.8GHz, 95 watt. I chose this because most bang for the buck for my purposes; X3 rather than X4 because of much lower power draw & heat. Motherboard ASRock AOD790GX, 140w OK, AM3 OK - $124.99. Chosen because compatible with CPU, decent price. No other reason, has been fine. Hard Drive (SATA) Western Digital Caviar Black WD5001AALS 500GB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s, OEM - $69.99, 5 year warranty. Fast, good cache, fast data transfer, great warranty (paid with MC to double it). Comes in bigger capacity too, didn't need more. Specs are even better now, eg 6.0 Gb/s. http://www.wdc.com/en/products/products.aspx?id=760 DVD (SATA) BURN LG|GH22NS30 22X SATA - OEM $24.99. No particular reason for getting an LG but it has been fine, very happy with it. Price was certainly right :) Thank you. |
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On Sat, 14 Jul 2012 19:50:42 -0400, Bill wrote:
Usage (and budget) will dictate the best choices. Just a simple system. The fellow is not a gamer or video editor and the like. Basic E-mail and Web browsing. |
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On Sun, 15 Jul 2012 09:37:05 -0400, "dadiOH"
wrote: Lots of luck. Thus far, you have a lot of basically useless comments and opinions, very little of what you asked for. Ta Da! :-\ |
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On Sun, 15 Jul 2012 08:49:08 -0700, "Guv Bob"
wrote: Check out their specials -- they run full page ads in the paper which is better for me than searching a website. You can view them online also at www.frys.com -- click at the top on "See our ads". Thanks. I have a paper ad good for 7 days. We will be going to Fry's this morning, so my friend can get an idea of exactly what it would cost to build vs. a box OEM unit. He did mention a laptop so we will check them out. He has very simple needs for his computing. |
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On Sat, 14 Jul 2012 22:29:51 -0400, Ed Pawlowski wrote:
On Sat, 14 Jul 2012 17:38:49 -0700, Oren wrote: We disagree. Bought my bride a "system" for some bucks under or around $400. The system is full of OEM trash-ware, much of the software is useless or not used. I don't need stuff, except the OS. I've not built my own, but we have a guy we use for our computers for work and he has built mine for a number of years now. Yes, the big difference is all the crap that comes with the typical store bought system. Only thing worse is the Gook Squad that fine tunes them to the point they hardly run at all. Yep. I supervised the (contract) building of a LAN network. Then setup 75 PC nodes. Ran that LAN in an acting capacity for two years after the IT manger left. This LAN was on a WAN with ~500 PC nodes. Computers were not the problem as it was always the users sigh. They would swear up and down they turned the monitor on.. Get to their office, flip it on and magic happened. I prefer to build a system that I would want for myself. Simple, fast and without all the crap loaded on them - clean and efficient. |
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On Sat, 14 Jul 2012 23:48:39 -0500, "Atila Iskander"
wrote: Bloatware can be removed Or never installed in the first place -- my preference. |
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On Sun, 15 Jul 2012 09:32:01 -0400, "dadiOH"
wrote: If a component needs software it comes with what you need. If the system is Win 7 compatible the install will find all the drivers on the install disk. They can later be updated at the manufacture's web site when they become available for the device. I haven't had a driver problem for years. |
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"Ed Pawlowski" wrote in message ... On Sat, 14 Jul 2012 23:46:35 -0500, "Atila Iskander" wrote: Tell him to buy himself a laptop At the prices of laptops today, the savings for a desktop are not worth the effort. Plus the laptop provides a built-in backup power supply, aka battery. Laptops have a place, but for home use, I still prefer a big honkin' desktop with a 21 inch or larger monitor, keyboard that can be moved around, etc. When I want portability, my netbook has traveled to much of the US and Europe with me. Or it can sit on my belly when in front of the TV. You are not thinking outside of the box, and are suffering from tunnel vision .. A properly set-up laptop as the equal to your "big honking box" but with a smaller footprint AND a backup battery I also have no problem hooking up 2 monitors, a keyboard and a backup HD to my laptop Just because it's "portable" does NOT mean that it cannot perform in a non-portable role as well I have 2 older laptops acting as server and firewall. Not only are they on a smaller footprint but they also use less power. |
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On 15 Jul 2012 14:51:01 GMT, notbob wrote:
On 2012-07-15, Oren wrote: Open Office is free (open source) and just as good (better) as MS Office, plus compatible. No cost, ever. You might prefer to go with LibreOffice, as OO needs some plug-ins: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compari..._office_suites nb Thanks for that link. The other day I checked for updates for OO and was pointed to "Apache" OO. From the link you gave, it makes sense what happened. OO is now under the Apache Foundation. The predecessor of LibreOffice is OpenOffice. |
OT Building new computer (DIY)
On Sat, 14 Jul 2012 14:53:57 -0700, Oren wrote:
Seeking opinions of current parts. CPU I have been partial to AMDs but haven't built a computer for myself in some years (parts for the last buy are sitting in the closet collecting dust (intended as a media PC). Since laptops became more like desktops, I switched and haven't done much with components since. Motherboard Tyan or Asus were my choices. Hard Drive (SATA) At one time I bought nothing but IBMs. I had zero problems with them, even with the worst of the DeathStars, I had no failures. When IBM got out of the business I went to Seagates but with laptop drives I had a lot of failures, usually at quite inopportune times (traveling). It got so I'd carry a spare in my laptop case. I think this one is a WD, but I'm not sure. It's been fine for three years. DVD (SATA) Whatever's cheap. I would buy a writer. They're cheap. Monitor I've had *very* good luck with a cheap 16x10 (1920x1200) 24" Soyo. I bought it five years ago for $260 and it's been great. I also have an older 21" Dell but I don't use it much. I'd use both if I could get a third monitor working reliably on my laptop. I tried one of the USB display adapters but it wasn't reliable. A friend ask me to build him a new system. (no problem) Windows 7 – clean install... If you've built a system in the last year or two or had one built for you I would appreciate your comments. Nevermind! ;-) I've bought a laptop (wife's) and a netbook in that time, but no desktop stuff. Just the above parts are what I'm interested in. Been awhile since I built mine :-\ My work for him is free -- start to finish. I used to do that for people (used to build several a day at work - investigating compatible parts) but found that they weren't so competent and tended to blame the hardware. It's much easier to let them buy the $400 special at BestBuy. |
OT Building new computer (DIY)
On Sun, 15 Jul 2012 11:33:01 -0500, "Atila Iskander"
wrote: "Ed Pawlowski" wrote in message .. . On Sat, 14 Jul 2012 23:46:35 -0500, "Atila Iskander" wrote: Tell him to buy himself a laptop At the prices of laptops today, the savings for a desktop are not worth the effort. Plus the laptop provides a built-in backup power supply, aka battery. Laptops have a place, but for home use, I still prefer a big honkin' desktop with a 21 inch or larger monitor, keyboard that can be moved around, etc. When I want portability, my netbook has traveled to much of the US and Europe with me. Or it can sit on my belly when in front of the TV. You are not thinking outside of the box, and are suffering from tunnel vision . A properly set-up laptop as the equal to your "big honking box" but with a smaller footprint AND a backup battery I also have no problem hooking up 2 monitors, a keyboard and a backup HD to my laptop How do you hook up two monitors? Even with my docking station (a graphics card doesn't work in it, for some reason) I can only connect one external display. I used a USB adapter (they're *slow* but still useful) but it wasn't reliable enough (worked at first, then nothing, reinstall, worked, nothing...). Battery "backup" doesn't work, either. When the power drops the system reboots or hangs. That may be a dock problem, though. Just because it's "portable" does NOT mean that it cannot perform in a non-portable role as well I have 2 older laptops acting as server and firewall. When I replace mine, they're dead. My wife's screen died last fall and for some reason it doesn't like running without it. I'll have to try again sometime. Not only are they on a smaller footprint but they also use less power. Not as fast, either, but I don't miss that aspect at home. |
OT Building new computer (DIY)
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