I Need a Desktop!! Help!

animestrinity

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Submitted by animestrinity on July 26, 2008 - 3:55pm.

Okay... well... let's first start with the story...

I had a desktop... HP pavillion... kind of old... most of its parts had been replaced (dvd rom into a dvd rw... graphics card... harddrive... etc)... needless to say, my desktop was kinda sick..... but we kept making her better...

Then... it died... the motherboard was bad...

got replacement motherboard... initiated a transplant... only to find out the new organ was bad as well... so she stayed dead....

Broke up with the boyfriend who had taken it to his friends house because he was too lazy to help me himself....

computer went bye bye forever because ex was too lazy to go get it back...

So... it's been forever since I've had my own desktop... I think the last time I saw it, was around February.. *cries* all my pictures, music, movies, anime... gone......................................

I grieved... I wallowed... I've gotten over it.......

I need a new one.... soon.

But I dunno where to start to be honest... I was gonna build it myself... but...... I don't feel like dealing with problems... I'm not particularly good with hardware anyway, so I'm sure I'd break something... there are so many computers out there.......... so I thought I'd try and get some ideas instead of wasting unnecissary time...

Here's what I'm looking for:

I don't want Vista if I don't have to... but I'm willing to suffer if it gets me the following
I want at LEAST 2 gigs of RAM, although I'd be happier with 3 or 4
I kinda want a quad core.... only... because it's shiny and new... and because I can tell people I have one...
I want a good size hard drive... I'm thinking around 500 gigs.......
I play games (nothing super gamer like...yet), watch movies, download music/movies/anime etc, upload pictures...
I like to edit movies, music, and pictures
Internet of course!
I use it for schoolwork including online classes so it has to be dependable...
I would like to be able to burn cds and dvds...
I'm very visual so I would like this computer to look nice... either really sleek, or maybe kinda flashy (or easy to customize)... just not a clunker

So basically it needs to be fast, not get bogged down easily, and handle lots of shtuff at once...........

I don't really even know what brands to start with... I don't like Dells on a personal level... I don't feel like blowing cash on a Mac when I could spend the same amount for a robot that makes ramen...

So... should I build my own.... or has anyone come across something like this already?? Any advice or opinions are welcome........

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Re: I Need a Desktop!! Help!

August 7, 2008 - 3:22am

Hey, Animestrinity, glad you decided on your own build!

If you're a serious gamer with titles like Crysis, then go for the latest & greatest vid card you can get your hands on. If you don't game much, you can get by with a middle of the road 8 or 9 series NVIDIA. That way you can put your money into other parts.

As for the CPU, I say go for speed over cores (just my opinion). The Core 2 is best right now (I used to be an AMD guy) and the C2D is the fastest budget processor out there (the E8500 soon to be the E8600). There's an ongoing debate with dual cores v. quad cores, but unless your a serious multitasker, gamer, or a hardcore video editor, a quad core would be a waste. Most current apps don't even utilize two cores, let alone four.

The girlfriend basically only uses her computer for word porcessing and web surfing. Here are the specs of the system I built for her last month:

CPU- Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 $189.00 (Overclocked @ 3.8 GHZ. Apps open lightning fast!)

Cpu Cooler/Heatsink- Zalman CNPS9700 ($51.49 ebay new. Keeps E8400 @ a cool 34C.)

Motherboard- GIGABYTE GA-EP35C-DS3R LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX $139.99 (Able to upgrade to DDR3 once the price drops!) ($25 Mail-in rebate)

Memory- Crucial Ballistix Tracer 2 GB (2 x 1 GB) 240-Pin DDR2 800 $50.99 ($15 rebate)

Case- Antec Three Hundred Black ATX Mid Tower $69.99

Case Fans- Antec TriCool 120mm Blue $14.99 (A couple of these bad boys to make it pretty & keep everything cool!)

Operating Stystem- Vista Home Premium Upgrade ($55.00 new on eBay. Google "Vista upgrade to custom" to save some serious cash!)

Hard Drive- Western Digital Caviar SE16 640GB $89.99 (Fastest single 7200 RPM drive I've found!)

Video Card- MSI NX8600GT Twin Turbo GeForce 8600 $79.99 ($25 Rebate)

CD/DVD Drive- Samsung 22X DVD Burner w/LightScribe black SATA $31.99

Power Supply- Antec Eartwatts EA500 500W $49.99

Sound Card- Creative Sound Blaster Audigy SE ($2.93 eBay new)

Card Reader- Koutech IO-RCM620 $16.99

USB Ports- 5 Port USB 2.0 Add-in High Speed PCI Card Hub ($7.99 Ebay New)

Monitor- Samsung 22" LCD $269

Speakers- Altec Lansing VS4121 (49.99 eBay new. Awesome sound from such inexpensive speakers!)

All parts ordered through Newegg unless stated. It'a a pretty cheap, but speedy rig. All Components score a 5.9 in Vista except 'gaming graphics' has a 5.6... and she'll never game anyway!

Keep us posted! Ask if any questions, and once again, feel free to PM. I always enjoy a new build.

Ashton

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Re: I Need a Desktop!! Help!

August 15, 2008 - 10:44am

Hey Anime.

I'm not sure if you ever followed up on this, but I just bought a new laptop yesterday with the AMD 780G chipset and guess what?

It totally *<~~expletive~~>ing* ROCKS!!!

And guess what else?

It's a <~~expletive~~>ing HP!!!!

First HP (or Compaq) I've ever owned in my life and it is slick Eye-wink

Anyway, Best (Worst) Buy has it on sale for $699 and for a budget gaming laptop, I'm really impressed with the hardware. HDMI, e-SATA, no problems playing Battlefield 2 and 2142, the list goes on.

$756 out the door with taxes (Arizona), and the sale probably ends this weekend. I'll insure it with safeware.com which is most likely less than Best Buy's total protection plan.

Total Policy Cost:

$57.00

That is for one year for the amount of $756 on that laptop with my zip code. Best Buy wants a 2 year for $229 or close to that amount. Here is the link to the laptop.

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=8907944&type=product&id=1213046785626

Also, there are "issues" with the Nvidia GPU chipset for laptops but not much information as to what series are affected (8400M and 8600M?). So staying with ATI graphics is probably smart, which this laptop has.

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/07/03/nvidia_forecast_glitch/

Hope it helps. Give us an update!

smartmom

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Re: I Need a Desktop!! Help!

August 15, 2008 - 11:33am

Ashton wrote:

Hey Anime.

I'm not sure if you ever followed up on this, but I just bought a new laptop yesterday with the AMD 780G chipset and guess what?

It totally *<~~expletive~~>ing* ROCKS!!!

And guess what else?

It's a <~~expletive~~>ing HP!!!!

First HP (or Compaq) I've ever owned in my life and it is slick Eye-wink

Your right Ashton HP does make some rocking laptops and pc's. I bought a new laptop (I need it for travel and work) a couple of months ago and I <expletive> love my HP too (but I have always known that HP rocks)! I got this one

Ashton

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Re: I Need a Desktop!! Help!

August 16, 2008 - 11:46am

That is a decent looking laptop for a decent price there Smartmom.

We are very similar in specs. You have me whopped in the 17 inch monitor catagory and extra memory. I have you whopped in expandable to 8 GB memory and ability to handle HD content....and...price;-)

As I've stated in posts in the past, it is not so much vendor packaging that needs to be focused on, it's the benchmarks for critical components. That is where this issue begins to become more of a AMD vs. Intel and respective Nvidia vs. ATI.

I strive to be neutral. I've ordered both components for my customers based on their needs and price. My "tongue and cheek" comments toward particular vendors comes because the deeper levels may not be considered when dealing with blind fanaticism toward a particular product...or "fanboy-ism".

Trust me, I could spend the weekend writing blogs cutting down each and every vendor availiable. It's easy to do because basically, they all screw up.

I'll keep an eye on that Nvidia chipset you have. You may want to register your computer. The issue was that the die process that a factory was using for Nvidia chips was too weak under heavy GPU load and breaking. If you notice your laptop's fan coming on and staying on immediately after start-up, then you may have a patch installed. Nvidia is not saying what laptop models were affected due to "vendor" concerns. I'll try to update through this post.

<edit ="hello"> Eye-wink

smartmom

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Re: I Need a Desktop!! Help! (Ashton)

August 16, 2008 - 1:17pm

Hey Ashton!

Yeah you beat me on price and on expandable memory but I wasnt to worried since this is my back up (I use my main PC more and that one rocks - or will once its finish). Plus for me I wanted the larger screen and at 4gb of memory I think I'm good for now. You know me last min add ons to the pc and all but I should have it in a week or so and I'll post on it and how custom builds rock.

As for my HP I do love it. At work I have a HP too and its a off the shelf one. If fact I dont have one but 15 of them.

OK you had me laughing at the "Fanboy" and I was so close in saying that in the last post - LOL. Yeah you will see your HP laptop rocks and you will be a "Fanboy" although you might not admit it Eye-wink

animestrinity

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Re: I Need a Desktop!! Help! (video card)

July 28, 2008 - 1:55pm

Okay... so... I know this isn't where people usually start....... but this is something I can honestly say I haven't the slightest idea about....

What should I look for in a graphics card? I don't know where to start.... I don't know the difference between any of them... I don't know how any of the mumbo jumbo specs tie into what they do........

I think I'll just add onto this thread as I go along with questions...

Vash the Stampede

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Re: I Need a Desktop!! Help! (video card)

July 28, 2008 - 4:57pm

hi anime,

stevie posted this to me about the vid card ect. it was really helpful. hope it helps.

To try to fix this yourself, you are going to have to open the case. Don't worry. Get in there and look around.. pretend you are taking home a date and you are in the backseat in front of her parent's house..

Turn off your computer, keep everything plugged in, and open the case. The video card is stuck in a slot in the motherboard. You'll know which one is your video card because your monitor's VGA cable is attached to it.

Grab the card firmly with both hands using safe areas where you aren't going to damage transistors or capacitors. Pull it slightly out of its slot - one end first, then the other. Then push it back in.

Unless you have what's called "on board video" where your monitor attaches to a port that is connected to your motherboard at the "input-output connector area" then you can disregard all the card-pulling and reseating instructions.

If your computer locks up soon after startup, this is sometimes caused by overheating. Sometimes an overheated CPU will cause an auto shutdown but not always - it will lock up. So while we have your case open, start the thing up and make sure your CPU chipset fan is running (see "chipset" above).

If the fan is running OK, get some a can of compressed air designed for blowing dust from electronics. If possible, don't get the kind that says "bittering agent" added on the can. You'll not like the way it smells. A goat's a**hole has to taste better than that stuff.

So with the computer shut off, blow out all the dust with the compressed air. Be sure and get the CPU chipset fan and heatsink below it thoroughly - those slots fill with dust and will cause CPU overheating. Might as well blow out the powersupply and try to clean the whole inside of the case as best you can.

That's all I know to try at this point mechanically. If you are able to cruise around in safemode w/networking with no problem, then it is probably a driver issue.

Ashton

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Re: I Need a Desktop!! Help! (video card)

July 28, 2008 - 2:51pm

Sorry it isn't linked to the items for those that want to do further research.

The video card is onboard and is part of the AMD 780G chipset. Here's a link. ATI Radeon™ HD 3200 Graphics.

http://www.amd.com/us-en/0,,3715_15532,00.html

Here's a cut and paste of the shopping cart. For those interested in futher research - paste the item number into newegg.com

Qty. Product Description Savings Total Price
1 Kingston 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model KVR800D2N6K2/4G

Kingston 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory
Item #:N82E16820134641
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy
Add item to Cart Add this item to your cart

$75.99
1 SAPPHIRE PI-AM2RS780G AM2+/AM2 AMD 780G Micro ATX AMD Motherboard

SAPPHIRE PI-AM2RS780G Micro ATX AMD Motherboard
Item #:N82E16813154016
Return Policy: Limited 30-Day Return Policy
Add item to Cart Add this item to your cart

$79.99
1 RAIDMAX O² ATX-302KP Pink Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case 420W Power Supply

RAIDMAX O² ATX-302KP Pink Computer Case
Item #:N82E16811156187
Return Policy: Limited 30-Day Return Policy
Add item to Cart Add this item to your cart

    -$8.00 Instant
    $52.99
$44.99
1    Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST3500630AS 500GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive

Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 500GB 3.5" SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive
Item #:N82E16822148136
Return Policy: Limited 30-Day Return Policy
Add item to Cart Add this item to your cart

$79.99
1 LG 20X DVD±R DVD Burner w/ SecurDisc Tech Black SATA Model GH20NS15

LG 20X DVD±R DVD Burner w/ SecurDisc Tech Black SATA Model GH20NS15
Item #:N82E16827136149
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy
Add item to Cart Add this item to your cart

$24.99
1 Microsoft Windows XP Professional SP3 English for System Builders 1 Pack CD

Microsoft Windows XP Professional SP3 English for System Builders 1 Pack CD
Item #:N82E16832116515
Return Policy: Software Return Policy
Add item to Cart Add this item to your cart

$139.99
1 AMD Gift - 2GB USB Memory WristbandAMD Phenom 9550 Agena 2.2GHz Socket AM2+ 95W Quad-Core Processor Model HD9550WCGHBOX

    * AMD Gift - 2GB USB Memory Wristband
      Item #: N82E16800995050
      Return Policy: Standard Return Policy
      Add combo to Cart Add this combo to your cart

    * AMD Phenom 9550 2.2GHz Socket AM2+ 95W 65nm Quad-Core Processor
      Item #: N82E16819103251
      Return Policy: Processors (CPUs) Return Policy

    -$35.99 Combo
    $210.99
$175.00
Grand Total:    $620.94

The Grand total is the bottom line here Eye-wink

technobuff

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Re: I Need a Desktop!! Help!

July 28, 2008 - 1:25pm

Some of the manufacturers are beginning to offer XP pro machines with the latest hardware - much to Microsoft's dislike. Here is one you might like:

Dell offers a quad core desktop with XP Pro installed and Vista in the box configured like this:

System - XPS 630 Price as configured - $1499

SYSTEM COLOR - Black Bezel Chassis

PROCESSOR - Intel® Core™2 Q6600 Quad-Core (8MB L2 cache,2.40GHz,1066FSB)

OPERATING SYSTEM - Windows XP Professional installed - Genuine Windows Vista® Ultimate Bonus in the box if you prefer to install it over XP

MEMORY - 4GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 667MHz - 4 DIMMs

HARD DRIVE - 750GB - 7200RPM, SATA 3.0Gb/s, 16MB Cache

OPTICAL DRIVE - Single Drive: 16X CD/DVD burner (DVD+/-RW) w/double layer write capability

MONITORS - No Monitor

VIDEO CARD - nVidia GeForce 8800 GT 512MB

SOUND CARD - Integrated 7.1 Channel Audio

SPEAKERS - Dell A525 30 Watt 2.1 Stereo Speakers with Subwoofer

KEYBOARD - Dell USB Keyboard

MOUSE - Dell Optical USB Mouse

Here's the link to the XPS build page..just go through the options and configure it as you please...hope this helps.

http://configure.us.dell.com/dellstore/config.aspx?oc=dxdwct4&c=

us&l=en&s=dhs&cs=19&kc=features~winxp_inspndt

animestrinity

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Re: I Need a Desktop!! Help!

July 28, 2008 - 1:50pm

Dell and I don't get along....... they aren't bad.... just... not for me...... for some reason everytime I use one, it sucks... not so much in performance, just... in physical aspects... they get really hot... make strange noises... I kinda have to guess what it's going to do..... other people don't seem to have these problems... so maybe it's just me.....

Which sucks since I have a Dell laptop.... granted I wasn't the one to paid for it ($2500... but chosen by the scholarship that bought it *sigh*.... and it's not nearly worth that, it's ridiculous) but........ my other laptop was given away (not by me I might add)......

But I do have a copy of XP.... somewhere........ so I guess when I build it, I can put whatever on it.....

*sigh*

Maybe I'll just go with Vista... I mean, I don't use my desktop uber often, so maybe it'd be good to have a copy of Vista to play around with so I can be familiar with it........

But I appreciate the info.... thank you............ All info is valuable to me at this point

ArchiAngel

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Re: I Need a Desktop!! Help!

July 28, 2008 - 4:43pm

**Dell and I don't get along....... they aren't bad.... just... not for me...... for some reason everytime I use one, it sucks... not so much in performance, just... in physical aspects... they get really hot... make strange noises... I kinda have to guess what it's going to do..... other people don't seem to have these problems... so maybe it's just me..... **

Maybe.

It's probably the same reason why the vaccum cleaner acts up when the girls at work try to use it but not for me, same true for the Credit card machine and register for certain girls but when I verbally Coax it and call it "baby" it starts working again, and why "Helga" (One of our Ice Machines) was keep on dropping jagged Ice on Crystal's arm everytime she stick her arm in there,but never dropped jagged Ice on my arm and gave me fair warning with a few clicks and a hum before "she" dropped regular ice.....Machines are "girls" and sometimes they don't get along with other girls...lol(Never wondered why most people refer to Machines as She or Her?)

So, yeah, if all Dells tend to get "bitchy" on you then you might want to try another brand....lol

There is a joke attached to why Machines are also refered to as "She" that I am going to say then dive behind the couch.....

Machines are refered to "she" and "her" because just like women,machines tend to get "testier" the older they get (Dives behind couch)

animestrinity

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Re: I Need a Desktop!! Help!

July 28, 2008 - 12:14pm

Okay........ I've come to a decision........ I'm gonna build one myself......

I'm up for the challenge...

I just need to figure out where to start..... guess I should figure out exactly what I want in it.........................

smartmom

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Re: I Need a Desktop!! Help!

July 27, 2008 - 4:12pm

Anime I know I already told you I'm in the process of a custom build. SImply put I could not find off the shelf what I wanted and well I saved a ton of money doing a custom and I got more for my money. I ordered 99.9% of my parts from Newegg.com here is what I'm getting (My invoice) so you can see and compair price wise to what is out there. Not to menition its going to have the cool factor to it too (gotta do it). Now for about $150.00 I could have upgraded the video card to make it a bad a$$ gaming rig but I'm not a gamer. I'm more heavy into the graphics end and I also have alot for my office work (programs) on my pc so I need alot of room. All the parts are hyperlinked:

1 x ($109.99) MS WIN VISTA HM PREM SP1 64BIT 1PK% - OEM

$109.99

2 x ($24.99) DVD BURN SAMSUNG|SH-S223F 22X BK % - OEM

$49.98

2 x ($109.99) HD 750G|HITC 7K 32M SATA2 0A35154 % - OEM

$219.98

1 x ($11.99) FAN COOLER MASTER|ICT-D925R-GP RTL - Retail

$11.99

2 x ($3.69) CASE MOD|COLD CATHODE KIT CLK12BL - Retail

$7.38

1 x ($119.99) CASE LL|PC-65B BLK ALUMINUM RT - Retail

$119.99

4 x ($3.99) FAN CASE CM|TLF-S82-EB RT - Retail

$15.96

4 x ($3.99) SATA CABLE OKGEAR|GC24AUBM12 R - Retail

$15.96

1 x ($129.99) MB DFI LANPARTY DK P35-T2RS 775 RT - Retail

$129.99

1 x ($19.99) TV TUNER KWORLD|PVR-TV 7134SE RT - Retail

$19.99

1 x ($14.49) CARD RD ROSEWILL|RCR-103 RTL - Retail

$14.49

1 x ($14.99) FLASH 4G|OCZ FLDRV OCZUSBR2DC-4GB R - Retail

$14.99

1 x ($39.99) GIFT INTEL|World In Conflict % - OEM

$39.99

1 x ($9.99) GIFT INTEL|World In Conflict Tv - OEM

$9.99

1 x ($89.99) VGA XFX PVT84JUDD3 8600GT 256MB R - Retail

$89.99

1 x ($94.99) PSU TT|W0134RU 550W RT - Retail

$94.99

1 x ($269.99) CPU INTEL|C2Q Q9300 2.5G 775 6M R - Retail

$269.99

1 x ($193.99) MEM 2Gx4|OCZ OCZ2G8008GQ R - Retail

$193.99

1 x ($-14.99) DISCOUNT FOR COMBO #113306

$-14.99

1 x ($-40.00) DISCOUNT FOR COMBO #114475

$-40.00

1 x ($-39.99) DISCOUNT FOR COMBO #114928 GIFT

$-39.99

1 x ($-9.99) DISCOUNT FOR COMBO #114928 GIFT

$-9.99

Payment Term:

Mastercard

Extended Warranty:

Subtotal:

$1324.66

Tax:

$0.00

Shipping and Handling:

$65.09

Total Amount:

$1389.75

Beachcamp

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Re: I Need a Desktop!! Help!

July 28, 2008 - 9:11am

Just wondering about the TV Tuner card. Isn't that an analog card? You would need to have a converter after February 2009.

smartmom

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Re: I Need a Desktop!! Help!

July 28, 2008 - 11:37am

Beachcamp wrote:

Just wondering about the TV Tuner card. Isn't that an analog card? You would need to have a converter after February 2009.

yeah it is but I use comcast cable (not planning on changing that one) and well once the change is made I don't need to worry - they take care of it on there end and no converter box is needed. However yes if you live in a area that doesn't convert it then yep you need consider that. Good catch!

Beachcamp

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Re: I Need a Desktop!! Help!

July 28, 2008 - 12:15pm

Yeah, I have satellite and don't need a converter, but I love HD OTA. The picture is great. Cable provider here is the worst, and satellite compresses signals so I watch any network programs off the old antenna. I do like to record some HD on my computer sometimes for screen caps and things so I like having the digital tuner.

Ashton

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Re: I Need a Desktop!! Help!

July 28, 2008 - 1:38pm

Anime.

We sent a newegg shopping cart to your grownupgeek address.

When I have a bit more time I'll post up all the part links for others to put the views in and judgement.

Here's a preview of the case Eye-wink

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811156187

And the tigedirect link really isn't bad - but for a $120 more, we sent you a quad core model with a more robust motherboard and memory.

smartmom

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Re: I Need a Desktop!! Help!

July 28, 2008 - 3:02pm

That case is steel - which could be a heat issue. You should look at aluminum and if you really want it pink you can custom do it yourself with some spray paint or take it to a auto body shop and have them spray it (some how I think hot looking blonds can get a great deal).

Ashton

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Re: I Need a Desktop!! Help!

July 28, 2008 - 3:59pm

The steel case is a problem if you are concerned about weight and are going to be lugging it around to LAN parties and such.

120ml fan should solve any heating issues. I have a steel case as my workstation and it seems to be fine. You could always add more fans if that is an issue. Keep in mind the "pink" case was stretch in the first place Eye-wink

I also liked the steel case due to the fact that an aluminum case I worked on recently was slightly bent due to shipping, and made it just a bit difficult in screwing in the motherboard.

But there were lots and lots of budget cases - we can always find another one.

>>>(some how I think hot looking blonds can get a great deal)

Oh, I'm sure hot looking "moms" can get a great deal - they just need but to ask... Eye-wink

Hot2na

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Re: I Need a Desktop!! Help!

July 28, 2008 - 4:17pm

Ashton wrote:

Oh, I'm sure hot looking "moms" can get a great deal - they just need but to ask...;-)

Ashton love, you are too sweet! but i'm a mac girl

. and you know how that goes: once you try mac you never go back....

Tuna ><((((*> the other white meat!

Ashton

GuGee Since: 20-Nov-2006
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Location: Deserts of Arizona

I am: Voting for Obama

Re: I Need a Desktop!! Help!

July 28, 2008 - 10:59am

Hey Anime.

Really good deals tend to pop up on a moments notice and typically happen as school as about to start. I gave a quick look around but didn't really see anything that overwhelmed me.

A few items to consider. Do you get reduced student rates on software, like the XP Pro OS? I know you can get reduced student rates through the Apple store.

Realistically what is your budget? The Quad Core could be a bit pricey, depending on model. AMD is releasing their Puma processor, and the specs look decent for that - particularly in regards to gaming laptops (of interest to me).

Here are the specs on Hubby's Mac Mini.

http://www.apple.com/macmini/specs.html

I don't think the Intel video card will support what you want in games and video editing. I would encourage you to stay away from Intel video cards - period. He's right though, as far as school goes, it would fulfill your needs.

Here is something to consider, though I'm sure that we can do better as the school year rolls around.

http://www.tigerdirect.com/email/wem1663.asp?cm_re=Homepage-_-Spot%2016-_-Email_wem1663

You will need the XP Pro system and pretty much everything offered to the right side. That takes the listed price to about $500. Still the link would give you an idea on how to spec a computer build by shopping around - like newegg.com. If nothing else, that link is a "decent" build.

Also keep your eye on the "daily deal" sites.

woot.com

sellout.woot.com

dansdeals.com

And this post - I'll throw stuff up as I see it.

animestrinity

GuGee Since: 21-Oct-2006
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Location: On my own planet... keep off... no visitors.

I am: a Ramen Noodle!

Re: I Need a Desktop!! Help!

July 28, 2008 - 11:29am

How awesome are you?! Everytime I start going through my own version of a computer crisis, you pop up....... I want to get you a leotard and a theme song... possibly a cape... after I see what you look like in the leotard Eye-wink lol... I wonder if they make pocket protectors for leotards..........

Anyway... I've been thinking about the waiting for back-to-school stuff... not that I really have the choice... as far as funds go, they're unavailable at the moment lol

On that note, my budget... I'm only hoping to spend around 5-600 if I can get away with it... with an extra month, I could spend around a grand or so....... but since I don't spend my primary computer time on a desktop, I would kinda feel that to be a waste... I do know I would like a relatively large hard drive (500 gigs or so) on the desktop because I like to back up my media from my laptop on it...

ArchiAngel

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Location: Pahoa,HI

Re: I Need a Desktop!! Help!

July 28, 2008 - 5:34pm

animestrinity wrote:

On that note, my budget... I'm only hoping to spend around 5-600 if I can get away with it... with an extra month, I could spend around a grand or so....

2 gigs mem dual core, multi-media/Gaming machine with 500 gigs Hard drive, dual layer burner for $500 to $600?

Um, just the Graphics card, a Very good to excellent gaming quality one would be about that much...lol

Have you tried typing in those specs on Ebay?

The Dell I am on cost $129 (highest bid) though I had to pay $219 for shipping to Hawaii and I bid on it because it had a $459 graphics card, a $179 Zip Drive, and it's memory and CPU speed met my games needs

Do need to note that the Computer arrived DOA and it took a while to find out that Shipping had jarred the CPU out of the socket a tad and after it was reset she started up fine

I also rescue "Orphans" from the dumps and suggest you might want to check the Recycle/reuse center in your areas or the classiieds for computers meeting your specs if not availible free/cheap for your coveted parts.

I have a abandoned Windows 95 computer that I got running with it's "whopping" 1.2ghz processor and "whopping" 250 Megabyte drive...it's cute.

Old enough to remember when 256K memory was considered Huge in my computer programing days and I typed my college reports on a Apple II with a "Whopping" 64k in the computer Lab (And 5 1/4 and 8 Inch floppy disks)

animestrinity

GuGee Since: 21-Oct-2006
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Location: On my own planet... keep off... no visitors.

I am: a Ramen Noodle!

Re: I Need a Desktop!! Help!

July 28, 2008 - 6:00pm

Dear...... I'm not a gamer.... I don't need some crazy high end graphics card... As a matter of fact, on the computers I've seen with the uber expensive graphics card, I cant see much difference.... so on a desktop that I don't use that often, I'm not going to spend that much on a *slightly* better graphics card.... as far

I'm primarily a laptop user.... so if I were going to spend a lot of money on a computer, it'd be on a laptop... not a desktop.......

I just... I dunno... a desktop to me is more of a... I can't think of a word..... like a center point.... I like to keep everything on it that I'll have on my laptop so that everything is always there if I want it (if I chose to take it off the laptop)

la la laaaa.... I dunno... I just want my 'rock' desktop... something dependable... that I can do a little editing with, that can keep up with me and not piss me off on hangups or being bogged down... etc...

animestrinity

GuGee Since: 21-Oct-2006
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Last Seen: 08/21/2008 - 1:24pm
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I am: a Ramen Noodle!

Re: I Need a Desktop!! Help!

July 28, 2008 - 11:34am

Wow... now that I've said that I feel maybe I should get a relatively basic desktop, and just invest in a new laptop..................

Agh.... more confused-ness!!!

smartmom

GuGee Since: 22-Oct-2006
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Re: I Need a Desktop!! Help!

July 28, 2008 - 6:04pm

animestrinity wrote:

Wow... now that I've said that I feel maybe I should get a relatively basic desktop, and just invest in a new laptop..................

Agh.... more confused-ness!!!

Well I got this exact one a couple of months ago and I LOVE it! I'm on it right now on vacation. Plus hey bonus its on sale too!

HP Pavilion dv9920us 17" Widescreen Notebook Computer

17"-diagonal widescreen WXGA+ (1440 x 900) BrightView LCD screen
AMD Turion 64 X2 Dual-Core Mobile Technology TL-60 operating at 2.0GHz
1MB (512KB+512KB) L2 cache
Up to 1600MHz frontside bus
4GB of DDR2 SDRAM memory (the maximum configuration, on 2 DIMMs)
250GB 5400-rpm Serial ATA (SATA) hard drive
LightScribe SuperMulti DVD drive with Double Layer support (reads/writes DVD±R/RW, DVD-RAM, DVD+R Double Layer, CD-R/RW)
ExpressCard/54 slot: also supports ExpressCard/34
802.11a/b/g/Draft-N wireless LAN
10/100Base-T Ethernet network interface (RJ-45 connector)
56K V.90 modem
4 USB 2.0 ports
1 FireWire (IEEE 1394) port
1 S-video out port
1 notebook expansion port 3
Built-in HP webcam with integrated microphone
5-in-1 memory card reader: reads SD, MMC, Memory Stick, Memory Stick Pro and xD-Picture Card
nVidia GeForce Go 7150M graphics with up to 1071MB shared memory
Altec Lansing audio with stereo speakers
2 headphone output jacks and 1 microphone input jack
HP mobile remote control
Stereo earbud headphones (1 pair)
8-cell lithium-ion battery; 65W AC adapter
Dimensions: 1.65"H x 15.16"W x 11.22"D
Weight: 7.7 lb

Microsoft® Windows Vista® Home Premium 64-bit with Service Pack 1 provides support for extra-large memory, and high performance for demanding applications.

Ashton

GuGee Since: 20-Nov-2006
GuG-Points: 1073
Last Seen: 08/21/2008 - 11:36am
Location: Deserts of Arizona

I am: Voting for Obama

Re: I Need a Desktop!! Help!

July 29, 2008 - 6:40pm

Though the deal we sent you was better, you may want to play with these coupon codes and customizing the machine to be just a touch over the minimum. At least these are built. The savings are roughly around $200 dollars for desktops. Yes, it's a Dell.

Stay away from those Intel video cards in the customization!

All coupons expire 07/31 or sooner based on redemption limits.

-25% off $999+ Inspiron Laptops: 6XC27Q5BKS0FVG
-30% off $1299+ Inspiron Laptops: 5S3PC1$FTDJ$BV

-20% off $999+ Inspiron Desktops: 73C?STD7QFCXVH

<edit>Oh yeah. If you spend the extra money and opt for Vista Business or Ultimate, you then can downgrade to Windows XP. Go figure. If you do the Dell option, I would call the sales person before submitting your cart for payment and tell them that you want XP.

<yet another edit> Whoops, I pulled a no no and realized that if you click the link, then someone else was getting paid per click. Gotta be careful what HTML code I paste in. The links directly lead to Dell now. Sorry.

animestrinity

GuGee Since: 21-Oct-2006
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Location: On my own planet... keep off... no visitors.

I am: a Ramen Noodle!

Re: I Need a Desktop!! Help!

July 27, 2008 - 4:49pm

Thanks dear!

*sigh*

I really want to build a computer.... I just... kinda wanna go to a place like Build-A-Bear though and build it in an assembly line fashion... I think it's my lack of patience of waiting for things to be delivered, and doing the research on exactly what I want... etc......

That and I've seen people order things and receive them DOA...

I guess I should think about this a little more... and in the meantime do some research while I'm floating around on the internet anyway...

smartmom

GuGee Since: 22-Oct-2006
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Last Seen: 08/21/2008 - 12:16pm
Location: Lost in Cyberspace.....

I am: Not really paying attention

Re: I Need a Desktop!! Help!

July 27, 2008 - 6:15pm

OH I agree - as much as it would be fun I'm not building this one. It's being built for me. When I get back home it should be there waiting for me done I just do the clicking and buying. I just wanted you to see what you can get for your money. I did price this out online, ordering one to my specs but it was way more. I was looking way over 2k for the same thing only 1 dvd burner, 6gb ram and 2 500gb HD's. I do alot of graphics and with my work programs I need the space and more to grow into.

GuGee Since: 16-Dec-2006
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Last Seen: 08/21/2008 - 4:24am
Location: Mississippi River, Northern Illinois

I am: Lazy

Re: I Need a Desktop!! Help!

July 27, 2008 - 2:10am

Building your own is the only way to go! You get exactly what you want/need, plus you have the satisfaction of knowing... it's yours. I've built numerous systems the past couple of years (my own, gf, friends, fam, coworkers...) and would never buy a prebuilt again. It's super-easy if you're willing to learn! PM me if interested or need some hardware specs.

snooperz

GuGee Since: 25-Jul-2008
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I am: Working my program

Re: I Need a Desktop!! Help!

July 27, 2008 - 12:43am

Single/Dual/Quad Core, What's it all about. Here'a a bit of an article from wiki which will explain the advantage of a multi core processor.

The amount of performance gained by the use of a multicore processor depends on the problem being solved and the algorithms used, as well as their implementation in software (Amdahl's law). For so-called "embarrassingly parallel" problems, a dual-core processor with two cores at 2GHz may perform very nearly as fast as a single core of 4GHz.[1] Other problems though may not yield so much speedup. This all assumes however that the software has been designed to take advantage of available parallelism. If it hasn't, there will not be any speedup at all. However, the processor will multitask better since it can run two programs at once, one on each core.

So if the software you are using takes advantage of the multi pipeline and/or you are running multi tasks such as encoding/ripping/and doing photoshop, Heaven forbid, the multi cores will perform much better.

Stevie

GuGee Since: 03-Dec-2006
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Location: Horse Country, Kantuckee

I am: Master of my own domain

Re: I Need a Desktop!! Help!

July 26, 2008 - 7:50pm

My next one will be a no-brand just like the one I have now. I'll either build it myself or order it from a private builder (cheap) ready made with my choice of parts and no OS. I already have XP Pro and XP x64 (you probably do too).

Don't let the possibility of XP's obsolescence cause you to pay more for a new system with Vista. There are tooooo many businesses that use XP on their networks and countless large corporations have currently frozen IT upgrades.

XP will be around for quite a while. I'm holding out for Windows 7 and Server 7.

For peripherals like monitors and wireless keyboards, sign up to be on the SPAM list at eCost and Buy.com for notifications on great deals - new and recertified. I do business with both places.

Beachcamp

GuGee Since: 24-Nov-2007
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I am: Not Telling

Re: I Need a Desktop!! Help!

July 26, 2008 - 6:27pm

I didn't think I would like Vista when I got my new computer, but I actually like it much better than XP. Check out the story at this link.

http://news.cnet.com/8301-13860_3-9999971-56.html?tag=bl

smartmom

I Need a Desktop!! Help!

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HP Pavilion dv9920us 17" Widescreen Notebook Computer