| | | | I am looking for a new computer.
I am lost among the bytes amd memory stuff.
Is 350 MB a good amount?
What about 11 what ever of memory?
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| | | | Services Director

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| Whoah, what? 2 gigs of RAM for Vista??-CM
-CM |
| | | | Services Director

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| http://www.microsoft.com/windows/products/windowsvista/editions/systemrequirements.mspx
Not quite sure what you mean, ML, but the requirements seem to be very different from what you're saying...-CM
-CM |
| | | | | I do alot of paper work on the comp, like most. I design crisis response material.
I also play the Reel Deal casino games.
Games like Jewel Quest and Mahjongg
The kid plays Zoo Tycoon gtype game.
I am not into dowm loading music
i do nto do alot of picture stuff either. |
| | | | Services Director

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| I compile programs all the time, and I've never had need of anything more than 512, honestly. Even when I was compiling 4gl languages for the AF, we were working on second hand computers.
I don't think I had more than a gig of RAM for those things, honestly, and my home machine works on 512. But, nope: not a gamer. That's Azreal. -chuckling- His machine would kick the poop outta mine.
The 2gig I suppose is fairly understandable, though since she doesn't game or compile I think 1 gig will be more than enough. It was the 350 megs of disk space that kinda threw me... I mean, she's gonna get a basic of at least 20-40 gigs no matter what she buys.
Was just confused, is all.
PW, I won't say I -disagree- wholly with ML, but I think that for your reasons:
1gig of RAM (you can always cannibalize your old machine and pop in the RAM slots you have now and get a little more oomph)
40 gigs of hard drive space
And yeah, might as well get dual core processor (at least a 1 gigahertz processor, probably closer to 2 these days).
If you're going to seriously go with either HP or Gateway, you'll find most of the new machines meet or exceed these basic requirements anyways. Just stay away from Celeron processors from HP. I have inside sources that say there were some issues with them (better safe than sorry).-CM
-CM |
| | | | | Now it's time to explain the reality of computer purchases.
pollyanna, you're going to want to spend as much money as you possibly can to get the highest performing system you possibly can if you do not plan to upgrade or replace it in the next 1-3 years.
Buying on the cheap for the short term is never a wise investment for a system you plan to keep for the long term.
If you can help it, do NOT get Vista. Vista is garbage. Stick with XP if you can and wait out the next two years until Vista's successor hits the shelves.
I'll give you a rundown of my most current machine.
Xenophage: Intel® Core 2 Extreme X6800 (3.4Ghz, 2 CPU cores) 4GB DDR2 RAM Dual Nvidia 8800GTX 512MB video cards (PCI-E) 2 Terabytes of SATA-2 Hard Drive Storage Creative Xi-Fi audio card Gigabit Ethernet Adapter
It is a monster of a box, designed to run my games at eye bleeding resolutions and speeds as well as do my 3D modeling. Do you need this machine? No. However, I know this machine will last me through the end of next year before I'll have to build a new box entirely from the ground up.
For you, I'd recommend the following specs as MUST HAVES in your purchasing considerations:
Intel Core 2 Duo processor. Anything above 2Ghz is fine. Skip AMD. AMD is sucking hind tit and playing catch-up.
4GB of RAM. From now in to the future, RAM will be everything in system performance. CM is incorrect, however, that you can not just pop your old ram in to the new machine. Especially if that machine is more than a year old. Memory types and speeds have changed rapidly. Buy the RAM, don't count on scavenging from your old box.
500GB of storage (Hard Drive). You may not download music or play a lot of games but applications are only getting bigger, not smaller. Those pictures of Fluffy, the kids, the grandkids and whatnot? All take up space and it adds up fast.
Nvidia 7000 series video card or an ATI X1800 video card or better. Again, not just for playing games but simply for longevity. If you are forced in to Vista, you'll want a graphics card that can do it justice. Do NOT listen to any salesperson who says that the onboard graphics card is good enough. They're full of shit. No matter what they tell you, they're full of shit.
Everything else, really, is gravy. Onboard sound and NIC (network card, where you plug your broadband connection in to) is fine.
You can not simply say "bytes of this" or "11 whatever of memory". You're going to have to spend the time to become knowledgeable about your purchase, otherwise you might as well set your money on fire. You don't walk in to a car dealer and say "Yanno, gimme one of those thingamajigs. Three tires or whatever and I guess some windows too."
--------------- Trust me, most of the names I have been called you can't translate in any language. They're not even real words so much as they're a succesion of violent images.This message was edited by Christopher on 2-26-07 @ 10:30 AM
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| | | | | Thanks Guys.
I am so computer challenged. i want to push the button and have the machine obey..period. (l)
i really like XP so I will probably stay with it. |
| | | | Services Director

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| Her old ram is compatible with the newer stuff, Chris. I talked to her.-CM
-CM |
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