help! suggestions for new computer >>>

MadJack

MadJack

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i give up on this POS i'm typing on now. it's been a good machine but it's 4 years old, only 128ram and P2, win98, etc. you get the point.

my biz, like you all know, is on the internet. i use software for updating the sites, quicken for my books and i d/l a lot of tunes (plan to anyway). that's about it.

i know i can find a decent machine for $500-$700 but i want something that's gonna carry me over for another 4-5 years without upgrades and whatnot.

don't mind spending $2500-$3000

what's my best bet.

thanks in advance.
 
Snafu

Snafu

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just updated mine:

P4 2.66
ASUS P4S8X-X with integrated 6-channel sound card and LAN
one 512 memory stick
maxtor 80Gb hard disk
Hercules 9600PRO 128Mb video card
300w power supply

total less than $700

from old machine i kept tower and another 60Gb hard disk,
cd and floppy

that video card can be used with two monitors, very useful when browsing or comparing stat pages. Matrox has Parhelia that handles three monitors, should have bought that one but it's quite expensive, about $400.

i recommend Parhelia with three monitors if you want to put some extra money on computer, example one 21 + two 17 monitors :D

http://www.matrox.com/mga/products/parhelia512/technology/triplehead.cfm

i overclocked processor to 3GHz with out any problems and video card is overclocked about 15%. all games run nice and smooth.

nice and cheap system that will do at least 2-3 years ( i hope )

edit: i have windows XP and PRO version would be best for you,
best os that i have used, very stable and fixes problems by it self.

:D
 
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M

michaeljbird

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Jack, I have a compaq desktop which has been great. I have loved it. I have the top Dell laptop and it's so-so. The problem I've had is with Dell's service if you have a problem. I know most people here say Dell is the best, but, it has not been the best experience for me. I would not be honest if I said it was. My 2 cent's? Get a compaq or Gateway, at least you will have a store to take it to, if you do have problem's. Thank's for all you do here Jack, MJB;)
 
EXTRAPOLATER

EXTRAPOLATER

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I've had my Dell for about a year now. Still running great.
My experiences with their 24 hour helps service has been very good; they were patient and helped me out with what I needed.

I could've gotten a decent system for cheaper, too, but those I know who have gone that route are constantly having problems that force them to 're-do' their system (re-do, from what I can tell, means system restores, re-installation of software, upgrades due to compatibility trouble, and other headaches).

If you know you're computers, and don't mind fooling around and trying to make it work better (I know some people who actually ENJOY this) then cheap may be the way. If, like me, you use the computer as just a handy tool, then Dell might be the path of least resistance.

Enjoy your new system. I'm sure it will rock no matter what you decide to do.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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Send my credentials to the House of Detention
I got some friends inside
(Strange Days closer--one of my faves, too:thumb: )
 
SixFive

SixFive

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imo, best thing to do is have somebody locally build one to your specs. My brother put my machine together 6 years ago, and has since updated it twice for less than 100 each time. Find a guy in your hometown that builds them and go from there. IMO, u won't be dissappointed. You'll probably also get a lot better customer service with somebody close to you.
 
F

Felonious Monk

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The support end and the machines themselves are two different subject matters. Support has gone down for all computer vendors due to the average selling price being cut by about 2/3 over the past 4-5 years.

Dell is far from perfect but they make a good machine that you can take out of the box and use with minimal setup. I used to work on Compaq's exclusively and they have some of the worst desktop chassis designs I've ever seen. Upgrading certain components would be a major task to the average joe.

Here is a nice Dell Dimension that you can customize to your standards.

Good luck in your search.
 
R

redking

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Thanks for the props, pengiunfan! :D

MadJack, I'd just recommend you build your own system or find a nearby computer geek to build it for ya. You probably can find some recommendations for builders at a CompUSA or smaller computer store. Either way...I recommend getting a SCSI hard drive and SCSI burner and SCSI DVD player if you watch DVDs on your computer.

I have a Athlon500 with full SCSI system it this thing still rocks. The biggest bottleneck in terms of computer system speed is the hard drive speed, NOT the processor. 1.5 Ghz is plenty for the things you said you'd be doing. So bottom line, get the fastest hard drive you can afford and SCSI hard drives are the fastest and most reliable. You're also going to need a SCSI adapter card.

If this is too much tech knowledge I can explain more. Just email me: redking AT myrealbox DOT com
 
THE KOD

THE KOD

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dragon_black_system_s.jpg


$2,895.00 Pentium 4
.........................................

Jack

this alienware is the best you can get.

They got a green light that glows from the bottom. Its spooky.


KOD
 
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L

loungelizard

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Jack,

Just do what sixfive and redking suggest, then you will have someone you can bitch at if something goes wrong, bud up to em a bit, and if something goes wrong they can come to your house and fix it, usually costs a beer or two but worth it.

Good Luck,
LL
 
I

IE

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this is catching Jack, now i am having problems...

keep getting svchost.exe errors and computer does funny things like not responding to letting me get off my dialup...have to shut/down and restart, works for a while then get error message again.

viewed my event viewer on my windows2000 system log.

7031 event (every time)

The Remote Procedure Call service terminated unexpectley.

viewed my application log.

The COM + Event system detected a bad code return during its internet processing. HRESULT was 800706BA from line 42 of /eventsystemobj.cpp


urghhhhhh!!
 
I

IE

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FM, i really appreciate the response and will try what you said tomorrow morning, currently travelling and do not have cd with me....damn:(

YYZ, in response to other thread, .......

who knows...the only think i have done different last 8 days from normal routine is download adware.....

thanks
 
I

IE

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did get this from my isp a bit back/while ago.....

-----

We have noticed a massive increase in traffic to port 135 on our network due to the DCOM Worm.

The worm uses the RPC DCOM vulnerability to propagate. Once it finds a vulnerable system, it will spawn a shell on port 4444 and use it to download the actual worm via tftp. The exploit itself is very close to 'dcom.c' and so far appears to use the "universal Win2k" offset only.

The name of the binary is msblast.exe. It is packed with UPX and will self extract.

Microsoft Patch:
http://www.microsoft.com/technet/treeview/default.asp?url=/technet/security/bulletin/MS03-026.asp

Sans Information:
http://isc.sans.org/diary.html?date=2003-08-11

Cert Advisory:
http://www.cert.org/advisories/CA-2003-19.html
 
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