Very OT - Computers

[Mark Lloyd]

Yes, and TWO external hard drives are even better, as people used to know (separate backup media).

[Kyle]

Maybe. On the other hand, I spent less money to build the system I wanted with the reliable components I wanted (rather than whatever a corporation decides is the least costly option) than I would have buying the box complete from Dell...and I didn't get it junked up with a lot of (for me) unneccessary software.

Again, maybe, in two ways. Computer components don't always fail right away. And even when they do, companies like Dell will make you walk through many, many steps with their technical support people before they replace the pee-cee or even the part. I know from personal experience, having been through it when helping another pastor and his family deal with Dell when the hard drive on their computer failed. It was a nightmare.

Bottom line: go with a reputable company, and look at their customer satisfaction ratings.

(For what it's worth, they may cost more, but Apple scores very high on both.)

[Kurt Ullman]

FWIW, this "feature" was one of the main reasons I finally got around to switching to an Apple. The tentacles of Redmond were just too deeply imbedded in my machine to make me happy.

[Andy Asberry]

I have 5 Dells, all bought within the last three years. A lightning strike is the only problem at all. Took out all the modems.

Don't be blinded by processor speed; ram is more important IMO, at least 1 gb. Good graphics board and speakers (if you're into music).

One thing I couldn't do without now is dual monitors. Never thought they would be so handy.

--Andy Asberry recommends NewsGuy--

[Mark Lloyd]

I've been using 2000 for over a year now, and VERY SELDOM have to reboot the system because of a misbehaving program.

[Mark Lloyd]

Modems to seem more susceptible to lightning damage.

And the speed at which the RAM operates is also more important than CPU speed.

Yes, they are. BTW, right now I'm looking for an AGP video card that supports 2 monitors, preferably one that can use the second monitor for video playback.

Also, don't forget the external hard drives or other components needed for backup.

That may be true, although I generally ignore such things because they're usually spam inserted automatically by a usenet software or server.

[Jim]

My switch was to Linux (Mandrake, now Mandriva). Not perfect, but what is?

Any tech support I've needed has been solved with a simple Usenet message. Generally speaking, post it at bedtime and read multiple responses upon awakening.

Bottom line is my computers have never been so rock solid stable. And I don't spend time or money on things like anti-virus applications.

[Oren]

I went through three drives; SCSI (1) and IDE (2) drives over these years, but the 2000 kept it going. It is stable...

Matching Dual 550 CPUs...I even threatened to shoot the box but I will fire it up soon - 2K again..

Oren

[Corinne]

Thanks for this info.

True, I don't need anything that does all this fancy stuff, unless I want to take some computer classes and learn how to accomplish all the different things these fascinating computers can do.

Appreciate your help.

Rick Brandt wrote:

[Corinne]

My stupidity is showing here.

By two monitors, are you saying you have two flat screens attached to one pc? I have a fairly new flat screen monitor, but it looks like alot of the new Dells come with a monitor as well.

Thanks.

Cor> >

[Rick Brandt]

I have twin 19 inch LCDs on my work PC and let me tell you, you get spoiled by this REALLY quick. Using my single 17 incher at home just feels like there is no room at all now.

[Dan Espen]

Ditto.

In general, you don't spend money for applications at all. There are thousands of free applications, and they aren't full of advertising either, they just do what you want.

[J. Clarke]

If in fact she is willing to do that.

And she has to buy Vista.

But it will be EOLed 4 years or so before Vista.

You don't seem to be paying attention to what the OP wrote and trying to work out the practical ramifications.

[lee houston]

if you do decide to buy new, here is a neat site for weekly sales in the US, state by state:

lee h

[Corinne]

A great site, that I have bookmarked.

Thanks.

lee houst>

[Robert Gammon]

Corrine is expressing an interest in getting a replacement for her 8 year old Win98 machine. The question in her mind is do it now, or wait

6 months to a year to do it.

If she wants to go to the Vista experience AT ALL!!! Not everyone will or should follow the Redmond junkies in lock step with what they put out.

WinXp is now stable. EOL will have little meaning to Corrrine. Virus writers will soon be turning their attention to Vista. A machine she buys NOW with WinXP on it will have SP2 installed already. It will run any S/W she wants to run, surf the internet,... for as long as she wants to use it. If that happens to run beyond the ROL for WinXP FINE!!!!! That is still 5 or more years from NOW!

I am, She is using Win98 on an 8 year old computer and wonders if she should upgrade to a newer model. If it aint broke don't fix it. Cars, Computers are BOTH similar in this regard. Sure the new model is sexy, sleek, smells good, gets you admiration from your peers....

The real risk she faces is a hardware failure that loses all data on the drive. Other than that risk, she can keep running with what she has, until something breaks, or she succumbs to desire and gets a new computer with WinXP on it. If she waits a year, Dell HP/Compaq, eMachines, etc will only be offering machines with Vista on them,

[J. Clarke]

So she goes with XP and in four years instead of 8 it's EOL and she needs to upgrade and what does she have to upgrade to?

Sorry, but she has clearly stated that the reason that she is upgrading is that 98 is EOL. That being the case, I'm at a loss to understand why you think that that is not an issue for her.

Not the 8 that she got out of 98.

While I agree that there is no compelling reason for her to upgrade if her existing machine is working, she has stated that 98 being EOL is an issue for her, and that being the case perhaps you should consider the possibility that her concerns are different from your concerns.

Personally I'm running Linux on a PS/2, but I wouldn't recommend that as a solution to someone else's problem.

Yes, she can run with what she has until it breaks beyond repair, but that does not address any of her stated concerns.

[krw]

My desktop[*] has been running SuSE for a couple of years (SuSE was the first with good AMD64 support), but with 10.0 I've lost DualHead support. It seems SuSE and Matrox are in finger-pointing mode.

True, though don't be surprised if Linux starts getting infested with malware.

[*] My laptop is XP.

[Dan Espen]

I'd be very surprised, first I'd have to start installing random commercial packages. (Weatherbug and the like.)

I can't imagine why I'd do that. All those nifty little tools are already available from trusted sources.

But then, I'd never have imagined an OS that would run an executable from email simply by reading it either.

[Mark Lloyd]

I prefer free software. It's not about the money, but the stuff (advertising spyware, intentional weak links "product activation") they put in commercial software.