Anyone got any comments about non-tower PCs? I was looking at a Dell in the library the other day and couldn't help thinking that, especially with flat screens, having the case under the monitor makes more sense.
"stuart noble" screens, having the case under the monitor makes more sense.
Spouse has just replaced his (with my old tower), it will go to a grand daughter. The main problem is that the keyboard can get in the way of accessing the drives. The benefit of course is that you have one footprint instead of two which can be desirable on a small desk. In my case the tower is a useful stand for the scanner so the footprint is irrelevant.
Mary
Well, I guess it depends on the size of your desk.
I my case, I prefer to have a tower machine on the floor. Whilst I'm a Software Engineer with Electrical Engineering background (ie. I like fiddling with computers!) - I do think that a computer is there to do a purpose/function - and therefore doesn't need to be seen. The monitor does need to be seen - but the computer doesn't. I prefer lots of desk space for books/papers whilst working than using it to lift the monitor 6" - there's plenty of cheap monitor stands for that (which also can then free up the desk space by holding the keyboard whilst the PC is not in use, or keyboard not needed).
Also if I need to open it, I can do it where it is without having to move the monitor (which may not have space on the desk to put it next to it). Then if you need to power it up whilst its open then you have to balance the monitor on the desk/chair or find a long cable.
I must admit - I do like the Compaq/HP EN style cases. They're nice and small - but then have little space of additional cards or drives. If I was buying a machine with no need for upgrades, and required a desktop machine - that would be tempting.
I'll probably always go for a tower machine though I think - far more versatile.
David
When we bought this machine I commented on a display showing a small desk, a slim screen and a see-through tower. Nothing else. Well, a keyboard. Perhaps a mouse or a pad.
"Who in Real Life has an empty desk like that?" I asked.
The nice young man dealing with us said that he did. He stored everything on his pc, scanned all paperwork then shredded it, couldn't bear anything on his desk which was made of paper.
I'm comforted by your desk.
Mary
"stuart noble" screens, having the case under the monitor makes more sense.
Depends upon what you're comfortable with when working.
I always prefer the monitor on the desk (though desktop cases have become a lot slimmer than they were a few years ago).
-- Richard Sampson
email me at richard at olifant d-ot co do-t uk
At the moment I have a tower size space under the monitor occupied by just the monitor stand so a tower on its side would give me the best of both worlds. Haven't seen anything that big though.
I hope the word 'backup' was in his vocabulary!
Parish
I think it depends on your height to some extent. I'm 1.9m (6'3" in old money) and find that when my chair is at a height comfortable for my arms that a monitor on the desktop is too low. Of course the size of the monitor affects that.
Sun "pizza box" cases set the monitor at the right height for me - mine is sat on a single height drive case.
Midi tower under the desk, with wireless keyboard & mouse & flat LCD monitor on desk. Loads of space and very practical.
Andrew
stuart noble wrote on Tuesday (10/02/2004) :
I much prefer towers. I like to use a good sized monitor and to be looking slightly down to it. I have the tower out of the way under my desk, raised on a plinth. Towers also generally tend to run cooler and have more room for expansion.
Can't give you recommendations on a "pizza box" which is what you are after.
Have a look at the cases on:
I can point you towards a very cute small PC though - 6x6x18-ish (inchs, hxwxd)
look for the XPC range. I've just tested the SB75G2 at work and I'm very impressed. It's small, aluminium, light and quite quiet. Runs linux perfectly and my colleague is happy with Win2K on it. Going to get one or two myself.
Not really what you asked, but may be of interest...
Cheers
Timbo
Assuming you have space under the desk ...
Mary
That figures, soes you can have those two newsreaders running together, to get your fix of "unfiltered content". Does the name Mary Whitehouse ring any bells?
"stuart noble" screens, having the case under the monitor makes more sense.
I'm currently working on moving everything out of the room, except the monitor, keyboard, mouse and an external CD-ROM drive. The first three are connected via a Cat 5 cable and a couple of black boxes, while the last plugs into a USB port extension. It not only keeps the work are clutter free, it also keeps it quieter.
Colin Bignell
I went down this route with my PC for a while, it sat in the lounge and I didn't want a big, noisy beige box sprouting cables everywhere. In the end I gave in and bought a laptop, it gets used for most jobs and the old PC sits in the cupboard under the stairs doing it's own thing (webserver, usenet server, big HD for storage etc).
:-) You do realise that the original PC was *designed* to sit horizontally under the monitor, and these "towers" are a relatively modern invention?
Of course when PCs were first invented, the user spent a lot of time feeding it with floppy disks, so accessibility was important. If you spend a lot of time feeding CDs into your PC, having it right in front of you would be of great benefit.
On the other hand, PCs are quieter under the desk. And personally I like as much as possible of the wiring out of sight, but I probably have more than most (a quick count reveals 11 leads and a security leash round the back of my PC).
To me the space under the monitor is a valuable commodity - too valuable to be wasted on a PC. I have an improvised monitor stand consisting of three large CD drawers. The drawers contain software CDs, blank media of various kinds, etc, etc, and if the PC was under the monitor I would have to find somewhere else to keep that lot.
I'm not sure what difference a flat screen makes. I swapped from CRT to flat screen about a year ago and the main difference I notice is even more space for bits and bobs around the monitor stand.
Thanks everyone for the comments. Plenty to think about. The Elonex Prosentia with everything behind the monitor looks interesting but well on the way to being a sealed unit, which isn't in the PC spirit somehow.
Thanks. Not only the best selection of cases I've seen but a good example of what a commercial web site should be like.
That's a good idea but if I did that it would make the monitor uncomfortably high.
Ah! I have lots of shelves behind and beside me. But this is a specially built den and not a corner of a living room.
Mary
Hi.
It seems quite trivial to me, I've had both and they both need to be put somewhere, same thing to deal with. I never put the desktops on the desk top though, put them somewhere out the way and make better use of the deskspace. Dont forget keyboard extension cables can be handy.
I think theres approximately nothing really in it, towers were just another way to encourage more upgrade sales.
Regards, NT
HomeOwnersHub website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.