Computers

[The Cat In The Hat]

Ok, so my computer has a memory leak, and the monitor sucks so I'm looking to buy a new one. Seeing that I've just stared at the Dell website for an hour and still don't have a clue as to what I *need* I thought I would ask for advice.

I use my computer for:
Homework (CaseCATalyst4, so I need to be able to install my FCC security device)
Downloading movies/music
GSIV, of course
General web surfing

I don't really play graphical games, I might play the sims on occasion.

As for hardware... all I have hooked to it is my webcam, printer/scanner/copier combo and my Steno writer. I don't feel the need for anything else.

Advice?

[Wezas]

Any other requirements/longevity/price you're looking for?

If you're looking at Dell I'd suggest looking at the Dimension 3000 series.

Are you looking for a CD burner/DVD Reader/DVD Burner? 40 or 80gb HD? Bare minimum of RAM? (Sims 2 requires 256, more recent games require/suggest 512).

They're having a deal with free 15" flat panel monitors for pretty much all dimension desktops.

Here's the *bare* minimum:

Dimension 2400 2.4ghz Celeron
XP Home
256mb DDR SDRAM
40gb HD
Single CD-ROM (not burner)
15" Flat Panel Monitor
$299

What I suggest (still isn't uber, but will be leaps better then above):

Dimension 3000 2.8ghz Pentium 4 (w/ HT technology)
Windows XP Home
512MB DDR SDRAM
80gb HD
48x CD-writer/DVD combo drive
15" flat panel monitor ($99 more for 17" flat panel)
$544

if you don't mind spending more, you'll be set

Definately use dell small business instead of dell home.

[The Cat In The Hat]

The one I was looking at is the Dell Dimension 4700

http://www1.us.dell.com/content/products/productdetails.aspx/dimen_4700MCE?c=us&cs=19&l=en&s=dhs

Not sure if that would be overkill or not though. I want it to last a few years at least.

[Bobmuhthol]

http://www.emachines.com/products/products.html?prod=eMachines_T6520

The end. Best retail computer you're going to get for that price.

17" monitor

http://www.emachines.com/products/products.html?prod=eView_17f3

[Bobmuhthol]

XP Media Center 2005, unless you already use/like it, is probably not a very good choice of an operating system.

[Bobmuhthol]

This is like.. almost the same quality computer for $100 less.

http://www.emachines.com/products/products.html?prod=eMachines_T6410

[The Cat In The Hat]

I don't already use it, I use plain XP home. I'm not one for a big monitor either, not sure I could handle anything over 15"

[Bobmuhthol]

You can go to the nearest CompUSA and grab a monitor. That shouldn't really be a concern.

Get either XP Home or XP Pro. The $600 eMachine uses XP Media Edition, which makes me sad, but the almost-as-good $500 one has XP Home.

I strongly recommend the T6410. AMD Athlon 64 3200+ processor, 512MB RAM, 160GB HDD, 16x DVD +/- RW, 128MB ATI Radeon Xpress 200 video card. You try buying that from Dell and they'll charge you $900+.

[Brattt8525]

Originally posted by The Cat In The Hat
not sure I could handle anything over 15"

Umm I didn't know they came that big....:P

[The Cat In The Hat]

Ok, question...

My very first computer was an HP, and I never had any problems with it. Anyone know how they are now?

I can pick this one up for just under 900.00

Operating System Microsoft(R) Windows(R) XP Media Center Edition edit
Processor AMD Athlon(TM) 64 3200+ operating at 2.0GHz edit
Memory 512MB DDR-400MHz dual channel SDRAM (2x256) edit
Hard Drive 80GB 7200 rpm SATA Hard Drive edit
Primary CD/DVD Drive 16x max DVD-ROM edit
Front Productivity Ports 9-in-1 card reader, 2 USB 2.0, 1 Firewire + WinDVD edit
Monitors FREE upgrade - HP vs17c 17" LCD Flat-Panel Monitor edit
TV & Entertainment Experience Single NTSC TV Tuner with PVR and FM Tuner edit
Graphics Card Integrated ATI Radeon Xpress Graphics with TV-Out edit
Sound Card Integrated 5.1 Sound with front audio ports edit
Keyboard and Mouse HP Multimedia Keyboard, HP Optical Mouse edit
Productivity Software Microsoft(R) Works 8.0/Money/MSN Encarta Plus edit


And it comes with a free printer... the same printer I already own LOL

[Edited on 7-17-2005 by The Cat In The Hat]

[The Cat In The Hat]

Originally posted by Brattt8525

Originally posted by The Cat In The Hat
not sure I could handle anything over 15"

Umm I didn't know they came that big....:P

John Holmes :)

[Skirmisher]

Does that graphics card use shared memory?

[Bobmuhthol]

<<My very first computer was an HP, and I never had any problems with it. Anyone know how they are now?>>

They suck.

<<I can pick this one up for just under 900.00>>

The eMachine T6410 is better than that for $500, and a monitor is not $400.

[Bobmuhthol]

<<Does that graphics card use shared memory?>>

Yes it does. However, offsetting shared memory is as easy as buying another 512 MB RAM for $40.

[The Cat In The Hat]

I have absolutley NO idea what shared memory is :( Seems it isn't an entirely good thing though.


Thanks for the help, it's very much appreciated. Not too sure about emachine though. Don't they sell those at walmart?

[Bobmuhthol]

<<Not too sure about emachine though. Don't they sell those at walmart?>>

I don't know, but even if they do, what a terrible reason not to buy it. That's like insinuating that a poor person's spirit was sentenced to eternity in potentially good hardware, making it suck because a dead poor person lives in it. eMachines are fucking amazing, considering the price.

<<I have absolutley NO idea what shared memory is>>

The video card will have no built-in memory; that is, your computer's RAM will act as the video card's memory. If you have 512 MB, for instance, when your video card is being used for a graphical game, 128 MB of your RAM will be dedicated to running the video card. You'd essentially have 128 MB less RAM for processing things.

[The Cat In The Hat]

I didnt say that was a reason for not buying one, It was just a question. I have heard bad things about them though. Then again, I still swear my HP was a damned good computer :)



Thanks for the info on shared memory.

[Skirmisher]

I was under the impression that memory installed right on the video card was faster than using shared memory also.

It won't really affect you in any event Cat, as you don't play many graphics intensive games.

E-Machines used to have a horrible reputation, but they are nowhere near as bad as their old reputation now. For the price he is finding, the E-machine doesn't seem bad at all.

The only reason I can see for getting the Dell, is for the 24/7 cust service they offer. Be advised that the once legendary Dell cust service is no longer the shining example to the industry it once was, while E-Machines has been given decent marks this last year. Dell desktops DO get tested extensively though and tend to be quite durable in my experience.

If you can afford the extra money, I would get a Dell, but if your cash flow situation is tight at the moment, I would not be afraid to get an E-Machine.

[Bobmuhthol]

<<I have heard bad things about them though.>>

Seriously, everyone who says anything bad about eMachines is the biggest fucking idiot in the world when it comes to choosing a computer. There's nothing wrong with them. I hate dealing with Dell for home computers, I hate Compaq and HP because they fucking explode. I've never ruined an eMachine. I've completely destroyed a Compaq and HP. They're more expensive and less reliable.

<<If you can afford the extra money, I would get a Dell, but if your cash flow situation is tight at the moment, I would not be afraid to get an E-Machine.>>

If you can afford a computer that approaches or exceeds $1000, I suggest building your own. If you're not representing a business, don't get Dell.

[theotherjohn]

Originally posted by The Cat In The Hat

Advice?

wait on anticor to read this thread and respond

[Itachi]

Ya I have to agree with Bob, E-Machines are pretty much the best bang for the buck you can get unless you have a nice intel hook up and can build your own. A lot of people talk shit about emachines but they make solid products especially for what you need your machine to do.

[The Cat In The Hat]

Well, I need something reliable for the FCC security hookup I have. Something that will get me through the next year of college, then carry me through into my first job.

So far Ive narrowed it down to a Dell (because they seem reliable), and an HP (Because I remember my first computer fondly). Still looking at emachine though because of Bob's advice.

[Skirmisher]

And unless you have a good friend you can call for tech help, be sure to read what kind of warranty the different computers come with.

Dell made their name on lifetime 24/7 tech support but don't offer it any longer, instead offering tech support and hardware support in more traditional choices of 1,2,3 and 4 year intervals at of course increasing prices.

Most companies offer at least one year with options to pay for more, but some come with as little as a 90 day window of tech support unless you buy a higher level warranty. Some offer on-site repair so they come to your home, some require you to try to do the repairs yourself and failing that to ship it to them.

So always look for what is offered in the particular deal you are thinking about as the difference between a 90 day support contract and a four year contract can be easily in the hundreds of dollars.

[Bobmuhthol]

I've never had to call for support for any reason.

Then again, I always use eMachines!

[Skirmisher]

Bob, you know what you are doing with computers far more than most.

[MrFeature]

Originally posted by The Cat In The Hat
Ok, so my computer has a memory leak

Great reason to buy a new computer. Thats like throwing out a computer because it's infected with spyware. (http://it.slashdot.org/it/05/07/16/180221.shtml?tid=126&tid=172&tid=98)

[Edaarin]

Don't send in or sign anything that resembles a warranty card.

[Wezas]

Cat, I bought a 4700 back in December. It's a great computer.

I thought you were looking for something inexpensive to replace your older PC. If you like the 4700, I recommend you go that route.

Right now the deal on the 4700 is a free HD upgrade to 80gb and a free 17" flat panel monitor. When I bought mine the deal was a free quadruple your memory (up to 1gb).

I buy Dell because everyone I know buys Dell and has no problems. My company, my mom, my mom's company, my girl's company, etc. I called them last night at like 11pm - got an agent right away who stayed with me to help me figure out why my bios wasn't coming up (turns out it was my upgraded video card, not any fault of dell).

Stray that's a pretty nice PC, does that site have any decent deals on a flat panel monitor? (15" or 17")

[Bobmuhthol]

<<Stray that's a pretty nice PC, does that site have any decent deals on a flat panel monitor? (15" or 17")>>

I think you're the only person that can see his post, because to the sane posters he hasn't posted in this thread.

[The Cat In The Hat]

Originally posted by MrFeature

Originally posted by The Cat In The Hat
Ok, so my computer has a memory leak

Great reason to buy a new computer. Thats like throwing out a computer because it's infected with spyware. (http://it.slashdot.org/it/05/07/16/180221.shtml?tid=126&tid=172&tid=98)

ok, so I looked it up and see that a memory leak is a bug...

I have 3 spyware programs and Macafee virus scan online. If it's a bug why do they not find it?

[Bobmuhthol]

A bug is a software glitch, not a virus. If a program is causing it, something is wrong with the program where it continues to eat memory (sometimes even after seemingly being terminated but still running in the background) and slowing your computer down. Spyware removers don't debug programs.

[The Cat In The Hat]

Ok, I have something called hpcmpmgr.exe that keeps "opening?"

It will appear on my task bar for about 1 second about every 30 minutes. I have no idea what it does (I do have an HP printer though). Perhaps my bug?

Reguardless, i do need a new computer, cant even play the sims on this one since I added the expansion packs. And it's a Compaq, I havn't been too happy with it.

[Bobmuhthol]

That's just an annoying program for HP multimedia software. Look at your task manager and sort them by memory usage. Whatever is taking up the most is more than likely what's causing the problem. One thing I hate about IE is if you have it running for a really long time it takes up to like 40 MB of memory.

[The Cat In The Hat]

iexplore.exe 22,052k
svchost.exe 11,912k
explorer.exe 10,720k
aim.exe 9,784k
McShield 8,112k

all the others are under 5k

[The Cat In The Hat]

Heh, I closes IE and opened it back up and now it's at 25,054k

[Bobmuhthol]

Then.. you don't have a memory leak (right now).

[Back]

Microsoft, in general, blows.

If you are not on a Mac, definitely go Firefox with the security patch.

[Bobmuhthol]

Internet Explorer is king.

[The Cat In The Hat]

My daughter has a mac, One of those ones where the hard drive and the monitor are all one unit. I've played around with it a bit and Ive come to figure out that I don't really like macs :)

[Bobmuhthol]

iMac.

Macs fucking blow unless you are employed as a professional multimedia technician.

[Back]

Whatever. Microsoft still blows.

[Wezas]

Originally posted by Bobmuhthol
<<Stray that's a pretty nice PC, does that site have any decent deals on a flat panel monitor? (15" or 17")>>

I think you're the only person that can see his post, because to the sane posters he hasn't posted in this thread.

Damn, saw the dark avatar and automatically thought it was him.

[Itachi]

Well even though Dell does offer 24/7 tech support, a lot of the time it isn't going to help. Even though I'm sure a lot of large companies do the same Dell has you talking to some people in India or something. They basically flip through a roladex type thing from keywords and just read off whatever it says. One time i was having some issues and the fuckers told me to "Re-install DirectX." I was like... Do you know how close I am to killing you right now?