Re: which computer

["Patricia M. Godfrey" PriscaMG@xxxxxxxx]

-- Harriet Hodges  wrote:


I need a new computer to replace the "made-up" one
with Windows ME on it that has unresolvable hardware
problems.
 

First of all, use anything bu ME. Absolutely the worst garbage even
Microsludge ever foisted on a gullible public.
I'm not so much partial to 98, as Jordan said, as unwilling to pay for
more Redmond Rubbish; my intention is to someday (the Kalends of Greece)
switch to Linux. Meanwhile, 98 is backward compatible and actually
less-targeted by the black hats than more recent versions. As for
support, M$ "support" is a dubious benefit (their patches too often
break five things that weren't broken to fix one that was.). The real
issue is finding drivers. (Aside to the geek-speak challenged: a driver
is a small piece of software that tells the operating system what sort
of hardware it's running on and helps it communicate with it. Despite
the promise of Plug and Play, drivers are absolutely essential.) But get
a real copy of whatever Windows you decide on. Build-to-order systems
usually come with an OEM copy; make sure it includes the lastest Service
Packs. (Another disadvantage of name-brand, off-the-shelf PCs is that
the opsys is already installed--see below about partitioning-- and all
too often you don't get a real copy of Windows, but only a restore disk.)
So you need to get hardware that has drivers for the operating system
you plan to run. If you can find hardware with 98SE or 2000 drivers, I'd
go for that. Forget Dell. They tend to use proprietary or else
bottom-of-the-barrel parts (Wendell and I have a dossier of Dell horror
stories).I've never bought a whole system from Tiger, but the parts they
offer include some good, quality, industry-standard components. My eyes
aren't good enough for me to actually build my own systems any more
(don't have the room, either), but if you have someone who can do that
(but I would steer clear of whoever foisted ME on you), and who knows
what parts to buy, it could be a good buy. On the other hand, mail order
has its hazards. Your pro's price is not unreasonable, and he would
probably tailor things more to your wishes.

Some specifics:
1. I recommend AMD CPUs; they seem to have more backward-compatibility
built in. Furthermore, you can get a motherboard with a Sempron CPU in
it now, and later, should you need it, upgrade to an Athlon 64. AMD is
also fussier about what kind of RAM you use, which helps ensure stability.
2. If your motherboard has onboard VGA, make sure it has at least 32 Mb
of onboard RAM. Otherwise, get a separate VGA card (AGP or PCI express)
with at least that much. (El-cheapo mobos tend to have onboard VGA
circuits that share memory with the main system memory. Not good). If
you think of upgrading to an LCD down the road, try to get a VGA card
with a digital connector.
3. Make sure you have enough RAM: 512 for Windows 98SE, 1 G for 2000 or
XP. (That's more than Microsoft recommends, but I've found that you need
it if you run any Windows-native apps at all. If all you're using it for
is Xy and other DOS apps, you can get by with the recommended minima.)
4. If you can possibly afford it, get two hard drives and set one up as
your data drive. You thereby halve the chance of losing your data if
disaster strikes when you're not backed up. Failing that, make sure the
builder partitions the drive before installing the operating system.
(There are perfectly reliable programs that will do it afterwards, but
one of the advantages of having a custom-built system, over
an-off-the-shelf one, is that you can do this and save the cost of
Partition Magic etc.) You want at least 2 partitions, one for Windows
and applications, one for data. I work with 4, and am thinking of adding
a 5th next time. C, with Win and Win apps; D: for DOS apps; E: for data,
and F: for downloads, drivers, patches, and the like. The fifth would be
an install disk to which I would copy the Windows CD and any drivers
that came with the system.
5. If you still have a parallel printer, make sure the machine has a
parallel port.
6. Get a CD-R or DVD recordable (there are five or six DVD standards,
and until that gets straightened out, I don't feel the greater capacity
is worth getting involved in the fray) for backing up your data--and do
it regularly.
7. If you don't have broadband (or even if you do and sometimes have to
fall back on dialup), make sure you have a real modem, not a Winmodem
(which has no smarts istelf, but relies on the main system). Lots of
ISPs and communications programs won't work with Winmodems. Also steer
clear of AMR modems, which is a nonexistent "standard."
I've probably forgotten a few things, but this should get you started.
Good luck.

Patricia M. Godfrey