its just about time... February 18, 2007, 04:12:25 PM for a new PC.my current computer is slow here and there as well as just being generally annoying. its an HP 1.8 P4 intell. its got 512 megs of ram and a 300 gig HD that i installed. (had 80 originally). it runs XP. while it works okay most of the time its a pita the rest of the time. it likes to shut itself down randomly. i think its time. ive been looking at HPs again. this one has treated me well up untill this point. heres the one :http://www.circuitcity.com/ssm/HP-Pavilion-Media-Center-TV-PC-M7760N/sem/rpsm/oid/171326/catOid/-12962/rpem/ccd/productDetail.do seems like a decent machine. im a little concerned about the video/graffica and sound cards. i figure those would be the best advantage to building one myself. second, im not too crazy about windows vista. it just came out ind ive heard about alot of issues with it. i like my XP. i know how to use it. would i be an idiot to stay with XP? so, my other option would be to pick another brand (i like the sony vio, wont get a gateway, compac or e machine). im looking for the best PC for about 900-1100, tower only. id build one but im afraid id haveproblems picking out compatable equipment. im sure i could put it all together but i wouldnt know what to do with it at that point reguarding operating system, supporting software and drivers for its parts. again, asuming i could put it all together. finally, theres the mac. ive never used one. id be lost without windows. realy, whats the main differance between the PC and the MAC. ive seen the tv commercials...i assume they are just as capable as a PC. whats the deal? i just want something thats going to be powerfull and reliable. i dont want to have to system restore the thing every 8 months. i want something that works the way its supposed too. so... opinions? thanks in advance for any of your help guys....john Quote Selected
its just about time... Reply #1 – February 18, 2007, 04:33:32 PM there should be no problems if you maintain it well. how often do you defrag, clean your registry, physically clean for dust, and what kind of antispy and firewall ya got? Quote Selected
its just about time... Reply #2 – February 18, 2007, 05:03:08 PM Quotefinally, theres the mac. ive never used one. id be lost without windows. realy, whats the main differance between the PC and the MAC. ive seen the tv commercials...i assume they are just as capable as a PC. whats the deal?OK, I can help with just this part LOL.The new Macs have Intel chips. The machine itself, whether it's the Mac mini or the iMac or the Mac Pro, is built with relatively standard, common PC components and chips. Apple designs its own motherboards and power supplies. RAM, HD's and optical drives are almost always standard PC components. You can use any USB mouse with OS X...I don't know if they still come with a one-button mouse or if Apple is finally putting their two-button scroll-wheel mouse in with the new machines.Using Apple's own free program called Boot Camp, you can install Windows XP on the machine, and all your software, and boot into either XP or Mac OS X. You need at least SP2 for XP. From all the reviews I've read, a Mac is now the fastest computer for Windows. I know it sounds weird but it seems to be true...I've messed around with an iMac running XP and , that sucker flies. So technically you could virtually never run OS X if you didn't want to. With Boot Camp you cannot switch OSes on the fly; it's only at startup. Gaming seems to be okay as well. It's not for everyone...mainly it's geared toward people that run OS X but need to occasionally run XP for whatever reason. But it can indeed work as a standalone XP machine.There is also a program called Parallels which would allow you to run XP (or DOS or 3.1) at the same time as OS X. It think it's $79 US. Also, I believe there are already people running Vista on the Mac with very few issues. Parallels is still in beta; most people say it's really stable. Microsoft cancelled VirtualPC for the Mac so this is the only virtualization program that's at the top of the heap now.Now there is a third program (name escapes me now) which allows you to run any XP program on the fly, within the Mac OS X, without the need for any Window OS. Again, it's in beta but people have been impressed with it. What's really intriguing about this idea is that the OS doesn't really matter. It could be the future of all computing.Anyway...OS X is very cool but it's not for everyone. Most things in Windows can directly translate into a function of OS X. But since it's based on Unix it doesn't run a native DOS like Windows does. About the best I could say is, find a local computer store and if they even carry Macs, mess with one. It's a totally different experience in a lot of ways.The commercials...they are mostly true, although they tend to preach to the choir sometimes. I love the new Vista security one though. My co-worker installed Vista on his laptop and he turned off those warnings immediately. I kept saying to him, "Dave, I am sending you greetings. Accept or reject?" LOL Quote Selected
its just about time... Reply #3 – February 18, 2007, 05:18:40 PM awesome. thanks guys. ill deffinetly try one. i mean, they all do the same thing, just do it differently. im not a big gamer at all. i have a few RC aircraft simulators. i want to upgrade but i know they wouldnt run on my current machine. anywho...thanks again! oh, i defrag monthly. i run spysweeper as well as macafee and whatever security and spyware stuff aol has. i have norton but havnt installed it. i think this things just had too many system recoverys done, too many un-organized folders, pics, movies, videos, programs, mp3s, cds, etc. uploaded, downloaded, moved around, deleted etc. when i get a new PC ill see if i can do something with this one as a spare or something for the kids. my 3 year old knows how to use it beter than i do.... Quote Selected
its just about time... Reply #4 – February 18, 2007, 06:00:20 PM Oh...one thing I did forget to mention...just because XP would be installed on a Mac doesn't mean it would be immune from a virus or spyware when running XP. You'd still need to run anti-spyware programs, etc. just like you do now. Doesn't matter about the actual machine...the OS that is running on the machine is still an open target. Quote Selected
its just about time... Reply #5 – March 03, 2007, 11:55:38 AM Thanks guys...so, i guess my next ? is weather or not vista is better than xp. im familliar with xp and as far as i know its much less demanding on the computer compared to vista. vista has more annoying to use from what i understand. all the new computers in the stores come with vista. would it be rediculous to have xp installed in place of vista? id have to buy a copy of it. would i just be putting myself behind progress doing that? apparently id need to buy new antivirus, spyware and other programs like word (wich is available in a 150 dollar bundle apparently) that would be compatible with vista. i realy need a new computer but i dont want to shoot myself in the foot either.... Quote Selected
its just about time... Reply #6 – March 03, 2007, 05:14:08 PM you don't necessarily have to buy these things... Quote Selected
its just about time... Reply #7 – March 04, 2007, 12:25:58 AM yeah i know, well, as far as ive heard, vista is apparently very anti- well you know..... ive heard that it forces you to register everything....i dunno.... Quote Selected
its just about time... Reply #8 – March 07, 2007, 02:16:58 PM couple things.HP and Compaq are the exact same machine/support. Personally, i wouldn't recommend either.xp will be viable till 2010-ish sp3 should be out later this year, early 2008, last major update though security fixes should continue to come out regularly for a few years yet.Vista sp1 should be out aug-sep ish most people are guessing.building your own machine right now isn't the best idea, it is right in the middle of a hardware move forward, with GForce's 8's just being released, 65 NM chips coming out more and more and new hard drives just coming out. old stuff still isn't cheap and new stuff is still way high. I'd wait a month or two.Vista, well, it's new, you'd have to play with it to get it to work like you want, were xp will just install. but if you want to move to vista later it will cost ya.on a side note: get an OEM machine builders copy of vista, half the price. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16832116213 Quote Selected
its just about time... Reply #9 – March 08, 2007, 10:57:33 AM shoot, so whats in the near future? the pc im eyeballing (the link above) seems pretty decent. it would suck to make a move too soon. its right in the pricerange i want to be in. i know that things are always being updated in computers and its tough to keep up but i want a machine that will keep up well for the next 4- 5 years like the one i have now. Quote Selected
its just about time... Reply #10 – March 08, 2007, 01:52:07 PM Hey John just thought id chime my 2c worth. Vista sux big time. I downloaded a copy to try it out, the ultimate one cuz the others are even worse, and i found half my stuff wouldnt run in a vista enviroment. If you want I can get u a copy to try out BEFORE you start spending the money and regret it. And it CAN be cracked. Likewise with XP. I can get you these programs as well if you're interested. Quote Selected
its just about time... Reply #11 – March 10, 2007, 09:46:26 AM cool man, thanks. where ya been? i ended up just ordering th PC in the link. hopefully it keeps me happy. my only other issue right now while the computer is on its way is how to transfer all my files from this PC to the new one. this one has no file transfer utility, and if it did im sure it wouldnt work with vista. the cd burner on this is super unreliable if i can even get it to work at all. i have no idea how to network 2 home computers together at all. any ideas?thanks again guys! Quote Selected
its just about time... Reply #12 – March 13, 2007, 11:21:35 PM Also, MACs are built off the Unix kernel which is only what...the best OS to ever be built?!?! not to mention-most servers in the world are running on a Unix OS, or Linux, which is a flavor of Unix. I personally have never used a MAC, but one day I do hope to! Personally, I still think building your own PC is the best bet. Not only do you get "hands-on" training/experience if you've never built a PC, but you can customize it to your liking and build it for "future" upgrades that you may decide to do. In most cases, it's cheaper to build your own PC than to buy a pre-built machine. As someone has stated, HP/Compaqs are owned by the same company-HP! Their customer service is terrible and their products aren't so great, IMO. Shame, you could do 1 of several things...you could transfer files with a crossover cable (NIC-to-NIC), or any other cable that allows data transfers between devices, buy an external HD and transfer the files from your old PC to the external drive then from the external drive to your new pc, create a share on another PC in your house (if you have a home network) and transfer the files to another PC, or buy some file transfer software. I'm almost positive that Windows OS has built-in file transferring utilities. I'd opt for the crossover cable and go NIC/NIC, but most people don't know how to do that. Your easiest bet is to pick up an external HD, or an enclosure if you have a spare HD and go from there. This way is tedious as you're doing redundant work, but it works and is pretty simple. Keep in mind-you cannot backup programs, only the data in which was produced by the applications. Quote Selected
its just about time... Reply #13 – March 17, 2007, 05:45:02 PM so...its up and running. i ended up just moving files with a 500 meg stick drive a friend of mine had. it took awhile bbut it worked out. im pleased with the PC so far. the tv tuner is cool but there is no video out to pass the signal to my tv. the tv recorder is nice. i always kind of wanted a tvo... Quote Selected
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