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Whats good in computers these days?

Kaptain Klevtsov

By Kaptain Klevtsov
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Kaptain Klevtsov

Kaptain Klevtsov

Posted
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Had a look at an old thread discussing the merits of Vista and 64 versus 32 bit machines, but thats years old (in computer terms) so whats a good machine now? I've noticed the quad core doodahs and some AMD processors that I'd not heard of when I had a look round, so what would be fastest for Registax, CS2 and Maxim? I'll also have to use Autocad in order to justify the outlay BTW.

Current desktop went down christmas night and has now got issues. Starry Night won't run as it now tells me that Quick Time isn't there any more, and I can't install it or uninstall it either.

So whats a nice fast machine guys?

Kaptain Klevtsov

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Beyond_Vision

Beyond_Vision

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I would go for a Quad Core Pentium Q6600 which runs at 2.4Ghz with 8mb cache. This has now become low enough in price to consider. I would also go for a SATA II RAID array using a pair of Western Digital Raptor 150gb drives to maximize file transfer speed. Graphics card, NVIDIA 8800GT would be great for Starry Night Pro+ allsky mosiac maps and would also run some decent games.

You would be wise to go for at least 2gb of memory especially if installing Vista.

I have got Windows Vista Ultimate 64bit which is ok but wont run some of the apps I use (mainly the freebies). I use dual boot system so I can use XP when needed. I recommend going for Vista 32bit which should be fine with most apps.

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ash

ash

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mines a only a core 2 duo thingy runs 32bit vista which keeps crashing on the net you need a least 2mb of ram to run vista decent graphics 512mb nvidia or radeon i think the ones to go for.have you thought about an APPLE comp if you want to do visuals or graphic rich things i think these machines are better suited for graphic type of programs....just a thought

ASH

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cygnusx1

cygnusx1

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Quad core + 880GT would be great if your budget can stretch that far,

personally i recently bought a Intel Core2Duo, 2 GB DDR2 667 RAM, 360 GB H/Drive @7200rpm, DVD Drive, NVID 7200GS Gfx card with snazzy tower all for only 300 quid delivered off Ebay, incl 12 months warranty. I already had a 17" screen.

Compared to my 2.4 GHZ AMD , 1GB RAM laptop it flies, and the laptop is no snail either.

Processing images in DSS is down from 5 mns to under a min for +- 10 RAW files of 10MB each!

The graphics is good enough to play most DirectX 9\games at medium resolution comfortably. You could always upgrade to a better card if you're a serious gamer.

Yoo don't need to spend a fortune to get a very decent spec'd desktop these days.

Well that's my attitude anyway.

Take a look at Ebay, lot of good deals out there compared to the high street.

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barkis

barkis

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I am contemplating upgrading my desktop. I usually just go the m/Board upgrade with processor and cooler, memory, in a bundle deal.

My reluctance this time is my XP is an OEM version, and since a motherboard change constitutes a change of computer to Microsoft, I would need another OS, and I am not that keen on Vista, based purely on heresay. ie, there are no appreciable benefits. The Aero thing dont impress me.

Ron.

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tenbyfifty

tenbyfifty

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most core duo motherboards will also run quad core chips so if UR building one from scratch get a duo and then upgrade to a quad later - maybe a good idea to get a direct x 10 grafix card if UR into games.

this is probably the best value cpu around at the moment:

Intel Core 2 Duo E6750, S775, 2.66 GHz, 1333MHz FSB, Conroe Core, 4MB Cache

http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/ProductInfo.asp?WebProductID=632054

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cygnusx1

cygnusx1

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this is probably the best value cpu around at the moment:

Intel Core 2 Duo E6750, S775, 2.66 GHz, 1333MHz FSB, Conroe Core, 4MB Cache

http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/ProductInfo.asp?WebProductID=632054

That's exactly the m/b I got with my Ebay desktop.

Look here > http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/INTEL-CORE2DUO-E6750-400GB-2GB-DDR2-512MB-7200GFX_W0QQitemZ140193896990QQihZ004QQcategoryZ179QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

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StarMan1701

StarMan1701

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My reluctance this time is my XP is an OEM version, and since a motherboard change constitutes a change of computer to Microsoft...

Hi Ron,

Apparently, Microsoft only keep the activation details of your PC for six months.

I know a man who has used the same OEM version of XP three or four times when upgrading motherboards and hard drives etc... 8)

Lee.

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barkis

barkis

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My reluctance this time is my XP is an OEM version, and since a motherboard change constitutes a change of computer to Microsoft...

Hi Ron,

Apparently, Microsoft only keep the activation details of your PC for six months.

I know a man who has used the same OEM version of XP three or four times when upgrading motherboards and hard drives etc... 8)

Lee.

Never heard of that Lee, Surely it is bound to pester you with the 30 day Activation reminder though. What happens then.?

It will just stop after the limit is reached. :D Ron.

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cygnusx1

cygnusx1

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My reluctance this time is my XP is an OEM version, and since a motherboard change constitutes a change of computer to Microsoft...

Hi Ron,

Apparently, Microsoft only keep the activation details of your PC for six months.

I know a man who has used the same OEM version of XP three or four times when upgrading motherboards and hard drives etc... 8)

Lee.

Never heard of that Lee, Surely it is bound to pester you with the 30 day Activation reminder though. What happens then.?

It will just stop after the limit is reached. :D Ron.

What Lee means is you can reinstall and activate that copy of XP OEM after a 6 month period on any computer, because MS has'nt got your details anymore.

Can't confirm that or not, but i can confirm i have managed to install my XP OEM on a diff PC and activate it successfully.

The activation is linked to your h/w setup, in particular your motherboard.

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mcut

mcut

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the pros

http://www.tech.co.uk/computing/news/is-multi-core-the-new-mhz-myth-part-1?articleid=1613697116&page=2

the cons

http://www.tech.co.uk/computing/upgrades-and-peripherals/processors/news/is-multi-core-the-new-mhz-myth-part-2?articleid=9537585

there is a performance boost but quads may only be needed by the most demanding users. a lot of software and applications are playing catch up as multi threading is hard to program. some applications are inherently unable to take advantage of them.

i have a vista 32 bit on a laptop, 2gb ram. it has worked wonderfully from day one. 2gb is really a must.

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Kaptain Klevtsov

Kaptain Klevtsov

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Poo!

Thanks for the heads up though on that. Currently the new box doesn't show up on the network, though I can ping in both directions (to it and from it) by using the IP address. Don't know what else to fiddle with now. Firewall was off, the Vista settings were set to Network Discovery = on, File Sharing = on and Public Folder Sharing = on. Its a flippin' nuisance.

Kaptain Klevtsov

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