The perfect study
Discussion
A few months ago my old PC stopped working for about the tenth time in ten days. I got so sick of it that I jumped in my car and went to PC World, where I told the bloke “you’ve got ten minutes to sell me a really good PC that won’t go wrong all the time, and won’t be obsolete in six months”.
So, 9 minutes and 59 seconds later, I’m £1500 quid poorer. But, I’ve got this ‘all singing, all dancing’ computer. All I want it for though, is accessing the net and writing a few letters. Today, out of interest, I decide to put the batteries in a remote control that it came with. Blow me down, my PC can do everything:
Picks up terrestrial TV
Records terrestrial TV (on a hard disk, like Sky Plus)
Picks up FM and AM radio
Plays DVD’s and CD’s.
Does loads of things with photos and videos
And a whole load of other stuff I don’t yet understand.
My point is, I’ve got a study with a comfy chair, a desk and a magic computer. I will never leave to leave this room, except for food, sleep and holidays.
So, 9 minutes and 59 seconds later, I’m £1500 quid poorer. But, I’ve got this ‘all singing, all dancing’ computer. All I want it for though, is accessing the net and writing a few letters. Today, out of interest, I decide to put the batteries in a remote control that it came with. Blow me down, my PC can do everything:
Picks up terrestrial TV
Records terrestrial TV (on a hard disk, like Sky Plus)
Picks up FM and AM radio
Plays DVD’s and CD’s.
Does loads of things with photos and videos
And a whole load of other stuff I don’t yet understand.
My point is, I’ve got a study with a comfy chair, a desk and a magic computer. I will never leave to leave this room, except for food, sleep and holidays.
docevi1 said:
and yet another case of a sales person selling something which doesn't match the users needs 
Shame, but at least this has a happyish ending
What makes you say that?
I ask for something which won't go wrong - it hasn't.
I ask for something that won't be obsolete quickly - and this thing won't be until the next century.
As such, it could be argued the sales chapie did exactly the right thing.
it could be argued that, but with modern day machinery nothing really goes wrong hardware wise (it's the crap users install that makes the software die). In reality, your machine is already dated as unless you have SLi and PCIe which is to be released around now (if it's not already filtering out) you're machine is outdated and support will gradualy fade away.
For what you need, you could have bought a £500 Dell box which would have suited your needs perfectly, instead the sales person sold something which wasn't exactly needed.
The worrying thing is that same person would use the same tactic to sell to someone who doesn't have the cash to splash out such as an old Granny who only wanted something for her grandchild to play on when he came round (I have heard it done). If you are happy, great and maybe he did it right using what you were saying at the time, but there is a strong chance he played you along and you bought something you will never use the full potential of!
For what you need, you could have bought a £500 Dell box which would have suited your needs perfectly, instead the sales person sold something which wasn't exactly needed.
The worrying thing is that same person would use the same tactic to sell to someone who doesn't have the cash to splash out such as an old Granny who only wanted something for her grandchild to play on when he came round (I have heard it done). If you are happy, great and maybe he did it right using what you were saying at the time, but there is a strong chance he played you along and you bought something you will never use the full potential of!
Obsolete? It has been bought, you've taken it home, and I notice the killer phrase 'a few months'.
It's obsolete. End of story.
Having said that, I last performed a major upgrade on my pc two years ago. It still does all I want it to do, and plays current games ok, including doom3 (ok, I changed the graphics card). Obsolete deosn't mean what it used to a few years ago.
It's obsolete. End of story.
Having said that, I last performed a major upgrade on my pc two years ago. It still does all I want it to do, and plays current games ok, including doom3 (ok, I changed the graphics card). Obsolete deosn't mean what it used to a few years ago.
"SLi" and "PCIe" - what the hell is that?
I've just remembered actually, now I think about it, I also said to the bloke that I want one that looks the "dogs danglies" (how shallow is that?) He kept showing me PC's and I kept saying that they 'look boring' - then when he showed me some fancy ones, it was like he was selling me a piece of furniture.
I've just remembered actually, now I think about it, I also said to the bloke that I want one that looks the "dogs danglies" (how shallow is that?) He kept showing me PC's and I kept saying that they 'look boring' - then when he showed me some fancy ones, it was like he was selling me a piece of furniture.
srebbe64 said:
I’ve got a study with a comfy chair, a desk and a magic computer. I will never leave to leave this room, except for food, sleep and holidays.
Inference: you either poo in your bed or on holiday
But yes, you paid 3x more than you needed, and got lots of toys you didn't want and/or didn't even know existed. Luckily you're happy with this so all is well, but others might say you'd been done up like a kipper
Still, he whos dies with the most toys wins!
srebbe64 said:
My point is, I’ve got a study with a comfy chair, a desk and a magic computer. I will never leave to leave this room, except for food, sleep and holidays.
I know the feeling. But what you really need is what I have here as I sit and type this:
A study with PC and Cable TV. It is in a room off my games room where there are pinball tables, a pool table, arcade machines, and a home cinema projection system. In a area off the games room is a full bar with optics, and just off that a second kitchen with beer fridge and microwave.
My wife rarely sees me...
>> Edited by alexkp on Friday 17th December 23:15
srebbe64 said:
"SLi" and "PCIe" - what the hell is that?
I've just remembered actually, now I think about it, I also said to the bloke that I want one that looks the "dogs danglies" (how shallow is that?) He kept showing me PC's and I kept saying that they 'look boring' - then when he showed me some fancy ones, it was like he was selling me a piece of furniture.
SLi is a new interface for graphics cards, it's replacing the old AGP and is designed to be the dog's dangles apparently with nVidia doing an old Voodoo2 trick of allowing two cards to be plugged together for uber speed (although I see a card is coming to the market without SLi but 2 GPU's
). PCIe is PCI express, a faster, slimmer PCI port which is replacing PCI technology completely. There isn't much call for it at the moment, but give a couple of months and more periphals and cards will be using the interface.
Then again, since you asked for a pretty case, and refused the cheaper ones I guess you are happy with what it looks like and don't really care what's inside
vixpy1 said:
The best upgrade I made was to TWO 19 inch monitors side by side and a twin output graphics card.
Side by Side surfing .. YEA!
Next upgrade is to two 21 Flatscreens..
now that would be nice, although my desk isn't big enough for one 19" as it is. It sits to close to my face and I have to make the resolution really high to be able to see the damned thing (long sighted)anonymous said:
[redacted]
Sounds great Alex. I'm currently looking at designing and building a house, on about an acre of land. I've said to the wife, that she can design it as she wants, but I want one luxury for myself; namely "a proper home theatre". So, next spring I'll be looking seriously at one or two systems. Nowadays, a decent home theatre is as good as a proper movie house. I love movies - but hate cinemas (all those munching, talking brats). This time next year will be utopia for me!
SLI used to be scan line interweaving. Can't remember what it is now, but it is essentially the same than as it was then (5 or 6 years ago). It is the interconnection of two graphics cards to share the processing load. Means that you can use two graphics cards on a single display; only really any good for highly 3D intensive work. Games, in other words. No current games, with the possible exception of doom3 need that level of processing, and by the time they do, they'll be a new super dooper graphics card out that will do the work of the two cards you've just bought(or not), for the same price as one card, or less.
PCIe is PCI express. PCI is an adapter bus standard that had been around a long time(long for the compuiting world, anyway - 5 years, ish). PCIe is its replacement. Your motherboard almost certainly has both types of slots, if the salesman was wittering on about it. Means that you're relatively future proof. You've probably got one PCIe 16x socket for your graphics card, 2 PCIe 1x sockets for cards like modems, usb/firewire cards, etc, and the rest will be PCI, for all the current boards. I haven't seen anything other than graphics cards using PCIe yet.
PCIe is PCI express. PCI is an adapter bus standard that had been around a long time(long for the compuiting world, anyway - 5 years, ish). PCIe is its replacement. Your motherboard almost certainly has both types of slots, if the salesman was wittering on about it. Means that you're relatively future proof. You've probably got one PCIe 16x socket for your graphics card, 2 PCIe 1x sockets for cards like modems, usb/firewire cards, etc, and the rest will be PCI, for all the current boards. I haven't seen anything other than graphics cards using PCIe yet.
docevi1 said:
"SLi" and "PCIe" - what the hell is that?
I've just remembered actually, now I think about it, I also said to the bloke that I want one that looks the "dogs danglies" (how shallow is that?) He kept showing me PC's and I kept saying that they 'look boring' - then when he showed me some fancy ones, it was like he was selling me a piece of furniture.
SLi is a new interface for graphics cards, it's replacing the old AGP and is designed to be the dog's dangles apparently with nVidia doing an old Voodoo2 trick of allowing two cards to be plugged together for uber speed (although I see a card is coming to the market without SLi but 2 GPU's
PCIe is PCI express, a faster, slimmer PCI port which is replacing PCI technology completely. There isn't much call for it at the moment, but give a couple of months and more periphals and cards will be using the interface.
There's no polite way of saying this, but what the hell are you talking about? If I don't know what "SLi" and "PCIe" is, what makes you think I'd understand all the other cobblers. Remember I'm 40 years old, I would wager that you're younger than me!
srebbe64 said:
Sounds great Alex. I'm currently looking at designing and building a house, on about an acre of land. I've said to the wife, that she can design it as she wants, but I want one luxury for myself; namely "a proper home theatre". So, next spring I'll be looking seriously at one or two systems. Nowadays, a decent home theatre is as good as a proper movie house. I love movies - but hate cinemas (all those munching, talking brats). This time next year will be utopia for me!
I can't stand going to cinemas. Last time I went was Pirates of the Carribean and the missus and I nearly started a fight with some talking/munching/popcorn throwing Chavs.
Like I said before - anytime you want to come up, let me know.
jimmyjimjim said:
SLI used to be scan line interweaving. Can't remember what it is now, but it is essentially the same than as it was then (5 or 6 years ago). It is the interconnection of two graphics cards to share the processing load. Means that you can use two graphics cards on a single display; only really any good for highly 3D intensive work. Games, in other words. No current games, with the possible exception of doom3 need that level of processing, and by the time they do, they'll be a new super dooper graphics card out that will do the work of the two cards you've just bought(or not), for the same price as one card, or less.
PCIe is PCI express. PCI is an adapter bus standard that had been around a long time(long for the compuiting world, anyway - 5 years, ish). PCIe is its replacement. Your motherboard almost certainly has both types of slots, if the salesman was wittering on about it. Means that you're relatively future proof. You've probably got one PCIe 16x socket for your graphics card, 2 PCIe 1x sockets for cards like modems, usb/firewire cards, etc, and the rest will be PCI, for all the current boards. I haven't seen anything other than graphics cards using PCIe yet.
I think I might have died and gone to "PH Teckie Hell".
sorry, 21 computing science student Easier way, new stuff recently recently which is the future, as mentioned it's likely you have it, but it's certainly not future-proofing yourself buying a computer
just re-read my post in context. Didn't help much did it. Sorry. >> Edited by docevi1 on Friday 17th December 23:28
alexkp said:
anonymous said:[redacted]
Sounds great Alex. I'm currently looking at designing and building a house, on about an acre of land. I've said to the wife, that she can design it as she wants, but I want one luxury for myself; namely "a proper home theatre". So, next spring I'll be looking seriously at one or two systems. Nowadays, a decent home theatre is as good as a proper movie house. I love movies - but hate cinemas (all those munching, talking brats). This time next year will be utopia for me!
I can't stand going to cinemas. Last time I went was Pirates of the Carribean and the missus and I nearly started a fight with some talking/munching/popcorn throwing Chavs.
Like I said before - anytime you want to come up, let me know.
Cheers Alex - I might just take you up on that, especially if you've got home theatre.
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