what to buy, what to buy

[Cow]

"Oh, and if you are interested in a PC, I can get you total top of the line for $700, and mid-range for $450. Bottom end (1.4GHz, 20GB, 256MB, 16MB Vid) runs you about $250. "  I will take you up on that sigma.  What does the 700$ get me?  I need a PC for my other house.

[SiGmA_X]

Cow - YGPM!

[Brain]

so, if i go with a power mac, what do you recommend for a monitor(a ctr one)
also what size, i was thinking a 17 or a 19 in mon should be good...

[Grifter]

There are plenty of cheap yet decent CRT's out there.... two things to consider:

You want one that has a high refresh rate at higher resolutions.  If you use 1600x1200 on a 19".... it makes a huge difference if it's at 60hz or 100hz.  If it's not at 85hz for the resolutions you'll be using... don't bother.

Next, look at the weight of the monitor and how much the shelf you are putting it on can hold.  I sagged a shelf on a desk with a 19"... it was much heavier then my old 15" I had before it.  

But there are plenty of good buys to be had out there... as long as you look at those specs, you should be ok.  I miss anything Ace?

[SiGmA_X]

You got it all Grifter (Sorry, I'm not Ace, but I just bought a 19" CRT)

You have got to keep the refresh rate above 75hz, or you will get a headache. I run mine at 85hz, at 1200x1600.

[Ace]

Sounds good GRIFT. Frankly I don't know much about monitors because I haven't had a need. We have had the same monitor for our G4 tower since we got it, and I don't have a monitor to hook up for my laptop. Heh, 15" has been plenty for me, but I guess that's because I have never had more.

One thing to go along with how much it weights, think about how deep it is. If you have a deep monitor and you don't have much desk space, this can be a problem sometimes. I don't know if you are in college, but I know at school desk space isn't always plentiful. Just a little thing to note.

[Brain]

)too bad i dont have the cash to by a plasma screen and use that...
another question
i have a memory module in my imac
can i use that in my new comp, or would it be easier/ neccessary to buy all new memory
(the reason i am asking all these questions is to confirm what i think i know, i want to buy the best setup i can with the money i earn, and i dont want to regret the purchace later

[Ace]

Brain, there's nothing wrong with asking questions (as long as you aren't directing them at Rom, hehe). As you said, it's much smarter to figure things out now than a year from now when you find out your computer choice was stupid and you want/need a new one.

Unfortunately, I don't think the memory from your iMac is going to be too helpful. If I remember correctly, they have a 66 mhz system bus, so your memory is probably the same speed (unless you stuck faster memory in for some reason). All the new computers have either a 100 mhz or 133 mhz system bus, so you will likely want PC100 or PC133 (depending on the system) to get the full benefit of a faster bus. However, this does not mean your current memory is worthless. Depending on what you get, you will either have 2 or 3 slots. Say you fill one slot up with a 512 MB stick (I would recommend always filling each slot to its highest capacity), but you don't have the money or need for more memory currently. You could stick whatever you have in your iMac in the other slot and see a small to medium boost until you decide you need to upgrade further (if you ever do). What do you have in your iMac currently?

PS - This doesn't apply to laptops. If you get a laptop, your memory won't fit.

[Grifter]

Brain, by all means ask away.  Everyone has to learn stuff sometime.  That doesn't make you a dumbass at all.

If you get the new powermac's, it will be with a 133mhz system bus.  You will not want to put in 66mhz DIMM's into it, sorry.  Not only could that cause errors and slow down your computer (if it worked... which I think it should, but don't know for sure), but RAM is pretty darn cheap right now.

I agree with Ace here.  Buy the biggest DIMM you have the cash for when you can.  But hey, with 512M DIMM's going for $70, and 256M going for $30, you should be able to pick up plenty for just a few bucks.

[Cow]

YGPM? uhh what?

[Brain]

so, you're saying get the comp with a 512  stick when i get it, and then order the rest  form another source, right?
and to answer aces question i have one 128 stick(in the slot that is hard as hell to get too) and one 256 stick
in the other. as far as we konw, that was the biggest module this system will recognize
also i do know somebody who wouldnt mind the extra memory, if they buy the system i have now (for small db management, nothing too serious)  so not carring over te extra ram is no big deal

[Ace]

Well, I wouldn't necessarily order it with a 512 MB stick from Apple. I'm not sure about their current prices, but it's usually cheaper to get the least RAM possible and get all of yours from an outside source.

[Grifter]

When you order it from apple... order it with the smallest amount of memory.  Right now on Apple's site, it's $300 for a 512meg DIMM for the new G4's... it's $90 on Ramjet and $70 on MemoryToGo.  So, what we are saying is get it with whatever it comes with, then just add the biggest DIMM you can after.  Hell, it comes with 128megs usually, get that, and even if you can only spend a few bucks, you can get another 256megs (and 384 will run just fine for a while).  But since RAM is cheap now, don't skimp on it.  Buy one DIMM as big as you can, cause you only have 3 slots to work with...

[Brain]

ok, that makes alot more sence
p.s. when is MWNY?

[Ace]

July 15-19. Of course, don't but anything before that because you would be throwing money or a better computer away.

[Brain]

that is exactly why i was asking
it is usually pro level machines at mwny, right?(or is that san fran...)

[Grifter]

The latest buzz on the rumor mills are to expect another big speed bump on the G4.  They don't expect to see the G5's at MWNY (we can hope, but the buzz isn't there).  Rumors are that the pro machines may bump as far as 1.5 and 1.6GHz.  Rumors also say that the iBook is getting another update (nothing specific, but I know that IBM has the G3's past a Gig now... ).  If the iBooks get another speed boost, then I'd expect the powerbooks to get one as well (can't have the iBooks G3 running at a faster MHz then the Powerbooks G4... it's just not done).  

You'll also see some hype about OS X 10.2 that will be out in Sept (just a guess).  

This could be like the MWNY a few years ago and see upgrades to every single unit (including the iPod).  It wouldn't surprise me at all, if the jump in G4 speed is that high.  But take it all with a grain of salt (or a brick)... because the rumors are usually much nicer then what we really get.