Coyotegods: Microsoft XP Pro

Dan asked me that in an email a while back. Here was my reply. Some of the links might be old.

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My company used Dell for quite a while. Then a few years back we got a new batch of computers (we upgrade every 2 years) and the new stuff was junk. Tons of problems. It's like their QC went to pot. There's always a chance of getting a lemon, but this was a high percentage. Enough to make my company switch manufacturers. They went with HP. I've had some HP machines myself as well and if I was picking a major brand, that's who I would go with.

Really the best deals are clearance models. It's like most anything else. The new stuff comes out and they slash the prices on the old stuff. Truth is, the hardware is way more powerful than most people need. Unless you are trying to keep up with the new games, that always use more and more resources, the same 1 ghz processor of a few years ago is still good to surf the web. Only thing is it's hard to find one that slow anymore. Refurbished deals are also good. When they get refurbished if there is any problem with part of a component, they replace the whole thing. Most often the only original piece is the case.

uBid is a place I've bought from before. They normally get these clearance and refurbished pieces. Some are auctions, some are buy it now. Here is the category I would look at.

http://www.ubid.com/computers/desktop-computers/2.3ghz-to-2.9ghz/

You'll notice on that list the Dell Optiplex. I'd stay away from all Dell, but that's just a personal preference. That model though is a paper weight. There's a reason they're only $60. Stay far any from any Optiplex.

That category machine will give you a relatively new computer that will have easy compatability, be screaming fast and not cost a bunch of money. RAM is cheap, so when looking don't worry about how much comes with it. You can always upgrade. For that I buy from http://www.4allmemory.com/ They have a tool where you pop in your computer specs and it tells you which RAM is guaranteed to work.

New Egg also has good deals.

http://www.newegg.com/Store/SubCategory.aspx?SubCategory=10&name=Desktop-PCs

Most of their stuff is new model, so to get the same price you need to move down the ladder a bit. In the same $400-$500 range you'll see things like Acer, HP Compaq, Gateway, etc. Again, I'd go with the HP Compaq. It's still an HP, just originally from Compaq design. Kind of like how Remington bought the Charles Daily mauser.

The other good thing about NewEgg are the reviews. Lots of geeks go there, so if something has a bunch of reviews and good marks, it's normally good. Any glaring problems will come out.

For a monitor, LCD flatscreen is the only way to go. For those I have no preference on brand. I just poke around with the list of ones that have the specs I want and read reviews until I find a good one for a good price.

Specific buys:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883107560 - Comes with XP. Max out the RAM and stick a monitor on it and you're done.

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As for the OS, you can do everything on Linux, but if you're more comfortable with XP and don't want to try something new then stick with it. I find XP terribly annoying and bloated, but it does work... most of the time.

Just turn off all the automatic updates and other "helpful features".

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First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win.