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...the introduction of a something new has inevitably caused a drop in the price of the older gear. DDR memory and 939 motherboards can be had quite cheaply...

What is the reason then for the price jump in DDR? I bought http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82 E16820227210/ for $150 back in March on rebate ($200 retail), and it now sells for $310 retail.

how does my case look? it's got 3 windows. 3!!! of course, the window on the side with the motherboard tray is pretty useless...

and, it may not be the smartest decision, since they get hella scratched up, but i've always been fond of the clear design

...They went with the 128MB version of the x800GTO. On Newegg.com you can get the 256MB version for $87, though to be fair it is third party. Strangely enough, I can't find an AGP equivalent for under $125.

I'm currently using the 256MB AGP version because I'm extremely cheap (and don't want to reinstall Windows -again- when I get a new motherboard), and I can attest to how greatly it performs.

The exist. Not exactly the most popular kind of motherboard in existence, but still - out there if you want them. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82 E16813157087

Is flash right out, or have you not noticed that useful quantities are getting pretty cheap?

For example:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82 E16820141037

4Gb for $68 isn't at all price competitive with a hard drive, but I bought a 1 gig card for $60 last fall. That's a pretty good trend, and 16 or 32 gigabytes of storage is right at the lower end of useful.

Newegg has a 12x17 inch flatbed for $1042.99 USD.

Specific model: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82 E16838150035/

I don't have any experience with Microtek scanners, but it'd probably get the job done.

:(

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82 E16814150189

I'll definately be putting this in my next computer I'm building. The AGP card I have now has a tiny fan that's noisier than anything even with it on the desktop. When are the 65nm based cards coming out?

Having a computer you can pull an HD and stick into to make offline scans is also very handy but bulky.

It doesn't have to be bulky. Carry a laptop and an IDE-to-USB cable (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N8 2E16812156101). Then you can connect the customer's drive to your laptop, where you can scan it, offload data files, etc. You might not even have to remove the drive from the box - just pull off the IDE ribbon and attach your adapter.

Many users take advantage of Tor and other anonymous web browsing tools, but is the amount of hassle worth the effort it takes to remain anonymous?

Core 2 Duo 6400s are now down to $229, from $340.

Your numbers don't add up. A 2.4GHz Athlon 64 is still going for $109 and was over $200 before Intel released the 6400.

How much did you pay for your 7600GT? The cheapest Newegg has them for is about $150. Maybe you're thinking of the 7600GS, which is $100.

So if you found a packaged deal of chip, ram, and mobo for $200, you still have another $150 for the video card. Yes you met the $340 price point, but not $229.

Presumably you bought a 7600GT because you're into gaming. You don't need it if you're not. So a 3800+ X2 gets you about 33% more FPS than the 3800+ you have. The benchmarks show the Core 2 Duo 6400 gets about 25-30% better fps than the 3800+ X2. So the 6400 is potentially 67% faster than your chip in games where the fps are CPU limited.

As for heat, the 6400 has a thermal dispersion of 65W, versus 62W for the 3800+. That's basically a tie. If your CPU cooler is an aftermarket model like Zalman, instead of the stock AMD, you could use your cooler with a 6400 and have no heat problems.

So in conclusion, you saved some money, but your performance is about 60% of the Core 2 Duo 6400.

Core 2 Duo 6400s are now down to $229, from $340.

Your numbers don't add up. A 2.4GHz Athlon 64 is still going for $109 and was over $200 before Intel released the 6400.

How much did you pay for your 7600GT? The cheapest Newegg has them for is about $150. Maybe you're thinking of the 7600GS, which is $100.

So if you found a packaged deal of chip, ram, and mobo for $200, you still have another $150 for the video card. Yes you met the $340 price point, but not $229.

Presumably you bought a 7600GT because you're into gaming. You don't need it if you're not. So a 3800+ X2 gets you about 33% more FPS than the 3800+ you have. The benchmarks show the Core 2 Duo 6400 gets about 25-30% better fps than the 3800+ X2. So the 6400 is potentially 67% faster than your chip in games where the fps are CPU limited.

As for heat, the 6400 has a thermal dispersion of 65W, versus 62W for the 3800+. That's basically a tie. If your CPU cooler is an aftermarket model like Zalman, instead of the stock AMD, you could use your cooler with a 6400 and have no heat problems.

So in conclusion, you saved some money, but your performance is about 60% of the Core 2 Duo 6400.

I imagine they meant to say AM2 X2, which does start at ~$152

...um... if that is the case, how do you explain these?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.asp?Cate gory=34&N=2010340343+50001028+1051720996+130282027 6&Submit=ENE&Manufactory=1028&SubCategory=343
You will see the listing of "single core" under each of the Athlon processors, along with the sempron,(which I know were not tested).
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82 E16819103631
Here you see an athlon AM2 3800+ that is single core. ...so which ones were they using? I can accept that they were beat, I just think it was kinda muddled... did they ever say that they were using X2's? Like I said, I think I missed it.

...um... if that is the case, how do you explain these?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.asp?Cate gory=34&N=2010340343+50001028+1051720996+130282027 6&Submit=ENE&Manufactory=1028&SubCategory=343
You will see the listing of "single core" under each of the Athlon processors, along with the sempron,(which I know were not tested).
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82 E16819103631
Here you see an athlon AM2 3800+ that is single core. ...so which ones were they using? I can accept that they were beat, I just think it was kinda muddled... did they ever say that they were using X2's? Like I said, I think I missed it.

Both companies bring five processors to the table, ranging from $152 to $1,075, with the mid-range CPUs boasting the best in price/performance.

the general consensus was PC games would dominate the market and console systems were doomed."What changed?"

Um a decent video card costs as much as an entire console... PC games with a few notable exceptions, have gone from being able to play them on almost any PC, to now only being truely playable on top of the line machines. Once you reach the pint where The point of entry for a PC game is 1GB of RAM, and a $200 video card it becomes hard to compete with a $200 - $300 console.

Samsung? Most of the panels you buy are from them anyway.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82 E16824001222
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82 E16824001223

Samsung? Most of the panels you buy are from them anyway.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82 E16824001222
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82 E16824001223

You work for them, don't you? Your post just drips with your agenda. "I assume that you have had the pleasure of using Apple hardware." Jesus. And this?" You realize that the quality of mac hardware is without comparison. Whether old or new mac hardware the build is beyond excellent and that is important to some people." No, Apple's hardware is not without comparison. The best PC hardware is just as good and often better. I use the best PC hardware and almost never have a problem with any of it whatsoever. (Windows itself is another story.) Yet I hear of Apple hardware problems on the internet almost every week. I'd love to see comparisons of the proportions of RMAed quality PC hardware versus RMAed Apple hardware -- I'd bet you a new gaming rig that they'd be lower. It's true that Apple beats the crap out of Dell, but someone like me never uses Dell parts for anything. You're right that excellent hardware matters to some people, it cetainly does to me, and that's why I build my own PCs from the best parts rather than buying Apple. I never build a computer using secnd-rate parts at all; my reputation in this area is built on that. If you bring me a Dell, Gateway, etc. I'll fix it and teach you how to use Windows more safely; if I build a computer for you, it will last at least 10 years. I don't mean to sound like a commercial for myself, I'm trying to show you how much what I do depends on great hardware.

As just a quick reference, go here, select sort by best rating and read on. Many of these parts have two hundred or more positive reviews without a single problem; several have over two hundred votes with no votes below 5 out of 5. If you actually read these you'll notice that several of them are written by people who don't treat their hardware delicately either. And that's just at Newegg; there are other sites. (I do my research on parts, so the reviews just at Newegg aren't enough for me.)

You're paying for OS X, yes, but you're also paying for what you *don't* buy.

However, since I no longer shop at Best Buy...

Care to elaborate?

http://www.newegg.com/

All Dell monitors I have dealt with include both cables, for future reference. Though I only deal with their high-end line. (:

At work, we get 17" NEC LCD monitors. They only include the VGA cable, which is extra lame because most of the computers have dual head video cards with a DVI port.

I'm semi-impressed. I actually considered buying one for the cost. However, it's still tough when I know I can pretty much build this PC (minus mac components) for about $1000 and keep my old monitor and peripherals...so is it really worth an extra $1000 to buy the 24" screen and OSX?

Core Duo 2 2.13Ghz - $235
GeForce 7600GT 256MB - $170
Asus Mobo - $120
Kingston DDR2 1GB - $100
WD 250GB SATA Drive - $120
Plextor DVD/CD/R/RW/KitchenSink - $100
Case - $200

Total: $1045 - a tad bit overbudget if you splurge on the case.

I'm semi-impressed. I actually considered buying one for the cost. However, it's still tough when I know I can pretty much build this PC (minus mac components) for about $1000 and keep my old monitor and peripherals...so is it really worth an extra $1000 to buy the 24" screen and OSX?

Core Duo 2 2.13Ghz - $235
GeForce 7600GT 256MB - $170
Asus Mobo - $120
Kingston DDR2 1GB - $100
WD 250GB SATA Drive - $120
Plextor DVD/CD/R/RW/KitchenSink - $100
Case - $200

Total: $1045 - a tad bit overbudget if you splurge on the case.

I'm semi-impressed. I actually considered buying one for the cost. However, it's still tough when I know I can pretty much build this PC (minus mac components) for about $1000 and keep my old monitor and peripherals...so is it really worth an extra $1000 to buy the 24" screen and OSX?

Core Duo 2 2.13Ghz - $235
GeForce 7600GT 256MB - $170
Asus Mobo - $120
Kingston DDR2 1GB - $100
WD 250GB SATA Drive - $120
Plextor DVD/CD/R/RW/KitchenSink - $100
Case - $200

Total: $1045 - a tad bit overbudget if you splurge on the case.

I'm semi-impressed. I actually considered buying one for the cost. However, it's still tough when I know I can pretty much build this PC (minus mac components) for about $1000 and keep my old monitor and peripherals...so is it really worth an extra $1000 to buy the 24" screen and OSX?

Core Duo 2 2.13Ghz - $235
GeForce 7600GT 256MB - $170
Asus Mobo - $120
Kingston DDR2 1GB - $100
WD 250GB SATA Drive - $120
Plextor DVD/CD/R/RW/KitchenSink - $100
Case - $200

Total: $1045 - a tad bit overbudget if you splurge on the case.

I'm semi-impressed. I actually considered buying one for the cost. However, it's still tough when I know I can pretty much build this PC (minus mac components) for about $1000 and keep my old monitor and peripherals...so is it really worth an extra $1000 to buy the 24" screen and OSX?

Core Duo 2 2.13Ghz - $235
GeForce 7600GT 256MB - $170
Asus Mobo - $120
Kingston DDR2 1GB - $100
WD 250GB SATA Drive - $120
Plextor DVD/CD/R/RW/KitchenSink - $100
Case - $200

Total: $1045 - a tad bit overbudget if you splurge on the case.

I'm semi-impressed. I actually considered buying one for the cost. However, it's still tough when I know I can pretty much build this PC (minus mac components) for about $1000 and keep my old monitor and peripherals...so is it really worth an extra $1000 to buy the 24" screen and OSX?

Core Duo 2 2.13Ghz - $235
GeForce 7600GT 256MB - $170
Asus Mobo - $120
Kingston DDR2 1GB - $100
WD 250GB SATA Drive - $120
Plextor DVD/CD/R/RW/KitchenSink - $100
Case - $200

Total: $1045 - a tad bit overbudget if you splurge on the case.

Microsoft just actually released an SP2B for XP. Not SP3, but SP2B reduces the number of updates after the initial install.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82 E16832116059
http://labnol.blogspot.com/2006/07/microsoft-windo ws-xp-sp2b-makes.html

shoving out $200 for a CD vs $400 for an entire computer.

Just so you know, Windows XP Home Edition is currently selling for $89.99 (plus shipping) on NewEgg. You have a point, but the price difference between a copy of Windows and a new PC is a bit more than you've suggested.

I have a brushed aluminum Lian Li case and bought this DVD Writer to go with it:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82 E16827152060

While it doesn't have the same "grain" you can't tell unless you get up next to it... I was really happy with the way it just blends into the front of my computer (as opposed to a beige or black one....).

Friedmud

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82 E16856110050
Here is the equivalent system without the distro. It shouldn't be too hard to configure Linux for this.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82 E16812105013

I suggest you download the black themed browzar - simply because they don't charge a $150 premium just to change the color to black like some other companies ;-)

I keep thinking of getting one of these:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82 E16811219014

for such situations.

Truly though, there is no backup solution for the home/small office user that I have found that makes me happy once data grows beyond what will fit on a single CD or DVD.

For those who can fit their data onto a CD or DVD though, I found a nice little script that can use either afio or tar to do the lifting. Those places do an overnight run every working day.

I have had to recover deleted data at one sight and everyone was happy.

I don't like backing up to hard disks. I want something that can be taken offsite and multiple copies kept.

Something else I am just in the middle of doing now is an overnight rsync run from multiple boxes (both linux and win xp) to an rsync server in another building a block away over an ssh tunnel. I am still in the testing phase for that and we are only doing key data, but it looks OK so far. I would prefer the second site was further away, but it is better than what we had before.

all the best,

drew
(da idea man)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82 E16815168001

And you're set. I don't think you can get over 2GB on this model though.

Seriously this is developers thinking too highly of themselves again and Crysis is even going to carry a Recommend spec computer of "Dual Core" which is absurd. If UT2007 can run on Xbox 360/PS3, and Crysis can't, they must really suck at coding. -VoG-

Yes, it's completely absurd to recommend that users have a dual-core processor for best performance! It's only six months till the game comes out, and right now purchasing a dual-core processor is hideously expensive! There's no way any user will shell out $152 for a CPU with the economy as sluggish as it is right now. Why, at release time, the recommended spec processor probably won't be available for less than $120! This is ridiculous! If I didn't already have two dual-core machines in my household, I'd say it was impossible.
 

4GB of memory is about $400+, $400 is the cost of the entire computer for most users. How could you possibly claim that everyone should have 4GB?

Not quite $400. Although it's not far off ($300, although a friend of mine purchased 2GB for $80 from newegg), you argument is slightly fallacious. "Most users" don't need 4gb of ram because of the price, but because they have no need for it. Gaming is still comfortable at a quarter of that or less.

I went with the one they recommend in the Hot Rod system - the Asus P5N32-SLI SE Deluxe.
Fanless design, 2 x16 PCI Xpress slots for SLI, 8 phase power, 2 SATA RAID controllers, dual gig-Ethernet, firewire etc.

Although I've heard some issues, I believe with outdated BIOS and the Conroe chips. I guess I'll see when it comes in.

The Core2 E6600 seems to be a nice bang for the money as it is right around the middle of the currently available speed grades and is the cheapest iteration with 4MB of L2 cache. It also seems to be competitive with dual core AMD products (my usual choice) that are substantially more expensive.

The Core2 E6600 seems to be a nice bang for the money as it is right around the middle of the currently available speed grades and is the cheapest iteration with 4MB of L2 cache. It also seems to be competitive with dual core AMD products (my usual choice) that are substantially more expensive.

The Core2 E6600 seems to be a nice bang for the money as it is right around the middle of the currently available speed grades and is the cheapest iteration with 4MB of L2 cache. It also seems to be competitive with dual core AMD products (my usual choice) that are substantially more expensive.

The Core2 E6600 seems to be a nice bang for the money as it is right around the middle of the currently available speed grades and is the cheapest iteration with 4MB of L2 cache. It also seems to be competitive with dual core AMD products (my usual choice) that are substantially more expensive.

Speaking of micro- versus miniSD, I've looked at Sansa's offering with interest since I'm looking for a flash-based mp3/media player but that microSD thing is an annoyance. Has anyone had a chance to play with the Kinston K-PEX? It's too new for there to be a decent amount of reviews out there. 1 or 2GB, miniSD, $105, ogg support... Sure, it looks pretty awful but the feature list is nice.

I'd strongly recommend what I use, which is a Palm T|X with a 4GB SD card. The T|X itself has great features: 320x480 screen, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, stereo with standard headphone jack, solid battery life, 128 MB of NVRAM, in-box compatibility with not only popular PIMs but MS Office files in native format. Add to that a 4 GB SD card (available for about $65 or less after rebate at Newegg.com--I use the Transcend one), and you've got enough add-on storage (which supports hierarchical folders) to store a whole bunch of multimedia as well as documents. The PalmOS isn't the most sophisticated, but it makes up for that with speed, simplicity, stability, and thousands of apps. Mac compatibility comes through apps like MarkSpace's Missing Sync, and the Palm user community is tremendously supportive, including sites like PalmAddict (for which I'm a volunteer Associate Writer). Add a Bluetooth keyboard like the compact ThinkOutside model, and you've got a serious laptop replacement that will play well with campus wireless networks.

If you need any other info., feel free to e-mail me. {Prof. Jonathan}

The new CPUs may be great, the motherboards available now are good and fairly cheap, the video cards are as expensive as ever, but memory has went up in cost by $20 or more just in the last month. Now is not the time to upgrade to the latest & greatest. Get last year's (or even the year before that) best Linux-friendly hardware and buy used memory.

* a web server
* E-mail (SMTP, IMAP) server
* DNS server
* a file server (SMB, AFP) for internal (with a big hard drive)
* ssh access
* complete headless setup and configuration
* very small (Mac mini sized or smaller)
* maybe a print server
* wireless access point
* maybe VPN from the outside, or site-to-site tunnels
* some means to back the whole thing up (easily)

2 suggestions spring to mind - a KuroBox for about $150, or if you'd like it with a drive already installed, a Buffalo Linkstation (newegg link) for just a few buck more. I have a 400GB Gig-E Linkstation that's currently running Debian (took all of 5 minutes to reflash it to deb), and it serves just about every purpose you list above except the WAP... It has 2 USB ports for external storage or printers (hmm, you could probably plug in a usb wifi adapter and get the WAP thing working too), it's very quiet, and is about the size of a mac mini.

Even without the debian re-flash, this box can do a lot of what you list above - it *is* a home server - but apt-get goodness just makes it that much more flexible.

$260 on newegg
linky

And I don't understand why you bring up Socket 478, considering that no Core2-branded processors or even recent Pentiums use it

I respectfully disagree:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82 E16819111178

http://www.pricerunner.com/computing/components/cp u/552315/prices

1 GB per dollar - Memorex Blu-Ray write-once disc: $25, 25 GB
http://focuscamera.com/sc/froogle-lead-1.asp?id=96 4669100&rf=froogle&dfdate=08_10_2006&sid=362233316

2.9 GB per dollar - Samsung Spinpoint: $55, 160 GB harddrive
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82 E16822152020

And that is just the blu-ray disc, not the drive.

Winsor's series Athlons come with AMD Virtualization, here is a newegg link to one: http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82 E16819103735