Originally Posted By wonderingalice Subject says it all, kids... Your feedback is very much needed. Our six-year-old Compaq is about two key strokes away from failing for good. I've been doing online review searching, etc., and it seems that pretty much every model of every brand simply BITES in one or more ways. We were thinking about going with Dell, but man! The horror stories - especially on the tech support side. Plus, it seems that it's mail order only for them, so I think we're going to head to CompUSA and /or Best Buy. What do you have? Hate it? Love it? Tech support good or bad? Thanks!! I'll check back as often as I can before we head out in another couple of hours.
Originally Posted By chickendumpling I am a computer idiot so I am no help to you at all. I'm just chiming in to say *Good Luck*!!!
Originally Posted By wonderingalice *LOL* Thanks, 'dumplin'! On good 'on' them, but the purchasing process scares the crud outta!
Originally Posted By vbdad55 I have worked for a let's say Big Blue computer company for 28 years and I would say I have some computer knowledge. Since we don't make personal computers any longer ( sold that business to China's Lenovo Group) - I can be objective here. IMHO - depends on desk top vs laptop. If you are buying a lap top computer - none better than Dell. If you are buying a desk top -- you can't go wrong with HP -- but the best way is to find yourself a computer geek -- go to tiger.com or any other large national computer warehouse, pick out your case / monitor etc and have them build you a desk top -- you can build twice the machine for little more than half the cost. That's what I do -- I built ( with a little help) a desk top well over and above any bundled deal on the market 6 months ago for less than $1000. Would compare and surpass $2500 units -- Almost all components are excellent quality these days and no one companies customer service is worth enough to you to buy their brand over another. just IMHO
Originally Posted By LVBelle *jumping into the conversation* Sorry, Alice, I can't help really but I was also curious about this. We're thinking about getting me a lap top since I'll be starting grad school soon. I don't want to spend a ton, maybe about a thousand. I don't need anything fancy (though hubby thinks otherwise of course!). Can I get anything decent at that price?
Originally Posted By vbdad55 LVbelle -- you can get an excellent lap top ( Dell) for around $1000 -- should be no issue - make sure you get a multi burner ( DVD - CD) - the biggest variance now comes from the size of the screen after the burner is out of the way
Originally Posted By goodgirl Six years is a decent life for a computer these days. What kinds of problems are you having Alice? Are they hardware related or software related?
Originally Posted By vbdad55 After 6 years your processor is way out of date from a speed perspective -- and due to be replaced....
Originally Posted By wonderingalice *Waves and grins at LVBelle* vbdad55... Thanks! I was leery about HP, but you've set my mind at ease. We really don't want to take the time to have one built, and I do like the idea of a large company I can 'jump' on if I have trouble. ;-) Hey goodgirl... it's really a 'goner.' I had a very knowledgeable friend run a bunch of cleaner-type/fix-it software programs a couple of years ago, and nothing helped. Basically, there are a variety of web sites I haven't been cruise to for about three years... common stuff like Hallmark.com, dogpile.com (a great search engine I use constantly at work), geocities.com and netscape.com for example. Other folks have told me it's a registry issue and that's a fix-it direction I definitely don't want to head into. Internet Explorer shuts itself down or fires itself up at random - bringing with it pop-ups for gambling and porn sites. Finally, this week, Netscape (our browser of choice) has apparently been attacked by a virus or trojan horse. It asks to be 'registered' every time we start it up and resets our home page. And it deleted my 'primary' e-mail settings along with all of the e-mail on the system. It bites to say the least. I've hung onto this thing about two years too long now. Hopefully, our new one will be trouble-free for a nice while.
Originally Posted By vbdad55 <vbdad55... Thanks! I was leery about HP, but you've set my mind at ease. We really don't want to take the time to have one built, and I do like the idea of a large company I can 'jump' on if I have trouble. ;-)< For what it's wirth - my #1 choice ( if I did not build it myself- or have some one build it for me ) - would be a Dell Laptop -- for the money you will get a decent life - portability - and actually some worth ($) in a few years if you were going to sell it. You can't hardly give away desktops - even many charities won't take them any more -- Goodwill stopped a few years ago. make sure you have a wireless card and you have far more function and utility to me than a desktop. Desktops are fine if you have to have unreal size hard drives ( most laptops have way more than you will ever use or need)
Originally Posted By wonderingalice The only thing about the laptop - aside from the fact that we never have a need totravel with a computer - is the monitor... We're looking for either a 19" or 21" LCD this time - hubby's choice.
Originally Posted By vbdad55 there are some HP models with wide screens -- bit you also could get a 21 inch monitor to hook up to the laptop. But as you say, if you really never have any need for travel you probably don;t need it. However consider the lack of need for a huge computer desk to house the CPU stack -- the monitor and printer -- you can use a laptop and a wireless connection to a printer hidden away -- asthetically more pleasing -- just a matter of taste
Originally Posted By trekkeruss You don't have to buy a PC. Apple makes computers too... and (in my best Tony the Tiger voice) they'rrre great! Expensive, yes, but near bulletproof, super-stable, and incredibly easy to use.
Originally Posted By trekkeruss You don't have to buy a PC. Apple makes computers too... and (in my best Tony the Tiger voice) they'rrre great! Expensive, yes, but near bulletproof, super-stable, and incredibly easy to use.
Originally Posted By trekkeruss I did NOT double post using an Apple computer! I am using the PC at work. lol
Originally Posted By Blacksheep Uncle from my perspective I think the key to getting a long lasting PC is to stay away from the "consumer" versions... go to HP or Gateway or where ever and look at the Business desktop...they tend to cost a little more and have fewer wiz-bang features but they tend to last a good deal longer and have far, FAR, fewer "what the heck" kind of problems... and in my personal experience (working as a tech consultant for a company that's resold ALL the major brand PCs) I'd stay as far away from Dell as possible...unless you're a corporate customer with a support contract, tech support is horrid at best... if I were spending my money, I'd buy an HP desktop or a Gateway laptop (but if get any laptop get a 3 year warranty that covers damage to the screen)
Originally Posted By Kennesaw Tom My friends who are with the California Highway Patrol get their laptops from Costco. That way if something happens to them ( they break, etc...) Costco will take the laptops back no questions asked. I'm not sure if Costco's return policy is still this liberal.
Originally Posted By SuperDry <<< go to HP or Gateway or where ever and look at the Business desktop...they tend to cost a little more and have fewer wiz-bang features but they tend to last a good deal longer and have far, FAR, fewer "what the heck" kind of problems... >>> Perhaps related to what you say above is that the business-oriented machines tend to have about 95% less crap pre-loaded onto the desktop. It's easy enough to ignore the "free offers" on consumer machines, but sometimes the pre-installed software is more in-your-face than that. The business-oriented machines tend to have very little pre-installed software beyond what comes with Windows.
Originally Posted By vbdad55 <I did NOT double post using an Apple computer! I am using the PC at work. lol< nope if it was from an Apple it wouldn't be readable--LOL! just kidding.
Originally Posted By goodgirl ^^ Very true, SuperDry. Most of the "free stuff" is never used anyway. Alice, I have had good results with Dell, although 95% of it has been on the corporate level. Support has rarely been needed but responsive otherwise. I have always heard good things about HP too. I used to hear that Gateway's support was bad, but don't know anyone who has purchased from Gateway in a couple years. Don't skimp on the processor and memory. Most PCs have pretty decent size hard drives. I'm not sure how heavy duty a PC user you are. I usually recommned XP Professional over XP Home. Over time we typically add software and updates to our computers. We add additional devices. We download stuff. Everything just gets mucked up over time. I usually "rebuild" my PC every 18 months (do a clean install of XP and all my programs). This can be a long process however. I've found the tips and suggestions from this guy to be very helpful. Many are advanced so don't fuss with them if they make you nervous. <a href="http://www.informationweek.com/story/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=12803122&pgno=1" target="_blank">http://www.informationweek.com /story/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=12803122&pgno=1</a> The key thing is to make a good clean backup of your system once you get it set up. Then install any additional programs you'll use and do another backup. If you corrupt your machine (unintentionally or with a virus) down the road or it starts getting really sluggish, the restoration process will be a little quicker. Also: The laptop suggestion is a good idea. You can get a nice docking station with flat screen monitor that makes for a clean desktop. You say you don't need your PC when you travel, but you will be surprised. You and Mr Alice take off for a weekend at Disneyland...there's free internet access in the room...LP is waiting for your trip report...I dunno...how can you resist... ;-)
