Windows Vista

[jimmyjack]

I think we've had quite enough talk of that here already

damn:Banghead:Banghead:stirthepot

 

[bear]

Vista mostly has a bad rap. Yes they did force Intel to say it could run on minimal resources and it does but not very fast I have it running on my two computers for my college work one of which is my CAD and parametric modelling workstation the other is for papers and stuff. I have a nice little box running Linux around here too. Just like any other tool being used for specific jobs.

 

[Squizzy246B]

Vista mostly has a bad rap. Yes they did force Intel to say it could run on minimal resources and it does but not very fast I have it running on my two computers for my college work one of which is my CAD and parametric modelling workstation the other is for papers and stuff. I have a nice little box running Linux around here too. Just like any other tool being used for specific jobs.

bear, your starting to worry me with your obvious computer savvy

 

[RonG]

I get my porn on the cooking channel.Ron G

 

[Grader4me]

I get my porn on the cooking channel.Ron G

:lmao The Naked Chef?? lol.

 

[Squizzy246B]

I get my porn on the cooking channel.Ron G

Whens the tool channel starting....or the construction equipment channel??

Back to Vista...sounds like I should hang on with XP then leapfrog to Wundows 7

 

[bear]

bear, your starting to worry me with your obvious computer savvy

How so Squizzy? I've always been pretty good with nuts and bolts computers are somewhat of an extension of that. That old movie Wargames got me started just because if some idiot had gotten a decimal place wrong and was going to end the world because of it I might know why it happened. :beatsme I just hate not knowing. Another idle thought is, we are almost through our first decade of the 2000's dangit I want my nuclear powered car motercycle and D-11. :cool2 know what I mean? From a technical standpoint it wouldn't be difficult it's just not politically favorable like many things that get flushed until some emergency happens or something. I always liked being able to say " I told you so" as well, doesn't keep me popular with the family either. :Banghead :tong ointhead

Back to topic....

Windows 7 does look good and runs good so far. I've got a beta copy running on my old crap " if it blows up no loss" computer and it's running it better than it did Xp. I think it'll be a good O/S if they don't screw it up. Which being MS it's not impossible.

 

[Squizzy246B]

Bear, I was hacking on you for being Geeky (its just jealousy)

and its a D12 or D13 your looking for in the 21st century....and maybe a Delorian with a flux capacitor.

 

[bear]

Bear, I was hacking on you for being Geeky (its just jealousy)

and its a D12 or D13 your looking for in the 21st century....and maybe a Delorian with a flux capacitor.

No sweat, not the sharpest tool when it comes to human to human interfaces

D 12 or D13... you're right a puny D11 would never handle the raw power.

 

[Dwan Hall]

Looks like if you stick to xp on older machines and not up grade everything will be fine but if you are getting a new machine then Vista is fine on them.

inotherwords an upgrade should include a new computer.

 

[HEO Girl]

Got this right off the Mircorsoft.com website
Windows Vista recommended system requirements: Home Edition
*1 GHz 32-bit (x86) or 64-bit (x64) processor
*512 MB of system memory
*20 GB hard drive with at least 15 GB of available space
*Support for DirectX 9 graphics and 32 MB of graphics memory
*DVD-ROM drive
*Audio Output
*Internet access (fees may apply)

Additional requirements

Actual requirements and product functionality may vary based on your system configuration. Windows Vista Upgrade Advisor can help you determine which features and edition of Windows Vista will run on your computer.

While all editions of Windows Vista can support multiple core CPUs, only Windows Vista Business, Ultimate, and Enterprise can support dual processors.
___________________________________
Those specs are a joke!!! Sure if you want to wait around for Vista to take hours to actually do something and have no hard drive space whatsoever then sure I'd recommend these specs . . .

Vista is an absolute memory hog. Vista caches applications to help them respond more quickly, but the caching process consumes a lot of RAM. If you are buying workstations today with an eye toward an eventual upgrade to Vista, I would order them with at least 2 GB of RAM. Even if you don't end up ever deploying Vista, XP can benefit from having a couple of gigs of RAM.
*Atleast 2 GB of RAM
------------------
Windows Vista will ship on DVD discs, so a DVD-ROM drive, at a minimum, is required to install from the Vista discs.
*DVD-ROM drive
-------------------
The 80 GB Hard Drive will do you more good then that 20 GB one they recommend up there because they even say you have to keep 15 GB of that free to run Vista so at the very least an 80 GB one. I suppose you could get by with a 40GB one to.
*40 to 80 GB Hard Drive
-------------------
They recommend a 1 GHz Processor. . I don't even run a 1 GHz processor in my XP machine and I'm pretty sure if I did I would cry. With Vista being such a hog with resources go with a 2 GHz processor or if you wanted to go better more power to ya.
*Atleast a 2 GHz Processor
-------------------
Every single thing in Vista is 3D so when they say a Graphics Card with 32MB of memory they are retarded!! Get a Graphics Card with at least 128MB of memory, a 256MB of memory would be better depending on what you want to spend and what you do on your computer. Remember though it should support DirectX 9.
*Support for DirectX 9 graphics and 128 to 256 MB Graphics memory
------------------

 

[Wolfcsm]

VISTA will probably not work well on a two year old system - even one that was at the time on the bleeding edge of technology.

I have it running on a total of four systems today. Each had 1 to 2 GB of RAN per processor. Remember that new systems are mostly all milti processor systems right now. I have a 4 processor desktop, two 2 processor laptops and a 3gb single processor system.

Hard drives are very cheep today.More is better! 1TB is good, 2TB in a RAID configuration is even better. Video cards are the same way. Unless you are a hard core gamer, you can get a card that will run anything with 256 or 512mb of ram for not too much money.

E-machines makes a lot of low cost and fairly powerful systems. They are not going to be able to run the latest game at full speed.

For those who are gamers and want the latest, fastest, greatest gaming system Falcon Northwest http://www.falcon-nw.com/ or Alienware http://www.alienware.com/ have some of the fastest and most expensive systems that WILL play and game as fast as you want - for up to and over $10k.

A system NEVER runs well at the MICROSOFT minimum configuration. That is just fact. The RECOMMENDED configuration is probably the minimum to be able to use the system. Well above the RECOMMENDED configuration is going to get you the experience you figure you should have from the software. Then you can talk about the quirks of the operating system or program.

Hal

 

[Grader4me]

Deleted post

 

[HEO Girl]

Wolfcsm - Although http://www.falcon-nw.com/ or Alienware http://www.alienware.com/ have some pretty neat machines there they are all WAY over priced for what they have in them. You are just basically paying for the name and those neat cases they give you. You could build something probably the same or even a bit better for a much lower price.

Edit: Also in Alienwares laptops they have been notorious for overheating processors. Always see them comin into the shop. Not to mention they are wicked heavy

 

[Squizzy246B]

G4Me: My computer shop reckons they don't put out a Vista system without 2Gb of RAM.

 

[Wolfcsm]

Wolfcsm - Although http://www.falcon-nw.com/ or Alienware http://www.alienware.com/ have some pretty neat machines there they are all WAY over priced for what they have in them. You are just basically paying for the name and those neat cases they give you. You could build something probably the same or even a bit better for a much lower price.

Edit: Also in Alienwares laptops they have been notorious for overheating processors. Always see them comin into the shop. Not to mention they are wicked heavy

Maybe, but I doubt that you could get liquid cooling, 2 X 1.7GB video cards - overclocked, etc. You do get what you pay for.

A lap top for gaming, at the bleeding edge of technology is going to be both heavy and hot - think about how much cooling is in a desktop gaming system, at the bleeding edge. Auxillery coolers for laptops have been avilable for years that can bring down the temperature of the system quite a bit. But, I would say that for real hard core gaming you must have a desktop system. Any lap top is going to be a compromise.

My experience is that when building a system it tends to cost more. Mostly because of the choices made and the cost of those choices. A company like AlienWare can take some advantage of quantity discounts, when buying the same hign end components.

Hal

 

[HEO Girl]

Sorry to pick at you wolf buuuttt
Overclocking severely lowers the lifetime on anything and is not recommended. Take it from some one who thought she was cool by overclocking her processor . . Well guess what, ate right threw the thermal paste and burnt the motherboard. It was still usable however I had to keep a huge fan on it and take the side panel off or else the thing would just go into melt down mode. Had to put more thermal paste on the processor but the thing would still overheat and overclock itself (after I had taken it and put it back to regular). That computer went threw thermal paste like candy, every 3 months I was reapply thermal paste. Sooooo needless to say I will never EVER overclock a processor again. There is a reason they are set the way they are.

Some of what you say is true but I built my computer much cheaper and tad bit better then the prebuilt massive computer companies. And believe me it was on the bleeding edge of technology . Now not so much anymore what with those quadcores out :tong.

I do agree that doing heavy gaming on a laptop of course will make it run hot and possibly have a better chance of overheating no matter how good you build it.
However having those outside fans running on your laptop puts more strain on the ones actually on the inside and could also shorten their life. I would not use them as it is just in my preference but I have herd people have good luck with them.
Had them on my Xbox . . Killed the inside fan . . Got them famous Red Rings of Death Haha.

 

[Wolfcsm]

Sorry to pick at you wolf buuuttt
Overclocking severely lowers the lifetime on anything and is not recommended. Take it from some one who thought she was cool by overclocking her processor . . Well guess what, ate right threw the thermal paste and burnt the motherboard. It was still usable however I had to keep a huge fan on it and take the side panel off or else the thing would just go into melt down mode. Had to put more thermal paste on the processor but the thing would still overheat and overclock itself (after I had taken it and put it back to regular). That computer went threw thermal paste like candy, every 3 months I was reapply thermal paste. Sooooo needless to say I will never EVER overclock a processor again. There is a reason they are set the way they are.

Cooling, cooling, cooling.

Any attempt at overclocking is a ballance between heat and performance. You are correct, the processor is set by the maker at a certain clock rate and voltage. Most of that has to do with heat - that produced by the processor and the heat that the heat management system of the computer can disapate.

I have seen and heard about systems running at 6GHZ today - cooled by liquid nitrogen. Fairly stable. One should not expect a system overclocked by 25% to last forever. Most who do the overclocking will want the latest and fastest processor out anyway.

Overclocking is for a very specific user who understands heat and can manage it. Understands the risks of overclocking and accepts them. Or someone who does not understand and ends up with expensive melted junk.

At one time there was a company that made a case with a refrigeration unit at the bottom blowing freezing air up into the system. Went out of business as things got faster and there were far less willing to take the risks of overclocking.

But, hardcore gamers want every last small bit of performance out of each and every component they have and use every trick to get there.

The average user (95+%) would not put even a 20% load on their systems and could never take advantage of an overclocked system. There is a small group that just wants to talk statistics and has an overslocked system just to have the numbers.

Hal

 

[Squizzy246B]

Sorry to pick at you wolf buuuttt
Overclocking severely lowers the lifetime on anything and is not recommended. Take it from some one who thought she was cool by overclocking her processor . . Well guess what, ate right threw the thermal paste and burnt the motherboard.

I had a chuckle at your expense. Any overclocking starts with a Bigger Power Supply with twin fans (normally speed controllable), a little program to monitor the CPU temperature and a great big extra case fan, that is usually noisy. And thats just the start for novice over-clockers.

It always best to start be reading all the overclocking geek forums

 

[HEO Girl]

Haha glad you got a good laugh Squizzy . Thats how I learned many things about computers, by making mistakes to my old one. Such as that time my power supply blew up (smells horrible by the way), my friend actually gave me one he found at the dump (I did check to make sure the voltages were correct though and they were) it worked well I still have it in there today although that computer doesn't run anymore. Just needs a HD but I'm so done with that piece of poop. Then there was that time that my Disc Drive stopped working randomly . . . Had to get another one of them. That computer also ate HD's for breakfast!!! I swear every couple of months I was replacing the HD in that darn thing. Actually let me rephrase that, every couple of months I was replacing SOMETHING in that darn thing!!! This is why I got myself another one . . and I'm still paying it off :Banghead. Gotta love parent loans . Although this computer now still has a HD problem (now that I think of it this HD did come from my old computer). :beatsme I just can't escape it. Basically I touch it, it breaks haha :crying


This summer I'm going to get a laptop and although those Alienwares sure are pretty I wont get one. Although I really do want one, my computer tech friends have to slap me once in awhile.

Thanks for that info Wolfcsm that made some things much clearer for me on the overclocking :drinkup