Look, you don’t need anything fancy for what you’re doing. You just don’t. The Dell outlet is a good source for inexpensive computers. Some are refurbs, some are new returns. If you look around, you can find one with a decent warranty or you can purchase one.
I’m not a big on buying machines from the big guys, but I can’t build an average use rig, for what I could get one for from Dell. They often have specials on certain machines as well.
I have no problems with Vista and honestly, if you’re going to be purchasing a newer machine, you should get the most current OS for it, IMO.
You should be able to get a good machine for $400, not counting a printer and I think you can find a decent color one for under $200.
It’s relevant because you can buy used software at a substantial savings and you don’t have to worry about compatibility problems with XP like you do with Vista.
Judging from the request for information, gigi wants to get the best bang for the buck. When Microsoft doesn’t support its own products then the design of the new system becomes a deliberate attempt at forced obsolescence. Since we are virtually forced to buy Vista with a new PC I think it is worth noting so gigi can make an informed decision.
Please elucidate me on what old MS software she might need to buy on the resale market that isn’t supported. I’m quite curious what massive roadblock she is facing here based on here needs.
Word 2002, Excel 2002, Access 97, Microsoft Works Ver 7 and older, Adobe Elements Ver 3 and older, various Microsoft add ons for Word, Excel…
Getting your money’s worth in software involves buying older versions. Few people need the newest version of a spreadsheet or word processor. I still use Office 97 at home because it has all the function I need. If I upgraded it I would buy 2002.
Office 97 professional sold for $21 on ebay. That’s a complete suite of software.
Give me a break. You are really bitching that a 13 year old piece of software isn’t compatible? And for the record, this isn’t a Vista issue, all MS products that are currently supported are Vista compatible, these products are simply not supported, period. No updates, no help, no nothing. Do you really expect every piece of software to be supported forever? Is there one company anywhere that does this? If software like Office XP was supported forever the price would be so insanely expensive that no one would buy it.
What good is Office 97? You couldn’t open or edit anything generated by a newer Office suite. That defeats the purpose if you can’t share your work. God this rationale is fucking stupid.
Depending on your situation/location, I might not even buy a computer at all. I recently got a wireless (GPRS/G3) internet subscription for 30 euros a month that includes a free windows XP netbook (samsung nc10) which should be enough for what you want.
Anyway, I concur with most people here: get the cheapest machine you can get, it’ll be more than capable for what you want, but dial-up really sucks for most sites (except for really text-based sites like this one).
Sure you can. My office had Office 2002 and I edited all my Excel documents at home. You get a warning claiming you might lose something but I never did. Formulas are formulas. Access is a different story. The earlier versions are not compatible.
And I pointed out the cost of Office 97. It’s still a damn good program for home use.
Yeah, you can open Office 97 in Office XP (there is no 2002). But you don’t know who you’ll need to send and receive documents from. Office 97 will not open a document from Office 2007. If someone sends you something from there you’re screwed.
And no, formulas aren’t formulas. Syntax and supported functions change as do macros and VBScript.
Gigi didn’t specify she would be using this for office work. She specified a need to type out letters and basic spreadsheet work. If you would respond to what she’s asking you would see that she doesn’t need to spend $400 to $600 for new office versions so I provided information on powerful software at a cost $20.
Unlike cars, software doesn’t rust so used software provides a superior return on money spent.
Actually she didn’t ask about software at all. You’re the one storming in with the agenda. Had she asked about productivity software I wold have recommended Open Office sans the retarded Vista bashing.
Actually, she did specify the kind of software she is planning on using. And as much as you love Vista, MICROSOFT has decided to fix it so it works with older software. They understand what you don’t. I know a lot of people who dual boot Linux to get around Vista. I’m sure Microsoft would prefer to steer people away from a free operating system as a fix for their own mistake.
FYI, I didn’t even touch on hardware compatibility issues. There’s a tab on the Microsoft site I listed dedicated to hardware compatability. My sister had a number of problems with her existing equipment when she upgraded her computer.
You get these programs for free. Go to Snapfiles and look in the upper right where it says “freeware.” Click on that and look around. There has never been a program I couldn’t get a free version that hasn’t surpassed what I needed.
Photos XNVIEW rocks. It does everything you need in a photo editor, from watermarking, to adjusting colors, to cropping, to resizing, to going from one type of photo to another.
Open office does everything Microsoft Office does. The only part I don’t like is that not everything is in the same place, so if you go back and forth between Excel and Open office, you will find the same things in different places. Be aware both do complex formulas, but if you got a really long formula it won’t translate well. If it’s a simple to medium formula no issues. Open Office is free.
Ripping CDs? You get EAC (Exact Audio Copy). It rocks. It will produce an error free rip when possible. **Audiograbber **and **CDex **are the next best. All are free of course.
To convert the CDs you rip with EAC you choose a format MP3 or MP4 (or any others). Download Nero AAC codec if you choose MP4 and **LAME codec **if you want MP3. (mp4 produces the same quality as mp3 at a samller size). If you want to rip with no loss of quality use FLAC or WavPack. Both are free. FLAC is more popular but WavPack compresses better. Not that much better, but if file size is an issue go with WavPack. Both are great lossless codecs so you don’t lose any quality like with mp3 or mp4 (the m4a or aac is another name for the mp4 file extension)
These all work with EAC or you can get them as stand alone programs or a command line program
Want mail, get PopPeeper, it is the BEST free program out there. It’s quick and does the job, you can use PopMail, IMAP or even retrieve mail from web sources like Hotmail. PopPeeper is THE way to go.
Anti-Virus, get AVG simple to use very effective. Malwarebytes’ Anti-Malware and Spybot search and destroy will complete your anti-malware needs and they are free.
Most computers have a modem built in. You just get a phone cord and plug it in the back. You can get anything from Netzero, to MSN, to AOL just Google around. Look for deals. Almost all these dial ups are one monthy fee, as much as you want. Some do offer special services. For instance, MSN will offer unlimited dial-up for $15.00 a month, but they have a rate of $7.00/month but that only offers so many hours a week. The amount of hours amounts to someone who pretty much wants to check their email and surf for an hour or so per day.
No you will need a special modem for DSL (phone line) or Cable either way.
I’ve had VISTA and don’t let people scare you, the problems that arise are because the minimums for VISTA recommended by MicroSoft are too low.
If you get 2g of RAM you’ll be fine. I have a Compaq and have never had any issues. If you get a computer, with 60 days (usually a lot sooner) you will find out if something is going to go wrong. So I wouldn’t go for any extended warrenty.
If you are going to play a lot of games 4g of RAM is needed and really that is gonna be barely acceptable. If you do a lot of gaming, you need as much RAM as you can get and the BEST graphics card you can afford.
I use my computer to record TV. This is something I didn’t think I’d like but it rocks. So you may want to consider getting a TV Tuner in your computer. You can always buy one later. If you do consider this option make sure the TV tuner is Digital OVER THE AIR AND DIGITAL CABLE. (Both CABLE AND OVER THE AIR). Not all of them are. You don’t have to worry about analog over the air TV after June, though analog cable will be around awhile longer.
If you record TV your hard drive fills up fast so get 500GB of RAM. You can always add more.
Look for USB ports, one in front and one in back are minimum. You can put more in but generally the more USB ports the easier it will be. Be aware the USB ports in the back of the computer are stronger than the ones in front, so if you recharge your iPod use those as it’ll be quicker and transfer rates will be faster
An eSATA port in back is nice, but you can add one later. Another thing I have in my computer is slots for various cards, so I can just pop the card out of my camera and into the computer directly. Again that is nice but not necessary. eSATA ports are handy if you want to add an external hard drive later. You can use a USB port for this but an eSATA port is a LOT (and I mean a LOT) quicker at transfering for an external hard drive
One last thing, when you look for high speed look for deals. In Illinois AT&T for instance, is required to offer a low cost high speed. It is $10/month for up to 758kbs. (This was required for SBC and AT&T to be allowed to merge, so you have to check to see if it’s available in your area.) AT&T makes it VERY hard to find this option but it’s there.
Printers - you are better off paying a little more for a printer that is the most efficient user of ink and that usually means individual ink cartridges. You can surf the net or go to the library and compare printers on acost-per-page basis. Modern inkjets are capable of printing in color cheaper than laserjets. Printers technology advances fast enough that it is usually more economical to buy a new one.
Internet connection. The best value is DSL which is delivered via the phone line. If you have DSL you will need a a router plus a plug in board for the computer. I would buy a combination router/WIFI so you can use a wireless laptop down the road. If you buy DSL service they will include this as a package. I had connection problems so my package was upgraded to a 2wire brand of router which had built in WIFI. I get a good signal everywhere in my house.
DSL differs from dial up in that you can still use your phone while on-line. It is sold in different speeds and is available based on the the distance from the phone company’s distribution nodes. The next big technological entry in this field is a connection through your electrical service. It is extremely fast system but not many people can get it.
Most services are sold as a monthly fee and are unlimited but that is changing. Some internet servers are looking at limiting the service.
You might read what I said before you launch another snarky comment. She bought a new computer with Vista. her 4 year old printer didn’t work. She ended up buying a new printer out of frustration. Her computer is no faster than my old desktop for what she uses it for so it was not money well spent.
I just lost a laptop and my desktop was dying. I had planned on buying a new laptop until the salesman started looking up my software. I would have spent the price of the computer in additional software if I upgraded it all.
Instead of flushing $1200 down the toilet I had my desktop hard drive wiped clean and the software reinstalled ($40) which included all my files backed up on DVD’s. I added a $28 DVD burner to it. Even though it has a slower processor and less memory than my laptop it now runs faster because of what the guy did to it. Instead of buying a new laptop I’m spending $300 on a new motherboard. Total cost for fixing 2 computers: $370. Total cost of new software because of Vista: ZERO. I will eventually buy a new laptop when the newer version of Vista comes out because I want a smaller unit for travel. But until then, I got my money’s worth.
What I’m recommending for gigi is a Pentium core 2 processor with at least 2 gb of ram and Windows XP professional. She will have a processor that handles future needs and she can add more ram and the corrected version of Vista if she needs it down the line. in the mean time she can buy used software and save enough money to buy a laptop down the road.
Why would want to burden someone who doesn’t have any legacy issues, with a dead OS and old software? Yes XP stills works, yes software doesn’t rust; but its at an end. Vista and soon 7 will be what’s current and all the technology and software being produced today, is being designed to work best with Vista.
Yes, there’s backwards compatibility and that’s a good thing, but in the case of someone like Gigi who currently doesn’t have a system, XP, Office97, etc; is a waste of time. Everything is going forward and you would have someone who is starting fresh, begin nearly a decade behind.
Gigi hasn’t said boo, about cost. She listed what requirements she needs in a machine and any machine from Walmart, or Office Max or Gateway, Dell; hell even Tiger Direct will provide her that, with VISTA. Even if money was an issue Markxxx provided a list of free software, that is compatible with VISTA and works well, eliminating the need to spend time searching eBay or garage sales for software.
You have a valid point, for for you, but you need to realize that you are the minority; even if thousands of people have similar issues, we are at the point where millions of others are having good experience with VISTA; myself included.
Purchasing a ‘new’ rig with XP pro on it and looking for old software is in this instance, not good advice based on what Gigi has written.
You’re advocating that upgrading an old computer is cheaper than buying a new one? This is a revelation? The shocking part is you somehow twisted this incredibly obvious point into some sort of Vista-bash. Guess what, upgrading that PC was cheaper than buying a Mac or a XP PC too! Egads!!!
gigi, this system should serve you fine for at least 5 years. Pretty much everyone has way more computer than they need these days, and your requirements are even lower than most.
If you can swing the monthly cost and service is available in your area, you may want to consider a laptop with a mobile broadband. Lenovo sells an SL500 with 3GB RAM for $450 with a free 30-day trial of AT&T cellular broadband.
I have a buddy who lives out in the boonies who uses it. He says it’s not cable or DSL, but it certainly beats the hell out of dialup or satellite.
The other benefit of a laptop, even if you’re stuck on dialup at home, is that you can haul it to a Starbuck’s or something and hook up to wifi on the occasions when you need to download a huge file.
If I were buying a new computer, I’d skip the refurbs. Getting it all brand new and shiny is half the fun. Besides, buying it new comes with better warranty deals which a new computer owner might appreciate.
Gigi - I’d say either get the Mac mini if you want to go Apple or get a Dell Studio laptop with Vista Home Premium & optional Mobile Broadband if you want Windows. (If you don’t like ATT’s prices, Verizon and Sprint both have mobile broadband options to if you want to shop around. It might still be cheaper to get satellite broadband though.)
IMO, This Dell Studio desktop is a great dea (limited time offer)l: link
PROCESSOR Intel® Core™ 2 Quad processor Q8200 (4MB L2, 2.33GHz, 1333FSB)
OPERATING SYSTEM Genuine Windows Vista® Home Premium Edition SP1, 64-Bit
OFFICE SOFTWARE No Productivity software pre-installed
WARRANTY & SERVICE 1Yr Ltd Hardware Warranty, InHome Service after Remote Diagnosis
MONITOR 20 inch S2009WFP Widescreen Digital Flat Panel Monitor
MEMORY 4GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 800MHz- 4DIMMs
HARD DRIVE 640GB Serial ATA Hard Drive (7200RPM) w/DataBurst Cache™
OPTICAL DRIVE 16X DVD+/-RW Drive edit
VIDEO CARD ATI Radeon HD 3650 256MB supporting HDMI
SOUND CARD Integrated 7.1 Channel Audio
KEYBOARD & MOUSE Dell Consumer Multimedia Keyboard and Laser Mouse
My Accessories
SPEAKERS Dell A525 30 Watt 2.1 Stereo Speakers with Subwoofer
$750 total including monitor, mouse & keyboard.
I added the optional speakers since gigi mentioned listening to music. For an extra $50 she might want to get the sound card. If she wants to splurge, she could get better speakers or improve the graphics card to an nVidia 9800gt.
For productivity software, I’d recommend Office 2007 Home & Student edition but Dell’s price for it is nuts so shop around. For a printer, I’d recommend a Canon Pixma since the ink is under $20 and easy to find. Don’t get a Dell printer.
I’d rather use Google Docs & Spreadsheet than screw around with Open Office or an older version of MS Office. (Well, 2003 is ok. 2007 is just so much more useful for desktop publishing and footnoting.)