The opaque side of the force

[renikm]

Well i did it about a couple months ago. I joined the dark side of the computer force. As the title suggests though i haven't completely turned over though, as I am writing this on my beloved 12" powerbook.

But I did it, i bought a PC. I'm not a complete sellout though. Instead of buying a stupid DELL, I did research and actually built my PC from the ground up, even gutting my old G3 for some parts. The hardest thing though was shelling out 100 $ for an OEM version of XP... All in all my PC cost me way under 1000, and it is fast..really fast. I'm pretty proud of myself for getting it all to work in a few hours, being a longtime mac user.

Why did I buy a PC you might ask? Simply put, games. Since all i had was my powerbook(not a very viable gaming platform), if i wanted to play games right I would have to buy a brand new desktop mac(too expensive). And besides, all the games i really want to play are PC only for now....

The setup i have now is execellent. Having a mac laptop and PC desktop is the best of both worlds. Granted I have no hardcore graphic work right now, which i would prefer a G5 for. I'm tired of the whole Mac vs. PC debate though. They're both around right now beacuse, they each work for the people that buy them.

I would never give up my mac, but the more and more I use my PC, the less offensive it gets. And really, I feel like I am more knowledgable now and more of a well rounded computer "user" now. Still a mac guy, but also a compuer guy in general.

Right now I only use my PC for games, but I'll probably use it more and more, for things my can't do for one reason or another on my mac. It's nice to have all my options open, computer wise.

I have probably have more to say but i'll stop for now. In summary, keep your Mac, love your Mac. But if you thought about building a cheap PC on the side, you might be very satisfied like I am. Let me know if any of you have questions, and if this fosters debate...so be it!

PS: hehe...i've been made fun of at work because I'm using a macally keyboard on my PC and I can't take screen captures(no prnt screen key!)

 

[alxths]

Out of curiosity, what are the specs of your PC?

 

[renikm]

2.6 Ghz P4
512 MB of Dual Channel 3200
ASUS P4P800 motherboard
ATI Radeon 9600 XT
Lian Li PC-52 Case (aluminum liek my PB)
and the other components taken from my G3

 

[Mav451]

Hey nice job. With a little time/energy, by building a computer "from the ground up" I think you will really see why so many talk about doing it. It is not entirely that it is cheaper, but that you know your computer. You don't have to waste money and time calling tech support because you did the work yourself. Perhaps this will give you more insight on how myself and other home/self built PC users feel about the whole "build it yourself scene". The experience, more than anything, is the biggest benefit. And its not really that hard, as you have proven...

 

[MillieWales]

I have been thinking of buying a gaming PC too. I have the consoles, but there are some things only available on a PC.

I love Macs, have had many, and my company has 75% Macs. However, I don't think PC's are the evil device that people say. They are not as easy or intuitive to use, and do seem to go wrong more than Mac's. And then there are the viruses, not fun.

But they do serve a purpose. We have to use some at work, the Techs going in to service clients use them. We also have one running our phone system.

I do wonder if some of the people who hate PC's so much often haven't used them in a while. Thy are not as much fun to use, and not as cool. But they are a damn site cheaper - my IT hardware bill would be slashed if I went the PC only route! It is the same the other way of course, the PC users who constantly put Mac's down have probably never touched one, let alone spent any time working with them.

I don't think I would have the patience or energy to build a gaming PC though, well done on yours Renikm. What do you guys recon is the sort of spec needed to play pretty much all games, and be future proof, and don't tell me to build one, although I may get one of the Tech's to do it for me if it would make a better machine. My son is always moaning about the games he can't get for the Mac - he quickly forgets the consoles he has! Kids - never happy!

Marc

 

[sgtlmj]

I love building PC's. I keep begging my friends to let me build another one for them. Maybe I could make money at it and finally afford that 12" PB that I've been lusting after.

With it being a Windoze world, it's good to keep a PC on hand for those appz that can't be found on a Mac.

I just plan on using the Mac for the day-to-day stuff that I want to keep secure, i.e. email, reports, etc.

 

[kafiene]

Originally posted by marccarter


I do wonder if some of the people who hate PC's so much often haven't used them in a while. Thy are not as much fun to use, and not as cool. But they are a damn site cheaper - my IT hardware bill would be slashed if I went the PC only route! It is the same the other way of course, the PC users who constantly put Mac's down have probably never touched one, let alone spent any time working with them.

You make a very good point, my parents and brother always said i was nuts for wanting a pc when all they'd ever touched were Macs, but they've lightened up and even have one of their own (though it was an xmas present from my brother and I built from reasonably good parts that we had upgraded in our own machines). Now that I'm getting myself a Mac one of my classmates is actually angry that I'm buying one, but he's never touched one so I'm not sure where he's coming from.

I don't think I would have the patience or energy to build a gaming PC though, well done on yours Renikm. What do you guys recon is the sort of spec needed to play pretty much all games, and be future proof, and don't tell me to build one, although I may get one of the Tech's to do it for me if it would make a better machine. My son is always moaning about the games he can't get for the Mac - he quickly forgets the consoles he has! Kids - never happy!

Marc

As far as specs go for gaming I'm really not sure as I havent been doing much of that lately, but I have to say that renikm chose wisely going for an ATI video card and a ASUS motherboard. I've had experience with quite a few motherboard brands and ASUS by far is the better out of all of them. I've had absolutely no complaints about the ones I've owned (still ticking 6 or 7 years later with no problems).

 

[Mav451]

Well he has also chosen and mature and proven chipset. The Asus and Abit and the most stable and high overclocking chipsets out there as well -- someone apparently has done their research

sgtlmj: I have the same problem. Now that i've built my own, the urge to show people how easy it is to do, to build one by yourself, is contagious.

 

[cr2sh]

Originally posted by Mav451
now that i've built my own, the urge to show people how easy it is to do, to build one by yourself, is contagious.

I don't subscribe to the 'building a computer is better' idea, not from a cost standpoint and not even really from a gamer standpoint.

I love my mac... and I payed a lot for it. I named it and I chat about it.. and identify with others because of it. I take it everywhere.. it has all of my information on it... its a small part of me.

That said, my friend who built a pentium 4 at 3.06, with RAIDed 10k RPM WD's, a gig and half of memory and a 8x DVDR.. has a very different type of relationship with his pc. Taking pride in building a PC is nerdy, but I can understand it.. I know his is fast (boot time is unbelievable!) and that's great. I commend anyone who builds there own and is proud of it... but I don't think the "you save money" argument is valid. You can buy from Dell as cheap as you can build them.

There are postives to both ways of computing.. but I wouldn't trade Panther for XP anyday.

 

[Mav451]

Hah i got the same kind of friend. That said, its obviously not for everybody, the same way some people will adamently refuse to even just try a Mac. I know a great deal of people who have built their own PC and are not even close to nerdy and use their PC mostly for playing CS or WCIII (basically your typical "thursday night" college kids)

I however, am a bit more open-minded, combined with the fact that my school library has these in the lab as a catalyst.

You do make a good point. I believe that since last year, Dell has cut their prices so much--that is probably the same reason their customer satisfaction has gone a bit way-side (inverse proportional with decreased total revenue i guess?) Fact is, home built can be worse, just as good, or better than Dells. Home building is pretty volatile, dare-say a hobby so to speak.

I also think that Dell is probably dropped their prices to compete with the online stores such as NewEgg, Gameve and ZipZoomFly (previously Googlegear until Google.com exerted their monumental influence for a name change). Without these sites, Dell would probably still be selling computers closer to 1 grand or more.