Thought bruce might be interested in this... and you as well.

 

Crash course.

 

1st off, you should know, the average home users gets conned into paying more for computers for a lot that they simply don't need.

 

I have a 20 gig hard drive (I'll get to that later).  I have used about 13 gigs, and much of that is songs or movies I've downloaded.  And I plan on deleting the movies.  Point being, I'll probably never fill my 20 gig hard drive.  You guys are looking to get an 80 gig hard drive.  For the money, it's probably the best deal, but you're getting suckered into paying more because you don't even need 40, let alone 20 gigs.    If you don't mind paying the extra, so be it, but if you ever fill up 20 gigs, I'd really be shocked... and it probably means you have a ton of shit on your computer that doesn't need to be there.

 

here's a run down of the various components. 

 

At the bottom is a short conclusion

 

PROCESSORS

There are 2 styles of processors and multiple companies who produce them

The most popular processors are pentium, celeron, and AMD.

This is a picture of a pentium 4 processor.  This is called a socket procesor and is compatible with socket motherboards (but some motherboards aren't powerful enough).

This is usually a couple inches wide/tall and will have a lot of pins on the bottom (which you can't see in this picture) and it pushes into the motherboard.  Click any pictures to see the bigger version.

 

 

These next two pictures are (pentium II) slot processors.  You can see the gold "teeth" on the picture on the right.  It will actually plug into a slot in the middle of the computer and stand up just like an ethernet card or something of the sort. (the left picture is the card covered)

In all cases, (once installed) you will see a fan attached.  On the socket processor, the fan attaches to the top and essentially covers it up, so you won't see it on a motherboard unless you take off the fan/cooling unit.

On the slot processors, you'll usually see 2 fans side by side affixed to the side.

The difference between slot and socket is pretty irrelevant unless you're building your own computer and need a slot processor for a slot motherboard, thus if you get a slot processor for a socket motherboard, you're pretty much fucked.

When you read about a processor that has 166Mhz, 256Mhz, or even 1 gigaherz, that's the speed... that's how fast your computer will process information, thus the name processor chip.  1 gig really seems to be sort of the standard with new PCs.  some more, some less.  I've heard of some processors going all the way up to like 100 gigaherz which is really absurd for a home user.

 

What distinguishes one from another to the average consumer is basically price, reputation, and reliability.  Just like with operating systems, people will frown on a product if it doesn't work well for them, but most really know nothing about the product itself.  Another difference may be the warranty or guarantee.  Pentium probably has the longest warranty b/c of the reliability.  Bruce should be looking into that.

But, when it comes to speed, you may not notice a difference.

If you had 3 computers side by side by side and all had pentium, celeron, or amd 1 gig processors, I would wager you wouldn't notice the difference.

 

I have 2 computers with pentium II processors and I've had no problems. I've also got a friend with a pentium II that went belly up.  Most will recommend pentium, but you'll pay more.

 

Costs vary, but bottom end processors may be 50-90 bucks while higher end ones (such as pentium 4) can run as much as 200 (usually 150-190 or thereabouts).  You may be able to get something like a pentium II for maybe 50 bucks and I don't consider that lower end, but the speed will be capped with a PII and with newer computers, you will probably never see it equipped with PII... or even PIII.

 

 

MOTHERBOARDS:  This is the main board everything plugs into.

 

Notice the gold square.  That is the cooler on top of the SOCKET processor (refer to the pentium 4 picture above).

Notice the 3 vertical black lines to the right... those are the memory slots.

The 4 horizontal slots are PCI slots (see later in this section).

This particular motherboard appears to be compatible with both slot AND socket processors.  See the brown vertical slot?  That looks like a slot for a pentium II (or another slot processor as pictured above).

 

 

 

This is a slightly different motherboard.  Notice there's 6 PCI slots, and the white square on the bottom/left is where a socket processor chip will go. 

 

There's many brands of motherboards.

 

What distinguishes one from another are all the slots available and once again, cost.

The white PCI slots are what you'll plug various cards into, such as modems, network cards, even video and sound cards... the more the merrier, but the more slots, usually means the more money.  I recommend at least 4 PCI slots.

The other important aspect of a motherboard is compatability.  Motherboards have limitations, meaning, you may only be able to go to a MAXIMUM speed processor chip.  For example, I can't put a pentium 4 processor chip into my motherboard... it simply isn't compatible. 

 

The average consumer won't hear or know much about the motherboard they're getting with their computer and as I said, the main thing you need to worry about is compatability, pci slots, and cost.

 

 

 

RAM (random access memory... notice the 3 black vertical slots on the motherboard pictured above).

 

When you hear 256 RAM, that's memory.  This type of memory allows your computer to handle multiple tasks simultaneously, such as running your browser, word, and yahoo at the same time without your puter bogging down.

 

It's important that you have multiple slots on your motherboard to accomodate ram upgrades.

Also, the most popular type of memory is SIMM.  You may hear SIMM and DIMM.  DIMM (unless my alzheimers is kicking in) is the older version of the 2.  You really won't have to concern yourself with this unless you upgrade.

 

As technologies advance, programs get bigger and more sophistocated.  Computers need additional ram to accomodate these memory hogs or puters will bog down. 

 

256 should be more than adequate for you guys, but some will run even double that.  You can get a 256 RAM chip for probably 50 bucks or less and they're easy to install.

Some motherboards may only allow you to go up to a certain maximum of memory, so even if you have 3 slots, you may not be able to put 256 sticks in each slot, but newer computers should accomodate.  For the average home user, 256 is more than enough... and it's pretty much the standard, although I have one computer running on 96 ram and it's just fine. 

 

Video Cards

There's many brands, many types and all I can say is, the higher the MB (megabyes), the better.  Some Video Cards are 3D compatible and I've never seen a use for it other than playing video games. 

If Bruce is playing games (bought or even online), a 64 meg specialty video card may suit him best, but 32 meg is more than enough.   I have either 8 or 32 meg cards in my systems and don't really notice a difference in either. 

The main thing in a video card is the ability to allow you to change the size (resolution) of your computer screen, and see more colors.  Old video cards such as 2 or 4 meg (even older 8 meg ones) won't allow you to view images with the utmost of clarity, so if Bruce is surfing porn, the images may look sorta choppy, the pixels may not be clear, etc.

The differences in video cards are what's compatible with what operating system, and the slot it plugs into.  So if you ever upgrade, make sure you look for one that will fit into your motherboard (PCI or AGP i believe it is) will get the job done.  And if you're running XP, don't get one that's only compatible up to windows 98se.

Sound Cards

 I don't know much about them except newer ones are better.   Watch for compatibility with operating systems as mentioned above.

 

CD ROM

 

There are DVD Roms, DVD Burners, CD Burners (also referred to as CD-R (record) or CD-RW (rewrite)).  So when you see CD-RW, you're getting a burner.  CD-R may be deceiving, but should be a burner as well.  A plain CD-ROM will not record.

 

DVD Burners can be had brand new for around 70-100 bucks depending on the brand.

 

CD Burners are generally around 40  and regular CD-ROMs can be bought for 15-30 (usually 20 or less tho).

 

They're not difficult to install and they're plug and play.

There's different brands.  Some take for granted Sony is the best, but usually they're just more expensive and not the best.  A brand you've never heard of like Liteon I've heard is better and more popular right now. 

There's also different kinds of players.  If you get a slot ROM, it will work like a car stereo, if you get a tray ROM, it will have a tray that opens and closes.  The slot one's look spiffy and are pretty cool... and surprisingly not all that more expensive at all.

Make sure if you get a burner that they give you software with it.  Nero is popular.  You can also get ripping software online.

 

 

ETHERNET

 

It's just a card that works like a modem and plugs into a PCI slot.  Make sure you know that it's compatible with your operating system and that it is for a PCI slot (almost all of them should be). 

As with any cards, make sure software comes with it, you'll need it to install drivers.

 

 

HARD DRIVES

 

When you hear someone say 80gig hard drive, well, that's the tape drive in your computer.  This is what everything is recorded to.... windows, programs, everything.   When you empty your recycle bin, whatever you delete should be erased from that tape drive. 

 

The bigger the number (20gig, 40gig, or 80gig) just means you have more space to store crap. 

I did a little searching online and 80 gig really seems to be the norm, 40 is the lower end which appears to be phased out... 20 appears to be history.  I saw hard drives that were 160 and 250 gig's online.  Amazing.  Apparently the bigger the number, the more appealing to consumers, but highly unnecessary.  The thing I noticed though is that an 80 gig hard drive can be had brand new for only 5-15 bucks more, so why not?

 

To put this in perspective, Microsoft Word is about 70 megabytes (or therabouts).  If you get the whole Microsoft Office suite, it could be as much as 500 megabytes(MB).  500mb is 1/2 a gig.  So imagine that.  You would need to install microsoft office (every program, word, excel, powerpoint, access, frontpage, etc) 160 times to fill up an 80 gig hard drive.

 

Now, if you download movies, or if bruce is downloading porn movies, installing new video games, or even downloading them, those will fill up hard drives.  One feature length film could fill up as much as a gig or more.  Imagine having 20 movies on your computer?  That won't fit on a 20 gig hard drive most likely (depending on the length of the films), but the point is, video is probably the biggest hog of hard disk space.

 

Music takes up space, but you could have 10s of thousands of songs on an 80 gig hard drive and probably still not fill it up... and it's ridiculous to have that many anyways.  If you got a burner, record and delete.

 

 

CONCLUSION

 

Basically, when you hear say celeron 1 ghz, 80gig hard drive, cd-rw, 256 ram, ethernet, or whatever, it's all referring to the size, speed, etc.   

 

Bottom line is, the average home user will appreciate a fast processor like a 1 gig celeron or a pentium 4, but they don't need that kind of speed.  The problem these days is that many shops make older stuff obsolete, so instead of being able to get a 4 meg video card new for like 5 or 10 bucks, you gotta pay 20-80 for usually 16-64 meg video cards... and 64 is more than anyone needs, but people who play the latest, greatest video games may need the best possible video card on the market.... or may appreciate it more b/c of the things they'll see that others won't.  Hard drives aren't really even sold new under about 20 gig.  Pentium II processors are great, but pretty much obsolete... you may find them in some shops or online, but rarely even in a brand new computer.

 

If you have 128 ram, that's sufficient. 

 

The most important aspect of a computer in my opinion is the internet connection..... obviously dsl or cable are much better than dialup and you could have a crappy computer that will be very efficient just by switching from dialup to cable.

 

I just think people spend too much for stuff they don't need in a computer.

 

Bruce is basically going to be paying 350-450 for a brand new computer.   If he knows for certain the parts are new, he's getting a good deal.  The next question he should be asking is what type of warranty or guarantee is he going to get? 

The one that costs around 350 didn't sound like it had a CD burner, but for about 20 bucks more, he should be able to have one put in, or you guys do it yourselves.  He can save by getting a 20 or 40 gig hard drive instead of 80.  If his video card is 64 RAM, he could chop that in half and save. 

The dell actually sounds like the better deal if he can get a burner, 256 RAM, celeron with about 1 Gig speed, ethernet card, sound card, and the like.  His friend's deal sounds like a saving as well.

 

His new computer should last him for the next 10+ years, and probably without having to upgrade or replace anything other than small components.

If I were building a computer for someone, this is roughly what I'd charge...

Approximately 300 for a motherboard/processor (but that will vary greatly depending on speed and brand).
About 30-50 for a nice video card
About 65 for an 80 gig hard drive
40 for a CD Burner (80 for a DVD Burner)
10 for a Network (Ethernet) card
About 50 bucks for 256 RAM
Then you'd have to figure in the cost of the computer case, which could be anywhere from maybe 20 or 30 all the way to 100+ for cool fancy ones.

All said, I don't think I could build a computer for less than about 500 and that would include a burner and all of the above, so Bruce's connections must be getting some parts for free or at much better discounts than can be offered at the cheap spot where I buy parts by my house.

Now when I finally create my own business and get registered, I should have access to wholesalers, so I may go into the puter building business myself and probably be able to rival or beat the prices Bruce is looking to pay.  Bottom line is, he's getting a deal for what he's getting whether he pays 350 or 450.  Just make sure he gets a burner, ethernet, and all that jazz we talked about earlier.