2 Questions

[Romanian]

Hey all,
I was looking to buy a computer, most preferably a laptop, but the
prices were absolutely ridiculous. I was thinking about building my own
desktop, which I could. I can make a computer better than DELL XPS for
a cheaper price. But then again, I really want a laptop. I was
wondering if there is any way to build a laptop by myself?

Another question:
I may be buying a laptop from Gateway, which is pretty good and the
price floats around $1.300. The thing is, it only has a 40GB internal
hard drive (with more than 40GB it would be too pricy). So, are
external hard drives used only for backing up, or can I also use them
as a normal hard drive (to install/play games on, to surf the web on,
etc)?

 

[johnpagenola]

I assembled an Asus Z71 laptop with my son using parts I got from R&J
Technology (www.rjtech.com). The price was comparable to brand name
laptops, but the parts were better. In particular, the 7200rpm Hitachi
hard drive and Nvidia 6600 GT graphics make a big difference in
responsiveness and versatility. Further, all of the parts are
standard, so replacements can be gotten in the aftermarket. Most
laptop parts must come from the manufacturer and are therefore
expensive and the time to repair is a pain. Finally, since my son was
going away to college he wanted to be able to replace any bad or broken
parts on his own. This was last July, and he has not had a single
problem.

 

[Romanian]

Alright! I'm in my second year of highschool, and I want to make a
pretty good laptop for myself. Could you tell me where you got your
parts/instructions? Thanks!

 

[John Weiss]

Another question:
I may be buying a laptop from Gateway, which is pretty good and the
price floats around $1.300. The thing is, it only has a 40GB internal
hard drive (with more than 40GB it would be too pricy). So, are
external hard drives used only for backing up, or can I also use them
as a normal hard drive (to install/play games on, to surf the web on,
etc)?

With Firewire (IEEE1394) or USB2, an external drive can be used for most
things an internal drive is used for. Some apps will not allow themselves
to be installed on a removable drive, but you will have to deal individually
with them.