Upgrade game never ends

[philo]

For several years I had been using an AMD-1000 to run various operating
systems...and had few problems with it.
A few months ago I got into video editing...and the machine did not
quite live up to the task... so I decided to make use of a new but old
stock P-IV 1600 that I had been trying to sell...but got no takers.

Well, it was no easy task as I have 6 harddrives in removable caddies...
each running 1,2 or 3 operating systems...and I had to reconfigure *all*
of them. I find it really handy to have a live installation of as many
OS's as possible...so that if someone is having a problem with their
system...I can just bootup with then same system...and give them advice
and not have to try to recall the differences between all the OS's.

Right now I've got all non-server version of windows installed some
place... and I mean *all* you name it windows-1 all the way thrugh
XP... quite a few versions of Linux...plus OS/2 and ECS etc.

Well now that I've got the P-IV up and running...
it turns out that it still does not quite cut it for video editing...
so I found a junked celeron 2.6ghz in the basement...
rebuilt it and *finally* I have a machine that is quite good at video
editing...

However, now I am back to having two machines in my office and a KVM
switch...
Not a big deal really...

Except NOW, someone wants to buy the P-IV...
but the idea of reconfiguring all those operating systems again
is just not worth it now!!!!

One thing I'll say is that Linux has made quite a few major improvements
over the last few years...
and is actually better than windows as far as reconfiguring.

 

[JohnS]

Except NOW, someone wants to buy the P-IV...
but the idea of reconfiguring all those operating systems again
is just not worth it now!!!!

One thing I'll say is that Linux has made quite a few major improvements
over the last few years...
and is actually better than windows as far as reconfiguring.

I feel pretty satisfied now bit I know Ill start feeling the hype,
mkting pressure when the M2 comes out. Then everyone will be talking
about buying it and new stuff about new MBs and processors and then
maybe the 8800 video cards will come out and youll feel totally left
out of the buzz unless you upgrade.

And lets not forget Blu Ray and HD DVD due out in March or so. So if
new DVD drives come out to play such disks and burners?

And whole new libraries of HD format versions of films start flooding
the scene bringing new gizmos with it.

And the hype was widescreen LCDs were going to be the thing this year
for PCs. Ive seen more and more but its not exactly taking the world
by storm but maybe the Blu Ray and HD Dvd and flood of HD content ---
films in HD format may spark more sales. Its also probably going to be
the clincher.

Everyones been saying HD TV would take off but it hasnt for years and
years but last year at he end of the year the big thing happened. HDTV
hardware prices collapsed for CRTs in the low end and even LCDs are
being blown out sub 600 range when on sale. I got one for 499.

So now the big whine lack of content. TV content is ramping up but
still pathetic but its getting better but the clincher would be a
flood of film content. The whole DVD movie sales thing which was a
huge boom for studios like the CD introduction was for the music
industry for years and years --- theres been growing paranoia thats
waning cause everyone has a cheapo DVD player and tons of DVD movies.
So the next spark is HD format.

Hopefully the music industry will get a clue with this and push high
def again though everyone saying thats already dead as doorknob.

 

[philo]

Everyones been saying HD TV would take off but it hasnt for years and
years but last year at he end of the year the big thing happened. HDTV
hardware prices collapsed for CRTs in the low end and even LCDs are
being blown out sub 600 range when on sale. I got one for 499.

Even though I've done a few videos now...
one thing I don't have to worry about is T.V.

I don't have one!!!!

Although I was "the first kid on my block" to sign up for cable T.V.
when it first came to my area...
they kept sneaking the price up every few months and I decided to chuck
the whole thing and get rid of the cable, get rid of the T.V. and be
done with it!

Never missed it!

 

[JohnS]

Even though I've done a few videos now...
one thing I don't have to worry about is T.V.

I don't have one!!!!

Although I was "the first kid on my block" to sign up for cable T.V.
when it first came to my area...
they kept sneaking the price up every few months and I decided to chuck
the whole thing and get rid of the cable, get rid of the T.V. and be
done with it!

Never missed it!

Thats amazing. Everyone has a TV. There was an article recently
talking about the relative material possessions of even the poor
nowadays vs earlier decades. Everyone has a TV and other physical
possessions nowadays.

A professor I had used to alway say TV was the worst waste of time in
life.

The cost of cable is going up and up. I used to think it was
outrageous until I realized its actually a sign of the switch from the
manufacturing economy to a service economy. The west is increasingly
outsourcing or shrinking manufacturing jobs , work due to productivity
and outsourcing. So the displaced jobs , work is taken up by new
things that didnt exist before since manufacturing or any one
manufactured good etc is taking a smaller portion of your paycheck. So
the rest is being taken up by increasing entertainment services and
other services and products which the net and cable is part of. When
you look at it that way its not so bad but its mindboggling to think
of paying eventually maybe 200 a month for cable services similar to a
low car payment.

 

[JohnS]

Even though I've done a few videos now...
one thing I don't have to worry about is T.V.

I don't have one!!!!

Although I was "the first kid on my block" to sign up for cable T.V.
when it first came to my area...
they kept sneaking the price up every few months and I decided to chuck
the whole thing and get rid of the cable, get rid of the T.V. and be
done with it!

Never missed it!

Hey I just thought of another big opp for hardware people to sell
stuff - dual and triple monitors and multiple video cards.

Ive always made fun of people who spent so much on games and thought
SLI was ridiculous. Who needs that much power?

People who have to power more than one screen might. I was checking
out multiple screen setups at Toms Hardware and they point out that
dual screen setups on single cards running games take a huge framerate
hit which you would expect running two screens. It sort of halves it
in tests they show depending on the game etc.

On top of that they say two screens isnt much fun obviously cause you
have the physical split of the two screens in the middle of the view.
So the ideal is 3 screens - one in the middle and two off to the
sides. So really you need a card kind of like the X2 dual core if the
bandwidth of PCI express I guess is enough or maybe 3 cards
synchronized together. Ha. Talk about the lucrative possibilities for
sellers and makers and people who help rich people setup it up who
dont have a clue. And unlike most of the stuff recently its not about
just getting more power and few more effects.

Thats a quantum leap in qualitative play having 3 screens surrounding
your frontal view.

This could keep video card makers and hardware sellers in the money
for another decade with all kinds of cost and quality improvements.
And could spark off a serious trend for a gaming room like the Home
Theater trend now where people can spend 1K- 100K decking out their
home. Right now gaming is more of an after thought addon to the movie
viewing/TV viewing thing. Just think of the lucrative possibilities
advising rich guys in your areas on how to setup a really awesome
gaming room --- elaborate stands to hold 3 monitors and special seats
and keyboards and other controls.

 

[philo]

Thats amazing. Everyone has a TV. There was an article recently
talking about the relative material possessions of even the poor
nowadays vs earlier decades. Everyone has a TV and other physical
possessions nowadays.

Well, not quite everyone...
I also know a few people who don't have one.

Since I've only been into computers for about 6 years or so...
there was quite a long period in the house with NO tv or computer.

I listended to the radio a lot and read the newpaper...
Also used a manual typewriter.

When I finally got a computer...
I joked around with everyone about finally entering the 20th century...
of course it was then, the 21st century...

 

[~misfit~]

Thats amazing. Everyone has a TV. There was an article recently
talking about the relative material possessions of even the poor
nowadays vs earlier decades. Everyone has a TV and other physical
possessions nowadays.

Going off on a complete tangent here, recenetly my vacuum cleaner packed up.
I'm an invalid these days living on welfare in New Zealand. I went to the
welfare people to see if I could get help paying off the new machine I'd put
on hire-purchase. After the case-worker looked at a list of elligable
appliances the answer was no. However, welfare will help you pay off a TV,
it's on their list. What is the world coming to when an organisation like
that thinks that a TV is more important than a vacuum cleaner? Oh well, to
me the socialogical implications of that seem immense.

Sorry, back to your regularly scheduled progamming. <g>.

 

[philo]

Going off on a complete tangent here, recenetly my vacuum cleaner packed
up. I'm an invalid these days living on welfare in New Zealand. I went to
the welfare people to see if I could get help paying off the new machine
I'd put on hire-purchase. After the case-worker looked at a list of
elligable appliances the answer was no. However, welfare will help you pay
off a TV, it's on their list. What is the world coming to when an
organisation like that thinks that a TV is more important than a vacuum
cleaner? Oh well, to me the socialogical implications of that seem
immense.

well...
i guess you could get the tv then and sell it and buy a vacuum cleaner!

BTW: we do have a vacuum cleaner here...but we can't find it...
it's covered with dust somewhere

and finally...here in the USA you can walk down just about any alley
and find a discarded vacuum cleaner...
they are very often in need of only minor repair...
many times I;ve found one that was just a bit clogged up and just required
a wad of dust and string to be dislodged!

 

[JohnS]

Going off on a complete tangent here, recenetly my vacuum cleaner packed up.
I'm an invalid these days living on welfare in New Zealand. I went to the
welfare people to see if I could get help paying off the new machine I'd put
on hire-purchase. After the case-worker looked at a list of elligable
appliances the answer was no. However, welfare will help you pay off a TV,
it's on their list. What is the world coming to when an organisation like
that thinks that a TV is more important than a vacuum cleaner? Oh well, to
me the socialogical implications of that seem immense.

Sorry, back to your regularly scheduled progamming. <g>.

A vacuum cleaner isnt a must have appliance? Yikes. I say a vacuum and
a PC are must have basic appliances nowadays.

There was an article recently about how the growth of the net was
really falling off in the US. I think it hit 60-70% which surprised me
mainly because I thought it had hit 80%-90% already and possibly hot
the wall years ago.

 

[Noozer]

Nobody ever died because they didn't have a vacuum cleaner.

Many items that folks consider as "must haves" are really "must haves
because everyone else has one"

Heck, I don't even think that a phone is truly a MUST have, except that
there are the occasional emergencies that can't wait.

Enough whining from folks who complain that their cable bill is too high,
cigarettes are expensive, etc... NOT a necessity of life.

 

[philo]

Hey I just thought of another big opp for hardware people to sell
stuff - dual and triple monitors and multiple video cards.

Ive always made fun of people who spent so much on games and thought
SLI was ridiculous. Who needs that much power?

People who have to power more than one screen might. I was checking
out multiple screen setups at Toms Hardware and they point out that
dual screen setups on single cards running games take a huge framerate
hit which you would expect running two screens. It sort of halves it
in tests they show depending on the game etc.

On top of that they say two screens isnt much fun obviously cause you
have the physical split of the two screens in the middle of the view.

I recently built a machine for someone who wanted to use two monitors...
but using two monitors does NOT split the screen.
The main monitor has a normal desktop...and the additional monitor can
be used for just dragging over one or more windows. It's merely an
extention of the main desktop...

It's not a bad idea...but a 2nd monitor on the desk would be too much
clutter for me!

 

[~misfit~]

Nobody ever died because they didn't have a vacuum cleaner.

Very sweeping statement. <g> I need you to prove this. That's the way
discussions work, if you make a categorical statement like the one above and
get called on it you have to be able to prove it or you are considered a
liar. . You now need to investigate every human death since the invention
of the vacuum cleaner and prove that none of them could be avoided if the
deceased had a vacuum cleaner.

I think you are going to find yourself in the wrong (asbestosis springs to
mind, emphysema, any number of lung disorders) even if we disregard cases
where mugging/murder victims could have beaten off their attackers with the
pipes or thrown the machine. Or simply turned it on to draw attention, maybe
sucked an attacker's eyeball out with it. Maybe some of the millions of
people who have died of starvation in that time could have sold their vacuum
cleaners and bought food with the proceeds?

It quickly becomes obvious that your statement above is fundamentally
flawed.

Many items that folks consider as "must haves" are really "must haves
because everyone else has one"
Uhuh.

Heck, I don't even think that a phone is truly a MUST have, except
that there are the occasional emergencies that can't wait.

Ahh, the old "except" clause huh?

Enough whining from folks who complain that their cable bill is too
high, cigarettes are expensive, etc... NOT a necessity of life.

Yeah! Obviously you have strong feelings on this issue (with exceptions) or
you wouldn't have shouted the words "must" and "not". Did you suffer as a
child (I take it you're not *still* a child?) because your parents were
playing "keep up with the Jones's" while watching cable and smoking and
didn't have money to buy you school lunches?

Thanks for taking a thread that had gone OT even further into the Twilight
Zone.

 

[JohnS]

I recently built a machine for someone who wanted to use two monitors...
but using two monitors does NOT split the screen.
The main monitor has a normal desktop...and the additional monitor can
be used for just dragging over one or more windows. It's merely an
extention of the main desktop...

It's not a bad idea...but a 2nd monitor on the desk would be too much
clutter for me!

Im using it right now - LCD TV + my Viewsonic I already had. Its kind
of lame really as the size , res and brightness dont match at all.

People say it really helps with certain types of work huge
spreadsheets and graphics. I always thought it was kind of lame but am
coming around.

The first thing someone will say is ----- its STILL LAME ! Why would
anyone bother since everyone is essentially spending tons of money on
home theater entertainment systems --- decent sound systems and big
screen tvs to watch movies and adding on gaming too.

So they already have it setup and do 3 screens add that much vs one
BIG screen? Probably not as compelling a difference compared to puny
LCD single PC monitor vs 3 screens.

And theyll point out virtually NO games can run on two monitors let
alone 3 ! And so why would anyone be salivating about buying 3 LCD
screens and 3 cards?

Well this is all in the future and costs are coming down. So I
envision a future with 3 screen games. It all depends if the game
programmers can create compelling surround vision games that adds
something that one big flat screen wont have.

 

[kony]

Very sweeping statement. <g> I need you to prove this.

We would have to hear from them, and being dead, they can't
very well tell us that was the cause. Perhaps if we can get
a standard autopsy to include a closet inventory...

That's the way
discussions work, if you make a categorical statement like the one above and
get called on it you have to be able to prove it or you are considered a
liar. . You now need to investigate every human death since the invention
of the vacuum cleaner and prove that none of them could be avoided if the
deceased had a vacuum cleaner.

Better question is, how many who have died, might still be
alive if they had been vacuuming at the TIME of their death?

I think you are going to find yourself in the wrong (asbestosis springs to
mind, emphysema, any number of lung disorders) even if we disregard cases
where mugging/murder victims could have beaten off their attackers with the
pipes or thrown the machine. Or simply turned it on to draw attention, maybe
sucked an attacker's eyeball out with it. Maybe some of the millions of
people who have died of starvation in that time could have sold their vacuum
cleaners and bought food with the proceeds?

I suspect you are only assuming they died of starvation, but
think about it- many 3rd world people without enough food,
also lack vacuum cleaners. Seems just a little TOO
coincidental.

It quickly becomes obvious that your statement above is fundamentally
flawed.

Hehe, yeah I get a vacuum cleaner envy attack all the time.
I covet thy neighbor's hoover.

Uhuh.

Of course not, we could all just live in the woods, hunting
and gathering inbetween rebuilding our huts. Nonsense, the
modern world has what were once considered conveniences but
are now necessary in order to function.

Ahh, the old "except" clause huh?

How dare people be poor! We should, umm, punish them by
paying them fair wages so they don't have to scrounge any
more, that'd teach 'em!

I say lead by example, give up what you have so you can
prove this to everyone else. Simply claiming it just isn't
enough, talk is cheap.

So to put it simply, it is indeed reasonable for anyone and
everyone else to have the same conveniences you do, or
rather, the same choices of which as you do.