I now have the whole family using the linux partition as their workspace. I also set it up where linux would mount my Windows partition so we could have a separate repository for media(pictures and videos) that can be accessbile from either OS. That way, depending on what OS is up at the time, we could use F-Spot to import pictures in Linux, and Picasa to do it in Windows, and it would import them all to the same place. In the future, I plan to resize my Linux partition, and create a dedicated FAT32 partition just for shared media. Anyway, click the link below to look at all the parts and how I built my PC…. The one thing I forgot to do is take a picture of the whole setup once I was done, but hey… I’m not perfect.

PC Components

[tags]pc, build, ubuntu, windows[/tags]

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A couple of notes:

1. Wow does Windows load up fast!
2. After loading up all of the needed drivers, I re-installed Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter and turned the graphic settings all the way up… simply beautiful!
3. I’m really digging this new heatsink. It was HUGE and a pain to install, but in combination with the fans in my case, it is keeping my new quad-core CPU a very cool 25° C.
4. The PC is much quieter than my old one.
5. 32-bit Windows isn’t able to utilize 4 GB of memory. Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to get my hands on a 64-bit version. No real matter. I plan to be working in Linux mostly anyway.

I did take a number of pictures that i will import in shortly. I know it’s really geeky, but hey, that’s how I roll…
[tags]windows, pc, games[/tags]

So to review, in choosing my components, I had to follow a few guidelines…. well at least I had to come close…

Here is a link to the components I purchased this past Saturday. In all actuality, this setup should last me more than 5 years – even with my love for gaming. My current plan is to have Ubuntu linux as my primary operating system… unfortunately, I’m a gamer, so I will also have a small windows partition as well. Anyway. not a bad setup for around $1,300: A quad-core proc and 4Gigs of RAM… more than enough to run a couple of virtual machines and the host OS without breaking a sweat.

Man, am I stoked!

So stoked in fact, that I realized that in my eagerness, I ordered the OEM version of the CPU instead of the retail version… meaning that while the one I purchased was cheaper, it comes without a heatsink and fan. So, I rushed to newegg this afternoon and got THIS. This HSF combo is rated really well in the research that I did. Now it is just a waiting game… expanded by a day or two because of my ordering slip-up.(Ya really don’t want to try to run a computer without a heatsink on the processor…. unless you’re a pyro.)
Barring any delays, all of the parts should be in before the weekend, when I shall lock myself in my “la-bor-a-tory” like a mad scientist and perform my magic…

So Stoked!!!!
[tags]computer, pc, ubuntu, windows, newegg[/tags]

Today, my mom treated our family to see “Enchanted” in the theaters. Quite a funny movie. Disney does a pretty good job of making fun of itself. All-in-all, it s was pretty good. Then my mom lost her cell…. Luckily we were able to find it. Some nice person turned it in to the ticket booth.

So, not a bad day altogether, don’t you think? I would have thought so too… until we got home and found out that my windows pc had died. I was able to get it to boot into safe mode, but nothing after that. When I try to go into normal mode, I get either a BSOD, or it freezes before the login screen ever comes up. I thought it could have been a video card issue, but I put in my handy spare, but to no avail. same BSODs. So, I’m now typing this up on my work laptop. I dunno when – or if – I will get this fixed…. Hopefully I can troubleshoot this thing and figure out how to fix it, but without any really good information from Windows, I’m really at a loss.(Another reason to switch to linux)

Sooooo… without a home PC (my linux machines are all server types without GUIs), my posting will be relegated to my breaks at work, and from this laptop, when I’m at home. Bummer….

[tags]windows, windows-sux, Thanksgiving, holidays, Disney, movies[/tags]

Don’t get one with Vista pre-loaded on it.

Seriously.

If all you plan to do is check email, do some web-surfing, and some light office work then Walmart’s $200 Gpc is a great option. Unfortunately, it sold completely out in a matter of a couple of weeks.
But the principle behind the idea, is that you do not need some high-priced, overpowered machinery to do daily computer tasks. All you need is a mid-level machine and a free, open-source operating system like ubuntu. Don’t think there is good support for an OS like Linux? Wrong. Dell is offering a great system with a flat screen monitor for under $500 with 1 year in-home service and 24×7 phone support. Not to mention, the Ubuntu support forums are free and second to none.

One of the best things about a system like this, is that it will do most anything that your windows PC will do at a fraction of the cost. Furthermore, any and all software upgrades are free! We like free!

If you absolutely must have a Windows machine, take the XP option… please – I beg you! With a little bit of a time investment, you can get a perfectly good Win XP machine to have all those nifty Vista features you’ve been hearing about… and without the huge impact on computer resources (such as extremely long boot times, and crazy memory requirements) that Vista brings.

Admittedly, I still run a WinXP machine at home, BUT only so I can run the Windows-only games I like to play. Everything else is done on Linux. My workstation at my job is Linux as well. If I had to do it over again, I would have stripped Vista off of my daughter’s laptop and installed Linux on it before I handed it to her. Administration and software upgrades would have been much easier.

But don’t just take my word on it. Read how 90% of other IT Professionals surveyed would rather stay away from Vista and that 44% are considering migrating to either Linux or Mac.

[tags]Linux, Mac, Windows, Walmart, Dell, Ubuntu, Vista, XP, computers[/tags]