christmas comes early when you bring home your own bacon and fail to possess more than a modicum of self control
warning: nerd post.
well, i went ahead ordered myself a new computer. i decided it was time. this will in some small ways supplement my current arsenal of computers (and in some large ways replace some):
the g4/350 sawtooth: the first computer i purchased on my own. though this machine and i have been through many a good time together, even with all the RAM i have crammed in there, and a shiny new panther of an operating system on it, and the 40gb hard drive i bought long ago to replace the stock quantum that fizzled on me, i mostly use it for web browsing and music listening these days.
the dual ppro 200 firewall: hobbled together for less than $150, this served as a webserver and mp3 jukebox in its heyday. easily the ugliest of my computers, the case is too small, the hard drive too big (2U), and it is far, far too loud. my favorite thing about this machine is the power supply, whose fan died long ago, and which now boasts a spliced-in stock case fan loosely attached to the power supply by two screws screwed in through the original fan grate. these days it just acts as a smart packet-shaping firewall between me and charter.
the p3/500 gateway: graciously donated to the “feed seth technology” fund by jody kalt, this replaced the p3/550 i borrowed from david seelig for the better part of our senior year at carleton. primarily used to play those pesky “pc” games i couldn’t play on my mac (xcom, fallout tactics, half life, morrowind, emulator/ff8, gta3vc), but also used as a general web surfing toy, downloader, and gentoo linux fermentation ground. this is the machine most directly getting replaced by the new beast.
and what a beast it is! sort of. it’s certainly a step up for me. its teeth are far shorter than those of my other computers, each of which is over four years old. it should be able to handle newer games handily. it will browse the web at breakneck speeds. it will not take so unfortunately long to compile new applications. i have justified its purchase to myself, and i suppose that’s all that matters. for those who care, it contains: a shuttle an35n ultra 400, athlon xp barton 2500+, 2×256mb PC3200, radeon 9100 128mb, 80gb seagate 7200.7, combo dvd/cdrw, and a case to hold it. total cost: $550, including shipping, from newegg. i hear these bartons overclock like no one’s business, and if i get an unlocked one, i should be able to run it at 3200+ without trouble. then again, i don’t currently have much need to overclock it at all, nor am i up enough on my 1337haxx0r skillz and mindset, nor am i unconcerned enough about increased noise.
questions, comments, concerns? anyone need a p3/500?