Computer purchase
Ignoring the little voice that kept telling me to reconsider, I just placed an order for this: Dell Dimension 9150 with 24 inch LCD. As some of you know, I just bought an Apple Powerbook in November. Thus the little voice. ;) So why a new computer?
My Mac meets most of my needs and I really love the OS. BUT... It doesn't meet all my needs. And unfortunately, no single computer really would. First of all, I could not handle using a Windows PC again as a primary computer. I would go stark raving mad. And Linux, while I love it, just doesn't have the software I need for many things (nor the usability, polish, or stability, in various cases). I love my Mac, and I really do insist on using one. So the Mac is a must.
But as I said, it doesn't cover all needs. The biggest area that pops to mind is the stuff I do for my internship. It's largely Linux apps. And there's a lot of other software that I've wanted to use here or there and couldn't because it's also Linux specific. None of that presents an immediate need... except that I'll be using that internship software for my thesis. And I'll be wanting to do a lot of thesis work on campus, rather than driving to the USGS constantly. I could work remotely, but that causes endless frustration. The most productive thing to do is work locally.
Another area where problems are posed is that I can't work cross-platform. Sure, there's Virtual PC and X11 for the Mac. Unfortunately, Virtual PC runs too slowly to use XP very well, and X11 isn't truly the same as Linux. Being able to work cross platform isn't exactly a must for me, but it sure would make my life better.
Another major concern is that I've not done any Windows programming in about 5 years. I haven't used Visual Studio in that long, either. Unfortunately, in the Real World, those applications are used a lot at some places. It would be very wise of me to regain familiarity with Visual Studio and Windows programming, because who knows where I'll be or what I'll be doing in the future?
Of course most of that could be accomplished with a cheaper PC. Why this one? Well, I'm embarrased to admit it's because of gaming.... I wouldn't buy a computer just for that, but since I'm buying one, I might as well spend a bit extra and get one that'll be good for gaming--and will last much longer before going obsolete as a bonus.
Oh, and the monitor. 24" monitor... that's two feet. I can't WAIT to have that much screen real estate. When I'm working on stuff, I have anywhere from 4 to 10 windows open at any given time, especially when developing code. Flipping around between them is a huge hassle. It'll be awesome to finally have enough space to MAYBE have most of the essential things I'm using on-screen. Oh, the bonus to the monitor: I'll probably be able to use it for dual-screen with my PowerBook when I'm not using it for the PC. :D
Most likely I'll split the PC into 2 partitions, one for Linux and one for Windows. Maybe a third for just general storage space, so I can more easily wipe and recreate the OS systems as needed. We'll see. I ordered it tonight, and it should ship on Monday and arrive by the end of next week (or the following Monday at latest).
My Mac meets most of my needs and I really love the OS. BUT... It doesn't meet all my needs. And unfortunately, no single computer really would. First of all, I could not handle using a Windows PC again as a primary computer. I would go stark raving mad. And Linux, while I love it, just doesn't have the software I need for many things (nor the usability, polish, or stability, in various cases). I love my Mac, and I really do insist on using one. So the Mac is a must.
But as I said, it doesn't cover all needs. The biggest area that pops to mind is the stuff I do for my internship. It's largely Linux apps. And there's a lot of other software that I've wanted to use here or there and couldn't because it's also Linux specific. None of that presents an immediate need... except that I'll be using that internship software for my thesis. And I'll be wanting to do a lot of thesis work on campus, rather than driving to the USGS constantly. I could work remotely, but that causes endless frustration. The most productive thing to do is work locally.
Another area where problems are posed is that I can't work cross-platform. Sure, there's Virtual PC and X11 for the Mac. Unfortunately, Virtual PC runs too slowly to use XP very well, and X11 isn't truly the same as Linux. Being able to work cross platform isn't exactly a must for me, but it sure would make my life better.
Another major concern is that I've not done any Windows programming in about 5 years. I haven't used Visual Studio in that long, either. Unfortunately, in the Real World, those applications are used a lot at some places. It would be very wise of me to regain familiarity with Visual Studio and Windows programming, because who knows where I'll be or what I'll be doing in the future?
Of course most of that could be accomplished with a cheaper PC. Why this one? Well, I'm embarrased to admit it's because of gaming.... I wouldn't buy a computer just for that, but since I'm buying one, I might as well spend a bit extra and get one that'll be good for gaming--and will last much longer before going obsolete as a bonus.
Oh, and the monitor. 24" monitor... that's two feet. I can't WAIT to have that much screen real estate. When I'm working on stuff, I have anywhere from 4 to 10 windows open at any given time, especially when developing code. Flipping around between them is a huge hassle. It'll be awesome to finally have enough space to MAYBE have most of the essential things I'm using on-screen. Oh, the bonus to the monitor: I'll probably be able to use it for dual-screen with my PowerBook when I'm not using it for the PC. :D
Most likely I'll split the PC into 2 partitions, one for Linux and one for Windows. Maybe a third for just general storage space, so I can more easily wipe and recreate the OS systems as needed. We'll see. I ordered it tonight, and it should ship on Monday and arrive by the end of next week (or the following Monday at latest).