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Help with work computer build...

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  • PDF
  • Computers
  • Build
  • Systems
Last response: in Systems
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May 14, 2014 10:24:51 AM

I am hoping all of you experts can help this newb. I would like to build a pc for work. Here are my uses:

1-Viewing of 5-100mb PDF files(plans). This is the majority of my work.
2-Office, Excel, Word, etc.
3-Transfer above mentioned PDF's to and from the server.

My current setup is
Core 2 Duo, 3.00Ghz, 8g Ram, HD 7700 1Gig video card, WD 7200rpm 300gb drive. This setup is just too slow handling these large PDF's. The computer stutters and is really slow while the large files are open. I would like something that could flip through them much faster.

Budget is around $600-$800. AMD A8 is what I was leaning for towards. Could the video card I have be utilized?

Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.

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May 14, 2014 11:08:02 AM

First off, your machine isn't really that slow for a machine primarily used to read PDFs, so, you might like to just try a different PDF viewer. Adobe's viewer has a reputation for being a resource hog. Assuming that you are currently using Adobe's reader, free alternatives are SumatraPDF, Foxit Reader, and PDF-XChange. Also, Firefox and Chrome both have built-in readers if you want to try those out too.

With any alternative reader, though, there is the potential for compatibility issues, since Adobe's reader is really the standard. So, if you do end up buying a new machine, I think that your emphasis should mostly be on the processor and possibly on the HDD/SDD. PDF readers do use some GPU acceleration for scrolling and zooming, but you shouldn't need a very powerful card to take full advantage of that 2D acceleration. The one you have now could certainly be used in any new machine and would still be overkill. (Note, I have not done any tests to confirm this, it is just my educated opinion based on similar experiences.)

As for specific parts, I don't really follow AMD's platforms, so I'll leave that to someone else. If you decide for an SSD, Intel, Samsung, and Crucial are the names I know as trustworthy. Here is one I have: Samsung 840. You could find cheaper if you look around, though.
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May 14, 2014 11:23:01 AM

mriehm said:
First off, your machine isn't really that slow for a machine primarily used to read PDFs, so, you might like to just try a different PDF viewer. Adobe's viewer has a reputation for being a resource hog. Assuming that you are currently using Adobe's reader, free alternatives are SumatraPDF, Foxit Reader, and PDF-XChange. Also, Firefox and Chrome both have built-in readers if you want to try those out too.

With any alternative reader, though, there is the potential for compatibility issues, since Adobe's reader is really the standard. So, if you do end up buying a new machine, I think that your emphasis should mostly be on the processor and possibly on the HDD/SDD. PDF readers do use some GPU acceleration for scrolling and zooming, but you shouldn't need a very powerful card to take full advantage of that 2D acceleration. The one you have now could certainly be used in any new machine and would still be overkill. (Note, I have not done any tests to confirm this, it is just my educated opinion based on similar experiences.)

As for specific parts, I don't really follow AMD's platforms, so I'll leave that to someone else. If you decide for an SSD, Intel, Samsung, and Crucial are the names I know as trustworthy. Here is one I have: Samsung 840. You could find cheaper if you look around, though.


Ok, well I am glad I asked! I have tried a few different viewers-Foxit, etc. They have their + and -'s.

I will definately get a SSD and as much ram as I can afford.

Thanks for the input.
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