Need advice for new computer

[Tixer]

So I sent a guy at NCIX this email, which tells you a bit about what I need for my computer. Does what I want get fullfilled with this? Is there anything missing?Heres an exact copy of the email.

Sorry for not replying, however, I've been looking around at other places. I've decided to either go with NCIX, Dell, or My local computer guy, and am currently pricing out what I will be ordering. Right now, I'm getting quotes to find the lowest price for what I want, so I'd like to get a quote from NCIX. I;ve attached parts I'm considering, so add it up. It is very possible that I will end up going with NCIX, since with Dell, I would prefer a computer without an OS, and I don't want to buy another copy of Windows XP, and I'd prefer one without parts I already have.

I'd like (if possible) for you to price out a computer for me. This is what I need:

I have a limited budget of about 2700 + tax, but due to the fact that the order is being shipped to Ontario, there is only 7/ or 8 percent tax, so I think if I can get free shipping somehow (either by way of special or sale, or through PriceNetwork.ca rewards, or NCIX rewards, I can bump it up to 3000 if I dont pay either. 2700+ is the money I'm recieving from my parents on this, so although I can spend more, any additional money comes out of my pocket, which I would prefer not.

Because of my budget, I'd like to put all my money into parts which cannot have additions added without disposing the initial part. For example, I'd like to put money into graphics cards over ram, since I can always add more ram, but I cannot upgrade the graphics card without disposing the old one.

Also, I'd like the computer to be really quiet. I can deal with noise under load, however, while working, I'd like it to be really quiet, so appropriate fans will have to be added.


Part List. These are things I'm considering, however, I don't know which brand is better etc, so I need clarification on it.

2x nVidia GeForce 7950's. I have no idea what type of mobo is required for this with SLI (quad), so NCIX would have to pick one out if I order.

I have a few giftcards, so HDDs are not required to be in the quote, since I'll be ordering them separately.

Processor. I'd like 64 bit, however, does AMD offer Dual-Core? What would you reccomend?

RAM: depending on the amount of slots depends on how many sticks I would get. I can always order additional RAM, so this can be seen as an afterthought, but I would like to know how much it would cost for High capacity (nothing under a gig per stick), fairly high speed, DDR2.

Sound Card: My current computer has a sound blaster audigy, and aside from the audio quality, the only beef I have with it is that it is a ����� to install, sometimes uninstalls itself, pisses me off, so integrated, provided it is minimum 5.1, would be OK.

Optical drives: A DVD Burner is needed, so through one in the quote.

PSU: With the cards, I have no idea how many watts or anything I'd need, so I'd need you to tell me how many. Also, could you quote one which is modular? I'm a stickler about wires.

Mobo: will need one to accomidate SLI. Must have SATA, RAID, preferably many PCI slots, many ram slots, etc.

Cooling: I need something quiet, and I need something that will keep it fairly cool, so you need to factor this into the price. I've heard good things on Zalman stuff...

Case: I'm looking for something Minimalistic or extremely pimped. I dont want something that looks like a beige box or an upgraded beige box, I want something sleek, possibly with a door to access the cd drives. Also, preferably one without screws. I have no idea which cases are best.

If there is anything else I'm forgetting, let me know. Also, I dont need anything outside the case.

With NCIX rewards, do I earn them on every purchase? Also, is it possible to earn them on a purchase and use them on that purchase? For example, buy a computer, use the free shipping?

I've also emailed this.

EDIT: I forgot cables, so factor those in. Also, can you tell me about the parts you choose?

So the guy sent me a quote, with these parts. So my question is, is this a good quote? Is there something that should be changed? I dont like the case, so I know about that, but about the other parts?

QUOTATION #: None of Your Business
Branch: Burnaby
Date: 19-Jun-2006
Sales Rep: Kelvin Ng (Ext 2889)

SOLD TO: Me
123 Fake St.
Toronto, ON M1M 1M1
Tel: 416-1-AM-1337

SHIP TO: Me
123 Fake Street
Toronto, ON M1M 1M1
Tel: 416-1-AM-1337
VIA: Purolator Ground

SKU Description Qty Price Amount

18724 EVGA GeForce 7950 GX2 500MHZ Dual GPU Video Card 1GB 1.2GHZ GDDR3 PCI-E Dual DVI-I HDTV Out [Reg. $750.00] 2 $689.98 total $1,379.96

18458 AMD Athlon 64 X2 4200+ Dual Core Processor Socket AM2 Windsor 2.2GHZ 2000FSB 2X512KB 90NM Retail Box [Reg. $464.43] 1 $419.98 total $419.98

18386 Mushkin HP PC2-4200 2GB 2X1GB DDR2-533 CL3-3-3-9 240PIN DIMM Dual Channel Memory Kit [Reg. $222.65] 1 $214.98 total $214.98

18003 Pioneer DVR-111D Black DVD-RW 16X6X16 DVD+RW 16X8X16 DL 8X IDE OEM DVD Burner [Reg. $47.54] 1 $42.99 total $42.99

18185 OCZ GameXStream 700W ATX12V 24PIN SLI Ready Active PFC ATX Power Supply 120MM Fan Black [Reg. $190.43] 1 $165.99 total $165.99

17094 NZXT LEXA ATX Aluminum Case Black 4X5.25 2X3.5 5X3.5INT No PS Temp Display Window & Carrying Strap 1 $153.93 total $153.93

18777 ASUS M2N-SLI Deluxe ATX AM2 Nforce 570 SLI 2PCI-E16 2PCI-E1 3PCI SATA2 Sound GBLAN 1394 Motherboard [Reg. $185.82] 1 $175.99 total $175.99

12072 PC ASSEMBLY AND TESTING WITHOUT OS INSTALLATION [Reg. $25.00] 1 $1.00 total $1.00

Comments:
Shipping & Handling: $70.39
Shipping Insurance (1.5%): $38.32
SUBTOTAL: $2,663.53
GST (7%): $186.45
TOTAL: CAD $2,849.98
ALL PRICES IN CANADIAN DOLLARS BALANCE: $2,849.98[/b]

 

[shadowduck]

1) Quad SLI is not an option. nVidia has chosen not to enable it in any driver except for system builders like Dell and Alienware. Sure you can buy 2 cards, but you cannot enable SLI.

2) The 4000+ is better due to the 1MB of cache per core so go with that.

3) Your salesman obviously has zero clue about AM2 to quote you DDR2-533 memory. Look for CLS4 DDR2-800 OR if you can afford it CLS3 DDR-800, but its around $450 USD for 2GB.

4) Motherboard is fine...

5) PSU is ok, but I would look at Antec instead, but thats just me.

 

[DDay629]

Umm. I didn't know that about Quad SLi, but I'll take shadow's word for it. He knows EVERYTHING.

Basicly you don't need a second 7950. As it will have no affect on your speed of play in games, nor is it available at this time.

I can see why they gave you the 4200 as currently NCIX does not carry the 4000.

Yeah, the guy's an idiot with the RAM. Go with what shadowduck says.

Soooo, I decided to build you a computer for you on NCIX.
I assume since you are on here that you don't mind building. If you do, just have them ship it to me. I'll build it. No, seriously, I would love to. Its always fun to put new things together.

Anyways, I build you this PC on NCIX.
And mind you, its cheaper than their quote, though it doesn't include the 7-8 percent sales tax and shipping that you might have to deal with, it does include a AWESOME 20" widescreen monitor, a AMAZING gaming keyboard, and the best gaming mouse you can buy. So here it is:

AMD Athlon 64 X2 4200+ Dual Core Processor Socket AM2 Windsor 2.2GHZ 2X512KB 89W 90NM Retail Box

1 x FREE Age of Empires III

EVGA GeForce 7950 GX2 500MHZ Dual GPU Video Card 1GB 1.2GHZ GDDR3 PCI-E Dual DVI-I HDTV Out

OCZ Platinum XTC PC2-6400 2GB 2X1GB DDR2-800 CL4-5-4-15 240PIN DIMM Dual Channel Memory Kit

ASUS M2N32-SLI Deluxe ATX AM2 Nforce 590 SLI 2PCI-E16 1PCI-E4 1PCI-E1 2PCI SATA2 1394 Moth *IR-$22*

Antec P180 ATX Advanced Mid Tower Aluminum Case 4X5.25 1X3.5 6X3.5INT No PS W/ USB & Audio Ports

Antec True Power 2.0 550W ATX12V V2.0 SLI 120MM Fan Power Supply

Samsung SH-W162 16X DVD+-RW 5X Dual Layer DVD Writer Black /W SW OEM

Logitech G15 Gaming Keyboard USB Black Silver LCD Panel Programmable Back Lit Keys

Viewsonic VX2025WM 20IN LCD Monitor BLACK/SILVER Widescreen 1680X1050 8MS 800:1 VGA DVI W/ Cable

Logitech G5 Laser Gaming Mouse 2000DPI USB Bilingual *IR-$17*


All for the price of $2635 CAD.


Yeah, basicly everything I picked out is the best you can buy, other than the processor which you can't get on this site. So, I did my best.


DDay, your ever present friend, and shopper.


P.S. PLEASE, PRETTY PLEASE LET ME BUILD IT.

 

[Tixer]

Umm. I didn't know that about Quad SLi, but I'll take shadow's word for it. He knows EVERYTHING.

Basicly you don't need a second 7950. As it will have no affect on your speed of play in games, nor is it available at this time.

I can see why they gave you the 4200 as currently NCIX does not carry the 4000.

Yeah, the guy's an idiot with the RAM. Go with what shadowduck says.

Soooo, I decided to build you a computer for you on NCIX.
I assume since you are on here that you don't mind building. If you do, just have them ship it to me. I'll build it. No, seriously, I would love to. Its always fun to put new things together.

Anyways, I build you this PC on NCIX.
And mind you, its cheaper than their quote, though it doesn't include the 7-8 percent sales tax and shipping that you might have to deal with, it does include a AWESOME 20" widescreen monitor, a AMAZING gaming keyboard, and the best gaming mouse you can buy. So here it is:

AMD Athlon 64 X2 4200+ Dual Core Processor Socket AM2 Windsor 2.2GHZ 2X512KB 89W 90NM Retail Box

1 x FREE Age of Empires III

EVGA GeForce 7950 GX2 500MHZ Dual GPU Video Card 1GB 1.2GHZ GDDR3 PCI-E Dual DVI-I HDTV Out

OCZ Platinum XTC PC2-6400 2GB 2X1GB DDR2-800 CL4-5-4-15 240PIN DIMM Dual Channel Memory Kit

ASUS M2N32-SLI Deluxe ATX AM2 Nforce 590 SLI 2PCI-E16 1PCI-E4 1PCI-E1 2PCI SATA2 1394 Moth *IR-$22*

Antec P180 ATX Advanced Mid Tower Aluminum Case 4X5.25 1X3.5 6X3.5INT No PS W/ USB & Audio Ports

Antec True Power 2.0 550W ATX12V V2.0 SLI 120MM Fan Power Supply

Samsung SH-W162 16X DVD+-RW 5X Dual Layer DVD Writer Black /W SW OEM

Logitech G15 Gaming Keyboard USB Black Silver LCD Panel Programmable Back Lit Keys

Viewsonic VX2025WM 20IN LCD Monitor BLACK/SILVER Widescreen 1680X1050 8MS 800:1 VGA DVI W/ Cable

Logitech G5 Laser Gaming Mouse 2000DPI USB Bilingual *IR-$17*


All for the price of $2635 CAD.


Yeah, basicly everything I picked out is the best you can buy, other than the processor which you can't get on this site. So, I did my best.


DDay, your ever present friend, and shopper.


P.S. PLEASE, PRETTY PLEASE LET ME BUILD IT.

The second card is actually available. It can't be used with the latest driver updates, but .02 back, and itll work wonders. Regarding building it myself, I don't want to build it. Its not that I dont trust my skills, but I just dont want to deal with it after my last computer.

Just to give you an idea of what I went through. As of now, I'm about to turn 15, so the compy is a birthday gift, as well as a "We promised you every 5 so years a new computer, and you've been nagging..." thing. So about 5 years ago, when my parents offered my first compy, I started looking at parts, and I gave a list to my computer guy, who made changes (half my shit was incompatible/not worth it type shit), so the guy built it and stuff. I was thrilled, and everything went well for a while. Fast forward 2 years, when I had case problems (DONT ASK!), and I got a new case. So while setting shit up, I didnt know where the LEDs and Front USB went, and other stuff, since the Mobo had no map. I ended up wrecking the LEDs, and it put me through hell. I'm now disturbed because of it. Add in the fact that over the course of my life, I've killed MANY procs, mobos, and more, so I want to know that everything works when I get it, and I don;t wanna deal with RMA's. Also, the number of times I;ve cut my had on IDE cables when changing configs, etc. I have no problem with picking parts, but I dont want to assemble it and risk a $800 graphics card.

Back on topic, I've been asking alot of people about this, so this is what I've been told.

Proc. I've been told to get the 4400 I think, since it has the dual 2x1mb cache, as opposed to the other thing. Also, does this config come with like a heat sink or some crap, or something to cool the proc? Also, how quiet is the whole rig going to be. I intend on sleeping on its awesomeness, and I dont wish to be disturbed . Also, at what temp is this going to run at? I dont want any overheating on any parts.

Mobo: I think this is the one I read about today, with the WiFi and 32x bus, so I'd definately get this. Hands Down.

RAM: I completely agree with you on this. I dont know why the guy would give me that.

Case: I just finished reading about that case, seems amazing. Hands down boner GET!

PSU: Will the PSU be able to handle dual cards? I thought it needed more. I dont care what you say, I want the ability to add a second card, since its something for wins.

Burner: It burns DVDs. What the hell do I care?

Are you sure that it has enough cooling for 2 cards? I'd be willing to add some of my own money to get the second card, so it wouldnt affect budget.

Whats great is that my dad actually took my kb+mouse, since I had a run in with logitech when I had to RMA my MXDuo, and I didnt like how they sent me an LX700, or the dearest comrade model, so my dad is paying me to take the kb+m, so I get to knock another 100 off the total!

The monitor seems quite awesome. Thanks for doing the quote, I'll pass it around.

 

[DDay629]

Well, sucks with all the stuff that's happened to you and building. But can i build it! Please!

OK, I don't really get the whole .2 thing, but really, currently, SLi, or this card, do not provide THAT great an increase in fps. Really, what are you going to be using this for. Gaming I assume? One 7950 is all you will need for the next 2 years. Buy another one when the prices go down. As my friend shadowduck says, if you aren't going to buy another of the same card within 90 days, its cheaper to just get one of them, and then get a nicer card when it comes out. And you can practically be certain that when that new card comes out, it will be faster than 2 of the old ones. Its just the way technology works. So, since one 7950 will hold you out for 2 years, you have no need to worry on this.

Processor I agree you should go 440 if you really want too. Personally because I'm on a budget, I would get a cheaper single core AM2 now, and buy a nice 65 nm dual core once they come out in December. The single core will be plenty fast for games, you just won't be able to multitask as much. Also, as long as it says its in a box, like one of those green AMD boxes, its got a cooler. The cool thing is, is that the stock AMD cooler is pretty good. I personally have gotten a Zalman 9500 for my computer, and you could too. Just make sure to get the new AM2 model.

Mobo: Definetly get that mobo. Its awesome.

Case: Yeah, the p180 is AWESOME. I just wish I had the money for it. Also, yeah, I would recommend if you want to keep this really nice and cool, to get one or two more 120 mm fans for it. Make sure they are quiet, because the rest of this computer will be.

The 550 W Antec should be able to handle all of this fine, even dual cards. Though to be safe if you HAVE to have 2 7950's get a 600 W such as this.

Otherwise, everything seems fine.

DDay

 

[Tixer]

Well, sucks with all the stuff that's happened to you and building. But can i build it! Please!

OK, I don't really get the whole .2 thing, but really, currently, SLi, or this card, do not provide THAT great an increase in fps. Really, what are you going to be using this for. Gaming I assume? One 7950 is all you will need for the next 2 years. Buy another one when the prices go down. As my friend shadowduck says, if you aren't going to buy another of the same card within 90 days, its cheaper to just get one of them, and then get a nicer card when it comes out. And you can practically be certain that when that new card comes out, it will be faster than 2 of the old ones. Its just the way technology works. So, since one 7950 will hold you out for 2 years, you have no need to worry on this.

Processor I agree you should go 440 if you really want too. Personally because I'm on a budget, I would get a cheaper single core AM2 now, and buy a nice 65 nm dual core once they come out in December. The single core will be plenty fast for games, you just won't be able to multitask as much. Also, as long as it says its in a box, like one of those green AMD boxes, its got a cooler. The cool thing is, is that the stock AMD cooler is pretty good. I personally have gotten a Zalman 9500 for my computer, and you could too. Just make sure to get the new AM2 model.

Mobo: Definetly get that mobo. Its awesome.

Case: Yeah, the p180 is AWESOME. I just wish I had the money for it. Also, yeah, I would recommend if you want to keep this really nice and cool, to get one or two more 120 mm fans for it. Make sure they are quiet, because the rest of this computer will be.

The 550 W Antec should be able to handle all of this fine, even dual cards. Though to be safe if you HAVE to have 2 7950's get a 600 W such as this.

Otherwise, everything seems fine.

DDay

arent the x2's dual core? I though AMD made dual core procs??11?? The thing about the graphics cards is the fact that my parents are paying for it. I can make it look like its part of the system, they'll foot the bill. If I remove the ram, the total comes to 2400+tax. I can bring it up to say, 3000, foot the bill for the RAM myself, and therefore, have a huge ePenis.

If I had to foot the bill, I would definately not get 2. its because I'm not .

Also, is the 600 PSU modular? Im a stickler for cables.

 

[Mobius]

I'd like it to be really quiet, so appropriate fans will have to be added.

LMFAO. Don't you mean "removed"?

Handy hint: want quiet? Take fans out - not put them in!

 

[DDay629]

Yes, the x2's are dual core. But not all AM2 cpu's are dual core. I'm saying buy a cheaper fast single core cpu now, and buy a brand spanking new faster 65nm cpu in December when the 65nm cpu's come out. With Intel, the change to 65 nm bround increases of 30% to their speed. So, your choice. What I'm saying with the cards, is that yeah, you could get them, and make your ePenis grow big and strong, but its completely unneeded, and I'm sure you could let slip how you conserved some money for them. After all, parents always like that.

Also, were you orignally planning on getting a new monitor, keyboard and mouse?

DDay

 

[DDay629]

Dude, your a really big idiot. What he said in that quote, is that because he wants his comp to be quiet, he has to add the appropriate quieter fans to his shopping list. He in no way said he wanted to add fans and make it louder, he said add quieter fans. So please, next time, don't be a dumb ass.

DDay

 

[Tixer]

Yes, the x2's are dual core. But not all AM2 cpu's are dual core. I'm saying buy a cheaper fast single core cpu now, and buy a brand spanking new faster 65nm cpu in December when the 65nm cpu's come out. With Intel, the change to 65 nm bround increases of 30% to their speed. So, your choice. What I'm saying with the cards, is that yeah, you could get them, and make your ePenis grow big and strong, but its completely unneeded, and I'm sure you could let slip how you conserved some money for them. After all, parents always like that.

Also, were you orignally planning on getting a new monitor, keyboard and mouse?

DDay

Actually, I may take your advice, since I could get 4 gigs of ram, which is something I'd definately use.

regarding the new mouse, keyboard, and monitor, I already told you how I'd need a new kb+mouse, and as for the monitor, I have a Samsung 1905 MP or something like that which is brand new, but I can justify using it as a TV since my TV just died, or I can tell my parents that its has DVI, which my other monitor doesnt have.

 

[DDay629]

Do you do Graphics design or rendering or something. Cause if your just gaming 2 GB's may actually be faster than 4.

DDay

And may I commend you on knowing how to milk your parents for all their worth so well. It is an honor to be in your presence.

 

[Tixer]

Do you do Graphics design or rendering or something. Cause if your just gaming 2 GB's may actually be faster than 4.

DDay

And may I commend you on knowing how to milk your parents for all their worth so well. It is an honor to be in your presence.

I do alot of PS and Illustrator work. 'tis quite painful working on my current PC. My good one died, and I havent had money to fix it, so I'm running on a Pentium3 with a ghettoRAID setup of 2x2gb. I intend on learning Maya soon...

The trick is to make up some reason to justify each part. My parents'll ask why I need 4 gigs of RAM, and I'll give em some crap that since games now require 4 gigs of HDD space, I need 4 gigs to run it

 

[DDay629]

Hmm, thats the exact opposite. I try to keep the word game out of buying computer as much as possible. I'm buying my own by the way. No mommy or daddy helping. But I try as hard as possible to mention all of the InDesign, Photoshop, Dreamweaver/GoLive, and Illustrator stuff I do. I also hope to do some more 3D stuff as I learned a bit last year in my 3d animation course.

DDay

 

[badge]

There is no driver available to run two 7950's in SLI.

I built this rig and have been up and running for about 6 months or so.

AMD 4800+ X2 DC (O'cd 2.5 x 2) idle 42c 1.35v Vcore
MSI K8N NEO4 Platinum/SLI (Want the K*N ASUS 32 SLI bad)
Crucial Ballistic 512 x 4, tot. 2 gigs PC4000 500 MGZ 1.8v (running at 500 mgz. nice!) 2.5-4-4-8
EVGA 7600 GT Ko x 2 SLI (ZAlman GPU cooler on both stock 600/1500 I think) 7800 and 7900 are much better cards. Wish I had an ATI 1900.
WD 74 SATA 10,000 rpm single for Program files
WD 250 SATA 1.5 snigle for junk
Sony DVD ROM
Pioneer DVD-R (same one 111-D, excellent drive)
Pinnacle Studio 9
Antec 550 sli
(just bought an artic freezer 64 heatsink fan and want to swap everything out to that ASUS K8N32 SLI board.

If I had to do it all over again I would. Well, until I bought the Pentium D 805 Smith! Shhhhhhshhh! I have that running at 3.25 with a 7800gt and 2 gigs of OCZ 5400 667 mgz and it is nice! For the money, it is nice!

Man...you didn't take any prisioners. Congratulations on your new rig. Can I break her in for you for a while.

Edited for spelling.

 

[Tixer]

see here

Blaugh!

 

[badge]

Read under Nvidia SLI tTchnology. No driver is available.

http://www.nvidia.com/object/7_series_techspecs.html

 

[Tixer]

If you read the article, you'd know that it is still possible to hax0r a driver into doing your bidding.

 

[badge]

I had not heard a driver would not come available. I just heard no driver was available. I'm not familiar with the website you posted or the person who wrote the artice. I looked over the entire article and didn't see where the author was saying He could MAKE a driver?

 

[shadowduck]

see here

Blaugh!

Quad SLI is ONLY available for system builders from now until Nvidia says otherwise. The SLI link on the 7950 is DISABLED, so a software update is not going to help you along. The hardware right now in the non-System builders channels CANNOT DO QUAD SLI even with a driver that supports it. Period.

Don't waste your money unless you want to run 4 monitors. Otherwise just get ONE card and be happy.

Also, if you are going to post on these forums, try to be an adult. Posting links with Blaugh has a link title looks like about a 7 year old and is silly. This is a board of professionals, at least try to apppear as such.

 

[Tixer]

The point I'm trying to make is that, while officially unsupported, if you use a certain driver number, you can tell the registry to use it as an SLi Link, however, regardless, I'm probably not going to get it, since I realize I can sneak other things into the purchase, such as 4 gigs of ram.

The reason why I was originally suggesting the purchase is that my parents are the ones buying the computer, not me. If they actaully gave me the money, in cash, to spend on a new compy, I would rather only get 1 and use the rest on the monitor and RAM. Regardless, I'm probably going to give up the idea of quad SLI for now, since not many games support it, and to get a monitor instead, with plenty more RAM seems better.

 

[badge]

Here is my monitor. So far widescreen has been a blessing. I'm being promoted to priesthood.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16824116381

 

[shadowduck]

The point I'm trying to make is that, while officially unsupported, if you use a certain driver number, you can tell the registry to use it as an SLi Link, however, regardless, I'm probably not going to get it, since I realize I can sneak other things into the purchase, such as 4 gigs of ram.

The reason why I was originally suggesting the purchase is that my parents are the ones buying the computer, not me. If they actaully gave me the money, in cash, to spend on a new compy, I would rather only get 1 and use the rest on the monitor and RAM. Regardless, I'm probably going to give up the idea of quad SLI for now, since not many games support it, and to get a monitor instead, with plenty more RAM seems better.

Until Vista 4GB of RAM is useless as well. Windows XP (non-64 bit) cannot even access 4GB, it wont help you but slow you down. Get 2GB and wait for Vista before going 4GB.

 

[Tixer]

I'd be using XP64B. The point I'm trying to make is that my parents have basically said that they're paying for one bill. If they actually game me the money, then I'd be concerned about buying it later etc, but the thing is, that since they are paying for it, and its a one time thing that they're paying for it, unless I slip them the bill now, otherwise I'd need to pay for it, regardless if I'm using it now or not.

 

[badge]

Been running VISTA BETA 2 with my Socket A ASUS Deluxe board, an AMD 3200 (2.1 mgz), and a gig of PC3200 400 mgz. RAM in dual channel. The VISTA BETA 2 disk is just over 3 gigs in size and the final product is expected to be up to 10 gigs in size depending on which version you have. Right now with the smaller BETA version, I am using 500 gigs of my 1024 to support the OS. I thought that was quite a lot, but the BETA version runs incredibally fast and responsive wiyh my 1 gig PC3200 Infineon. I am using an ATI Radeon 9200 graphics card with 128 mgs. DDR RAM. The GPU is probably around 250 mgz or so. Have VISTA BETA instaklled on two hard drives right now. Maxtor 300 gig SATA 1.5, 16 mg. transferand a WD 80 gig 8 mg transfer IDE. The SATA runs the program much smoother. The explorer 7 is nice, other than that it reminds me of a Windows 'ME' thing in a way. Just a few thoughts.

 

[badge]

Here is a free download of Windows Vista Beta 2. Don't install it on you main computer.

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsvista/getready/default.mspx