I'm looking into building a budget PC, mainly for word processing, spreadsheets etc. I plan to use linux, Firefox, Linux and OpenOffice. Here's my shopping list so far:
What type (free) of linux should I use? Can you use flash memory sticks with linux? Can you run most software for windows on linux? (I don't intend to install windows).
Thanks,
Neil
if($neil=="stuck"){echo("Help!");
pull_out("hair", $neil);
$neil=bald;}
else{echo("What do you want?");}
Firstly save yourself some money by buying from CCL http://www.cclonline.com/ - you'll find them a lot cheaper because their trade prices are available online to retail customers.
If you want a Shuttle XPC or Soltek QBic then you could try www.gemma.co.uk - their trade prices are rather good, but their retail ones aren't so hot.
Secondly, I use red hat linux, so the fedora core is a good option. You can buy the disks from www.efusian.co.uk (site currently down) for £4, which saves downloading.
Apparently memory keys do work, but not straight away. Search http://linuxforum.com/ - I was directed to a thread about it there ages ago.
Thirdly, most windows software doesn't run on windows, but you can use a third party piece of software like WINE which I believe is supposed to run most windows programs.
edit: fourthly it's cheaper to buy a case and motherboard than it is to buy a barebones system. Don't forget barebones systems are only the motherboard, case and sometimes the cooler.
Last edited by DaveSW; 03-30-2005 at 10:25 AM.
In a world without walls and fences - who needs Windows and Gates?! - Unknown Author
"And there's Bill Gates, the...most...famous...man in the...ah...Microsoft." -- A TV commentator for the 2000 Olympics.
I use Suse. It automatically mounts USB memory sticks without any messing about. Thanks to that I can do this. They're images taken from a Playstation 2 games console and placed on a USB memory stick, then transferred to my web folder in my web server on my Linux OS.
WINE also comes as standard with suse too, so you should be able to run what you need. I've never used WINE myself, but a friend of mine that uses Suse said he found it rather handy, but it could get a bit slow if you were running large applications on it. He did however mention that he had some sort of problem transfering files from Linux to Windows or vice versa via a USB memory stick (I just don't try it though).
Suse also comes with Open office (and a vast array of other software too) which is rather nice.
The best thing about suse though is easily YaST. You just tell it what kind of application you want, it brings back a list of potentials from the web and you just tell it which ones you want it to istall. It'll sort 'em all out and install them for you automatically. If you chose to use Suse and would like some help adding sources for yast to search for software then email me and I'll be happy to help. My username is stephen.philbin and I use Gmail.
I've never had the pleasure of Red Hat, but I hear it can be a bit of a headache trying to install and update some software, but that's all I know of it.
Well I've used Mandrake 7, which didn't have the drivers for my hardware, and red hat 9, which had everything, so I've just sort of stuck with red hat.
In a world without walls and fences - who needs Windows and Gates?! - Unknown Author
"And there's Bill Gates, the...most...famous...man in the...ah...Microsoft." -- A TV commentator for the 2000 Olympics.
Is SUSE linux free? I'm trying to get all the software free (or very cheap) if I can. Does anyone know if Knoppix is any good? Also I would like to use my broadband connection from downstairs with my new budget computer, which will be upstairs. Is it possible to do it wirelessly, or even have a network between the two computers (downstairs is Windows XP) so I can transfer files between them? Or even use the downstairs printer from the budget PC?
Thanks,
Neil
Last edited by neil9999; 04-01-2005 at 08:37 AM.
if($neil=="stuck"){echo("Help!");
pull_out("hair", $neil);
$neil=bald;}
else{echo("What do you want?");}
And can you use any memory/CD/DVD drive with any barebones system/motherboard? Say, would this 'shopping list' all work together, and would I need any extra stuff?
So you're spending £114 + VAT on the barebone chassis and a mobo with onboard 533mhz eden chip?
Personally I'd spend the £16 extra to get the Biostar ideq 210v (listed under AMD barebones) for £88.10 from ccl, which includes the mainboard and case, and add a semperon 2500 to that, totalling £130.
That would also be compatible with the memory you've chosen, and give you some upgrade possibilities in the future. It supports SATA, and has a dedicated AGP slot to allow you to add a dedicated graphics card at some point in the future, should you start doing games or complicated graphics. http://www.cclonline.com/product-inf...ufacturer_id=0
Can I check something? the VIA EPIA 5000 All In One Motherboard is the one you've chosen? According to the technical spec that only supports pc133 memory, and you've specced ddr333. http://www.cclonline.com/product-inf...ufacturer_id=0 is the only pc133 sdram CCL appear to sell.
Other than that it looks fine. Any optical drive should work nicely, as the boards have the standard udma 66/100 connector.
Have you considered a 17" CRT? Thay're cheaper because there's more demand for them... http://www.cclonline.com/product-cat...category_id=43
Last edited by DaveSW; 04-01-2005 at 11:07 AM.
Reason: worked out my figures with the wrong board
In a world without walls and fences - who needs Windows and Gates?! - Unknown Author
"And there's Bill Gates, the...most...famous...man in the...ah...Microsoft." -- A TV commentator for the 2000 Olympics.
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