The death of a computer....

[bilbous]

driver support under linux is less polished than for windows because the video device manufacturers came late and grudgingly to supporting open source software. For example this machine has an amd/ati gpu which is not fully supported in linux. Even though I installed the proper binary blob, it still has a watermark in the bottom right corner that says it is unsupported hardware. Other than that it seems to work fine but since windows 7 came with this machine I don't use linux too much any more.

[LigH]

From my experience, Nvidia is preferable under Windows too. From GF 6800 over 9600 GS to GTS 450, PlaneShift 0.6.x just works "the way it's meant to be played".

But in general: The more exactly you can name the components (or at least the specific PC brand model; best link to that offer), the better we can rate it. Sometimes only one character (letter / digit) makes a difference. Be precise here!

[Gilrond]

If you get Nvidia, driver support on Linux is usually the same as on Windows. There are exceptions (like Optimus). But that's getting better as well.

[Karzela~]

Good luck shopping for that new computer this weekend, Roled!

Looking forward to that free round of drinks at the RCD.

[Sarren]

Aye look forward to Sharing some news too 

[Qter]

Sorry to hear about your computer loss Roled

Well, I'm not a huge fan of Inspiron laptops since a client of mine had several problems with one she bought in Florida. However, Dell service, at least in Costa Rica is great, every time she had a problem with it, they changed the required parts, no questions and no hassles.

I tried searching on-line a much better offer, but that one you got is very slick already, so it made me think. Is that a refurbished laptop Roled? Because anything similar in a new condition I googled was around $500. For that price I think those components are OK, but if you can spare a little bit more, I would follow Volki and BoevenF, but if not, I think that's enough for playing PS and work.

My only advice is, no matter how tempting they look, stay away of HP! 

I personally like better Toshiba or Acer, but I bet you guys may have strong opinions about those laptop brands.

Good luck with your new Quest Roled!

[Qter]

Sorry for the double posting but I found this one: http://www.amazon.com/Toshiba-PSKNJU-004001-L75D-A7283-Quad-Core-Accelerated/dp/B00DQGYHYK.  It seems to be much better than the one that Roled posted, however, it is an AMD one.  I usually have no complains with AMD configurations, but I don't know what you think about it.

[potare]

damnit you menace get your computer sorted hehe. Come back soon

[Roled]

You guys are so helpful-! thanks  You have faith in me but I have none in myself to build or refurbish or do linux without hands on help.
In lieu of that, what do you geniuses think of this one I found:

found this one on sale- Toshiba Satellite laptop
Will AMD work with PS grpahics?

AMD A6-5200 Processor, 8GB DDR3 SDRAM, 750GB 5400RPM hard drive , 17.3" HD TruBrite Display (1600 x 900).

Here's the stats-
Processor:    AMD Quad-Core A6-5200M Accelerated Processor
Operating System:    Windows 8
Memory:    8GB DDR3 1333MHz memory
Display Size:    17.3" widescreen
Display Type:    HD+ TruBrite® LED Backlit display
Display Resolution:    1600x900, 16:9 aspect ratio, Supports 720p content
Graphics Engine:    AMD Radeon™ HD 8400
Total Storage:    750GB
Hard Drive:    750GB HDD (5400rpm, Serial ATA)
Optical Drive:    DVD-SuperMulti drive (+/-R double layer)
Optical Drives:    DVD-SuperMulti drive (+/-R double layer) supporting up to 11 fomats
Webcam:    HD Webcam and Microphone
Wireless:    Wi-Fi® Wireless networking (802.11b/g/n)
Inputs and Controls:    Standard US keyboard with 10-key pad (Black), Touch pad pointing device with multi touch control
Security and Protection:    HDD Recovery, Security Cable Lock Slot
LAN:    10/100 Ethernet LAN
Audio:    Headphone jack (stereo), Microphone jack (mono), Standard stereo speakers
AC Adapter:    65W (19V 3.42A) Auto-sensing, 100-240V / 50-60Hz input
Battery:    Li-Ion (48Wh, 6-Cell)
Battery Life:    Up to 5.5 hours
Media:    Memory Card Reader
USB Ports:    1-USB (3.0) port, 2-USB (2.0) ports
HDMI:    HDMI® output port
RGB:    RGB port
Software:    1 month trial for new Microsoft® Office 365 customers, DTS Sound™ Hard disc (HDD) recovery, Internet Explorer® 10, Norton™ Anti-Theft (30-day Trial), Norton™ Internet Security (30-day trial subscription), TOSHIBA App Place, TOSHIBA BookPlace™ TOSHIBA HW Setup Utility, TOSHIBA Media Player by sMedio Truelink+, TOSHIBA Recovery Disk Creator, TOSHIBA Resolution+® Upconvert Plug-in for Media Player, TOSHIBA Service Station, Toshiba Start, TOSHIBA Video Player, TOSHIBA eco Utility™ WildTangent® Game Console
Weight:    Starting at 5.9 lbs.
Color:    Satin Black in Trax Horizon
Standards:    RoHS Compatible, EPEAT™ Gold, Energy Star Qualified
   

Features

    17.3" HD TruBrite Display (1600x900)
    AMD A6-5200 Processor
    8GB DDR3 SDRAM
    750GB 5400RPM hard drive
Thanks for helping again- trying to buy this tomorrow if I can!
Miss the PS action!
RR

[LigH]

It will quite certainly work well; just don't rely on Microsoft drivers, always install full featured drivers (OpenGL ICD).

A pity the display is a TruBrite (glare type, a.k.a. "make-up mirror").

[kiaerulf]

Operating System:    Windows 8

If i were to choose a Windows computer I'd go with Windows 7. I feel Win8 is a pain in the a.. to work with. Its made for touch screen devices for which it is probably fine.
I bought a computer some weeks ago and chose to not get any windows license with it and just installed Linux Mint LMDE Cinnamon edition. I have not regret that. But then again, its not my first Linux computer ;-)

Total Storage:    750GB
Hard Drive:    750GB HDD (5400rpm, Serial ATA)

I think that HD will become a bottleneck for the computer performance. These days I'd go with an SSD disc as primary for the OS and then have a spare (USB3) for storage. You might even consider having a NAS with lots of storage which can be shared with everyone in the house.
You can get a 250GB SSD at a reasonable price. This will also improve the time you can run on battery.

Optical Drive:    DVD-SuperMulti drive (+/-R double layer)
Optical Drives:    DVD-SuperMulti drive (+/-R double layer) supporting up to 11 fomats

Do you really need a built in DVD drive? These can also be bought separate as an USB device if you just need one occasionally.

LAN:    10/100 Ethernet LAN

No gigabit LAN? That will become a pain if you move large files from one computer to another or to and from a NAS.

Battery Life:    Up to 5.5 hours
USB Ports:    1-USB (3.0) port, 2-USB (2.0) ports

5.5 hours are probably fairly optimistic.
USB3 ports should be standard these days. They are nice if you have external hard drives. Alternatively eSATA.

Software:    1 month trial for new Microsoft® Office 365 customers, DTS Sound™ Hard disc (HDD) recovery, Internet Explorer® 10, Norton™ Anti-Theft (30-day Trial), Norton™ Internet Security (30-day trial subscription), TOSHIBA App Place, TOSHIBA BookPlace™ TOSHIBA HW Setup Utility, TOSHIBA Media Player by sMedio Truelink+, TOSHIBA Recovery Disk Creator, TOSHIBA Resolution+® Upconvert Plug-in for Media Player, TOSHIBA Service Station, Toshiba Start, TOSHIBA Video Player, TOSHIBA eco Utility™ WildTangent® Game Console

What this means is the computer is loaded with bloatware which is only there to slow down the computer and bother you every time you start the computer. If it doesn't void your warranty you should make a fresh and clean install of Windows. Take a look at this page:
http://www.howtogeek.com/186775/how-to-download-windows-7-8-and-8.1-installation-media-legally/

Weight:    Starting at 5.9 lbs.

huh? They can't tell you exactly how much the computer weighs? Or does it get heavier the more data you put on it?


I don't know about the processor and gfx card. Maybe this web sit can give you a hint on how it perform relative to other http://www.cpubenchmark.net/.
I think I would go for an Intel Core i5 processor. It has good amount of muscles without being too expensive. i3 seems a bit weak in the laptops i have tried. But it has also been platter hard drives. Maybe an SSD would have helped.


- Kia

[Rigwyn]

Computer looks fine. Enjoy \o/

[Bonifarzia]

Will AMD work with PS grpahics?

I've been running PS an old AMD quadcore for quite a few years, but I guess it is the specs that matter. This one seems to run at 2.0GHz - could be better, could be worse, should be okay - for the GPU, it is more difficult to judge, but if LigH says it works fine, it will.

If you are not sure about the OS (win8 vs linux etc.), keep in mind that you can install linux along with a bootloader while keeping the preinstalled OS as is, so you can still use windoze any time you need or want to. That sounds terribly complicated, but turns out to be quite straight forward to do, for example with the official ubuntu lts installers.

[Roled]

      Thank you all for all your help suggesting what to get!   
AND I FINALLY DID!! Whoo hoo- new computer AMD graphics, PS has never looked so good and RR has never run so fast before!!

Yeah! My forced internment in ps-rehab is over, YEAH
THANKS THANKS!
RR

[Qter]

Hurray for Roled! And Welcome back to PS!