Why more power?

DAVEM

DAVEM

DAVEM

Permabanned
Joined
27 Oct 2002
Posts
2,486
Hi,

I wrote a letter to a PC magazine about 2/3 years ago about the need for more computing power. And how a PC of around 2 years age would be more than acceptable for the majority of tasks we perform. At the time I had a Duron 800 since in fairness was fine, but I think the advent of PC's being used for video editing was a little off.

Yesterday I realised that simultainously I was running 4 maths applications (Maple, R, MATLAB, TexnicCentre), cable TV (DTVR), two programming apps (Netbeans and Eclipse), MSN, 4 x IE browser, with absolutely NO problems (in fact it was running so smoothley I thought I could open up another 10 apps easily). My CPU and spec if relatively modist, I really can't think why I'd need a PC any faster?

Bar 3D games / 3D modelling, can anyone justify an upgrade?

David :confused:
 
DAVEM said:
Yesterday I realised that simultainously I was running 4 maths applications (Maple, R, MATLAB, TexnicCentre), cable TV (DTVR), two programming apps (Netbeans and Eclipse), MSN, 4 x IE browser, with absolutely NO problems (in fact it was running so smoothley I thought I could open up another 10 apps easily).
Click to expand...

I'd like to know your spec. :)

Just seen your signature. Look at it this way, why did you overclock? Why do you have 1Gb and not the standard 512mb?

I find that i can't run too many programs at once (2.6Ghz Sony Desktop with 512mb) and things become slow.
 
I always want things to run faster, every piece bit of graphics, every operation, and anything else; that is why I will certainly upgrade before my current computer is 3 years old. Also, I think people like having new things because it gives assurance that software will work. (Or at least usually.)

Angus Higgins
 
If your PC does everything you want it to and it's not broken then there's no need to upgrade it, unless you enjoy wasting money or feel it's not "future proof" any more :)

Edit: If a PC isn't used for 3D shiny things then the most limiting factor is generally the memory.
 
Last edited:
I haven't upgraded in a while (3years i think). I would really like a more powerful pc just so that my programming runs a bit faster and i can fold faster! But really im happy with my spec, 3200xp athlon, 1gig ram 9800radeon. It plays the games i want to play on it, but i do have an orginal xbox for playing games on anyway. I won't be upgrading for at least another year i think when quad cores are cheaper so i can own at folding :p
 
My only upgrade in the last two years:

December 2006: second-hand Radeon 9700 flashed to pro. Was using a Radeon 7000 which was passively cooled. Fancied a bit more detail in Morrowind. :D
 
Havent upgraded mine since I built it 3 1/2 years ago. It still does everything I want it to at a satisfactory level and also plays games at settings I am happy playing at. It would probably need upgrading if I was ever to start doing a lot of video editing etc, but I dont see that ever happening.

So, no. I can't justify an upgrade at the moment, unless something breaks.
 
Deadly Ferret said:
My only upgrade in the last two years:

December 2006: second-hand Radeon 9700 flashed to pro. Was using a Radeon 7000 which was passively cooled. Fancied a bit more detail in Morrowind. :D
Click to expand...

Yeah, makes sense,

I had a XP2100+ with a Rad 8500LE in 2001/2 then sold it to get a thinkpad T21 (P3 700) as I wasn't using it to it's max. Then started using more powerful maths/stats/physics apps. But this new PC what ever I throw at it, it's fine. Really find it difficult how, apart from saving a second or two here and there why you need it. I just don't like the idea of a parent going buy their child a new PC being convinced they need a Conroe spec system, which happens A LOT!

David
 
hard drives need to get a lot faster - i find my pc held back and waiting for the hard drive these days.

that said, i could use 100 cores and still not have enough power. :p
 
aardvark said:
hard drives need to get a lot faster - i find my pc held back and waiting for the hard drive these days.
Click to expand...

Solid state HD's should be on the way soon speeding things up considerably.

Wait, isn't this the wrong forum..?
 
why more power?

Simple there are so many possibilities for computers, how ever we don't have the power to run such applications. I'm not just talking gaming/virtual reality. But there's many applications that haven't even been considered yet because the power and interacting technology hasn't be created yet.

Give programmers a more powerful platform and they will fine and and intresting ways to use that power.
 
This PC is getting on in PC terms and wasn't top spec at the time. Either way, it does what I need it to, it could run faster on Mafia but I use that too infrequently to justify any upgrade. The only "upgrades" I've done are to make it quieter.

Unless a new game comes out that i'd really want to be able to run then I have no upgrade plans. As it stands, no new games have actually impressed me at all and it seems unlikely they will (too much focus on graphics, too much loss of the fun element and gameplay imo. The Wii however ;) )
 
Vista is a prime example.

The overhaul for the graphic engine means that a lot of what you'll be looking at will be rendered as Vector opposed to static Bitmap images.

That alone couldn't have been done properly a short time ago.

You're barring games but I see 3D / Virtualisation along with graphical technology in general as a massive part of computing and something that will change the way we use systems altogether in the future.

Ok barring games. One day in the future, I'd like to come home from work and just go 'house... run the bath, sort a madras out, continue our chess game on the bathroom ceiling with one of my favourite playlists, sort out the groceries, iron my trousers, make me something cold with a teeny bit of absinthe, talk to my car and ask it how its feeling i forgot to ask it how its doing generally, feed the cat and change its litter, change the lighting a bit... yeah purple, heat the place up a bit will ya, oh wipe my ****. please.'
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom