What Computer to Buy?

[ubuntu at rio.vg]

Michael V. De Palatis wrote:
> On Wed, Jul 19, 2006 at 07:10:18PM -0700, Jared Buck wrote:
>> Building your own machine isn't a bad idea :)  sometimes it's actually
>> cheaper than having one built for you by a computer manufacturer.  Then you
>> can decide exactly what you need for Linux.
> 
> I second. When I read the OP, I misread it to think he was only
> looking for a laptop. But since that is not the case, I suggest
> building your own machine. It's fun, you ***can*** save money, you get
> to have *exactly* what you want, and it's educational.
> 

I don't know if this is still the case, but one of the biggest issues
with the large brand made machines was bottlenecks.  Either the ram
would be slow, or the motherboard chipset poor, or sound was awful or
something else.  The big components that people looked for, amount of
ram and cpu mhz and the other sort of components that were listed on the
package would be up to spec, but the whole system would be hobbled by
the less well-known components that were made on the cheap, often
through integrated boards, so that the manufacturer could cut costs.

When you build it yourself, you know every single piece going into the
machine.

Lastly, in the last few years I've become quite conscious of building
QUIET machines.  Many of the machines built these days sound like leaf
blowers.  If you buy the right case, right hard drive, and right fans,
you can get a nearly silent machine...