Windows 8 Turned My Wife into a Mac-Head

I would've happily saved the hundred bucks for the benefit of having more documentation on what's going on inside the computer, and knowing my upgrade options down the line. The problem is that Mfr mobo's are notoriously difficult to upgrade beyond a simple RAM or HD swap. They tend to have a minimal number of USB ports, a minimal number of SATA ports, and specs can be hard to come by. Sometimes they even lock down the BIOS... whereas most mobos in the enthusiast market stuff their boards to the gills with that stuff, even at the lower price points! Jeez. I have 9 USB peripherals plugged in right now, 2 HD's, and space for another 4 hard drives if I ever have the need. And 4 RAM slots, rather than two. That's one feature I ALWAYS insist on when looking at mobo's... that you don't often get from the big manufacturers. Upgrading RAM when it requires you to ditch the two stick you already have is immediately twice as expensive as just adding two more sticks. That alone saves another $50 or so when you come to that point. And if you want to install a hardcore video card later? Odds are your stock PSU won't handle it. Faster CPU that requires more wattage? No way can most Mfr Mobo's handle more wattage than the CPU they came with. The corners they cut start to add up when you get deep into the upgrades.

It seems like little stuff, but IF you decide you'd rather upgrade your computer 3 or 4 times before getting rid of it, rather than slowly let it get more and more annoyingly antiquated with time, it typically does save you additional money in the long run when you start out with DIY. You just have to be committed to the slow upgrade route, as opposed to the "toss it out and buy another in 4 years."

And I won't be so arrogant as to say that my way is better. What I will say though is that it's pretty hard to conceive of a moment in time when I will not be completely satisfied with my computer. And that's what makes me happy. Too many people spend big $$ on a computer, love it, then 4 years later are cursing that turd and scraping up the cash to buy something better. I never encounter that. My computer is never top of the line, but it's always better than most... 4 years from now, still better than most... 4 years later... still better than most. It's nice to NOT have to work on crappy equipment, which is what most bigbox computers will eventually become. I prefer the steady upgrade choice. The downside, of course, is that you never have that gleaming shiny "new toy". But I can live with that...

Because I guess I'm cheap.

This message has been sent through a nearly 20 year old computer... although not a single part is the same as when it began.


One other thought... sometimes it's better to have multiple computers. I'm into audio recording and so I have a dual core for that. Computer tech has reached a point where faster parts don't really help much. Audio is just no longer remotely close to being resource-intensive, as it used to be considered. And, by having a dedicated computer for that task, it keeps all that crazy software and such separate from my day-to-day computer... which streamlines BOTH computers and makes them both seem way faster and more capable than they otherwise would.

Thanks for the link...

Honestly, I'm not looking to replace Windows. Was more curious to see how well applications will run in this environment.

Sometimes I get bored and need to play...