you should consider buying a cap for your usb stick

After all they're cheap. Only good for one use though.

Enjoy some funny Finnish stuff!

Now you can solve precrime

Man, life. I had to quit my job in London because I just couldn't do normal working hours anymore. Been struggling with depression, anxiety and panic attacks for a while but when I suddenly developed tinnitus over a couple of days I decided to call it quits. Enough is enough. Today, I began treatment with antidepressants and sedatives. I'm simply going to surrender from life for a while, putting myself in the passenger seat. Thank God I have my girlfriend by my side, but boy does it suck to find true love at this point in your life ...

Wish me luck.

Here's the system I'm planning to build for my hubby for Christmas (Shhhhhh). I'm hoping you can make honest suggestions - like there are some areas I'm uncertain about.

For instance I would like to upgrade the CPU to an Intel i5 or i7 for future growth. But for right now, I've opted to stay with the lower quad core to save $$$ and try to fit in my budget.

Also I am not super sure about how well these components will get along together, or whether I could do better for a lower price. Again if you see something that could be improved, or a potential problem, let me know. I'm pretty sure this system would be able to run TF2 smoothly but it's just a fair guess.

All prices are $Canadian and based on availability in the two main shops here, TigerDirect.ca and Canadian Computers.

So without further ado:
--------------------------------------------------------------
CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo 2.2 - 2.8 GHz Socket 775 compatible $ 155

MOBO: ASUS P5P43TD Socket 75 DDR3 1333 MHz 2x PCIe 6x SATA $83.
This one may in fact change depending on the voltage requirements of the GPU and CPU. I would have no problem upgrading to ASUS P6E series but it costs more $$

MEM: Corsair 3x 2GB DDR3 1333 MHz $95.

GPU: Sapphire ATi Radeon 5770 850 MHz 1gb GDDR5 $140. Want to try to get a second one for xfire. Also see below when I ask for recommendations on a case, because of this. Not for TF2, but for future games that are trending ever upwards in GPU demand.
Also PowerColor offers a similar GPU for $30 less, are they reputable?

HD: Western Digital 1.5 TB Caviar Green or equivalent $80. Want to add a SSD later when I have a job :/

PSU: Reliable 650 watt (?) $80-100.

Case: Antec Nine Hundred or 900ATX mid tower. I have a Twelve Hundred with three zillion fans but again I have dual xfire-linked 5870's and a buncha other shit for animation/rendering. I want enough room for the present config + a little room to grow. If he needs a bigger airier case for upgrading to i5 or i7 and bigger PSU and/or a second GPU, lemme know now. ATX is $110, Twelve Hundred is $170.

Windows 7 Pro 64 bit. $139.

My maximal budget is around $750-850.

The first thing that stands out is the core 2 duo, a core i3 would be a better option and should cost a similar amount (or cheaper http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=5581942&CatId=5196) and have the same same socket as an i5/7 so there is no need for a MB upgrade when upgrading to and i5/7, both the Duo and i3 are dual rather than Quad core processors..

Wikipedia indicates Powercolour is indeed reputable, although I don't really have any experience with ATi cards.

Also does hubby need the features form Windows 7 Pro, or would Windows 7 Home premium be sufficient, theres not a huge amount of difference in features ($45 saving there).

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows7/products/compare?T1=tab15

I have Home premium at home and pro at work and the only pro feature I use is RDC, haven't missed any features so far at home and had since release.

[This message has been edited by Maffia (edited 11-27-2010 @ 06:04 PM).]

From my research when I last did a rebuild I think the 900 is quite roomy, its bigger then my currant case and I've got space for a monster CPU heatsink and 2x graphics cards.

(optical drives seem to be missing, but then a dvd drive is a dvd drive)

He is second in line to run a server so he needs some of the pro tools (I don't know much of the details but he says he has been told).

I think I'll prob go with the i5 and cut the HD because he already has a decent half tb drive he can transfer over as needed.

Also 650w seems to be sufficient for a crossfire i5 system.

450w approx required (generous assumptions re: fans, drives and powered USB extras), 650w PSU @ 80% = 510w available.

[This message has been edited by Maffia (edited 11-27-2010 @ 06:44 PM).]

BTW, cracked open another fortune cookie today. Not sure if it's better than the first one I posted or not:

When you do make a mistake, do not treat yourself as if thought you were the mistake.

I am not making this up.

http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a253/tbirdofparadise/chopstickwrapper.jpg

Amusingly enough I seem to come across these at most Chinese restaurants, regardless of location. Be sure to see the lower left.

Tuk under tnurub
and bind firmly

Cross-posted from another gaming forum:




More

Yuk yuk yuk .

well, yeah. i mean, if you're going to start, you don't want to stop just to go to the bathroom

(no sexual reference intended)

None taken

I once took my laptop into the washroom because I'd just started a game and didn't want to let my ally down >___>

We won Iro BB rush basically runs itself while you attend to other ... matters

[This message has been edited by As_Saffah (edited 12-06-2010 @ 02:26 AM).]

About time you cut your lawn?

Husqvarna: Taming the Wild

it's tsjernobyl, where he lives

It's an abandoned house that's on my property.

that's so cool. I wish I had property and an abandoned house on that property.

*blatantly advertises FFX Mafia over at AoKH*

Join it even if you're not interested ! Just be activeish.

Quoted from CoC:

Spamming

Unless a thread or forum is designated as an area ok for spamming, you may not spam. Spam includes, but is not limited to, the following:

* Blatant advertising