Build wife's computer from used parts, or buy new?

[Hubb1e]

So I've got a quick question and I just want to have someone else's opinion. My wife's computer is still running windows XP on a dual core Athlon X2 at 2ghz with 2.5 GB of ram. It's perfectly fine for her except I want to get her off of windows XP and this will be a major undertaking for her to get all her files and software onto the new computer.

I'm taking this opportunity to update her computer because its proven pretty difficult convince her to upgrade her past XP. It has taken months of me bugging her to get her stuff organized so I can move her to a more secure OS.

I've got a lot of parts laying around and I can build her a good computer from the parts, but they are not current generation stuff.

Athlon II X3 at 2.9 ghz
AMD 780G AM2+ motherboard with 4 DDR2 memory slots
8GB DDR2 800 memory in 4 sticks
1 TB Hitachi HD

So I'm worried that this machine is already out of date, and while the processor is fine for her workload today of web browsing, office work, and some photo and basic video editing, that if she needs more RAM or if she ever needs more processor power, that this machine being based on AM2+ will limit RAM upgrades and processor upgrades in the future.

I'm considering selling these parts and buying her a basic 1155 machine with a Pentium and 8GB of DDR3. These two computers are in the same performance ballpark, but the 1155 machine could get my i5 2500K one day and could be upgraded to 32GB of memory if she needed that in 5 years. I'm hoping that this machine lasts at least 5 years and I'm worried the AM2+ machine would be outdated sooner, forcing another upgrade argument with her. Thoughts?

 

[vailr]

What's the budget involved?
Might consider: changing "get my i5 2500K one day" to: today?
And: upgrade your system to a Z77 board & i3 or i5 CPU.
The onboard Intel HD 4000 video should be adequate, instead of the added cost of a discrete video card.
Install Ubuntu and donate your older AMD CPU system to Goodwill, or sell on Craigslist.
Keep checking Slickdeals.net or FatWallet.com for bargain deals on DDR3, a $25 case, or a $20 PSU, if the old ones need replacing.

 

[DominionSeraph]

It has taken months of me bugging her to get her stuff organized so I can move her to a more secure OS. She's getting her stuff organized slowly now.

Sounds like you should be talking to L&R about your OCD issues in your relationship.

XP is fine, and a 2GHz dual-core is going to be perfectly fine for basic tasks for years to come.
I'd sell the parts you have and only worry about swapping out the old one when it breaks. Buy that time you could probably pick up an i3 rig for $80 used that would last you another 7 or 8 years.

 

[VirtualLarry]

Sounds like you should be talking to L&R about your OCD issues in your relationship.

XP is fine, and a 2GHz dual-core is going to be perfectly fine for basic tasks for years to come.

This. Why "fix" what isn't broken?


I understand though. I built a relative a slimline PC with a 2.0Ghz single-core C2D Celeron chip, which has been enough for her needs. But technology moves on, and I wanted to move her to an AM2+ low-power dual-core, with 760G graphics instead of 865G Intel "Extreme" graphics, and especially Windows 7.

She only visits a few sites, so malware is not really an issue here, but Win7 64-bit with 4GB of RAM should be so much more capable than a single-core 2.0Ghz with 1GB of RAM.

Also, I want to get her on Skype, which really requires Win7 to work properly with modern Logitech webcams, apparently.

Edit: I also meant to imply that thus far, she has been refusing the upgrade.

 

[Hubb1e]

Sounds like you should be talking to L&R about your OCD issues in your relationship.

XP is fine, and a 2GHz dual-core is going to be perfectly fine for basic tasks for years to come.
I'd sell the parts you have and only worry about swapping out the old one when it breaks. Buy that time you could probably pick up an i3 rig for $80 used that would last you another 7 or 8 years.

Windows XP is not nearly as secure as Windows 7. She's pretty prone to getting viruses on her XP box and I have to regularly fix it for her. Her computer is showing problems and freezes once in awhile. XP is 12 years old man. It worked fine for a long time but it's having problems and is time to upgrade her to windows 7.

The budget doesn't matter that much. A CPU, mobo, and RAM would cost just over $200 which isn't that much in the long run, and I could sell the current CPU and RAM for maybe $100. I don't tend to sell my motherboards since they aren't worth much and are more expensive to ship than the other parts. But that's more work on the front end just to eliminate a potential issue on the long end and I'm not sure if it's worth it.

And urging your wife to upgrade her OS is now OCD? She's getting virus's, XP won't run the video editing software she wants to run, and XP is ancient.

And yes her current computer is fast enough. A 2ghz dual core is perfectly fine and I would leave her on that if it was already running windows 7. I'll probably buy another copy of windows 7, install it on her old box, and donate it to someone that I know that needs it. But I don't want to have to upgrade her again 3 years down the road. I'd rather she gets as much use out of the computer as she can before it needs another upgrade since it is quite a project to move to a new OS.

So my question is really this: Will an AM2+ based machine be obsolete before a 1155 based machine and by how much? A single core Pentium 4 has been obsolete for a long time, but a single core Athlon 64 machine is just now reaching the end of its useful life. The Athlon II X3 and the i3 are in similar performance brackets but would they both need updating around the same time or would I get significanly more life out of Socket 1155?

 

[dave_the_nerd]

I think the X3 system you have there is fine. Just assemble it, install Windows 7, and set it up for her next to the old one.

The trick is to use an SSD. Non techie people don't have a good abstract sense of the relative performance of things, so you have to SHOW them the improvement.

Chances are she'll be crazy about the new machine and demand, no, DEMAND that you migrate her data over. Then you can pour out a bottle of wine and go HD cleaning.

"Do you need this? No, okay. This? Okay. This?..."

 

[dmoney1980]

take your extra parts, slap on a relatively cheap SSD (like the 80gb intel for $40 in hot deals) with a copy of Win 7 and be done with it.

What are the chances she will need 32GB of RAM in the next 3 - 5 years?

 

[Hubb1e]

So if I put in an SSD how do I manage the files for her? I can get a 128GB SSD and put the OS on it, but her pictures and videos won't fit on the drive and she doesn't keep her files organized in her My Documents folder. She plasters them all over her desktop and then eventually moves them into the My Documents. I'm not sure how to get her files to stay on the mechanical drive rather than the SSD.

 

[Insert_Nickname]

I think the X3 system you have there is fine. Just assemble it, install Windows 7, and set it up for her next to the old one.

The trick is to use an SSD. Non techie people don't have a good abstract sense of the relative performance of things, so you have to SHOW them the improvement.

Chances are she'll be crazy about the new machine and demand, no, DEMAND that you migrate her data over. Then you can pour out a bottle of wine and go HD cleaning.

"Do you need this? No, okay. This? Okay. This?..."

Seconded, the WAF will go through the roof if you use an SSD...

(I am speaking from personal experience...)

 

[fluffmonster]

If you don't mind ssd/hdd setup, its easy enough to point the Documents/Pictures/Videos folders to a big hdd. Could even do it with the Desktop folder too. Having two drives would be invisible to her. However, given her sloppy file management, it may be best just to go with a big hdd. Keep in mind that you are going to get very little return out of her computing experience; what you really care about is how much computer support time you are going to have to dedicate to that experience.

 

[dave_the_nerd]

Keep in mind that you are going to get very little return out of her computing experience; what you really care about is how much computer support time you are going to have to dedicate to that experience.

Boloney.

It's his wife. If she's frustrated with her computer and he feels like he can help, he has to. Because they're married. Her pain is his pain and visa versa.

From a more cynical perspective, if she's a non-techie (she's happy with an Athlon X2... my guess is she's a non techie) then her computer, as provided by him, is the only tangible representative she has of him and his hobbies and/or profession.

Downside: Her dissatisfaction with the computer is a direct result of actions. She gets a virus, it's his fault somehow.

Flipside: the happier she is, especially with him and his computer stuff, the happier he is and the more positive she feels about him spending time playing video games instead of talking to her.

Also, teh sexeh.

 

[Hubb1e]

I would give her an SSD because it makes her more productive and it would make all this change worthwhile. She won't notice much change from the X2 to the X3, but the SSD she will notice. I also like computers and I like to play with them and an SSD is fun so if I can play with another than that is satisfaction for me. I also think she'll be very happy with how responsive it is and that will directly reflect upon me and my tech expertise.

If the desktop folder and the documents folder are on the HD then I think she will be ok. That's where she puts stuff so I think that will be fine.

Thanks for the help guys. I'm going with the X3 and a 128GB SSD. Her 2TB green drive that I should never have made her main drive will become the storage drive. I'll save the 1TB Hitachi drive for something else.

 

[VirtualLarry]

So my question is really this: Will an AM2+ based machine be obsolete before a 1155 based machine and by how much? A single core Pentium 4 has been obsolete for a long time, but a single core Athlon 64 machine is just now reaching the end of its useful life. The Athlon II X3 and the i3 are in similar performance brackets but would they both need updating around the same time or would I get significanly more life out of Socket 1155?

They're both basically EOL as far as new CPUs for either socket. I suggest going with the brand-new FM2 platform. Get a quad-core (dual Piledriver core module) and decent graphics built-in to the CPU.

Plus, FM2 is relatively cheap.

Edit: What about a new laptop?

 

[Hubb1e]

They're both basically EOL as far as new CPUs for either socket. I suggest going with the brand-new FM2 platform. Get a quad-core (dual Piledriver core module) and decent graphics built-in to the CPU.

Plus, FM2 is relatively cheap.

Edit: What about a new laptop?

Trinity or i3 are comparable. The question was not which chip to get, but should I upgrade to a modern socket. I might have gone Trinity since I am an AMD fan but I've got my doubts that FM2 would ever exceed the speed of a 1155 quad core system.

She has a ULV Core2Duo laptop on windows 7 but prefers to do serious work on her desktop. I feel the same way. I don't know how anyone gets any work done on a laptop unless it's connected to an external screen and keyboard.

 

[piasabird]

Well it may not make sense to keep using XP. It is going to expire soon and it is probably more prone to a virus. XP should have gone out of service long ago. I dont think XP will even upgrade to Win7.

My suggestion is just buy a new computer. Then try to transfer all the files. You might need to install newer versions of programs if they are getting too outdated. Especially if you move from 32 bit to 64 bit. I would not take the old one apart for parts. Better Safe than sorry.

I would just recommend a core 2 i-3 or i-5. Of course you could try one of the brand new integrated video AMD processors also. I have not messed with AMD in a long time.

 

[Hubb1e]

piasabird, the only parts that will be reused is the case, psu, and the 2TB green harddrive that is only a year old. I have all the other parts already from my old work computer and from my old gaming computer.

 

[dave_the_nerd]

Thanks for the help guys. I'm going with the X3 and a 128GB SSD. Her 2TB green drive that I should never have made her main drive will become the storage drive. I'll save the 1TB Hitachi drive for something else.

Now that sounds like a nice rig.

 

[Ken g6]

Since you're not even using a board with SATA3 capability, I'd skip the hassle of moving stuff to the SSD and just use a SATA2 cache SSD.

 

[mfenn]

Since you're not even using a board with SATA3 capability, I'd skip the hassle of moving stuff to the SSD and just use a SATA2 cache SSD.

The only thing worse than slow performance IMHO is inconsistent performance. I think that the OP can solve the file management troubles with some clever folder direction (or even symlinks if necessary) and not have to bother with an SRT cache.

 

[Hubb1e]

I ordered the Samsung 830 from TigerDirect for $90 and free shipping. That will be plenty of space and if I can move the documents and desktop folders that will handle the file issue.