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I need help getting a new Computer!!!!

12 REPLIES 12
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Message 1 of 13
cad-operator
609 Views, 12 Replies

I need help getting a new Computer!!!!

CAD managers, users,

I've been working solo for a design company for some time now. Since I hired on, we've been using an "off the shelf" cpu-system. the computer is a pentium 2 with a 64MB, 7GB system. I defenitly know this system has issues (its about 5 years old). I'm using AutoCAD 14, 2000i and CAD Overlay. most of the time I use all three programs at once. I also do 3D work, but I'm often discouraged to work on 3D projects because my system keeps on freezing, crashing, etc.

They've given me a blank wish list. I need a new system. anybody have any suggestions (do's and don'ts) on the kind of system I need and should get for the best results?

Thanks,
Tim
12 REPLIES 12
Message 2 of 13
Anonymous
in reply to: cad-operator

Hmmm wishlist...buy a Cray 4 Ai.

 

On a serious note, try to get at least the fastest
ghz 2 or better, 512 mbram, 50+gig hd, geforce 3 card 64mb,

 

Would help us some if you gave a
budget.

 

drew

 



style="BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; PADDING-RIGHT: 0px">CAD
managers, users,

I've been working solo for a design company for some time now. Since I
hired on, we've been using an "off the shelf" cpu-system. the computer is a
pentium 2 with a 64MB, 7GB system. I defenitly know this system has issues
(its about 5 years old). I'm using AutoCAD 14, 2000i and CAD Overlay. most of
the time I use all three programs at once. I also do 3D work, but I'm often
discouraged to work on 3D projects because my system keeps on freezing,
crashing, etc.

They've given me a blank wish list. I need a new system. anybody have any
suggestions (do's and don'ts) on the kind of system I need and should get for
the best results?

Thanks,
Tim

Message 3 of 13
Anonymous
in reply to: cad-operator

Without knowing your budget, it's hard to be
specific.

 

In other, simiilar threads over the course of time,
however, I have noticed some coomon preferences:

Those who have two processors find that there is a
noticeable benefitr.  Since you tend to run multiple applications at once,
you will almost certainly see a boost from dual processors.

Those who have dual monitors swear by them. 
In fact, it seems to be generally agreed upon by those who ave 2 monitors that
it is better to sacrifice an inch or two and get two monitors rather thn one big
one.

No one has ever complained that they have too much
ram, too fast a processor, or too much disk space.  Personally, I prefer to
see two smaller separate disks separate spindels, not partitions) rather than
one big one - so that you can have the system reading/writing on one spindle and
the applications reading/writnign on another.  An older system of mune had
three separate disks crammed into it, system on one (ok, three systems, on
separate partitions, but all one phyical disk), applications on a second, and
data on a third.  That had a definite improvement over the same systems
previous incarnation.

 

What all of that seems to suggest is that
duplicating critical items, and balancing the load betweent hem is a good
thing.  So you shoudl probably get dual power supplies too.


style="PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px">
CAD
managers, users,

I've been working solo for a design company for some time now. Since I
hired on, we've been using an "off the shelf" cpu-system. the computer is a
pentium 2 with a 64MB, 7GB system. I defenitly know this system has issues
(its about 5 years old). I'm using AutoCAD 14, 2000i and CAD Overlay. most of
the time I use all three programs at once. I also do 3D work, but I'm often
discouraged to work on 3D projects because my system keeps on freezing,
crashing, etc.

They've given me a blank wish list. I need a new system. anybody have any
suggestions (do's and don'ts) on the kind of system I need and should get for
the best results?

Thanks,
Tim

Message 4 of 13
cad-operator
in reply to: cad-operator

Hey there,

With regards to budget...there's not really an intense limit as long as I can convince my bosses that this is the way to go. they will then comply (shoot for the sky). two systems sounds really neat, but I don't think the company will provide it (budget purposes). So I'm probably going to shoot for a single system. any advice from here on a single system with a fairly flexible budget?


Thanks a lot.
Tim

p.s. I'm not familiar with "Geforce 3 card 64 mb". could you explain what this is?
Message 5 of 13
Anonymous
in reply to: cad-operator

I'm not talking about two systems, I'm talking one
system with two processors, two graphics cards, and two, or more
disks.

 

THe GeForce card is a graphics card.  I don't
have experience with enough different graphics cards to give reasonable comments
on which ones are better than others, but since AutoCAD is a raphics intensive
application, I would get at least one good graphics card.  Note that Win2k
does not require the two cards to match when you have two, nor does it require
the two monitors to match, so you could perfectly well have a system with a 15
or 17 inch monitor on a mid-range graphics card that handles all your dialog
boxes, and menus, the properties box, design center, etc, and a separate 19",
21" or even larger monitor on a killer graphics card that just has your autocad
work area.

 

This same setup would work well in photoshop, or
flash, or almost any graphics application.


style="PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px">
Hey
there,

With regards to budget...there's not really an intense limit as long as I
can convince my bosses that this is the way to go. they will then comply
(shoot for the sky). two systems sounds really neat, but I don't think the
company will provide it (budget purposes). So I'm probably going to shoot for
a single system. any advice from here on a single system with a fairly
flexible budget?


Thanks a lot.
Tim

p.s. I'm not familiar with "Geforce 3 card 64 mb". could you explain what
this is?

Message 6 of 13
Anonymous
in reply to: cad-operator

2ghrz or fastest dual you can get, 512 mbramm 40
gig hd


style="BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; PADDING-RIGHT: 0px">
Hey
there,

With regards to budget...there's not really an intense limit as long as I
can convince my bosses that this is the way to go. they will then comply
(shoot for the sky). two systems sounds really neat, but I don't think the
company will provide it (budget purposes). So I'm probably going to shoot for
a single system. any advice from here on a single system with a fairly
flexible budget?


Thanks a lot.
Tim

p.s. I'm not familiar with "Geforce 3 card 64 mb". could you explain what
this is?

Message 7 of 13
Anonymous
in reply to: cad-operator

I would reccomend a dual athalon, they run circles
around pentiums.

 

drew


style="BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; PADDING-RIGHT: 0px">

2ghrz or fastest dual you can get, 512 mbramm 40
gig hd


style="BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; PADDING-RIGHT: 0px">
Hey
there,

With regards to budget...there's not really an intense limit as long as I
can convince my bosses that this is the way to go. they will then comply
(shoot for the sky). two systems sounds really neat, but I don't think the
company will provide it (budget purposes). So I'm probably going to shoot
for a single system. any advice from here on a single system with a fairly
flexible budget?


Thanks a lot.
Tim

p.s. I'm not familiar with "Geforce 3 card 64 mb". could you explain what
this is?

Message 8 of 13
cad-operator
in reply to: cad-operator

I here you. that sounds like a pretty "nifty" set-up. so Your refering to basically one tower with dual components (graphics cards, hard-drives, etc)? that can operate simeltaneously at one time? I've always used a single of everything set-up. and by having dual monitors, will I need dual mouses and other equipment that will plug into the one system? or will the set-up of this system alow me to toggle between different monitors with one mouse, one keyboard? I know these sound like dumb questions, but I'm totally new to this kind of system. I might be able to pull this kinda purchase. so If theres anything more you can clarify or tell me I would appreciate it.

Thanks again
Tim
Message 9 of 13
Anonymous
in reply to: cad-operator

you will only need one set of gui's... mouse,
keyboard etc etc

 

drew


style="BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; PADDING-RIGHT: 0px">
I
here you. that sounds like a pretty "nifty" set-up. so Your refering to
basically one tower with dual components (graphics cards, hard-drives, etc)?
that can operate simeltaneously at one time? I've always used a single of
everything set-up. and by having dual monitors, will I need dual mouses and
other equipment that will plug into the one system? or will the set-up of this
system alow me to toggle between different monitors with one mouse, one
keyboard? I know these sound like dumb questions, but I'm totally new to this
kind of system. I might be able to pull this kinda purchase. so If theres
anything more you can clarify or tell me I would appreciate it.

Thanks again
Tim

Message 10 of 13
Anonymous
in reply to: cad-operator

Dual Athlon 1.4ghz with 512MB RAM with any 64 MB Geforce 3
graphics card & a good $1000 21" monitor will run you around
$3,500. This would be a very powerful & well priced system.
If not an Athlon (but Intel processor), it's probably a
single 2 ghz with RDRAM (all else the same) for around the
same price. Windows XP professional (not homeXP) operating
system for office use (win2000pro at home). The dual Athlons
will let you do other things while one program grinds &
works better on 2000i alone but not r14 and if the Athlons
be sure to get a 400 watt power supply & ask for extra
cooling fans. If your old monitor is still usable get a
second cheap graphics card to run it too. You would need to
set up RAID or some other fancy configurations to take
advantage of a second hard drive but do get at least a big
60 or 80 GB drive. Make sure ALL the components including
RAM & the power supply are good quality not the special of
the week: one or two steps down from cutting edge. If you
can afford, they have some cool 15" flat panel monitors at
compusa for $400 for the second monitor maybe so it doesn't
take up so much space.

cad-operator wrote:

> CAD managers, users,
>
> I've been working solo for a design company for some time
> now. Since I hired on, we've been using an "off the shelf"
> cpu-system. the computer is a pentium 2 with a 64MB, 7GB
> system. I defenitly know this system has issues (its about
> 5 years old). I'm using AutoCAD 14, 2000i and CAD Overlay.
> most of the time I use all three programs at once. I also
> do 3D work, but I'm often discouraged to work on 3D
> projects because my system keeps on freezing, crashing,
> etc.
>
> They've given me a blank wish list. I need a new system.
> anybody have any suggestions (do's and don'ts) on the kind
> of system I need and should get for the best results?
>
> Thanks,
> Tim
Message 11 of 13
Anonymous
in reply to: cad-operator

One mouse, one keyboard.  It's still one
computer.  You will definitely need the "pro" version of Windows (Win2k or
XP).  I'm not sure if the home version of XP supports dual processors or
not, but we're talking real workstations now, not home gaming machines, so get
the heftiest OS available.

 

There are other lengthy posts on the merits of AMD
vs Intel processors.  Those who voice the loudest opinions tend to favor
AMD.  But, most of what is said is anectdotal, I would try to find
some hard data.  Few of us have the time or money to set up multiple
systems that are nearly identical just to get actual comparisons for processor
performance.  Toms Hardware Guide is one source, cnet is another. 
There are almost certainly more.  Cadalyst or Cadence periodically tests
machines for CAD performance, whcih is nice because it is more directly
applicable.

 

Look closely at RAM types.  I haven't been
hardware shopping in a while, so I'm out of touch on which type is currently
fastest, but, for any given quantity of RAM, there will be multiple types
available, and they are different in both speed and stability.

 

Personally, I favor SCSI hard drives.  All the
processor power in the world will do you no good at all if the CPU has no data
to crunch.  However, Hard Drive speed is not the bottleneck point in most
systems (I think that the bus speed turns out to be the most common bottleneck,
but I'm not really sure).

 

A lot of resellers also provide various other
computer services, and if you are comfortable with your rese3ller, have a good
heart to heart with him (her).  Unlike those of us working in one office
all day trying to get to Friday, they get to see a lot of different offices, and
a lot of different computers.  So they often have good insight on
reliability, actual vs theoretical performance, and overall value.


style="PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px">
I
here you. that sounds like a pretty "nifty" set-up. so Your refering to
basically one tower with dual components (graphics cards, hard-drives, etc)?
that can operate simeltaneously at one time? I've always used a single of
everything set-up. and by having dual monitors, will I need dual mouses and
other equipment that will plug into the one system? or will the set-up of this
system alow me to toggle between different monitors with one mouse, one
keyboard? I know these sound like dumb questions, but I'm totally new to this
kind of system. I might be able to pull this kinda purchase. so If theres
anything more you can clarify or tell me I would appreciate it.

Thanks again
Tim

Message 12 of 13
Anonymous
in reply to: cad-operator

A__They have had you scratching it on a rock, but now they are shhooting the moon on a new system? If you spend $5000 on the "dual everything" system, will there be money to coanstantly upgrade software? Save a litle to go to 2002 for productivity increases, or to ADT. Why have a year 2002 computer using 1990s programs?
B__Call Dell and a couple of others, ask for a rep who sells a lot for Autocad use and have him configure an A system and an A+ system. Won't hurt to see aht they say. And get a good input device: I would not live w/o my $40 MS Optical tracball with 2 extra buttons, on which I have escape and F3.
Message 13 of 13
Anonymous
in reply to: cad-operator

How do you bind those keys to a certain command
?

 

 

drew


style="BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; PADDING-RIGHT: 0px">
A__They
have had you scratching it on a rock, but now they are shhooting the moon on a
new system? If you spend $5000 on the "dual everything" system, will there be
money to coanstantly upgrade software? Save a litle to go to 2002 for
productivity increases, or to ADT. Why have a year 2002 computer using 1990s
programs?
B__Call Dell and a couple of others, ask for a rep who sells a
lot for Autocad use and have him configure an A system and an A+ system. Won't
hurt to see aht they say. And get a good input device: I would not live w/o my
$40 MS Optical tracball with 2 extra buttons, on which I have escape and
F3.

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