Damn it, but computers have become really complicated

[Bjorn]

I dumped all third party anti-virus a couple of years ago and just go with a combo of zone alarm for software firewall, Microsoft's anti-virus tool, adblock, and noscript.  My frustrations with all anti-virus programs (both paid and free) just reached a breaking point.  So far I haven't found had any security issues (that I know about). 

[JonCole]

I used to rock minimal AV, but when I started messing around with torrents I figured it's worthwhile to pony up. Ever since, it's caught way more threats than I previously would have assumed with relatively few false positives (Norton and ESET both). It can be a bother to deal with updates, assess the few false positives, and have it be another possible point of failure when trying to diagnose an issue, but it seems to mitigate some real risk for me so I just deal with it.

[Bjorn]

And I haven't torrented much of anything in years, other than the odd legacy game I haven't been able to find anywhere else.  I suppose if I were still downloading a ton of stuff, it might be worth it, but at that point I'd still think about running it and the torrent in a sandbox to scan whatever was being downloaded and leave the rest of my machine alone. 

[JonCole]

Pretty good deal on a HTPC-style desktop, good for light gaming and Steam streaming -

 

http://slickdeals.net/f/7823973-alienware-alpha-i3-desktop-console-for-383-99-w-f-s-tax

 

It's the Alienware Alpha, which is designed with a similar aesthetic to a console. Comes with a dual-core Core i3 processor, 4gb of RAM, and a GTX 860M w/ 2GB VRAM. Also comes with a 360 wireless controller for couch gaming. All of that for $383.99 shipped + tax and after coupon code.

 

I'd probably grab it myself if I didn't already have a cheap HTPC. Not (very) upgradeable, but who cares for that price + spec combination?

[SecretAsianMan]

I dumped all third party anti-virus a couple of years ago and just go with a combo of zone alarm for software firewall, Microsoft's anti-virus tool, adblock, and noscript.  My frustrations with all anti-virus programs (both paid and free) just reached a breaking point.  So far I haven't found had any security issues (that I know about). 

 

I used to use Microsoft's as well, but a couple years ago they started bombing at protection tests so I run it in conjunction with another AV.  Right now I'm still with Avast but after reading what I posted above I might take my own advice and switch to Bitdefender.

[SuperBiasedMan]

Is it presumptuous of me to ask here for advice on getting a new computer? As my laptop and dekstop inch closer to death and I have an actual job I'm thinking about possibly getting a new, reliable desktop.

 

But I always hate googling this stuff, I feel like I end up wading through a sea of reviews on totally different machines that are hard to compare and focused on massive processor/graphical performance. When all I'm trying to do is find out what I could use reliably for making art and games (with relatively low scope). I barely even play the newest games to be honest, and much prefer lowering settings to get a smooth experience but that's not what the market optimises for.

 

Actually if it's a bad fit to ask for help here just read this as an annoyed rant.

[JonCole]

What's your budget? That'll basically dictate what you can get.

[SuperBiasedMan]

That is probably part of my issue whenever I look for computers, I'm unsure of what to budget around.

I think around €400 - €600($450 - $700)?

[JonCole]

I assume you're talking about some kind of prebuilt system by the way you posed the question, here are a couple good choices for what it seems like you want -

 

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Zoostorm-7270-5021-Desktop-i3-4160-GTX750ti/dp/B00NJC4MGY/

 

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Cyberpower-Warrior%C2%A0-Desktop-i3-4160-Windows/dp/B00RGRN2CI/

 

The unfortunate reality is that pretty much the only way you're going to get a half-decent video card that can do any gaming is if you buy a "gaming" PC. I'm not really aware of the state of custom PC builders where you are, which is why I just shopped at Amazon. An advantage of buying straight from a builder is that they typically offer some kind of warranty, like a year or two for parts and more time for general support. I couldn't really divine from the Cyberpower UK site if they ship/warranty for Ireland, but if they do something like these would probably fit your needs -

 

http://www.cyberpowersystem.co.uk/system/Infinity_X3

 

http://www.cyberpowersystem.co.uk/system/Ultra_FX_Gaming_6

[SuperBiasedMan]

Cheers! I'm gonna look around and look into things today to try figure something out and hopefully settle on a solid computer that wont need to glow.

[JonCole]

Cheers! I'm gonna look around and look into things today to try figure something out and hopefully settle on a solid computer that wont need to glow.

 

That's pretty much the only reason I posted the Zoostorm one, because it's virtually the same as the Cyberpower but with a more modest case.

 

Also, you can replace fans if the glowing really bothers you. It's usually just a $10 case fan that is easily removed with a screwdriver.

[SuperBiasedMan]

Ok, sorry to bother you about this again. I liked the look of the Infinity X3 but then realised with shipping and the exchange rate it was running me almost €900, so I looked into alternative sites that I could maybe build a similar computer. I think I've mostly got it, though the website has barely any NVIDIA graphics cards so I'll have to figure out what I'd want to do to replace that. If you don't mind, could you see if this still matches all the important parts of what your build had?

 

http://www.hardwareversand.de/en/pcconfigurator.jsp?pcConfigurator.asid=1296240&pcConfigurator.gpOnly=0

 

Oh also glowing things aren't a big deal. I feel dumb buying it, but realistically it'd only be a problem on the odd occasion when trying to watch a film with the lights off when there's the red glow in my peripheral vision.

[Gormongous]

http://www.hardwareversand.de/en/pcconfigurator.jsp?pcConfigurator.asid=1296240&pcConfigurator.gpOnly=0

 

That's some really fancy RAM for the rest of your build, but otherwise...

[elmuerte]

i3? seagate?

[SuperBiasedMan]

That's some really fancy RAM for the rest of your build, but otherwise...

Really? It seemed average enough for the 4GB range, and I do need a decent amount for running graphics programs like Photoshop and such.

 

i3? seagate?

Is the i3 that much worse? There's a €100 price jump up to the i5 so I thought that might be a bit much extra to pay.

Also I know nothing, is seagate bad? I just picked a hard drive that matched the capacity and write speed.

[Gormongous]

Really? It seemed average enough for the 4GB range, and I do need a decent amount for running graphics programs like Photoshop and such.

Eh, it's not the amount of RAM, but it's really high-grade. You're probably paying maybe forty euros too much, unless RAM prices are worse in Europe. It's not worth losing sleep over!

[SecretAsianMan]

I think my hard drive died.  I was playing Killing Floor 2 when the game suddenly froze, then Windows crashed, and when I rebooted it wouldn't recognize my hard drive.  I have some spares so I'll give those a shot and see if that's the problem, but I'm also debating just getting a new computer.  I'd like to get an ssd, my graphics card needs upgrading, my processor is at the end of its supported lifecycle, and my case is way oversized considering I'm not even using most of the bays.  I'm not sure I want to build another one though, I might just buy one because I don't have a lot of spare time or energy to keep doing this.  Plus I have really bad luck with ones I've built but the ones I've purchased have been great.

[JonCole]

I agree with Gorm on the RAM, if there is a cheaper option (the blue or red versions of the HyperX for instance) I'd step down. I don't know what would be bad re: the Seagate HDD, I've had decent enough luck with them though I tend to prefer WD. The i3 should be fine for most gaming, i5 is worth an upgrade for most but you did say that gaming wasn't really top priority so I don't think it's a big deal. WRT the video card, if Nvidia is in limited supply the 270 or 270X is the same performance bracket as the 750 (Ti) just with slightly better performance and worse power consumption. All said, I think it looks good but could benefit from tweaking.

I sympathize SAM, I think my external hard drive is about to crap out. Trying to remember if anything is crucial to save, because it does work until it goes under load so I could probably transfer over a little bit at a time until it bites the dust ultimately.

[SecretAsianMan]

I sympathize SAM, I think my external hard drive is about to crap out. Trying to remember if anything is crucial to save, because it does work until it goes under load so I could probably transfer over a little bit at a time until it bites the dust ultimately.

 

Luckily, I anticipated this happening and have been backing up my computer every couple of months to an external drive.  I think my latest backup is less than two months old so I won't have lost a ton of stuff.  Also it's times like this that I'm grateful for the cloud.

[Dewar]

That reminds me I need to get my Amazon Cloud stuff fixed and take another backup. I have a RAID on my device but it never hurts to be careful.

[JonCole]

This recent thing has made me consider subscribing to Crashplan or something of that nature. Do you backup to an image or something then upload to Amazon Cloud, or do you backup the whole filesystem? Amazon is kinda cheaper than most things, but I want something kinda simple and easy.

[Dewar]

Amazon just has an online drive which I copy files to. It's not a full on back-up tool. I just routinely grab all my paid-for music, save files, pictures, etc and throw them up there.

Tested.com did reviews of a couple of different full backup subscriptions, though I don't recall which one they ended up liking the most.

[Erkki]

I'm also building a new computer. Last time I did this was 4 years ago and I remember we had a special thread about building computers here, but I can't find it now. It had links to some awesome table with recommendations, I wonder if there's anything similar now? Although I might just try upgrading as little as possible (I need a new motherboard at least, and a new graphics card).

[JonCole]

I'm also building a new computer. Last time I did this was 4 years ago and I remember we had a special thread about building computers here, but I can't find it now. It had links to some awesome table with recommendations, I wonder if there's anything similar now? Although I might just try upgrading as little as possible (I need a new motherboard at least, and a new graphics card).

 

I think I know what you're talking about and I tried to find it while I was building my last PC and couldn't find it. Had a very modern web name, two impactful words that are impossible to remember.

 

In lieu of it, PC Gamer's build guides are pretty decent. Here's the budget (£575) build and the mid-range (£1150) build. I'll also once again recommend PCPartPicker for pricing, compatiblity, etc.

[Erkki]

So my choice is actually between buying a PS4 with Witcher 3 and upgrading my PC. Maybe I could do both, haven't calculated yet. For PC, I'll go for the minimal upgrade: GTX970, an SSD, and I need to replace the motherboard because of issues, but there seems to be only one available that fits my system and demands: Gigabyte Z77X-UD4H (I have 2nd gen Core i7 processor). Only one seller here still lists it and it's out of stock. Hopefully I can still order. This is the stupid thing with supposed future-proofing of PCs: everything just keeps changing so much that you can't very easily upgrade just some parts 4 years later.

 

So if I were buying a new one I would forget about any future-proofing. I think I'll fix this computer as good as I can and then get a new one next year.