🚀 go-pugleaf

On 23/11/04 6:28 PM, in article doo5q0ljdbe650g2764doai2tk5uobajbf@4ax.com,
"Rev Turd Fredericks" <nick_ballsack@forcedshaving.com> wrote:

> On Tue, 23 Nov 2004 17:16:28 +1100, Ribfeast <goaway@nospam.com>
> wrote:
> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> On 23/11/04 3:44 PM, in article 2td5q098lkocs7dl3kim9ormjlvjpkue5n@4ax.com,
>> "Rev Turd Fredericks" <nick_ballsack@forcedshaving.com> wrote:
>> 
>>> On Tue, 23 Nov 2004 08:37:23 +1100, Ribfeast <goaway@nospam.com>
>>> wrote:
>>> 
>>>> On 22/11/04 2:54 PM, in article 9dn2q0lgjng76ua7do3ep490uus9b02d21@4ax.com,
>>>> "Rev Turd Fredericks" <nick_ballsack@forcedshaving.com> wrote:
>>>> 
>>> SNIP>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>> 
>>>>> Almost 5 years ago now, I built a dual PIII machine with the "latest
>>>>> and greatest" parts available my total cost for it was $1300, a
>>>>> comaprable Mac was well over $5000. The gap is closing but PC's are
>>>>> still at least 50% cheaper. If you just want an "entry level PC" and
>>>>> want to run lindows on it, it will set you back only $199 USD.
>>>>>> 
>>>> 
>>>> PCs are still cheaper at this stage, but yes the gap is closing.  I'd
>>>> rather
>>>> pay a bit more for an OS that is better than XP, with a better-styled
>>>> machine ;)  
>>>> My PC was $1500AU, hand built by myself 6 months ago, with combo drive,
>>>> Radeon 9600XT 256MB video, 120GB SATA, Antec 1080AMG case & Antec 480W PSU,
>>>> Asus wireless motherboard, 3GHz P4, 1GB RAM, gigabit ethernet etc.  Not as
>>>> quick as my G5 but still good for games which is what I bought it for.
>>> How much was the G5?
>>>> 
>> Dual 1.8Ghz 64bit, RRP for around $3599AU (but we get raped by Apple pricing
>> here compared to the USA).  I got mine at staff price though so saved a fair
>> swag of cash there.  $1799US according to that site you linked to below.
>> Aussie dollar is worth 78 US cents at the moment so someone is making a tidy
>> profit on the way to the shelves.
> 
> I didn't notice at the site I posted that the computer was a dual,
> that's actually a pretty decent price. It is at educational discount.

:)

>> 
>>>> Hard to believe your dual P3 was $1300, but that is probably US dollars and
>>>> our exchange rate sucked back then.
>>> 
>>> $1300 USD in Jan 2000.
>>> 
>> Probably around $2000-2500AU at the time I'd say.  Not bad :)
> Yeah, and it had state of the art video card at the time, Nvidia
> GeForce 2 32MB and 512MB SDRAM memory. What I did was buy stuff a bit
> at a time online as it went on sale.

Yeah buying online is the way to go these days.  For my PC gear I usually go
to centrecom.com.au.

>>>> 
>>> SNIP>>>
>>>>> I guess that must be why all I see are broken ones. The G5's are
>>>>> attractive, but I still don't think that justifies the
>>>>> price/performance you get for the money.
>>>> Put it this way - decent 20" LCD is around $2000-2500AU (use oanda.com to
>>>> convert the $ rates), a G5 iMac with 64 bit CPU with DVD burner, 256MB DDR
>>>> RAM, 160GB HDD SATA, GeForce FX5200, ethernet, modem, and the same 20" LCD
>>>> is $3199 AU all up.  Good value if you ask me.
>>> 
>>> The 20" LCD is the expensive part :-) You get a decent discount if you
>>> buy the computer along with it and I notice the price has come down
>>> quite a bit since the last time I looked
>>> http://www.book.uci.edu/computers/ but the macs are still priced 3
>>> times what a comparable PC costs. A 3.0Ghz system from Dell is $649,
>>> you can add another 256MB of memory to it for $25 (from a computer
>>> store not Dell) and you have a system that could easily kick the ass
>>> of a $2300 Apple. Not only that but it comes with a 17" flat panel
>>> display.
>> 
>> Yeah but that is a Dell system, built from the crappiest parts around, with
>> a dodgy MS OS ;)  I'm talking home-made PCs built with name brands, since
>> Apple is a name brand.  $649 for a system WITH an LCD seems a bit too good
>> to be true for me, I'd be a bit sketchy on the quality.
>> 
> I have two Dells at work and they aren't that bad, one is a "bottom of
> the barrel" type system and it performs quite well, it couldn't have
> cost $500 (my guess is $399 bought in bulk, 2.5 Ghz 512MB DDR memory,
> 40GB HD and crappy intel onboard video, it came with a 15" CRT
> monitor), my other machine is pretty good, or it was 2 1/2 years ago,
> now it is just so so. My guess is the machine I mention above is
> mediocre but it still comes with a warranty and the 17" LCD. For a few
> bucks more one could beef it up a bit with aftermarket parts :-) Where
> I live computer stuff is dirt cheap, even the good stuff.

Lucky sods in America get all the cheap stuff, we get raped via our wallets
here in Aussie.  That's pretty cheap though :)  But yeah, quality is
questionable.  

>>>>>>>> 
>>>>> SNIP>>>>>
>>>>>> 
>>> 
>>>>> SNIP>>>>>>>>>>>
>>> 
>>> It is certainly enough to make me wary of *ever* putting an Apple
>>> server on the internet.
>> Webstar under MacOS 9 used to make server software, and it has never been
>> hacked, they even offered a prize to anyone who could hack it (and it wasn't
>> a jail sentence ;) )  Not too sure about the current Apple server software,
>> haven't dealt much with that side of things, I work in repairs.
> 
> But should a vulnerability be found, there is little motivation for a
> company to disclose it if they are the sole maker of server software
> for Apple. Granted I wouldn't be likely to use windows server software
> (for example the awful IIS) either, but at least there are more eyes
> on it. 

Exactly, because then the hackers find out and exploit it, better to fix it
quietly.  As long as they fix it quickly I guess.
Webstar was not made by Apple, and to my knowledge its security was never
compromised.  

>> 
>>>> 
>>>>>>>>> 
>>> 
>>>>> Windows file sharing is an accident waiting to happen. If I have to
>>>>> share files I set up an ftp server and hand out accounts on a need to
>>>>> know basis. 
>>>> 
>>>> Yeah I do the same - FTP or HTTP, sometimes even Hotline or KDX.
>>> 
>>> Ftp seems to be the technology that time forgot. I have an ftp server
>>> running off my home machine and about 15 or 20 people use it for
>>> sharing files (mostly for online gaming mods) as well as family photos
>>> etc. and the occassional <cough> mp3. It's safe, secure and I won't
>>> end up getting sued by the music industry because it's also private,
>>> they have no way of knowing what I share :-) It's funny, because some
>>> people I have given accounts  to (namely 2 teenage cousins) thought
>>> that ftp is some new file sharing technology or something and they use
>>> it often.
>> 
>> I agree, FTP is a winner, very fast and secure, only problem is you can't
>> chat with other users that are logged in there.  That is where Hotline and
>> KDX etc are good.  KDX even has encrypted chats.
> 
> I have never actually used any mainstream file sharing software. When
> I was running BeOS, I did use BeShare, but it had central servers and
> they had rules about sharing "illegal" files, it was just basically
> used to share BeOS software and as a chat mechanism/rumor mill.

Ahh I see...never played with BeOS, would have liked to!