How To Build A "No maintence computer"

Amarkarian · Sep 28, 2005

My dads friend has asked my dad for me to build him a computer. He has never had a computer before but he is bascially broke so it aint goin to be to fancy.

ive got a mini mobo with a 2.4 celly, 512 ddr.

i need a very small case and power supply that wont die (semi quiet. Also a tiny hard drive (cheap) and like if anyone nows where to get a cheap copy of 98.

Also i noticed dells have a system where the fans go on and off due to tempature? how does this work? i need it to keep this computer quiet so any hard ware suggestions are aprecaited

Malpine Walis · Sep 28, 2005

OK here are a few ideas:

$20 case

$30 Power supply or $22.50 Power supply.
$25 graphics card (DX8 compatible)
$44 Hard drive
$16 CD/ROM drive
$9 fans (get four if you can)

That is all solid hardware that is not likely to die anytime soon for little money. I believe that sidewinder (fans) will ship USPS to keep that cost down, newegg will put all of that into one box to minimize their shipping and the case is as cheap as they come but still solid.

techun · Sep 28, 2005

that sidewinder link sends me to microsoft..

Nexus Realized · Sep 28, 2005

No linkage for CD rom drive either

BluntStatic · Sep 28, 2005

search newegg and chief value and google for reviews

darksparkz · Sep 28, 2005

There usually is a Q-Fan setting in BIOS, and I think that allows the fans to adjust as temps go up or down.

But I rather have fans running at a constant speed, so that temps won't need to go up or down, maybe only a few degrees under load, but nothing extreme.

If you get the fans from sidewinder, you can probably run them at about 60% for the CPU fan and 40% for the case fans, and that'll still be pretty quiet. Just use SpeedFan and adjust it, or just teach him to raise the percentage values low or higher whenever it's getting loud.

Yuriman · Sep 28, 2005

Get a decent power supply, even if you have to go cheap on everything else. It will likely save you a lot of grief.

Captain Slug · Sep 28, 2005

If you REALLY don't want to provide support I recommend checking http://www.retrobox.com

You can get Dell Optiplex GX240s (slightly aged 1.4-1.8ghz Pentium 4 systems) from there for under $200 with the following specifications and he would still be able to call Dell to get support.

Otherwise just amend these items to Malpine's list
Heatsink: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16835106606
arctic silver ceramique: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16835100009
This case: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811117029
These fans: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811999071
And some aluminum mesh filters to combat dust: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811999214

Malpine Walis · Sep 28, 2005

OK I fixed the links. Odd.

And Yes, that is a nice case. However, it has been my experience that newegg send cases in seperate boxes. So will you still save on shipping that way?

Captain Slug · Sep 28, 2005

Malpine Walis said:
So will you still save on shipping that way?

Their shipping on cases is still quite cheap and for $5 more it's a substantially more functional case with better cooling.

Gnufsh · Sep 29, 2005

Amarkarian said:
and like if anyone nows where to get a cheap copy of 98.

Windows 98 is not maintenance free. I'd try and set him up with linux. Possibly SUSE (http://www.novell.com/linux/suse/) or Ubuntu (http://www.ubuntulinux.org/).

BaconTheory · Sep 29, 2005

Linux can be complicated for those who havwn't used it before. I would set him up with NT.

Gnufsh · Sep 29, 2005

So can windows. AFAIK, some Linux distributions are fairly easy to use (especially if a person doesn't have a lot of prior experience).

repilce · Sep 29, 2005

Yeh but someone who hasnt' used a computer before is gonna ask ALOT of questions, i would stick to windows for simple reason that he will be able to ask those questions to a wider variety of people. Dont get me wrong i love *nix as much as the next guy. but people new to computing , now matter how nice, can get annoying when they are nagging you every time the need to learn how to open a file or something.

This motherboard your using.. you said mini, we talking M-atx or like an intel itx board???

ghettocomp · Sep 29, 2005

Captain Slug said:
If you REALLY don't want to provide support I recommend checking http://www.retrobox.com

You can get Dell Optiplex GX240s (slightly aged 1.4-1.8ghz Pentium 4 systems) from there for under $200 with the following specifications and he would still be able to call Dell to get support.

Otherwise just amend these items to Malpine's list
Heatsink: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16835106606
arctic silver ceramique: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16835100009
This case: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811117029
These fans: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811999071
And some aluminum mesh filters to combat dust: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811999214

Although I am not thrilled with Dell products, (even less with Compaq & Gagway comps [I tend to killem all] ) I would go with Captain Slugs recommendation. The last thing you want is to keep providing support for something that is likely to be broken rather quickly.
If you choose this route, I would still recommend using Windows 2000 or XP. This is easier to work with as far as OEM style machines. From my experience, try getting help from Dell with linux, Its not easy and will ultimately confuse the new users.

Gnufsh · Sep 29, 2005

Captain Slug said:
If you REALLY don't want to provide support I recommend checking http://www.retrobox.com

You can get Dell Optiplex GX240s (slightly aged 1.4-1.8ghz Pentium 4 systems) from there for under $200 with the following specifications and he would still be able to call Dell to get support.

That may be your best (easiest for you) option.

How To Build A "No maintence computer"

Amarkarian

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Malpine Walis

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techun

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Nexus Realized

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BluntStatic

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darksparkz

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Yuriman

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Captain Slug

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Malpine Walis

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Gnufsh

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Gnufsh

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