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From: Dan Ts'o <dan@dnn.rockefeller.edu>
Subject: Re: Please suggest "best" FreeBSD workstation <= $4000
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References: <53rflp$o27@lex.zippo.com> <326269E6.15FB7483@FreeBSD.org> <DzE1u6.GJt@rockyd.rockefeller.edu> <546ndq$3dl@anorak.coverform.lan>
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Date: Wed, 23 Oct 1996 02:30:48 GMT
Brian Somers <brian@anorak.coverform.lan> wrote:
: : You can configure a system on the Web at http://www.gw2k.com.
: :
: : I just did and the above came to $4034, with their Vivitron 21"
: : color monitor. If that is the Sony, then it is not bad. I included a SCSI
: : CDROM. You can play with the configuration to go under $4000...
: Be careful about buying upgrades these days. I recently bought a Dell
: system - when SIMM prices were at their lowest. One of my suppliers
: sold 16Mb EDOs for #59+VAT and 32Mb EDOs for #155+VAT. Dell supply
: their basic PPro200 system with 2 x 8Mb of EDO - #200 to upgrade to 32Mb !
: Being willing to take the lid off would buy #16Mb of extra memory +
: #82+VAT !
This is definitely true, not everyone is into taking a PC apart.
: I'll bet it was the same story with the disks - keep the ISAs that they
: offer and take 'em out and give 'em to a friend. Buy a 2940 etc and
: you'll probably still undercut Gateway/Dell's "upgrade".
Not quite, but yes. Just depends if you are willing to fooling
around to save an addition couple of hundred...
: The morale ? Take what they offer. It's being offered because it can
: be mass-produced (and mass "burned-in"). If you take that away from
: them, they take the good deal back !
As long as they are giving you what you actually want...
Memory upgrades from Gateway/Dell are the least cost effective.
: : I'm a little concerned about the cache on the system. It appears to
: : be only the 256KL2 on chip cache. Have to check this out...
: Aren't all PPros ?
Some PPro chips have 512Kb cache. One study showed that for MP
performance, a larger PPro cache was more important than a higher clock
speed (4*160Mhz PPro with 512kb >> 4*200Mhz PPro with 256kb cache).
--
Cheers,
Dan Ts'o 212-327-7671
Dept. of Neurobiology FAX: 212-327-7671
The Rockefeller University
1230 York Ave. Box 138 dantso@cris.com
New York, NY 10021 dan@dna.rockefeller.edu