I’m looking for a new computer, cause this one that I’m using has got a bit of a flakey keyboard and some other components that are a bit moody too. Sure, it fits my personality, but I’ve got enough productivity issues, don’t need a tool getting in the way too.
Choosing a new one has taken a while. Not because there are soooo many good options out there, but because there isn’t an easy one for me. Which got me to thinking over the years how I’ve made these decisions…
- I’ve never spent more than 1500 bucks on a computer. Not a conscious decision, just a bit of a trend.
- The first computer I really used for school was an Apple ][e. Frustrated my AP computer science teacher, but using UCSD Pascal on it probably planted the seed for me to goto UCSD anyway.
- I usually get them discounted cause they’re discontinued.
- Mac LC was my first college computer. Programmed on it quite a bit, but it also had probably the most enjoyable/memorable game I’ve ever played on it. Playmaker Football. You basically have to design your whole team (distribute skill points to all the players) and then, design your plays. Then you call your plays and see how they work. Walter and I spent hours designing the teams, would play a game, would find 1 or 2 plays that could exploit each other, then would spend 2-3 hours each adjusting our plays. Complete arms race of ideas and concepts – I freaking loved it.
- Then a PowerMac 7100 for grad school. School discount on a discontinued model. Wrote my thesis on this machine in LaTeX. Was surprisingly sentimental about getting rid of it when Catherine wanted it donated.
- Got a G4 Mac as a graduation present for myself – but since I started working in the “industry” was getting my first experience with Windows. Didn’t particularly like it, but found myself spending less and less time on the Mac. Fan / hard drive started making funny noises about 2 years in – and it started spending a lot of time off.
- When I got laid off from Dejima I realized that I needed a new computer. The one I’m typing on now was a red flyer, floor model discounted computer from Fry’s. There are so many danger/warning signs in that purchase that I shouldn’t have done it, but since it was my first PC and I felt guilty about it, I didn’t mind setting the PC world up for failure. Even though I carried it out of the store in a plastic bag (no box for floor model still) it has held up pretty well for the past 3 years.
- My father’s home computer that he uses for email has generally always been much more powerful than any computer I had at work. In some ways, I’ve had goals of getting a computer as powerful as his. But another part of me can’t spend that much on a computer.
So I’m floundering around in my decision. I want a laptop cause we don’t have a dedicated “study” for the computer and sometimes we travel and would like to bring it along. This makes one lean towards a 17 inch laptop. But they’re more expensive. I’m reading lots of reviews. Scouring dealpc.com. Feeling the pressure of upromise’s extra 1% bonus and not knowing how long that will last via the dell.com store.
And for the last 3-4 days that’s been the choice I’ve been bouncing back and forth between – while Catherine’s just saying “Buy it already”. The difference really is only a couple hundred dollars. 1 buy in at craps. Yet I’m really conservative about it for some reason. Maybe I can make that money back via more payperpost whoring.
Not quite as deep as Tony’s historical view of his life, but I’m getting there. Baby steps.