Computer Questions Not Worth Their Own Thread II

cardgame said:
One USB port a useful computer does not make.

Personally I'm using 5 of my computer's 6 right now.

Two for mouse and keyboard, one for internet, one for the printer, and one for iPod
Click to expand...
Mouse and keyboard have their own ports, ethernet for internet, serial port for printer and firewire for iPod, done "smug:
 
Anyone made the switch to Solid State drives to boot their OS?
Could you recommend a cheaper model (one that is strictly for the OS)?

How does the virtual RAM work with a SSD (or does 7 do away with that?)?

It seems the price of most SSDs is mostly in the range of the Raptor drives, but seems from Newegg that several brands suffer from reliability issues---dying in their 3rd month for example.
 
GoodGame said:
Anyone made the switch to Solid State drives to boot their OS?
Could you recommend a cheaper model (one that is strictly for the OS)?

How does the virtual RAM work with a SSD (or does 7 do away with that?)?

It seems the price of most SSDs is mostly in the range of the Raptor drives, but seems from Newegg that several brands suffer from reliability issues---dying in their 3rd month for example.
Click to expand...

40GB for $110 uses Sandforce Controller, pretty fast

http://eshop.macsales.com/shop/internal_storage/Mercury_Extreme_SSD_Sandforce/Solid_State_Pro
 
How much of a difference do SSDs make in speeding up your computer?
 
cardgame said:
How much of a difference do SSDs make in speeding up your computer?
Click to expand...

2-4x apparent increase in responsiveness easily. Your OS goes from taking 30 seconds to boot, to 10 or less. Programs load much faster.

If there's one upgrade you want to do to increase usability, SSD is the way to go.
 
Is it true that the HDD is usually the slowest component in a computer?
 
it is SO expensive though, to get a reasonably sized one.

Hrmm, how much longer is it currently forecasted until 500 gb SDDs are available for ~$100-150?

Is it even a sure thing that the price will drop?
 
Thats why I said "usually" ;)

Question: In the networking class in college we're doing the Sisco (I think I spelt that wrong) course. One of the things says this and that confuses me. Can somebody help?

The key distinction between TCP and UDP is reliability. The reliability of TCP communication is performed using connection-oriented sessions. Before a host using TCP sends data to another host, the Transport layer initiates a process to create a connection with the destination. This connection enables the tracking of a session, or communication stream between the hosts. This process ensures that each host is aware of and prepared for the communication. A complete TCP conversation requires the establishment of a session between the hosts in both directions.
Click to expand...
 
TCP double-checks everything, is what I think it's trying to say. UDP transports everything fine but there is a possibility for error.

Please get a second opinion if it's in any way important though! :lol: This is only what I remember from a high school computer class I took last year.
 
cardgame said:
it is SO expensive though, to get a reasonably sized one.

Hrmm, how much longer is it currently forecasted until 500 gb SDDs are available for ~$100-150?

Is it even a sure thing that the price will drop?
Click to expand...

Prices will drop, just as they do with RAM. The problem is that so far the critical point hasnt been hit. Its getting close though.

As for price for reasonably sized: you don't need 500 gigs right now. There's little reason to put anything besides OS and commonly used programs on an SSD. You dont want to have a lot of re-writing the SSD as that will degrade performance. 80GB should be enough for a standard system, 120 is good if you have some games, 160 if you have quite a few games.

Mathalamus said:
that is true, unless a processor is like 100 MHz. then that is the slowest part of a computer.
Click to expand...

No, even then the CPU has way more bandwidth than mass storage. Also, a CPU's clock speed means little. I can downclock my C2Q to 100mhz but it would still be faster than the mass storage I have.

aimeeandbeatles said:
Thats why I said "usually" ;)

Question: In the networking class in college we're doing the Sisco (I think I spelt that wrong) course. One of the things says this and that confuses me. Can somebody help?
Click to expand...
Cisco is the word you're looking for.
Also, TCP is more reliable because it checks for errors. If a packet is received corrupted the client asks the server to resend it. This is good when you need to make sure all your packets are delivered correctly.

UDP on the other hand has no such provisions. If a packet is corrupt upon reception, it is simply discarded. This is why UDP is generally used in games -- speed is more important than accuracy. If there's a corrupt packet, you may get some skipping, but no actual processing lag.

cardgame said:
TCP double-checks everything, is what I think it's trying to say. UDP transports everything fine but there is a possibility for error.

Please get a second opinion if it's in any way important though! :lol: This is only what I remember from a high school computer class I took last year.
Click to expand...

You're getting there. See above.
 
Thanks, I get it now. TCP double-checks but is slower, while UDP doesn't double-check but is faster.

By the way, is it true that IBM used an acronym for a fan? I think it was "Air Movement Device". One of the teachers said this and he thought it was hilarious because they made a three-letter acronym for a three-letter word.

Edit: Looks like I got it right. This is pretty funny :lol:
 
What are the Hazards of operating a laptop for long periods of time (months) at 15,000 feet unpressurized, assuming I have already swapped out the HDD on for an SSD
 
why the heck would you operate a laptop, for months, at 15,000 feet, unpressurized?
 
Mathalamus said:
why the heck would you operate a laptop, for months, at 15,000 feet, unpressurized?
Click to expand...

A buddy of mine is being redeployed from Iraq to Afghanistan. He is going to spend his winter in the mountains and doesn't want to live without his MacBook Pro...
 
Nothing that I can tell right off the bat. The lower pressure shouldnt make any significant difference on anything. Id be more worried about dust and moisture.
 
Genocidicbunny said:
Nothing that I can tell right off the bat. The lower pressure shouldnt make any significant difference on anything. Id be more worried about dust and moisture.
Click to expand...

So the HDD is really the only pressure sensitive item in a laptop?
 
Genocidicbunny said:
2-4x apparent increase in responsiveness easily. Your OS goes from taking 30 seconds to boot, to 10 or less. Programs load much faster.

If there's one upgrade you want to do to increase usability, SSD is the way to go.
Click to expand...

But what about brands/models? Reading the Newegg comments, it seems many models have QC problems.

I'm also curious about the energy consumption. Do power demands go up significantly?
 
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