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[king_nothing_]

and because it screws in.

That is precisely why I don't like DVI.

[Amit]

In 2007-2011 most people were still using VGA, despite VGA having technically been "dead" since 2004. TV's never had DVI input, they jumped straight from VGA to HDMI for PC input.

I use DVI because I like the fact that it does *not* support DRM, because all of my monitors have come with DVI cables since 2004, and because it screws in.

Most people are going to use VGA at least until 2020, I'd say. Monitors aren't enough of an advancement for people to go out and spend money on a new one just for a superior cable method. Monitors last a fuck long time so I don't see anyone who already uses VGA switching until their current needs aren't met anymore. What I was saying was that in that 4 year period, a lot of people started using DVI because 22"+ monitors were becoming cheaper for the consumer and the cable came with their new monitor was DVI.

I use DVI because it screws in so I don't have to worry about it getting unplugged randomly. Oh and my monitor doesn't support HDMI, so...

Even if I did have a monitor that supported HDMI, I'd still use DVI. Mostly because I wouldn't have to go out and buy a new HDMI cable lol.

[Patrickssj6]

I don't like to use HDMI, it feels like plugging a USB cable into my monitor. I prefer using dedicated cables to do dedicated tasks. I want my monitor cable to just transfer display and screen information, not additional information like DRM.

[Rhydgaled]

Is this thread suitable for discussion about laptops? I hope so, because I am currently on a 1 year work placement (part of my degree course) which is far from home so I'm renting a flat for the year. It's too small for my desktop really, so if I'm going to do everything I want to I'm going to need a better laptop.

First off, I dislike Windows 7 and can get a free copy of Windows out of MSDN-AA thanks to my university so I'm thinking of getting a laptop without an OS and installing a free and legal copy of Windows XP Professional myself. Now the question is what hardware will I need? The major software I want to be able to run (which I use on my desktop, which has a 3ghz Pentium 4 and 1GB of RAM) is as follows:

• 3ds Max 5 (yes a very old version)
• Adobe After Effects (v6.5 I think)
• Adobe Premiere Pro 1.5

I expect anything that can run those, and run them well, could handle everything else I use (like Photoshop, Office and Visual Studio) I'm thinking along the lines of the following specs:

• An Intel CPU that's suitable for 32-bit Windows XP (need suggestions here), my limitted research suggests maybe an Intel Core i5, what makes 3ds max 5 run best?
• 2.5GB RAM (+/- 512MB)
• 15.4" screen (so it fits in the bags I have for my current laptop)

I have next-to-no understanding of graphics cards, but I doubt an integrated Intel one* is enough to run 3ds Max. I've done a little bit of research and I think the graphics card should have 512MB - 1GB of it's own memory (which would affect the amount of RAM, since I think video memory + RAM is not allowed to exceed 3.5GB I think) and I think OpenGL and/or Direct3D support is a must (although all today's cards probably support that anyway).

It would be nice if the machine was capable of running CMT's Open Sauced campaign smoothly without struggling without turning off many (or any) of the extras, so that might be a good guide for what the right video card would be. Sadly I'm not likely to have any time for HEK on top of everything else I want to do, which has been the suituation for quite a while.

*I believe I have one of these in my current laptop, I get a warning when starting HALO CE so I doubt Max will run. If I can run all that software with integrated Intel graphics I might just get a huge external hardrive to install 3ds Max and the video editing software on, and use my current laptop.

[JackalStomper]

It's a little difficult to find laptops without operating systems installed outside of ebay.
You might be better off just getting over it and adapting to Windows 7.
Can't help you much more than that. I'm not really a laptop person.

(which would affect the amount of RAM, since I think video memory + RAM is not allowed to exceed 3.5GB I think)

This isn't an issue on a 64-bit OS. Seriously why so reluctant to run something from this decade?

[ThePlague]

I don't understand why people even bother with XP anymore. UPGRADE TO WINDOWS 7, IT HAS COMPATABILITY WITH EVERYTHING.

[Donut]

gaming / game design (which it sounds like you have some part in) should all be done at 4+ gb ram, which necessitates a 64 bit operating system. also, windows 7 is excellent. id take it over xp any day.

also, get cooling pad if you can afford it. heat will do a lot of wear and tear on your components, and laptops apparently like to commit suicide by heat (since everything is crammed into that small space). keeping it cool with a pad or anything to help increase airflow will keep the laptop performing better, and make it last longer.
as for your integrated intel issue, i believe the intel core series (i3, i5, i7) all have HD3000 integrated chips, which are good enough to play tf2 on reasonable settings. youll be able to run max on that, but you should definitely try to get an actual dedicated GPU.

E: and get a 64 bit operating system dammit. i will mail you a flaming bag of cat shit if you dont
E2: one last thing, with a laptop, youre going to want to "buy for the future", if that make sense. since you cant really upgrade a laptop, dont just get something that can run halo or the programs youre into now. make the investment and spend a little more money for something that has more power, so someday when youre like "hey, i wanna try a new game", you can actually run it.

how much are you planning on spending on this?

[Pooky]

I don't understand why people even bother with XP anymore. UPGRADE TO WINDOWS 7, IT HAS COMPATABILITY WITH EVERYTHING.

Well, it's not compatible with everything. Win7 64 can't run 16 bit applications at all, which makes installing some really old games a pain in the ass. Also, Aero breaks compatibility with a fair few things.

Don't get me wrong though, Win 7 is a huge improvement over XP and I love it. I just run Windows Classic theme and all is well.

[Tnnaas]

I feel like everyone is screaming at me with all this, "Get Windows 7!" stuff.

I'll get on it dammit, let me work up some money first!

[JackalStomper]

Better hurry before microsoft decides to stop giving out licenses so people have to buy windows 8