need computer help

[BlueStarLizzard]

i'm not aware if i made a general announcement here but...

several weeks ago my old mac died. as in dead. totally dead.  (also it happened the same day i got my car stuck on a 5 inch layer of solid ice and ended up with a piece of plywood flying into my hip at high speeds, but thats 'nother story)

anyhoo, finally did my taxes and WHOOHOO! i got money coming back. enough that a few weeks of saving scrimping can get me back online.

so my current dilemma...

i am looking at replacing my old G3 ibook with a mac mini and then getting a monitor from best buy or some such ( i looked and customer reviews are pretty solid for their $99 dollar wonder)

STOP: i want a mac. i refuse to buy a PC even though i know i could get something a lot cheaper in a laptop. i have my reasons for insisting on a mac. 'nuff said.

I have tons of music on my computer and it is my primary way of managing and listening to music (hopefully i can get most of it off the harddrive and some is actually backed up elsewhere). i also have a bunch of pictures and will end up with much more. i also will eventually be getting the newer SIMS games that i couldn't play before B/C of my old processor. i'm not a huge gamer but i love sims, especially designing the houses and such.
mostly i use the computer for interwebz (here, facebook, a couple other forums and shopping), writing and music with a little sims playing to pass the time...

so my question...

the standard mini comes with:
2.26GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
2GB 1066MHz DDR3 SDRAM - 2x1GB memory
and a 160GB Serial ATA Drive

but you can upgrade it a bit. i know my harddrive on the ibook was bigger then standard (but i don't remember how much) and at one point eric said that it was good b/c i have so much music.

the upgrades are:
2.53GHz Intel Core 2 Duo for processor

4GB for memory

and

a 320 GB or 500 GB harddrive.

this mini is gonna have to last awhile, hopefully not as long as i abused the ibook, but still a long while and i know i will be getting lots more music before all is said and done.

the upgrades cost but i am willing to pay for some of it, but i don't want to pay for stuff i really don't need and i have no clue how to translate what i need from geek speak to "well that will hold about/that will do this and this..."

so... any help here?

[InfidelSerf]

I'm assuming that the primary and well only reason you want to stick with mac is OSX.
If that's the case then just buy a PC and install OSX on it a.k.a. hackintosh
Best of both worlds.

[BlueStarLizzard]

I'm assuming that the primary and well only reason you want to stick with mac is OSX.
If that's the case then just buy a PC and install OSX on it a.k.a. hackintosh
Best of both worlds.

errrr.... that seems a little much work for me

i am not a computer person. i am a competent user and i don't do well with stuff like that. in fact thats why i want the mac os, it works and i can be lazy and ignorant about it. 

[InfidelSerf]

http://www.osx86project.org/
http://www.hackintosh.com/

A couple links for you.
It's actually not that complicated, pretty much as simple as popping a disc in the drive and allowing it to install while you click yes a few times.
Then you have OSX on pc based equipment that you can easily upgrade later. And most importantly purchase for less.
You could also go back with a laptop format without spending 2grand for a macbook

[Phantom Warrior]

My thoughts....

PROCESSOR
Easiest thing to skimp on (see caveat).  I'm quite happily using my 4.5 year old 1.8 Ghz single core Sempron laptop for browsing, e-mail, music, movies, and some old video games.  A huge processor is like being able to tow 20,000 pounds with your pickup truck.  Unless you regularly need to do that, it's a waste of capability.

Caveat:  If you want to play games, look at the requirements.  My most advanced video game is Age of Empires II (circa 1999) so that isn't an issue.  It is much easier to bump up the processor now than to try and replace it later, especially in a laptop.

HARD DRIVE
Hard drive space is a great thing to have but beyond a certain point it's just a number.  Unless you are getting into lots of large video files (pirated movies) you may be fine with 250 GB or even 160 GB.  How much is "tons of music"?  The average five minute song is about 5 MB.  My entire 1200 song collection takes up slightly less than 5 GB.  Unless you have tens of thousands of song it really isn't an issue.
Pictures are a couple of MBs, depending on the resolution.  My entire high resolution 4000 picture deployment picture collection is about 11 GBs.

Put it this way, with a 1500+ songs and thousands of pictures and all my programs and miscellaneous junk I'm using about 100 GB of my 250 GB laptop hard drive.

MEMORY
One of the best things to have, but also one of the easiest things to skimp on now.  Upgrading memory is as simple as taking off the cover, popping out the old memory stick, and popping in the new one.  It takes no tools and little technical know how.  And memory is always going on sale cheap.  Again, check your requirements for games but this may not be something to worry about right now.

[red headed stranger]

First of all, you can get a macbook for well under $900.  The new models are just as easy to upgrade as most other laptops.  Upgrading RAM and the HDD is as easy as popping out the battery and undoing a couple screws.  Refurbs direct from apple are a good way to go, as the normal warranty can apply.  

I personally think the macbook is more cost effective than the mini if you do not already have a monitor, keyboard and mouse.  If you get the macbook, I would leave the RAM and HDD alone until you feel you have outgrown them. (And waiting means that the ram and bigger hard drives will be even cheaper later.)  If you have been getting along with a g3 macbook, something tells me you aren't dying for tons of more computing power.  

My walking around notebook is a dell mini with OSX on it. I like it a lot. But, if someone is not comfortable with doing a hackintosh, I wouldn't push them.  Updates to the operating system can sometimes break your install. I know it isn't hard to keep track of, but it can be a potential annoyance nonetheless.  

If you do choose the mac mini, I would suggest getting the maximum amount of RAM right away, because it can be a pain to upgrade due to the RAM's location in the case.  I wouldn't bother with a bigger hard drive, as one of these is more cost effective:

http://eshop.macsales.com/shop/ministack/

It is an external hard drive enclosure that fits perfectly below the mac mini. It uses a desktop style hard drive which is much cheaper than a comparably performing laptop drive. (The mac mini uses laptop sized hard drive and RAM for internal components.) This is what I use for storing music, movies, and pictures. The smallest internal HDD option on the mini is plenty large for running the OS.  

Of course, you could go the route of using an external drive with the laptop, but it can be a pain if you are a person who takes a laptop everywhere.  

[BlueStarLizzard]

  If you have been getting along with a g3 macbook, something tells me you aren't dying for tons of more computing power

it was a matter of necessity not choice. i couldn't afford a new computer. i really still can't, but i can't stand having no computer at all.
and i'm stubborn. i refuse to spend more then $100 bucks on something i don't really really like/want/will last. the mini seems the best option as i can upgrade monitors and such as i go, without spending the cash on a laptop. i almost would hold out for the laptop, but i have to see how much i have to spend on my car first.

sims 3 needs:
 Intel Core Duo processor
2GB of RAM
6.1GB
to play.

i didn't know about the mini stacks. thats cool. so all i would need is RAM.

thanks guys 

[Harold Tuttle]

sims 3 will not run on my macbook pro

[BlueStarLizzard]

sims 3 will not run on my macbook pro

it won't?

[sanglant]

just to make you feel better

today i can up behind a school bus waiting on an 18 wheeler stuck in a curve on highlands parkway.


moving toward the bottom of the pic he was stuck in the second curve. no idea how he got out. all i could have helped him with was coming up with new things to yell at the truck so i got out of the way.