As those of you who attended our last FURF (Flight Unlimited/Racing Fools) chat on Saturday know... I need a new computer. My D: drive is going South... and that is where all my good stuff is. I find myself grounded until I replace the drive or better yet the system. My system is getting kind of long in the tooth... a P3-933... so replaceing the drive seems to be putting off the inevitable. I found a pretty good deal on a Gateway system but Bob Stiles (my co-moderator in FU & my leader in RF) says that he has heard some bad rap on Gateway over the past couple of years. I had (have, in the closet) an old P1-166 Gateway that was a great one in it's day. So if anyone could give me the current story on Gateway reliability, support, or anything else that springs to mind, I would truely appreciate it.Thanks for any & all info.The system I'm looking at:P4-2.8GHZ (512KB L2 Cache)512MB PC800 RDRAM (PC1066 would be better?)128MB ATI RADEON 9700G Pro w/TV-out & DVI (Digital Video In ??)200GB 7200RPM Hard DriveDVD RAM/DVD-R/CD-RW Drive3.5 Floppy Disk DriveSound Blaster Audigy Audio CardBoston Acoustics BA7800 Speakers w/Sub & Surround ($100 credit to omit)56K V.92 Voice Modem (no point in omitting... & provides backup)10/100 Ethernet (needed for my net connection)MS Windows XP Home Edition2 USB 2.0 Rear / 2 USB 1.1 Rear / 2 USB 2.0 FrontSerial / 2 PS-2 (?) / 2 IEEE 1394 Firewire (?)Gateway Tower CaseMS Office XP Small Business (*)Norton AntiVirus 90-Day Subscription1-Year Limited Warranty Includes Tech Support; e-Support; In-StoreIn-Home & Factory Labor1-Year AOL (which they can keep)The Sims game software (which they can also keep)Pinnacle Expression Software (?? huh ??)Movie Creator VCD/DVD Digital Editing Package (??)18" LCD Flat-Panel Display ($360 credit to omit)(*) = It cost $150 to upgrade other systems from MS Work Suite 2002 to this... but they wont credit it back if you would rather have the Works Suite on this system, DARN!I copied these specs right from the catalog.

Tom: It looks like the 700XL system you've been eyeballing. I have the 2.2GHZ version which was purchased last January.A few comments:1. I've owned a couple of Gateway's (as well as Micron's and others) and have had no problem with service/responsiveness. Most of the the computer magazines rate them fair-to-good in most of the areas that are evaluated. I think though, that Dell has the edge here among the major OEM's.2. Dollars and cents. If you compare prices (item by item) with the other manufacturers, Gateway will probably yield the best value. In January, I was focused on Alienware (and the ultra-pricey FalconNW) but went for the 700XL at $3000.00. The latter two mfgrs furnish better quality components in some respects but I could not justify the trade-off. Dell and Micron were the other considerations.3. Comments on some items you highlighted in your post:*The Movie Creator software. I don't use it but it's for use with a digital video camera via a connection in the IEEE 1394 port.**If you decide on buying this system, do not take the $350.00 credit for the monitor; get the monitor! It's a 18.1" analog/digital display and retails for over $800.00. I'm reasonably sure that NEC/Mitsubish is the mfgr.***Same applies for the BA7800 speakers. Boston Acoustics makes this specific model for Gateway and they are superb. They definitely do not sound like 'computer speakers.' (I think that they actually sell for $250.00). .........................Well, if I had a Guru within arm's length I'd probably build my own but I don't, so that's why I went the OEM route. So, good luck on whatever you decide on.And as a qualifier, I offer these comments as a 'user' rather than a 'techie.'-GeorgeM at 5B6

George,"It looks like the 700XL system you've been eyeballing."Correct.When I bought my earlier Gateway it was easily the best price/performance system I was able to find. That was a long time ago... a P1-166... an eternity. I bought my current system in several stages. Approx 4 1/2 years ago it started life as a Compaq P2 or P3... not sure on that, @ 500MHZ / 128MB 100MHZ RAM / DVD-CD ROM drive. I added a 2nd hard drive, a CDrw, a V5-5500 video card, & lots of other stuff. About 2 years ago switched to a new mother board/case and a P3-933 / 384MB 133MHZ RAM. I have never been happy with the Compaq brand and would never buy another. But 4 years ago the price/performance for Gateway just wasn't there. Based on what I am seeing with the 700XL it appears to be back.I have also always heard great things about Dell's support... supposed to be the best in the industry. But looking at Dell right now I see several things I don't like. For one thing they don't seem to offer a system on par with the 700XL. They are also using on-board audio which I have always tried to stay away from."If you decide on buying this system, do not take the $350.00 credit for the monitor; get the monitor! It's a 18.1" analog/digital display and retails for over $800.00."This is an area of concern. First by taking the monitor I have to come up with an extra $359.00. Meaning I must find a way to convince my wife that I can't live without it... while I have 2 17" CRTs readily available. (One each Gateway & Compaq.) More important is the refresh rate. I have heard bad things about these LCD monitors when used in gaming... that a smear effect is common. Looking at the various monitors on the Gateway site this morning I see that the 18.1" LCD has a "response time" of 35 milliseconds. The 15" LCD, which lists as a $150.00 upgrade from the 18.1", has a response time of 25 milliseconds. I probably wouldn't be too concerned about this for flight sims but I am also very much into racing sims which tend to display very rapid action (they had better!).I do like the idea of the 18.1" LCD. While a 17" CRT (15.9" viewable)is the largest CRT that would fit into the 18" wide space on my computer desk the 18.1" LCD would fit with about 1/8" to spare on either side. The LCD of couse has a 2.2" larger viewing space, which is significant, and higher native resolutions. With much lower power requirements it would probably be less inclined to draw dirt & grime to the screen. About all I can do is go back to the store and get them to do a high speed graphics demo on the 18.1" display then judge for myself.

http://ftp.avsim.com/dcforum/User_files/3daadb8361678a11.jpg

(My computer desk when it was new... with the old Gateway and the same speakers I currently use... the sub can be seen under the shelf... to the right of the system unit.)"Same applies for the BA7800 speakers. Boston Acoustics makes this specific model for Gateway and they are superb. They definitely do not sound like 'computer speakers.' (I think that they actually sell for $250.00)."I'm not sure here. I am sure that the BA speakers are excellent. I am currently using the speakers from my old Gateway. They are Altec-Lansing with "synthesised" surround and a subwoofer. They are also very good... only 2 speaker units (not counting the Sub) but 3 speakers per unit. I will give the BA ones a listen while I am looking at monitors."if I had a Guru within arm's length I'd probably build my own but I don't"Me neither. I have managed to add disk drives... change sound cards... that sort of thing. But I always get nervous when I take the side panel off... and am always very relieved when it is back on... especially if what I have done has tested out.I want to thank you for such a well thought out, comprehensive, reply. :-sun1

Tom,I can't comment on the reliability of Gateway systems, but that spec looks tremendously powerful !Chris Low,ENGLAND.

Chris,Yeah, it looks pretty impressive to me too. Still thinking it out... and trying to keep Rhonda motivated on the subject. I did go down and test the monitor as best I could but they didn't have much to work with... 4X4 Evolution (at 640X480) and MidTown 2 at the same res. Not even a joystick to test with... driving a double-decker through London using arrow keys is not easy. But for what I could see it looked pretty sharp. Decisions, decisions!

Tom: Decisions should not be a problem. Just give the wife a bribe or two (it's perfectly legal) :+) and go buy what you want. If events tend to sour, "the devil made me do it" is an acceptable excuse. }>-GeorgeM

Yikes Tom, if yours is 'long in the tooth',mine must be an antique!Motormouse <===== P3 550mhz, 256mb ram,36gb Hdd, Cdrw,Gforce 2 mx400,SB16 pci sound.Can I have your old one then? (yanking your chain there)I showed your spec to my son, he's working 'in computers' now,and he commented that 200gb is a hell of a lot of data to lose if/whenthe hard drive conks out again, reckoned several smaller drives are better, as you can save one as a backup.Personally I don't use Norton Anti-virus,I prefer eSafe fromhttp://www.ealaddin.comdownload fromhttp://www.esafedesktop.com/Well thats my contribution,:-wavePete

Pete,"I showed your spec to my son, he's working 'in computers' now, and he commented that 200gb is a hell of a lot of data to lose if/when the hard drive conks out again, reckoned several smaller drives are better, as you can save one as a backup."Good point. It had occurred to me. I have always gone for multi device configurations myself. My Dell will come with a 120GB drive and I will add another later. I also have the capability to create CD backups @ 650MB per CD or DVD backups @ 4.7GB per DVD."Personally I don't use Norton Anti-virus,I prefer eSafe"The Norton package is just the bundled 90 trial package to get you to buy the full package. I will check out your links, thanks!"Can I have your old one then?"I don't think it would like your power much...My new sys will look like this:Dell Dimention 8250:Pentium

Sorry Tom, couldn't help myself. :-)

Scott,Yeah. I ordered the Dell despite of having to endure all those terrible commercials. :-lol Actually I kind of liked the one with the Galaxy convertible... but then I'm a sucker for rag tops... (the girl was cute too).Actually Bob "MomBert" Stiles badgered me into it. He kept sending me these links to forum posts of people complaining about how bad Gateway's music on hold is (something I remember from the mid '90s when I had one) and others talking about how great Dell service is. But the clincher was when I looked at the logo on my monitor... it says "Compaq"... and remembered how much I don't want to go through that mess again... and all the other reports I have seen about how good Dell service is. Actually I think I owe him a favor over this. Of course that doesn't mean that I wont make his life miserable if I run into any problems. :-eek

I get blamed for everything. :-)[table][tr][td valign=top]http://www.avsim.com/other/usaribbon.gif[/td][td valign=center]Bob "FlyBert" StilesAVSIM Moderator[/b][/td][/tr][/table]

Bob"I get blamed for everything."Seems approptiate to me. ;-)

>I get blamed for everything. :-) >Well Bob, everybody has to have a place in this world. :-lol

I refuse to visit this forum anymore. ;-) :-lolActually, I'm here for advice about GeForce4 4200 video cards.See post above... or below, or wherever it winds up.[table][tr][td valign=top]http://www.avsim.com/other/usaribbon.gif[/td][td valign=center]Bob "FlyBert" StilesAVSIM Moderator[/b][/td][/tr][/table]

Bob,I hope you don't think we were picking on you. We were, but I'd hate for you to get that idea... (just teasing).I'd give you some advice on the video card but you know full well that I know even less about them than you do. I'm not a nVida fan... but that has to do with my not liking what they did to 3DFX... not the cards they make.