New
#1
Looking for an easy guide to high-performance computer shopping
Hi, I currently have the following laptop:
Asus F3Series (purchased in Winter 2008)
Intel Core 2 Duo (Centrino) T7500 @ 2.20 GHz 2.20 GHz
160 GB HD, 5400 rpm
2 GB RAM
ATI Mobility Radeon 512 MB
15.4" WXGA Screen
Windows 7 Home Premium
The laptop is serving my purposes well, but I am thinking whether its worth it to purchase a high performance desktop system and then use my current laptop while I'm away at work or school, using LogMeIn (or any other Remote Access program) to perform tasks that would take advantage of the capabilities of the desktop sitting home.
If this is a good idea, then I do not know how to shop for this high performance desktop system. I have looked around online, but it is hard for me to determine which features I should get and which features are cutting-edge, but I don't really need or would probably not notice any difference in performance.
Some of the tasks I would need/like to do:
- Heavy Multi-Tasking: Multiple windows of internet browsers, word processors, pdf viewers, image editing programs, media players, email clients, chat clients, explorer folders, all open and running at the same time.
- Heavy use of Microsoft Office programs to make large reports, vivid presentations, etc.
- Use of multiple 3D Modeling and Image Rendering/Editing Programs (Photoshop, Cinema4D, CorelDraw, Sketchup Pro) at the same time.
- Possible use of calculation intensive programs related to Engineering studies
Here are some tasks that I am not interested in:
- Playing movies or dvds or making them
- Gaming
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I am really interested in speed, graphics, and multi-tasking. I want the system to do what I need it to do, without turning my mouse pointer into a blue-green waiting ring. If possible, I never want to see that waiting ring again.
I have no idea on whether computers have even reached that level. I see mention of quad-cores, six-cores, high-end graphics cards, hyper-threading, overclocking, and I found difficulty in finding information on whether these features are useful for me.
I would be interested on guidance on how to approach this issue, where I can find reliable information, and on whether the idea of remote accessing a high-performance desktop over a wifi connection is practical.