I hate computers (kinda)

[XE1/N5AL]

To save money, I was going to suggest that you keep an eye out for a "tax free" weekend, that many states have right before school starts. But, I see that Oregon has no state sales tax! bastids

[PA5COR]

Buying a new laptop for me is simple it needs to work 7 to 8 years 12 hours a day here, my old one did and still works.
The new I 7 lappy with 12 Gig mem, 250 Gig SSHD and 2 GB ATI Radeon video card lets me play games in 3 d which i never do but the overkill on the 17 inch screen makes sure it still will do what i want in 7 years time fast.

2.4GHz speed over clocking to 3 Ghz processor if needed.
Lenovo, the old one was an acer.
You are caught with funds that come in late, doing Cad work needs a fast processor, lots of Ram, and preferential an SSHD to keep the system speed universal and not have a bottleneck, good videocard as well...

SSHD's now are quite reliable, but the need for backups stays using SSHD or standard HD's ..... we all found that out in all our years of using computers and i started with a Sinclair ZX 81 with 1 Kb mem and 16 KB extention....followed by a Tandy Coco ;)

Quality of screen using laptop HD.
Desktop good monitor.
I never use desktops myself, just build a desktop gaming system for my son last week though high spec.
So, look at what you want to do with it and get as high spec overall in the system as possible not creating bottlenecks by a slow component.

For what i do with the laptop my system is stupendously overkill, but in 5 years time it still will be relative fast, i spend 1K Euro's on it.
That is from a good friend in a computer shop, bet it cost more if i just bought it elsewhere.

Good luck buying your new computer ;)

[KC2UGV]

Sounds like the two areas you need to focus on are graphics card, and memory. CPU bumps aren't really all that important anymore, tbh. Quad core 2GHz is about the max anyone I know of can actually max out, on laptop/desktop/workstation.

nVidia 980ti will last you many, many years in service. You can likely get 5 years with a 960, at least. It should be able to handle any and all graphics work you throw at it. For memory, look for a minimum of 8GB, 16GB is better, 64GB if you can afford it.

[WØTKX]

https://forum.solidworks.com/thread/42876

From a few years ago, but if you are buying used or "NOS".

More recent...

https://www.pugetsystems.com/labs/ar...orks-2016-751/

It's kind of a CAD/rendering thing. Which is a weird world, and going on spec sheets is only a starting point.
Looks like first/single core CPU speed is an issue in this world, as it is calculation intensive.

Keep your eye on the knee in the price/performance curve, and I'd stick with recommendations from SolidWorks.

https://www.reddit.com/r/SolidWorks/...h8&sh=33f644d8

You just want it to work, you don't want to fiddle with the bits, eh?

Anything that does SolidWorks well should work great in AutoCAD.

[WZ7U]

You just want it to work, you don't want to fiddle with the bits, eh?

Anything that does SolidWorks well should work great in AutoCAD.

Well, for right now that would be an accurate assessment since I'm on a time frame and can't miss that deadline. I DO want to build a killer box for CAD in a year or so when the whole time & muny thing isn't an issue. This instant in time requires it to just work. My guess is I will take what I'm getting into now and hot rod that as soon as it's practical. By then I will have a much better feel for what is necessary.

So, being back up against a wall of sorts, here goes..........

The box I'm putting in for (Dell xps8900) has an intel i-7 core @ 3.4ghz, 32gb ram @ 2.1ghz, 1tb 7200rpm hard drive, 4gb Nvideo graphics card, wireless connectivity, dvd/cd read/write and, unfortunately, Windows 10. A pretty snazzy (when's the last time you heard that word, eh?) starter package in my estimation. I figure it's a good platform to start from.

The only major sticking point will probably be the graphics card, but I don't see me doing a lot of high density drawings right away for classes. When shading, edge definition and lots of hidden surfaces become the norm then I see an upgrade in the wings. Extra memory is easy and cheap while upping to more ram is not so much so, but I will worry about that later. If processor speed becomes a problem, perhaps an SSD can help with that.

The yl encouraged me to splurge on a monitor so I brought home a 32" led 1080p HD Samsung tv today. It's bigger than my last TV! Nice! One HDMI cable away from super monitor.

If it weren't for you folks and your timely tips and advice I would still be fiddling with the last of my hair follicles wondering wtf had I got myself into. I am deeply appreciative to this group and it's generosity sharing hard earned wisdom & experience with me regarding what is arguably one of the biggest departures in my life to this point. So, to all the island natives involved, a hearty 5-9 + 20 FB THANK YOU!!

[XE1/N5AL]

Do any of the cad packages make good use of the newer laptops with 4k UHD displays? ...or, would all the extra pixels just serve to burden the computer with more work and slow it down?

I think that most commercial software will list the minimum system requirements on the company webpage. But, you will want to be well above these minimums because they might only be adequate for the most basic of projects.

[N1LAF]

One can get a Dell workstation laptop at nice prices, and if you wait until a holiday, they typically run a holiday sale between 40% to 50% off with free shipping. Then you have access to Dell main site for drivers. On Labor day, it is possible to get a 3 year old M6600 for $500, with 8GB of memory, with an NVIDIA M3000 video card and a 17.3" widescreen. The M6600 also have a secondary drive slot - great for multi-boot potential.

http://dellrefurbished.com/computer-workstation

[KD8TUT]

OK, it's true. I hate computers the same way I hate anything else I can't immediately understand. To not be able to readily understand what I am looking at is one of my base frustrations. Especially under any kind of gun.

So here I am typing this to you when I should be pulling whats left of my thinning locks out trying desperately to comb through a bunch of sales hooey, all the while having this feeling that none of this is what I really need. Now on to the specifics.

I need a CAD capable computer and the ole win XP girl just isn't up to the task and probably never has been for quite a while. While the memory is great (hundreds of GB), the ram is sorely lacking, the pentium is out of date and the video card is too anemic as well. "Professional" help says it's not worth it to upgrade. So, my 'problem' comes from the yl's insistence that I use Costco as my source for a new machine. Reading through their online sales shit is straight forward enough, but the answers I need just aren't there. OK, so unit xyz has the requisite GB of ram and hard drive space, cool. But what graphics card does it have? Is it 64 bit? Exactly which software is installed and why? Answers I can't seem to get (or understand) in a reasonable fashion.

I am not an IT guy. I've been "IT" plenty of times, but that is neither here or there. She insists Costco has the best warranty and I don't dispute that. But if what they have won't work, well, you get it. The local computer store in town has something they swear will work on their used table and while I trust their assessment of my needs and their product, it is still at the end of the day a used, refurbished laptop that may only get me through school. Why can't the specifics of a computer be as easy to look up as say one might do when considering a new car? Am I just being obtuse again?

My problem is I only get one shot to get the thing right from the $$$ standpoint. I need a workstation, not a porn getter. And my window is rapidly closing. In none of my wildest dreams did I figure this was going to be so difficult. Not to mention the fight that has erupted around here over it. Almost makes me want to quit the whole idea and sell pencils on a street corner somewhere.

Any tips how to weed through the sales fluff? Any suggestions from folks that know what they are looking at vs what does what? Am I spinning my wheels? I wish the specs on the Autodesk and Dassalt web pages could be put into some filter and a reasonable response come out the other side. I know, wish in one hand.......

As usual, thanks ahead of time to the smarterer of us islanders for any input you may have. It is appreciated.


<it kills me to do this to you all this way. sorry>

I'm a systems engineer. I'd be happy to review anything you are considering purchasing or point you to an integrator that can make you a killer box exactly to your specifications.

[WØTKX]

No offense to any and all who are trying to help. SolidWorks is a little weird, and so is AutoCAD.
The "workstation PC" environment is not the same as regular PC's, etc.

Suggest hanging out on the SolidWorks forums to find the knee in the price/performance curve.

I researched the hell out of shit to find the PC and hardware that would run my Flex AND let me play with Blender.
And upgraded the refurb Gateway I bought from MicroCenter to make it work well.

[WØTKX]

Learning 3D stuff will be hair raising.

I'm jealous, really enjoyed doing that stuff for a paycheck.
Be fun to take some classes myself.

Lost myself in Blender for about four hours yesterday.
Ya bastid. :p