6.0190 Qs: What Computer to Buy; Going to Kiev? (2/74)

Elaine Brennan & Allen Renear (EDITORS@BROWNVM.BITNET)
Wed, 12 Aug 1992 16:43:05 EDT

Humanist Discussion Group, Vol. 6, No. 0190. Wednesday, 12 Aug 1992.


(1) Date: Fri, 07 Aug 92 21:12:13 EDT (63 lines)
From: MICHAEL STRANGELOVE <441495@ACADVM1.UOTTAWA.CA>
Subject: How To Blow 4 Grand on a Computer?

(2) Date: Tue, 04 Aug 92 16:26:36 PDT (11 lines)
From: Paul Brians <BRIANS@WSUVM1>
Subject: Anyone going to Kiev?

(1) --------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: Fri, 07 Aug 92 21:12:13 EDT
From: MICHAEL STRANGELOVE <441495@ACADVM1.UOTTAWA.CA>
Subject: How To Blow 4 Grand on a Computer?

For six months now I have been trying to make a decision on what type
of computer to purchase. My question is simple, given 3 to 4 thousand
dollars (maybe 5 grand if the system is truely divine), what type of
computer is the best purchase? I suspect that this is like asking for
the name of god but the time has come to buy and I am no closer to the Truth.

I am presently on a 8088 IBM clone that should have been illegal to build
(like an eight track tape player). I only use my pc for writing (WordPerfect,
but increasingly dissatisfied). Here is what I want in my shiny new baby:

- 486DX 50 MHz - 1 floppy drive will suffice
- large hard drive (minumum 200 MB)
- non-interlaced svga moniter
- 8 MB ram, 128K cache

I do not need a tape back up and am not concerned about software at this
point.

While the above assumes an IBM clone, I am open to UNIX or Mac.
Is it possible to efficiently run ibm and mac programs on the same machine
(or is this a dream machine?)

I am very tired of slow (even the 286 I have for the moment is much too slow)
machines. I need something that can handle very large (2-4 hundred page) texts
-- multi-task between two or three such texts at a time and run procomm in the
background, and a few tsr programs as well.

I am dissatisfied with WordPerfect's ability to create sophisticated documents
and am thinking of Mac IIci but am concerned about the hard drive size
and speed (in comparison to a 486/50) -- it does not seem that Mac offers the
same bang for my buck.

The thought of learning either a new operating system or a new word processor
gives me the screamies.

I am tempted to put down 3 grand on a Gateway 2000 486/50 but in the land of
choice and opportunity this seems almost too easy.

Behind this question stands the *real* question -- what is the best platform
for authoring primarily English texts -- IBM/UNIX/MAC/PENandPAPER? I somehow
feel that no matter what I buy, I will be left wondering if there isn't
something better out there, which is exactly the way advertisers would have
me feel, I suppose.

Dear Abby, dear Abby, now what do I do?

Signed, confused.


Michael Strangelove
Department of Religious Studies
University of Ottawa

BITNET: 441495@Uottawa
Internet: 441495@Acadvm1.Uottawa.CA
S-Mail: 177 Waller, Ottawa, Ontario, K1N 6N5 CANADA
Voice: (613) 237-2052
FAX: (613) 564-6641

(2) --------------------------------------------------------------16----
Date: Tue, 04 Aug 92 16:26:36 PDT
From: Paul Brians <BRIANS@WSUVM1>
Subject: Anyone going to Kiev?

I have succeeded in getting a translation of a poem by Liubov Sirota, a
victim of the Chernobyl disaster, published in the current issue of the
Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA). I want to send her
a copy of the original publication, but the mail system in the CIS is
even more of a disaster now that it used to be. Is there anyone headed
for Kiev in the reasonably near future who would be willing to hand-
carry the magazine to her?