but I don't know what the industry standard is for them right now.

like what is a decent processor, doesn't have to be top of the line, but also not one that is going to be obsolete or can't keep up in a year?

how much memory should I get? how big of a hard drive?

someone let me know what's the middle ground of good but not overly expensive these days. right in the middle.

thanks

get a mac book.... 1099 you cant go wrong

I fully agree, MacBook is the way to go.

They are top notch computers and so easy to use. None of this stupid windows vista shit. My Fiancee just got a new comp and it has Vista. I hate it so much. Horrible, horrible, horrible. Bottom line is Macs rule.

Also, if you really miss windows bad enough, with the new macbooks you can just run xp on your system. Also if you wait until October Mac is releasing the newest version of osx, and it is fully able to run xp and osx and switch back and forth between operating systems with a key combo.

That sounds awesome! Ive been looking into mac's lately

I have a Powerbook and it is awesome. Go Mac don't look back.

I also love my mac skylar, but you know this.

dudes, I love Mac as well, but yeah, I don't know if I'm looking to pay even low end Mac prices right now

No no no... buy a PC... make sure it has Microsoft Windows Vista on it.

it needs to:

-have a decent word processing program (I know any computer will these days)
-let me go online (once again, any computer)
-be fast enough/have enough memory/good enough graphics card and space to put a whole s-load of MAME roms on it

that's about it. what else is a computer good for anyway?

Well if that's all you want maybe see if Dell is still doing their "design your own machine online" thing. I did that with my last PC purchase with my 3D graphics needs in mind, and was very happy with the machine I got. I don't know if they offer this for portables, though. The nice thing is that you don't get tons of OEM crap you don't want or need to add memory or whatever ... you get what you want from the get-go.

While he won't tell me more and I wouldn't share corporate secrets even if I knew them, my best bud, who heads Apple's Macbook team, says "wait for the Fall releases." If you can afford a Mac, the extra $$$ just may "pay for themselves" as you'll have a more reliable machine that comes with the whole iSuite or whatever it's called. No need to go and buy basic production/office/media software. It comes with the computer.

If you're going with a Wintel-based machine, then I strongly recommend a Lenovo Thinkpad - formerly part of IBM, but using the same factories and staff. You pay a little more for them, but the build quality is superb. My last one lasted seven years, and I only gave it away because I needed to run XP. I've had this new one for over a year now and never a problem with it. Everyone else I know has had similar experiences.

I believe you can custom order a machine from them loaded with XP instead of Vista. As far as details like processor, etc., establish a price that you want to pay and see what models they offer. If you spend money upgrading one thing, you will get the most bang for your buck upgrading the RAM, that always helps no matter what OS you're using.

hey skylar, I think i talked to you before about this...maybe it was when Missy was going to buy an LCD...my company sells used & refurbished IT equipment. We've got some decent laptops coming in soon (IBM Thinkpad T40) I'm sure I could work out a fair price for you. If you're interested i can get more details and get back to you on Monday. Aiiiiiight?

Take a look at these guys, man. Super crazy deals.

http://www.anuslaptops.com/

My PC took a fat shit on me yesterday, I had to run out to Best Buy where I bought this
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=8404256&type=product&productCategoryId=pcmcat103700050028&id=1180743304925
I love it so far.

i agree with roger try lenovo

http://shop.lenovo.com/SEUILibrary/cont ... 11B7015A00

I use both mac and pc. I would never spend another $ on a pc. (no offense pc users)
The lower price initially looks tempting, but the extra $ you pay down the road for virus protection and inevitably having to take it in to get servised evens them out in the long run. I also used a 4 year old mac laptop up until a few months ago. It still ran the news 3d software etc. They just don't age the same way.
So, unless you are a pro at maintaining the efficiency of your computer I'd say save the extra $ and get a mac.
I won't get into it now, but I also think that virus software and microsoft profit off each other...

Get a used IBM off ebay and put Ubuntu on it... mmmmm... Linux goodness