Christy Posted November 13, 2010 Report Share Posted November 13, 2010 Hullo everyone.I need a new lapper, and I'm gonna buy one this week. Problem is I don't know much about technology. My criteria is this:*Must be able to handle 10+ tables of online poker at a time (this is the #1 priority)*Must be able to surf the interweb speedily (no 'buffering' bullshit when I'm getting my Maria Ozawa on)*Must be reasonably priced (I doubt I'll go over 500, but ideally circa 400 would be goot)I am not interested in editing movies or making music or playing Crash Bandicoot or whatever people play these days. I need it to be reliable when I'm playing poker, and very little else. From what I've been able to deduce, I need minimum 3GB RAM. I don't know what that really means, but I trust the advice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZeromiserY Posted November 13, 2010 Report Share Posted November 13, 2010 Onlie poker and some music really isn't that taxing on a processor unless the poker game is quite graphically intense. To be honest any old laptop you can buy would cover what you describe above without needing to spend 400/500. (I say any old laptop but I mean 90% of laptops you would see on the shelf at pc world/comet etc). I don't know where this minimum 3gig of ram comes from but it's gibberish. Unless that is based on system requirements listed on any specific software you are using for poker? Like said if there is a heavy graphical interface this may be the case but I can't see any onlie poker game requiring 3 gig of ram. I can't recommend anything in particular for what you've said above but I'd advise against spending 400 on a laptop just to listen to music and play poker. I hope this helps. Any questions fire me a PMEdit: the buffering you were talking about is more likely due to connection speed. Most if not all systems these days can process and write data faster than it can be delivered by your average broadband connection. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Le Stu Posted November 13, 2010 Report Share Posted November 13, 2010 Assuming a 64bit operating system and triple channel RAM, 3GB is a realistic minimum but I'm not really up on the latest kit to be honest. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZeromiserY Posted November 13, 2010 Report Share Posted November 13, 2010 Assuming a 64bit operating system and triple channel RAM, 3GB is a realistic minimum but I'm not really up on the latest kit to be honest.I'm running windows 7 64bit and an 8600 GTS on 2gig of RAM with no noticeable issues. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Le Stu Posted November 13, 2010 Report Share Posted November 13, 2010 I'm running windows 7 64bit and an 8600 GTS on 2gig of RAM with no noticeable issues.Yeah, I run X64 Vista on 2 as well and it's reasonable but four is probably recommended. But it seems like plenty of new laptops are coming in with 3GB standard. I thought that was down to the new Intel architecture using triple channel so you need 3 X 1GB modules but I'm seeing dual pentium systems in this configuration which is confusing me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZeromiserY Posted November 13, 2010 Report Share Posted November 13, 2010 Yeah, I run X64 Vista on 2 as well and it's reasonable but four is probably recommended. But it seems like plenty of new laptops are coming in with 3GB standard. I thought that was down to the new Intel architecture using triple channel so you need 3 X 1GB modules but I'm seeing dual pentium systems in this configuration which is confusing me.Agreed but I only have 2 slots. It was either the graphics card or 2x 2gb sticks so I got 2x 1gb sticks and the graphics card. I use a 1gb flash drive for readyboost. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christy Posted November 14, 2010 Author Report Share Posted November 14, 2010 Hi guys, thanks for the input.Just to elucidate; from what I gather from2+2, 3GB RAM is standard for running 10+ tables at Full Tilt. It's not especially graphics-intensive, but I run it with PokerTracker3 and TableNinja, which probably eat up some of the good shit too.I'm pretty pizzled right now, so I'll re-read tomorrow and hopefully the advices will sink in xxx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Le Stu Posted November 14, 2010 Report Share Posted November 14, 2010 Agreed but I only have 2 slots. It was either the graphics card or 2x 2gb sticks so I got 2x 1gb sticks and the graphics card. I use a 1gb flash drive for readyboost.I got mine in '07 and those 2GB DDR2 sticks were expensive back then. Next build (probably 2013 the way my fianance are) will have SSD solid state mofos Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Le Stu Posted November 14, 2010 Report Share Posted November 14, 2010 Hi guys, thanks for the input.Just to elucidate; from what I gather from2+2, 3GB RAM is standard for running 10+ tables at Full Tilt. It's not especially graphics-intensive, but I run it with PokerTracker3 and TableNinja, which probably eat up some of the good shit too.I'm pretty pizzled right now, so I'll re-read tomorrow and hopefully the advices will sink in xxxI'm thinking you probably are gonna be using ten tabs on a browser running Flash. Try to get 'discrete' graphics rather than 'integrated' because that means the system RAM is shared with the video card which generally is shit. 3GB saounds good for basic operationt hese days. I'd make sure you get the 64 bit version of Windows 7 just because 32 bit will be fucking dead in about 2-3 years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZeromiserY Posted November 14, 2010 Report Share Posted November 14, 2010 Does anyone know anything about striped hard drives?I've got a 10-20mb broadband connection and I don't know if it's maxing out at 11ish because that's as fast as my hard drive can write or if it's just the best speed I can get from my connection. Outwith my area of expertise. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soundian Posted November 14, 2010 Report Share Posted November 14, 2010 2GB of RAM is the recommended minimum for Windows 7 64 bit. Sounds like the 3GB target Christy has been given is about right, I don't see what he's trying to do eating up more than a gig on top of the OS. More certainly wouldn't hurt but see what you can get for your budget.@Zeromisery Your internet connection speed has nothing to do with your HDD speed. Even a fairly standard 7200 RPM can write at 70 MBps. i.e 560 Mbps (a lot more than your 11 Mbps connection) . I wouldn't recommend striping. Firstly you'd need two HDDs and secondly if one of those HDDs went tits you'd lose every last piece of data on both. Check your HDD light when you think things are running slow, if it's flashing a lot then you have basically run out of memory and the computer is storing data from your RAM on to a cache on your HDD. Your ReadyBoost flash drive won't stop this happening, it just duplicates what's in your HDD cache so it can be retrieved quicker. In short, it's not as good as having more RAM but it's a lot quicker than having to get your data direct from the HDD. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZeromiserY Posted November 14, 2010 Report Share Posted November 14, 2010 Thanks soundian. I thought that was the case but I kind of hoped deep down I would be able ti' speed up my connection. The Victorian-ass setup on orchard street doesn't help matters. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Le Stu Posted November 14, 2010 Report Share Posted November 14, 2010 My Pc build i'm going to be using a 40gb SSD to run my OS and a few of the heavier programs and hold all my files on a 1tb HDD. Just sayin' gonna be SAWEEEEET. Should have it up and running in the next month/6 weeks if i'm unlucky.That seems a little tight for Windows. Can Windows 7 not just use it for swap space or something? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soundian Posted November 14, 2010 Report Share Posted November 14, 2010 That seems a little tight for Windows. Can Windows 7 not just use it for swap space or something? Not particularly tight, W7 needs 16GB free space for installing 32 bit and 20GB free for installing 64 bit versions. Once installed they require less. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Le Stu Posted November 14, 2010 Report Share Posted November 14, 2010 Not particularly tight, W7 needs 16GB free space for installing 32 bit and 20GB free for installing 64 bit versions. Once installed they require less.I suppose if he sticks the bulk of his applications on the 1TB that might actually be feasible, although i just did a fresh install and it took out 90GB for the usual stuff and a few Steam games. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soundian Posted November 14, 2010 Report Share Posted November 14, 2010 I suppose if he sticks the bulk of his applications on the 1TB that might actually be feasible, although i just did a fresh install and it took out 90GB for the usual stuff and a few Steam games. The only apps that need to be on the same drive as the OS are those that run as services (e.g. AV apps). I've also noticed that most SSD manufacturers recommend that you do NOT use it for swap space as using a lot of write operations will degrade the drive quicker. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christy Posted November 15, 2010 Author Report Share Posted November 15, 2010 OK I'm well out of my depth re. recent poasts! What do people make of this bad boy?Acer Aspire 5741z Laptop - Laptops | Ebuyer.comI'm pretty set on buying it today; any last-minute linkies for me? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZeromiserY Posted November 15, 2010 Report Share Posted November 15, 2010 OK I'm well out of my depth re. recent poasts! What do people make of this bad boy?Acer Aspire 5741z Laptop - Laptops | Ebuyer.comI'm pretty set on buying it today; any last-minute linkies for me?thats not bad dude. the processor could be better but for the price it's decent Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sam 45 Posted November 15, 2010 Report Share Posted November 15, 2010 Christy how the hell do you play 10 tables at once? I used to find running 2 tough. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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