[cloudbaseracer]

Looking at new $250 computer from Office Depot to use as a server.  This computer only has 1 gig of Ram and 160 GB hard drive.  I am fine and actually prefer the small hard drive because I want all my music to be stored on a separate 1.5T to 2T single drive and have only the operating system and interface on the small drive.  I have been told that Vista Premier needs 2gigs of ram but I am not sure why I would need the Premier over the Basic.  In the future I may want to also use this computer to store HD video/movie content and stream this with some yet to be determined program.  This program may be windows Media Center I just don't know. 

My question is would the inexpensive computer be good to use primarily for streaming media to a SqueezeBox Duet and also work for a future video source?

Thanks,

James

[jqp]

With Home Basic you will miss this

Media Center (with HDTV/cablecard support)
Windows Movie Maker (with HD support)   
Windows DVD Maker
Scheduled backup
more than 1 physical CPU in PC
"SideShow'
Aero "Glass"

So Premium offers some good stuff for home media

Actually I would go for 3GB RAM if possible to make it more useful for the above features.

And what I would really do is get a refurbished DELL

like this, but maybe a less expensive one

You can filter by many features you are looking for to get the biggest bang for the buck, availablility changes frequently, you can sort by price


http://outlet.us.dell.com/ARBOnlineSales/topics/global.aspx/arb/online/en/InventorySearch?c=us&cs=22&l=en&s=dfh
   
Inspiron 530
(System Identifier: 0GC668HP)

    * Inspiron Desktop 530 Mini-tower: Intel Pentium dual-core processor E2180 (1MB L2,2.0GHz,800 FSB)
    * Genuine Windows Vista Home Premium

System Price   :   $369.00

Operating System
Genuine Windows Vista Home Premium
Memory4 GB DDR2 SDRAM 667MHz (4 DIMMs)
Hard Disk Drive 320 GB SATA Hard Drive (7200 RPM)
Modem V.92/56K PCI DataFax Modem
Certified Refurbished
Base Inspiron Desktop 530 Mini-tower: Intel Pentium dual-core processor E2180 (1MB L2,2.0GHz,800 FSB)Media Bay
16X DVD +/- RW w/dbl layer write capabilitySoftware Upgrade
Microsoft Works 9.0
64BIT Operating System CD
Hardware Upgrade
USB Keyboard
No Floppy Drive
Dell Optical USB 2-button Mouse

[mjosef]

IMO, it should be adequate for streaming audio, but don't expect the onboard graphics chip will be able to handle any major 'future' video(HD or not) streaming duties.
No comment on the Vista-rama.

[Bemopti123]

I agree with Mjosef, even though there are many computers that use these ever popular embedded graphics chips, they are barely adequate.  A dedicated graphics card adds usability especially when browsing the internet...more frequently than ever, the most basic pages have tons of dynamics graphics and micro images.

[Philistine]

I'm running both versions of Vista - Basic on a PC used as a Media Server and Premier on a family PC, both have 2GB of memory.
I agree that the spec is fine for a Media Server, but under perform if you want to expand it's use.

NB
The PC I use as a Media Server came from the Dell Outlet Store - and it was a great deal.   

[cloudbaseracer]

IMO, it should be adequate for streaming audio, but don't expect the onboard graphics chip will be able to handle any major 'future' video(HD or not) streaming duties.
No comment on the Vista-rama.

Am I right in thinking that almost any computer that I would get would need to get an updated graphics card because the ones included in any computer under $500 would be minimal anyway?

http://outlet.us.dell.com/ARBOnlineSales/topics/global.aspx/arb/online/en/InventorySearch?c=us&cs=22&l=en&s=dfh
   
Inspiron 530
(System Identifier: 0GC668HP)

    * Inspiron Desktop 530 Mini-tower: Intel Pentium dual-core processor E2180 (1MB L2,2.0GHz,800 FSB)
    * Genuine Windows Vista Home Premium

System Price   :   $369.00

Operating System
Genuine Windows Vista Home Premium
Memory4 GB DDR2 SDRAM 667MHz (4 DIMMs)
Hard Disk Drive 320 GB SATA Hard Drive (7200 RPM)
Modem V.92/56K PCI DataFax Modem
Certified Refurbished
Base Inspiron Desktop 530 Mini-tower: Intel Pentium dual-core processor E2180 (1MB L2,2.0GHz,800 FSB)Media Bay
16X DVD +/- RW w/dbl layer write capabilitySoftware Upgrade
Microsoft Works 9.0
64BIT Operating System CD
Hardware Upgrade
USB Keyboard
No Floppy Drive
Dell Optical USB 2-button Mouse

Called Dell on this one and the lady on the phone said I definately did not want this one because it is a 64 bit system and everything is 32 bit.  She said I would just end up returning it and paying the 15% restock fee.  I did not even tell her my intended use.  Seems strange that a 64 bit is less desirable than a 32 bit!!  She says they are not even supposed to be selling these and will be removing them from the site.

James

[bricktop]

The sqeezebox server software is available for linux.  You may wanna go that way for the cheapest computer.  If you're familiar with computers and can put one together, you can make a real decent one from a few parts available online.  Then with linux the OS is free. 

[jqp]

IMO, it should be adequate for streaming audio, but don't expect the onboard graphics chip will be able to handle any major 'future' video(HD or not) streaming duties.
No comment on the Vista-rama.

Am I right in thinking that almost any computer that I would get would need to get an updated graphics card because the ones included in any computer under $500 would be minimal anyway?

http://outlet.us.dell.com/ARBOnlineSales/topics/global.aspx/arb/online/en/InventorySearch?c=us&cs=22&l=en&s=dfh
   
Inspiron 530
(System Identifier: 0GC668HP)

    * Inspiron Desktop 530 Mini-tower: Intel Pentium dual-core processor E2180 (1MB L2,2.0GHz,800 FSB)
    * Genuine Windows Vista Home Premium

System Price   :   $369.00

Operating System
Genuine Windows Vista Home Premium
Memory4 GB DDR2 SDRAM 667MHz (4 DIMMs)
Hard Disk Drive 320 GB SATA Hard Drive (7200 RPM)
Modem V.92/56K PCI DataFax Modem
Certified Refurbished
Base Inspiron Desktop 530 Mini-tower: Intel Pentium dual-core processor E2180 (1MB L2,2.0GHz,800 FSB)Media Bay
16X DVD +/- RW w/dbl layer write capabilitySoftware Upgrade
Microsoft Works 9.0
64BIT Operating System CD
Hardware Upgrade
USB Keyboard
No Floppy Drive
Dell Optical USB 2-button Mouse

Called Dell on this one and the lady on the phone said I definately did not want this one because it is a 64 bit system and everything is 32 bit.  She said I would just end up returning it and paying the 15% restock fee.  I did not even tell her my intended use.  Seems strange that a 64 bit is less desirable than a 32 bit!!  She says they are not even supposed to be selling these and will be removing them from the site.

James

Since the OS is 64-bit there may be some driver issues or software incompatibilities - but if you will be using the Vista Premium's media tools that may not be an issue. Many more apps are now 64-bit aware. Also to take advantage of more than 3GB you need 64-bit Vista (unless the app iitself is written to take advantage)

In one sense, this a machine in this price range  is really a "disposable" - you won't be upgrading anything unless you pop in a video card or plug in a USB hard drive. So that old computer consulting rule of thumb applies - figure out what software you will run, then get the hardware that it requires. Another rule of thumb - get the best hardware you can justify for your budget. A 1GB machine will have other severe limitations that will prevent it from ever meeting many of your needs in any forseeable future.

I would definitely consider something like a Dell or Gateway over a Walmart/Office Depot special like am eMachines or Compaq - these latter are not worth the effort.

...and there are many many of these 64-bit machines on the site tonight - I think the future is here...