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Re: Pentium 3 versus Pentium, also memory, bus speeds

• To: mathgroup at smc.vnet.net
• Subject: [mg30455] Re: Pentium 3 versus Pentium, also memory, bus speeds
• From: dek at cgl.ucsf.edu (David Konerding)
• Date: Wed, 22 Aug 2001 01:41:52 -0400 (EDT)
• Organization: UCSF Computer Graphics Lab
• References: <9lifvi$ijv$1@smc.vnet.net> <9lt1en$16o$1@smc.vnet.net>
• Sender: owner-wri-mathgroup at wolfram.com

On Tue, 21 Aug 2001 07:09:11 +0000 (UTC), Arthur Billingsley <billinga1 at home.com> wrote:
> Bill,
> 
> Lacking your full requirements, the decision should rest
> on the question "Can/Does the current hardware support/run
> the software needed for this research/job???
> 
> If so, continue to use until no longer true. Reason being, at some
> point the answer will be no if not maybe not. Then it is time to
> invest in new hardware. The paradigm of upgrading is no longer
> relevant with new computer prices at $1000. HTH

unless, of course, when the answer to the question "does the
current hardware run the software needed" is "it does, but one
component, the RAM, is the rate-limiting factor".  Or, some
other easily upgraded component, like the CPU, the drive, or
the network card is the rate-limiting factor.  256MB is $40,
if you only have 128MB and Mathematica needs 192MB to do its job
without paging excessively, then upgrading to a new $1000 machine
with 128MB would be a very expensive mistake.

Dave