In the context of this article, long haul computing means to build a computer box that will remain untouched per its internal hardware for a period of 5 to 7 years, but be used on a daily basis.
If you want a really good example of where a box like this would be needed, look no further than your local church. Traditional churches by nature are all non-profit organizations that operate on a very tight shoestring budget. Whatever technology is brought into the church must have good longevity to it because there’s simply no other purchase options. They can’t lease computer boxes. Whatever they get, they own, and it has to last a long time.
You could, if so desired, opt not to build but rather go with a brand name like Dell as they have new desktop PCs starting at $269. But maybe you’re in the situation where you have to deal with existing PCs because the budget simply won’t allow for the purchase of new computers. In this instance you have to refit them with new parts that will stand the test of time. That’s what this how-to covers.
The icons seen below are from Icon Archive. Be sure to check that place out for some truly good looking icons for Windows, Mac or Linux.
Motherboard and CPU
It used to be that AMD was cheaper than Intel, but this is no longer the case. Were you to compare AMD vs. Intel in both motherboard and CPU prices, you’ll find they’re almost identical on the lower end of the cost spectrum.
When it comes to long-haul computing, the prevention of heat is a major consideration. Fortunately this is easy to take care of, because all you have to do is employ the use of a low-watt CPU. AMD has 45-watt offerings and Intel has 35-watt. Either is a good choice.
RAM
With desktop memory the goal is to use the "slowest" possible sticks you can buy. Once again this is done to avoid heat. Use the bare minimum clock speed that the RAM banks will support, and put the maximum amount of RAM in the box it can support.
Also try, if possible, to use same-brand RAM. This will avoid any unforeseen issues with old RAM, as in some instances old sticks do not "play nice" with new ones. It is rare when this happens, but not out of the realm of possibility and you probably don’t have a RAM tester. (If you do have one however, use it.)
Hard Drive
This step is simple, stick with 7200rpm hard disk drives. Were it a few years ago I would have recommended to use a 5400rpm (again, for less heat), but those offerings are now all but gone for standard 3.5-inch drives, and you’ll spend too much on a 5400rpm due to its rarity. The tried-and-true 7200rpm SATA of any media storage size works fine.
Sound Card
Any. Doesn’t matter what you use as long as it works. You’ll most likely use the on-board sound from the motherboard anyway.
Video Card
If the motherboard has a built-in video port, use it. Heat is avoided by doing this. If there isn’t any on-board video, what to use for a video card depends on the operating system. I’ll cover that in a moment.
Optical drive
As long as the customer reviews for the optical drive you’re shopping for are favorable and it can play, read and burn CDs and DVDs, that’s all that matters.
Case fans
This is the only part of the build where you absolutely cannot go low-cost. The case fans you use must be of premium grade, have good bearings and be as quiet as possible. Their only job in life is to cool, so don’t go cheap with these.
Here’s an example of a premium case fan. Yes, it’s almost $25 per fan. But it’s one of the best you can buy and totally worth the money.
I’m not saying you have to buy $25 case fans, but don’t go with the two-dollar cheap stuff. Do so and the PC’s life will end earlier.
Operating System
If the box has a legal licensed copy of Windows XP or Vista, you’re all set. Continue to use it, continue to automatically download auto-updates as they are provided.
XP runs happily with 1GB of RAM and a 64MB video card. You can’t game on it, but you can do just about everything else.
The system requirements for Vista state it can get by on 1GB RAM, but as everybody knows it needs at least 2GB. The minimums also state that 128MB video is needed, but in reality 512MB suits it much better.
If the box has an illegal copy of XP or Vista, you need to either purchase a license of Windows 7 or switch to Linux – especially if the box you’re building is going to be used by somebody else. Why? Because somewhere along the line Windows will break without its needed updates eventually. And if you’re the one building a box for someone else, guess who gets the first phone call when somehow the end user magically turns on auto-updates and WGA disables Windows? That’s right, you do. Do you honestly want to deal with that?
The purchase of 7 is out of the question for most people because it blows the budget. You’d have to buy a full license of Windows 7 Home Premium, which costs just under $110. The "Starter" Edition of Windows 7 is only available to OEMs and not the general public unfortunately.
Linux’s strongest point is that it’s free. The flavor that’s the most suitable choice is the very recently released Ubuntu 9.10.
If you happen to be building/refitting a box for someone else, and that person only requires the basics of computing, you may want to consider Ubuntu Netbook Remix instead. It’s designed for netbooks, but has superior performance on low-end computer boxes. It also helps that the 9.10 UNR interface is super-friendly to use.
One of the few things that may prove to be a roadblock with UNR is printing. This is not Ubuntu’s fault, but rather the fact that most printers only come provided with proprietary Windows and Mac control software.
Check printer compatibility here for Ubuntu. It’s well worth the time to take a few minutes to read that over for your specific printer. Yours should be there as the lists are extensive. You know you’re in good shape if your printer is listed as both supported and working.
Mouse
At least mid-grade quality, not wireless and manufactured by Microsoft or Logitech.
Keyboard
Same requirements as the mouse.
Monitor
You’ll most likely be using the existing monitor. If buying another, don’t buy used. Buy new.
The price for a new low-cost LCD monitor off the shelf will be between $125 and $175.
If you opt to buy online, specifically seek out the ones with free shipping, else you’ll pay the same price as you would off the shelf for the same thing.
As for the size, don’t buy anything under 18 inches. It’s simply not worth it.
Software
In a basic sense, your computer must be able to:
- Browse the web
- Have the ability to use instant messaging easily
- Compose documents and spreadsheets and be able to share those documents easily
- Be able to import images from a digital camera easily
- Be able to edit images on a basic level easily
- Be able to burn CDs and DVDs
- Play DVD video
- Have sufficient protection against spyware, malware and viruses
Here’s each point covered one by one. I’m listing very specific choices that don’t require any additional software unless absolutely necessary. The less software installed, the better off the overall installation is.
Browse the web
Windows: Internet Explorer
Ubuntu: Firefox
Instant messaging
Windows: Windows Live Messenger
Ubuntu: Pidgin
Documents and Spreadsheets
Windows: OpenOffice
Ubuntu: OpenOffice
Digital Camera image import / Basic photo editing
Windows: Windows Live Photo Gallery
Ubuntu: F-Spot
Printing
Windows: Use provided printer control software CD or download from printer OEM’s web site
Ubuntu: Depends if the printer is supported or not by the OS (see above)
Burning CDs and DVDs
Windows, Data/Backup: Built-in to the OS natively, drag/drop
Windows, Music: Windows Media Player
Ubuntu, Data/Backup: Built-in to the OS natively, drag/drop
Ubuntu, Music: Brasero (included with OS)
Play DVD Video
Windows XP: Not included with DVD video codecs on fresh XP install. Codec must be provided by purchased player software such as WinDVD or CyberDVD.
Windows Vista/7: Codecs included, uses Windows Media Player to play DVDs.
Ubuntu: Codecs included, uses Totem to play DVDs.
Virus, spyware and malware protection
Windows: Microsoft Security Essentials or any other number of free protection suites.
Ubuntu: Generally speaking, not required because of the way Linux is designed. But if you feel you need it, there’s documentation aplenty on it.
Placement
If you have the option, place the PC on the desk and not on the floor. As you know, computers are dirt magnets. This not only makes the computer box easier to clean but also keeps it away from dust and dirt that collects on the floor that the case fans would otherwise suck inside the box.
Performance notes and other tips
The only time you’ll experience true slowdowns is on web pages with heavy Flash use. Then again, Flash will bring any web browser to its knees if you throw enough of that content at it even on the fastest of computers.
It is better if the PC has wired instead of wireless networking as it will speed things up quite a bit concerning internet usage. It’s not that wireless won’t work, but you want to give any speed advantage you can, so if you have the option, use wired internet connectivity.
Automate everything you possibly can. For example, if using a Windows OS you could use Defraggler to schedule drive defragmenting easily.
If you can, clone the drive once everything is installed, so if something busts on a major level, you’ve got a "vanilla" copy ready to be imaged back if the need arises.
Try (or instruct whoever is getting the PC) to get in the habit of "living in the browser." Keep installed apps to a minimum. The less apps there are, the less likely something will break on the software side and in many cases the speedier the OS will run, regardless of what OS it is. The best way to do this is to stay in the browser as much as possible.
For every app you download and install, save that to USB stick or CD/DVD. It’s also smart to perform a software inventory periodically just in case you have to reinstall the OS for whatever reason.
For any hardware you installed that has a warranty, put all the paperwork in an envelope and physically tape it to the side or top of the case. It’s not pretty, but you’ll never lose the info, should you need it.
Final notes
The best way to treat an older computer is to configure it like a kiosk would be. A kiosk by nature is set up to be simple and efficient. If you use Ubuntu Netbook Remix, this is very much how your computer will act, and that’s not a bad thing. You can do the same with Windows by hiding the taskbar, avoiding the Start menu when possible and placing the icons for the apps you regularly use on the desktop.
If you approach computing this way with an older refitted PC box and build it as outlined above, it should easily last 5 or more years.
We are talking churches, which are non profit charities, which means they most probably qualify for access to a site like Tech Soup which in the past has offered VLKs for XP Pro for $8 a pop. Not sure if Win7 is currently available.
This can also be applied to public libraries. We have a major need to make use of older/existing hardware because of budget constraints. Open source software has been a BIG help to us in doing this. Ubuntu has let us continue to use machines that cannot handle the combination of XP and the antivirus software that a Windows OS needs.
Tech Soup has also helped a great deal. There’s assistance out there for organizations like churches and libraries to take advantage of, the trick is to find it. For example, we take advantage of e-rate on our phone bill here at the library. Some organizations qualify for a great deal of assistance in the technology area through the e-rate system.
The upgrade version of Windows 7 will accept itself as a previous version. Install it, don’t put the validation code in and let it start. The use the windows disk again but chose update this time and and the code when it asks. Then you need to go into disk clean up and remove the previous version. This is what Microsoft tech support had me do because I did a clean install of 7 (like they suggest) and it wouldn’t accept the validation code.
Does heat really degrade a computer? People say this all the time, but I have never seen an article that actually has empirical evidence that it does. Can someone point to one? And I don’t mean the crap you get when you google “does heat kill computers”. I mean a real scientific paper with data. I mean, do the gates on the IC’s actually physically degrade? I have my doubts. I am not talking about the an instance of some sort of cooling system failure with a large spike–I mean does running a chip at 50 degrees C for years eventually “cook” the chip? I doubt it (again, what is the mechanism of failure). If not, then there is no reason to worry about how much heat your components give off.
Short answer: No. Heat alone does not cause the metal components of a PC to degrade, but the shifting of cool to warm back to cool does.
Long answer (and bear in mind I’m not a metallurgist):
The best example of what can happen to thin metal components is if you examine an older miniSD card, such as the kind put in cell phones (which generate a good amount of heat routinely.) The constant shifting of temperature from cool to warm/hot will cause the metal contacts to contract and expand. Over an extended period of time the contacts will “shrivel” and may even separate/break.
As to why this occurs, it’s because the molecular properties of the metal do not “fall back” into the same state they were from hot to cold. Over time, this causes the metal to becomes brittle, then break/separate.
If the metal components of a PC are kept at a cooler – or steady – temperature, they will not be subjected to constant expansion and contraction, and therefore last longer.
This starts with using parts in a PC that run cooler by nature. The less heat generated = the less expansion that occurs = the less contraction that occurs = metal components that last longer = longer overall PC life span.
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Incidentally this is why there are so many 8-bit computers like Commodore 64’s, Apple II’s and so on that still turn on and operate just as good as the day they were manufactured decades ago, as they barely generate any heat at all.
Electromigration is another culprit people blame. But what I have never seen is a true study with controls, etc. that shows that given otherwise identical circumstances, a hotter machine will actually not last as long in a real world environment.
Admittedly without evidence, I still believe that other external factors contribute to the demise of the vast majority of computers. In fact, I bet most “dead” PC’s don’t have a dead CPU, but instead a fried motherboard from a power surge or power supply failure, or even a dead hard drive for the less savvy user. Or dead fans, dust, mechanical shock, etc. I think these things are so much more likely to cause a problem that the heat issue is moot.
I am just not sure giving up computational power to get a cooler running CPU is worth it. I fully admit I could be dead wrong–I just wonder if the the big picture equation adds up.
(Thanks for letting me be a devil’s advocate around here, BTW.)
One thing to also consider that really hasn’t happened yet is the 10-year PC (hence the reason there aren’t any long-term articles on the subject since everybody throws theirs out after 5). Not many have the exact same PC they did 10 years ago that they still use daily as their do-everything machine.
It also doesn’t help that our technology is designed by nature to be disposable.
Yes, it’s true that everything nowadays are made to be more easily broken, maybe in around 5 years or even less. Nobody wants to manufacture highly durable things because you need a “high-circulation production” for continuing living in today’s commercial and consumption demand. People get bored more and more easily and get “wow” for every newer things, and every manufacturer responding well to that. Reduce costs, and keep people buying and buying. That’s it…