Need advice on purchase

[Experiment]

I'm a complete newbie to the computer world. I'm a student looking for something reliable (meaning something that will last for four years) to run multiple programs on (music player, internet, instant messaging, word, etc.) - nothing fancy. I'm not a gamer either. Screen size and weight doesn't matter to me and neither does battery life. It has to be moderately fast. And I also don't need much storage - I use a travel drive. My budget is small, at the most I would be willing to spend 900 dollars.

Thank you for your advice!

 

[Trizoy]

Desktop or laptop? Do you prefer brand names for computers? Do you have any experience building/playing with computers?

 

[Qlutch]

Desktop or laptop? Do you prefer brand names for computers? Do you have any experience building/playing with computers?

I'd probably say laptop since he mentioned battery life.

I suggest getting a laptop with a 64-bit processor so you have the ability to upgrade to Vista when it is released. You're going to want probably 512MB to 1GB of RAM. Even though you said you don't need much hard drive space, I'd still say go with a 40GB so you have plenty of room for programs just in case.

 

[alanuofm]

I'd probably say laptop since he mentioned battery life.

I suggest getting a laptop with a 64-bit processor so you have the ability to upgrade to Vista when it is released. You're going to want probably 512MB to 1GB of RAM. Even though you said you don't need much hard drive space, I'd still say go with a 40GB so you have plenty of room for programs just in case.

vista is going to be available in both 32 and 64 bit so that should be of no worries. however, vista requires a direct x 9 compatible dedicated video card so that should be considered as well to future proof the laptop. but keep in mind that xp home/pro is not going to be outdated just because vista is coming out. in fact there is speculations that service pack 3 will be released within the future.