> I'm amazed at the prices!

JT> Ho hum, I'm still waiting for the prices to bottom out. Not
JT> holding my breath though, I've only ever seen it go down.
JT> Except for the RAM scare a while back, just held back six
JT> months and prices were back down again... 

 The price for a megabyte, gigahertz, inch, whatever, constantly
falls, but until now the price of a complete computer stayed fairly
constant because more of eachwas required. Now it seems that the sum
is actually falling - fast.

> 1. Is there anything wrong with the ASrock all-in-one
> motherboard?

JT> A quick google search reveals it's an el-cheapo re-branded
JT> ASUS. Trying to break into the cheaper market apparently.

 I knew that - what about an ASUS then? Does the all-in-one approach
work okay?

> It makes sense to me... cheaper, more reliable. What the hell do
> we need with plug-ins?

JT> Better quality componentry.

 Your logic escapes me. Are you saying they'd use junk on a $120
motherboard but the good stuff on a $20 modem board? I don't think
you've ever worked in production, have you?

JT> Or, if you're a cynic like me about all the chinese hardware
JT> being the same

 Of course it's the same.

JT> , better bundled software.

 And that's the same, too. All that changes is the HELP file.

JT> Another reason is if it doesn't come with the bits you need,
JT> you haven't already spent money on built-in components that you
JT> are just disabling. 

   If you're an idiot you'll probably buy the wrong plug-in too.

JT> Yet another reason is splitting-hair performance. If you're a
JT> overclocking freak, you may have more options with a better
JT> (more expensive) motherboard. 

 Performance? Does anyone bother with that any more? Even when it was
the done thing, it struck me as stupid to screw the system for 20%
when all you had to do was wait three months and it would double
anyway. It's like dorks who change the ROM in the car's computer... as
if the Holden engineers are so stupid they didn't think of that.
Durr...

> Laptops are still $2,000+ so I guess that's where the demand is

JT> Laptops are the flavour of the month. And have been for several
JT> years now. Many are buying laptops to use as desktops, "just in
JT> case" they ever want to go out on the road. (and they never
JT> do).

 Yair. An Ace saleman told me years ago that you never sell the
thing; you sell the IDEA of the thing.

Regards,
Bob




--- BQWK Alpha 0.5