So you want to buy a Desktop or Laptop Computer?

Our comprehensive buying guide is your tool to select the perfect desktop or laptop computer system. We will show you how to read the hardware and software statistics that are listed in every computer sales ad on the planet.  Next we will explain what each of the acronyms mean in depth.  Last but not least we will show you how to figure out what will work for you.  We have seen way to many people purchase the wrong computer system and struggle with it for years due to substandard hardware.

Please note: this guide was not written so you could build your own computer system.  This guide was written so the average person could use it to select the right desktop or laptop computer system for them to purchase.

If you would like to purchase a computer that we recommend please click on one of the following links and check them out.

First: Processors (Your Computers Brain)

One of the first things you will need to understand is processors.  There are many manufactures of processors and many types.  The two main manufactures of desktop and laptop computer processors we will cover here are AMD (Advanced Micro Devices) and Intel.  The best way to see what the current processors are is visit the website for AMD or Intel.

Currently (March/2016) both AMD and Intel are marketing their Sixth generation processors.

My recommendations for a processor are as follows:

• A quadcore processor is a minimum recommendation however, a hexa-core or octa-core processor would perform better.  
• The processor manufacturers of today use a process called threading instead of just electrical speed to benchmark how fast their processors perform.  This is the reason the cores in your processor are so important.
• 2 GHz is a minimum and 3 GHz is recommended.  The gigahertz, abbreviated GHz, is a unit of alternating current (AC) or electromagnetic (EM) wave frequency equal to one thousand million hertz (1,000,000,000 Hz).
• If you are selecting an Intel brand processor.  The I3 series does not perform as well as the I5 or I7 series processors.  The I7 processor’s performance is far superior to the I3 or I5 processors.
• If you are selecting an AMD brand processor.  The Ryzen3 series does not perform as well as the Ryzen 5 or Ryzen 7 processors.  The Ryzen 7 processors performance is far superior to the Ryzen 3or Ryzen 5 processors.
• Last but not least make sure your new processor is capable of 64-bit processing.  Very few processors are built on a 32-bit architecture today.  All the newer processors listed in this article have a 64-bit architecture.  Just make sure you double check.

Processor Explanations

One of the main reasons that higher-end processors are faster is “cache”.  Which is a block of memory built into each processor.  The more memory or cache that the processor has the faster it will run!

Remember you get what you pay for!  The faster the processor the better your computer will perform.  However, if you are a novice computer user, you may not need the high-end processor.  You know your computer skill better than anyone else.  Only you can make that decision.

If you are looking at Apple computers and are wondering why they are more expensive than the normal windows desktop or laptop computer.

Please Note: Apple uses higher end parts in their computers, for instance, if you look at the stats of most of their computers you will find I7 processors in most of them.  If you find a Windows type desktop or laptop computer with similar parts and price point as you would on an Apple computer, you will get comparable performance out of it.

Second: Ram (Random Access Memory)

RAM is the second most important item to select for your computer.  RAM works with the processor and the motherboard chipset in all computers to process i.e. run the data that is input into it.  Without these three items being compatible your computer will not run right.  The chipset will be selected by the manufacturer based on the processor you select so that it is compatible.

Memory or RAM makes all computer electronics faster.  So your main focus needs to be on selecting the correct amount of RAM for your computer.

RAM is very simple to select, just use the following recommendations to select the right amount of RAM for your desktop or laptop computer.

• Definition of Gigabyte: a unit of information equal to one billion (10⁹) or, strictly, 2³⁰ bytes.
• If you are a novice computer user or just use your computer to surf the internet, you could settle with 8 GB of RAM.  Please note you can purchase a computer with less RAM than we have recommended here but you will get what you pay for.
• If you are an intermediate computer user and sometimes wait on applications to run on your computer I would recommend 12 GB of Ram or more.
• If you use your computers for business I would recommend not purchasing a computer with less than 12 GB.
• If you use your computer for heavy computing such as Autocad, ESRI ArcGIS, or for programming I would recommend 16 GB or more.
• For gamer’s we would recommend 16 to 32 GB.  The gaming industry will push the limits of desktop or laptop computer speeds way before anyone else, so if you are a gamer spend the money and buy the best.  That way you may be able to get more than two years out of your computer system.
• Remember the more RAM in a computer the faster it will run.  Even an old laptop with double the ram will run twice the speed.

The amount of RAM that you select for your computer will be as important as the processor when the speed of your computer is evaluated.

Third: Hard Drive Space

Definition M.2 SSD – An M.2 SSD is a solid-state drive (SSD) that conforms to a computer industry specification written for internally mounted storage expansion cards of a small form factor. The specification, originally known as the Next-Generation Form Factor (NGFF), is pronounced M-dot-2.  M.2 solid-state drives are way faster than any other Solid State Drive.  If you are going to build a system or would like to purchase a real high-end computer system.  Look to see if it has an M.2 Expansion Card SSD for your operating system.  This may make your computer system run exponentially faster.

Solid State Drives – A solid-state drive (SSD) is a solid-state storage device that uses integrated circuit assemblies as memory to store data persistently. It is also sometimes called solid-state disk, although SSDs do not have physical disks. SSDs may use traditional hard disk drive (HDD) form-factors, protocols and file systems such as SATA and SAS, and NTFS or FAT32.  Another Way to increase your boot and computer performance is to have an SSD drive installed instead of a traditional hard drive.  However, Traditional SSD drives are not as fast as an M.2 drive.

Definition SATA – Serial ATA: Serial ATA is a computer bus interface for Hard Drives, essentially it is the protocols used to allow the hard drive to talk to the motherboard.  

The third thing you will need to select is the required hard drive space you want for your computer system.  There are a couple of options you need to consider when selecting a hard drive.  Do you just want one traditional hard drive installed in your computer?  Do you want just one hybrid drive installed in your computer?  Or Do you want an M.2 or  SSD (Solid State Drive) for your operating system and a second hard drive for storage?  Then what size of drive/drives do you want for your desktop or laptop computer system.

Types of Drives

Standard hard drives use gold plated disks that are spinning in the hard drive with arms that move across the disk to read and write information to them.

Hybrid hard drives are essentially a standard hard drive with a section of flash memory built into them and used as a cache, this allows hybrid hard drives to run substantially faster.

Solid State Drives are built from flash type memory.

M.2 SSD drives are also built with flash type memory.

The reason we would use an M.2, SSD or a hybrid drive over a standard hard drive is that they run substantially faster.   M.2 drives being the fastest of all four.  Another reason we would use an M.2 SSD or a traditional SSD for the operating system.  The longevity of a standard hard drive or a hybrid Drive does not even compare to that of an SSD drive.  Solid State Drives have been proven to last exponentially longer.

Definition Terabyte (TB): A unit of measure equal to approximately 1000 Gigabytes.

So to pick the right hard drive for your desktop or laptop computer system follow the following recommendations:

• Novice computer users just need a standard hard drive with a minimum storage capacity of 1TB.
• Intermediate computer users can still get by with a standard hard drive or a hybrid hard drive.  For this type of users we recommend a minimum storage capacity of 1.5 TB.
• Advanced computer users of all kinds can benefit from setting an SSD up as a boot drive and using a standard or hybrid drive for their storage.  The boot drive would need to have a minimum storage capacity of 256GB and the storage drive would need to be 1TB minimum, in most cases we would even recommend a 2TB minimum storage drive.

As your hard drive fills up with pictures documents and other data it will slow down.  The more data that your processor and RAM have to look through to find what they are after.  The slower your computer will run.  Please make sure you select a drive for your desktop or laptop computer system with adequate drive space.

Fourth: Video Cards

All computer systems built today are equipped with some kind of video card.  Most chipset / processor manufacturers actually build the video devices into their processors so that when they are installed and make use of the accommodating chipset there is no additional video card needed.  You will only have need of an additional video card if you are a gamer,  or you need to run high-end business applications such as Autocad, Esri ArcGIS, Video Editing software, Image editing software, etc.  There are many applications that will take advantage of additional Graphics Processing.  Evaluate what you will be using your desktop or laptop computer system for and make your decision whether you need a video card base on that.

Please note if you purchase a laptop it will come with an integrated video card.  You will not have much of a choice unless you purchase a higher end laptop.  The higher end laptops usually have a better selection of Graphics cards to choose from.  Typically you will have to settle somewhere and select a different laptop to get the video card you are after.

If you purchase a desktop computer and would like to install a graphics card make sure the motherboard has a PCI-Express 16x slot.  The PCI-Express 16x slot is where a new video card would be installed.  Higher end gaming systems will have graphics cards installed.  You will just need to pick the system with the right card for you.

Again there are two main manufacturers of desktop or laptop computer Graphics or Video Cards.  Nvidia makes GeForce graphics cards and ATI (owned by AMD) makes Radeon graphics cards.

To make a graphics card selection please use the following recommendations:

• GPU(Graphics Processing Unit) clock speed is very important.  Faster is better.
• Memory bandwidth.  Faster is better.
• Memory Amount.  More is better.
• Whether they are Crossfire or SLI Ready.  Crossfire and SLI are technologies that allow the installation of two Graphics Processing Cards that are linked to share the load.  If you use these technologies and the cards are not pre-installed in a computer system.  Make sure you have the right amount of PCI-Express 16x slots and that you have the right power adapters from your power supply to plug the cards into power.
• Make sure the graphics card has an HDMI port.  Definition HDMI: High-Definition Multimedia Interface

Most desktop or laptop computer systems will come with graphics or video cards that will work fine for your everyday needs.  Not everyone will need this portion of the guide.

Fifth: Optical Drives

Optical drives are really an optional accessory for newer computers.  With the speeds of USB 3.0, 3.1 and internet download speeds most of the time software delivery is faster than a DVD-Rom or Blu-Ray-Rom.  If you have need of one of these drives please make sure your computer has the appropriate stats included.

We believe the average user will not have any need for these types of drives.  In most cases smaller laptops do not even include DVD-RW or Bluray drives anymore.  Remember Blueray drives will read Blu-ray movies and DVD-Rom Drives will not.

Difference between Blu-ray and DVD Format: Most DVD disks that are single layer will hold approximately 4.5GB of data, Dual layer disks will hold approximately 9GB of data.  Single layer Blu-ray disks hold approximately 25GB of data and dual layer Blu-ray disks hole approximately 50GB of data.

Sixth: Memory Card Reader

Most new computers come with a memory card reader.  This is handy when you want to remove memory from your video and imaging devices to import the images and videos in to your computer system.

Memory Card Readers are purely personal preference as to whether you think you need one or not.

Seventh: Wireless Connection Protocols

Most desktop or laptop computers built today have an Ethernet port.  Not all computers are built with WiFi capabilities.  If you purchase a new computer with WiFi capabilities make sure it is capable of IEEE 802.11AC.  The AC Portion of this is very important, especially if you need to purchase a new internet router for your home.

This is the fastest WiFi signal that has hardware currently under production associated with it.  So if you are updating your desktop or laptop computer or your home network make sure the new hardware is capable of 802.11AC.

Eight: USB 3.0

Most people would ask: “Why does my new Desktop or Laptop computer need to have USB 3.0.”  Well, that is a very good question.  USB 3.0 usually represented with a blue USB slot and is approximately 10 times faster than USB 2.0.  USB 3.0 is capable of 625 MB/s which is extremely fast when compared to just about every other external port on your computer.  There are tons of external hardware devices that can utilize this protocol.  Making sure your new desktop or laptop computer has this built into it.  This is very important!

Nine: Bluetooth

Bluetooth is something that is built into some computers today.  We see this more and more as technologies evolve.  Bluetooth technology is great for many things.  One of the more useful applications is the ability to connect your phone to your laptop and transfer data.  However, if you have Google Drive or Dropbox you may have no need for this technology.

Ten: Keyboard and Mouse

Some people require a more ergonomic keyboard and mouse to keep them from getting carpal tunnel.  Or you may just like the looks of one keyboard over another.  All laptop computers come with a keyboard and touchpad.  Most desktop computers come with a keyboard and mouse.  We personally like the keyboards with a calculator button.  Gamer’s like mouse products with 15-25 buttons so they can map game items to them.  So the selection of a new keyboard or mouse will be based on personal preference.

Eleven: Operation System

So you want to know which desktop operating system is right for your next desktop or laptop computer?  Well, there are only two choices that really matter based on market share and overall community support.  Those two options are Windows 7 which you can still get as of 3/2016 and Windows 10.  We believe that anyone that tries windows 10 and does not like it has not really given it enough time.  Windows 10 is so similar to Windows 7 it would surprise you.  There are a few differences, for instance, the computer has been named This PC.  I would challenge anyone to install windows 10, hit the windows button on your keyboard and search for anything in windows (Just start typing).  I think you will find Windows 10 is probably the most user-friendly version of Windows Microsoft has ever put out.

Market Shares as per December 2018:

• Windows 7 no longer holds the crown at 19.3% of the desktop operating system market share(Windows has announced end of support life for this OS).
• Windows 10 Now holds the crown at 49.5% of the desktop operating system market share.
• Windows XP is holding on at .3% of the market.
• Mac OS holds 9.2% of the desktop operating system market.
• Windows 8 which we will from now on be referred to as Microsoft’s recent disaster holds 5.6% of the current desktop operating system market.
• Mobile OS’s such as IOS, Android, and Windows hold 9.5% of OS market share.
• 100Other such as Ubuntu, Mint Linux desktop, Redhat, Chrome OS, Etc. holds 6.9% of the desktop operating system market share.

In Summary

Please use this guide to help you select your next desktop or laptop computer system.  Just remember if you spend 400 dollars on a computer system you are getting what you pay for!

Install Oracle Java 8 (JDK8 and JRE8) in Ubuntu or Linux Mint Desktop

Please note: all repositories and installations tested with Linux Mint Desktop “Cinnamon”.

If you are interested in java programming and would like to install a development environment.  First you will have to install Java then I recommend Netbeans as they have a version that works with Ubuntu and Linux mint desktop.

Installing Java on Linux Mint Desktop

The PPA supports the current versions of Ubuntu as well as the current versions of Linux Mint. Open the terminal and add the PPA and install Oracle Java 8 (the package provides both JDK8 and JRE8) using the following commands:

[code]sudo add-apt-repository ppa:webupd8team/java
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install oracle-java8-installer[/code]

Tip: if you’re behind a firewall / router that blocks some of the redirects required to download the Oracle Java archive, you can download the JDK tar.gz archive manually and place it under /var/cache/oracle-jdk8-installer – then, installing the “oracle-java8-installer” package will use the local archive instead of trying it to download it itself.  If this is not the current version download the current version.

Once installed, running the following command in a terminal should output something like this: andrei@andrei-desktop:~$ java -version java version “1.8.0_31”

[code]java -version[/code]

Java(TM) SE Runtime Environment (build 1.8.0_31-b13)
Java HotSpot(TM) 64-Bit Server VM (build 25.31-b07, mixed mode)

Or you could run:

[code]javac -version[/code]

and get:

andrei@andrei-desktop:~$ javac -version
javac 1.8.0_31

Installing the Netbeans Development Environment on Linux Mint Desktop

Go to https://netbeans.org/downloads/ and download the Netbeans Development Environment.

After Netbeans in downloaded in Linux, you will need to right click on it and change the permissions to “Allow Executing File as a Program.”  Then it should be as simple as double clicking on the executable file and following the prompts to finish the install.

Installing the Evolution Mail and Calendar application to handle your exchange mail in Linux Mint Desktop.

Open the software repository in Linux mint desktop and search for Evolution.  Install Evolution from the repository/Software Manager built in to Linux Mint.  Install the evolution-data-server from the repository/Software Manager.  After Evolution is installed and the evolution-data-server is installed install the following add-ons  from the software manager:

• evolution-common 
• evolution-data-server-common
• evolution-indicator
• evolution-plugins
• evolution-ews
• evolution-mapi
• evolution-plugins-experimental
• mswatch
• muttprint

Install a Printer on Linux Mint Desktop

I have included the instructions to install a brother printer on Linux Mint desktop.  If you do not use a brother printer your instructions may be a little different.  However the steps should be similar so please use this as a guide only.

go to
Go to Brother Printer Support Product Search.

Input model, and select linux DEB, then download the printer installation tool and install in terminal with sudo su.

Please note: sudo su makes you the root user in terminal.  You can also use the graphical user interface (GUI) in the file manager to become the root user.  Remember to type “exit” use CTRL-D or exit the root user permissions in the GUI when you are done.

Install An Office Program to add Microsoft Office like functionality to Linux Mint Desktop.

If you are looking for a Office program for your Linux Mint Desktop distribution you have three options.  Your first option is OpenOffice.org.  Open office is offered in the software repository, however if you want a more updated version of the program please visit http:\www.openoffice.org and download the most current version.  If you have tried Open Office and are looking for something a little different you can try libre.  Libre is actually several products librewriter, librecalc, libremath, etc.  These products are availbable in the software repository, just open the repository and search for libre and install them.

Last but not least you can try the google docs options.  These programs are a completely online option.  They have been updated extensively in the last few years and will open and export microsoft office documents.  Simply go to google.com, sign in, click on google applications and select google docs.

Install NixNote

NixNote is a program developed to allow you to connect and manage your Evernote account directly from Linux Mint Desktop.  If you are interested in this software download Nixnote from source forge and install the program.

Important Note: After the program is installed, download latest 1.6 jar patch from Sourceforge and replace the jar file in the installation folder. Only after the jar file has been replaced can you run program and connect to Evernote.

A viable alternative to Evernote is Google Keep.  Google Keep shares your Google Drive data which is 15gb for free.  Evernote only allows you 60kb of space for notes.  By selecting Google Keep as your note taking solution you will have over 300 times more data available to you for notes.  Also google keep is a total online solution accessed with a web browser.

Install Steam

Do you love to play games?  Open the software repository and install steam.  There are a limited number of games that actually work on Linux Mint Desktop, but steam is adding more all the time.

Install the Google web designer

If you are a web designer and you are looking for a great program to use in Linux Mint Desktop.  Download the Google Web Designer Software by googling the name and accessing the google Web Designer website.

Calibre: The greatest Ebook manager on the Planet!

Do you love to read books?  Install Calibre from the software Repository and start managing your Ebook library today!

If you would like to run windows programs from Linux Mint Desktop Install Wine.

Install Wine from the software repository and then install play on linux from the same software repository.

Gimp is an image editing software for Linux.

Install gimp and all of the addons that apply from the software repository.

Linux Mint Desktop Setup with Windows 7-10 Functionality. Step 1

The Solution to the Expensive Windows Operating System and Microsoft Office. Linux Mint Desktop!

Step 1

So your tired of the high cost of software and hardware eating at your pocket-book. Looking for something that will work like windows without the cost of Microsoft Windows, Office, Outlook, expensive image and video editing software, and a great media player. You have come to the right place, you need to try Linux Mint Desktop.

The first thing you need to do is find the right operating system. Ubuntu is promising, however it is not very forgiving for the normal desktop user and functions very differently. After burning through several different Linux operating systems the solution to the problem was provided with Linux Mint Desktop.

Linux Mint Desktop is based on Ubuntu and is optimized for Desktop use. The Latest version of this software can be found on the Linux Mint Website at http://www.linuxmint.com/.  The cinnamon edition is what this article will be referencing so please make sure you are using this version of Linux mint.  The instructions for installing Linux Mint Desktop can be found at http://www.linuxmint.com/documentation.php.

After you have Linux mint desktop installed you will need to install several different programs and scripts to create the same functionality that you have with windows 7.

Browsers

Linux Mint is distributed with the Firefox browser.  For most people this will work just fine…  other than it does not have flash installed.  So if you want to watch that video from amazon prime you will have to do a little tweaking to get flash installed.  First though let’s get some other browsers installed.

Chromium Browser

To install Chromium Browser on Linux Mint you will need to Open the terminal under the Menu.  The Menu in Linux Mint is in the same location that the start menu is in Windows 7.

Type the following commands in to the terminal to install the chromium browser.

Please note: By typing “sudo” in front of your commands you are asking Linux to process the command as root. This is the reason that you need to type in your password after typing the first command and hitting the enter button.

Chrome Browser

The Chrome Browser is a little easier. All you need to do is visit the google chrome download page at https://www.google.com/chrome/. Hit the download button and select the version from the four Linux versions available. If you have installed Linux Mint Desktop Cinnamon select the 32bit or 64bit version of chrome (64 bit .deb (For Debian/Ubuntu) depending on the version of the operating system you have installed. Hit accept and install and then follow any prompts that follow.

Opera Browser

Opera can be downloaded from http://www.opera.com/. After you hit download make sure you select open from the download dialog and opera package will open in the package installer after it is downloaded. Then all you need to do is simply hit install.

Flash

Next we need to get flash installed so go to the menu in the bottom left hand corner of your desktop and open the Software Manager. Enter your system password, type Flash in the search box and hit enter. You should see flash as the second option in the list, there is an image provided to the left that shows what this will look like. The only difference is the check will not be present as you have not installed this software yet. Select adobe-flash from the list and when the details page opens hit install.

That was simple huh! Well not so fast, what most tutorials do not tell you is flash will not work without a little help. We will have to open the terminal and add Hal to our Adobe flash installation. Please type the following commands into your terminal after you have installed flash. Also make sure your browsers are all installed prior to doing this.

Hal needs installed so that Abobe flash will update correctly.

Please note: Hal will make flash work in Firefox only, the rest of the flash installations are problematic so they will not be listed here!

Linux Mint Desktop Step 2