I'm getting a new PC

[Chris Perkins]

I've upgraded my current pretty slow PC as far as it will go. Recently I bought a 1.3mhz CPU for it, but I've since found out that I have to update the BIOS before it will accept it, so I thought I'd take that risk after ensuring I had a replacement in place just in case it becomes corrupt in the process!

So, I just ordered a PIV 3.0 Ghz machine with 1GB RAM and a 250mb HDD. From http://www.computerelectronics.co.uk/

I would have loved to have bought one in Germany and saved the cost of postage, but I cannot for obvious reasons get an operating system in any other language than German, and I'd really prefer English.

The extra speed and capabilities should help me when setting up books and doing other graphic intensive tasks. And I'll be able to burn DVD's for the first time. The current PC is really struggling now.

So there you are, in case anyone was remotely interested.

[Unknown]

If you would have told me, I could have built one for you at the cost of the components... probably cheaper and at least you knew the exact components you would get... as there are many different ones that are a lot of diferent qualities and when companies don't specify what components they offer, they are obviously the cheaper ones...

And you could have come and pick it up in one of your trips... It will teach you for next time!

[Chris Perkins]

I could have built one myself too (I used to work as a field engineer for www.bromcom.com and spent time on on PC build). This faithful machine that I've used for 5 years was my work. I just couldn't be bothered to do it myself, they've got the bits ready, and this is so much quicker and easier. When you have so many different things to do you really have to outsource to survive!

This is the spec:

Intel Pentium IV 3.0GHz 800 FSB With HT & Prescott

1024 MB DDR400 Corsair Memory

250GB Seagate Hard Disk

Award Winning ASUS Motherboard

NEC DVD ReWriter ND3520A 16x Dual Layer & Dual Format

ATI Radeon 9200 128MB Graphics With TV-OUT

Sony Floppy Drive

6 Channel Sound (5.1 Surround Sound)

14x USB2 Ports

Firewire

Serial ATA

10/100 Ethernet LAN Adapter

Mini Tower Case

That'll do me I think.

[Master Jmd]

I could have built one myself too (I used to work as a field engineer for www.bromcom.com

hehe...thats where our school electronic registers are made.

well, good luck with it

[Chris Perkins]

If you have the Bromcom system at your school JMD, then I've probably visited it on more than 1 occassion! And if you started with Bromcom between 2000 - 2002 there's a very good chance I even installed it and trained the staff!

[Master Jmd]

If you have the Bromcom system at your school JMD, then I've probably visited it on more than 1 occassion! And if you started with Bromcom between 2000 - 2002 there's a very good chance I even installed it and trained the staff!

um...not sure about 2000-2002, but does Slough Grammar School ring any bells?

[Sylvester]

I could have built one myself too (I used to work as a field engineer for www.bromcom.com

hehe...thats where our school electronic registers are made.

well, good luck with it

What the hell's an electronic register?

[Master Jmd]

A hand-held computerish register:

[Sylvester]

What you mean school's don't use the books anymore with the grids in that you ticked off in /\/\/\/\/\/\ format?

All our registers at College and Uni were still done by hand. I didn't even knew there was such a thing as an electronic register until now!

[Master Jmd]

I know for sure that in 2001 (when I started at SGS), our school did not have bromcoms and used the /\/\/\/\/\/\ format. Now all teachers have a bromcom register, but they still do have the book registers incase the bromcoms do not work properly (which, sorry chris, they don't always!).

We also have interactive whiteboards (or at least did, until some darn twonks went and stole most of them from nearly all the schools in the area).

[Sylvester]

Interactive whiteboard? Kinda like powerpoint projection things?

I'm beginning to feel quite old now... we had a blackboard.

[Emperor Oli]

What you mean school's don't use the books anymore with the grids in that you ticked off in /\/\/\/\/\/\ format?

We still use paper and pencil, with a mark going through either a [P] for present or an [A] for absent. If a pupil is late, both [P] and [A] are struck through.

[Sylvester]

What you mean school's don't use the books anymore with the grids in that you ticked off in /\/\/\/\/\/\ format?

We still use paper and pencil, with a mark going through either a [P] for present or an [A] for absent. If a pupil is late, both [P] and [A] are struck through.

It depended upon the teacher with us.

Usually the old /\/\/ for present, either 'O' or 'A' for absent and 'L' for late.

Having been called upon to do the register myself on the very odd occasion i know how they worked. The teacher must have had some trust!

[Peter]

Thanks for clearing it up about school registers....I had a vision of some old lady taking the dinner money in a modern cash till

How much do these unreliable Brom com thingies cost?

What is/was the matter with a nice bound A4 pad?.....no wonder our council Tax is so high....and we're probably employing more police to investigate register thefts

[Chris Perkins]

The Bromcom system is expensive, depending on the size of the school they were usually around £30,000 plus annual maintenance I think. I wasn't really involved with sales. Usually failures are caused by the staff at the school being about as technically minded as a hippo.

There were problems from time to time of course, and I think many schools should be using SQL systems by now. When i was with bromcom it was Windows NT/2000 with basically DOS based software running in windows. I left when they started the mammoth task of switching everyone over.

[Master Jmd]

Usually failures are caused by the staff at the school being about as technically minded as a hippo.

Lol...you have a point!

Edited April 28, 2005 by Master Jmd