>System v. 1.xxxxxxx......
Clarence,
Don't let me dissuade you from going with an assembler, but unless you have palsy, suffer from fear of Phillips screwdrivers or are a total physical clutz, my impression from your posts here is that you are over-qualified to assemble your own. For me and in hindsight, the assembly was easy. Win98 install was easy. WinNT ... my personal verdit is not yet in - but it sure does make everything else look easy. Your biggest benefit from an assembler might be the install of NT. But that is my less-than-well-qualified opinion. My impression of NT so far suggests that its reputed operational stability must be 'cause they put all the instability in the installation. <g>
Given that you have cancelled the PCNUT job, some thoughts on delays. If you go with another assembler: unless you pick components 100% instock at that assembler - you face an ordering and shipping delay - to the assembler. Possible back-order delays as well. Regardless of in-stock or stock-out, you then face an assembly delay. And look at your specs, man! I think you may have a hard time getting the assembler to do it exactly your way. I'll count on someone to correct me if I'm wrong, but I'll bet an assembler works with 1 eye on the clock and the other eye on a spreadsheet telling him how many boxes he must assemble in an hour to make any reasonable money. I don't think he has any eyes left for your partition size specs. If you are not going to be satisfied with someone else's work and/or timetable ...
I guess my point is, like MS support, if it sucks and costs more - why pay for it? And if you have obsessed to the level that your spec suggests to me - the first thing you would do when your assembled system arrived ... would be to open the case to look, push and prod. Right? <g>
Please consider the above with the added perspective that I have anti-social tendancies and do not delegate well. <g> Please also note that having done it, I wouldn't consider not assembling my own in the future.
Paul
PS If you do order the components yourself, waiting for first shipments from unknown merchants is nerve-racking. Steel yourself for a wait that will seem much longer than twice what seems reasonable. But then, a few days later - surrounded by a sea of packing material, components and instruction sheets, that particular anxiety seems absurd. Or at least misplaced. <g> Mushkin and Axion were fast. Clifford Tech and Aberdeen were slow. If you use TigerDirect or Global Computer, use the web to refine the order - but call them rather than do it over the web.
PPS Regardless of assembled or DIY, it feels like the xmas madness is upon us. Extra patience may be required. Or extracted. Take your choice. <g> [I feel very well qualified to offer info on lack of patience and/or anxiety. Been there, done that. <g>] |
