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Note - all PCs run WinXP Pro with SP2, and all Macs run OS X Snow Leopard unless otherwise mentioned.
Click on the system name to see pictures.
Apple iMac; 2.8GHz i7 (quad-core with Hyperthreading); 8GB RAM; 1TB HD; 8x DL "SuperDrive"; 27" display with Dell 2001FP 20" monitor as second monitor; HP Photosmart 8250 Printer; Wireless keyboard and Magic Mouse. APC UPS. Purchased 11/2009. Runs on demand using standby mode when not in use.
Primary system uses: photo editing, software development, class preparation, technical documentation, website maintenance, usual "office" tasks. Finances.
Software Used: Parallels 5, Borland JBuilder, Netbeans, Microsoft Office, iWork, iLife, EazyDraw, OmniGraffle, PhotoShop CS5, Aperture, various utilities.
Apple iMac, 2.66 GHz Core 2 Duo; 4 GB RAM; 640GB HD; Dual-layer DVD Super drive; 24" display; OS X; Canon all-in-one. Purchased 6/09. No repairs. APC UPS. External drive for backing up via TimeMachine. Runs on demand using standby mode when not in use.
Primary system uses: Quicken (on server), web browsing, scheduling, wordprocessing and spreadsheets (Microsoft Office), recipes, playing music. Photography.
Apple MacBook Air; 1.4GHz Core 2 Duo; 2 GB RAM, 64GB SSD, 11" 1366x768 display. Purchased 12/2010.
System uses: portable browsing, address book, calendar, email. Nicer to use but same size as iPad.
Apple Mac mini with Snow Leopard Server; 2.53GHz Core 2 Duo; 4 GB RAM, 2x500GB HD in RAID0 configuration; Canon MX850 All-in-one; APC UPS; 1.5TB external drive for TimeMachine backups of other systems; 1.5TB and 2.0 TB external drive for videos; additional external drives (including a dock) for server backups. No keyboard, mouse, display, or optical drive. Purchased 3/10. No repairs. Runs 24/7.
System uses: File server (mainly media files), TimeMachine backups of 5 other systems in house, DNS/DHCP/OpenDirectory servers, VPN server, iCal/AddressBook servers, printer server for my system, MacBooks and kitchen system. Financial software.
Software Used: Snow Leopard Server, DYN_DNS updater, SuperDuper!, Parallels 5 + Windows XP + Quicken
Dell Optiplex GX60 in Small Form Factor case, 1.8GHz Celeron, 640MB, 40GB, CDR, (no floppy drive), 1504FP display using analog, integrated sound, Logitech optical mouse, no keyboard. Only additional software -- iTunes. Bose 301 speakers driven from old Pioneer amp. Upgraded at purchase with 128MB Crucial RAM, and in 3/10 with additional 512MB Crucial RAM. Best build quality of the bunch. Runs on demand, using standby mode when not in use. Purchased 3/03. No repairs.
Primary system uses: Music server for living room speaker system. Photo display. Minor web browsing. Netflix movie streaming
Apple Mac Mini; 2.26GHz Core 2 Duo; 2 GB RAM; 160GB HD; 8x DL Superdrive; 22" Viewsonic HD monitor; External speakers. Purchased 1/2010. Runs on demand using standby mode when not in use.
Primary system uses: Entertainment while using treadmill.
Software Used: Plex
Apple Mac Mini; 2.26GHz Core 2 Duo; 2 GB RAM; 160GB HD; 8x DL Superdrive; connected to TV and home theater sound system. Purchased 6/2010. Runs on demand using standby mode when not in use.
Primary system uses: Entertainment.
Software Used: Plex
Apple iMac G5, 1.6GHz PowerPC G5; 1 GB RAM; 80GB HD; DVD-ROM/CDRW drive; 17" display; OS X; Purchased 12/04. No repairs. Original 512MB RAM replaced with 1GB RAM 11/07 when upgrading to Leopard. This is only system running Leopard. Runs on demand using standby mode when not in use.
Primary system uses: Kitchen computer. Guest use.
Apple MacBook, 2.4GHz Core 2 Duo, 4GB RAM, 500GB Seagate Momentus XT hybrid drive (replaced origina 250 GB HD in 1/2011), WiFi, Superdrive (DVD/CD burner), 13" 1280x800 display. Logitech optical mouse. Purchased 6/09. No repairs. Direct replacement for older MacBook listed.
Primary system uses: Travel, class use, connect to TV for viewing and streaming video and photos.
Software Used:Photoshop CS5, Aperture, iShowU HD, iMovie, Keynote, QuickTime, Parallels plus some specialized engineering applications. Chronosync to synchronize with desktop.
Apple MacBook, 2.2GHz Core 2 Duo, 4GB RAM, 160 GB HD, WiFi, Superdrive (DVD/CD burner), 13" 1280x800 display. Logitech optical mouse. Purchased 1/08. destroyed with water -- now restored.
Primary system uses: My daughter uses this one for her classes
My father's last computer was this iMac. My daughter has it now. I maintained it for him and now I maintain it for her, but she has had no issues so far.
24" Apple iMac, 2.8GHz Core 2 Duo, 2GB RAM, 320GB HD, 8x DL "Superdrive". Purchased 7/08. No repairs.
Other systems of note. These have been recycled through FreeGeek 4/2009.
Dell Dimension 4300S P4, 1.6GHz, 384MB, 40GB, 16x10x40x CDRW, 1702FP using analog, 16 MB ATI Rage Ultra, integrated sound. Stereo speakers with subwoofer (offbrand). APC UPS. Dell A940 Printer/scanner/copier. Purchased 12/01 and upgraded with 256MB of RAM from Crucial at time of purchase. Hard drive failed after 31 months, replaced under extended warranty. 10/04 replaced keyboard/mouse with Dell wireless keyboard/mouse combo.
Dell Inspiron 8200, 1.6GHz P4M, 384MB, 30GB, WiFi, DVD (no burning capability), 15" SXGA+. Carrying case. Logitech wheel mouse. Purchased 7/02. Upgraded to 384MB and XP Pro from 256MB 3/03. DVD drive failed first day and was replaced quickly. DVD drive failed again after 2.5 years and was replaced quickly under warranty. No other repairs.
Dimension 4100, 1GHz P3, 256MB, 40GB, 12x8x32x CDRW, Sony DVD+R+R/W, integrated sound, 23" LCD monitor (DVI), Win2K, stereo speakers with subwoofer (offbrand), HP "all in one". Purchased 4/01 with only upgrade being the the DVD burner and new display card for new monitor. No repairs. Runs 24/7
Given Away or Sold
Apple iMac Core 2 Duo; 2.16GHz; 3GB RAM; 250GB HD, 8x DL "SuperDrive"; Purchased 11/2006. Increased from 2GB to 3GB ram 12/07. Repaired under warranty 6/09. Gave away 2/10.
Apple iBook, 1.2GHz G4, 1280 MB, 60GB, WiFi, CDRW/DVD (no DVD burning capability), 12" 12" 1024x768 display. Purchased 5/05. No repairs. Sold 07/09
Dell Dimension 8300; 3.2GHz P4; 2048 MB RAM; 120 GB SATA HD; NEC 8X DVD+R+R/W; No display, keyboard or mouse. NVIDIA FX5200 128MB video card; embedded sound; HP Scanjet 5100C scanner. Purchased 2/04. Second 1024MB RAM added after one year for photo software. Second DVD drive added to get "-" capability. No repairs.
Retired in June 2008. Kept as spare to possibly replace Dimension 8200 as server (this one uses SATA drives). Given away when moving to Mac mini server, 4/10.
This went from being my home system to being the server (which it did faithfully for over 6 years).
Dell Dimension 8200; 2.2GHz P4; 512MB; 500GB + 200GB; NEC DVD+R+R/W; no connected monitor keyboard or mouse but relies on Remote Access; no sound card, SB Live! 1024 has been removed; APC UPS. Purchased 3/02 and only upgrades have been to add a second NIC, replace DVD recorder with one that supports -R format, and 12/04 add the 200GB hard drive. 6/07 replaced original 80GB drive with 500GB. 4/09 replaced NIC with gigabit NIC. No repairs.
Primary system uses: It served all the music, photo, and video files for the house, as well as the Microsoft Money files and archival storage. Most application software removed to save disk space. Ran 24/7, Turned off 4/10. Given away 6/10.
Revised February 2011