After careful consideration, I decided to branch out once more from my original topic. I thought a post about my computer, my portal to the realm of free and open source software, would be right at home on my blog, so here it is. I've upgraded my desktop numerous times since I first built it (the only parts that are the same from that original build are the case and the hard drive), but its purpose is essentially the same: do everything I want, when I want it, without any slowdown whatsoever. The numerous upgrades it has endured ensure it can continue to serve its purpose well. Above is a picture of my desktop (click here for the full size version of this picture) to refer to while reading this post.
First of all, the motherboard and processor. The processor is an Intel Core i5 2500K, which was $200 on eBay, overclocked to 4.0ghz. This processor usually overclocks very nicely, but mine overclocks poorly; I couldn't get it stable at 4.5ghz at 1.4vcore, and I decided to stop raising the voltage to keep the temperature down. The motherboard is an MSI P67S-C43 and was $70 on eBay. MSI isn't known for its great motherboards, but it's been dependable as long as I've had it. The heatsink/fan that I'm using with my processor is a Cooler Master Hyper 212+, which came with the 2500K.
The case is a Thermaltake V4 Black Edition, which cost me $40 on Newegg. It's a decent cheap case, but it's a bit flimsy. I have two fans installed (one that came with the case and one I bought separately) in a flawed push/pull configuration because installing it behind the 5.25" drive spaces looks like a total pain that I honestly don't care enough to do. Its biggest problem is its total lack of cable management, which you can easily see by the mess of cords on the bottom of the case; however, it's still a great case.
Next, the power supply (the gray box on the bottom left). The power supply is an Antec Earthwatts EA-650, which was $40 on eBay. I upgraded from an Antec Earthwatts EA-500 (which is now in my server) to allow for more overclocking headroom and to accommodate a more power-hungry graphics card.
Right above the power supply are my sound card and parallel PCI controller card. The sound card (black PCB) is a Creative Sound Blaster Live! 24-bit, which was $11 on eBay. The integrated sound on my last motherboard failed, requiring me to use it. The integrated sound on this motherboard is pretty low-quality, so I decided to keep the sound card. The parallel PCI controller card (green PCB) is a generic card I bought for $5 from a Chinese seller on eBay, and it works great for my HP LaserJet 4050, which is all I'll ever need it for.
Above those is the graphics card. The graphics card is an AMD Radeon HD 6950, which cost $180 on eBay. The seller listed this as the 1gb version, but upon receiving it, I discovered that it was actually the 2gb version, allowing me to flash it to an HD 6970. This card is fantastic and runs very cool now that it's undervolted, so I see no need to upgrade soon.
On the top right of the case is my optical drive, an Asus DRW-24B1ST which costed about $18 on Newegg. It was cheap and it works. All ~$20 optical drives are basically the same, so I just got the cheapest at the time.
On the lower right of the case, partially obscured by the cords and mounting bracket, is the hard drive, where all my GNU/Free Software is stored. The hard drive is a Samsung Spinpoint F3 1tb that was $50 on Newegg. This drive has been very reliable for as long as I've owned it (which is great, since I'm too lazy to do backups).
Feel free to comment with your own build specs, or make fun of my choice in parts and inform me why your taste > my taste and why I'm a total pleb. implying anyone reads this shitty blog anyway
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