Idle Thought

I wonder if we could use bulk buying power to our advantage. That is, since we all need to run the same quirky program, would it be feasible for people needing computers to order the same machine at the same time and get a discount? Just my idle thought. I would imagine an SLer with comp-building skills could have a fine business selling SL-ready computers.

It'd be cool if we had some sort of "Video Card Exchange" program.

For example - send your old Video card into LL - you get a L$1000 credit (or something).

Folks with really bad hardware can enter a lottery to be mailed a 'Gently Used' video card from the donation pool.

I know I've got a 4200Ti hanging around somewhere gathering dust.

Travis, that would help, too, I think. All we'd need to do is have a website where donors can list giveaway things with giver's SL name. Someone could IM inworld and get together with the giver.

Different from my idea, but it sounds good.

While this is a good solid idea, there would be no one out there who could beat a mjor brand's pricing structure such as Dell. A small operation will not be able to have the 800 pound gorrilla working for them like Dell does. While it is possible for a small operation to offer lower prices than a major brand like Dell, often times you are lucky the system will play MP3s without puking the CPU out. Unless the customer wanted to pay a larger sum to have a computer custom built, then Dell or another top brand is the way to go. I custom build all my PCs but I hesitate to quote prices to other people as most of the time they see a Dell ad and ask me why my price is higher without understanding I don't have the 800Lb gorilla on my side. The hardware exchange is a better idea. Perhaps use the classified listings as a way to go or push for some feature addition in the forums.

I've never bought a mass-produced comp - I always get a local place to build me what I want and have had good results. When I decide to buy a new comp I go through all the channels to see what's available, but things like Dell seem like the cost rises sharply when one customises a bit. The mass-produced ones may be cheapish, but aren't they also gutless on the base level? Anyway, I'm the first to admit I don't know about anything but my own experience.

I do think it'd be kewl if in addition to the MINIMUM SYSTEM REQUIREMENT, that LL gave more pointers of what a good, beefy system would be. That way, we know the lows and highs of what to aim for!

For example, I hear the Nvidia GeForce 6600GT frequently mentioned on here as a great "bang for your buck" insofar as performance goes, but that is anecdotal and not official.

www.tomshardware.com is a great site for reviews of almost any computer hardware, especially graphics cards, and yes I do agree that putting together a custom system tends to give you exactly what you need, but only if you really do know what you need. Absolutely all of my PCs have been custom-built, however in some countries buying individual parts is expensive compared to a whole system. YMMV.

LL would have the buying power to offer good discounts on the two major hardware items (Video cards and memory) needed to run SL with any success.