Computer help.

Hello, I am new to everything about sl. The current computer that I have does not work with sl. Can any one point me in the direction that will work and run everything. A cheap one would be nice. Thanks.

To enjoy SL you need a computer with a lot of memory and a above average, at least, videocard.

This is the minimum you need:

http://secondlife.com/support/sysreqs.php

You really need to go for as much RAM and the best graphics card you can afford. You are not likely to find a pc that will run SL really well that could be described as cheap, but you can get mid-priced models that will do a pretty good job if you shop around.

I have a really old backup computer that I tried to run SL on and it worked! I think it must be close to the minimum requirements for SL. Anyways the experience is actually pretty good. Inside a skybox it's almost exactly like running SL on a good computer. A good internet connection is required though. The only trouble is that I don't think any computer stores sell such old hardware. Maybe look for used computers on Ebay or Craigslist. Just make sure you get those minimum requirements.

The minimum requirements are miserably inadequate for anything resembling a satisfactory SL experience.

The recommended system should be considered the minimum, with the addition that you should be using some kind of dual core processor, and 2GB of memory.

My accessoire ....

System 1:
Single Processor 2,9GHZ, Nvidia 6600 GT graphics card, 1GB Memory - runs satisfactory with low quality graphics and allows for taking pictures in high res, but slow.

System 2:
Dual Core Processor 2,3 GHZ, Nvidia 8800 GT Graphics with 512 MB, 2 GB Memory - runs satisfactory on good quality, and acceptable in high resoution.

System 3:
Lenovo T61 Notebook
Single Processor, onboard Intel Graphics with shared memory, 2GB Memory - runs relatively slow but acceptable when using the latest graphics drivers with some settings adjusted.

Wol,
SL Guided Tours

What kind do you have? Maybe it just needs some upgrading.

What is your maximum price?

Do you have a monitor you can use?

Two good places to look online are newegg.com and pricegrabber.com .

Sorry for taking so long to respond. I have a real old laptop now. I guess what I was really wanting to know could I just buy like a dell computer that has all the memory requirements then just buy a graphics card and put that inside the computer? Or do I need to buy a gaming pc?

My current computer was originaly a $354 emachines from walmart....

It is still the same computer yet now it is a gaming beast, GForce 9800GT, 4GB Ram, 2.8ghz dual core. And a beutiful Antec 900 case to hold it all.

So yes, yes you can buy a cheap computer and upgrade it, one thing to watch out for is the processor. Make sure it is a good one as you might not be able to upgrade it.

Edit: It is not a cheap solution still though. even if you buy a cheap computer, the upgrades you will need to make SL run well will probably run you an aditional $400 or so.

If you're upgrading a desktop, now's the time to go for it.

I've seen an 8800GTS on Newegg for $134 and 2 GB of DDR2 RAM going for $20.

Running SL on a laptop never made sense to me. It works in a pinch, but laptops that'll run SL are usually not the cheaper ones. That and the nature of a laptop dooms it to be outdated quickly. Then add to it that they're really not made to run 24/7.

Trust me- I've had to replace enough parts in 'em because the customers keep them running constantly. So get the best warranty you can if you plan on doing so

You'll want to make sure of whether the video card has to be a low profile or not and whether the system can accept normal third party power supplies.

Some of the compact, small systems from Dell require a low profile card, which greatly limits your choice of video cards, and I suspect there might be a problem upgrading the power supply in the tiny jampacked case.

QFT!

Cuz I work on the damn things all day.

My Resident Geek loves shopping for components on line.

If you'll post your budget here, he says he'll price out components for you on NewEgg.

Disclaimer: You'll have to assemble them yourself, and the Geek is NOT available for handholding, technical support, or abuse of the "you did this to me!!" sort. In other words, the shopping list service is free, but results are not guaranteed and Your Mileage May Vary.

I used to run SL on a MacBook without any additional memory. It's their bottom of line laptop, but I never had a problem with it.

I would recommend not getting a Dell. We had so much problems with them at a previous job that we put Dell on a block list for purchasing (you could still get one, but you'd have to get approval at a higher level).

what is your max cost? you may be able to snag one from scratch and dent from dell for low low cost, same with newegg great deals on systems that will give decent to good SL performance.

i recently replaced my desktop pc with a new tower £500 gaming system in UK as:
microsoft xp home edition 2002 service pack 3
intel (R) core TM 2 quad cpu Q6600 @2.40 ghz
2.40 ghz - 3gb ram nvidia geforce 9500 gt graphics card.
I have avoided vista like the plague, because for me it is neither sl nor autocad friendly.
So far fingers crossed, with the 1.21 viewer, everything works like a dream.

hi i was wondering if someone could help me because when i connect to second life it is so slow and laggy so here is my pc's spec's iqon, pentium 4, 3.00GHz 2.99 GHz, 960 MB of RAM with a ATI RADEON 9100 IGP windows xp . can any one help please if its not good enough what could i upgrade to get it to work, thank's

jimmy...first off, what's slow and laggy to some is normal to others. If you're used to video games, SL is going to seem slow to you no matter what computer system you have. SL has to transfer a LOT more textures between computers than a video game where the content is controlled by the creators and mostly downloaded to your hard drive.

Your CPU is plenty fast. But, are you sure about that RAM figure? Most system RAM comes in 1GB or 512MB chunks. You should have at least 2GB of system RAM. I'm not familiar with the ATI Radeon series cards, but the 9100 sounds a little old to me. You should be running a video card, either ATI or NVIDIA, with at least 256, and preferably 512 MB or more of video memory. The NVIDIA GeForce 8800GTS is what I use, and is currently a great value.

The other thing that can really lag you down is your internet connection. You should use DSL, cable modem, or FIOS. Don't use a wireless internet connection, and DON'T try to use a dialup modem.