New Year. New Hardware for L4?
Ah-HA! You didn't spend everything on Logos 12 Days of Christmas, a new snuggie, or a Chia O'Bama? If your email inbox resembles mine, you are probably seeing lots of PC sales, and might be thinking about a new laptop or desktop to feed your Need-For-Logos-Speed addiction. A recurring thread in the forums runs something like this, "How can I make Logos more responsive? It's Sooo Sloooow when indexing/searching/printing/etc!". So, I thought it might be a timely and helpful exercise to post a couple of hints (by no means an exhaustive list) to look for when shopping for new hardware.
- RAM: When it comes to memory in a computer, more is better generally speaking. If you can afford it, and you are using 64 bit Windows, then do yourself a favor and get at least 6GB of RAM. If you plan to use 32 bit Windows on your new box, then you won't be able to access more than 3GB of RAM without some iffy acrobatics. Mark Barnes elaborates on Logos' consumption of RAM HERE.
- HARD DRIVE: The larger issue here isn't so much about SIZE as it is SPEED of access.
For physical drives (those with heads, platters and motors to spen them), the primary factor is RPM. The faster it spins, the better. Older drive technology is 5600 RPM, 7200 RPM will make Logos noticeably more responsive, and 10k or 15k RPM (for desktops) is sweet but expensive. - Solid State Drives (SSDs), are markedly more responsive, and although more expensive than physical drives per gigabyte, they are well worth the expense if you can afford one of sufficient size. I recommend a SSD of at least 256GB. Tom's Hardware rates the best SSDs for the money HERE.
- CPU: Laptop technology turns over about 3 times a year, desktops about once a year. Right now, you can get a killer deal on a new computer with an "older" Intel i3 Central Processing Unit (CPU), the "brain" of your new computer. However, an i7 is better (and more expensive) than an i5, and an i5 is both better and more costly than an i3. So what's the difference? For an in depth answer you can read through THIS, but it revolves around the number of cores which determines how many threads are served simultaneously (Hyper-Threading), dynamic clock speed (TurboBOOST), and cache (frequently used data that's kept in memory vs. having to be retrieved from the drive). I recommend an i7 if you can afford it, and at the highest clock speed your wallet permits. *NOTE: In my humble opinion, Intel is still the gold standard in CPUs... others disagree and will probably chime in if they do.
- Monitor/Keyboard/Mouse: A large monitor is a blessing when doing hours of study in Logos. A full sized keyboard and a mouse (vs. touchpad) are also ergonomic additions that will help you enjoy the new machine and remain longer at your studies. I recommend a dual monitor configuration (but I admit, thats a luxury I allow myself in deference to my poor vision) and at least 24" monitors, a full sized backlit keyboard, and a wireless mouse.
Lets review. My recommendations for a new Logos PC are:
- 6GB of RAM or more
- 256GB SSD
- Intel Core i7 CPU
- Don't let yourself be swayed by slick advertising, or confused by endless debates about esoteric minutia (for example, you can expect to see some of that almost as soon as I post this).
- AND, remember that you are buying a consumable (like a new mechanical pencil) instead of a lifetime investment (like a vacation house on the lake)... in a couple of years you are probably going to donate your new baby to a penniless seminary student, and upgrade again, so do it like mom did: buy it a size larger than you need now, but not 8 sized too large.
"I read dead people..."
Comments
-
Brother Mark said:
Ah-HA! You didn't spend everything on Logos 12 Days of Christmas, a new snuggie, or a Chia O'Bama? ...
I invested in Forever Lazy's for the family. Nothing quite like it for overwintering in Logos...even when waiting for highlighting to catch up on-screen [:O]
0 -
Brother Mark,
I would only make one addition to this excellent list: A dedicated Video Card.
If at all possible a separate video card with appreciable (more than 512MB RAM) seems to clear up another bottleneck. The same rules apply: The bigger the better.
Sarcasm is my love language. Obviously I love you. 0 -
TCBlack said:
Brother Mark,
I would only make one addition to this excellent list: A dedicated Video Card.
If at all possible a separate video card with appreciable (more than 512MB RAM) seems to clear up another bottleneck. The same rules apply: The bigger the better.
Thanks TCBlack... I agree... I should have included a video card recommendation. Great catch, and recommendation (more than 512MB dedicated video RAM).
"I read dead people..."
0 -
[y]Brother Mark said:recommendation (more than 512MB dedicated video RAM).
Sarcasm is my love language. Obviously I love you. 0
