recommend a good computer and digital camera?

I just think everybody is intitled to his/her opinion. I'm too old and too tired to argue. If people want to take my advice; fine. If they don't; I really don't care. It's your decision. My pop used to say " you made your bed....". Now, I know I'm really old. I'm starting to sound like my parents. Time to go buy a harri carri knife....

Later,

Didn't anybody read the original post? All he wanted to do with his new computer and camera is surf the net and post some pictures on Ebay and Agon when selling items.

Hewlett-Pachard and Compaq are the same company. What I would do is go to Best Buy and pickup the following computer:

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?id=1077624680714&skuId=6374167&type=product&productCategoryId=cat01172

Hewlett-Packard Pavilion Desktop with AMD™ Athlon XP Processor 3000+ Model: a510n

It comes with a DVD/CD_RW, a decent sized harddrive and a memory card reader that will work with any digital camera. And for under $600.00 I couldn't build it that cheap. It also has the room for future expansion - better video, audio etc.

As far as digital camera go, for what you want to do something in the 3.2-5.0 Megapixel range will do fine. This will allow you to use low-res for auctions and high-res for vacations. Get one that's easy to use. Canon, nikon and hP make easy to use good cameras.

I have two digital cameras- a Canon Powershot Pro1 (8 megapixel) and an HP935 5.3 megapixel. I use the HP a lot more than the canon because it a great point and shot camera and easy to use. BTW I have taken a few photgraphy courses over at the local college. THe HP can be purchased here for around $300.00.

http://www.mwave.com/mwave/skusearch.hmx?SCriteria=1815901

Hope this helps,

BTW - I am a microsoft certified system administrator (MCSA), microsoft certified system engineer (MCSE), and a microsoft cerified A+ technician and have over 25 years of experience in the computer industry.

Jax2,

The Mac is a great machine for digital photography and video editing. I'll give you that. But, it's a lot more money than a PC. I was just trying to give him a low cost alternative from a computer professional.

BTW - I have used and owned Macs in the past. Yes, they are easier to use. But, in order to acheive this, you give of options and software choices.

As far as the PC goes, it was come a long way with the NT Kernal. I've been running XP since beta and have yet to see a "blue screen of death". No crashes, no lockups, just as stable as can be. Granted, I don't have a lot of software installed on my machine; just the essentials - Coreldraw, photoshop, office and the occasional RPG.

Camera review:

http://www.megapixel.net/html/issueindex.php?lang=en

Digicams have come a long way in the last few years. The top consumer cameras are around 8 megapixel and can be had for $800-$1000. Pro cameras are around 14 megapixel and sell for $4000-6000. I saw a prototype 24 megapixel back strapped to a Hasselblanc (hope I spelled that right) last week while in NYC visiting a friend.

Digital film for digicams is inexpensive; I've seen 256MB SD cards selling for under $40.00. That would let you take over 200 pics with a 5 megapixel camera in high-res or over 800 in low res.

Gunbei,

I listed my certification to to let the CDC know that I wasn't just another end user with limited experience offering up his personal opinion.
As far as digital photography goes, I have a friend in NYC, who is a professional photographer. He gets prototype digicams that will blow most peoples minds. Yes, he does most of his work on Macs.

What we have here is a guy that just wants to post a few pics online, not do fashion spreads in a major magazine. So, I imagine that he is interested in a camera that is as easy to use as a "throwaway" kodak point and shot. And, a modestly priced PC/MAC. Like one person added, photoshop elements, which runs on both MAC/PC, is about all he will need.

As for PC's being infected with viruses, I have been online for over 20 years and in the computer business for over 25 years and have never seen one. What I have seen is spyware, Adware, hardware incompatibilities, poorly designed hardware and software, bloatware and ignorance. In my opinion, the term "you have a virus" is the biggest cop-out/excuse for not knowing what the problem is, not wanting to troubleshoot the problem or just blowing the customer off.

I now you MAC fans are really adamant about how much you love your machines and how much better they are than PC's. That's you opinion and you are intitled to it. I won't take that away from you. I'm sure that argument will continue long after this thread has run it's course. But, lets get back to the issue of the thread and offer CDC some good advice on digicams and computers.

IMHO,

PS-I read an interesting article this morning on how the Ipod has boistered Apples bottom line even though MAC sales have slipped. In fact, the success of Itunes has prompted Apple to consider shifting its business model towards music downloads. The Ipod is a great device! Now, if they would come out with a mini with about 20gigs.......

Gunbei,

I go to megapixel.net every month to read the new reviews. They know their stuff. Agree with you about the lense and CCD.

CDC,

Sounds like your running an old win95 or win98 machine. WinXP is a lot better.

Jax2,

You hit it right on the head.

Marco,

Does the warm glow of the tubes promote hair growth on the Cary hairy suicide amp? If it does I have a few friends who want to strap it to the heads.

Laghed my ___ of when I read the post. Good one.