What do I really want from a computer?

I'm sitting in front of chaggalagirl's computer as usual. It's faster than mine (P3 866 MHz on a 133 MHZ bus versus P3 500 MHz on a 100 MHz bus), it has more RAM (384 MB versus 256, although my RAM has a lower latency), and it has speakers. The speakers seem like a minor point because I have my gorgeous Sennheiser HD 560s with the velvet ear cushions plugged into a better sound card. I also have a bigger monitor, a faster burner and a more updated Linux kernel.

She has this felt jungle wrap around her monitor -- there's a tree and a purple monkey. In contrast, I only have the Devolution of Critters -- a stuffed beaver sitting next to a Mike Wizowski doll followed by a Linux penguin followed by a three-legged beanie dude from a long-expired film development ad campaign. Each one is smaller than the previous, thus showing a noble beaver in the giddy lotus position while "Tripod" has his tongue sticking out and probably tied on one too many.

Make mine a P3 450 MHz still. The P3 500MHz I bought last week at the Flea for five bucks either doesn't like my motherboard or burned out from the chintzier Master Cooler strapped onto it. Thus, I'm back to the CPU that came with Maggie's dad's old computer.

Anyway, why do I prefer the work environment of the desk next to mine? Is it merely that I've put more successful mods into Maggie's computer than I have into mine? I advised her back in 2000 to get a Pentium III over a Celeron, and she heeded this. Since then I've replaced her power supply and CPU cooler, tripled the RAM and added a northbridge cooler. It boots fast and runs smooth, unless you play a Shockwave game and then try to listen to anything else afterward.

I think I prefer it because it has the girly thing going for it. It's forbidden fruit, sorta. I think about building a mack daddy new machine with a gig of RAM and all sorts of crap. Then I realize I'm too busy feeding my scrounge-addiction to get a new computer. Five here and twenty there adds up to a lot of broken computer equipment I could easily sell for scrap lead.

I also sped too much time reading Anandtech, the web site that reviews the cutting-edge hardware. Their conclusion seems to be "wait until the 800 MHz FSB motherboards are stable, then wait for the 90-nanometer chips to start coming out." If I keep waiting, I'll get nothing.

What do I need, anyway? Someplace to surf. Something that dual-boots but prefers Linux. Something vaguely fast. Something that wants to compile crappy code. Something that makes the pretty flash stuff work right. Something I can mod the way I mod now.

Maybe I should think about all of this another time. "want shall be your maker" my mom used to say. In other words, whatever I wish to have already has control of me. Buddha Beaver may lead the way.

Then again, I prefer the project to the completion. Once I'm done with a task, I get bored and want another task. Thus, I must have about ten tasks I need to be doing. I'll assign myself everything if it'll keep me from thinking about shopping.

Maybe it's time I bought better speakers for my receiver...

-or not, Dante