[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index]

19990421: Unidata Hardware Support

>From: Deborah Luchsinger <address@hidden>
>Organization: University of Denver
>Keywords: 199904220326.VAA28906 platforms

Debby,

>Hi Tom - remember me?  The Ice Princess?

Sure do :-)

>I wrote to you about 6 months
>ago regarding the NSF grant we were applying for to upgrade our
>meteorology lab.

Right.

>Well, we got the grant!

Super.  Congradulations!

>So I am now ready to order
>equipment, and once again need to solicit your input on this.

OK.  In the last six months a lot has changed on the PC front as
you well know.

>I know you had suggested that we look at Workstation Direct as a source,

I recommended that since we had just gone there.  The one thing that
we were able to specify when odering from Workstation Direct was that
the machines we were buying had to work with a list of operating systems
that we were interested in.

>but I now need to get a more precise configuration.  I have about $6,500
>to spend, and would like to get two machines if possible

OK, this should be doable.

>(essentially,
>one to ingest the data and produce maps, and one to do analysis on).

For $6500, you will probably be able to get a couple of 450 Mhz Pentium II
PCs with at least 10 GB of disk, 128 MB of RAM, 32x CDROM, and 19" monitors.

>At
>this time, could you help me out with an ideal, high-powered PC
>configuration that would fit within my budget?

Ideal?  That changes from day-to-day.

If you had more money, I would strongly suggest that you get machines
with SCSI disks.  SCSI disks seem to stand up to constant use a lot
better than IDE ones (IDE, EIDE, or UIDE).  The only problem is that
they are a lot more expensive for the same amount of storage.

I would say that you should look for:

o 450 Mhz Pentium II machines
o at least 128 MB of RAM; preferably 255 MB
o 10 GB of disk; preferably more AND on two separate disks
o 19" display (sames you some money over 21" displays)

The tricky part is getting hardware that is supported by the operating
system that you want to use.  So, first you have to decide on which
PC operating system you want to use.  The choices are RedHat 5.2 Linux
or Solaris x86.  Each has its own pluses and minuses.  Solaris x86
is more secure than Linux but requires more system resources (e.g. RAM)
and supports a smaller range of hardware (video cards, network cards, etc.).
Linux is smaller and faster than Solaris x86, but you have to stay on
top of security patches faithfully.  So the first question back to you
is which operating system you want to use.  After that, we can refine
the hardware that you can use and get a better idea of how much bang you
can get for your buck.

>As always Tom, thank you so much for your assistance!

No problem.  Talk to you soon...

Tom