I'm torn between getting a new PC or upgrading my old one.
Currently, I'm using a system with the following specs (roughly):
Pentium 3 - 450
256mb ram
Integrated graphic card on motherboard
Yamaha 16x CD Burner (without Burn proof technology)
LCD Monitor
I mainly process photos in Photoshop and don't play games or watch movies with this PC. It takes a very long time to open RAW files and saving them to jpeg takes longer. Opening jpeg files are slightly faster than Raw but saving them also takes a long time.
My freind said that the problem lies with the onboard graphics card. When processing large files, there isn't enough memory so it draws from the motherboard, thereby slowing all processes to a crawl. He has recommended that I buy a GForce 128mb graphics card and a RAID card (I have 2 brand new pieces of Seagate Barracuda ATA IV harddisks). He says that running both harddisks with the RAID card and the new graphics card will speed up my system somewhat and that I can install Windows XP (I'm currently running Window 98). He mentioned that if this solution isn't good enough after installing, I can still buy a new system without the graphics card.
Based on my photo processing requirements, can you guys recommend a solution for me? If I buy a new system, what should I get and how much will it cost? (I hope it won't cross the SGD1K mark) I think I can still use the LCD, maybe the harddisks, but I'd love to hear from you tech savvy people.
Any help and advise will be greatly appreciated.
Currently, I'm using a system with the following specs (roughly):
Pentium 3 - 450
256mb ram
Integrated graphic card on motherboard
Yamaha 16x CD Burner (without Burn proof technology)
LCD Monitor
I mainly process photos in Photoshop and don't play games or watch movies with this PC. It takes a very long time to open RAW files and saving them to jpeg takes longer. Opening jpeg files are slightly faster than Raw but saving them also takes a long time.
My freind said that the problem lies with the onboard graphics card. When processing large files, there isn't enough memory so it draws from the motherboard, thereby slowing all processes to a crawl. He has recommended that I buy a GForce 128mb graphics card and a RAID card (I have 2 brand new pieces of Seagate Barracuda ATA IV harddisks). He says that running both harddisks with the RAID card and the new graphics card will speed up my system somewhat and that I can install Windows XP (I'm currently running Window 98). He mentioned that if this solution isn't good enough after installing, I can still buy a new system without the graphics card.
Based on my photo processing requirements, can you guys recommend a solution for me? If I buy a new system, what should I get and how much will it cost? (I hope it won't cross the SGD1K mark) I think I can still use the LCD, maybe the harddisks, but I'd love to hear from you tech savvy people.
Any help and advise will be greatly appreciated.