And I've found XP Pro to be a great (for Microsoft) Operating System.

The few boxes I have still running 98SE are more trouble than the other 17 combined.

I have a new Dell 8250 loaded (running XP Pro)- 200 gig hard drive, 1024 Ram 18" Ultra Sharp flat panel, DVD and CD burners.
No problems with this computer other than the speaker system (Harmon Karden) right out of the box. The speakers were replaced: since it took them an excessive amount of time to process the warranty claim, they gave me an upgrade to the Altec-Lansings for free. That is my only experience with CS. I can handle my own technical problems.

I also have an older Dell Latitude laptop that has never skipped a beat, and my desktop computer at work is also a Dell Dimension (a couple of years old) with no problems.
My new company laptop is a Gateway, and so far it has proved itself well. A couple of family members have Gateway desktops, and have had good luck with them as well.

Troutly
Since it only happens when surfing the net, does it have anything to do with the quanity of porn sites you visit and the light speed at which you click to see more pics (a pc can only handle a couple dozen porn popups before it will die)?
J/K..Not sure what the deal is with your laptop if you haven't added any wierd software or anything. How much ram and what O/S do you have? What is running in the background (Norton, popup stopper, etc)?
I have a Latitude C600 laptop with Win2K, my desktop at home is a Dimension P3 with XP Pro, at work I have 3 Dell GX110 P3 desktops (XP Pro, Win2k, NT4). I have had zero problems with any of these. Maybe I have been lucky.
Like others have said, it is easy to go to the Dell site and download any service packs/fixes you may need. I am an IT professional so maybe fixing some of the software issues is easier for me to do than others. I don't know. I try not to install too much software on the home pc so it keeps me out of trouble.

cartman - My brother in law had an issue with his HP as well. He has a P4 1.8 that he bought last summer. It has XP home, DVD, CDRW, subwoofer on it. Real nice system. He has a few of the "extra" crappy software that manufacturers add to their systems like HP Center, weather bug, misc games (all stuff to run in the background to use resources and slow you down), but for the most part it was fine. Anyways, he would periodically go to Windows Update and download security patches and other stuff that MS puts out. One day he did just that and downloaded a patch from Nov 2002, that crashed his system. Blue screen of death and that was it. The only way to recover was to do a full restore with the HP system setup. He did that and everything was fine. When he told me about this the next time I was visting him, I talked him into doing the Win Update again (I thought there was no way that a patch from MS could do it). WRONG. Same thing happened. Just to be sure, this stubborn IT guy tried it again. Same thing. I must say that the HP restore is a very handy tool.
Sorry for rambling. Good luck in your search.


Rob

Just go with an eMachine. In a few months it will end up being slow as heck again anyway, why waste the $$$ to upgrade what you have. For $499 you get a the hard drive with a burner, or get the complete package for $799 with $300 in rebates. Ends up being the same thing and not costing and arm and a leg. Just my $.02.

Sean, Didn't mean to bail but I am on the road again this week.

I am the first to line up and say we can do better from a support standpoint. I have been in that role in a past life and no one cringes more than I do when I hear these horror stories. Again, as I said earlier, support is an area that everyone needs to work on. Like I said before, Dell has ranked number one in the support arena for a few years running.

Cream of the crap is a term I like to use for that very reason. We do better than anyone else but have far to go, no doubt.

As for substandard parts, you lost me on that one. Dell uses industry standard parts throughout their systems. I don't follow your statement on that one. Help me out here with a few specifics.

Give Alienware a look before you plunk down a couple of grand for a Dell and crappy customer service. No reason to get another cookie cutter machine, you can get a great custom built system to your specs with excellent tech suport. Alienware will also give you discounts on upgrading hardware over the life of your machine, something Dell doesn't do. Dell is the Walmart of personal computing.

http://www.alienware.com/

mlite, support issues aside, because I know how difficult it can be to get competent help(I manage a support desk)...my main concern is the hardware. It is widely known that Compaq corporate hardware is superior to thier consumer line---both in construction and component used. it is my belief that Dell is the same way, because we use some Dell equipment here at work---all GX stuff---from GX1 to GX240 desktops...they seem fine, but...

On the consumer side...we bought a Dimension XXX...I dunno about the motherboard, but i ordered the latest and greatest at the time...PIII 733 or 800...INTEL ONLY! upgraded vid card, 20 gig drive, cdrw(no dvd)...but, as i see above, everything was integrated in the motherboard(execpt the modem)...

my main concern is the chassis...it is so flimsy and you could twist it into a prezel with one hand. Another thing i hate is the the motherboard(and most components for that matter) snap into place and are not screwed or bolted in. In my opinion attaching a motherboard to a chassis by pressing it into clips in the chassis puts stress on the board and can lead to failure(but i could be wrong).

my other gripe was th OS...and I know a lightbulb is gonna go off in everyone's head and yer gonna say, "ah...that was your trouble all the while..." but anyway, we were running WinME which in my opinion is the worst operating system since OS2...but the problem is, I was never able to upgrade the OS on this box...I tried everything including FDISK...and every OS install that I have in my little bag o tricks...nothing worked...98, NT or 2000. Every install failed and I use these cds every day. I would get mostly file copy errors at the initial part of the install(where the screen is blue)...

anyway, it's all over now...we got a brand new box w/XP and it's running great(knock wood)

thoughts?

UNIX???? Tom, yer a funny guy...UNIX is the most unfriendly OS ever built...The Windows shell is tough an forget about command line...grep? What the hell is grep??? Just breaking your shoes...

dell

UNIX is the most unfriendly for sure. That's why I said Mac is UNIX with the best interface making it the ultimate reliable user friendly system. Grep is the ultimate search tool as it will look for patterns in text like no other. Talk about unfriendly though.

Thanks guys now I'm more confused than ever. There seems to be a consensus on dell or building one. Tom I have heard several good things about the I mac 5 people have told me to buy one but they all are recent purchases has any one had major problems with them? Glad to see no one is sticking up for hp if dell is the wallmart of pc then hp is the salvation army just my .02