Computer hardware gets faster every day, there is no point in trying to keep up. The best thing to do is to get the best piece of hardware for the least
amount of money. It is also usually better to have a machine built instead of buying something off the shelf. Most off the shelf computers are designed for
the home user or basic gamer. We are creating complex computer graphics with the machines that we will be using and running very complex software that the
average home user wouldn't know about or know how to push to the levels that you will be taught.
Things to look for in a computer.
Cases:
The case for the computer should be large enough to get several hard drives in it and also have room for lots of fans and cooling systems. Heat is the number
one killer of computers and will shorten the life of the components in it. There should be a fan on the power supply and two or more in the case as well as a
fan on the processor. Fancy flashing lights don't do anything at all and just serve to increase the value of something that doesn't have any monetary value
at all once it is purchased.
Power supply:
Most power supply's that come with computers these days will be good enough but incase you want to add more drives of have larger video cards the power supply
should be 700 watts or larger.
Video Cards:
The video card is one of the most important parts of the machine that you will purchase as it drives all the graphics on screen and will result in
smoother and faster operations on the computer. The 3D app's that are used in this course will use more video card power then then most complex game on the
market by far. One of the best video card developers in the market is Nvidia, their chip sets are used by many manufactures. Autodesk, the largest
developer of 3D software, currently owns the two top 3D app's, 3DS Max and Maya and use Nvidia cards as their bench mark. For this reason it is best
to stick with Nvidia chip sets. ATI also create good cards but the development of the software isn't as tested on them. For Nvidia the current game cards
are the best choice as they are cheap and fast. There are higher end cards that are developed for the 3D industry but they are far more expensive
and are not updated as often. Because they are not updated as often the game cards can be faster in many cases and more stable. Typical gaming cards
will range in price around $150 to $450 and the 3D specific cards can be up to $4000. This means you could update the game card several times in the
life of your computer and end up with a faster card for half the amount of money.
Possible video card options as of Oct 2008.
Internal Hard Drives:
Hard drives are cheap these days and you should have at least two in the machine that you purchase. One will be for installing windows and all the
applications on and the second for all working files. It is the C drive that will get used the most as your machine will swap memory to the C drive
as it needs more resources. Also with windows running on it if your machine ever needs to be formatted or the drive fails
for what ever reason you don't have to worry loosing data, replace the drive and reinstall all app's and you can keep working. The C drive should also
be a fast drive, the fastest drives these days around 10,000 rpm and slower ones running at 7200 rpm. The second drive needs to
be the largest and these days 500gig drives are cheap at less then $140, it also can be just a 7200 rpm drive as it will only be used when saving and loading
data. Another good option is to add a third internal hard drive for back ups. This can also be a 500gig drive that runs at 7200 rpm and would only be used
at the end of each day to back up all work to. If the first working drive fails the most you can loose then is one days work. A simple back up system
can be created using DOS and I will cover that in a simple how to in the future.
Memory (RAM):
When windows moved to a 64 bit operating system it opened up the ability to use way more RAM in the machines. This allows for more data to be stored in
a fast and accessible format. You should be adding a minimum of two gigs of RAM but it would be far better to add four gigs to start with. One thing
to make sure of it that the mother board can handle up to four sticks of RAM and the initial amount of RAM that you add come in two sticks. This way
at any time more RAM can be added to the machine without having to sacrifice existing sticks.
Processors:
Processors are the heart of the machine and the faster and more of them you have the better. Quad core machines are the best best where there are
four processors in one chip. Duels will work as well but you will be left with wanting more soon into the program. What to purchase changes day to day.
Generally the fastest chips available will be far more money then the second or third fastest. So it makes sense to purchase the second or third fastest
and save the money for other parts. Computers don't have a long shelf life in this business and will need to be replaced in two to four years maximum.
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Monitors come in all sorts of shapes and sizes. Flat panel monitors are the norm these days and work very well and are affordable. Don't get the
cheapest one that you see as this is the thing that you will spend many long night staring at for years to come. Look at wide screen versions
of monitors as more screen space side ways helps when working with multiple dialog boxes. High contrast ratio and redraw
speed are the two most important features. Colour correction controls are also something to look for. Many people these days, myself included and
most shops are running duel monitors because of the amount of applications and dialogs that we need to do our jobs. This is also something to consider
when purchasing a video card however most these days support duel displays.
Lap Top computers are getting much faster and cheaper then ever before how ever they don't keep up with desk tops for price, speed and ease of use
when working in applications like 3DS Max or Maya. They do how ever allow for work to be done just about any where. One should never sacrifice a
desk top computer for a lap top but having a good lap top can make working on home work for non-3D classes easier and could even be done on long
trips back and forth on the bus to college. Again there are a lot to choose from but the same things apply to lap tops for the most part as desk
tops.
Wacom tablets come in all sorts of sizes and can cost any where from $60 to $2000. The one pictured at left is the Wacom Bamboo and is an excelent small
tablet. I use this all the time for texturing and painting skin weights. It is small, portable and available for $60 at the book store. It is how ever to
small for drawing with. Although it can be used for drawing it lacks the physical size to make this really practical and have the sensitivity to be able
to control your lines.
The Intuos series of tablets come in many sizes, the 6x11 is carried at the book store, is one of the most versatile and practical sizes and works very well
for most applications.
Being wide screen means that it works well with wide screen monitors that you are likely to want to be using. The ability to draw using a tablet can
be very powerful and can be done on a tablet of this size. The Intuos line of tablets range all the way up to 12x19, only the most serious painter
and drawers need to purchase one of this size. The one draw back with larger tablets is they are hard to carry to class when they are needed for lessons.
For a mere $1000 you can get into the latest of the Wacom tablets. This is a touch sensitive monitor that allows for drawing directly on the screen. It
runs off your existing computer and acts as a second screen. For those that are serious about using your tablet for drawing and painting this is the
direction that most are moving in as it as close as you are currently going to get to feeling like you are working traditionally. One down fall to a
tablet monitor like this is you will need to have one in class that will work with the machines that are available. Connecting and installing drivers
for a tablet like this may not work in all class rooms because of administrator access rights. 
Portable USB drives are fast and cheap for what you get these days. Although USB keys are becoming larger the shear amount of data that will be created
in the 3D group of courses will soon fill even the largest of them. The USB 2.5 inch drives are lap top drives that are in an external case. Most of these
cases only need to be plugged into the USB port and are the preferred option but some require you to use a separate power cord. It is best to make sure that
the drive case or brand that you purchase only needs to the USB connection as it is simpler to work with. You can purchase these drives pre packages from
several companies or buy the drive and case separately and put them together your self. They are easy to build and require no knowledge of computers, just a
screw driver is all that is needed.
2.5 lap top drives used to be limited in size but these days can range up to 3 gigs so it isn't as necessary to look at 3.5 inch drives as an option. That
being said if you have an extra 3.5 drive, or an old computer with a working drive that is of decent size you can purchase a portable drive bay
for a 3.5 drive and use that extra drive. Note that 3.5 inch drive bays are far larger then their 2.5 inch cousins and also require a large power supply
to be ported around with them. 
USB keys are a great way for storing portable data, they are now available up to around 8 gig and will get larger every day. They still done store the amount of
data that will be created during your stay here but are nice to have for the smaller simpler data to day use.