Holiday Buyers' Guide 2006, Part 1: PC Components

Page 3 - Seeking answers? Join the Tom's Hardware community: where nearly two million members share solutions and discuss the latest tech.
Oh, and Cali bimbo had more to do with the clueless/Paris Hilton/sex object type. Which is how I see these pictures. 🙂

Edited to add yet another pathetic quote...

You could wear that short blue something and show off some of those fancy "components" of yours though... 8)

The sad thing is, i quoted wiz, not Sarah. It was actually ironic, but you took it out of its context - which is what a good journalist would do.
If he worked for the Inquirer.
 
Excellent work Watson. That's clearly not what I said.

BTW, sorry Slobogob, I fixed it. My mistake. I was taking responsibility before your second post. You're just slanderous, I was making a point. Grow up.
 
Apologize - no S.

Wrong - he's from the UK, and that's how it's spelt here.

I know it's nit-picking, but seeing as you're trying to establish the intellectual high ground, it needs to be pointed out.
 
Props. Good call. I'd like to say that I love debate, and have no problem taking responsiblity. I'm constantly wrong, all intelligent people are, it's being able to take responsibility for one's humanity that also shows wisdom. Of course, pointing out one's wisdom isn't that wise, but I guess I'm just not that wise yet. :roll:
 
"A lot" is two seperate words.

"Seperate"? Gosh I don't recall that being a word. Hmph. Maybe it's a word that only the uber-intelligent know.

Nobody cares to hear your grammar corrections or rants about women's suffrage. Stick to hardware, genius.

:wink:
 
hey sarah what games? if any do you play and what computer setup ?
do you have? 😀 that kinda stuff.

i hope some dont post back with the (women shouldnt play games crap)
or anything like that.

im just asking a question 😀

Well, I'm really into Mario as you can see here:

marioprincess2.jpg


But besides playing Leisuresuit Larry on my Dad's computer when I was about 12 years old, my gaming has consisted of Tetris, Mario Kart, Bubble Bobble, and Snood. Not quite the answer you are looking for, but it's the truth.

As for my computer setup, I have the best. I work at Tom's Hardware, what do you expect? But to be honest, I have no idea what's inside of this beast. As long as it's fast and efficient, I am happy. And lucky for me, these gurus keep me well equipped.
 
But besides playing Leisuresuit Larry on my Dad's computer when I was about 12 years old, my gaming has consisted of Tetris, Mario Kart, Bubble Bobble, and Snood. Not quite the answer you are looking for, but it's the truth.

hey mariokart= 8)
 
Hi,

My name is Charles Kozierok. I'm a copy editor at TG (and in fact edited this article). I also run several web sites including The PC Guide, which is a reference site on hardware (though mostly older hardware now.)

I've been meaning to sign up here for a while but some of the comments on this thread finally pushed me to hit the "Register" button.

Disclaimer: I speak for myself alone, not TG or anyone at the company.

I think the people who are making leering comments towards Sarah should really think hard and realize that yes, there is a real person there with feelings. Especially since the article made it clear that Sarah is a member of the TG staff. Common decency -- it's a Good Thing.

Most of us have seen how others can act in a prejudiced and cruel manner towards those who are unattractive. But it's just as bad to direct insensitive comments to those who are attractive.

Now to Ryan's comments.

I work with Sarah directly and she is no bimbo. In fact, she's quite bright and quick on the ball, and astute about many matters both business and non-business related. More importantly, she's also a very warm and friendly person. She deserves better than some of you are giving her here.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with the pictures in this article. They are not demeaning or exploitive; there are no "components" showing or lurid poses; it is just a pretty young woman in a costume displaying computer equipment. For crying out loud, you can see more skin than Sarah showed on any prime time TV series. Ryan, your even mentioning "porn sites" is not only demeaning, it's completely nonsensical.

Some more specific replies:

Sarah, I could give a crap about your looks. I'm here for hardware, and I think that having old creeps like this guy goo-goo over your physicality should be an insult to women everywhere.

I can't speak for Sarah, but I doubt that she'd find people complimenting her physical appearance insulting. In fact, I'm quite sure she's used to it. Your comment, on the other hand, really is insulting: "Just what we need, another California bimbo showing herself off."

You really should think a bit more before you post things like this.

Sarah, if you do a good job - then great. If Tom's wants to let readers know what it's people look like, post a "work family" photo. Not some pics that are going to get replies from guys with hard-ons. Have more self respect, or maybe you need to further your education with a lesson on how men see women.

This comment too is demeaning and disrespectful. If you want to make a point about how women deserve more respect, why not at least set a positive example yourself?

As for the photos in this article, that's an editorial decision made by people much higher in the organization than I am. (Actually I'm just a contractor so everyone is higher than I am...) But you should consider a few things before you pass judgment.

First, the idea behind the "elf presenter" is primarily that is is fun. It fits with the Christmas theme; it's something special, something different.

Second, this is the fourth quarter, an important time for this industry. TG is here to provide computer enthusiasts with useful information and reviews. But it is also a business based on eyeballs, so readership is important. The Holiday Buyer's Guide is very long, most PC enthusiasts are men and yes, they find a pretty face to go with the product pictures more interesting than just a bunch of verbiage with pictures of PC parts. This is part of the way the world works -- boring doesn't sell.

Third, your comments seem to overlook context. Clearly Tom's isn't trying to use this as a general "angle" as they do this only once a year, and as I said, the pictures are entirely tame. Go to a convention sometime and see what the ladies at the booths are wearing.

Fourth, whoever chose to use Sarah rather than just hiring a professional model obviously noticed her beauty, but also perhaps considered that her involvement in the company made her a more suitable, relevant candidate for presenting PC components. I bet you never considered that.

I think women should be able to think for themselves, that's kind of the point here...if they want to be seen and used as sex objects, hey...I'm all for that. I'll open a harem and make money off you fools. Sound good Sarah?

This isn't TV. Looking like a nerd with thick glasses and greasy hair doesn't make you a genius; being really pretty doesn't make you an idiot and a sex object. Dressing in what is basically a cute Halloween costume and showing PC parts while smiling doesn't make one a candidate for a harem.

Get some perspective and learn how to deal more reasonably with people who may see the world differently than you do -- it will serve you well.

Charles
 
Thats a balanced attitude. Ryan - you take yourself way way too seriously. Guys will invariably comment on good looking girls (which Sarah obviously is) and most girls in my experience will pass comment on good guys they find good looking (like Bon Jovi). Hopefully most of it is light hearted and will be taken the same way. Both guys and gals get unwanted attention and thiose who do generally learn to accept it and deal with it.

Anyway - I think that that Sarah should carry around that 2lb cooler just the keep the fellas chilled! (its a joke!)
 
Track wrote:
This is guide is stupid.
How can they recommand the Athlon 64 X2 4200+ when u can get the E6300 and overclock it to an X6800??

bliq wrote:
Probably because they were trying to hit really low prices for the budget item and the x2 4200+ is still cheaper than the E6300 by like $30 or $40. So what if the conroe is faster? It's all about choices dude.

Can i get a Amen brother...?

I continually try to stress that it makes no difference if one chip is faster than the other if it does what it is designed to do in the first place, it must be a ego trip thinking that AMD is junk just because the Intel is faster.........it aint always about speed anyway sometimes it's about compatibility, I have no beef with the fastest, most powerful CPU, but i can't tell a difference between them when playing MS flight sim 2004 with all the bells and whistles turned on and a 1440x900 resolution set.
It is simply overkill that the majority of us will never expand upon.
i'm not saying that the 4200+ is the cats meow, it's just a logical choice that performs flawlessly in all the programs i run....gaming, browsing, e-mail, photo and video editing........it does all these things well while running cool and quiet.
I simply have no need for the fastest chip.........just one that does what i ask, goodnite all
 
Usually I skip a few pages when I first look at a review, but when I saw Sarah on the first page, I read through the entire article or I just pretended to read the whole thing. :)

Due to the fact that she appeared in the article, I doubt that Sarah minds the attention she might receive. It is hard being beautiful, but Sarah did it gracefully in the article.

The guy who commented that Sarah was a Californian bimbo made a false assumption, so I will make an assumption about him (<---first assumption :lol: ): Ryan Micah’s spiteful comment about a beautiful girl he can never get is proof that it is hard to be ugly. His perception of women is skewed because he watches too much porn (another assumption :lol: ). I don't care if I am wrong, since we are assuming here. :roll:

Wow! My first flame post :twisted:

Keep up the good work and the good looks Sarah. :mrgreen:
 
I agree with your on this one. It does not matter what type of system you have just as long as you are happy with it. Why get a core2 now when you can get one next year for probably half the price!

Also a super fast gaming rig does not make you a better player and will not keep you from getting owned online in BF2.
 
Reading over this, I really can't see RyanMicah's point, or if he even has one by putting down THG and their editorial prodution coordinator Sarah, for some pictures of a hot elf :) showing off some holiday gift ideas. For some reason women's rights and diginity even come into question here:

Women's suffrage takes a hit everytime a woman dons a skimpy outfit and allows men to "compliment" them. The truth is these horny bastards are just desperate for attention. Maybe if they had some respect for women and some dignity women would pay more attention to them. .

Yet this is the same guy who wrote this in a seperate thread about HDDs:

I have 3 comps, the oldest is a 3 year old Pentium4. The other two are AMD 64's. I meant to say 320gb's in my Kandalf SLI system, 300 in my raptor raid-0 setup mATX lan system, and more 90gb's just drives, 10 in a 5400 and 80 in a 7200rpm. I have about 150 CD's ripped, and a few movies, maybe a lil porn.

Wow, for someone who doesn't like objectifying women, and gets offended over some great pictures of hardware, sure is strange he admits to having porn.

Or maybe he's just offended if the porn features any women.
 
Ahhh how the times change and yet stay the same!

Love how the topics still manage to get sidetracked, and this without any veteran member that I can spot, ha ha nice.

Looking forward to the consumer electronics guide and, gulp, potentially the Mac Mini as the top picture shows? :O

I must be a sinner though, thinking of a Macbook as my upcoming notebook purchase. I'm more nice than that usually, honest! 😛
 
it has been quite sometime since I last been on these forums, but I hate to say it, but I agree with Ryan. I mean, Sarah, I bet you are a good person, but I am the type who lived with girls who look like you, and try to dress pretty/sexy and show off, my sister for instance, and she is the person whom I always hated in my life (im catholic, and shouldn't hate), but I just dont find you very attractive, nor a good person for doing such things. But I bet you are a good person in face to face, as I never have met you, nor never will, but i make such assumptions. Does this mean im correct? no, but at least i get out what I need to say. I would not have commented on your looks or anything, if it wasnt for doofus who said to comment on you earilier in this thread.

As for the guide, I think its total crap, but I think you guys did choose the right conroe mobo, the Abit Ab9-maxx or whatever its called (seen them up in person, great boards!), but hte Amenda isnt as good as the Vigor Tec CPU cooler, which is supposed to be cheaper too.
 
caamsa, you make no sence, elaberate on what your saying, or use quotes to be reffering to somebody, anything else, it seems like spam.
 
LMAO :lol:

The arguments above just made my day... Hillarious.
So much hype about a Sarah displaying hardware...

Anyways, nice guide.
I have a few arguments myself about the components
chosen, but they are not far off to critically complicate
a person trying to build a nice setup for the holidays.

Just hope you guys will mention up coming hardware
in more detail when more parts of the guid come out.
(with new gen graphics and quad core coming out and all :wink: )

Will wait for a full guide before I start meticulously objecting
on various hardware shown for certain subjects or sections.

BTW, Sarah, your an attractive girl doing a terrific job for the guide,
which is getting attention and hype about the guide :)
(and srry if you take offense to calling you a "girl".
Just can't make myself to call a female a "woman".
Kinda makes the person sound old, thus IMO is kinda offensive.)

I had to mention that.
What can I say, I'm a guy :wink:

-----------------Just to say since I'm presently bored------------------
It's a common misconception in saying, a guy thinks with his
"little dude", more so then his brain, because all the "little dude" is
doing is acting according to what the hypothalamus tells it to do with
horomonal messengers. And the hypothalamus is located in the
BRAIN.
HA! We men/guys do think with our heads 100% of the time! 8)