Comment on Looking to build my first PC in almost 30 years; What should I be on the look out for?

_dev_null@lemmy.zxcvn.xyz ⁨8⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago

Some thoughts:

Ubuntu, most likely

I’d encourage you to take a look at Linux Mint, it alleviates some of the Ubuntu fuckiness. And if you want to join the “I use arch btw” crowd, maybe checkout EndeavourOS if you’re feeling more brave than just Ubuntu variants (which is built on arch, but makes barrier to entry a little easier).

i9s are the latest hotness but don’t think the price is worth it

Take a look at last generation to soften the blow to your wallet. E.g., instead of looking at a 14900k, look at 13 or even 12 series. In fact, this is a useful strategy all around if you’re being price conscious: go one gen older.

GPU that can support some sort of ML/AI with DisplayPort

Probably going to want to go with a discrete card, rather than just integrated. Other major consideration is going to be nvidia vs AMD, for which you’ll need to decide if CUDA should be part of your calculus or not. I’ll defer to any data science engineers that might wander through this post.

The rest of your reqs pretty much come as regular stock options when building a pc these days. Though another nicety for my latest builds, is multi-gig nics (though 2.5Gb was my ceiling, since you’ll also need the network gear to utilize it). Going multi-gig is nice for pushing around a fuckton of data between machines on my lan (including a NAS).

Very last thing that I’ve found helpful in my last 3 builds spanning 15 years: I use newegg for its reviews of items, specifically so I can search for the term “linux” in any given product’s reviews. Often times I can glean quick insight on how friendly (or not) hardware has been for other’s linux builds.

And I lied, I just remembered about another linux hardware resource: linux-hardware.org/?view=search

You can see other people that have built with given hardware. Just remember to do a scan too once your build is up to pay it forward.

Good luck, and remember to have fun!

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