Philip Where do you obtain the refurbed machines?
Pat Ka6tya -----Original Message----- From: Philip Jenkins [mailto:n4hf.phi...@gmail.com] Sent: Saturday, May 18, 2013 7:33 AM To: amsat-bb@amsat.org Subject: [amsat-bb] Re: Better/best operating system for SatPC32? Thanks for the replies. I do have a Win 7-64 machine with 4GB RAM as my main PC; I've just never used the 32 bit version and wanted to see if I needed to avoid it. I should have added that these refurbed machines (which are ITX/small form factor) already have the OS (Win 7-32 or Win 7-64) installed. They are listed as off-lease, so I'm guessing that they were networked to a server since they only have 1-2 GB RAM. As for the Linux suggestion, that did cross my mind and am still considering it. I do have an older ATX tall-tower with Ubuntu installed, but haven't played with it much; it's a bit bigger than I would want to carry to a Field Day/demo site. I haven't played with Xastir at all. The refurbs are pretty cheap, so I may get two and install XP on one and some flavor of Linux on the other (I'm the most familiar with Ubuntu (but that isn't saying much), but open to suggestions.) Does Linux still support serial ports? Philip N4HF On Fri, May 17, 2013 at 4:37 PM, Philip Jenkins <n4hf.phi...@gmail.com>wrote: > I'm in the process of buying a very low-end refurbished PC for use at > Field Day and at a 10 day local fair this Fall to demonstrate > satellite operating. > > All that this PC will be used for is running packet software and > SatPC32 in the field. I haven't decided yet if I'm going to use the PC > to control the antenna. (I may use this PC as for packet/APRS at > home; I have another Win XP shack desktop already dedicated to ham > radio/SatPC32/rig control/antenna steering.) > > Which is a better OS for this, Win 7 Home Premium 32-bit (which most > of the PCs that I'm looking at) or Win 7 Home Premium (64-bit)? I had > heard there were some compatibility problems (not necessarily with any > ham radio > software) with the 32-bit version when Win 7 first came out. > > Most of the machines with either version come with 1 GB RAM - should I > choose one with 2GB or more (or install more RAM myself), or will 1 GB > be sufficient for the light use I'm intending for this machine? (I > noticed in the WIN 7 specifications that 1 GB is the minimum.) > > Most of the PCs I'm looking at with have a serial port as well (which > is one of my criterion for considering these units) - that will make > my life much easier with the old TNCs I have :-) > > To sum up, which OS should I choose, Win 7 Home Premium 32-bit, or > Home Premium (64-bit)? > > Tnx es 73 > > Philip N4HF > > > _______________________________________________ Sent via AMSAT-BB@amsat.org. Opinions expressed are those of the author. Not an AMSAT-NA member? Join now to support the amateur satellite program! Subscription settings: http://amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb _______________________________________________ Sent via AMSAT-BB@amsat.org. Opinions expressed are those of the author. Not an AMSAT-NA member? Join now to support the amateur satellite program! Subscription settings: http://amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb
