General upgrade questions

I have a Compaq presario I got from my mother in law she bought in 2004....I've got Windows XP running on it and it serves me just fine for all my other needs. I upgraded the Ram about a year ago to 1.25 GB. My girl needs it to start school online. Now this workhorse has some issues such as loading slow on startup and other things that I fix perodically and can deal with.....I guess the question is Should I donate this and buy her a new desktop? Or should I upgrade to 2 Gigs and pay to replace the motherboard and processor? Or should I just get her a laptop and keep my workhouse for internet and basic computing? Also how much more do you recommend I upgrade and with what, if any if I decide to not send this to the graveyard?
 
Ok DoleJ, For very little you can pick up a brand new netbook for your daughter's schooling needs, with 160GB hdd and win7 starter. So little it would cost approx 1/3 of a new decent laptop.

I would not upgrade the compaq motherboard etc, unless you can do it for under $300NZ, in all honesty - it is not worth that. Compaq's do over heat, and the solder on the motherboard can compromise component contact/connection. - Just make sure you do your housework - and keep it clean and tidy as possible.

To upgrade or refurbish the mother board is another option to look at - however that will still cost more than it's approximated worth (without looking at it).

I am impressed it has lasted 6 years so far...
 
Wereit apparently I can't send you a private message so I hope you get this:
Thanks for your response but I'm a little confused in your statement based on my questions. So by mentioning the netbook are you suggesting I forgo the laptop nor getting a new desktop or even upgrading my current desktop for her to use. Are you also saying that since my Compaq desktop works for what I need it for I should use it to it clonks out and just buy a new basic entry desktop at that time or I should only upgrade the motherboard if I can do it cheaper than the cost of a basic entry desktop? But then you say to upgrade the motherboard is a option so are you suggesting now that I do despite your previous statement, and what really makes a basic computer old I mean six years for a basic entry level computer isn't that standard? Take care and I look forward to hearing back from you
 
One option would be to get your daughter a netbook, and look to build a new PC by cannibalizing parts from your current machine and combining them with new ones, if you have the know-how to do so. I would recommend using the old case, and getting a new PSU, motherboard, CPU and RAM. You can get those for around $200-250, and you can reuse your HDD and optical drives, as well as peripherals such as the keyboard. Buying a new HDD would also be advisable (for backups etc), since the old HDD may choose an inopportune moment to die.

Another option would be to donate this PC, and build a new one that serves yours and your daughter's purpose. $400-500 would be plenty for such a system and, to be fair, it would be far faster than a netbook.

There is also the option of upgrading your old machine just enough so it keeps running AND building a new one for your daughter, but I'm not sure if it would be greater than the cost of upgrading the old machine and getting a new netbook. Still, it's something worth considering.

So, it's entirely upto you. IMHO, unless portability is necessary for your daughter and if your budget allows for it, upgrading your old machine and building a new desktop PC would be best.
 
Okay so here we are five months later and it's still going strong. I haven't yet got a laptop. I don't have the know how to cannbalize or completly build a new PC. I still haven't got an laptop. I think that what I'm going to do is purchase a fairly decent inexpensive laptop. Then simply keep the Compaq running and eventually upgrade the whole system as Rage suggested. I think it would be better to spend the money for that since it would come out about the same for a new entry level desktop. Any additional suggestions welcomed or if this is not a good choice then I'm open to hear more. Also any suggestions on laptops I should look into is welcomed.
 
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