Your investments in Sim-Racing/ WSC/ N4

Just wondering... With the current advance in technology upgrading is mandatory every now and then. I got my P3-450 almost 2 years ago now, i upgraded it several months later with a GeForce SDR. This system is running near the end of it's lifetime. It's fine for GPL, but just not enough for N4, and wayyy to slow for WSC (if i see the screenshots). Right now i've got a 500 Euro reserve here, which will be about 700 Euro when WSC is being released. I'm going to upgrade to a nice +-1,5 Ghz system then. Maybe even a new wheel (ActLabs), because my 3,5 yo Thrustmaster T2 (yes, nostalgia) has been suffering a lot. So that's quite a lot of money for a simple student... But how does the 'working-class' cope with this? Are you actually as nuts as i am? I just work more to pay for this all during the evenens at a crappy McDonalds. But you, you have to convince your wife that you really need your new equipment for, as she might call it, 'that stupid for children intended game of yours' (try to explain to a female what is cool about simracing, not possible). My mum is 53, and doesn't understand it. Although she is so kind to start up the Forum-GPLL server every afternoon which is located in her office;) So the question is, how do you cope with the investments your hobby requires. How much money have you invested or are you planning to invest for WSC or N4 for example? Do your relatives get angry when you pay 125 Euro for a cool Lan-event? And if you look at the time you invest in it? Do you ever get complaints when it's 3am and you are still in Vroc (for GPL that is)? Just wondering, how an adult handles this all. Svend

Lister Storm wrote: > But how does the 'working-class' cope with this? We mug students.

On Thu, 1 Mar 2001 05:54:08 +0100, "Lister Storm" <[email hidden]> wrote: >Just wondering, how an adult handles this all. Never get married, never have kids and you can do what you bloody well like.

On Thu, 1 Mar 2001 05:54:08 +0100, "Lister Storm" >Just wondering, how an *** handles this all. Never get married, never have kids and you can do what you ***y well like.

On Thu, 1 Mar 2001 05:54:08 +0100, "Lister Storm" <[email hidden]> wrote: >So the question is, how do you cope with the investments your hobby >requires. How much money have you invested or are you planning to invest for >WSC or N4 for example? I don't cope with it very well. The last major upgrade I did was for GPL -- going from a 133 to a 400 and getting a Voodoo2. By looking at the N4 demo, it was obvious that the old system wasn't going to cut it any more so I got a P3/800 and originally a GeForce 2MX, but it was possessed or something so I dumped it and got a Voodoo5. That has caused my system to overheat so in what hopefully will be the last investment I'll have to make, I have a couple case fans on the way.. Hopefully this setup will run stuff for at least a couple years because any more frequent upgrades than that will lead to the expenses of a divorce. :) Paul the Cat =^..^= "We've been sleeping all our lives -- At last we can open our eyes." -- Carly Simon

I've never had to buy a computer of my own, so the only investments I've had to make is in steering wheels and pedals. My company provided me with a home PC, and I even persuaded them to equip it with a voodoo 3 card! They also provided an ISDN connection, which is handy for VROC. Sometimes I even do some work on this PC...

[email hidden] (Lister Storm) wrote: > But how does the 'working-class' cope with this? > Are you actually as nuts as i am? I can afford to run either a car or a PC. If I had a car then I'd be able to go places and do things that would encourage me to spend more money... Catch22! So I think the PC saves me money overall... as long as I keep a safe distance behind the bleeding edge of technology. I also used to think that running a PC is safer than running a car. Then I discovered VROC and realised I'll die at the virtual wheel after one of those heart-pounding adrenalin rushes that only really good racing can supply :-> Andrew McP (working in famine relief... well, there'd be a local famine if I didn't turn up to work and fill the shelves ;-) PS The best advice to a student is give up the PC for a few years! Study hard, get a great job, then spend the rest of your life buying the latest, coolest hardware. (Not a GeForce3 though, obviously... *nobody* is that rich ;-) Of course, when I was a student I blew half my money on Space Invaders & Defender. There's probably a lesson to be learned in there somewhere :-)

"Lister Storm" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:97kklt$en2$[email hidden]... > Just wondering... > > So that's quite a lot of money for a simple student... But how does the > 'working-class' cope with this? Are you actually as nuts as i am? I just > work more to pay for this all during the evenens at a crappy McDonalds.But > you, you have to convince your wife that you really need your newequipment > for, as she might call it, 'that stupid for children intended game ofyours' > (try to explain to a female what is cool about simracing, not possible).My > mum is 53, and doesn't understand it. Although she is so kind to start up > the Forum-GPLL server every afternoon which is located in her office;) I normaly tickle the wifes fancy a little to help convince her i realy need my upgrade.....though i would doubt this approach would work with your mom, and may even get you locked up for a short spell :-) But to answer your question..for me i can always say that the running costs are much less for the sim than it would be for the real cars and track days. -- Cheers Ginger.......................(GPL, Bowt NetterToDo)

-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- Hash: SHA1 well look at it this way, take a reasonable approahc and you can always argue that for the price of a haircut or a coat or a dress or whatever you get HOURS AND HOURS of enjoyment...she usually doesn't, works for me all the time, something like "your pocket money is to buy clothes, shoes and hairstyles, my pocket money is for games...." "BowtNetterToDo" <[email hidden]> a �crit dans le message news: 97l9p4$sah$[email hidden]...

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> > "Lister Storm" <[email hidden]> wrote in message > news:97kklt$en2$[email hidden]... > > Just wondering... > > > > So that's quite a lot of money for a simple student... But how > > does the 'working-class' cope with this? Are you actually as nuts > > as i am? I just work more to pay for this all during the evenens > > at a crappy McDonalds. > But > > you, you have to convince your wife that you really need your new > equipment > > for, as she might call it, 'that stupid for children intended > > game of > yours' > > (try to explain to a female what is cool about simracing, not > > possible). > My > > mum is 53, and doesn't understand it. Although she is so kind to > > start up the Forum-GPLL server every afternoon which is located > > in her office;) > > > I normaly tickle the wifes fancy a little to help convince her i > realy need my upgrade.....though i would doubt this approach would > work with your mom, and may even get you locked up for a short > spell :-) > > But to answer your question..for me i can always say that the > running costs are much less for the sim than it would be for the > real cars and track days. > > > -- > Cheers Ginger.......................(GPL, Bowt NetterToDo) >

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On Thu, 1 Mar 2001 09:22:48 -0000, "Neil Raine" <[email hidden]> wrote: >I've never had to buy a computer of my own, so the only investments I've had >to make is in steering wheels and pedals. > >My company provided me with a home PC, and I even persuaded them to equip it >with a voodoo 3 card! Same here. My boss even let me buy a LWFF :) >They also provided an ISDN connection, which is handy for VROC. > >Sometimes I even do some work on this PC... Andre "The physics model in the final version of 4x4 Evolution will me much better than it is in the demo" - David G Fisher

Or sell your kids to the "gypsies" for some extra $doe$.. <g> "Jagg" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:[email hidden]...

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| On Thu, 1 Mar 2001 05:54:08 +0100, "Lister Storm" | <[email hidden]> wrote: | | | >Just wondering, how an adult handles this all. | | Never get married, never have kids and you can do what you bloody well | like.

Or sell your kids to the "gypsies" for some extra $doe$.. <g>

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| On Thu, 1 Mar 2001 05:54:08 +0100, "Lister Storm" | | | >Just wondering, how an *** handles this all. | | Never get married, never have kids and you can do what you ***y well | like.

Lister Storm wrote: > >... But how does the 'working-class' cope with this? I have a good-looking wife. She gets premium dollar when she walks downtown. Seriously though, there's a lot of overtime available where I work. I'm a mechanic for a car rental company. When I feel the need for an upgrade, I'll just do a couple 7 day work weeks. -- Fester

BowtNetterToDo wrote: > >I normally tickle the wifes fancy a little to help convince her ireally need my upgrade..... "The Job of Sex"

On Thu, 1 Mar 2001 05:54:08 +0100, "Lister Storm" <[email hidden]> wrote: >Just wondering... <SNIP>

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>So that's quite a lot of money for a simple student... But how does the >'working-class' cope with this? Are you actually as nuts as i am? I just >work more to pay for this all during the evenens at a crappy McDonalds. But >you, you have to convince your wife that you really need your new equipment >for, as she might call it, 'that stupid for children intended game of yours' >(try to explain to a female what is cool about simracing, not possible). My >mum is 53, and doesn't understand it. Although she is so kind to start up >the Forum-GPLL server every afternoon which is located in her office;)

LOL! I guess I'm just blessed -- my wife would rather have me at home "driving" on my computer, rather than out running around doing who-knows-what! I'm also blessed in that my wife has hobbies and interests of her own, so she doesn't require that I constantly entertain her -- and we actually share in each other's interests to some degree (she tries to look interested when I show her new things, even though she really doesn't "get" this whole sim racing thing). >So the question is, how do you cope with the investments your hobby >requires. How much money have you invested or are you planning to invest for >WSC or N4 for example? Do your relatives get angry when you pay 125 Euro for >a cool Lan-event? And if you look at the time you invest in it? Do you ever >get complaints when it's 3am and you are still in Vroc (for GPL that is)? >Just wondering, how an adult handles this all. It can be a pricey hobby, but one of my wife's sorority sisters has a husband who races Sprint Cars, so in comparison, my computer-related expenditures are minimal (and my wife is glad for that). I try to purchase things that are NOT cutting-edge, and I wait until prices come down before making a purchase. I never buy the "fastest" CPU or the latest one on the market -- I always shoot for the top end of the "midrange" if possible, and I find I get a good useable lifespan out of my systems with minimal investment. Ditto graphics cards -- I tend to hit ebay a lot and buy stuff from the people who MUST HAVE the "cutting edge" stuff -- that's how I snagged my TNT2 Ultra last year for $45, and I picked up my GeForce256 a couple of months ago for $65 from the UBid auction site. I'm never "cutting-edge," but my system usually qualifies as "above adequate." As for the late-night racing sessions, yes, I do take a lot of grief over that, but if you play with headphones and the lights out, you can always tell your wife that you "fell asleep on the couch" when you come to bed at 3:30 in the morning! ;-) -- JB F1CS2K Rank Handicap 59.118 http://f1cs2krank.dhs.org/

-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- Hash: SHA1 would your wife marry me ? "John Bodin" <[email hidden]> a �crit dans le message news: [email hidden]...

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> On Thu, 1 Mar 2001 05:54:08 +0100, "Lister Storm" > <[email hidden]> wrote: > > >Just wondering... > > <SNIP> > > >So that's quite a lot of money for a simple student... But how > >does the 'working-class' cope with this? Are you actually as nuts > >as i am? I just work more to pay for this all during the evenens > >at a crappy McDonalds. But you, you have to convince your wife > >that you really need your new equipment for, as she might call it, > >'that stupid for children intended game of yours' (try to explain > >to a female what is cool about simracing, not possible). My mum is > >53, and doesn't understand it. Although she is so kind to start up > >the Forum-GPLL server every afternoon which is located in her > >office;) > > LOL! I guess I'm just blessed -- my wife would rather have me at > home "driving" on my computer, rather than out running around doing > who-knows-what! I'm also blessed in that my wife has hobbies and > interests of her own, so she doesn't require that I constantly > entertain her -- and we actually share in each other's interests to > some degree (she tries to look interested when I show her new > things, even though she really doesn't "get" this whole sim racing > thing). > > >So the question is, how do you cope with the investments your > >hobby requires. How much money have you invested or are you > >planning to invest for WSC or N4 for example? Do your relatives > >get angry when you pay 125 Euro for a cool Lan-event? And if you > >look at the time you invest in it? Do you ever get complaints when > >it's 3am and you are still in Vroc (for GPL that is)? Just > >wondering, how an adult handles this all. > > It can be a pricey hobby, but one of my wife's sorority sisters has > a husband who races Sprint Cars, so in comparison, my > computer-related expenditures are minimal (and my wife is glad for > that). I try to purchase things that are NOT cutting-edge, and I > wait until prices come down before making a purchase. I never buy > the "fastest" CPU or the latest one on the market -- I always shoot > for the top end of the "midrange" if possible, and I find I get a > good useable lifespan out of my systems with minimal investment. > Ditto graphics cards -- I tend to hit ebay a lot and buy stuff from > the people who MUST HAVE the > "cutting edge" stuff -- that's how I snagged my TNT2 Ultra last > year for $45, and I picked up my GeForce256 a couple of months ago > for $65 from the UBid auction site. I'm never "cutting-edge," but > my system usually qualifies as "above adequate." > > As for the late-night racing sessions, yes, I do take a lot of > grief over that, but if you play with headphones and the lights > out, you can always tell your wife that you "fell asleep on the > couch" when you come to bed at 3:30 in the morning! > > ;-) > > -- JB > F1CS2K Rank Handicap 59.118 > http://f1cs2krank.dhs.org/

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On Thu, 01 Mar 2001 15:24:34 GMT, "Txl" <[email hidden]> wrote: >-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- >Hash: SHA1 > >would your wife marry me ? <SNIP> LOL! I'm just guessing here, but I'd have to say "probably not." Sorry! ;-)

Heck the with over-time stuff Uncle Fess.. Would your pretty wife walk downtown here?? pleazzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzze!! :-) Cheers Thom_j. "Uncle Fester" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:[email hidden]...

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| Lister Storm wrote: | > | >... But how does the 'working-class' cope with this? | | I have a good-looking wife. She gets premium dollar when she walks | downtown. | | Seriously though, there's a lot of overtime available where I work. I'm | a mechanic for a car rental company. When I feel the need for an | upgrade, I'll just do a couple 7 day work weeks. | | -- | | Fester

"John Bodin" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:[email hidden]... <snipped> | As for the late-night racing sessions, yes, I do take a lot of grief | over that, but if you play with headphones and the lights out, you can | always tell your wife that you "fell asleep on the couch" when you | come to bed at 3:30 in the morning!<re-snipped> Now this is reallllllllly funny John!! hahahahaha :-) Chuckles Thom_j.

"Lister Storm" <[email hidden]> wrote > But how does the 'working-class' cope with this? PC gaming has always, and will continue to be an expensive hobby. -- -- Fran�ois M�nard <ymenard> -- May the Downforce be with you... -- http://www.ymenard.com/ -- People think it must be fun to be a genius, but they don't realise how hard it is to put up with all the idiots in the world.

Yep. Sim racing really does simulate real life racing: the sign over the door of Smokey Yunick's legendary race shop reads: "Speed is money, how fast do you want to go?" So it is with sim racing. Last year I spent over $700 US for a new computer (well, I would have spent it anyway as my P2/333 died) designed for racing. This year, I hope to keep it under $400 (GeForce Ultra, some RAM and perhaps a soundcard to replace my SB 64 AWE). IF I hit a huge jackpot, I'd probably get a whole new computer from the ground up: 1.5 Tbird, GeForce 3, 256 M ram, not sure which soundcard. I'd also get a new wheel combo. Probably close to $3000 before I'd be done. Oh, and a laptop to run Excell to monitor setups and other data. I'm certain that I'm not the biggest spender in pursuit of this hobby, but I do what I can. BTW, in 2 weeks I'll get my bonus check. A significant percentage will be going to feed my sim racing addiction. ymenard wrote:

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> "Lister Storm" <[email hidden]> wrote > > But how does the 'working-class' cope with this? > > PC gaming has always, and will continue to be an expensive hobby. > > -- > -- Fran�ois M�nard <ymenard> > -- May the Downforce be with you... > -- http://www.ymenard.com/ > -- People think it must be fun to be a genius, but they don't realise how > hard it is to put up with all the idiots in the world.

"Mike Donnelly Jr" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:[email hidden]... > I'm certain that I'm not the biggest spender in pursuit of this hobby, butI > do what I can. BTW, in 2 weeks I'll get my bonus check. A significant > percentage will be going to feed my sim racing addiction. I sense that you are not married. Ed

How'd you know? :) Edward Mills wrote:

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> "Mike Donnelly Jr" <[email hidden]> wrote in message > news:[email hidden]... > > > I'm certain that I'm not the biggest spender in pursuit of this hobby, but > I > > do what I can. BTW, in 2 weeks I'll get my bonus check. A significant > > percentage will be going to feed my sim racing addiction. > > I sense that you are not married. > > Ed