>>Not exactly #1 on my to-do list. :) But my opinion of HP and their policies ain't so hot, neither!
>
>HP's desktop systems have treated me well over the years, and their support staff at least in my local area is very good. They're in the toaster category - nearly all the office supply stores carry their entry-level to mid-level base systems and their QA is consistently good - I've yet to get a DOA box from them. It's not what I use at home, or what I choose for higher-end workstations, but they have the base components I want, have open slots for a NIC and a SCSI card if it's needed, enough video memory to run at 1024x768 at TrueColor, and come with the OS CD rather than a "System restore disk". I like the mid-tower cases (I really hate the slimlines with riser cards). I'd much rather get that than a Compaq!

I don't really have a problem with HP's computers, I've installed several for people and found them to be both very good value and reliable. My problems have been with their repair policies for printers/faxes/etc., not their computers. I have never had any problems with any of their computers, so I can't comment on whether the same problems I've had in the past exist there or not. I personally have used Compaq's and installed them for others without any problems there, either. What problems have you encountered with Compaq?

>The eMachine products seem to be sturdy, generic boxes, too - we've picked up a couple of their 400MHz Celeron boxes last November, and no complaints with them to date. One is in the warehouse processing incoming returns and verifying picked orders before packing and shipping (we added a wedge barcode laser gun and NetGear NIC) and the other is in use at one of the customer service desks. Again, the price is good, the component mix is reasonable, and it's a toaster that I can pick up at any of several office supply or electronics superstores in the area.

My only experience with an eMachine was very positive. A friend bought one that I helped setup. Took it out of the box and 5 minutes later they were online, no problem. An awful lot of extra useless crap came installed on the hard drive, though. Pretty similar to the low-end Compaq's. And I definitely don't like eMachine's and Compaq's decision to do the memory sharing that they do with their video. Does help to keep 'em cheap, though.

>When I need a high-end box, these are not what I buy - I'm still a "roll yer own" guy for my own use, and I've been very happy with server boxes from both HP and IBM. I've used a lot of LH3s for large-scale web site apps with one client, and aside from a bad external SCSI cable which came with an HP RAID array box (it took a while to pinpoint the error, but once we proved it was their cable, they got a replacement to us the next day) they've been reliable on receipt, and HP meets their on-site service guarentees the right way - when we report a dead server, the repair tech shows up with a replacement box that can be dropped in or cannibalized for needed spares. I've gotten none of the "gee, we don't have one of those, and the new < fill in the blank > doesn't work in this model" or endless on-site attempts to isolate exactly which part is being intermittent - fix it quick, or drop in the replacement and take the problem off-site for detailed diagnosis. It might be that our local
>office is unusually good, but I've been very impressed.

I've built a good many boxes for the office, others and myself. I'm not usually involved with too many "high end" systems, as you seem to be, though. We've used alot of Acer boards and have had very, very good success with them, though I have heard that others have had a terrible time with them.

Maybe my experiences with HP would be better if there was one nearby to where our office is, but there isn't, so I'll just leave that as unknown for know.

A friend of mine uses DELL pretty exclusively, and I know he is very happy with their products and support. He's purchased some very high-end equipment from them, and sometimes he's like one of the very early users of a product. I know he spends a fair amount of time on the phone resolving some early release configuration problems, but it always gets resolved in short order, even if it requires a new box or component be shipped out.