[geeks] SGI values

[Chris Byrne]

> -----Original Message-----
> From: geeks-admin at sunhelp.org [mailto:geeks-admin at sunhelp.org]On Behalf
> Of Joshua D Boyd
>
> Sigh.  Did you ask him what software he planned to use?  If he can afford
> the software he needs, then most SGIs are going to be viewed as
> affordable.
>

No clue what he would use. He's a traditional video guy (he's a freelance
cameraman) and just wants to play around with neat stuff Primarily he wants
to work with textured 3D and do some digital effects for video. Nothing pro
quality (hes got access to that stuff at work) just fun stuff for his
personal use.

> > This was the system I was thinking about for him for all around
> > MaxIMPACT +impcom
>
> How is he going to do any video on that?  By copying it over the
> network to/from a Mac?  Getting video I/O on that is going to be expensive
> and probably won't work as well as desired anyway (ie, compressed will
> really suck since everything will require rendering then, and uncompressed
> will be hard because of the cost and difficulty of getting additional SCSI
> chanels).
>

I thought the impcom board had video input? If not he'd need to go for a
High impact plus the impcom and I2V-FI.

>
> I've seen r12ks go for decent prices, but you want to stick with an r5k
> or r5.2k.  The r10ks and r12ks can be problematic for video
> handling.  Search
> the newsgroups for what I mean.  Some software packages specifically
> recommend or require r5ks.
>

Didnt know that, thanks for the heads up. Is the problem severe? Because the
r10K/r12k make a HUGE difference in 3d geomoetry performance  and if its not
diabling then I think the higher numbers are the way to go.

>
> I fail to see why he would need an MXI or MXI.  Why wouldn't a
> SI+Tram work?
>

I suppose it would, I was predicating the 3d performance on the MaxIMPACT or
fast r10/r12k O2 which I think would both be quicker than the SI+TRAM for
textured work.

> Such a machine would cost $900.  Reputable sells the personal video option
> for $1350, other places are far less (but not a constant source).
>  So, a little
> more than $2k, and you can't get much software for any SGI for
> less than $2k.
>

You can still get blender and gimp etc... There are a few open source
programs out there that will run on IRIX, but yeah the professional tools
are RIDICULOUSLY expensive.


Chris Byrne