Kid is in 9th grade and interested in computer programming/science.  He is currently taking a web programming course and is participating on a school team in the 2014 picoCTF.  Future courses offered at the school are additional web programming, Java, Advanced Java and AP Computer Science.  His home machine is currently an older Quad core, 3 Gb Ram desktop running Windows XP.  It doesn't seem to be keeping up any more.  I am looking for suggestions of system requirements for a new desktop or laptop for him to use over the next few years in these courses.  Reading through the forums, it appears that many of you are well versed in this area.  Thanks  

I suggest getting an i5 or i7 processor. Get as much ram as u can afford. Also get a SSD and some nice dual monitors. I think those are those most important . hope that helps

If he is really into tinkering, get him a Raspberry Pi, an Arduino or similar. They are dirt cheap (compared to a workstation or laptop), they are small, and you can use them for so many things. They are usually running Linux - which is also something one should look into. Machine speed isn't important at all (although he might disagree, having some game requirements in mind). The right environment is much more important. Opinions here are, well, split.

 

My take: first dump Windows. Get a stable Linux machine with a free compiler. Choose from one of the many developer environments (everything from vi to eclipse - a matter of taste). And then let him just "hack away". The advantage of something like a raspberry pi is that you can much easier attach stuff to it - let it control lights, attach and control motors, combine that with a web cam and a battery plus wifi and you got your own webcam on wheels, remote-controlled from your laptop. Or maybe just this:

 

Get him a mac laptop, it can dualboot windows for gaming and other clowning around with bootcamp. I would buy something near the top 75% and it will last many years. I got mine 2 years ago and it's still a ton of machine for anything I throw at it. It isn't cheap but it's an investment in his future. Maybe work out a deal that he pays you back after he graduates collage and lands his first job making 150k.

 

The suggestion on a rapsberry pi is also good.

If he is interested in computers. Have him research, select the components and build his own. It is pretty easy these days and will give him valuable experience. I know I built my first computer at about his age. It taught me so much and helped me understand how computers and software work more than any class or reading.

If he is interested in computers. Have him research, select the components and build his own. It is pretty easy these days and will give him valuable experience. I know I built my first computer at about his age. It taught me so much and helped me understand how computers and software work more than any class or reading.

 

Yes, this is the way to go, source the components & build it up yourself, this was once they way to save money but not so much anymore (hard to beat the deals on packaged systems from lease returns from Dell etc.)  Building it yourself educates allot more in how they work & what's involved on the inside even if one just wants to programme. 

 

In the beginning you don't need a power system (but it's nice to upgrade componently when you decide you want something more).  I'd recommend sticking with what's the in the business world & that's still Windows & desktops so that's where you want the experience. It's nice to have "fun" systems on the side, sure, but if you want to build a career you need to follow the heard.

 

P7, 64 bit mb, min 16GB ram, SSD drive, Dual display monitor with at least a 2gb video

 

my initial serious workstation was a 486sx with 4MB ram & 256K Svga, prior to that I ran with a Timex Sinclair 1000 w/ 2K ram (expandable to  4K!!!).

 

... I do miss my Amiga 500 

You need to start with a budget... I agree with VV, but do it according to a budget - let the kid build his own. If you're wondering how to set a budget, go to the local DIY computer store as they usually have some pre-built systems you can choose from. Ask them about which would be better for your needs, take their advice with a grain of salt, and set a budget.

 

I also don't think you need an SSD or dual display. I'm on a computer 8 hours a day for work as a designer/programmer and I do it on a laptop with a core i7, 8gb ram (though 16 would be nice), a nice speedy SATA HDD and single 17" display. It can be done. However, knowing a little... RAM and video cards are generally two items not to scrimp on. 16gb ram is cheap enough that it would be a first choice. Then buy a brand name video card, don't rely on onboard video, ever, to get you by.

 

PS Our work has a SSDs should never be used to store data policy as the failure rate is high. SSDs are only used for boot/application drives. Obviously stuff gets pushed up to the servers, but your working copy should be stored on a regular HDD.

I agree with the build himself suggestions. Check out newegg.com as their users' reviews of each product are usually good.

I'd recommend sticking with what's the in the business world & that's still Windows & desktops so that's where you want the experience. It's nice to have "fun" systems on the side, sure, but if you want to build a career you need to follow the heard.

I'm not sure what business world you're in, but the majority of real developers at real tech companies use either Macs or unix boxes.

If he's serious about going down this route as a career path, get him the best of both worlds with a Mac, at which point he can start playing with iOS development as well.

I'm not sure what business world you're in, but the majority of real developers at real tech companies use either Macs or unix boxes.

If he's serious about going down this route as a career path, get him the best of both worlds with a Mac, at which point he can start playing with iOS development as well.

 

I don't want to burst your bubble, but I'm in that real developer world and can say without a doubt that Windows is just as relevant today as ever. Macs are nice, but with new mobile dev tools like Xamarin, you don't need a mac to do iOS development anymore.

 

And unix? I think you mean Linux and well, that's for either the real hard core self-made programmer types or the cheapies like government agencies who don't want to pay licensing fees.

I don't want to burst your bubble, but I'm in that real developer world and can say without a doubt that Windows is just as relevant today as ever. Macs are nice, but with new mobile dev tools like Xamarin, you don't need a mac to do iOS development anymore.

 

And unix? I think you mean Linux and well, that's for either the real hard core self-made programmer types or the cheapies like government agencies who don't want to pay licensing fees.

 

I don't know where or what industry you work in, but where I do and have, in the best, cutting edge tech companies in the world (that kids today and tomorrow will be wanting to work for and recruited by) I will argue Windows is irrelevant all day long.  Unless you're at Microsoft or somewhere writing native Windows apps, do you know how many developers you'll find at startups and the best companies in the Valley using Windows boxes?  Not many -- go ahead, take a trip to Google, Facebook, Yahoo, Twitter, eBay, etc, or any startup and let me know how many windows boxes you see.  Stodgy old stalwarts, banks, insurance companies, and other boring places to work?  Yeah, you'll find plenty of Windows boxes there I'm sure.

 

And no, I mean Unix, as in Mac OSX, Linux, BSD, Mach, and the million other variants out there.  When he goes to college, he will be using some flavor of Unix, and when he graduates and goes to work at a real tech company, chances are he will also use some variant of Unix -- if not at his desk, at the very least vnc-ing into remote unix boxes to run builds/servers and do other work, etc.  You're completely off base there.  

my dad can beat up your dad.

my dad can beat up your dad.

 

Tee hee... my dad has had a knee and shoulder replacement so I can't say that anymore, but in his hey day, lookout!

 

I don't know where or what industry you work in, but where I do and have, in the best, cutting edge tech companies in the world (that kids today and tomorrow will be wanting to work for and recruited by) I will argue Windows is irrelevant all day long.  Unless you're at Microsoft or somewhere writing native Windows apps, do you know how many developers you'll find at startups and the best companies in the Valley using Windows boxes?  Not many -- go ahead, take a trip to Google, Facebook, Yahoo, Twitter, eBay, etc, or any startup and let me know how many windows boxes you see.  Stodgy old stalwarts, banks, insurance companies, and other boring places to work?  Yeah, you'll find plenty of Windows boxes there I'm sure.

 

And no, I mean Unix, as in Mac OSX, Linux, BSD, Mach, and the million other variants out there.  When he goes to college, he will be using some flavor of Unix, and when he graduates and goes to work at a real tech company, chances are he will also use some variant of Unix -- if not at his desk, at the very least vnc-ing into remote unix boxes to run builds/servers and do other work, etc.  You're completely off base there.  

 

Anyways, yeah I'm not going to get into a pissing match. My tech world is Microsoft, I'll admit that I'm particularly close to it and more in tune with it than other areas.  We do work for a large variety of customers - personally I'm in the health care IT field and we're doing a big project in Manhattan right now. I come from a gaming (gambling, not video games) background that was also MS based. I've worked with lots of people who've moved to Silicon Valley or worked for startups but I never had the desire to leave Canada so my options were limited (and for years I was too chicken to try, now I'm just happy with my company).

 

I stick by my original point which got kind of lost - Windows is still very relevant and it's not like a kid in grade 9 will go wrong by learning any programming skills at this age whether it's Windows based or Mac based or Linux based or [insert flavor of the day here]. Kids may aspire to get a job at Google, etc,, but there are plenty who don't and end up making a good living and having fun working for stodgy old stalwarts. Heck, I've been doing this for over 20 years now so I'm probably a stodgy old stalwart myself!

 

Cheers dude, you made some good points.

I don't want to burst your bubble, but I'm in that real developer world and can say without a doubt that Windows is just as relevant today as ever. Macs are nice, but with new mobile dev tools like Xamarin, you don't need a mac to do iOS development anymore.

 

And unix? I think you mean Linux and well, that's for either the real hard core self-made programmer types or the cheapies like government agencies who don't want to pay licensing fees.

 

This is not entirely true.  With Xamarin, while you can write codes using Visual Studio IDE and C#, but you still require to have a Mac machine to compile/build the code into iOS app, and you also need it to perform an application code signing.

I'm doing Computer Science at University at the moment, just finished my first year. I started programming around your kids age. I used a PC early on when I first started. Thats partly because I grew up with PC's and thats what we had in the home. It really doesn't matter, you can learn programming on any platform Windows, Linux or Mac. But choosing one will limit your options, especially linux. 

 

My recommendation depends on what your after. If you just want a home desktop for your son to use and maybe even for gaming, get a PC or even better build one with your son. However if your son needs a computer for school and would like something portable, I would definitely recommend you get him a Macbook air, I have been using mine everyday for two years, and it hasn't skipped a beat. Yes, they cost more but they last a lot longer than Windows Laptop.

it's an easy search on Google to find the statistics on most used operating systems... Tech is an nitch but business is business.

Have you tried talking to any of his teachers to provide insight on this?