Ask Lemmy

This is just the Ship of Theseus.

Mobo because it's like the keel of the ship.

Although it falls to the same problem if you swap in the exact same mobo lol.

according to microslop, when you change the mobo

Ah yes, the classic Chip of Theseus problem.

The PC of Theseus!

As long as it's the same hard drive (or image), it's the same computer. New computer whenever it's a completely fresh install. I've had the same case since 2013ish. It's had a few new computers in it.

The timeless "PC of Theseus" question. For me, it's when I replace the motherboard. Especially if it involves a new case.

I don't think I have upgraded a processor for personal use this millenia

I upgrade my computer either when it's not working as desired or I come into some extra cash and wanna treat myself to a boost.

Sadly with the new memory and storage costs I'll probably ride this system out for ~10 years. (I pray she survives that long)

IMO, it's when you replace the motherboard. It's the real heart of the machine; without it, all your other parts ain't doing shit. And since you can get by longer on the same motherboard while still leaving everything else to be upgraded, getting a new motherboard very often necessitates getting at least a new CPU and possibly RAM if you're making a generational leap that requires a new socket type.

If I had to limit it to physically, I'd say the motherboard. It's the only thing in the box that everything has to be compatible with. Everything else is the extension.

Personally, I believe in a machine spirit. It's a nebulous concept and it muddies the water here, but really the object is new when it no longer feels like the old. If I install a new is some day and my fans don't breathe the same, my lights don't blink like they did, or the chirp of my drives sounds alien, then I know I've lost the ghost and will have to learn a whole personality. Same is true for all my objects.

Definitely when I get upgrade the mainboard + CPU, which usually also means new RAM. It's pretty expensive, you have to change several parts in one go and it's much more noticable in general usage than the GPU.

When you have upgraded enough components that you can build another PC out of the old parts.

When you upgrade the motherboard that's a new PC.

Replacing the motherboard.

we got a hammer in my family thats over 1000 years old...

The case of PCeseus.

In my head, for basically no reason, the motherboard is "the" PC. It's the one large part that really sets the overall generation. I could swap my previous PC's motherboard into my new case, the thing is DDR4 RAM and an AM4 CPU would have to come with it.

Because I do shit like build a SFF PC with an ITX board in a small case, and then turn around and build a fairly standard mATX board in a mini-tower, a lot of the case, case accessories, and GPU are fitted to the system. It would actually be pretty stupid to put the parts of my last PC in my current case because they'd swim.

Weirdly, the case. If the case is the same, my brain doesn't register it as a new computer, but the case changing makes it feel new even if the only thing that changed is the case

New mb, cpu, ram and videocard.

The ship of theseus says hello

You have to decide what it is that defines the entity

The title of "my gaming PC"? Whatever which holds the title is that PC at any given moment.

Defined by some property? Desktop setup, game/file collection, hardware type (whichever has the hardware most suitable for the task, eg. the most capable PC being your gaming PC, etc)

Defined by substance/components? OS image, motherboard / CPU, or even just the case, etc...

You can even use all definitions at once with completely different choices in each, because your current gaming PC might become your next home server as you buy a new PC, then you move around some components like RAM, reinstall a device, make one a media center for your TV, etc...

When it's a new build lol

And a new build means a new motherboard, at the minimum.

I used to keep one cd drive from the 90s in every built. Technically it could be understood as the same pc I just upgraded everything around the cd drive.

Last build I made I finally ditched it. I bought a case with bays just in case but I noticed that I haven't used it in the last 10 years so I just didn't install it.

We call that the Trinity in my family: mobo, ram and cpu.

For me it is the mobo + cpu + power supply since I do it rarely enough that I need all three. I usually do RAM at the same time, but sometimes expand it between upgrades. GPU is on a different cycle to spread out costs.

I used the same case for almost 2 decades, so it is definitely the innards that matter.

I knew someone who had essentially replaced every single component in their old PC over and over again, which resulted in the guts of a (then) modern gaming PC inside an old 486 tower because everything still fit.

Is it the same computer?

When you swap in a new motherboard.

After a CPU/GPU upgrade of more than two generations, each or combined, which usually necessitates a motherboard upgrade. Not always, but almost always.