The Computer:
AMD Athlon, 1.9 GHz
Asus AN7X8
1.5 Gigabytes of RAM
Sound card: On Motherboard
I use a computer in my shack to perform several functions as follows:
1) To follow DX postings on web based DX Packet Clusters. For a dedicated DX'er this is a valuable tool. It allows me to see the band & frequency where DX is being worked.
2) To generate and decode digital signals for WSJT, RTTY, PSK, SSTV, and other digital modes. All of these functions are done using a sound card interface, and various software programs designed for this purpose. High speed meteor scatter on 6 & 2 meters, and EME on 2 meters are done using WSJT (Freeware) by Joe Taylor, K1JT. For RTTY I use MMTTY or Hamscope (both are Freeware). For PSK I use Hamscope. The sound card interface between my computer and radios is homebrew.
3) Computer logging of all contacts using AC Log. AC Log is a very nice logging program. It is inexpensive, provides a good summary of contact and award information, and uploads contact data to LOTW as needed. Log data is also kept in paper logs.
4) A second dedicated e-mail address used only in the shack.
5) Numerous other functions such as looking up call-sign information, Meteor Shower information, and watching the weather.