Does Your Web Ad Copy Fail to  Reach Your Audience? 

Click Here for Help!

There is nothing like the power and ease of use of a new computer.  Most of the machines out there today are really fast, have LOTS of RAM and hard drive space.  In addition, most new computers have a dual layer dvd burner or blu-ray drive.  Add to that a nice, large flat panel display and you have a pretty nice package.  There are still some tips on what you should be looking for, and what to avoid, if possible.

Note:  To save time and space, I have put links to some technology terms in this article.  Just click on the underlined word and you can find out more about the term.

You will always have some problems when buying any new item that is pre-configured.  There are always trade-offs and the idea is to avoid problem items as much as possible and get the most bang for your buck.

What you want to do first is to decide five things:

1. 1.  What do you need the computer to do for you?
   

2. 2.  What do you want the computer to be able to do?
   

3. 3.  What computing platform do you want to use: Linux,
   

      Macintosh, or Windows?

4. 4.  How much money can you spend to get items 1 and 2.
   

5. 5.  Where are you going to get the computer?
   

These are very important questions and I will address each one of them.

Item 1:  What are your computing NEEDS?

If you don’t need a computer for anything (even email), you can stop here.  If not, read on.

If you normally don’t spend much time with the computer and you don’t do a lot of business related work on it, just about any computer will do.  Just don’t go out and buy the newest, most expensive system out there.  The more features a system has, the more possible points of failure there are.  Remember this old acronym KISS, Keep It Simple, Stupid. (The last item in this list is for those who fail to follow the first part of the saying.) 

Look for value for your money and shop around.  I would recommend pricing at least 3 systems before buying.  Usually you can get a fairly decent system at Wal-Mart, Best Buy or Target for a low price.  You can also get these online, but be careful who you buy from - check out their reputation.

If you spend a LOT of time on your computer (everyone wonders if you ever leave the machine for meals or bathroom breaks), then you need to look at a more robust solution.  Shoot for a system that has at least 1 to 2 Gigabytes (GB) of RAM.  If you can afford to get a system with 4 GB of RAM - do it - you won’t regret it. 

Get a computer with at LEAST a 250 GB hard drive.  You’ve heard the saying that more is better, and this is definitely the case here.  Hard drives fill up fast.

Look at major brands for purchasing, but don’t forget the local computer store, either.  Some places will do an excellent custom build for you.  I find that my customers that have greater needs are usually happier with the custom machine.  It may cost more than the name brand solution, though, since the small vendor cannot buy components and software in quantity like Dell, HP, or Gateway.

A fast processor is a must for a heavy user, so target one that has dual core, or even quad core processing.  What this means is that there is more than one microprocessor in the processor case, so it can work on multiple tasks at a time, instead of swapping back and forth between process A and process B.  The faster the clock speed of the processor, the better.  One point to remember her is the fact that a multiple core processor will normally outperform a single core processor because it is like having more than one processor on the Motherboard (also called the system board).  Intel’s 3.2 Gigahertz (GHz) i7 is a quad-core processor.  To compete with it, a single core processor would have to run at approximately 12.8 GHz!  I am running a 2.8 GHz duo core and I do things like video editing on it.  There are only rare times when I would want more. (Actually I wouldn’t complain if someone were to give me a supercomputer!!)

The other thing to remember is that you want a 64-bit processor for today’s technology.  There are still a few 32-bit processors being sold out there - be aware of what you are buying.  Although most 32-bit computers are fairly fast, the 64-bit machines are the future of computing.  Apple’s machines became 64-bit a few years ago and the Windows platform is supporting both 32-bit and 64-bit computing.  The advantage is that you will be able to move approximately twice the data on a 64-bit computer than you can on a 32-bit one, all other things being equal.  A good analogy is you get twice the traffic down a four lane road as a two lane one.  The same thing applies to computers - the bigger the data path, the more data you can process at a time.

Now let’s talk about WANTS versus NEEDS.  If most people are asked, they will tell you that they want a million dollars.  If the truth were known, most of us only need enough to pay our bills and have some extra spending cash.

If you do have the extra cash, go ahead and try to satisfy a few wants.  Items like a really fast graphics card are important to those that work with games or graphics and multimedia.  A really FAST DVD Burner is not a bad thing to have either.  A large screen LCD panel display can be a need if you have poor vision, or a want if you just want the larger display.  Again, price comparison shopping is important.

Another major tip here is that if you are willing to lose a little bit of performance, it is always a good idea to look at computers that are being replaced by a newer model.  You usually get more bang for the buck when you do this.  I do this a lot, especially when buying a Macintosh, since they are a more expensive investment.

Then we come to computing platforms:

1. • Linux is an open-source version of Unix.  It is stable and reliable.  It is less expensive to implement than a typical Windows machine.  The operating system on Linux is free or inexpensive when compared to Windows or Mac OS.
   

1. • Macintosh is a VERY graphic oriented Operating System.  It is renowned for its ease of use and the quality of the software  that is available for it.  The down side is that Apple’s share of the PC market is between 7 - 15%, depending on where you are.
   

1. •Windows is the most common OS for personal computers today.  Microsoft and Intel developed their own version of “Plug and Play” or P-n-P several years after Apple developed  an Operating System and computer bus that was intelligent and knew about any new peripherals that have been added before start-up.
   

Mac OS and Windows detect most new hardware without a lot of user intervention - hence the term plug and play.  With a Linux box you will probably spend more time tweaking items and trying to find drivers that will allow your existing software and hardware to work together.  In the computing industry, there are ALWAYS trade-offs.

The last two items are the hard part.  How much can you spend?  If your budget is limited, you have to make hard choices.  The biggest mistake you can make is to not get enough memory or a processor that is too slow.  The slow processor may be a fixable item - unless the processor is soldered directly to the Motherboard - then you are stuck with what you have.  There also may be a problem finding a compatible processor several years down the road, so you might want to get the fastest processor  and the most RAM you can afford.  Hard drives are fairly inexpensive and the prices are always dropping over time, so they are very cost effective to replace.  I will usually compromise on the hard drive to get a faster processor and more RAM - then I order an additional hard drive the day I purchase the computer and I am very happy with what I have gotten.

As to where to get the computer - check around.  I was an eBay Powerseller for nearly 3 years and I always look to see what they are selling.  The key with eBay, or ANY online seller, is that you should ALWAYS check their feedback.  If an eBayer is below 80%, I don’t buy from them unless they are the ONLY vendor for that item, or unless they have a quite a few feedbacks that the buyer did BEFORE talking to the seller to work out any problems with the products.   Some folks just flame the vendor, THEN they ask questions.  I only had this happen two times in a 3 year run, but it is a pain and can hurt an honest seller’s reputation.

I also look at reputable online vendors - check their reputation BEFORE buying.  There are lots of scammers on the Internet.

If you just can’t wait for that nice, shiny piece of metal, plastic and silicon any longer, you can buy locally.  This is arguably the best choice if you want to insure that you have support for your computer, for repairs, upgrades, and such.

I hope this “mini-tutorial” has helped.  I apologize that it took me almost a week to complete it, but life happens!

Have a great day and come back for more hints and tips!