How to Buy a Computer - Part 1 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Some Sage Advice: (Apologies to Macintosh and UNIX people - I am limiting this to IBM-PC types at this time.) If you are considering buying a better computer or maybe you need a second computer for your business, here is some advice that will get you more for your money. An important tip on buying a computer is not to buy more than you need, especially in a business. As a computer consultant and Web Site Designer, I do most of my work on a 586 computer. Even a 486 can keep up with most of what I do. Seriously consider what the computer will be used for, before you decide what type of computer you need. Don't buy a computer that has a slimline case (very small and not very high) if you can. They generally use a propietary motherboard which makes it difficult to upgrade and may cost you extra in the long run. Buy a computer with a standard size case -- it will cost you less to u pgrade it. Now here's the breakdown of what hardware you need in a new computer: * CPU type and speed is an important criteria for your next computer, don't be fooled into thinking that you have to buy a Pentium II computer: - For ordinary office applications, surfing the web, and basic computer games, a Pentium class processor running at 120 MHz or above should prove adequate. - If the software you are running is disk intensive (does it read and write to the disk files a lot?), then a 120 or 133MHz 586 or Pentium computer will probably be satisfactory for your needs. What is really needed is a faster hard disk drive. I suggest getting one of the new SCSI III drives (Small Computer Systems Interface) that transfer at up to 40MB a second. You may spend from $300 to $500 more for your SCSI III hard drive and a new controller card, but you will save from $750 to $1000 if you bought a low-end Pentium II computer with slower EIDE hard drive technology instead. - Folks involved in 2D graphics, cutting edge gaming, Desk Top Publishing, or the like should consider a Pentium or Pentium II class processor that runs at 200 MHz or better and has an MMX instruction set. - Professionals that need to do CAD, 3D modeling, engineering modeling, or other power applications should consider the fastest processor they can afford. The Pentium Pro is optimized for 32-bit applications and doesn't do well with older 16-bit applications so it's best used with those power applications and for network servers if MMX is not needed. The Pentium II is newer and I've not tested it enough to know it's limits but it appears to run both 16-bit and power 32-bit applications well and has MMX for those that need it. * Memory is another area of concern. Most applications will run acceptably on a computer with 16 Mb of RAM, but you will be happier with 32. If you're running more than one or two major applications or multitasking many applications at once then 32Mb is necessary. Windows 95 can't effectively use more than 64 MB, so if you are running high-end 32 bit software that can, you should consider running it under Windows NT or OS/2 Warp using a Pentium Pro or Pentium II for maximum performance. * Hard Disk Storage needs vay widely. While most office computers will never even fill up a 2 GB hard drive, home users often have more demanding needs. Many games will take away that disk space 50 MB at a time, and there is always space being taken with graphics, swap files, temp files, sound files, clip-art and just plain junk. For the home user, 2 GB is beginning to push the comfort limit and 4 GB would be a wiser choice. - If you need more storage than that, consider installing a SCSI III adapter that will allow you to chain up to 7 or 14 devices. SCSI III allows faster disk access and less CPU resources than EIDE for a performance boost. You'll find more types of devices can be used with SCSI like Scanners and faster Tape Drives in addition to Hard Drives, Removable Drives, CD-ROMs, DVD, Optical, etc. Note that SCSI drives are more expensive than EIDE dives, however. * The keyboard and the monitor are two things you should never buy too cheap. - The keyboard should be of good quality and comfortable to use. Don't forget the pointing device (mouse, trackball, etc.) - The monitor should have a large enough screen size for what you plan to do. Don't settle for a monitor less than 15" (measured diagonally) and get the largest and best you can afford. These are your eyes folks. Personally I would opt for a 17" for general use and a 19-20-21" if you do a lot of graphic-intensive work. Some monitor screens are very hard to read. Always test the monitor you expect to purchase to see if it's "easy" on your eyes. * Get a video card that is widely supported, like the Matrox Millenium series, for every-day use. The newer 3D cards are for the gamers and CAD people to figure out as they are in a constant state of flux and different applications support different cards. * Don't forget about incorporating a backup technology to your new computer. You can get removable drives, optical technologies, or tape cartridge drives depending on your needs. If you will be exchanging lots of information with other computers you might want to get the same type for all by using an external SCSI device. Then you only need to put a SCSI controller card in each computer and can swap the external drive between them. - Stay away from parallel port devices. They are limited by the speed of a parallel port, which can be 20 times slower than SCSI, and you may have problems connecting several devices to one parallel port. * Modem standards are stabalizing now. In 1998 you should be safe buying a 56Kbps modem. Most telephone lines can't go that fast and the Federal Government currently limits your speed on those that can to 53Kbps. 56Kbps technology only allows high-speed in one direction and uploading is at the lower speeds (28.8Kbps or 33.6Kbps.) Unless you need a 56Kbps modem right now just get a 33.6Kbps. There are other options (ISDN, xDSL, cable modems, satellite, etc.) but none is universal at this time so if you have a special requirement talk with your consultant. * A CD-ROM is universally needed these days. Most applications (and Operating Systems) today come on CD-ROM so don't skip this item. What type CD-ROM drive to buy will depend on the type of CD-ROMs you will be using. If you are going to run a lot of multimedia CD-ROMs then you probably should get a 16X or 20X speed drive. Even an 8X will do for most uses. If you're running applications off a CD-ROM then get the fastest that the applications can support. Some applications on some slower computers won't run properly if the drive is too fast. * For general-purpose Sound get a 16-bit Sound Blaster with a Wave table. Stay away from clones as some of them are not recognized by all applications that expect a real Sound Blaster. Those of you with special requirements, such as MIDI, Voice Operated/Dictation, Screen Reader, Voice Mail, etc., need to talk with a consultant. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Prepared by Peter Conrad Cumminsky, consultant, ASEE, CET, Team OS/2 (707) 987-9484 Visit my Computer Taming web site at http://www.angelfire.com/biz/taming/ (C) Copyright 1993-1998 peterconrad@hotmail.com