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Buying a new computer
can be as difficult as buying a new car. No matter how much
research
you do, how many showrooms you visit, and how much bargaining
you do. You still may not be completely sure that you did
indeed get the computer that you need.
What processor
should i buy? or what size monitor do i
need? are questions much more a matter of your personal
financial ability. More is of course better, more is also
not entirely
necessary.
Much in the same way that you can buy a car with manual
windows or electric windows. Both work just fine to move
the glass
up and down. However there are a few things that need you
need to be aware of. So read on, as we review a few
simple principles.
What do you want to do with your new computer?
A computer has only one purpose and that is to run programs.
Some programs require a better endowed PC than
others. So the first order of business would be to discover
what kind of programs you want to run.
For many buyers, this is a Catch-22 situation. They can't
buy a computer until they know what they want to do with
it. But
they can't really know all of the uses there are for a computer
until they own one.
This problem isn't as tough as it seems, however. Go to your
local computer store, and look at the software that's
available.
Find the software that looks like something you will need or
will enjoy in the case of a game. Now look for a bit of
information on the outside that will say something to the
effect of "Minimum
requirements" After looking at a
few packages,
it should
be pretty clear to you that any mid-range system will run 99%
of the available software. You only need a top-of-the-line
system
for professional applications such as graphic design and
video production or for cutting edge games.
Software tends to lag behind hardware, because it's written
to reach the widest possible audience. A program that
only worked
on the fastest system would have very limited sales potential.
Computers, old before
their time.
Buying the latest computer system is like buying a fancy
new car. You pay a high premium just to get the newest
model. As
soon as you drive the car out of the lot, it becomes a
used car, and its value goes down several thousand dollars.
This is especially true with new computers since new
models comes out regularly and your "latest
and greatest" becomes
a has-been very quickly , and its value plummets. The technology
industry is one of the very few where everybody knows that
the speed
will get better and better and the prices will continue to
go down.
By computer standards, a two-year-old model is really old,
and
a three-year-old
model
is practically worthless. Sinking a lot of money into today's
top-of-the-line computer makes you less willing (and less
financially
able) to upgrade a couple of years from now, when you may
really need it.
Some people think that if they only buy the most powerful
computer available, they won't have to upgrade for a long,
long time.
These people forget, however, that the speed of processors
double about every 18 months. (Moore's Law) as dose the software.
However nobody ever really needs to upgrade their computer,
ever. The
only
reason ever to upgrade is to continue to use newer and
newer programs. Your computer will continue to be able
to use it's
same generation software for an indefinite time period.
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