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Tuesday, September 19,2000
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Hello Again!
Whoooooosh!! Has your month gone by as fast as mine has? I was thinking that it
was the 15th until about noon today! Oh well, enough excuses, just glad to be
back with you all. I've got a couple of useful subjects for you this month.
First, I get asked a lot of questions about buying new computers, and I am going
to pass on my advice to you in that area. Secondly, I thought I would also
address an issue that is related to the first newsletter, about Anti-Virus
software. Here we go...
Those of you that know me at all know that I build computers. I like to build
computers; it's a very satisfying task when everything goes well. I am a system
builder, and I have very definite ideas on "what components you use to
build a great computer". I'm getting to a point in my business that when
someone wants me to upgrade or improve their computer, there are some computers
that it is just not cost effective to do so. I recommend that they not spend any
more money on a computer that will eventually not be able to run the software
they need, and the parts that are now becoming collector items (that means way
too high because they are items that are hard to get a hold of), and will not
transfer to another system in the future.
We are living at a time when just about anyone with halfway decent credit can
own a computer of some sort by paying a small monthly payment. These "cheap
computers" can go either way on performance and reliability. Some of you
have been lucky, and your system has performed your tasks with a fair amount of
efficiency. Good for you! Others have not been so lucky! They may have paid
$1000 or more for their computers, and they have had a lot of problems.
To break this down effectively, it seems to me that there are three issues to
consider:
a) motherboards and components
b) quality control
c) service
I promise this is not going to be too technical. On the subject of
"motherboards and components", this is a matter that is near and dear
to my heart. The motherboard is the system board that every part of the
computer is attached to, and I subscribe to the fact that the least
integrated system is the best situation you can have. There are computers
that have a video card, sound card, modem, and/or the Ethernet card are all
integrated into the motherboard (built into as one component, not separate).
These are usually the cheapest computers you can buy. These computers are the
least labor intensive, because they slap a motherboard into a case,
snap some memory and a cpu on it, plug in a few cables and "PRESTO",
you have a computer! It doesn't take as many people to build this computer
and labor goes down, but unfortunately, so does your system performance. These
computers usually have a minimum lifespan, as well as minimum specifications on
things like RAM (usually 32 MB memory), motherboards, and hard drives (often
quite small). Let's just say this will be a less than gratifying,
computer experience. Let's say SLUGGISH!! If you happen to own one of these type
computers, your very best addition to upgrade this system to a tolerable
level is to increase the RAM (random access memory) as much as your budget
will allow, and your motherboard specifications. It is the single
most cost-efficient and performance- elevating upgrade you can do! I do this a
lot for people that have purchased these, and recommend memory upgrades a lot to
others via the Internet and phone calls. You can guess that there's not a
lot of "quality control" in these types of computers either, to:
a) keep the cost down, and
b) quality is not a priority.
Many computers are shipped with the operating systems preinstalled and no real
testing on your computer. Many are shipped to the customer or store with
problems that are not apparent until you get them home.
If you're wondering right now if you have one of these computers, look on the
back of the tower and see if your monitor, and/or your speakers, and/or your
telephone chord is plugged into the top half of the tower (along the side) or in
the silver/gray slats separately. The silver slat area toward the bottom is
usually the area that separate component cards (video, sound, modem) are
installed. The real advantage here is that if something goes wrong with the
sound, video, or modem, you simply replace one of the cards. It's
much less expensive to do this, than to buy a new motherboard eventually because
one of these elements is failing on your motherboard. That's my opinion
and I'm sticking to it! I build the component system all the way, and I still
think it is the best. You will almost always have something built into the
motherboard from the store systems, Gateway, Dell and so on, but the least
integrated into the board, the better! That's my motto, and my advice!
And finally, the whole works boils down to "service after the sale".
All of the computer manufacturers (me included) are using similar quality and
name brand parts. You have a 30 to 40 % chance that some of these parts will be
faulty, or incompatible with other parts, or fail in 6 months. It all can make a
huge difference if you happen to have one of these problems with your computer,
and if it is taken care of in a timely manner. The larger computer stores and
mail order companies like Dell, Gateway... provide phone support (which isn't
always adequate for your needs), local service provided by local companies, and
then the dreaded: "ship your computer to us in Timbuktu for
repairs" support. Many of you have experienced these things first
hand, some of you have been lucky, and some of you have been treated right.
Raise your hands if you've been treated right, to Heaven :)! Of course,
if you're my customer, you are treated the best :)! I provide a warranty on
parts and labor for a year and answer the call within a very short
period, usually 24 hours. That's how it should be!
When you buy a computer in the future, check on the service end of things, and
find out who is providing the service locally for that company, because sooner
or later you will be dealing with them. It can make or break (literally) you and
your computer, and you have a right to know what you are getting into, and
paying for in the beginning. Be an informed consumer when you buy your next
computer. Don't be afraid to look at the back of the computer tower, ask
"What peripherals are built into the motherboard" (sound, video,
modem). Ask them if these are separate from the motherboard. If its only one
built in, not bad, go for it. Get 128 Megabytes Ram (memory), you deserve it!
Get a big hard drive, at least 20 Gigabytes! Go for it! Be in charge! If you
can find a good system builder in your town, and compare prices; they can
compete with the big boys, and they can really compete with service.
Make sure they are reputable, as well. Get references on them, or any
service businesses you will be dealing with. If anyone balks at your inquiries,
go elsewhere! Get tough! Get the POWER OF KNOWLEDGE! If you have any questions,
email me. I'll give you an honest opinion based on your facts, so get the facts.
Quickly, on the Virus Scanning software, I know you're all tired now, so just an
opinion based on experience, get Symantec (Norton) Anti-virus software. It has
less side effects (they all have side effects), than others and McAfee can be
one of the worst! I can give you helpful suggestions and website pages to
aid in the dilution of the pesky side effects of Norton Anti-Virus
software, and some others. In my experience, Norton is the least deadly
software, and we all need an Anti-Viral program on our computers.
One more thing, keep them updated, they're only as good as the updating
information that they are fed. I'll elaborate on this more next
time.
That's all for now. Hope this was a helpful edition to your computer library
that we are building. Remember that I will have all these monthly issues of my
newsletter
available at my websites:
http://www.rockyreport.com
And
http://www.internetguideandmore.com
Thanks for reading! See you next month!
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