hardware? is that like nuts and bolts?

Let me first say I am not an all knowing hardware person. I do know a few things from having been around computers for sometime now, and also from others who know more than I do about the actual parts that make the computers work. I am going to try to not be overly critical of any model or make of computer, but I will try to point out a few things often overlooked or unknown by most...

First off lets talk speed. Clock speed does mean something but it is not the end all factor of how fast your computer is going to compute. There are buffers and motherboards and memory access configuations that play a good part in this, as well as hard drives and video cards and such. So just because you see Brand X offering a 1.7ghz and Brand Y offering a 1.3ghz do not assume that the 1.7ghz is going to be faster than what appears to be a slower machine at first glance offered by Brand Y. The two main processor makers available are Intel and AMD. Both are fine as far as Windows operation and work well for many people. Intel is seen by many to be the "superior" brand but in my personal use I have not seen this to be the case. I do lean toward the AMD chips slightly and it is not for the reason of performance however. Simply put without making too much of it, I feel that Intel who is the larger of the two makers, would have little mercy on the computer buying public if it were not for the fact of AMD keeping the Intel chips within reason. If tomorrow they said AMD was bought by Intel or closed it's doors, I would expect a 100% increase in the price of processors made by Intel within 30 days. So for this if no other reason if all else is equal, perfer the AMD chip. There are some pitfalls to AMD processors and it has nothing to do with the processor it's self. The problem is the makers of the motherboards that use AMD chips. Most Intel processors are put into Intel motherboards on the big name brands such as Dell. AMD however does not make motherboards so it tends to rely on board makers to build the boards that use their chip. ( no you cannot put an AMD chip into an Intel motherboard or an Intel chip into a motherboard designed for an AMD processor ) Needless to say much of the performance and stabilty of the AMD system is dependant on the maker of the motherboard also. So if you really wish to be a smart consumer, you would find out what make and model of motherboard is used also with any AMD processor. Let me give you an example that is pretty easy to follow. You see computer A for $1500.00 and it has big clock speed numbers and uses an AMD Athlon Processor, say 1.2hgz. You see computer B next to it, for $1650.00 but it says it is a 1.1ghz AMD. All else looks about the same. They both have say 16x12x32x CD Rewriteables and they both have 40gb hard drives and so on right down the list. Why the difference in cost? Here is what you are likely to find inside the case. The one system ( computer A ) is likely to be using some lower cost motherboard like a DFI and have a 200mhz front side buss speed and using PC133 memory chips. The other system ( computer B ) could likely be using a bit more costly motherboard, say an ASUS A7M266 which is one of the fastest and most costly Athlon type motherboards and it also uses DDR memory which is faster but again more costly. In some cases, the speed may be over 15% faster from one system to the next - all and on paper it would seem at first glance it was not even the better buy. The best way to judge performance of the machine is not to use clock speed but to use benchmark testing standards and many will have the results posted for their computer. Also do a bit of reading about what motherboard maker is making good products and how likely they are going to be to support your purchase in say 3 years if a bios upgrade is needed or something as well. Oh, and one last thing for the Intel people. Just because biggest player Dell uses Intel boards and chips does not mean all systems with Intel chips are also using Intel motherboards. Most of the companies that make boards for the AMD Athon processor also make models for the Intel P3 or P4 chip as well. You should also know like many companies Intell makes several models of boards. So just because it says Intel motherboard does not mean it is their same board used on that system that costs twice as much by the same maker..

Memory. Lets face it. Most systems sold are not really fully stocked up for the really real world. As a rule of thumb you can call them starter computer kits because that is more or less what they are. You get enought software and memory to get you started, and then if you get online you will soon see with a visit to Windows Update that you have many upgrades to do in most cases. The other thing you soon find if you are a real system user and not just someone who types an email from time to time, is that you have about half the memory you would really want to have. So if you know what I am saying at this point and have the money to do so, just figure in doubling the memory when you get the system. If the store you are getting it from will not do it, with a bit of care it is not a hard thing to upgrade. You should just be aware of any service and warrently information that might be effected. So if it comes down to saving $25.00 to have them put in the memory at the store and keep a warrently on the system or putting it in yourself and voiding the warrently or service contract, then it is perhaps best you part with the $25.00. While most systems do not have hardware problems under warrently, it is not unheard of to see one either. Even from the best in the business like Dell , HP, or IBM. Oh, and do not take what you read in the computer magazines too much to heart. Lets face it, these magazines live and die by the ad revenue. It is not good to bit the hand that feeds either. So do you think they are really going to tell you that big "Brand Great's" machine is a pile of scrap metal when they are getting thousands of dollars for the full page lay out at the end of the article on who builds the best, fastest, most perfect computer? Like I have said before, I may have been born at night but it was not last night.

The next big mistake being done now is on ordered systems or just not asking if it is possible to upgrade a given part when you buy. Yes there are stores that will upgrade or add a second hard drive or something like that firewire card when you buy the system for little or no cost really. If you are at a really cool place it may be able to ask if they are willing to upgrade from the "function limited" Windows ME versions seen on most machines to the Windows 2000 Professional version for only a few bucks. Just the speed increase is well worth the extra money in most cases. This of course depends on your level of operating system knowledge too. If you are a person who is not all that up on the operation of things, Win ME might be a good choice for you, but believe me, if you are what is known as a power user, Windows ME is about like driving a Chevette on the freeway when you could be in the Mercedes Benz. They both may get you there but the ride is certainly going to be faster and more pleasent in one compared to the other.

My best advice to anyone is to read up on the information available. There are glossary's for the terms you may not understand right off but the biggest secret to any of this is to be able to read is all. 98% of the problems could be avoided with a bit more understanding in the form of reading. So do a bit of research and in most cases you will get the results you desire.