Computer & Server Buying Tips

Introduction
With the bewildering array of specifications, it's difficult to decide how to optimize the performance of a PC for your needs. The following are some general guidelines to help you maximize performance without breaking the bank.

Processor Speed Unless you're doing design work (CAD) or a gamer, processor speed is of moderate importance. Usually anything 2.8GHZ or faster is more than sufficient. Graphics Like processors, CAD, 3D Modeling, games benefit from fast graphics cards. Business & 2D graphics applications generally don't benefit at all, so save your money for something that does! Memory Windows XP just loves memory and programs are getting bigger and bigger. Generally an upgrade from 256MB to 512MB will give you more performance than a processor upgrade from 2.8GHZ to 3.6GHZ for 1/4th the cost!! If you're a power user & run many programs or do design work, then consider upgrading to 1 GB. Disk Drives Bigger is not necessarily better. Most users rarely need more than 20GB of storage particularly in businesses with servers. However the smallest commonly available drive is 80GB and unless you collect and manage lots of video, photographs, or music save your money and upgrade something else. If a fast system is important to you, then choose one of the Western Digital 10,000RPM SATA Drives. They are significantly faster & contribute much to speeding up the entire PC's performance! Monitors Bigger is better! The one part of your computer that you use the most, the only part of the computer that you'll be able to use for many years, so get a large high quality monitor. Larger screens are more efficiently with less scrolling & more info on screen, hence provide greater productivity. Overall an excellent investment. Printers Before buying any inkjet printer, analyze how many pages you anticipate using and compare the cost of the printer & ink with the cost of a color laser and the toner it would use. Be sure to make the comparison on a page by page basis, not the cost of the cartridges. In a typical business environment, it's not unusual for an inkjet printer to cost twice as much as a laser printer in the first year including supplies.   Servers A page of its own, but the following tidbits will help in maximizing effectiveness. Don't obsess over dual processors unless you have many users or special needs. RAID 1 (Mirrored Drives) is often faster and less expensive than RAID 5 for small biz. RAM, can't have enough. If running Server think 1GB minimum. If SBS 2GB minimum. Backup, Backup, Backup! Tape is still best solution. DAT Drives cost twice as much as cheaper Travan drives. However, DAT drives are less expensive to own and operate over their useful life since the cost of tapes is much less expensive AND they are faster and more reliable. Wireless Networking It's great for home, no wires to run, but for business, forget about it unless there's a special need. At best, it's 1/2 the speed of 100BaseT &1/20th the speed of 1000BaseT which every business should consider as their next upgrade. If you don't know how to secure your wireless network get someone that does. If you have, or plan to acquire a notebook computer, then be sure to get a wireless adapter since most hotels now have wireless Internet. You can even often pull in parking lot of hotels or hot spots, turn on the notebook and go!

Hard Drive Care & Feeding
Your hard drive, over time, becomes a bewildering and inefficient maze of scattered bits and pieces of files. A couple of tips are, (1) Uninstall programs you no longer use, delete unneeded files, and clear the cache in Internet Explorer under Tools->Internet Options. (2) Be sure to run the Windows Defragmenter at least once a month. Better yet, run the Windows Scheduler and set Defragmenter to run once every week when you're not using your computer.

What's In Your System Tray
The System Tray is that small area in the lower right of your screen which shows which programs are running. Every program that runs uses some of your processor's time. An excessive number of programs running can cause a system to run significantly slower than normal. Programs such as Real, Winamp, Quicktime, Adobe, and many others often load in the system tray to speed access to them when you use them, consuming system resources as they patiently wait until you need their services. In most cases you can tell these programs not to load in the system tray or at startup and improve performance. Go to www.windowsstartup.com for tools and descriptions of which programs you can safely remove.

Better Images on Flat Panel Displays
Flat Panel Displays look best when driven at their native resolution. If your 19" Panel specifies 1280x1024 then set your graphics card to that resolution and 60HZ for refresh. If the characters are a bit too small then set the properties for Large Fonts and don't forget Microsoft Word, Excel, and others have a view or zoom function to enlarge the print within the application. As a side note, 19" Flat Panel Displays are generally less than $100 more than a 17" model and have the same resolution. Therefore, they provide a better viewing perspective at their native resolution, are easier to read, and a good investment.