This
section could go forever, but I'll restrict myself.
The first thing to think about is ease of setup.
To save yourself unlimited headaches, make sure that
your new purchase has each of the following. Take
this list to the PC store and hold your ground --
these are NOT negotiable!
-
Your new PC comes with a boxtopper, poster, or
videotape that tells in clear simple terms how
to set the beastie up;
-
Your I/O ports are clearly labeled, in English
and not in Geekish;
-
Your cables are color-coded to match their I/O
ports;
-
You have some sort of Internet Setup Wizard, a
software interface to guide you through the
process of your PC's first connection to the
Internet;
-
You get a printed user guide that tells you how
to use, upgrade, and repair the system;
-
You get a software-based user guide and help
tools that help you use, upgrade, and repair the
system (there is NO such thing as too much
help);
-
A
recovery disk, preferably a CD-ROM, that returns
the machine to its original settings in case you
run into irreparable problems or total system
failure;
-
A
minimum of a one-year manufacturer's warranty
AND round-the-clock technical support over the
phone and the Web;
-
At least one free PCI slot, a free
front-accessible drive bay, and a free IRQ for
when you upgrade the beastie.
Here's a few ideas for what else to look for in your
new purchase. One is a keyboard with CD/DVD
controls, a volume control and mute button, and a
one-button Internet launcher and telephone
answering-machine control. See the keyboards
included with the HP Pavilion series for an idea of
what a full-figured keyboard can have on it. Make
sure you have a decent mouse; if not, spring for the
$20-$50 necessary for a good one. Don't let them
stick you with a monitor less than 17" and running
at 1024-by-768 resolution unless you're paying less
than a grand. Insist on a minimum of 64mb in your
system RAM and at least 8mb, if not 16mb, of video
memory. Does it have an internal V.92 modem? It
should. Argue for a DVD drive over a CD-ROM; if you
need a CD-ROM capable of reading CD-RW discs, look
for a MultiRead drive. As far as internal chips go,
an AMD K6-2 or Intel Celeron II chip is okay for an
entry-level PC, but if I were spending serious
money, I would stick it out for a Pentium II. Ports
should include at least one USB slot and, if you're
buying a Compaq, a FireWire port also. If it's
labeled "Cable-modem ready," you have an Ethernet
card inside that will connect to the cable modem you
rent from the cable company. "USB-powered" or
"USB-controlled" speakers are analog speakers driven
from the USB port. "Digital audio extraction" drives
the USB audio with digital sound. If you get an Acer
machine, make sure it has a feature called
TimeMachine installed -- this is a hidden archive of
configuration settings and drivers for use when your
system melts down. Other manufacturers would do well
to copy this little treasure. And, avoid the Apple
iMac. It's cute and sets up like a dream, but it's
quirky, not easily expandable, prematurely reliant
on USB technology, very limited on software, isn't
nearly as fast as Apple would like you to think, and
the keyboard and mouse out-and-out suck. (The new
iMacs have some enhanced capabilities, but still
haven't addressed the above concerns except for
expandability.) If you really want a Macintosh, go
for the real thing, such as the PowerMac G3
(comparable to a PII-450) and be prepared to spend
some bucks (but even the G3 comes with schlocky
keyboards and mice).
Microsoft has a new policy of not including
full-fledged copies of Windows with new PCs.
Instead, they're providing "restore CDs," which
restore the machine to its factory configuration.
The problem with that is if you run the restore CD,
you lose everything you've installed since you first
used it. It supposedly discourages OS piracy and
promotes the idea of a "self-healing" PC, but it
doesn't sound like a good idea to me. You definitely
want to know if your vendor provides separate disk
copies of Windows and all bundled apps with your new
purchase, and take that into account when making a
buying decision.
A nice overall guide to new PC setups can be found
at www.zdnet.com/zdhelp/stories/main/0,5594,2226139,00.html,
and another one at content.techweb.com/winmag/columns/explorer/1999/0831.htm.
(An update to the Winmag column appears here:
content.techweb.com/winmag/columns/explorer/2001/03.htm.
Here's some info on setting up and using your new
DVD player: www.zdnet.com/zdhelp/stories/main/0,5594,2412455,00.html.
Thinking of installing Win 98/ME on a computer with
no operating system? It isn't as easy as you might
think. Read Microsoft's article at
support.microsoft.com/support/kb/articles/q221/8/29.asp
before you start.
A recent survey from PC World compares
walk-in computer retailers. The results were pretty
consistent. Shoppers overwhelmingly preferred
Gateway Country over any other storefront sellers.
Office Depot, Staples, and Circuit City were ranked
average, and shoppers frowned on Best Buy and
CompUSA. Of course, your experience may not jibe
with survey results. And, if you know exactly what
you want to buy and you can successfully resist
pushy salespeople, there's no reason not to take
advantage of whatever sale prices or rebates you may
find at one of the lower-rated stores.
But what to do with all those customized apps and
files from your old computer? Here's a few tips for
moving your old apps onto your new machine and
having them work (somewhat) as before. Say you have
an updated app on your old box; install the
original app onto your new machine, then install
the update(s). You need to be aware that most of
your updates are reflected somewhere in the
Registry. Launch RegEdit by going through Start/Run
and entering REGEDIT in the box. Navigate in the
left pane to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software and then
hunt down the folder for the application's vendor
(Microsoft, Symantec, Lotus, whoever). Within this
folder, click the folder for the program: for
example, HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office.
Now select "Registry\Export Registry File" and save
the selected Registry file to a temporary folder or
a floppy, and name it after the app you're moving.
Don't remove the .REG extension. Of course, Windows
doesn't store all of its configurations in the
Registry -- that would be too easy. You can figure
out which files need to be copied with this little
procedure: First, launch the app. Then change its
configuration -- select new options, change a
toolbar, create a macro, doesn't matter, you're just
making the app's files change for identification
purposes. When you've done this, exit the app, and
activate the "Find" function. In "Files or Folders,"
look for the "Name and Location" tab. Make sure your
hard drive is selected in the "Look in" field, click
the "Date" tab, select "during the previous 1 days,"
and then click "Find Now." When the search is
through, maximize the Find window and click the
"Modified" column header. The files that have been
changed in the last few minutes, with the exception
of USER.DAT and SYSTEM.DAT, are the files that go
with your app and need backing up onto your new
machine. Install the application first, then
transfer copies of the old, customized installation
files onto the new machine. To transfer that copy of
the Registry file, launch Regedit, select
"Registry/Import Registry File," and load the .REG
file from the floppy. For the rest of the
configuration, just copy the old files into the same
folders on the new PC, copying over any existing
files with the same names. Easy, huh?
Are you a Mac user making the switch to Windows? Yee
hah, you're in for some fun. Out of the kiddy pool
you go, into the cold deep water. This online
article from PC World might help:
www.pcworld.com/heres_how/article/
0,1400,13820,00.html; so will this site:
www.macwindows.com/.
And how about that old PC? A good rule of thumb for
an old machine is: sell at 2 years, donate at 3,
dispose at 4. Corporate users ought to look into
paying to have their machines professionally
disposed of, particularly if the computers have
sensitive data on their drives. Old circuit boards
and memory chips can often bring in money if they're
recycled, as the gold, silver, and palladium
contained in them is worth bucks (not to mention the
gobs of toxins released into the environment by
decaying old computers). If you're looking to donate
old machines, don't just dump them off at Goodwill
or the Salvation Army -- they don't want them.
Contact Share the Technology (www.libertynet.org/share)
or the Computer Recycling Center (www.educateusa.net)
for ideas on what to do with your old PC. Another
idea is to visit Dell's trade-in site at
www.dell4me.com/dellexchange, which gives you
three options: auction it off, trade it towards a
new Dell, or donate it to the Cristina Foundation.
Don't expect to make too many bucks off the old
horse, but it's better than retiring it to the
landfill. And you can find out about recycling that
dead cell phone at www.recellular.com/.
You can also donate junk CDs (old backups, that
stack of AOL disks, etc) to the Coast Guard. Yep,
the boys in light blue turn them into "survival
reflectors" to be stowed in life jackets. Ingenious.
Check www.cgaux.org/cgauxweb/getzip.html to
find a local Coast Guard auxiliary to accept the
unwanted disks.
