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March 13, 2001. Please send comments and questions to Ray Skoog. Given how rapidly the computer industry cranks out new hardware that's faster, cheaper, smaller, etc etc, than the last generation, it gets to be a pain to keep up to date, or even to know what changes are important, so you can keep up to date on them. This page is here to make it easier. You probably won't even need to read anything other than this page in order to have a decent picture of what you (well, most people) want to look for in a new computer. First, we have to start on a bad note, of sorts, because there are actually fewer bad things than good things and so they're easy to point out: Ray's List of Very Bad Things (click for more info on each): 1. RDRAM 2. Proprietary, oddball hardware. General System Recommendations: Brand: Any company that offers what you want (or maybe CRC). More... Processor: AMD, with 800mhz being a good clockspeed to start at. More... Motherboard: Not an issue if you are buying an assembled computer. More... Memory (RAM): From 128mb to 256mb, but beware of RDRAM! More... Hard Drive: Basically just get whatever is inexpensive. More... CD-ROM, DVD, zip, floppy: Whatever you need. More... Video card: Virtually any card is fine for normal work. More... Monitor: 19" is a good size for a good price. More... Mouse, Keyboard: Mostly personal preference. More... Case: Medium-sized is best, but beware of odd cases. More... Old reviews: November 2000, and October 2000. |
