MOUSE CLIX

By Hobie Lunin

Pssssst! Wanna Buy a Computer?

The first thing about buying a computer is not to get it from someone saying "Psst…wanna buy a computer?" The second thing is to stop at the Gateway Computer Store on Oxford Valley Road. They give a free seminar titled, "How to Buy a Computer." I discovered that when I walked in there the other day to play with a laptop computer. (Another nice thing about the Gateway Store is that you can actually use the computers that are sitting there. Desk, stool and all. Very nice!)

The seminar was great! A knowledgeable instructor gave it, Kevin Schultz, who even opened up a computer to explain what and where things were inside it. Well, perhaps you aren't interested in that, but seeing what the capacity is for add-ons is important.

I highly recommend a course such as this no matter what store gives it. When I took it, I expected a big sales pitch for Gateway. No such thing happened. Of course, you are in their store when you're done, so it's worthwhile to browse around get an idea of the prices. Because computers and peripherals are all they sell there, the people seem to be more knowledgeable than the competition.

Well, I can't duplicate what Kevin had to say, but I will cover some of the essentials. Physical pieces of a computer: monitor, central processing unit, keyboard, mouse, speakers, scanner and printer are all hardware. What makes it all work together is the software. Some of the software is included, but Gateway offers additional bundled software packages. Other manufacturers do the same thing or offer a bare bones computer with just the absolutely necessary items and leave the rest for you to accumulate as needed.

Then you can look at how to make the software actually work for you. First you have to put data into the computer like text, graphics (pictures) or sound by using the keyboard, mouse, scanner, digital camera, floppy disk, CD-ROM, joystick, microphone or downloading from the Internet. Then you may store it either on the hard drive, or floppy or Zip drive or even on a writeable CD.

You may want to process it, like edit, add, remove or do calculations. This is done in the memory (RAM). The output is where the data goes after processing. It can go to your screen, a floppy, to a printer or sent somewhere via the Internet or even back to the Hard Drive with a new name.

Connectivity refers to how you connect to various hardware or sources like a modem connection to the phone line or cable. Parallel and serial ports are for connecting printers, mouse and keyboard. The latest innovation is USB, ports that allow you to easily connect many peripherals.

The operating system which manages your computer through all of the above will be up do date if you get Windows Millennium Edition (ME), and this will be supplied with most new computers today.

What about the warranties? How long do they run? Will the repair persons come to your house or will you have to bring the unit in and where? Who pays if it has to be shipped and can you get an immediate replacement? And other questions: Is there financing? How upgradeable is the computer? Do you want a portable or a desktop? Do you want a printer? Does it need to be in color? Is print speed important? What about a scanner and what will you do with it? Try to get some help from a friendly source for this as well. Consider these or get talked into something by the salesman.

What you should do before you start looking is to determine what you want to do with the computer after you buy it. When you have done that and, for example, you decide that e-mail is all, I would not suggest a computer at all but rather the smaller more portable units (like Mail Station) that only do e-mail. Or if you only want to surf the web, then Web TV could be a less expensive alternative. If you want to be able to type letters or a book but you do not plan to send anything electronically then a word processor like a Brothers unit might be a better idea.

If you do not have a clear picture of what you may want to do, but you love to learn and are eager to look into all that computers have to offer, then a computer is for you. One way to find out what potential there is in a computer is to take some of the other free seminars that Gateway offers. These are not instructional, just informational.

Once you know what you want to do, share that with the salesperson. Try not to put yourself completely in their hands. Find out what they suggest and check it out with someone knowledgeable. As always, you can contact me at the e-mail address below.

My suggestion for the average beginner is the following (all of which can be upgraded later if need be): Hard Drive, 5-8 GB, Memory, 64-128 megabytes, Modem and Printer (use Consumer Reports to select one). A 15" Monitor is fine but a 17" makes things a bit easier to see. Hold off on the scanner or Zip Drive until you need it, but buy the surge protection/plug strip, some file storage for your floppies and CDs, spare ink cartridges and paper for your printer. An illustrated instruction book may ease those first attempts to get your new computer going. When you get your computer home, setup will be easier than you thought, as there are usually clear instructions in the box and color-coded connections.