Yes, I am a woman and yes, I work on computers for a living. This doesn’t mean that I don’t get confused with all the fancy and flashy gimmicks out there. I mean, it’s just a computer right? I know walking into a Best Buy can either suck you in or repel you. I get sucked in. I want all the big screens and loud surround sound systems and fancy computers. I can get mesmerized by the lights and sounds. So to save myself from myself, I do a lot of research. I know what I want before I go in there. OK, first, Desktop PC, Laptop, or MAC? I am a lover of the desktop. You can get a lot more bang for your buck when comparing a desktop to a laptop. Granted, you can’t carry around a desktop but if you need 1 solid computer, I would always have a desktop. It is cheaper to build a desktop and the parts inside are faster, come with larger hard drives, and a lot more bells and whistles than a laptop. Laptops are great for mobility. There are 2 types, a notebook or a netbook. A notebook is just what you think a laptop should be, bigger screen size, larger hard drives, dvd-rw drives…a miniature desktop. A netbook…is just what that sounds like…mobile internet. They have small screens, not much of a hard drive and generally no dvd/cd reader. It is made for internet access and not for data storage. You can not run a cd or dvd. Now, Macs…Great computer, now integrates well with PC programs and acts more like a PC. What Macs are known for is for their creative side…great for images, music, art…etc. They run efficiently and made differently than PC. Macs are very expensive and I recommend that if you are budget conscious and do not do a lot of creative things that you do on your computer, stick with a PC. A little unknown fact is that Macs do get viruses too and they do break down. Things to look for in any new computer: Brand Name (yes, there are some duds out there), Speed (the ability to access your programs and documents quickly) and Storage (how much can I put on this thing). Brand – Cheaper is NOT better. There are economy packages all over the place. They are put together poorly and have cheaper parts. It is not uncommon to have your newish computer die exactly one day over the warrantee. I promise I see it a lot. This doesn’t mean that you have spend a lot either, but please don’t be fooled by pricing and all the “extras”. In the end, the extras are all you will have. Now speed. There are 2 things I want you to look for: Processor speed/type and RAM. Yes, bigger here is better. Processor speed is measured in Ghz…again; all you need to know is the larger the number, the faster the computer is going to be. If the computer says Dual Core…this means it is has 2 processors in one. Each “core” is going to run at the speed of the Ghz…so 2 is better than one. Also, there are two major players in the computer world when it comes to processors. Everyone has heard of Intel but only a few recognize AMD. AMD is just as good as Intel. Plus they are generally a little cheaper than Intel. AMD is a fine choice. RAM- all you need to know is more is better. Generally anything new is going to have at least 1 GB (gigabyte) of RAM. The more you can afford the faster and efficient your computer will be. Storage- this will be determined by the amount of GBs stated on the hard drive. Again more is better. The larger the number the more pictures, music, files and documents you can store. Also, you can have a ton of programs stored. Most machines out on the market come with at least 250 GBs…use this as a guideline. I also want to take the opportunity to talk about Microsoft Vista. There are not many choices on PCs/Laptops for your operating systems. Big stores and computer outlets are only going to have Vista. There is another operating system coming out in fall to replace Vista. So far, reviews have been good. Vista has a lot of bugs and you may want to consider staying with XP. Generally, you can get XP from companies that custom build machines. Custom built machines are more reliable and you get what you pay for and no “freeware” or trial packages that clogs up your machine. So remember, cheaper is not always better, the bigger the number the bigger the bang…and don’t be fooled by flashy lights and a fancy gimmick. -Tara Belzer owns Friendly Computers in Charlotte NC. She has her own blog on www.tarabelzerfriendlycomputers.wordpress.com and talks about computer issues in an open forum. She enjoys helping people understand computers and make them feel more comfortable with them. Visit Tara’s Website at” www.friendlycomputers.com/charlotte
