The New York Times

November 18, 1999

STATE OF THE ART

How Fast, How Big: Everything Computer Buyers Need to Know

By PETER H. LEWIS

     A fter nearly a quarter-century of intense research by many of the
     greatest technical and marketing minds on the planet, personal
     computers still force the average consumer to decipher an
     eyeball-glazing catalog of technical mumbo-jumbo like this, from a
     recent newspaper advertisement: "ATX w/300 Watt PS, 48x CD Rom, 9.1
     GIG LVD U2W 2MB Buffer, 128MB PC100 ECC RAM, Intel PIII 500 w/Fan,
     8 MEG ATI Xpert 98 AGP, 3Com 905TX 10/100 NIC. . . . "

     No wonder the Apple iMac has been such a popular computer. Until
     recently, the most daunting task for iMac buyers has been choosing
     a color: Blueberry? Grape? Tangerine?

     Some day, probably early in the next millennium, most computers
     will be as easy to buy as the iMac. The recent emergence of
     so-called information appliances, Web pads, smart phones and
     new-generation PC's is encouraging.

     There will always be people whose socks roll up and down in
     excitement when they see a list of technical specifications for a
     new PC, just as there are those who care passionately about the
     cubic inches, cylinders and horsepower of an automobile engine, or
     the combined slugging percentage and on-base average for baseball
     players. For many people, especially professionals, the megahertz
     and megabytes are worthy of intense scrutiny.

     For the rest of us the goal is merely to get the best deal on a
     personal computer that will meet our computing and communications
     needs, and budget, for a few years before it becomes obsolete. To
     make that choice easier, I offer a guide to buying a personal
     computer.

     Keep in mind that almost any personal computer sold now has more
     than enough power to handle tasks like word processing, e-mail,
     keeping a calendar, managing a contact file, balancing the
     finances, playing games, running educational software and so on.

   [INLINE]
   Tony Cenicola for The New York Times

   Compaq Presario 5900Z-700 - For the inveterate gamer, this Compaq
   computer, with a 700-megahertz Athlon processor, includes 128
   megabytes of RAM, a high-speed 27-gigabyte hard disk, a 10X DVD drive,
   a 4X CD-RW (rewritable) drive, 32 MB of graphics memory on a Creative
   3-D Blaster TNT-2 Ultra graphics card, a 19-inch monitor, a Klipsch
   Promedia THX surround-sound speaker system and a D.S.L. modem. All for
   $2,912 on Compaq's Web site.
     _________________________________________________________________

     But the real value of a PC is not as a calculating engine but as a
     communications device. Sending and receiving e-mail has become the
     most commonly cited task for personal computers, followed closely
     by doing research on the Internet. An Internet connection harnesses
     the resources of millions of computers worldwide and transforms an
     ordinary desktop PC into the most powerful and versatile knowledge
     machine available to the average person.

     Increasingly, even traditional disc-based computer applications
     like educational software and games are being enhanced by online
     links to the Internet.

     So no matter what computer you choose, get a modem. To oversimplify
     it, a modem is the telephone that a computer uses to call the
     Internet over regular phone lines. Specifically, get a 56K modem,
     often called a V.90 modem.

     Better still, for those who plan to spend a lot of time online and
     who have access to a high-speed cable or digital subscriber line
     (D.S.L.) Internet service, get an Ethernet card. Cable and D.S.L.
     are the two leading options for connecting to the Internet at
     speeds many times faster than a 56K modem. Such services require
     something known as a Network Interface Card, or N.I.C. An Ethernet
     card fits the bill. Macintoshes come with Ethernet cards.

     BRAND NAME  The differences in actual components used by the major
     manufacturers are minimal. Any decent byte mechanic can screw
     together off-the-shelf components to make a PC that works just as
     well as one assembled by a multinational corporation. The real
     issue is how well the PC maker deals with you before, during and
     after the sale. Experienced PC users who need no hand-holding can
     find good deals from clone shops. For beginners, I recommend
     staying with one of the big companies, even if it costs a bit more.

Photo credit:
                                     Tony Cenicola for The New York Times

Photo caption:
         Apple iMacDV - DV or not DV? That is the question when trying to
      choose among the three new models of iMacs from Apple. You could go
      for the $1,299 iMac DV (digital video) in one of five colors or, if
         your budget permits, the stylish gray iMac DV Special Edition at
        $1,499. The slot-loading DVD drive lets iMac DV owners use CD-ROM
                    discs, play CD audio discs and even watch DVD movies.
     _________________________________________________________________

     In the most recent PC Magazine survey of service, reliability and
     support, only I.B.M., Dell and a smaller vendor, Quantex, earned
     Readers Choice "A" ratings for desktop computers. I.B.M. and Sony
     topped the list for notebook computers.

     WINDOWS VERSUS MACINTOSH  The choice between these operating
     systems is almost religious in nature.

     Mac users are in the minority but believe that they are a click
     closer to heaven.

     Windows could be described as a digital code version of a
     Hieronymous Bosch painting, but it has a monopoly on PC sales, or
     so the judge says. Both systems are more complicated and unstable
     than they ought to be. Once you get online, it matters less and
     less.

     And now for the more specific stuff.

     MICROPROCESSOR  There are no practical, functional differences
     between the market-leading Intel and Advanced Micro Devices chips,
     or the less common Cyrix chip, for that matter.

     Intel makes two flavors, the basic Celeron, which is a good value
     for home PC's, and the advanced Pentium III, which is favored for
     games, multimedia and more demanding professional applications.

     The Advanced Micro Athlon chip is an impressive performer and
     represents the most serious challenge to Intel's hegemony. Do not
     buy anything slower than 350 megahertz unless you plan to replace
     the PC soon. Do not buy anything faster than 600 MHz unless you are
     spending someone else's money or are seriously into video and
     playing games.
     _________________________________________________________________

   A PC's real value is as a communications device.
     _________________________________________________________________

     MEMORY  RAM, or random access memory, is system memory. When people
     ask how much memory your computer has, RAM is what they usually
     want to know. Typically measured in megabytes, RAM is like your own
     memory: It works great when you are awake (the power is on), but
     evaporates when you go to sleep (the computer is shut down). More
     RAM is better, because it means the processor does not have to run
     to the filing cabinets so often, which slows things down. So if you
     can afford it, pile it on. If the budget is tight, it is better to
     upgrade the RAM and downgrade the processor. Do not buy less than
     64 megabytes of RAM. Get 96MB if you can, or 128MB if you have used
     the word "multimedia" in a sentence more than once this week.

     Another important kind of memory is called Level 2 (L2) cache,
     which mainlines data to the processor at high speed and improves
     system performance. The important thing is that there be an L2
     cache. The amount, usually measured in kilobytes (for example,
     512KB), falls under the more-is-better rule, but any is better than
     none.

Photo credit:
                                     Tony Cenicola for The New York Times

Photo caption:
   DELL DIMENSION XPS T500 - For the budget-conscious, this $1,339 system
          includes a 500-MHz Pentium III processor, 64 MB of RAM with 512
   kilobytes of Level 2 cache, a 6.4 GB hard drive, 16 MB of video memory
    on a Voodoo 3 graphics card, a 48X CD- ROM, a 17-inch monitor, Harman
    Kardon speakers, a 56K modem, a floppy drive and a year of Net access
                           _ backed by Dell's reputation for reliability.
     _________________________________________________________________

     Video or graphics memory is another type. Make sure your system has
     at least 4MB of this kind, or, if games and multimedia are
     important, 8MB. Some larger monitors need more than basic video
     memory.

     STORAGE  If you are like me, it is imperative to write things down
     lest they be forgotten. That is where storage comes in.

     Most personal computers come with a hard disk drive, whose capacity
     these days is typically measured in gigabytes (GB). Do not get less
     than 6 GB.

     If you plan to save a lot of digital photographs or MP3 music
     files, or are a compulsive pack rat, go for 10 GB or more.

     Almost all computers today come with a CD-ROM drive. Some PC makers
     tout their CD-ROM speed, like 40X or 48X, but in general anything
     over about 20X is superfluous.

     If you can afford it, consider replacing the CD-ROM drive with a
     DVD drive. It does everything a CD-ROM drive does, including
     playing CD audio discs, but it also transforms the PC into a DVD
     movie player.

     Hard disks fail, although not as often as they used to. Inevitably,
     they fail when you forget to make a backup of your data files.
     Backing up your files is the computer equivalent of brushing and
     flossing your teeth, only more important.

     Floppy disks are fine for backing up a handful of important files,
     but now that hard disks are measured in gigabytes, it would take a
     bushel of 1.44MB floppies, and hours of time, to make a dent in
     one's backup duties.

     Instead, get a Zip drive, which stores 100 MB on a relatively
     cheap, removable disk. Zip drives get the job done. For more fun,
     however, get a CD-RW recordable drive. But I'm running out of
     space, so that will be discussed in a future column.

     MONITOR  The new standard is 17 inches. Once you have opened a
     bunch of World Wide Web pages, you will understand why anything
     smaller is a pain.

     If desk space is tight, or if budgets are loose, consider a new
     flat-panel monitors. A 15-inch flat panel offers the same screen
     size as a 17-inch conventional monitor.

     PORTS  The computing world is shifting to Universal Serial Bus
     (U.S.B.) as a common standard for connecting printers, scanners and
     other peripheral devices.

     The U.S.B. connections are faster and easier than the older serial
     and parallel ports. But then remember to buy U.S.B. peripherals.


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