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It's tempting to save money by downgrading the monitors you buy. But eye fatigue from bad monitors will cost plenty in productivity and is sure to bring loud complaints from employees
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Style isn't as important as substance, but it still means a lot in business. It pays to dress up your reports and letters with a laser printer, which provides crisp printouts of text and graphics. They start as low as $800.
Mouse
This is one mouse you won't mind having in your office. It first arrived with the Macintosh line as a device that made it much easier for users to enter commands into the computer. Now it is an option on PCs as well. A mouse enables you to avoid memorizing complex commands and instead choose functions represented by visual icons.
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Random Access Memory
The RAM is the computer's working memory, the place where files in active use are stored. It consists of memory chips each the size of a thumbnail. Each contains more components than did the first electronic computer in 1946, which weighed 30 tons and took up 1,800 square feet. Today chips can store more than a million times more information than the first commercial chip in 1970.
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Modem
A modem enables you to send documents to another computer many miles away and to hook up with information services that provide a wide range of business information.
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Central Processing Unit
The CPU contains the electronic circuitry that controls the computer's operation. Its most important element is the microprocessor, a chip that processes information. The development of microprocessors and memory chips made possible the birth of the personal computer. Before they arrived, only about 230,000 computers were in use in the U.S. Today the total number of computers in use exceeds 55 million.
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Expansion Slots
Some wide open space inside your computer is a good thing. Expansion slots enable you to add electronic devices in the future as your computational needs grow and you want to expand the computer's capabilities.
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Hard Disk
Without permanent mass storage of information, computers would be much less useful than they are today. Hard disks store data on magnetically sensitive material. Typical capacity for business applications is 40 megabytes, enough to store 20 novels the length of War and Peace.
Monitor
The monitor consists of a video display unit, essentially a television set, and an adaptor card inside the computer. The adaptor card translates information produced by the computer into video signals for the display.
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Disk Drive
These are the devices, visible to users as slots on the front of the computer, into which you insert diskettes. Old 5.25-inch "floppy" disks, and newer 3.5-inch cartridges enable users to introduce new software and files into their computers.
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SCSI Ports
Most computers are hooked up to peripheral devices such as laser printers and drives. The connection takes place at the SCSI (scuzzy) ports located on the back of your computer.
BUYER BEWARE
Some advertised deals (like the example below) entice you with a low price, but careful analysis may tell you that the features won't serve your needs.
COMPUTERS INC.
Calling All Businesses!
286/16 MHz ? 20 MB HD ? 1 MB RAM
5 1/4" 1.2 MB drive
Keyboard included
1 Parallel port ? 1 Serial port
MS DOS 4.1
Super VGA Color Monitor
All for $895.00!!
* Inexpensive it is, but 286 computers are on the brink of obsolescence. You'll do better with a 386SX.
* The vendor is saving a few dollars by throwing in a low-capacity hard disk. Get at least a 40 megabyte drive.
* This random access memory is too small for many business applications. Buy at least 2 megabytes.
* 31/2-inch disk drives are now standard. The 5 1/4-inch format is on the way out.
* A super VGA color monitor may be a waste of money. Super VGA doesn't help much with a standard-size color screen, and a monochrome VGA monitor will do fine for most business applications.
LAPTOP COMPUTERS FOR WORK ON THE ROAD
Laptop computers are the fastest growing segment of the computer industry. They come with the same range of choices as desktop models, and the same advice applies.
Laptops are usually no bigger than a briefcase and generally weigh less than 10 pounds. They are useful for executives who work on reports while out of the office and for salespeople who enter orders while visiting customers. Laptops generally cost about 50% more than the same machine in a desktop model.
The biggest problem with the current generation of laptops is limited battery life. Many units can run only for 90 minutes on a battery charge; the better ones get up to three hours. However, look for new models entering the market that extend battery life by several hours; they may be advertised as utilizing an electronics package called a 386 SL CPU.
Video displays and keyboards can also be a problem for some users. The most popular displays, made of liquid crystals, may have poor resolution and be difficult to see well except in the best lighting conditions. Try them out before buying. Try out the keyboard, too; to save space, designers use shallow keyboards with fewer special keys. Some are uncomfortable to use.
Laptops have been missing from the Macintosh lineup, but Apple is expected to introduce models this fall.
(continued)
WHICH PERIPHERALS ARE RIGHT FOR YOU
Many users need three accessories: printers, modems, and a device for backing up (copying) the contents of a hard disk drive. And some companies may need to link their computers into a network.
Printers: Laser printers produce the print quality that everyone expects; for reports, letters, and documents, you can't have anything less. Fortunately, prices have dropped to $800 or so for a basic model. The leading vendor is Hewlett- Packard Co., with many other manufacturers selling HP clones. The standard laser printers work fine for documents that consist mainly of text and simple, limited graphics such as financial charts.
