Hitchhiking on an outline of principles in the popular book, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People© by Steven Covey, let's explore a synopsis of what I think I do for a living, what I do helping people buy and use personal computers, here is my advice:
1. Be Proactive.
Rather than respond to advertisements that are trying to sell you what they want to sell you, decide what you really want for yourself. What are the features and benefits you need and/or want? Make a list (I can help) and hold them in your hand always while you are shopping, and don't loose sight of them. If you know your goals and expectations, you can hit them more accurately than if you simply follow advertisements and other people's recommendations. Beware of even my recommendations below, in case they're not for you! Not sure what you want? Here are a few goals my customers and I have discovered over the years. They may spark your own list.
Affordable
Can you pay for it with immediately available cash? Can you bill your own customers for it? Can you afford the monthly payments if you use a credit card or buy it on a lease? Most new Personal Computer systems cost about $2,000 with monitor, printer, and some software. Used systems, for the experienced, self-supporting user, can be found in the $500 range for older systems. Absolute, top-of-the-line, perhaps even experimental new systems peak out somewhere between $5,000 and $15,000.
Productive
If you want to print a 40-page story or report in 10 minutes, you need a system that can at least produce 4 pages per minute. If you know you work up to deadlines where you need to edit and print all 40 pages in 10 minutes, you need a system that can print 8 pages per minute or more. These are the nitty-gritty calculations you may have to make to insure you're shopping for appropriate equipment. Do you need color printing? A color printer that prints a photo-quality page in 6 minutes won't crank out 10 color charts for a business meeting in ½ an hour. It takes much pre-thinking to get the right stuff!
Serviceable
Are you going to check it and fix it and upgrade it and keep it alive all by yourself? If not you, who will support your entire system? A friend? An independent consultant? The seller of any one part of your system? Make sure that the person taking the responsibility for your entire system has a track record of not only making similar people happy, but also has a record of solving problems well. If someone's system never fails or never needs upgrading, it doesn't matter who supports it. Nevertheless, when it does fail or when you want to upgrade it, support suddenly becomes paramount, and the wrong system or avenue of support becomes surprisingly expensive!
2. Begin with the end in mind.
This means explore all your goals. How many years do you plan to use your system before you can afford to replace it due to failure or because it no longer meets your needs? Computer systems become borderline values within 18 to 36 months, that's 1 1/2 to 3 years, due to advances in competitive, affordable and desirable technology. Can you generate income with this system to help you pay it off? Can you afford to replace it in 3 years? If you buy a top-of-the-line system now, it may serve you longer than an entry-level system would.
3. Put First Things First.
Don't struggle over which supplier throws in a piece of software or an accessory or has a system priced lower than a competitor. Most vendors know each other's prices and stay within a few percentage points of each other. More important are your essential criteria. Can the system you are considering help you do the most important things you need to do? Is it serviceable to your standards, affordable to your standards, and so on?
4. Think Win/Win.
If you endlessly cross-shop competitive offers from your potential suppliers, asking each to beat the other's 'laundry list' of items, one of them surely will throw a system together for you so they can beat almost anybody else's price. It's hard for dealers to stay in business when they constantly undercut their own chance for a profitable sale. They may not be in business to support you when you need them. Sellers that consistently sell by price alone soon burn out their underpaid staff and blow their customers away with lousy service. They eventually go out of business. If quality items and support are not important to you, then shop by price and plan to keep it alive yourself. If you allow your supplier to have reasonable profit and reward for selling to you and for supporting you, then they will be there when you need their help, later.
5. Seek First to Understand ... Then to Be Understood.
Demanding that the computer industry be 'a certain way' won't get you anywhere but either frustrated, or stuck with an inappropriate deal from someone who saw you coming! You're not buying a refrigerator or a car or any other non-corresponding experience. Take the time to ask sellers how they run their business and how they usually sell and support systems. You may learn that this industry is unique in many ways. You may also see patterns and recognize a difference between dealers that helps you select which type of seller from which to buy. For instance, mail-order sellers usually have low prices and fresher, newer products, but they don't 'hold your hand' as you learn your new system. Local dealers often either have higher prices, stale, older products, and/or an inexperienced and unchaperoned staff. Yet, with a small, stable store, you may find personal attention from a genuine expert - who may or may not charge you very much to hold your hand! Finally, once you become familiar with what's available for you 'out there', then you can begin to explain your goals to one or more sales people and see who listens to you.
6. Synergize.
This means 'put your heads together'. Listen to and cooperate with your seller or buyer. If your friends tell you one thing and your professional coach or seller/buyer tells you another thing, go with the person who is promising to support you with their advice. Don't fight the professional advice - advice for which you have asked! If you don't really like someone's advice, thank them and move on until you find someone with whom you can work well. Some people's personal experience and insights become their entrenched attitudes. Have you ever seen a Mac-person chat with (read: argue with) a PC-person? It will never get resolved, so don't get caught in someone else's dogma. Thank them for their advice, take notes, and move on.
7. Sharpen your Saw.
This means, "Get smarter!" Read and consult various sources, not just one.
- Periodicals:
The Wall Street Journal has it's point of view, often from corporate profit and public relations' vantage points. This may not be helpful for you if you're buying your home or small-office Personal computer system. PC Magazine and PC World sell lots of advertisements so they need to keep their review pages exciting with new and fancy articles. They may miss much of your common, routine needs in any one issue. Consumer Reports can't keep up with the computer industry's constant changes, so their experience becomes general advice rather than specific recommendations.
- Classes:
Computer classes based on an established 'curriculum' with no pre- and post- testing are all too often just teachers who are baby-sitting some clerks from companies who really aren't involved with their employees. They never check if their employees learned anything, so the presenters never get accurate feedback or improvement.
- One-On-One:
I find that professional tutors and consultants who work full time have the greatest accuracy, though they may also be the most expensive by the hour. Part time tutors and consultants may be more affordable per hour, but remember, in a fast-moving industry, someone who doesn't keep up can mislead you with old and inaccurate advice! You get what you pay for, so put your money into good advice for a system that's a total investment, rather than into bad advice for a system that is ultimately a wasteful expense. Expect to pay a balanced part of your budget for each of the following critical parts of your system: hardware, software, consulting and service support, training, and upgrading.
What
Personal Computer-Stuff Do You Get for Your Money?
In the recent past, most of my customers were
satisfied with a budget of $2,000 for an 'entry level' system
(computer, monitor, printer, software and accessories complete - not just
the unenhanced basic computer box at 1/2 that price), and $3,000
for a replacement or second system. With a plus-or-minus range of
about +/-30% or so, that's a range of $1,400 to $2,600 for
entry level, and $2,100 to $3,900 for a replacement system.
A system consists of something that can do the
4 basic tasks in your chosen field:
Create,
Save,
Edit, and
Print.
For instance, what if you're an accountant?
Can you create a checkbook-register and some checks, save it, edit/audit it,
and print checks and print the register? Or maybe you're a writer? Can you
create a story, save it, edit it and print it or E-mail it to your publisher?
And so on.
Most people expect a computer system that can
do these 4 basic things to include this hardware:
Display Screen - to see what you're
typing and editing.
Printer - to read your work and hand
it to others.
Keyboard and Mouse - to tell the computer
what you want it to do for you.
Hard Drive - to store your programs
and the information you create (your check book, short story, and so on)
Floppy/CD/DVD/USB Drive - to add,
copy, and trade your programs and information with other people who use computers.
Sound Card and Speakers
- to hear software demonstrations, training, games and music on software disks.
And, to play games, add:
Game Controller (Joy Stick) -
to control on-screen actions more quickly and subtly than you could with a
keyboard or a mouse.
Most new computer dealers include most of these
items since they want their product to appeal to the greatest number of people.
Used computer dealers may have less expensive computers that have less than
a full complement of installed accessories.
There are other fields where computers are used,
along with appropriate accessories - photography, music, art, science, design,
medicine, manufacturing, and so on. An experienced consultant can help you
make sure you don't forget something specialized for your needs, such as a
scanner and software if you want to convert existing typewritten pages and
articles into the computer for editing.
Where
to Buy Your Personal Computer:
Unlike the automotive industry, where spark
plugs, bulbs and tires are just about the only parts that are common between
different cars, many different brands of computer makers use completely interchangeable
parts. The interchangeable parts often cost less over the long run for them
and for you. You can get these parts from many competitors. The price falls
and the quality and features and benefits go up due to this competitive pressure.
However, like the automotive industry's propensity
for custom parts for each model car, some other brands of computer makers
do not use interchangeable parts. Instead, they make some or many
of their own parts, and are different from everyone else's. Each factory does
this to keep their costs down by not depending on outside suppliers. The total
cost and value to you over the life of the product is at risk. When you need
a service replacement part or when you want to upgrade your system, you have
only one place you can go. Without competition, and without the large customer
base that interchangeable systems have, your 'custom' supplier must charge
you a higher price to make a profit from fewer customers. There is no competition
for that custom part to drive down the price or to drive up the features and
benefits. Modern systems from Compaq, IBM, and others, for instance, offer
very expensive parts for their older computers, outdated parts that are the
same design that they were originally a few years back. These manufacturers
prefer that, if you want service or to upgrade their computer, you should
purchase a new system from them - it's more profitable to them than fixing
your old one. If you owned a same age computer from an interchangeable-parts
maker such as from Gateway or Micron or many others, you could get service
and upgrades from any competitive source at any time. You'd also get improved
performance, features and benefits whenever you wanted them.
What Personal Computer to Buy:
Bear with me in my need to update this, but
here's some historical info, perhaps not as much of a contrast to today as
you'd think!
As
of June 1999, here are some recommendations for you to meet or beat. If you
wander off this list, you should know exactly why.
Display Screen - 17" or larger, SVGA-style,
brand name is less critical than 'buying and trying' a screen, and returning
any screen that appears fuzzy to you after delivery.
Printer - Hewlett Packard LaserJet
for black and white printing, with models ranging in speed from 6 to 40 pages
per minute, or an Epson or Hewlett Packard InkJet for color printing, with
models ranging in speed from 1 to 4 pages per minute, bi-directional parallel-style,
with bi-directional cable.
Keyboard - ergonomic keyboards are
awkward at first, but within 1/2 hour, most people find they are actually
more relaxed using them, some include a track ball or touch-pad.
Mouse - I've yet to find one that's
perfect for everyone. Try every mouse, trackball, touch-pad and so on, using
your own 'productivity' software - word processor, spreadsheet, and so on.
Return awkward ones and try another.
Hard Drive - I recommend 10 to 20
times larger free space than you think you need, so you almost never have
to upgrade it over the next few years before you eventually replace the entire
system - big hard drives are cheap to buy on day one, but the cost of upgrade
labor and the time and complexity involved may be much more after you've had
your system for a while.
Floppy Drive - 3 1/2 inch is still
standard, and remember to buy lots of pre-formatted blanks. Iomega makes an
internal (or external - attaches to the parallel port) 100 MB (popular) or
250 MB (newer, less popular) 'floppy' Zip drive, now antique, but if
you still have old ones, how are you gonna read 'em if you don't plan on including
a reive for them?
Modem - V.90 - 56 K is the fastest
you can get, and use it immediately to insure that it's reliable, U.S.Robotics/3Com,
Diamond/Supra, Motorola, Cardinal and many, many others. Since
most Internet is via networking, modems seem optional, but if you take your
computer to a vacation site for a week, you may find that old-fashioned dialup
is all there is, so get a cheap modem now.
Sound Card and Speakers - the
least expensive make me happy, but if you expect to listen to a quality music
performance, maybe more expensive speakers with a subwoofer will please you.
Game Controller (Joy Stick) -
again, buy and try everything with your exact software, and return anything
that doesn't please you.
Additional internal system parts include:
System board - AT or ATX size, for
the moment, this is standard, custom computers use custom, nonstandard parts.
Bus - ISA, PCI and PC-Card or PCMCIA,
for the moment. Micron has introduced a double-speed PCI socket for faster
video through it's XSU models with their own SamuraiLXI system board.
Power Supply - mini or ATX, for the
moment, again, custom computers use a custom power supply.
CD/DVD-ROM/RW - CDs are the most inexpensive
and popular way to load and/or run programs, and they're also great for off-line
reference storage of clip-art, fonts and sound files, meaning that these files
don't have to be copied to your hard drive in order for you to use them.
Case - holds standard parts, and again,
there are many with a custom floppy drive and a custom CD-ROM drive.
Standard parts are easier to service, a full-tower is the easiest to service
and upgrade.Gateway, Micron, Dell, Quantex, and many, many others provide
'interchangeable parts' clone systems.That's just the hardware!
What Software to Buy and Install and Configure
and Learn and Troubleshoot and Upgrade... :
For software, I like:
Word Processing/Desktop Publishing
Word Perfect is powerful,
and is consistently organized throughout it's controls and features and from
version to version so it's easy to remember how to use it, and helps you edit
and fix document problems through it's unique 'reveal codes' feature, it's
very popular, and has many avenues of support.
Spreadsheet
Lotus 1-2-3 is simple, powerful,
it has well-organized menus, is popular, and has many avenues of support.
Accounting
Quicken is very simple, very
powerful, easily fixable if anything goes wrong, it is reliable, very popular,
and has many avenues of support.
Games
Myst is great for a long
playing time, and there are various strategy and card games for shorter play,
and various arcade games for action.
Software installation choices can
be quite complex, yet some people are satisfied with the manufacturer's default
choices on how their software should run. I find some manufacturer's choices
intrusive and competitive with other manufacturer's choices. I recommend that
you carefully review your intentions with an experienced, well-recommended
consultant. Select someone who is willing to take 100% responsibility and
will support you on the total function of your system - hardware, software,
and how you use it. Same with selecting the hardware and any upgrades and
service. A seller, store, manufacturer or warehouse can only handle part of
your entire system. I've yet to see any provider of equipment take care of
everything. Neither have I seen a first-time purchaser get it all as right
as it could be all on their own. The advertisements are too convincing. People
just can't believe that Dell - or any advertiser - can really survive selling
compromised systems. If, if, if ... if it never fails or never needs an upgrade,
proprietary systems like Dell, IBM, Apple, and so many others may make you
very happy, and perhaps many, many customers never realize a compromise.Good
luck coming to a happy decision, and I look forward to your call ... sooner
or later!
What I Do to Help My Customers:
Qualify their needs versus what the computer
industry offers.
This usually takes some interviewing
and lots of scoping the industry, often, also, more than a few calls to various
sales outlets trying to decipher the gibberish of clerks and sales people!
Shop for 3 competitive bids from quality suppliers.
This is a detailed pre-order trying
to pin down exact items and delivery times and delivery terms.
Purchase, receive and setup the system.
With the customer's credit card, usually,
I place the order and confirm that we receive it properly. Most systems require
more than one source or vender for the items in the system. This can get complex
when I go to buy something across a counter and I don't look like the mane
on their credit card (wrong gender, for instance)!
Install and configure all hardware and software
to meet the customer's custom needs.
Depending on the software and the
complexity and speed of the system, I've seen 1 ½ hour or more go by for each
piece of software to make sure all choices are made in balance and everything
works well -
(1) DOS,
(2) Windows,
(3) AntiVirus,
(4) Utilities, such as Norton Utilities,
(5) Word Processor,
(6) Spreadsheet,
(7) Accounting, such as Quicken,
(8) Internet, plus any and all accessories,
like
(9) a printer,
(10) video and
(11) modem software drivers, and
(12) a scanner and
(13) a mouse configuration
in some systems.
That's 13 separate, often conflicting
items! 5 hours minimum, and with the inordinate complexity of modern
Windows 95 systems, I've seen 12 hours or more go by before a system gets
predictable and reliable enough to present to a customer to begin demonstration
and training. All computers are custom by the time someone begins using them.
Verify that everything is capable of working,
demonstrating this for the customer.
Showing how to turn it all on and
off safely, how to load paper, how to insert and read disks and such.
Train the customer on the basics of operating
their new system.
How to load each program. How to create,
save, edit and print in each program.
Support the proper function of the system,
troubleshoot, find and replace/repair faulty components in the hardware and software.
Provide phone and on-site support
for system misbehavior regardless of problem, fault or remedy - hardware,
software, operator or environment.
Provide an avenue of eventual upgrade and enhancement
of the system.
Yes, to install all those additions
we hesitated to order on day one - the bigger hard drive, more memory, I've
even upgraded every single item in some customer's computer systems in bits
and pieces over a few years.Some people prefer to do this all by themselves.
They also don't measure how much of their time they pour into this project,
and often can't compare their results against what I could have done, so they
don't know if they missed some important detail. Also, they often complain
to everyone they know about how hard it was. If they are a journalist, they
often write nasty articles about how insane and unbearable is the computer industry!I
am willing and able to stand behind you and your system - 100%. No one else
offers that. The seller won't train you or install your self-added hardware
or software. A trainer won't fix a hardware or software problem. A technician
won't help with your lost data after a crash. But I do. I do it all for you!APC
- American Personal Computing, PC Service and Support in Plain Language
since 1969 - Peter Blaise Monahon, 2776 South Arlington Mill Drive
#277, Arlington/Shirlington, Virginia (VA) 22206 US - Voice
