iPreFher

Deciding when to replace your office PCs with new ones is usually a difficult decision. You want to control your operating expenses but, at the same time, want your business to benefit from reliable, high-performing machines that can run the latest programs.
If you are unsure about what to do, here are five things that indicate it is probably time for a new computer.
And you’ll find your work worth the effort. A well thought-out technology plan can help you:
1. Your PC is four years old. If you cannot afford to have your PC break down or sit in the repair shop for a week, budget to replace your PC every three or four years. This replacement schedule does not guarantee that you never have a problem, but it could protect you from experiencing major component failures. Replacing your PC every four years also provides an opportunity to easily upgrade to improved software − such as Windows Vista and Office 2007− because PC makers will preload the programs on your new machine. And if you are buying five or more new PCs and installing new software, you may also be eligible to receive a discount on the software.
2. Your PC is slowing down. Many things can cause a computer to run slowly, which can erode productivity over time. By removing unnecessary programs that load at start up, deleting old files from your hard disk, scanning for viruses and spyware, and tweaking other operating system settings, you might improve your computer’s performance to a level you can live with.
However, it may also be the case that the programs you now run simply push the limits of the processing capabilities of your system. Insufficient memory, slow hard drive speeds, and an ancient CPU may prevent your system from keeping up with demands you place on it, particularly when you use multiple applications at the same time. If you have the time and skills, you could upgrade some of these components. But if you compare the overall cost of upgrading to what a new machine might cost, investing in a new PC is often the smarter option.
3. Your PC makes unusual noises. Computers typically make some noise. Cooling fans, CD-ROM drives and hard drives can all make a low hum or soft whirring when they operate. These sounds are not a cause for concern. If you start to hear clicking noises, loud humming or thumping noises, your hard drive is likely going bad. Back up your data and consider whether you want to replace the hard drive or, if other things are not working well, the entire computer.
4. You cannot run the software you want. New software programs demand more from computers and an older computer may not meet the optimal hardware requirements. For instance, if security is a top priority in your organisation, you may want to run the Windows Vista operating system, which includes enhanced security among its many impressive features. However, Windows Vista requires more memory and a faster processor than previous versions of Windows. To help you figure out if your current computer can run Windows Vista, Microsoft also provides an online service that evaluates your PC system to see if it meets its system requirements.
5. Your business is growing and prices are cheap. This reason does not apply to a replacement decision. It is more of a buying strategy. If you expect to add new employees in the near future because your business is expanding, then you might purchase PCs in advance if prices are especially good and you have the cash or credit available.

If you don’t want to spend big bucks on a new PC, consider upgrading your old system’s motherboard and CPU. This can boost the machine’s performance and give you access to the latest technologies. It can also save you hundreds of dollars.

What you won’t get is a new hard drive, optical drive, or operating system, though the new motherboard gives you the option of upgrading these components later. When you do it yourself, you choose the make, model, and cost that serve you best, rather than settling for what’s preloaded in an off-the-shelf machine.

For as little as $200 to $350, you can purchase a motherboard with a new Pentium 4 or Athlon processor and 512MB of RAM. (Visit this link to check the latest motherboard prices.) That’s hundreds of dollars less than the retail cost of a midrange PC that supports AGP 8X graphics cards, Serial ATA drives, and the other advanced features that your new motherboard is likely to offer.

Motherboard Buyers Guide

Size matters: Most desktop PCs sold in the last few years conform to the ATX form factor (as do most motherboards), but not all do. Many small or ultrabudget systems are based on other designs, and some PCs from HP/Compaq, IBM, and other big-name vendors aren’t ATX-compatible. Refer to your computer’s documentation to see if the new motherboard will fit inside its case.

Find the right CPU: The optimal combination of CPU price and performance may lead you to early versions of Athlon XP and Pentium 4 processors: Retail boxed versions of 1- to 2-GHz AMD Athlon XP processors cost less than $100, while Pentium 4 processors running at comparable speeds are less than $130. OEM versions of both (that’s minus the fancy box, the cooling fan, and sometimes a warranty) may be priced considerably lower. Avoid older Pentium 4 processors with 256KB of L2 cache. CPUs with 512KB cache are faster and well worth the small added expense.

Be picky: Steer clear of no-name vendors and buy from established manufacturers only.

Pay for power: Your old PC’s power supply may not have enough wattage or may lack the 12-volt amperage needed to run some Pentium 4 and Athlon motherboards. Check the new motherboard’s requirements against the specs on your power supply. If in doubt, buy a power supply that generates 300 watts or more,

Faster is better: A motherboard’s frontside bus speed is the rate at which data moves between the CPU and RAM. FSB speed can have a greater effect on overall system performance than listed CPU speed, which is a multiple of the FSB speed. The faster the FSB, the better.

Get it all: Your new motherboard needs PCI slots and USB ports, two UltraATA/100 connectors, parallel and serial ports (if you use these), and at least two DIMM slots for RAM (DDR RAM is best). For a little extra money, you can get Serial ATA, ethernet, RAID, FireWire, Wi-Fi, and other advanced features.

Sight and sound off: Some low-cost motherboards have sound and graphics functions built in. The quality of these integrated functions is often marginal. Make sure that any built-in sound and graphics can be disabled, and that separate audio and graphics boards can be added.

Minimize Your Mousing

For people in a hurry, every unnecessary mouse movement is an aggravation. Windows 2000, Me, and XP let you set the pointer to automatically move to commonly used buttons in dialog boxes. Click Start, Settings, Control Panel (or Start, Control Panel in XP), and click or double-click Mouse (choose “Printers and Other Hardware” first if you’re in XP’s Categories view, or “View all Control Panel options” if you’re in Me’s “commonly used” view). Now select Pointer Options, check the box labeled “Automatically move pointer to the default button in a dialog box” (the option’s wording varies slightly in Windows 2000), and click OK.