| p>You can save money on computers for the | | | | same computer for five years and I expect to use it |
| following reason: it is no longer necessary to buy a | | | | for 10 more, or until the hardware fails (or the |
| new computer every two or three years. The | | | | mysterious updates from Microsoft make it crash). |
| computer stores and the software vendors are not | | | | Now I do have another graphics computer that may |
| going to admit this, but it is true, unless you are a | | | | need to be upgraded because I run a graphic program |
| videogame player. This is primarily the case because | | | | on it, but I should only have to upgrade it once in the |
| of Moore's Law, which states that the cost of | | | | next ten years. |
| computing will be reduced by ½ every 18 months. It | | | | The truth is, we have reached and surpassed the |
| also states that the power of computing will double | | | | computing resource limits and we no longer need to |
| every 18 months, and the capacity of storage devices | | | | buy bigger and faster computers unless we need to |
| will double every 18 months (all three are essentially the | | | | run specialized software for some reason. For the |
| same). | | | | typical application-word-processing, email, Internet |
| So how come computers are not free by now? | | | | access, accounting, etc.-we just don't need any more |
| Well, the cost to produce has shrunk to a very small | | | | power or a new fancy operating system every year. |
| amount but the manufacturers keep the prices | | | | Most people just use a computer for email and Internet |
| artificially inflated so their industry does not fail and they | | | | browsing and printing documents. The power of |
| can keep making the hefty profits. Microsoft could | | | | today's computers far surpasses what is required to |
| (and should) produce only one operating system and | | | | do that (as a side note, the threshold was reached |
| upgrade it every five or ten (or twenty years), and | | | | somewhere around the year 2000). The major |
| everything would work fine; instead, they keep | | | | computer vendors will keep trying to make you think |
| introducing new operating systems every year or so | | | | you need a new computer, but don't believe it. |
| to force people to buy more computers. | | | | Now that you understand that, you can ignore those |
| If you only use a word processor and an Internet | | | | who tell you otherwise and you can expect to save |
| browser and maybe a few other applications, you | | | | much of the money you had budgeted for new |
| should really never have to get a more powerful | | | | computer expenses. |
| computer than you have right now. I have had the | | | | |