X-no-Archive:yes
Up until about a year ago, the one of the main reason to upgrade the mobo,
or build your own PC was to save money.  For example, two years ago when I
built the office server, I calculated that I had saved the company about
$1,500 - $2,000.  But beyond saving money, I gained experience and was also
able to select all the components that I wanted.

Nowadays, building a system from components will not save you money.  The
vendors can do it for less money than you can, their margins are
razor-thin, at best.  Upgrading your system through a mobo swap is no
longer cost-efficient, not when you can get a brand-new 233MHz with
multi-gig drive and CD for around $800.  Anything you upgrade that is more
than a year or two old, does not have the disk size or other components
that can match what you get now.  Unless of course you have upgraded along
the way.

There are only two reasons why you would want to build your own system now.
 1- You can build it to your own specifications, with the components you
select.  2- You gain experience in the process.

In the near future, you will be able to specify most components that go
into computers from vendors, this is called mass customization, a subject
discussed on an earlier thread.  Already, many vendors are offering various
choices for some components.  This will grow. About the only component you
will not be able to specify will be the motherboard.

On another list, a discussion such as this one raged for a while, and I
posted my longest post ever.  A step by step procedure on building a system
from components.  I believe the person who originally asked the question
decided to buy a system rather than build it.

Beyond the sheer pleasure (or agony, depends on your point of view,) of
building your own system, or swapping the mobo, you get one more benefit
:).  You get to support the system.  Whilst all the components come with a
warranty, the system itself is under your warranty.  This is why you pay
money to the vendors.  They warranty the whole system, if it doesn't work
they can replace it after the customary arguments and numerous phone calls.
 When you build/upgrade, you have to make all the components work together.
 So do your homework ahead of time.

Yes, there will always be a market for cheap components, but it should not
be used by the self builder.  Remember choosing your components, quality
components, is about the only reason left to build or upgrade your own
computer.  For the amount of trouble you will forego, spending a few more
dollars on the components will be an incredible bargain.

Kind regards,

Denys. . .

Denys Beauchemin
HICOMP America, Inc.
(800) 323-8863  (281) 288-7438         Fax: (281) 355-6879
denys at hicomp.com                             www.hicomp.com


-----Original Message-----
From:   Stigers, Greg ~ AND [SMTP:[log in to unmask]]
Sent:   Monday, April 27, 1998 2:41 PM
To:     [log in to unmask]
Subject:        Re: PAVILION PC

Um, well, it is time vs. money. Last time I did this, I could afford the
time, barely, but could not afford the money. OTOH, how long can you
afford to be without the given PC? If there is a problem, fixing it on
your own schedule if you can fix, can take less time than putting in the
shop.

I remember from another forum a heated discussion on cheap components
that might fail just out of warranty versus big name components that
will continue working long after becoming problematically obsolete. I
think that there will always be a market for these cheap components,
knowing that they are likely to cost time and effort later (and, yes,
Denys, they may cause interesting instabilities). Or, my PC at home has
a bargain basement keyboard, because my children find interesting ways
to render them inoperative. Something to be said for cheap, I never buy
just one, and have yet to wear one out...

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Denys P. Beauchemin [SMTP:[log in to unmask]]
> Sent: Saturday, April 25, 1998 11:21 PM
> To:   [log in to unmask]
> Subject:      Re: [HP3000-L] PAVILION PC
>
> X-no-Archive:yes
> Wirt has an excellent point.  Systems are rolling out very quickly and
> it
> spending time and energy (and frustration) upgrading mobos is not
> something
> to take lightly.
        <snip>