Hardware Reference
In-Depth Information
Besides the savings from the included OS, another contributing factor in the low cost of
commercial systems is all the other software they install. What I'm talking about is all the
time- or feature-limited trial software, as well as pure advertisements and marketing gim-
micks,oftencalled
junkware
.Althoughitisunwelcomebymostusersandcansometimes
be a chore to clean off, the truth of the matter is that the developers of these programs pay
a significant amount of money to the larger OEMs to preload them on their systems. The
revenuegeneratedbyinstallingjunkwarecanshavemanydollarsoffthepriceofasystem.
It is clear that the reasons for building a system from scratch often have less to do with
saving money and more to do with the experience you gain and the results you achieve.
In the end, by building your own, you have a custom system that contains the exact com-
ponents, OS, and features you have selected. Most of the time when you buy a precon-
figured system, you have to compromise in some way. For example, you might get the
video adapter you want, but you would prefer a different make or model of motherboard.
You might want to use Windows XP instead of Vista or Windows 7, or maybe you want
to install Linux instead. By building your own system, you can select the exact compon-
ents you want and build the ultimate system for your needs. The experience is also very
rewarding.Youknowexactlyhowyoursystemisconstructedandconfiguredbecauseyou
have done it yourself. This makes future support and installation of additional accessories
much easier.
Anotherbenefitofbuildingyourownsystemisthatyouareguaranteedanindustry-stand-
ardsystemthatwillbeeasilyupgradeableinthefuture.Manyofthelargersystemvendors
use proprietary components that can make future upgrades difficult or impossible. Of
course, if you have been reading the topic up to this point, you already know everything
you need to ensure any preassembled systems you purchase would use industry-standard
components and thus be upgradeable and repairable in the future.
One way to save money is by using components from your current system. The monitor,
keyboard,mouse,storagedevices,mostadaptercards,andeventhecaseandpowersupply
from an old system will likely work in a new system as well. Things you probably won't
be able to reuse include motherboards, processors, memory, and video cards.
Asaformofrecycling,Iliketotakeoldsystemsthatarebeingdiscardedandrebuildthem
using new components. Essentially, this means that I gut the system and reuse the case,
fans, possibly the power supply,and as many other internal components as Ican. Many of
the cases used in older retail systems are attractive, well built, and accept industry-stand-
ardcomponents.Byrecyclingthecaseandotherpartsinmynewsystembuilds,Icansave
some money and a little bit of the environment at the same time.
So,ifyouareinterestedinarewardingandeducationalexperienceandwantacustomized
and fully upgradeable system, building your own PC is the way to go.
