It's the last half of the last decade of the 20th century, and computer technology is changing everything. That's especially true for the self-employed lone eagle seeking a niche in an information-based, global economy. As recently as the late 1980s, surface mail and telephones were the main means of business communication, with faxes just a glimmer in the general business public's eye. Now faxes are standard operating equipment around the world and we're moving into a digital age of instant multimedia global connections.
How will this affect your basic office setup for a small business or otherwise self-directed career as we race toward 2000? It means there'll be many choices to make, systems to establish and learning curves to ride. The technology world is becoming a maze of so many paths it requires especially clear-headed, goal-driven planning to assure that it works for you rather than you for it.
Consider it a positive. There's certainly no shortage of equipment and services to meet your needs. Therefore, stay focused on your needs. For most of us, they'll include the following items.
A Personal Computer
You probably have one already. If not, get going, and don't worry: They're easier to use than ever. Exactly what you need in the way of hardware to run a small business begins with what you're using your computer for now, and what your new information and communication needs will do to change what you need.
For starters, if your office will be at home, do you want or need to incorporate personal and family uses into your number-one PC? Perhaps not, if you have children. If you can afford it, a separate computer for the kids will not only give them freedom to use it even when you're working, but will remove all risk that the virus-laden disk your son brought home from school today will eat your work tonight.
Before launching my business, I owned a basic 386, 25 megahertz processor with 4 megabytes of memory and 80 megabytes of disk space, plus a decent color monitor-the kind of thing everybody bought in 1991.
For many small businesses, this may be plenty of machine-even though most computer "experts" will tell you to have much more. If all you need is word processing, modest financial-tracking and spreadsheet software, you can get by nicely on something much less than the Pentium systems suggested below. While much of the business world is geared toward PCs, and Windows continues to make the PC world more MAC-like, most people without computer experience still find MACs easier to get to know. In my case, I felt an investment in a Pentium-driven machine would power my practice for a long time and I wanted a second PC that would be used exclusively for family entertainment.
If you want the biggest and fastest desktop equipment available, and can spend upwards of $2000, consider these latest recommendations from Walter S. Mossberg, Personal Technology columnist for The Wall Street Journal: should get at least a Pentium chip running at 75 megahertz; if you can afford it, go for 100 megahertz or more. For Copland, you'll want at least a PowerPC chip running at 75 MHz.
Disk storage should be at least 750 megabytes, and 1 giga-byte (1,000 megabytes) or more is better. This used to sound like an impossibly large amount (remember my old 386 has 80 megabytes). But programs are growing in size as quickly as the prices of hard disks are falling, so it makes sense to buy plenty.
Your monitor should have a dot-pitch rating of .28 or less (the lower the better) and be non-interlaced (less flickering). Consider a 17-inch screen (easier on the eyes). You'll want your computer to have at least 1 megabyte of video memory (VRAM), and two is better. Make sure it can display 65,000 or more colors.
Good sound is a given with Macs. For Windows, get a built-in system compatible with the SoundBlaster card, with stereo speakers.
You'll want a CD-ROM drive (quadruple speed, or 4X) whether you think you do now or not. This will soon be the main vehicle for a great deal of software.
Finally, you'll need a modem for electronic communication and on-line research. Get one that can send and receive data at 28,800 BPS, which is quickly becoming the standard.
Are brand names important? "Unless you're a techie, don't buy a superstore's unknown house brand, or a no-name computer from a little local shop," Mossberg advises. "Stick with established names that offer good warranties and service plans, such as Compaq, Apple, IBM, Hewlett-Packard and Dell. Gate-way 2000 and Packard-Bell are generally okay, but their customer service has been weaker than average in the past. Both claim to be improving on that score," he says.
