Shareware Supreme Volume 6 #1/swsii.zip/swsii/201/IO1093.ZIP/COLUM06.TXT

Text File | 1993-09-30 | 4KB | 69 lines

                  SHOULD YOU UPGRADE YOUR PROCESSOR?
                     Submitted by:  Gloria Short



  Will everyone whose PC is powerful enough please raise your hand?
  Uh huh, just as I thought--only a few hands went up. If there's
  one thing certain about PCs, it's that any computer more than a
  few months old is no longer state-of-the-art. It's the curse of
  modern technology--it never stands still even for an instant.

  If your computer is three or four years old like mine, it's
  painful to read about the latest computers in the magazines or to
  see them in the stores. It's frustrating to wait long minutes
  while Windows loads, and you probably wish Links 386Pro could
  draw its screens in something other than slow motion.

  If you can afford a new machine, you've probably already bought
  it. If not, isn't there something you can do short of totally
  blowing the family budget?

  You bet there is. Upgrade the microprocessor in your computer.
  There are 486 upgrade kits for most 386 and 386SX computers and
  some 286s. You can swap out the CPU chip, plug an expansion board
  with a new CPU into a standard slot, replace the whole
  motherboard (including the CPU), or in some cases add a special
  additional chip called a clock doubler or Overdrive chip.

  The trick lies in deciding which parts of your system you should
  upgrade and how best to go about it. As you work, take note of
  exactly when you're waiting for the computer. What's happening at
  that moment? Is the hard disk light flashing as the computer
  loads programs or data? Are you waiting for the computer to
  redraw complex screens? If you're in Windows, is the hard disk
  running all the time as your applications continually swap memory
  out to disk? Is your computer merely crunching numbers, or is it
  doing large data sorts and manipulations?

  A new motherboard with a faster, wider bus will move data around
  faster, speeding up hard disk and video delays that involve
  moving mountains of data. A simple chip upgrade can speed up
  processing time dramatically--resulting in faster sorting,
  searching, and general number crunching. If Windows is always
  swapping itself to disk, you may need more memory. A combination
  of these things may be the real answer. If you need to upgrade
  everything, a whole new computer may in order.

  Other questions arise when selecting an upgrade strategy. For
  instance, what do you do with your old computer if you buy a new
  one? You may be able to sell it, but probably not for a
  significant amount. Perhaps the old one will still be useful--our
  family often needs more than one computer at a time. If you
  upgrade the CPU or motherboard, is the rest of the computer going
  to be able to keep up? Will it be reliable?

  All these factors come into play in making the upgrade decision.
  In general, relatively new but underpowered systems make good
  upgrade material. The older the computer, the less economic sense
  it makes to upgrade it--unless, of course, buying a whole new
  machine is simply out of the question for other reasons.

  If you decide to upgrade, you'll find the process isn't
  unreasaonably difficult, even for the mildly fumble-fingered
  among us--though it does require careful planning. Upgrade kits
  come with the necessary tools (with the exception of simple
  screwdrivers) and painstakingly detailed instructions to help you
  with the swap. The articles that follow give you the straight
  scoop on upgrading your system.