How to pick the perfect PC (for you): a shopper's guide for upgrading computer software.

The recent brouhaha over the Pentium computer chip that couldn't calculate long division correctly is prompting many accountants to ask: "So, what kind of computer should I upgrade to? Is it wise to invest in the best technology?"

Although the flaw in the Pentium chip is being fixed, questions triggered by its troubles are valid--especially for accountants who often run mission-critical applications and need computers that are reliable and accurate.

Yes, it is wise to invest in the technological best--as long as "best" is not defined as necessarily the latest, the fastest, the most powerful--and the most expensive. Consider this: Since it's indisputable that people are more expensive than computers, one way to use people most effectively is to give them the most effective tools. Thus, the best PC is the one that best serves the needs of its user, which means that the best computer for one person may not be the best for a colleague down the hall. Clearly, the choice depends on the task the computer is being asked to perform. A person who does only word processing needs a lot less computer power than someone who does taxes, spreadsheets and presentations and sends and receives taxes and E-mail via the computer.

So before focusing on selecting hardware, find out what each person in your organization will be doing on the computer, then determine the software needed to perform those tasks. To find out how to translate individual needs into specific computer requirements, cheek the software's documentation: It lists the minimum system power--computer generation (386, 486, etc.), minimum random access memory (RAM), whether a special graphics card is required--and how much room it needs to store the program.

BYTE BITES

Before getting into buying details, here is some basic information for novice shoppers:

Nomenclature. The most popular generation of personal computer today is the 486. The number refers to the generation of a computer's main electronic brain--the central processing unit's (CPU) electronic circuits (also called a chip). Each chip is a bit smaller than a credit card. Earlier chip generations are the 286 and the 386. The latest generation is the 586, although the company that first introduced it, Intel Corp., calls its product the Pentium as a way to distinguish itself from any future competitors, which will probably use the numerical designation since Intel owns the Pentium name. Starting late this year or early next year chip makers will be introducing the next generation chip--the 686.

Without getting too technical, suffice it to say that each new generation is more powerful--that is, faster and able to do more tasks--than its predecessor.

Speed. When the Pentium was introduced in 1993 it broke technical ground on several fronts, with speed being the most apparent to the user. Two things determine a computer's speed: (1) its inherent clock rate--measured in megahertz (Mhz)--which is the speed at which data zip through the electronic circuits, and (2) the size of each individual data bundle it processes. Computers with 386 and 486 chips can handle data bundles that contain 16 bits of information. The Pentium can handle 32-bit bundles, and later-generation chips probably will be able to handle 64- and 128-bit bundles. To understand the advantage of the larger data bundle, think of it this way: A bus with 16 passengers would have to travel twice as fast as a bus with 32 passengers if it were to match the more crowded bus's passenger delivery effectiveness.

Computers come in several speeds. A typical designation would be 486-66, which means it's a 486-generation computer that runs at 66 Mhz. Most computers on the market today perform at between 33 Mhz and 100 Mhz. A 33-Mhz rate is sufficient for a machine doing mostly word processing, but add other applications and the higher end of the speed spectrum would be a wiser selection. Premium machines with clock rates in excess of 100 Mhz are available for those impatient ones who blow their horns a nanosecond after the traffic light turns green--and they pay dearly for that extra speed.

Should you buy a Pentium?

While the Pentium sounds good in theory, in reality it can't fully deliver on its speed capability because very few software packages on the market today bundle their data in 32-bit bites. So, extending the bus metaphor: The bus may have seating for 32, but only 16 passengers show up for the trip, leaving lots of vacant seats.

The bottom line: Right now, the advantages of the Pentium are mostly prospective--waiting for 32-bit software. When that software comes to market, the Pentium will be able to operate at blazing speeds. Right now, it's not much faster than a 486 with a comparable clock rate. And the price of that prospective advantage is high--at least 15%-20% more than a 486.

By the time 32-bit software becomes available, the next-generation computer--the 686--will be on the market. It will be selling at a premium price and the Pentium will probably be deeply discounted, as the 486 is today.

MAKING MEMORIES

Probably the single most critical difference between a powerful computer and a wimpy one is the size of its RAM, which is measured in megabytes (Mb). Although the word memory is in its name, RAM is without memory. When a user types words or enters numbers into a spreadsheet, those data are suspended in RAM; if the program is shut down or the machine is turned off before the data are stored on a hard drive or on a diskette, they are lost forever.

Today's 386 computers need a minimum of 2 Mb of RAM. A 486 needs a minimum of 4, but 8 Mb are recommended for a computer to run Windows at a reasonable speed. Power users--those who push their computers to the limit, running multiple programs simultaneously--insist they need a minimum of 16 Mb. And while Microsoft claims that the next generation of Windows--Windows 95, due for launching later this year--needs only 8 Mb, those who have tried beta (test) versions say 16 and even 32 Mb are preferable.

Why is so much RAM necessary? Every program needs a minimum of instructional information to function. When a user calls up a program, the data it contains are copied from the hard drive or the network and suspended in RAM. If RAM is filled to capacity and the program needs more information, it has to unload some less-important data to make room for the new data. You know that data swapping is occurring when you see that little red light on the front panel of the computer blink rapidly; it signifies that the hard disk is spinning and either copying data or seeking some it can unload. All this swapping takes time; that's one of the main reasons computers with small RAMS operate sluggishly.

In Windows, and especially in Windows 95, more than one operation can occur at the same time: A file can be printing and a spreadsheet calculating while the computer is sending or receiving a fax. Thus the need for RAM grows as greater demands are placed on computers. In general, it's prudent to have a little extra RAM. RAM chips cost about $40 a megabyte.

STORAGE NEEDS

How large should a hard disk be?

Early PCs typically had 20-Mb drives. Today's applications need much more storage room because programs have become very large. Excel, for example, uses about 10 Mb of space. Even the old DOS version of WordPerfect occupies more than 5 Mb. Windows users who work with a spreadsheet, word processor, database, tax-preparation software, modem, fax and E-mail--should have at least 500 Mb hard drives. Users with fewer applications can make do with about 350 Mb. Power users are installing 1-gigabyte drives (1 billion bytes).

Users who want to be able to pull data off the hard drive fast should insist on an enhanced IDE drive with at least 2 Mb of software cache. Cache (pronounced cash) is a computer technique for holding a copy of often-used data in a separate, easy-to-access location, thus sparing the computer from accessing it repeatedly from the hard drive. To add an extra burst of speed, these users should add at least a 256-kilobyte external processor cache to the RAM installation.

If high-speed printing, file transfers and downloading are important chores for your computer, install high-speed ports--a 16550 UART chip and a EPP parallel port.

SOUND OFF

Increasingly, computer applications use sounds or even spoken comments to communicate with users, and a growing number of programs accept verbal commands. Although the average light user probably has no use for sound capabilities, the heavy user should add a circuit board for sound. And even though audio integrated onto the computer's main circuit offers the advantage of effortless setup, a better choice for a power user is a 16-bit audio card.

Monitor. Most computer systems come with i4-inch screens, and we've become accustomed to peering at those tiny boxes. People who must display complex material--from long documents to drawings--find larger screens more comfortable because the screen elements are larger. Oddly, some users have difficulty getting used to the larger screen. For most users, 17-inch multi-scanning displays are best. Above 17 inches, prices rise very sharply, but a 17-incher is only a few hundred dollars more than a 14-inch screen. For users with lighter requirements, a 15-inch screen is acceptable.

Modem. For those who need to communicate with the outside world--for fax, E-mail, bulletin boards, Internet--a modem is a necessity. Technically, it makes no difference if the modem is installed as part of the computer or plugged into a port. Don't buy less than a 14.4 kilobyte-per-second (Kbps) product--that's a measure of how quickly it can transmit and receive data over the phone line. There are faster modems (28 Kbps) on the market selling for premium prices. Also, since a transmission between two modems occurs at the speed of the slower, and since there are very few faster modems around, it's like having a 200-mile-an-hour racing car that can be driven only on 55-mile-an-hour highways.

CD-ROM. Increasingly, software publishers are making programs available on CD-ROM instead of diskette, so it makes sense to install a CD-ROM drive in most PCs. If speed is critical, then consider paying a premium for the triple- and quadspeed drives. But for most applications, the conventional--and less expensive--double-speed designs are adequate.

Tape drive. If the machine is a stand-alone--not connected to a network, which presumably has a backup system--add a tape drive for backups. Be sure the drive can handle tapes with sufficient capacity to copy on one tape cassette everything that needs to be saved from the hard drive. If it can't, and a tape has to be changed during a backup, there is a strong likelihood that this single inconvenience may result in less-than-regular backups.

Where to buy. There are certain advantages to buying computers through mail order companies--the prices usually are better, and in today's marketplace, mail-order computer shopping is relatively safe. The large merchants stand behind their products and offer excellent support. But if no one in your organization is computer literate and you need some hand-holding, develop a relationship with a local dealer; you may pay a small premium, but the extra cost is worth the peace of mind.

RELATED ARTICLE: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

* IT'S WISE TO invest in a computer that's best technologically--as long as "best" is not necessarily defined as the latest, the fastest, the most powerful--and the most expensive.

* THE CHOICE SHOULD depend on how the computer will be used. A person who does only word processing needs a lot less computer power than someone who does taxes, spreadsheets and presentations and sends and receives faxes and E-mail via the computer.

* BEFORE FOCUSING on selecting hardware, find out what each person in your organization will be doing on the computer.

* SHOULD YOU BUY a Pentium now? By the time the software that lets it run at full speed is available, the next generation computer will be on the market, selling at a premium price. The Pentium probably then will be deeply discounted, as the 486 is today.

* DON'T SKIMP ON RAM. Today's 386 computers need a minimum of 2 Mb of RAM. A 486 needs a minimum of 4, but 8 Mb are recommended for a computer to run Windows at a reasonable speed. For Windows 95,32 would be a wise choice.

* HOW LARGE SHOULD a hard disk be? Light users can get away with 350 Mb, but most power users should have between 500 Mb and 1,000 Mb.

RELATED ARTICLE: ... AND SPEAKING OF BUGS

Don't use the Calculator in Windows or the spreadsheets in Excel or Lotus 1-2-3 to check Pentium's arithmetic errors.

It seems they all need remedial arithmetic lessons.

In Windows' Calculator, for example, try subtracting 2.11 from 2.12 and you won't get 0.01 as expected--you'll get 0.00. Close, but not close enough. The error, says Microsoft, is a rounding-off problem, which it says it will fix.

Microsoft's Excel has a problem, too, but it's not related to the Calculator bug. The problem occurs only when numbers are displayed in general format. The solution: display the number in numeric format.

Lotus recommends that one way to solve its problem is to use the [a]ROUND command.

RELATED ARTICLE: THE COST OF HARDWARE vs. TRAINING

Give untrained employees high-powered computers and it's not likely they'll get the machine up to speed--let alone cruise the information highway. The bottom line is this: After matching users' work needs and computer power, give them adequate training so they can use the computer most effectively.

In many cases, the investment in training is more costly--and more important--than the investment in hardware or software. In fact, if proper training is omitted, as is commonly done in many organizations, the true value of the hardware--and the people--never is realized.

Once it's determined what software will be used, prepare a training schedule, which can take many forms. Depending on your organization's circumstances, you may want to send people to outside computer classes or bring in expert trainers. A third option is to set up a remote training program in which many people can link simultaneously to a trainer via modem or network. It's an economical approach. For advanced training, consider first identifying a person in your organization with both a knack for and an interest in technology and, equally important, a demonstrable interest in teaching. Send that person for advanced training and then have him or her pass on the new knowledge to the rest of the staff when it's appropriate. That approach has two advantages: (1) Only one person is out of the office for the advanced training period and (2) he or she will bring back only the information necessary to get a job done. Outside trainers who lack detailed knowledge about how an office operates usually try to teach more than is necessary about a system.

RELATED ARTICLE: THE RIPENING APPLE

Is it time to reconsider the Apple?

Apple's Macintosh computers never seized more than a niche in the personal computer market even though their basic design is far more user-friendly than the IBM-compatible DOS design. In fact, both Microsoft's Windows and IBM's OS/2 are based on Apple's graphical user interface (GUI) design. It's estimated the Macintosh has about 6% of the business market (even less for accountants) and 14% of the home market. Only in education is it a significant force, with 28% of that market.

But that may be changing.

Until recently, Apple steadfastly refused to let anyone build clones of its design. Thus, prices remained high, slowing sales, and, as a result, software developers were reluctant to invest time and money developing Macintosh software. In recent months Apple agreed to let other computer makers build its machine, dramatically cut prices and began to use a revolutionary computer chip (PowerPC) that its designers say is far superior to the chip used by the IBM-compatibles.

And although Apple's competitors pooh-pooh the claims, it's clear that even they are developing similar chips for the future.

In addition, Apple has formed an alliance with IBM; the first fruit of that arrangement is a Macintosh that can run both Apple and IBM software. More cooperative ventures are under way.

The bottom line: With Apple's already proven technical track record and its continuing goal of making its computers easier to use, it may be time to consider a Mac.

STANLEY ZAROWIN is a Journal senior editor. Mr. Zarowin is an employee of the American Institute of CPAs, and his views, as expressed in this article, do not necessarily reflect the views of the AICPA. Official positions are determined through certain special committee procedures, due process and deliberation.