I need advice about a new computer... my Dell is 5 years old and doing funny things...I have done all the maintence tricks and defragged the hard drive several times... That is all I know to do... I have a trinitron screen which seems fine... I like the keyboard... do I just order a new hard drive, or take advantage of one of the package deals that Dell is offering? I would love a flat screen but what I really need is some advice...

Well, if it is 5 years old, I would just get a new system. You would end up spending more upgrading your old one than buying a new one. Dell also is now including a free LCD Flat Panel as well as a free memory upgrade with every computer, so now is a good time to buy.

I need advice about a new computer... my Dell is 5 years old and doing funny things...I have done all the maintence tricks and defragged the hard drive several times... That is all I know to do... I have a trinitron screen which seems fine... I like the keyboard... do I just order a new hard drive, or take advantage of one of the package deals that Dell is offering? I would love a flat screen but what I really need is some advice...
What sort of "funny" things? Did the keyboard shoot seltzer water at you or do an impression of Clint Eastwood?

But seriously, what exactly does it do? Try and describe it the best you can.

I assume you've tried troubleshooting with the tech support at Dell, but if not, give that a try.

As for buying a new computer, it depends on a number of factors. Are you only browsing the web and typing word documents, or do you play 3d games and/or use image editing software like Photoshop? If it's the latter, you should definitely buy a new computer. If not and you also have a tight budget, you may survive for now by upgrading one or two parts. However, do keep in mind that sooner or later you will need to get a new computer.

O.k.- I will order a new Dell- now what? I am a writer and need to keep 300+ pages on the hard drive at one time... do I need a CD burner- is it for copies of just music???? How do I copy my work? Do I need a huge hard drive? I will not play any games unless it is Solitaire during a time when I need inspiration... so advice? With THANKS FOR ALL the info so far... jade

Great! I'll withhold my Dell "Dude" impressions and get right to the point.

First of all, make sure you get the Office XP Small Business package instead of the WordPerfect suite they attach by default; this way you should have industry-supported typing tools in case you want to send your files digitally to a publisher/peer/etc. Secondly, if you can spring the extra money for it, go with Windows XP Professional. IMHO, the Home Edition, while very good in its own right, still has some minor 'inconsistancies' to work out.

You should probably get a CD burner even though you may not need it right now. It will help you later on when you want to backup a bunch of files or store data larger than what a floppy disk holds (which is extremely easy to do these days.) A large hard drive is always nice but not required. Make sure you also have an anti-virus program pre-installed. As for their support and warranty, spring for as much as you can at the moment, it's definitely a good investment. I've found their support in general to be pretty good; it used to be one of the best around, but lately their outsourcing to India has made me think once or twice that I was calling Abu's Kwik-E-Mart. But seriously, it really is worth it in case you get yourself into a bind.

Don't forget to read the fine print! Sometimes they don't include a floppy drive standard, so make sure to check you can add it on if it's not already included.

Good luck, and happy computing!

Thank you for your time and sense of humor(which I realy appreciate)... after going to the Dell site and reading a bit more, I felt comfortable in ordering a new system... jade