ADDITIONAL BUILD-A-THON NOTES

We urge everyone to buy a copy of the September 1998 issue of "Computer Shopper." It includes a Motherboard Buyers Guide starting on page 320.

When shopping for components, PACS members should take advantage of the PACS-CompUSA discount arrangement (PACS membership card required). This may not always be the lowest price, so please shop around. Here are some useful guidelines:

Consider buying the motherboard mail order. Buy the rest of the components locally.

Be aware of the return policy. Avoid any establishment that charges a restocking fee.

Make sure you have enough time to bring whatever you buy to the October meeting and return it if it proves to be DOA. This means you should make your purchases very close to the October meeting date.

Buy your cases locally from some of the small computer shops in the area. Be sure:

1. your motherboard fits in the case
2. you have room to work in the case
3. you can get access from both sides to install CD-ROM, floppy and hard disk drives
4. there is a solid metal plate to support and back the mother-board
5. once you install the motherboard, you have full access to every slot

One additional consideration: If you don't want to build a new system from scratch, you can upgrade an existing system by adding only a new CPU and motherboard, and continue to use your existing components.