Why should I have a computer custom built for my business?

"Why can’t I use an ordinary computer for my business?” The short answer is: You can.

But a more complete answer requires more questions. For example, you need to ask where the computer will be used. In hotel rooms? In your office? In your shop? Most significantly, ask yourself how much impact it would have on your business if your computer were to be damaged or lost. Can you get to customer and supplier records that you need? What about your financial records? How much of your personal time and energy are going to be dedicated to recovering your applications and your data? Different answers will dictate different component selections and assembly techniques.

For more discussion about how to select machines, please read my essays on the questions: "What is the best computer to buy?" and "How does one design a custom computer?"

Returning to the question of why you should consider a custom built computer for your business: If you have read this far, you realize that I’m going to say, “It depends on your specific set of requirements.” Determining the processor speed, memory and storage requirements requires that one consolidate the requirements for all the applications and select a computer into which they will all fit. If this were the end of it, one could go to the local electronics store and purchase something that would do nicely.

But it’s not that easy. We need to also consider cooling and data security.

COOLING. Most consumer computers have fans designed to move air from the room across the components and then exhaust the heated air. The usual effect is that the computer chassis becomes a sort of dust and dirt reservoir. If one adds additional fans to move more air in order to achieve more cooling, one increases the volume of detritus. Most 3-year old machines’ insides are coated with power-like dust. Many contain fibers from carpets, pet hair, human hair, bugs, spider webs, and other residue. The cooling system itself almost guarantees that at the end of 3 or 4 years, the machine expires from the burden of foreign material.

SECURITY. This is not about data backup. You know you have to do that, because the machine might break down or be stolen or destroyed in a fire. However, a proper business system can be designed to minimize the likelihood that a “routine” malfunction could cause your system to lose information you had stored in it. One user-friendly solution is a Redundant Array of Independent Drives (RAID.) A RAID can be configured so that your system always has two complete copies – in two separate hard drives – of all your information. When one of your hard drives fails, the other can continue working.

Most computers sold in consumer electronics stores or in the malls are adequate to the routine tasks that many of us associate with computers: looking at Internet sites, sending and receiving e-mail, composing letters and reports. Lots of good work can be done on mass-produced consumer-grade computers. But your business needs may exceed the scope of ordinary home-market machines. Consider consulting a custom builder who will work with you to design a computer that provides the processing capability, cooling, and security that you need plus follow up support to meet your business requirements.

Revised: 20 June 2007

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