Build a PC

[Guest]

I have been building gaming PC systems for people over the last five years and have considerable experience. Now, I am looking into the idea of doing this on a business level, but I don't know where to start. A lot of the people on this forum are better informed than the casual PC user, so I wondered if people are interested in this type of service. Would you trust a private user to create your system if it lowered the cost by 10% or more? Do you know people who would go for this? I would really appreciate any advice that people out there could give, because this is something that I find very exciting.

Thanks for your time.

 

[Guest]

Its going to be tough because people need to feel comfortable when spending a great deal of money on a new computer....you have to think about trust, warrentee(sp?), and cost.
For me if I didnt build my own systems I'd stick to premade companies, or large custom companies like Alien Ware....you just need to build a customer base and build up trust....i'd start local and expand from there.

 

[njeske]

Yeah... I do computer building as my own business. I have owned the company for a year and a half and I still don't have enough business to live off of it, so i still hold a part time job. I am just now starting to sell to people I don't know (non friends and family). If you can break into the market, more power to ya, but it is hard.

 

[nyt]

Find a good source of advertising and you'll do just fine!

--
Intel inside, AMD outside.

 

[wapaaga]

if you can spend money on a yellow pages add or a webpage but proaboally the yellow pages add

<font color=red>Gasoline + Fire</font color=red><font color=green> Can be a lot of fun</font color=green>

 

[CALV]

I've also done quite a lot of pc's for friends/friends of friends etc, I find the main killer is the cost of the windows cd (ok, if its someone you know then thats not necessarily a problem ) Also you get people phoning you up all times of day and night wanting free tech support "I cant get AOL to work", or "This computers RUBBISH, nothing works on it" (translates to "I've not a clue what Im doing"), but you CAN make a go of it, I thought about it in the past but just havn't got the financial backup.


Next time you wave - use all your fingers

 

[reversi]

Hey about windows cd's, if u go to a local university, or your parents work there or someone u know works there, u can usually get microsoft products for like 6 bucks a cd, and its legal (always a plus). I get office 2000 premium for 24 bucks, win2k 6 bucks, visual studio 30 bucks, etc.


Never Trust Intel to do AMD's job!

 

[Guest]

Here's an idea. Many people I know, including myself, would like to build their own PC but have the new builder jitters. Although their are many places on the web that will instruct a person on how to build a PC, these PC's are outdated. Many people are looking for live support on building a NEW PC and would be willing to pay someone to walk them through it. One approach might be to start a forum online on building a specific system or two. You alone would provide pertinent building information, and provide feedback to those in need. There are many approaches to setting this up, use your imagination. I personally would pay someone to hold my hand and walk me through any problems I specifically had in building my own PC. From there you should be able to build a trusting relationship with your consumer. I can asure you there is nothing like this on the web.

 

[Yahiko81]

And why should there be? I mean building a PC is simple. The hardest part is the OS. If you read the manuals that came with the equipment then everything is peachy. Most problems arise from people just rushing into things. Come to find out that forgot a jumper or hooked up a cable backwards. I don't know maybe it's because I've been around computers most of my life. I know that when I work on my truck I just read the manual and every thing goes according to plan, and by all means I'm not a mechanic. But I can sympathise with wanting to be walked through. But really there is not need. Just read up and try your best.

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[Guest]

Thank you for your encouragement. I agree, the easiest part is setting up the hardware. I've been reading everything I can get my hands on for several months regarding PC building. I have installed a few simple hardware components. My concern is my inability to fully understand DOS and the installation of the OS as you mentioned. The more I read, the more jittery I get. If I make a mistake, how do I recover and correct my mistake? If that mistake was made during hardware installation, obviously I can correct that. I know I can follow directions, that's critical in my line of business. I'm sometimes stumped on the PC "lingo" but I can look that up. The BIOS, DOS, fdisking etc. scares me. I'm sure I can recover from mistakes I will make in these areas, but I'm not sure how I do this. Maybe I'm being to cautious. Maybe I'm reading the wrong articles. Maybe I should just DO IT. I don't feel uncomfortable making mistakes, that's how we all learn. My concern is knowing how to correct those mistakes.

 

[Yahiko81]

Just go for it. If you mess anything up to terribly bad you can just reformat and start all over again. You will do fine. Tell us what os you want to install and I'm sure just about any of us here can walk you through it.

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