This post started as a comment on The Old New Thing blog where he talked about the trials of upgrading his home computer when the mother board died.

To start off, I got tired of installing hardware back in the early 80s and pretty much just buy a new computer when one dies. Back in those days a software installation meant knowing a good bit about hardware. You had to know lots of details about the hard drives just to format it correctly. You had to do the format as part of the installation. Testing the installation usually meant that you had to connect some additional hardware, usually terminals but sometimes printers, to connections that were not so obvious and simple as today's connections. I used to help configure computers for salespeople as well. To do that you had to know what cables (by part number and specification) were required to connect what hardware to what other hardware. For example what sort of controller was required for what sort of disk and what cables connected the disk to the controller and the controller to what part of the computer. It was complicated. In fact it good serious advances in artificial intelligence before humans could be replaced by computers in the process. I'd moved on my then and glad of it.

By the time PCs started becoming really available I was long past wanting to play with the hardware. In general I prefer to buy my computers all ready assembled these days. Oh I'll install a new drive, some additional memory or a new keyboard if one breaks. But as soon as a motherboard goes or more than one or two parts need replaces that is a signal to go shopping for a new system. In the early days of PCs a lot of people kept asking me why I didn't build my computers from scratch. After all, they kept telling me, I could save a lot of money that way. Well I guess I could save money if I didn't value my time or if I thought of the time spent researching what worked with what and then putting the computer together as fun. But I do value my time and doing that research and assembly is not fun. It's stuff I used to get paid to do and frankly I can't afford me.  So to be honest I seriously doubt I could save enough money to make it worth while once all the options are weighed.

Computer companies spend a fortune on good hardware engineers who do the work to make sure things run well together. Sure a lot of things will just go together and work ok. Sometimes you'll even luck out and things will work great. Unless you are an engineer or otherwise very highly knowledgeable on all the latest hardware options luck is what it will take. Learning about all the latest hardware and what works well with what and looking up all the specifications for everything is real work and not something I really enjoy. Based on the level of knowledge of people working in computer retailers lately I'm sure not going to trust their recommendations either.

I'm a software guy so I figure I'll worry about that and let the hardware companies solve the hardware interaction problems. If I need a new computer I'm going to buy one already made. That way if it doesn't work I have someone else to blame.