Face it, we build computers for the purpose of running software.  Many people hate to admit it, and this includes me, software runs our lives.  Every decision I make for my career is based upon software.  If I take on a new project, my first thought is do I have the necessary software.  You can call me an addict but I know I am not alone.  In my past life, I worked for a hardware manufacturer and every decision we made was ultimately based on the needs and wishes of our software partners.  Then I went to work for a software manufacturer who had thousands of employees with the sole job of controlling the hardware. 

You may think that if your building your own computer, you can choose each component without any involvement from someone else.  You are wrong, and you know you are wrong.  When you build your own computer you still end up making decisions based upon software.  Choosing the hardware you need to run your software can be a never ending job, every week new software is released and that new software is designed to take advantage of and sometimes tax the hardware we use.  But building computers is fun and even though I know it can be impossible to keep ahead of the software, I do so love the challenge.

Building a computer that meets the needs of your software is actually not as hard as it sounds.  You simply need to know what software you use and what the hardware requirements are.  Begin your next computer project by determining what software you are using today and what software you want to use in the future.  My list for today includes firefox, email, text editor, and web designer software.  I have also discovered that since I work mainly on the web now, I need lots of photos so my new computer will have the hardware necessary to run photoshop even though I do not use that photo editing software now.  I am building a new computer that can handle Adobe Creative Suite, and let me tell you, the hardware requirements for this massive software suite is large and quite thrilling for someone who loves the challenge of building to meet the software requirements. 

If you have problems focusing on what software you use, start making a list by recording each program you open on your computer for one week.  Once you have the list of software you use and the list of software you need to use, (Notice the word “need” here) you can plan your computer building project without being sidetracked with new and shinny. I find that creating a list helps keep me focused on on target.  We all know the lure of extending the ability of our computers “just in case” but be honest with yourself and the needs of your computer.  If you only check email and surf the internet you really do not need to spend the extra money on that top-of-the-line video card.  Save your money and save your time, build a computer for your software.