Amstrad was one of the brightest British businesses in the 1980s. While most British electronic companies suffered setbacks Amstrad's profits grew from £1.4 million to £160 million.

Not surprisingly, its youthful founder Alan Sugar was rated among the country's greatest entrepreneurs. What made Amstrad so great and what makes Alan Sugar tick?

Unfortunately these important questions are not answered by David Thomas's The Amstrad Story.

Thomas's omissions do not make the book worthless, it has the three i's required of any lightweight business reader it is:

• interesting,
• inspiring and
• informative.

Despite its inspirational qualities, it is fundamentally flawed as a textbook for budding Sugars.

The book offers no insight into Amstrad's recipe for success. It offers no insight period. The book chronicles Sugar's business activities with a few anecdotes and some comment from Sugar and his business partners.

Part of the problem is Sugar's reluctance to open himself up to public scrutiny. The man has a well-known dislike for journalists and likes to keep his personal life to himself.

As a journalist on the Financial Times, Thomas somehow managed to bypass this obstacle and gain access to some of Sugar's thoughts and a great deal of the more favourable aspects of Amstrad's growth period.

Yet, for the most part the book reads like public relations puffery. Alan Sugar vetted it before publication. Only Thomas's insistence on recording Sugar's bad language verbatim saves it from reading like Pollyanna.

At no point did Thomas talk to Sugar's rivals – he offers no critical analysis of Sugar or Amstrad.

As a journalist working in this area through most of this period in the UK, I knew of many who had much to say about Alan Sugar that was far from complementary. Such criticism, constructive or otherwise, would hardly diminish Sugar's achievement. It would help us understand it.

In particular, the book does not tell us enough about how Sugar started.

It seems he left a warehouse one day with a van full of electronic goods and returned that night having sold the lot – I'd love to know how.

By not telling us the whole story, Thomas leaves readers with the impression there might be something shady in Sugar's early business dealings. That isn't fair on the readers and it certainly isn't fair on Sugar.

For my money the most galling feature of this book is its Cambridge-educated author's habit of painting Sugar as a Del-Boy or Arthur Daley-type character. Why Sugar's design notes are reproduced along with spelling errors is beyond me.

The same goes for verbatim quotes complete with bad grammar or foul language. It is as if the author admires Sugar's gumption and business brain but has to show him up as being an ignorant lout at heart.

This Del-Boy theme repeats elsewhere and it stinks of the very worst kind of British class prejudice. It is a reminder of why British industry is in decline. While other nations venerate people who create new wealth the British prefer to venerate those whose ancestors made it.

Perhaps in this roundabout way the author unwittingly pulls back the curtain to show what drives Sugar: a wish to succeed and prove himself the equal or better of those born to a higher position.

If making money is a way of measuring these things, Sugar proved himself.

Despite these criticisms the book has value. The stories of how Sugar planned his computers and how he eventually acquired Sir Clive's Sinclair's business are both worth reading.

Sugar's ability to cut through distractions and get straight to the point – usually money, is spellbinding. And those nuggets of Sugar's managerial wisdom that peek out from underneath are pure gold.

I’m not what computer marketeers call an early adopter.

Early adopters must own the latest gadgets. They run ahead of the pack. They upgrade computers and software before everyone else.

Early adopters use the latest smartphones. They buy cars with weird features. They queue up to buy iPhones, iPads, games consoles or the newest version of Microsoft Windows.

Their computers never work properly because they are awash in beta and alpha versions of software all quietly screwing things up in the background.

And some of their kit is, well, unfinished.

Computer makers depend on early adopters. They use them as guinea pigs.

Marketing types will tell you early adopters will buy a product first to steal a march over the rest of humanity. They claim they will be the first to reap the benefits of the new product.

This can be true. But at the same time, early adopters often face the trauma of getting barely finished products to work.

There’s another reason computer makers love early adopters—they pay more. Usually, new products hit the market with a price premium. Once a product matures, the bugs eliminated and competition appears, profit margins are slimmer.

Being an early adopter is fine if you enjoy playing with digital toys. If productivity isn’t as important to you as being cool. And if you have the time and money to waste making them work.

I don’t. I prefer to let others try things first. Then, let computer makers and software developers iron out the wrinkles while the product proves its worth, I’ll turn up with my cheque-book.

Security products can help protect your computer. Some are traditional packaged software, others are online services. Here are the types of security applications you are most likely to need:

Anti-virus

Designed to keep your PC free of infection, anti-virus programs generally use two different approaches. First, they match databases – known as signatures – against incoming files to spot potential threats and block them.

Vendors update signature files regularly, some run daily updates, others update signatures every hour or so. This isn’t always enough. Virus writers aim to ‘fly under the radar’ with fresh malware.

The worst codes spread faster than signature updates. So most antivirus programs now include tools designed to spot suspicious virus-like behaviour from unknown files. These files are flagged as potential threats and treated.

Anti-virus is a misleading name these days. Almost every anti-virus program provides protection from a range of different mal-wares.

Firewalls:

Firewalls control the flow of internet traffic to and from your computer. Some are hardware devices – if you use a router it may have a built-in firewall – but in most home set-ups they are software.

Firewalls have two main functions. They act as a gate, stopping unwanted traffic from entering your system. At the same time, they should stop unapproved traffic from leaving your system. For example, if there’s a spyware program on your computer monitoring your activities, a properly configured firewall will stop that information from being sent. Equally, if a worm infects your computer, a worm, a firewall will stop it getting out and infecting others.

The firewall in Windows XP only stops incoming traffic; so it will only protect you up to a point. You should invest in a commercial firewall product – they are all bi-directional.

Unlike antivirus programs, which are forgotten once install, firewalls are complex. If you set things up incorrectly, you may leave your computer vulnerable. Alternatively, you may hinder legitimate traffic – this is especially difficult if you use a home network. The best firewalls will automatically configure themselves, but they tend to err on the side of caution blocking any unusual application.

Anti-spyware

Also known as spyware blockers. There’s a thin line between antivirus and anti-spyware tools – in fact some commercial security products now combine the two functions in a single application. Good anti-spyware products will detect and remove both spyware and adware from your computer. It should also block this kind of software from being installed. Firewalls may detect spyware it first attempts to send data back to base.

Spam Filters

A program designed to stop, or at least drastically reduce, the amount of spam turning up in your email in-box. Spam filters can save you time and money sorting through rubbish emails but most home and small business computer users don’t need to worry about filtering spam. That’s because many ISPs and web-mail providers now use anti-spam filters to check mail before downloading it to your computer or read in your web browser. Also, modern email programs, like Microsoft Outlook 2007, have built-in spam detection tools.

Online security problems facing home users and small businesses are different from those facing larger companies and corporations.

Here are threats you may meet:

• Malware: Is the generic name for all malicious software. Some people also talk of greyware which refers to software that’s annoying but not dangerous.
• Virus: A small program designed to automatically copy itself from one computer to another. Viruses attach to other pieces of software or hidden inside images, games and music files. They usually travel from machine to machine by email, instant messaging or file transfers. Although some viruses are harmless, most are disruptive, the worst can stop a PC from working.
• Worm: Also a self-replicating program, but unlike viruses, worms can automatically travel from machine to machine without being attached to other pieces of software. This means in addition to any other damage they slow networks because they can consume bandwidth.
• Trojan: The name given to a program which looks harmless, but has an unexpected malicious purpose. Some start their mischief immediately, others may wait, possibly collecting data without the computer owner’s knowledge.
• Spyware: A program designed to collect information about a computer and its user that the spyware author can use to make money. Typically spyware may watch your web browsing and target pop-up advertising at you or divert you to other web sites.
• Rootkit: A program designed to change a computer’s operating system to hide the behaviour of other malware.
• Keylogger: Software that collects keyboard data – possibly to collect passwords or important account information. Keyloggers can then send this information back to criminals allowing them to impersonate users and, for example, robbing their online banking accounts.
• Botnet: Programs used to control, update or trigger activity in previously infected systems.
• Backdoor: A way of getting undetected access to a computer system.
• Zombie: A computer being controlled by another user to perform some malicious online tasks.
• Spam: Unwanted email, instant messages or other form of electronic communication. Spam clogs email inboxes and the sheer volume of spam (as much as 95% of all email traffic) slows networks.
• Phishing: is when someone fraudulently tries to get hold of important information such as passwords and bank account details by pretending to be a trustworthy source. Phishers may send authentic-looking emails asking for the data or with links to a fake web site.
• Adware: Strictly speaking this isn’t a threat, but an annoyance. It refers to any software that bombards you with unwanted advertising.

A computer buyer's guide for non-experts.

Buying a PC once meant swimming in shark-infested waters. You only had to wade into a computer store and sleek-looking creatures would circle, hoping to sink their teeth into your credit card.

These days the bites you’ll encounter when shopping for hardware are spelled with a “y”. That’s because computer retailing has grown-up; respectable stores have learnt how to sell computers and customers know to avoid the rip-off retailers. Even so there are still predators, so act with caution.

Most independent specialist computer stores in Australia and New Zealand are small fry. While there are swept-up specialist showrooms in swish retail areas, many are in run-down shopping districts, or in industrial or retail parks. You’ll find them tucked away in suburban backwaters, on the wrong side of the tracks or in the creepy subterranean areas of shopping malls where you might expect to run into a party of orcs. The key word here is low rent.

Inside, store decor can range anywhere from the neurotic tidiness to health-hazard squalor. There might be a few nerdy looking guys working out back in what looks like a pigsty. This is the engineering department. Amongst empty cola cans and fast food wrappers you’ll find state-of-the-art processor chips and disc drives which may end up inside your computer.

Unbranded hardware

As a rule small specialist stores offer unbranded hardware. Or at least unbranded desktop computers. In the trade these are known as white boxes. Wall stains are hidden by posters for companies you’ve never heard of. While there's limited brand choice, these guys can tailor a system to your exact specification or budget in a matter of hours.

And it’ll be cheap. If you’ve already got a monitor, mouse, keyboard and speakers, you’ll find good basic desktops start at around $500. Spend $1000 and you’ll have something better than 99 percent of corporate office workers will have on their desks.

In the past small specialist stores would offer unbranded or obscure-brand laptops. These days the portable computers are almost always from well-known multinational companies, though you may see some unfamiliar names.

You’ll find the sharpest prices at the small specialist stores – saving more that 20 percent on prices elsewhere – but there are risks:

• First, you need to check that the hardware you paid for is exactly what you got (the section at the bottom of this post tells you how to do this). This check applies to all computer purchases from any type of supplier.
• Second, a small store might disappear before your computer’s warranty expires. As a rule of thumb, a store that has been around for more than three years is unlikely to close overnight. With the economy the way it is, small stores are probably no riskier than some of the big ones.
• Third, most of the prosecutions for software piracy involve smaller specialist stores. Make sure you get certificates and boxes for all the software included in your purchase. Be wary of unexpected applications pre-loaded on to the hard disc.
• Fourth, brand name manufacturers spend a lot of time and effort matching components and fine tuning their hardware. El cheapo computer makers might just visit the lucky dip barrel and shove in whatever parts come to hand causing problems down the track. You might even find second-hand components in your machine. Of course, the big brands play similar games with their discount product lines.
• Finally, don’t part with your money until you have the hardware.

Bigger range, less choice

Larger electronic retailers such as Dick Smith and Harvey Norman tend to carry a lot more stock than the specialists. They offer a bigger range of prebuilt systems as well – though this may vary depending on store size. You’ll find the brands are mainly recognisable and although they may offer limited flexibility, you are usually restricted to buying complete systems with all the extras. Don’t expect to choose from a smorgasbord of components either. Prices are usually higher than elsewhere.

Electronics retailers tend to keep machines on shelves and are less keen to let you test drive, especially when they are busy. Their focus is on a quick turnover of stock so expect to find less emphasis on customer service and a more intense emphasis on selling: touch a machine and a sales rep will approach you. You might find slightly more pressure to buy.

In some cases sales staff are ‘incentivised’ to push certain product lines. For example if they sell so many models in a particular range, they’ll get a free holiday in Fiji. So treat brand recommendations with caution. The sales reps are also expected to flog you extra stuff once you’ve made a big decision – it’s the computer retail equivalent of “do you want to upsize?”

Variable after sales support

After sales support varies drastically from retailer to retailer so check individual store reputations with your friends before buying. You may find support is referred back to the manufacturer, but legally the store is obliged to satisfy the customer.

Watch out for the special deals in the electrical stores. Old stock gets shifted at exceptionally competitive prices, but some so-called bargains are the rubbish products more savvy consumers have left on the shelves for a good reason.

Smaller independent specialist stores are far more common on the ground in Australia than in New Zealand, where a handful of big chains dominate. Australia also has large specialist outlets like Sydney-based Harris Technology where you’ll find neat rows of computers and printers along with other kit logically organised around the store.

In practice they offer a far more comprehensive range of hardware, a wider choice of brands, lots of small extra components and, usually, better sales advice. Prices are comparable with elsewhere.

Staff in the big specialist stores are better informed than in the electronic retailers. Not only do they know more about the items they sell, but they know about what is going on in the industry. What’s more, because they offer a wider range of hardware they feel less pressure to push inappropriate products. You’ll get good after sales support, these stores have proper workshops, but if you invalidate your warranty it may prove expensive.

Buying PCs direct from the manufacturer

If you already know exactly what you want and have better things to do with your time than listening to sales patter then you may prefer one of the direct sales operations.

Dell runs the largest and best known direct PC sales operation. Apple, Acer and Harris Technology also offer direct online sales, although Harris doesn't make its hardware. Some specialist stores also offer direct sales.

When you buy a computer from a direct sales operation you can usually chose a basic model and then customise it to your heart’s content. Dell’s team will then assemble your chosen hardware and deliver it directly to your home.

Buying direct is convenient and, in general, you have a lot more flexibility than buying a brand name PC in a store. That’s because the machine is assembled to your specifications. It is hard to choose components online if you’re not technical, but telephone sales people can walk most beginners through the process.

One word of warning though, many direct sales companies speak in a strange coded language that isn’t immediately obvious to consumers. Years ago, I purchased a Dell via telephone after visiting the web site I thought I was buying a computer complete with a DVD burner. When the computer turned up, it couldn’t write DVDs. The sales critter (probably in a far-flung third world country) didn’t make it clear that a ‘combo’ drive could read and write CDs and only read DVDs. My complaints were not accepted.

Dell: a mixed experience

Personally this experience, along with a few other problems, means I will never buy from Dell again. However, many of my friends and colleagues are happy with the company.

One other thing to watch with Dell is that the company’s special offers are good value, but once you alter the specification, the costs quickly rise.

Many computer makers, including direct sales operations like Dell, offer telephone after sales support – mainly during office hours. They’ll help you set up the system and troubleshoot problems; if something needs fixing you’ll have to courier or take the machine to their warehouse and wait for a few days. You may be able to pay extra for on-site support. Specialist computer stores usually offer their own in-house after sales support.

Don’t underestimate the need for support. Everyone buying a new computer needs help at one stage or other – even experts. It’s worth paying a few dollars more for your hardware if you can get someone to hold your hand while you set things up.

Finding the right sales person

Finding the right shop is hard enough, but for most people finding the right sales critter once you reach a store is even more important.

If you’re a seriously techno-savvy consumer, the last thing you need is someone who talks like a kindergarten teacher on mogadon. Some insist on explaining everything as if reading flashcards. On the other hand, if you’re a novice, excitable nerdy guys with cartoon ties speaking incomprehensible jargon is off-putting.

Older readers might remember the TV comedy sketch where Rowan Atkinson goes into an electronics retailer and asks for a ‘gramophone’. The smart-alec sales assistant then spends the next few minutes giving the customer a hard time because he doesn’t know the meaning of terms like woofers, tweeters and Dolby. If this still exists on videotape it should be mandatory viewing for everyone who sells computers.

While there’s still a tendency for some retail staff to patronise customers, the good news is that these days they are better trained. Individual sales people may have difficultly getting the balance right, but most places have at least one person who can communicate with you on the right level.

Things to watch out for

The other thing to watch for is over-zealous sales people. Some retail computer stores put their staff on group bonus schemes; others run on an individual commission basis. This means the more they sell, the more they earn. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but take care.

Avoid being hurried into any purchase. In particular avoid anyone who tells you that a particular price is “only for today”. Watch out for any extras, only buy what you know is necessary. Retailers earn wafer thin margins on hardware, but the profits on other items can be sky-high.

In some small computer stores, the person who runs the shop is the owner. They may haggle. Don’t expect to negotiate a lower price if you’re just buying a PC – specialist stores typically already have rock-bottom prices, work off tiny margins and have little room to move. However, if you want to buy a bundle of stuff in a single transaction, they may offer a good deal.

How to quickly check computer hardware

To get a list of the hardware components inside a Windows Vista machine click Start, All Programs, Accessories, System Tools, System Information. This isn’t always 100 percent accurate, but it is a good guide. Macintosh users can find more limited information by pulling down the Apple Menu and click “About this computer”.

Any science fiction movie worth its salt features computers or robots that not only recognise human speech but also understand what the speaker means. This isn’t likely to stay fiction for much longer*.

Right now, some of the best brains in the computer industry are working to develop ‘natural language processing’ products. That’s the jargon term for software that turns vocal sounds into meaningful data.

When natural language processing arrives, it will be the biggest breakthrough in the history of computing. Apart from anything else, it will mean we can do away with keyboards and screens – or at least relegate them to occasional use.

But intelligent voice recognition isn’t just about computers. Imagine telephones, TV sets and microwave ovens that understand spoken instructions.

Natural language processing

Natural language processing won’t all arrive at once. We are at probably ten and maybe 15 years away from computers hearing the difference between war and Waugh. And computers capable of meaningful conversation, like Star Wars’ C3P0, won’t be available for 20 years or more.

The early fruits of language processing have been on the market for years. ACT, a now defunct British computer maker, sold a system that responded to a limited set of voice commands in 1981. Today, we have fourth, possibly even fifth, generation voice recognition products that can turn the spoken word into typewritten text – most of the time. You may see them referred to as speech recognition applications.

The slow progress to date has not been due to software issues, but had more to do with the available computer power. You need a hefty processor to run voice recognition. Make that hefty spare processing capacity after all the fancy graphics and other cycle-chewing work required by modern operating systems.

When they work as advertised, today’s voice recognition products are impressive. It was Arthur C Clark who wrote that any sufficiently advanced technology tends to look like magic. It’s hard not to believe in the supernatural the first time you see your own speech appear as type on a PC screen.

Speech better for small business

Unlike many computer products on the market today, voice recognition offers more to small businesses than large companies. There are two reasons for this. First, voice recognition requires a degree of effort on the part of the user. A users train the software to understand an individual’s voice and speech patterns.

Further refinement is needed over the first few weeks of use. Because of this, it only works well for highly motivated people. Mischievous, or reluctant users can make sure their systems never work effectively.

A second reason is that voice recognition products needs lots of support. The cost of supporting an individual PC user tends to rise with organization size. In a big company, the cost overheads of voice recognition can outweigh the productivity gains.

The biggest name in voice recognition is Dragon, part of Nuance. The company’s Naturally Speaking software comes in a variety of packages costing from around NZ$200 for a student edition climbing to NZ$1500 for a corporate package. (Prices are in New Zealand dollars, roughly 50 cents US).

In addition to a powerful computer – Nuance recommends a 2.4GHz Pentium Dual Core, anything less will deliver disappointing results – voice recognition systems need a good microphone. In theory they can work with a PC’s internal microphone. In practice it usually isn't worth the bother.

Memory is less important

Memory isn’t so important if you’re running an older operating system, but if you’re running Windows Vista, you’ll need well over 1GB of Ram. Pretty much any PC sound card will do so long as it can handle recording.

All the commercial specialist voice recognition programs are available in packages that include microphones, usually on headsets. You can also buy digital voice recorders bundled with speech recognition software – these can be great for taking voice notes when you are out and about.

You may already have voice recognition on your computer. The latest versions of Microsoft Windows and Office have baked-in speech recognition. It’s not as quick, as polished or as customisable as NaturallySpeaking, but at least Microsoft's tools give you an opportunity to test the technology before parting with any cash.

You couldn’t realistically use any existing voice recognition products to write a book unless you were patient. Nor are they likely to replace good typing skills in the near future. Nevertheless they are more than adequate for composing emails and short memos. What’s more, when voice recognition tools are integrated into a computer’s operating system, they can control functions such as opening and closing files or selection commands from menus. In fact, voice recognition tools are widely used by people with disabilities – especially the blind and other people with seeing difficulties.

* Not likely to be fiction much longer?

There’s a bit of poetic licence here. The ACT voice recognition system I saw in London in 1981 could only ‘learn’ ten words. A salesman told me proper voice recognition was around “two years away”. It’s nearly 30 years on, and while the programs are massively better, they still need polish before being acceptable to mainstream users. Maybe two more years will do the trick. As for ‘natural language processing’… that’ll take longer.

Open source software is free. Anyone can download open source programs, run them, copy them and pass them on to friends and colleagues without paying a license fee and without breaking any laws.

Cost is not the most important point. Open source advocates say free means as in ‘free speech’ and not ‘no payment’.

This freedom means that users can change the programs to suit their own needs – something that is illegal with most other forms of software.

The only condition is programmers must pass the same set of freedoms on. Altered open source programs must be made available to everyone. The logic of this approach is it decentralises control – so the software keeps improving. At the same time, having large numbers of people looking at and improving on programs means that bugs are quickly eliminated – so quality control improves.

Businesses think long and hard before buying computer hardware and software. Some have finely tuned technology plans. Others might take an ad hoc approach, making up the rules as they go. This sounds unwise, but it has the advantage of flexibility.

Some managers consult with their end users and technology specialists before drawing up specification lists. Many business buyers prefer the security of a known brand, some seek comfort in long-standing ‘technology relationships’, and others like the prices or local service offered by smaller outlets.

Whatever the details, business people tend to put a lot of research and effort into their system and software purchases. So should you. But it's easy to hung up worrying about the wrong things.

While it makes sense to plan software buying in detail, this is not always the case for hardware. After all, modern computer hardware is a commodity. There isn’t much difference between one brand and another. Inside they are pretty much the same. After years of conducting in-depth benchmarks (among other jobs I edited the Australian edition of PC Magazine), I can confirm that the difference between the top-performing brands and the average is rarely more than a couple of percent.

Whisper it quietly, but this difference is well under the margin of error. When comparing classes of computers, the performance spread between the highest and the lowest is usually less than the margin of error. And even if it isn’t, I challenge anyone to sit at any two similarly configured PCs and tell me which one is running five percent faster. You won't notice any difference running Microsoft Word or working online with Firefox or any other browser.

Frankly, for people in business performance is an issue, but the performance that matters is that between different classes of machine and not different models within a class.

Oh and before we go any further, if raw processing speed really worries you, most of the time you can boost it  by adding more Ram. Spending a $100 on extra memory chips is the best IT investment you’ll ever make. Not only will this kick-start sluggish systems, but you’ll be able to do more work and work more productively.

Of course, benchmarking does show up poorly performing products. But these are as likely to come from the most prestigious stables as from the cheaper no-brand operators. By all means use benchmarking information to avoid the dogs, but in the long run, average performing machines are as good a buy as the fastest.

While the performance spread of similarly specified PCs is minimal, prices tend to have more variation. Both follow the well-known bell curve. But the top and bottom performers in any class might deviate three or four percent from the average, while prices can vary by up to 20 percent; and even more if we include Apple's expensive hardware in the list.

You might expect that prices vary with performance. They may, but only up to a point. Statisticians and economists call the way two variables interact; ‘correlation’. So, if price and performance ratings match, they would be highly correlated, if cheaper machines performed best, then they would have negative correlation. In reality, there is merely a weak correlation between price and performance.

If you draw a graph and plot performance against price, there would be a pattern, but a number of points on the graph would sit a long way from any trend line or cluster. These are the machines to watch. Those that are nearest to the corner where performance is sluggish and prices are high represent the worst value. Those in the opposite corner represent the best.

It might seem like a lot of work, but this is a worthwhile process if you need to buy a lot of hardware. However, it is worth remembering that differences in performance rarely matter, dollars in your pocket do.

So, what PC purchasing lessons are there for individuals and small business owners? The key is to get your IT spending into perspective. When shopping for hardware, you should pay more attention to the features included in the package than to any benchmarking details. Remember warranties and reliability are more important than performance. And above all else, remind yourself that a low-price, average performing system plus $100 spent on Ram will almost always give you a better return than a pricey speed demon.