THE CUTTING EDGE: CONSUMER’S COMPUTER GUIDE : A Personal Computer Decision

This holiday season as never before, in department stores and office supply stores, especially computer stores and electronics stores, shoppers will be eyeing personal computers.

But buying the right PC and getting it to work properly is no easy feat. Computers are still expensive and complicated devices that are far more difficult to operate than almost anything else you might buy for your home.

And the blizzard of choices offered by fiercely competitive PC manufacturers and retailers can be daunting--even though, with the exception of the Apple Macintosh, the basic technology varies little from one machine to the next. Buying appropriate software and computer accessories is only slightly less difficult.

This special of The Cutting Edge is devoted to helping you find your way through the computer-buying chaos.

COMPUTERS & KIDS: A PC can be a useful educational tool, but finding good software is crucial. D4

THE NET ON A BUDGET: If you’re technically inclined, you can get a friend or loved on hooked up to the Internet for less than $100--including the cost of the computer. D4

HELP! HELP! Buying a machine is often only half the battle if you don’t know how to use it. But there’s plenty of help out there--classes, books and more. D4

VETERANS’ ADVICE: Lots of people bought PCs last holiday season. And they have some advice for this year’s shoppers. D5

THE WORST CASE: An intrepid Times editor finds that PC buying is harder than it looks. D5