Essential Equipment For Your Home Office.. Home Office Tips by
BB Lee(C)2003
This is part 4 in a series of Home Business Tip Articles. You
can read previous tips at:
http://www.angelfire.com/zine/smallbiz.
This part concerns the basic equipment you will need in your
home office if you want to be productive.
A Computer: I assume most people reading this article already
have a personal computer. Purchase the best you can afford. But,
if you are budget minded, you can find many computer stores
selling a full computer setup for under $1,000. For starters,
take a look at Dell Computer's Website. http://www.dell.com
The hardware or software you will need on your computer will
depend on your type of buisiness. Most of the newer computers
are pre-loaded with all the basic software you will need to run
your home office in the beginning. This would include: emailing,
spreadsheets, wordprocessing, database creation. Don't forget to
install a good back up system for your important files plus a
good surge protector to protect the computer. And anti-virus
software for added protection when on the Internet.
Monitor: Computers are packaged with monitors. A few years ago
15 inches was standard. Now you can easily up grade to a 17 inch
screen or larger. Larger viewing areas help reduce eyestrain.
Printers: Again most computers are packaged with a printer.
Printers available might be ink jet, or laser. Laser printers
produce higher, crisper, professional work. A laser printer is a
good choice if you do a lot of printing and correspondence. If
you rarely print out your work, a lower price ink jet printer is
adequate.
Scanner: If you desktop publish you will certainly need a
scanner. Scanners are great for scanning images from books,
newspapers, reports. Use to make copies of important business
documents.
Fax/Copy Machine: A dedicated fax line is a must if you are
online for long periods of time. A fax is still quite essential
even in the face of email technology. Many business people still
prefer a hands on hard copy instead of email documents. Fax
machines also are good copy machine substitutes if you
frequently need to copy documents. Fax machines are available
for under $100. And don't forget that you can easily send and
receive faxes from your computer with Win Fax.
A Business Telephone System: If you want to successfully run
your home based business. You must install a business telephone
line along with an answering system. This will establish a
professional image immediately. And you will not miss important
calls when you are away. Plus, a line dedicated only to business
calls is a good home business tax right off.
Cellular Telephone: A must have if you are on the move a lot.
You can easily forward all your business calls to your cell
telephone number. Never miss an important business call. Or if
you stay online for long periods. You simply forward all calls,
while online, to your cellular telephone number. Make sure your
cell has caller Id, so you can answer only the calls you want.
Very convenient.
Other Stuff: Take a trip to your local office supply store and
purchase these basic essentials right away.
Paper (for printer & fax machine)
Printer cartridges
Computer mouse pad
Pencils/pens/erasers
Stapler/extra staples
Post-it note pads
Paper clips
Large legal pads
Folders
Envelopes
Storage boxes
Assorted rubber bands
That's it! After acquiring the above you will have all the
basics to set up a home office.
Visit: http://www.angelfire.com/zine/smallbiz/Articles.html And
review the previous tips in the article section.
----------------------------------------------------------- BB
Lee is Editor Publisher Of SmallBizBits FREE Home Business
Newsletter. Visit at: http://www.angelfire.com/zine/smallbiz
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