A low-cost desktop computer is all most people need. The hardware is way ahead of the software. So, most people don’t need top-of-the-line equipment.

The exceptions would be people who do lots of video and photo editing. Cutting-edge gamers also are exceptions. These people should buy more capable machines.

In researching this buying guide, I spec’d out a Hewlett-Packard computer. It came to $519, including a 19-inch monitor. This was a great price; so great, in fact, that I didn’t believe it. But I came up with the same thing when I double-checked it.

Let’s look at what you get for $519. We’ll start with Windows, where there is always controversy.

I bought several machines for the office in January 2007. All are running Windows Vista. We have had no trouble with Vista. It has been as reliable as XP was on our old machines. So, I would take complaints about Vista with a grain of salt. Some people hate Microsoft, and are overly quick to criticize its products.

Some buyers may consider getting XP, rather than Vista. But XP is available for relatively few computers. And you’ll have to pay extra for it.

Furthermore, new programs are being written for Vista, not XP. Most of those programs will run on XP. But problems are possible down the road.