It always amazes me how frequently people that start an online home based business actually believe that they can get rich by doing absolutely nothing, or at least with very little effort. These are otherwise intelligent people. Why would they believe this? My conclusion is that they believe because they want to believe. They believe because they see claims to this effect everyday and everywhere on Internet. They are told that it is possible. They not only want to believe it, for their own reasons, but they need to believe it.

In my opinion, you need to give yourself at least a year to make an online business get some traction and start to generate some meaningful income. The proper mindset is to think long term, not instant gratification. I am always surprised at number of people who drop out of their online home based business after first month or two. I ask myself, what do they expect, miracles? You probably wouldn't bail out of offline business after a month so why would you expect an online business to be any different?

Aside from fallacy of instant riches without any effort, expectation of a free ride is a frequent misconception of many that think they want to start an online home based business. If you're afraid, or unwilling, to invest a little money to start your own business...you are not looking at a home based business...you are looking at a work at home job. If you want to make money online, you must also be willing to invest in yourself. It's as plain and simple as that.

* 3D Graphic Accelerator Next generation 3D chipsets are not essential business equipment. Most modern computers will have a 3D chipset by default. Simply don't go upgrading this because you're only doing it to play latest games. Don't buy a distraction.

CDRW or DVDRW drive If you value your business you'll value your data. A CD or DVD writer/burner gives you ability to safely and quickly backup your data. Do not buy a PC without one.

LCD/Flat screens MTV Cribs has sold more flat screen tvs than any marketing campaign could hope to. Will a 21" LCD screen make you work faster or better? Nope. CRT monitors are cheaper and do same job. If its supplied as standard with system then that's fine. Don't go spending money on an LCD upgrade.

Extended warranties Sales people make large commissions from these. Do you really need a 5 year warranty on your computer? Will you still own same computer in even 3 years? Never take these warranties at face value.

Generic Brand Computers Just because it isn't Dell, IBM, HP or Compaq doesn't mean it's cheap. Generic brands use same components as and are therefore equally as reliable as big name brands like HP and Dell. Buy smart.

Refurbished systems If budget is tight and spec is right then these are well worth considering. Be certain of what your warranty cover on such a system is though. Many refurbished systems only have a 90-day warranty.

Phone-A-Friend Check with friends who have purchased computers recently. What problems did they encounter when buying their PC? Who did they buy from? What was aftersales service like?

Printer Does your business really need a top-of-the-range color laserjet that prints 7,000 pages per minute? Nope? Didn't think so.

Here's a brief list of questions you should ask yourself when buying your printer:

* Do you need color printing capabilities?

* How many pages per minute do you actually need to print?

* What is cost per page for color and black printing?

* How much does replacement ink/toner cost?

* How many pages of black text can you get from each cartridge?

* How much desktop space will printer require?

* Are updated drivers and tech support for this model readily available?

Hopefully this set of articles has proven useful to you. Again a few thousand words can't possibly encompass everything you need to know about designing and operating a home office. www.home-office-advisor.com is there for that purpose.

Home Office Advisor has lots of information for anybody who has, does or will run their own home office. The site contains detailed information on office chairs, desks, computers, ergonomics and other related topics.