format is a whole different ball game but then working in this format is anyway.
As for John's D&P costs.  One big advantage of digital, as I see it, is not having to have everything printed !  Downloading your images directly to the computer means you have access to all your work via the many different viewers that are available (one normally comes with the camera anyway) which will enable you to view your images and if you want, to catalogue them as well. You will also have access to all the data (EXIF information) that is stored when taking pictures as to exposure and camera settings etc. that seem to be so important to some photographers and especially to camera magazines.  John's way of working initially with small prints would not be an issue here as cropping, exposure and colour correction changes can be done on screen (with notes if necessary) in most browser software before opening the pictures in Photoshop or your choice  of editing program.  There is also the advantage of being able to 'rescue' under exposed pictures, especially if working in RAW mode, where this would be difficult to do when scanning slides or negatives without introducing too much noise.  Also scanning 36 or more negatives or slides would take forever and take up a lot of hard drive space if scanned at a high resolution 'just in case' there was a picture worth using.  As for 'spotting' all those pictures…..one thing I would not miss !  So unless you or your family want en prints then there is no need for D&P costs (with the added bonus of doing his bit to save the environment).  Remember John spends £360 a year on film, developing and processing.
With regards to backups, John says that 32 writable CD's would be needed each year.  If DVD's were used instead then this could be got down to 5 per year (about £2.50) with a total of 35 DVD's over John's 7 year 'pay-back' period, saving considerable space over the 205 CD's not needed.  An extra saving could also be made on not having to buy a middle bracket for that shelf !  If he backed up to hard drive as well (or instead) then a fairly cheap 200 Gb one (about £70) would allow John to back up 9 years worth of images and have them all in one place for instant viewing. No more having to dig through mountains of print packs and negative files looking for that elusive masterpiece that you just know you took.
As for me ?  Well this year I had promised to treat myself to a Digital SLR but because I use an old Contax SLR (not even auto-focus) with a ramshackle selection of lenses,          ……../contd.

I would have to start all over again with a new system (now that would be nearer £2K !).  Unlike John, I probably only use about 10 to 20 rolls of film (in a good year) so I'm not sure that spending money on a new system would be the wise thing to do, although having used a digital compact I do miss the immediacy of digital.  Besides I still don't know that the quality is there yet.  So I'll sit on the fence for now !

combination.
The motherboard is the heart of any system, it is the component that most cheap deals skimp on so here are a few things to look for:
· 3/4 Dual DDR memory slots. Dual DDR memory is faster
· 800 MHz FSB. The 800 MHz FSB increases bandwidth and improves overall system performance.
· SATA disk support. Serial ATA is a new high-speed interface with data transfer rates to up to 150 MB/sec.
· RAID support, in multiple disk configurations RAID either gives enhanced performance or resilience
· 8XAGP Graphics slot
· 4/5 PCI card slots
· Sound card.  Most motherboards have a built in sound card
· LAN.  Useful for networking computers
· USB2.  Look for plenty of USB2 ports.  Most peripherals connect by USB ports
· Firewire.  Useful if you have Firewire connected devices such as DI Video Cameras.
You can pay as little as £25 for a very basic motherboard lacking in features and as much as £500 for one suitable for business critical servers.  A good price guide range would be £70-£140.  Manufacturers such as Abit, Asustek, Gigabyte and Micro-star are good brands.  Look at the manufacturer's web sites and there are plenty of Motherboard review sites on the internet.
Processor.  The only decision here is what speed ? Usually the very latest processors are a lot more expensive so opt for a slightly slower one that will be cheaper.  You can always upgrade in the future.  Make sure the processor matches the motherboard FSB and Processor socket type.  One consideration is cooling.  Processors run very hot and need cooling with heat sinks and fans.  Most Intel processors come complete with heat sinks and fan, whilst AMD processors do not.
Memory.  The only question is how much ? At least 1 Gb I would suggest.  You can always add more in the future if you have available memory slots.  Make sure that the memory is matched to the motherboard.  Crucial supply many computer manufacturers and their excellent web site has a memory selector http://www.crucial.com/uk/ to help you select and order the correct memory.
Graphics Card.  A graphics card drives the screen.  If you are into gaming you can  …/contd.

spend hundreds of pounds on a graphics card. Things to look for are 8X acceleration, at least 64 Mb of DDR memory &, if required, TV out, Svideo connection, DVI connections.  If you want to use Photoshop with 2 screens then dual monitor support is required.  ATI Radeon and NVidia are makes to check out.
Case.  Another area that is quite often skimped on.  If you want to put lots of disks inside then you will need a case big enough to house them.  Things to look for are solid construction, ease of access to components, sliding motherboard tray, USB (and maybe other ports) on the front of the case.  The two most important things in the case are the power supply and the cooling fans.  For the power supply look for AT LEAST 300 Watts, preferably more especially for AMD based systems.  You can buy a case and power supply separately, the power supply should have plenty of power connectors for disks, DVD drives etc and also have the correct power connection for the motherboard.  The latest fad is for clear perspex with lights inside.  Your choice !!  Aopen are the best make but more expensive.
DVD Writer.  Essential for backing up your files.  DVD writers will also write CD's. Look for 16X write speed and capability to write Dual Density disks.  NEC, Pioneer and Sony are good makes.  If you already have a DVD writer or CD Writer/reader in an old PC you can always re-use them.
Floppy Disk.  You still need one !
Hard Drives.  Another skimped on area.  Look for SATA capable drives, these are much faster.  Drives are relatively cheap and you can use several together.  For maximum performance you can set up a striped RAID array, this is where 2 physical disks look like 1.  Great performance, but double the risk if one fails.  The ultra cautious might want a mirrored RAID array.  This is where 1 disk is duplicated (or mirrored) so that if one fails the other still has your data.  You can of course just use disks as they are.  Look for at least 7200 rpm, 8 Mb cache, and as big as you need. Makes to look for are Hitachi, Seagate, Western Digital, Maxtor.  Your existing disk drives can be used as well, useful for at least transferring your important data.
Modem and other PCI cards. You may need other cards, modem for example.  Just make sure that they are compatible.  Newer cards probably will be compatible, older ones probably not.  With USB there is not so much need for extra cards anyway. Broadband users will have a USB or LAN connected modem.

Here are a couple of sample configurations:

Abit IC7-Max3 Motherboard   £115
Intel Pentium IV, 3.2 GHz Prescott
Skt478 FSB 800 1 Mb Cache   £144
1 Gb Memory      £94
Graphics GeForce FX 5500 256 Mb
DDR AGP 8x DVI/TV-Out   £60
Aopen Qf50c Silver Midi Tower 300w Psu £38
2 Hard Drives Maxtor  Diamondmax
10 160 Gb 7200 rpm SATA150 8 Mb
Cache      £134
NEC ND-3500 Double Layer Dual
16x DVD R/RW    £40
Floppy Disk Drive    £5
PCI Modem     £10
Cooling Fans for case    £10

Total      £650
Sounds a lot but for this you will have a
Super Performance PC that will be upgrade-able, has 3.2 MHz processor, 1 Gb memory, 320 Gb of Disk storage & a fast DVD Writer.

For the more budget minded people:

Abit IC7 Motherboard    £73
Intel Pentium IV 2.8 GHz Prescott
Skt478 FSB 800 1 Mb Cache   £118
1 Gb Memory      £94
XFX GeForce MX440 AGP8x 64 Mb
DDR TV-Out     £27
Aopen Qf50c Silver Midi Tower 300w Psu £38
1 Hard Drive Maxtor  Diamondmax
10 160 Gb 7200 rpm SATA150 8 Mb
Cache      £67
NEC ND-3500 Double Layer Dual
16x DVD R/RW    £40
Floppy Disk Drive    £6
PCI Modem     £10
Cooling Fans for case    £10

Total       £483
A high Performance PC that will be upgrade-able, has 2.8 MHz processor, 1 Gb memory, 160 Gb of Disk storage, & a fast DVD Writer.
Building the PC
So you have purchased all of the components, it all looks a bit daunting.
Rule 1: RTFM. (Read the flaming manual !) Get familiar with the Case and understand the layout of the Motherboard.  Cases all come pre-wired with connectors that connect to the motherboard.
Rule 2: Always use an anti-static wrist band
                                                       ………/contd.

connected to the chassis of the case when handling the components
Step 1 Fit the Processor to the Motherboard.  Follow the instructions supplied with the Processor.  The trickiest bit is fitting the heat sink and fan.  Some suppliers especially those found at computer fairs will sell motherboards with the processor already fitted, but it's really not very difficult.
Step 2 Fit the memory to the motherboard.  The Motherboard manual will tell you which slots to use first.
Step 3 Fit the Motherboard into the case.  Follow the instructions and use the screws supplied.
Step 4 Connect all the Case connectors to the motherboard.  They will all be labelled so it's just a case of matching the connector to the pin on the board (See Rule 1).  Take care when connecting the main power supply cable, it can be a tight fit.
Step 5 Fit the Disk Drives into the case locations and connect the Power supply connectors.  Then connect the SATA cables to the Disk and the Motherboard.  If using more than 1 disk you may need to set the switches on the disk. (See Rule 1 again).  SATA cable should come with the Motherboard.
Step 6 Fit the CD/DVD/Floppy Disk drives into the bays in the case.  Connect the Power supply connectors and then connect the IDE cables between the drives and the motherboard.  IDE Cables should come with the motherboard.  If using more than 1 CD/DVD drive you may need to set the switches on the drives (Rule 1 yet again.  You now start to see that Rule 1 is very important).
Step 7 Fit the Graphics card into the AGP slot on the board.
Step 8 Fit any additional cooling fans in the case.  The idea is to get a good flow of air.  Fans at the front should pull fresh air in and fans at the rear should pump air out.
Step 9 Check ALL connections again.
Step 10 Tidy the cables if necessary, to keep them away from fans etc.  Close the case.
And that's it.  Now comes the nervy bit - powering on.
Step 11 First of all, review Rule 1.  The motherboard manual will detail all the motherboard setup settings.  It all looks a bit daunting.  It isn't.  Most default settings are ok, you can always change them later.
Step 12 Connect Screen mouse and keyboard.  And switch on.  You should get taken into the BIOS setup (Rule 1 again) go through the set up process.

Step 13 Now you should be ready to install your Operating System.  It is likely to be Windows XP, just follow the instructions for installing.  XP is much better at recognising your hardware configuration than previous versions of Windows, so there should only be minimum need for extra drivers.
Step 14 Once Windows is installed, there may be some additional Motherboard drivers to install.  These will be supplied with the Motherboard (Good old Rule 1 again).
Step 15 Install any other drivers, Graphics card for example that came with the card.
Step 16 Now you are ready to install all of your other software.  Absolutely essential is Anti-Virus software !!  You have still got all the disks haven't you ?
Easy isn't it ?  The actual build should take no longer than an hour.

You're only as good as your last picture.
    ………David Bailey