The computer industry is flourishing because of the advent of new, powerful processors Essay Example For Students

The computer industry is flourishing because of the advent of new, powerful processors Essay The computer industry is flourishing because of the advent of new, powerful processors. Recently, Intel Corp. released its Pentium II-450 MHz chip: the fastest processor on the planet. But because the chip is overpriced, Intel is also marketing the downgraded version of a PII, the inexpensive Celeron-333 which has a 128K cache compared to the PIIs 512K cache. To potential computer buyers, this situation presents a dilemma because they must decide whether to opt for price i. e. buy the Celeron or speed i. e. buy the PII-450. In an attempt to answer this question, Lincoln Spector of PC World and Christopher Yates of PC Week analyze the two chips in their articles entitled Double Feature and Intel Celeron Cache in With New Power, published in October and August of 1998 respectively. In this paper, a rhetorical and discourse analysis will be performed on the two articles to examine the similar and different strategies used by Spector and Yates in presenting their arguments. The strategies will determine which article is more convincing. Since the articles are present in magazines that pertain to the genre of computer and computer writing, it is first also necessary to analyze the genre. Comparing and contrasting the magazines can obtain an introduction to the way material is presented and organized. The criteria for the analysis include the types of articles present in the magazines. In addition, analyzing the sources of evidence used to support the claims can provide crucial information to the kinds of appeals i. e. logos, ethos, or pathos used by the authors writing in the genre of computer writing. Other similar factors such as article length, ads, and the advertisers can also be examined. But the demographic data of the magazines is of utmost importance because it describes the audience and thus, defines the way authors write for their audience. PC World and PC Week have a circulation of 1,125,000 and 305,443 respectively. The former is published monthly and the latter is printed weekly. Eighty-eight percent of the audience of PC World is male and the remainder is female, with ages ranging from 25 to 54 years. Thirteen percent of both magazinesquot; readers are employed by the computer industry, while 59% of PC Worldquot;s compared to 13% of PC Weekquot;s readers work in some sort of management SRDS 445. In addition, Online survey results show that most readers of PC World have a college education with 31. 1% holding a bachelors, 15. 3% a masters, and 3. 9% a doctorate degree. The high educational statistics indicate why the average annual income of the readers is $73,884. Because demographics for PC Week were unavailable, it is hard to make comparisons with PC Worldquot;s. But because most of the readers are employed in management and other technical areas, one may assume that the readers of PC Week have a college education. Because the readers are diverse in terms of their employment status, the magazines contain a variety of articles. Although different types of articles are present in each magazine, they all focus on the subject of computers. In general, PC World concentrates more on the hardware components of computers than PC Week does. The articles describe peoplequot;s opinions and performance results of new products, give advice to inexperienced computer buyers, and provide answers to problems that computer users may face. For example, a typical editorial may compare the capabilities of a new Ethernet LAN card to those existing on the market. Or the article may explain how to create a homepage by incorporating JavaScript into HTML HyperText Markup Language. On the other hand, PC Week centers on the business and the news aspect of computers. In general, its articles report on the current events occurring in the computer industry. They also examine the various rumors encompassing many corporations. One article may talk about the latest developments on the Microsoft Corp. lawsuit, while another could address the rumors and the possibility of a merger between two giant corporations like Oracle and Creative Labs. But whatever the article type may be, the claims in the articles must be verified by concrete evidence. In the genre of computer writing, statistics and data are the main source of evidence that is used to support the claims in the articles. Thus, the use of logos is prevalent. Statistics in this paper implies the use of numbers and experimental data. Certified lab results displayed in the form of graphs are used to convince the readers that PC World provides accurate information. In addition, flowcharts and diagrams effectively communicate complex ideas. Numbers such as percentages and price figures are abundant throughout the magazine. On the other hand, PC Week uses statistics in moderation. Unlike PC World, which uses them to explain all its statements, PC Week uses them to emphasize the main points of its articles only. PC Week also quotes many CEOs of multi-billion dollar corporations to prove its assertions. Both magazines sometimes include statistics in their ads. The similarities that exist between the magazines are the ads and pictures, the advertisers, and the article length. About one-third of each magazine is dedicated to ads. The products advertised include software like Adobe PhotoShop and hardware like modems, printers, and network hubs. Specifications, prices, and pictures of these products are featured. For example, a Compaq ad in PC World will print a photo of one of its computer models and say, Model 6300: Intel Pentium II Processor @ 350 MHz, 32 MB SDDRAMà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦$1719. 00 173. Fancy pictures of motherboards, dialog boxes, and zip drives help capture the audiencequot;s attention and coerce them into reading the articles or the ads. The advertisers of ads that are placed between articles and in the opening pages of the magazines are rich corporate firms like Hewlett Packard, Dell, and IBM. Ads of small companies like TigerDirect Sys. which have smaller revenues, are crammed with other advertisers towards the end of the magazine. Most of the articles in the magazines range from a quarter of a page to a page maximum. However, each issue focuses on three to four main topics. For example, the Y2K Year 2000 problem can be analyzed in four to five pages. These articles are nicknamed Topics of the Month. One such topic of the month is the performance analysis of the Celeron chip against the PII-450 chip. The author of Double Feature, Lincoln Spector of PC World, argues that although the PII-450 is a fast chip, it is overpriced. He supports the new Celeron-333 chip, which provides quality performance at an economical price 55. To convince the audience of his viewpoint, Spector makes effective use of organization, tone, his role as a writer, and language in writing his article. Using several ways to present his evidence, Spector maintains the readerquot;s interest and skillfully persuades him or her to believe the article. The author presents his evidence by using different methods that appeal to the logical senses of the reader. The first strategy used is comparing and contrasting the two chips. Deregulation EssayThey allow Spector to move quickly from point to point without getting bogged down. Vocabulary is relatively simple with the toughest words being tempo and outstripped 56. A high school student should have no problem in reading the article. Words like Celeron and PII are repeated several times to help the author differentiate between the two chips. Simple language enables Spector to write an effective article. An article in PC Week also addresses the same topic. Christopher Yates, the author of Intel Celeron Cache in With New Power, argues that both the Celeron and the PII-450 produce excellent performance results. Like Spector, Yates tries to make effective use of organization, tone, his role as a writer and language in writing his article. However, some of these factors work against Yates preventing him from writing an effective article. Yates makes a similar argument to Spectorquot;s, but fails to provide an in-depth analysis of the two chips or give advice as to which chip the reader should buy. However, Yates praises both of the chips immensely saying that the largest performance improvement comes from Intelquot;s revved-up Celeronà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Intel has also turned up the heat on its , now available at 450 MHz 35. Unlike Spector, who uses various strategies to present evidence for his argument, Yates is not very creative. Like Spector, Yates uses logos as his primary means to convince the reader of his argument. However, Yatesquot;s only form of evidence comes from the few statistics and a single chart that support his claim. The chart presents lab results of tests conducted on the chips. Additional information necessary to understand the visual aid is available. As with Spectorquot;s article, the use of statistics helps Yates gain some credibility from his reader. He says, the L2-equipped Celeron wasà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦33 percent faster than the non L2-equipped Celeron 35 while the PII-450 performed as high as 20% over the 35. In addition to using percentages, Yates also uses computer prices like $1,349 for the 3000 GL and $2,400 for the Deskpro EN to show that the Celeron is cheaper than a PII. Backing up his argument with the use of statistics helps Yates to gain some credibility for a moment. As the article proceeds, Yates begins to lose his credibility. After a couple of paragraphs, he gets sidetracked. Yates dedicates two whole paragraphs differentiating between the two kinds of Celeron. He says, all non-cache versions of Celeron areà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Celeron processor with 128KB L2 cache will all beà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ 35. Although one might see this as background information necessary to get acquainted to the subject, many readers like I will get annoyed because it doesnquot;t pertain to Yatesquot;s argument. It shows that Yates has little knowledge on the subject. Yates gets back on track but deviates again in his conclusion. This time Yates talks about the expansion upgrade capabilities of the computers that he mentions in his article. He says, expansion in all three devices is more than adequate with at least two PCI slots and two ISA slotsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ 41. His conclusion coupled with unwise organization leaves the reader without a clue of the authorquot;s main point. Yates organizes his article into parts to help divide the contents of his subject. Like Spector, he tries to use a step-by-step approach so that he can move efficiently. Although organization plays an effective role in helping focus the readerquot;s attention on a particular subtopic like distinguishing between the two kinds of Celeron, it doesnquot;t provide the overall coherence. Yates first introduces the Celeron and the PII. In the next section, he contrasts the two types of Celerons, which is irrelevant and in doing so, initiates the first point of alienation. He then proceeds to analyze three models of computers equipped with the Celeron and the PII chips. In the end, he talks about the expansion capabilities of the computers. Yates, unlike Spector, ends up talking about too many things at the same time without being able to interconnect them. But although his article has many faults, Yates is successful in maintaining a neutral tone. Yatesquot;s article is informative. The role played by Yates is that of a news reporter. His article begins with a typical, dull, straightforward statement one would find in a newspaper: Two new processors form Intel Corp. boost performance on PCs from IBM and Compaq Computer Corp. to new heights 35. The article provides a lot of sometimes-irrelevant information and doesnquot;t portray any feelings. Thus, Yates, like Spector, doesnquot;t use pathos in his article. He doesnquot;t develop a close relationship with the reader because he doesnquot;t provide any advice on the chips. A feeling of separation occurs in the readers mind because he or she feels that Yates is just throwing out facts without showing any concern for his audience. This has a dramatic impact because the reader is always alienated from the subject and never gains full interest. This is also due to the complex language Yates uses. Yates assumes that the reader is familiar with basic computer terminology like L2-equipped, expansion, and non-cache chip 40. Unlike Spector, he takes time to define some of these words. Unfortunately, the strategy works against him because Yates wastes too much time on explaining, which distracts the reader. Like Spector, Yates also uses short sentences to keep the article flowing at a fast pace. However, the vocabulary level is much more complex. Many words like miniscule, disparity, and nomenclature which may not be part of the readerquot;s vocabulary are present 35. Yates provides plenty of context clues for experienced readers to decipher the meaning of the word. For example, by looking at the miniscule savings just arenquot;t worth the performance hit, the reader should be able to figure out the meaning of miniscule. Yates also uses many abbreviations like Corp. PCI, and ISA to save paper space. He assumes that the reader is familiar with them. Finally, he repeats the words Celeron and PII throughout the article to help differentiate between the chip that is being discussed. Overall, Yates doesnquot;t do a good job in presenting his argument. Between the two articles, Lincoln Spectorquot;s Double Feature was more effective. The use of various sources of evidence, a neutral tone, logical organization, and simple language helps the reader easily understand Spectorquot;s topic. Although Yatesquot;s article shares some of these characteristics, Spector does a better job than Yates in analyzing and giving advice on the two chips. After reading the articles, I am convinced of Spectorquot;s credibility. Upon seeing the way Yates writes, I think that he has little knowledgeable on the subject. Thus, inexperienced computer buyers interested in gaining insight on the Celeron and the PII should read Double Feature. Reading this article will help prepare them better to face the challenge of buying the right computer.