Selection of computer systems to meet end-user requirements

The selection of a computer system to satisfy an end-user requirement can be very difficult. With the advent of cheap microcomputers in the early 1980s, many small- to medium-sized organisations which had never had computer systems of their own started to purchase microcomputer and minicomputer systems. It was, and still is, very easy to purchase a system which, at best, is difficult for non-computer literate staff to use, or at worst, does not satisfy the end-user requirements. This paper describes techniques which can be used to formalise the purchase of small- to medium-sized computer systems.