Progress

I got Maria set up with a new computer yesterday. I spent the afternoon hooking up peripherals, transferring the Adaptec SCSI card that runs her aging flatbed scanner and negative scanner, installing software and rescuing data from the two hard drives in her old machine. In the process, it occurred to me that I've learned a considerable amount about computers since I bought my first one in 1991. I paid about $2,400 for that machine. If memory serves, it had 4MB of RAM and maybe a 60MB hard drive and maybe a 16k modem, with Windows 3.0. It used two sizes of floppy discs.
I just used the calculator on the Bureau of Labor Statistics website and determined that, adjusted for inflation, that $2,400 had the buying power of $3,443.17 in today's dollars.
The package I bought yesterday at Best Buy - 1GB of RAM, 200GB hard drive, two CD/DVD drives - one of them a CD/DVD burner - a built-in memory card (CompactFlash, Memory Stick, SD, etc.) reader, 15" flatscreen monitor, speakers, an inkjet printer, and Windows XP - cost me (after rebates) $650.
So what it took to buy a piece of crap computer in 1991 will buy five vastly superior machines today, with a couple of hundred dollars left over.