One of the fun things about owning a PC is choosing the many different varieties of accessories that come with it.  These accessories can be sensible – such as the various versions of mouses and keyboards, printers and scanners – or may be fun (take, for example, all of the USB-plug-in toys and utilities).

If you have a desktop PC, you will definitely need to also have a mouse and a keyboard.  These days both items come in many different forms.  Both are now available wirelessly (meaning they have no cable-attachments to the main computer), and both come in ergonomic designs that make them more comfortable to use.  There are also varieties of rubber roll-up and infrared keyboards, some of which simply need a flat surface and power to run the laser in order to operate.  Make sure you keep both your keyboard and your mouse clean – if you are using a ball-mouse instead of an infrared mouse it may be necessary to clean out the gunk once every few months.

If you are working from home or are a student PC user, you may also want to invest in a good printer and scanner.  Fortunately prices have come down for both products, and you can now find combination printer/scanner/photocopier/fax machines which do all four jobs in one.  If you are looking into buying a printer, make sure you are familiar with the technology – you need to know if you want a laser or bubblejet printer before you get to the store.