Commentary: Personal computers–valuable tools or expensive luxuries?

Personal computers-valuable tools or expensive luxuries? Over the past few years a considerable number of companies have developed instruments, both sophisticated and simple, which incorporate microprocessors in their design. Evidence from various conferences and exhibitions seems to suggest that .after a number of initial problems several instrument companies are getting the design concepts right and are producing microprocessor-controlled instruments to good specifications and often at a lower cost than previous designs. If in addition the instrument companies can provide a standard output line to allow data and software to be transferred to other devices or computers this will be an added advantage. However, parallel to these developments, many analytical chemists are attempting to use personal computers in their laboratories, primarily for instrument control and data capture and analysis. Whilst the investment in hardware for these computers is quite low and the development of software an interesting diversion from pure analytical chemistry, it is questionable whether this approach is the best and most economic route. My own view is that the true costs of developing software and interfacing systems to analytical instruments are not fully considered. Developing a program on a computer may be fun, but to design a software system which copes with all parameters including instrument failures, faulty button pushing and the like is difficult and costly. Simply hooking a PET or Apple onto an instrument and mechanising the manual calculation processes previously used is not the best way to automate or computerise the analytical process. A much broader view is required before the detail of the application to a specific instrument is developed. This constitutes a truly analytical approach to the problem; the analytical chemist should not focus attention simply on the measurement process. Although we have no accepted definition of 'automation' it is true to say that there is also no real understanding of the term 'analysis'. Analysts require to look at the problem in general terms as well as at particular facets of the analysis involved. The analyst must question why he is asked to carry out the tests, to define a suitable strategy for sampling, design his experiments to obtain the maximum data required to the desired degree of accuracy and precision for the overall aims. Many academic groups are considering the problem of correctly defining the terms used in our science and also are creating undergraduate training programmes to meet the specific needs of …