I too, must echo JackChoi, I am the IT person and the yard person and need to repair a stair tread soon.
I farm out that which I can neither understand or have the time to fix. I personally correct the other 99.5% of the problems.
I have both peer to peer and server environments (2 offices) and have found peer to peer sufficient for my purposes. Multiple backups lets me sleep at noc.
Most of my computers are corporate refurbs. I guess this would equal home class since they have several years of use decreasing their MTBF status. I agree, when they tank I pull one out and replace it.
Sure, it's better to run a corporate level computer system with IT support. The problem is that most solo practitioners don't have that kind of money.
And with 10 years of experience, I feel comfortable that my current system works, although I must admit it has morphed into different forms continuously. The systems I run now are infinately more complex than that I ran 5-6 years ago.
