What's the Average Lifespan of a Computer?

Back before computers started coming with a one year standard warranty, in the business world, they came with a three year warranty, and you could extend the warranty for up to five years. The warranty on the last two years was fairly expensive, in relation to the cost of the machine. That tells me that after three years, the chance of something going wrong with the hardware components of a machine is fairly high, else the manufacturers wouldn't charge so much for the warranties for those last two years. After five years, the manufacturers would not keep the machine under warranty at all, so that tells you that after five years, the chances are better than even that a part will fail on your machine.
Having said all of that though, I recently assisted a lady whose computer is over eleven years old, is running XP, and runs like a top!
However long you keep you machine, keep your data backed up so that when the inevitable happens you are prepared. The only thing you can transfer from your old computer to your new one is the data: gone are the days when programs could be transferred from one machine to another unless you have the installation key code and can somehow get the program in download form from the internet. Most times you are looking at buying more software in addition to the cost of the new computer, since older programs don't always work with the newer operating systems. For instance, if you still have MS Office 2003 and buy a new Windows 8 machine, you'll have to update with new office software as well. You don't have to buy the latest version, but it has to be newer than 2003. These are just some of the things you'll need to consider when thinking about purchasing a new machine.
In the meantime, what can you do to prolong the life of your computer? Here are some tips:

• Keep the air flow through the computer unobstructed; vacuum vents frequently
• Shut the computer down once a week
• Use a good anti-virus product
• Run a malware/spyware cleaner at least once a month
• Only download those programs that you really need, and delete those you don't use
• Run only a few programs at a time
• Plug your computer into a surge protector instead of the wall socket

Remember that Microsoft has discontinued support for Windows XP this month,
April 2014. This means that there will be no more updates for the operating system and running these machines will become more problematic in the future. New programs and devices may not work with these older machines and their security may be compromised. It is a certainty that they will no longer meet security guidelines, so if you are using an XP machine in a business that requires you to meet any security standards, you will be out of compliance with XP machines.