Server are nothing more than trumped up PCs right? So why is buying one so much more of a hassle than getting yourself a desktop. I remember buying my xSeries from IBM about 3 years ago. It was a nightmare. The actual process of ordering wasn't that bad, but actually getting them delivered was another matter.

This memory and that fact that IBM don't even publish their server's prices online - forcing you to call a salesperson - put me off them even more. So, who to use? I wanted a reputable brand, but who else is there? Dell and Compaq are the only two I could think of and Compaq are now HP, whose image I don't really like the sound of. So Dell it was. Having bought from them before I expected it all to be fairly straightforward.

There website is ok. You can find a server - with their help if need be - and configure it to your needs, seeing the price updated as you do so. What you can't do is get any further than the shopping basket. You can add your server to a basket but you can't go any further! Instead there's a message telling you to call or email to carry on, because of "the nature of servers" they think it's best you discuss it with somebody. Nice maybe, annoying definitely.

So I emailed the address supplied. My message was to the point - "I have a server in my basket and I want to buy it. How?". I supplied my phone number but heard nothing by noon the day after. So I called the number instead. It appeared to have connected me via two tins and a piece of string to India. A struggled conversation followed and he "put me through", only for the line to go dead. Normally this was the point where I'd give up, but I'd been sold on the idea of this particular server and it was too good a deal to pass up. So I called again. I went through the same procedure but this time I was given the option of leaving my name and number for a call back. I'm glad I did as the conversation that followed lasted a good 30 minutes!

Bryn from Dell started by asking the usual stuff - how many employees do you have etc etc - but soon realised I wasn't worth the sales patter. So he asked what it was I wanted and I told him it was in my basket and did he want the basket ID and memorable word so he could use their Retrieve Basket function. Apparently the system wouldn't let him do that. Strange. So we start going through this whole "Are you looking at this page?", "Click on that link", "Choose an extra hard drive" nonsense. We end up with completely different prices at the end and he suddenly explains he's thought of a way round the Retrieve Basket problem and asks for my ID. Before long we are both looking at the same product. He then reads through the spec. twice to check it's the right one. He then asks for my email address so he can mail me a quote for my approval. I then wait half an hour and it arrives. I then have to reply to this quote with the words "Please progress this quote to an order". Another half hour later I receive the order confirmation with an estimated delivery date.

While I was on the phone with Bryn I mentioned that this was the strangest system I'd ever seen. It was just a passing comment. What's the point of trying to cause trouble with them? Bryn said nothing but I guess he agrees. The sad thing is that I half expect this kind of nonsense when I order kit like this. Now I just hope it does turn up and on time...