"You need to have XP and Office 2003 retired by next tax season," Johnston, partner with consulting group K2 Enterprises, told attendees at his annual Tech Update session at the conference in Las Vegas. He said that with those platforms no longer supported by Microsoft the security risk is too high to continue using XP and Office 2003. 

Johnston is promoting the use of Windows 8, despite the bad press that system has gotten and the fact that Microsoft recently issued version 8.1 to address complaints. He said Windows 8 is a superior system to the predecessor versions, especially in terms of speed.

"It provides better security and should run 15-percent faster," he said.

He also noted Microsoft's efforts to push users to subscription-based use of Office rather than relying on box sales or typical sales via new computers. Office 2013 cost $399 when buying a boxed version as opposed to a $99 annual subscription for home use of $149 per year for business use.

Johnston also pointed to Microsoft's removal of some features and addition of others in Office. Boxed versions now offer only a single license while subscription plans support installation of a single Office package on five computers, along with 20GB of SkyDrive space. Previous subscription versions offered licenses for only two computers.  

Also, the retail home and OEM versions lack Power Pivot, PowerView, GeoView and Inquire. These features are available in mid-sized business versions purchased via volume licensing plans. The Home edition of Office prohibits use for businesses or by nonprofit organizations, Johnston said.

"Our working rule for most of you is that we can’t have you using Microsoft Office versions you have used in the past because you won't have features we recommend you have," Johnston said.

Another significant switch is K2's position regarding recommend storage technology. 

"We no longer recommend the use of rotating drives," Johnston said. Instead, K2 says that users should purchase solid-state drives. He continued that, "Every vendor has a solid-state drive that is less expensive than a rotating drive. For example, HP offers a solid-state drive for $40 less than for a comparable rotating drive. Johnston also advised purchasing servers that have solid-state technology.

K2 has also boosted the recommended size of displays. Instead of advising firms to purchase 15-in. to 19-in. monitors, the consulting organizations now urges them to go for 27-in. to 30-in. monitors. While the prices are about $700 per unit for the larger format, the cost is expected to drop this summer. Johnston also suggested firms that use multiple monitors consider multiple keyboards for those systems.