Computer printers > Building A Computer - Picking the Components

Building A Computer - Picking the Components

by: Chris Silop

Building A Computer - Picking Components

Picking the parts for your computer is one of the most important things in building a computer, because you cant assemble a computer without the parts! Picking parts for computers has become much easier than before, because things have been standardized, however, you need to make sure everything will fit. The first thing to think about when choosing the components for your computer is what you are going to be using it for. If you are creating a computer for just checking your eMail and using word, you are going to need much diffrent parts than a computer that you are going to be using for gaming.

CPU

The first thing you should pick out about your computer is what CPU you are going to use, because it determines what motherboard you are going to get, which determines what other components you get. There are two main CPU manufactruers, Intel and AMD. Both have their Pros and Cons, but they are pretty similar. I would suggest using AMD, because they give you a little more bang for the buck.

Here is a brief overview of the diffrent Intel and AMD CPUs:

Budget: AMD: Sempron

Intel: Celeron D

Midrange: AMD: Athlon 64

Intel: Pentium 4

High End: AMD: Athlon64 X2

Intel: Pentium D

If you are spending below $500, I would suggest a budget proccesor, Between $500 and $1000, midrange and $1000 and above I would suggest a high end proccessor.

Motherboard

Choosing the right motherboard is vital to building your computer. First, make sure you find a motherboard that has the right socket type for your CPU. Then, check the diffrent features of the motherboards you are looking at. If you arent going to buy a video or sound card, make sure your motherboard has onboard video and/or sound. Other things to check for on your motherboard are the hard drive interface, graphics card interface, expansion slots, the memory size and speed. Also, check for the chipset. There are too many to talk about, but generally Intel and nVidia chipsets are better than the other ones. Now that you picked out your motherboard, you know what to look for in your other components.

RAM

Getting the right speed and amount of RAM is vital to the speed and stability of your system. If you are running XP, you will probably need at least 256 or 512Mb of RAM. If you are going to be doing anything memory intensive, gaming, rendering or just want a faster computer, you should get 1Gb. Make sure your motherboard has enough DIMMs and the right type of DIMMs for your RAM. Also, be sure to check the speed and CAS Latency.

Hard Drive

Now its time to pick your hard drive. There are few variables in picking a hard drive. The first, and most important is size, 120Gb is usually enough for most people unless, you are going to be storing alot of pictures and video. Also, make sure you get an HD with the right interace that fits your motherboard. Almost all motherboards have IDE, but some have SATA (Serial ATA) Which is a much faster hard drive interface and uses a thinner cable which helps with airflow in your case. There is even SATAII now, which is twice as fast. Also look at speed, almost all desktop HDs are 7200RPM and Cache, most are 8Mb, dont buy a HD below those standards. If you want to spend some money, you can get 2 HDs and run them in RAID which increases performance.

Video Cards

If you are going to be doing any gaming, be sure to buy a video card, if youre not, onboard video is fine. The first thing to check for is the interface, most are AGP or PCI-E. I personally like nVidia cards better. If you are going to be doing graphic intensive games, I would suggest at least a 6600. If you have alot to spend, go with a 7800.

Optical/Floppy drives

Another thing you are going to is a CD drive, most are IDE. Get a DVD Burner if you are going to use it. Also, you should get a floppy drive, they are only $10ish and you might need it to install drivers when building your computer.

Case and Power Supply

Make sure you have a sufficient power supply!! If you have a high end computer, you should get a 450W PSU. Otherwise, 350W should be fine for most people. Most cases are ATX, but make sure it is the same type as your motherboard (ATX, MicroATX, BTX, etc...).

Be sure to make sure all your components are compatible!

About The Author

Chris Silop, owner and admin of SysChat.Com Computer ForumGo there for more articles and forums on computer hardware!

Health Risks Due To Long Hours At Your Computer

Health Risks Due To Long Hours At Your Computer

by: Hege Crowton

Did you know that spending long hours at your computer can put your health at serious risk?

Most people does not even consider that possibility, but t does, Working at a desk is extremely hard on your body, and I would like to share this with you so maybe you can avoid some of the most common health risks.

The most common of them all is back pain.

BACK PAIN: Its Types and Treatments

Are you fed up with taking all the treatments for your back pain which you feel do not work? Are you a constant patient of physical therapists, chiropractors? Is your back pain causing you distress and trouble because you can not do the activities you wish you could do? Have you been advised surgery to correct your back's structural abnormalities?

Back pain may be classified into two types: acute or short term, and chronic. It the low back pain is short-term, it is most probably due...

Health Risks Due To Long Hours At Your Computer

Computer printers > Health Risks Due To Long Hours At Your Computer

Things To Look For When Buying A Computer Microphone

Things To Look For When Buying A Computer Microphone

by: Mantius Cazaubon

Computer microphones are a valuable addition to any PC and they greatly increase interactivity and communication levels. You can use a microphone for performing various tasks, both business and fun related. For example, you can hold a conference with your business partners, over the Internet, or you can chat with your friends online, instead of doing that on the phone. Of course, in order to enjoy accurate and high quality communication, you have to choose a good PC microphone. There is a huge variety of models on the market, ranging from microphones that you can buy for a few dollars and going all the way to expensive, high tech desktop microphones. So which PC microphone is right for you?

Price Vs Quality

You can pay $5 for a microphone, or you can pay $50. So where?s the difference, apart from the price? Well, cheap microphones have low prices for some good reasons:...

Things To Look For When Buying A Computer Microphone

Computer printers > Things To Look For When Buying A Computer Microphone

Computer Motherboard Guide

Computer Motherboard Guide

by: Peter Stewart

The heart of any computer is the motherboard. It is that big board inside the computer that everything is connected to. It performs the role of traffic lights and policemen, directing flows of information to where they are needed, when they are needed.

Choosing the right motherboard does not have to be a huge issue, even though there is a lot to consider. I will start off with the most major parts and move onto the the things that are less important or non-essential.

Firstly is the socket type.

The socket is the place where the processor (CPU) connects to the motherboard. There is no compatiblility between sockets, so it has to be the right one. The socket connection needs to match the connection of the processor you have or the one you intend to buy for the computer.

Most older Intel Pentium 4s utilise socket 478. Newer ones use socket 775. AMD chips utilised socket A for a long...

Computer Motherboard Guide

Computer printers > Computer Motherboard Guide

Computer Consulting and Virtual IT

Computer Consulting and Virtual IT

by: Joshua Feinberg

Do you own or manage a computer consulting company? Would you like to achieve greater small business success? If so, then get ready to learn why most computer consulting companies get IT (Information Technology) wrong and what you can do about IT.

The Problem: Why Most Computer Consulting Companies Get IT Wrong

Most owners of computer consulting companies make their jobs much harder than need be. Why? Because these computer consulting business owners fall in love with the technology? and view their small business clients as a distant second priority.

However, if you get this part of ?IT? wrong, you will doom your computer consulting company to ?clueless geek? status. It's crucial that you understand one extremely important principle here: Recruiting and retaining small business clients is your #1 computer consulting priority. Keeping up with IT should never get in the way of...

Computer Consulting and Virtual IT

Computer printers > Computer Consulting and Virtual IT

Health Risks Due To Long Hours At Your Computer

Health Risks Due To Long Hours At Your Computer

by: Hege Crowton

Did you know that spending long hours at your computer can put your health at serious risk?

The most common of them all is back pain.

BACK PAIN: Its Types and Treatments

Back pain may be classified into two types: acute or short term, and chronic. It the low back pain is short-term, it is most probably due...

Health Risks Due To Long Hours At Your Computer

Computer printers > Health Risks Due To Long Hours At Your Computer

Who Plays Computer Games?

by: Tony Brings

Playing computer games was once reserved for the geek of the class who would shut himself away until the early hours of the morning with no company apart from a joystick. This has changed significantly as the standard of graphics and game play has improved and the use of computers is even more widely accepted. The advance of the Internet has also made sure that online gaming has become increasingly popular allowing people from all around the world to play against one another or in huge online tournaments. The appeal has spread significantly to what it once was.

The first generation of gamers are growing older now and this is coinciding with the introduction of next generation console games that look and sound much better than was ever dreamt possible ten or twenty years ago. AS such, many of these early gamers continue to play console games and computer games meaning what was predominantly a children?s...

Who Plays Computer Games?

Computer printers > Who Plays Computer Games?

Drop On Demand Printers

Drop On Demand Printers

by: Bill Smith

Most HP and Epson printers are drop on demand printers. They use electrical pulses to fulfill requests for ink. The ink is expelled out of the print head by a bubble which forms as a reaction to being heated. Once the ink is propelled out of the cartridge, the bubble cools, contracts, and forms a vacuum of sorts, which pulls more ink into the nozzle.

HP DeskJets and BubbleJets are popular examples of printers that use this technology.

Epson printers work on the same principal with the exception of a minor twist ? they use a transducer to produce the droplets in what is referred to as piezoelectric DOD.

So what about the ink ? does it matter what kind you buy as a replacement?

The answer is yes, it does matter.

The ingredients that go into ink play a huge role in the quality of your printouts. All ink manufactures work to strike the delicate balance between print quality, time it...

Drop On Demand Printers

Computer printers > Drop On Demand Printers

How to Become a Computer Consultant

How to Become a Computer Consultant

by: Joshua Feinberg

Have you ever wanted to become a computer consultant, but you weren't sure if you could cut it? Do you have a basic understanding of computer-systems, strong problem-solving skills, and a desire to help other people? If so, then you already possess the main abilities and traits that you need to become a computer consultant.

In this article, we'll look at the business opportunities for computer consultants, the reasons why there will almost always be a strong need for good computer consultants, and what it takes for you to achieve success if you want to become a computer consultant.

Become a Computer Consultant and Your Income Can Soar

In a traditional corporate IT job, your earnings potential and career advancement possibilities are ultimately constrained by many things that are simply beyond your control. This often includes lazy or incompetent peers, ineffective management,...

How to Become a Computer Consultant

Computer printers > How to Become a Computer Consultant

hedge funds Computer printers

Computer printers Building A Computer - Picking the Components silk

The Real Secret To Quickly Buying An Electric Scooter

by: Linda Harrison

If this doesn?t get you excited, then nothing will! Electric scooters can be bought for sometimes as much as 50% off if you can be just a little patient and know where to look. Electric scooters are incredibly fun these days, and they?ve seemed to have taken the world by storm. I see several of them all the time riding up and down my street here in Houston, and I?ve read that they are popular...

The Real Secret To Quickly Buying An Electric Scooter Computer printers

Computer printers > The Real Secret To Quickly Buying An Electric Scooter

Computer printers

Article Writing: Breaking Writer's Block

by: Robert Kempster

It is amazing to see how much we all still dread writing; even a simple letter or memo! When we start talking about an Essay or an Article for publication, it gets much worse. As human beings, we are prone to self doubt, the good news however is; that there is a cure for that. The cure lies in the old adage: "Practice makes Perfect" Once, you can get past the writing of your first article, it gets easier...

hedge funds Computer printers Building A Computer - Picking the Components

Computer printers > Article Writing: Breaking Writer's Block

The Lowdown on VoIP

by: Mike Schuda

It seems like technology is headed for a massive telephone change over. The traditional Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) is looking to be replaced by VoIP. VoIP is short for Voice over IP. VoIP is the routing of conversations over an IP network or the Internet. VoIP uses a packet-switched network instead of the circuit-switched voice transmission lines used by traditional telephone networks. VoIP does not need an Internet...

Computer printers Building A Computer - Picking the Components

Computer printers > The Lowdown on VoIP

Do You Have a Habit Hard To Break?

by: Terje Brooks Ellingsen

If You have a habit hard to break it means that you're currently lacking control over a certain behavior or set of behaviors in a type of situation. The first question that comes to my mind is: How do we really create a habit - bad or good? A habit is not created the first time we do it. The clue here is repetition; we create a habit by repeating it. And the more we repeat it the more resistant...

Computer printers Building A Computer - Picking the Components Do You Have a Habit Hard To Break? spring break

Computer printers > Do You Have a Habit Hard To Break?