Don't let the big beige box scare you.
Jun 05 '01
The Bottom Line The big gray box doesn't have to be scary.
You'd be surprised how many people are intimidated by that little nondescript-looking beige box on the desk. Obviously you're not, since you're using one to look at this. But for those of you ready to take the plunge with your first PC, I'll offer you a few tips, and some explanations of some common PC terms. Don't worry, I won't use any heavy jargon or talk over your head. You're new at this, and you've every right to be an informed consumer.
And awaaaay we go!
First, you have to honestly decide what this PC is going to be used for. Will it be used for a home office? Surfing the 'net? Jukebox? Video arcade? Decide now what you'll use it for. Not all PCs are created equal. Gaming PCs need plenty of power for lifelike graphics and speed, so a fast processor and high-end graphics card are the most important. Doing a lot of business stuff? Surfing the net? Your needs will be different for this stuff.
Let's take a moment to define a few PC terms that you'll hear being thrown around a lot.
CPU: This stands for Central Processing Unit. In essence, this chip is the heart of your computer. It does the lion's share of the number crunching and other tasks you ask it to. Its speed is measured in megahertz (MHZ), or gigahertz (GHZ) One gigahertz is equal to 1,000 MHZ. The higher this number is, the faster the processor, generally speaking.
RAM: Stands for Random Access Memory. To use an analogy, RAM is to your computer what a workbench is to a carpenter. The bigger the workbench, the more work can be done. RAM is where your computer sticks programs that it's currently using, so it can get to them and run them faster and easier. Generally speaking, more is better. RAM is measured in megabytes (MB), and is available in many different kinds. If you're going to add more RAM (often also called memory) to your computer, consult your owners manual before you purchase. Not all kinds of RAM will work in all computers.
Hard Disk: This is where your computer puts all its stuff when it's not being used. Hard disks are sometimes referred to as memory, like RAM, but don't confuse the two. Hard disk size is measured in gigabytes, or GB. Again, more is better. You can never have too much storage space. This is true in your home, and in your PC.
PCI, ISA, AGP: These are the names of several types of internal slots on your PC. You probably won't need to know what they are or what they do, especially if you're a beginner. Most modern computers won't have more than one ISA slot, if any at all. This is an older technology that's being phased out. AGP slots are used for graphics cards, and pretty much just graphics cards. Like I said, you won't really need to know much about these, except that you'll want to have a couple extra ones open when you buy the PC, so you can add more stuff to it as time goes on.
Motherboard/Mainboard/System board: All these terms mean the exact same thing, but to keep things simple, I'm just going to call it a motherboard, since that's the most widely-used term. The motherboard is where everything hooks into on your PC. If you open up your computer, it's the largest circuit board in there, and is probably buried behind all kinds of cables and wires and all other kinds of junk. (WARNING: DO NOT open your PC if you're not absolutely sure what you're doing! And NEVER open it while it's turned on!)
You'll want a motherboard, as I said before, with a few extra open slots for expansion. But as I also said, be very careful opening your PC. The components inside are very sensitive to static electricity. A shock you don't even feel can destroy a component and cost you a considerable amount to repair.
USB: This stands for Universal Serial Bus, a new technology in PCs that's only really caught on about 2 years ago. USB allows you to connect as much stuff as you want to your computer (up to 128 devices at once, if you've got that many USB ports). Most PCs though, have 2 to 4 ports. The great thing about USB ports is that they are "hot-swappable", meaning that if you want to plug in your color printer, but already have a joystick and a digital camera plugged in there, you can simply unplug one device and plug in the other, without shutting off the computer. The number of ports on the machine is not really critical, because if you need to use something else, it' easily changed. Most PCs have between 2 and 4 of them, and some have a couple mounted in the front, as opposed to the rear.
Operating System (OS): The OS is the program that runs all the other programs on your computer. Without an OS, your computer will not run. It's that simple. The most popular OS is MS Windows, but there are many others including MacOS (only on Apple Macintoshes, obviously) and several different OSes based on something called Unix. (Stay away from these suckers, they're too tough for a beginner!)
Now that the classroom session is over, let's get back to the subject at hand: your new computer.
Now that you have your needs evaluated, it's time to do a little homework. I'm sure you did plenty of research when you bought your house, or your car. You compared models and options, weighed the pros and cons carefully, and arrived at a solution. Buying a PC is no different. You have to look at several different models (as many as you can would be good), see how they fit your needs versus your wants, and find one that does everything you want it to at the price you're willing to pay. If possible, pick up a few different computer magazines and read up on what you're buying. You've got a lot of publications to choose from, so go to your local bookstore and pick a couple.
The choices are dizzying, aren't they? THere are thousands of potential combinations lurking out there, spanning a dozen manufacturers and three different operating systems. I know it's rough, I've been there too. But I'll give you some help.
I would stick with a Windows-based PC for now. Yes, I know, there's a lot of anti-Microsoft press out there, but to be honest, Windows is a good all-purpose OS for a beginner. THere's plenty of online help available, and most everyone knows at least something about Windows, so you'll have little trouble finding informed help.
I generally don't recommend Macs to anyone but graphics artists and web designers mainly because they're very hard to upgrade, and very expensive relative to typical PCs. And I don't recommend Linux-based systems to beginners because Linux is not an operating system designed for beginners. It is very cheap and very stable, but it's also very hard to learn, and a bit too powerful for a personal PC.
Thankfully, you've got plenty to choose from in the Windows PC market. I know the choices are tough, so I'll help steer you in the right direction for a good baseline PC.
CPU: Don't go any lower than 800 MHZ on this. Choose whatever brand you want, either AMD or Intel. Most people won't know the difference between the two anyway. Anything slower than this will be obsolete in as little as 18 months. Stay out of the bargain-basement range. These computers aren't often worth the savings, since they need to be constantly upgraded and replaced.
RAM: At least 128 MB. You'll see all these specs listed with the computer, by the way. Processor speed, RAM, and hard disk space are usually listed in that order. As for this level of RAM, I used to say 64 MB would be enough. Nowadays, 64 MB is the bare minimum. As mentioned before, the more of this you have, the better. RAM, however, can be expensive to upgrade, so having more pre-installed can be a benefit.
Hard Disk: You'll want at least 30 GB. I know what you're saying. "What'll I do with all that space?!" Well like I said before. You can never have too much storage space! You'll fill that sucker up faster than you'd think. If you're really strapped for cash, you can skimp here a little and get a smaller drive. Hard disks are extremely cheap, and adding another is one of the easier things to do.
Graphics: The type of graphics card you select really depends on what you're going to do with your PC. If it's going to be a game machine, you'll want a very powerful graphics card to take some of the load off your CPU. I'd recommend a card with the GeForce 2 chipset, as this is one of the most widely-used and one of the most powerful cards on the market right now.
You'll have several other options to choose from as well, but I'll leave those up to you. After all, it's your computer. I will recommend that you get a DVD-ROM drive, however. These things are quite cheap now, provide all the speed you'll need, and allow you to watch movies on your PC, if you're so inclined. A DVD-ROM is just like the DVD player in your living room. This one, however, reads information as well as video. And in case you didn't know, DVD stands for Digital Versatile Disc..though this is basically just trivia for when you make your millions on Jeopardy.
Well, I hope that this guide has helped you in your quest to jump into PCs. If you've got any other questions, leave a comment and I'll answer them as best as I can.
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Member: Jim Rebholz
Location: Albuquerque, NM
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I'm a car nut, a computer geek, and an anime fan. What else is there?
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