This week I am going to be building a computer for a customer, and I thought I would share with you the various steps that go into building a computer.
Building a new computer is not for everyone. Some budgets just will not allow it. So I am going to show you what it takes to build one; I am not going to discuss the different options for buying a new computer (of which there are several). Because I am building a new computer for someone this is to show what it looks like.
Step One: Budget. How much can you you spend on a new computer. Be honest with yourself, this is the most important step. A new computer will be at least $500; and it will just go up from there.
In order to know how much money you should spend for the parts for your new computer, you must decide(step 1a) what you are going to do with it, or what you intend to do with it down the road (say, in six months or so).
Are you going to:
Play video games? If you are, double or triple your budget. Video games are computer resource intensive and will not run on budget "boxes" (slang for the chassis the computer sits in).
Use office productivity software? Programs like Word, Excel, Powerpoint and your email program will run on even the cheapest of computers (except Office 2007).
Use photo, audio or video production or manipulation software? Programs such as Photoshop, CAD, any 3D modeling program, or any program to turn you home video into an actual movie (or to move DVD's to portable players) are almost as resource-hungry as video games. You should assume your budget to be double your initial estimate.
How do you know whether your first idea of a budget is right? That brings us to...
Step Two: Research. Now that you know what you want to do, you need to find the parts. Ok, how? There are a myriad ways to to do research, but only a few will get you the right parts that fit your budget.
You could ask the the salesman at the nearest Big Box Store, because teenagers know everything, right? No. You find a local computer store and ask the salesperson there what would be best for your needs and budget. Or...
You use the Internet. After all, if its one the Internet, it must be true, right. No. You go to www.resellerratings.com and see which website has the fewest complaints (and the highest customer ratings). Then you check out the various recommended websites and look for your desired parts. Some of the websites have customer ratings on the same page as the parts. Make sure you read whats there.
If you are not sure that about your part selection, or want to know what more knowledgeable people think, type the name of the part into Google(or your favorite search engine) followed by the word "reviews". Then read. Then buy.
Tomorrow, Step Three.
Monday, March 24, 2008
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
Check your security
As most of you are aware, security between your computer and the Internet is of utmost importance.
In order to assist you with making sure your computer is as secure as possible, here is a link to a website which will scan your Internet connection for any open holes through which malicious attacks may come.
Shields Up! is an online vulnerability scanner. It tests whether Windows is leaking information about you to the Web, whether your firewall is actually protecting you, and what websites see about you when you visit them.
I suggest that you click on each of the top row of tests, see what happens, and read what it says about the results. If it says you have passed entirely, feel good; if you get any other result, you should call me and I will come over and fix things up so that you will pass.
In order to assist you with making sure your computer is as secure as possible, here is a link to a website which will scan your Internet connection for any open holes through which malicious attacks may come.
Shields Up! is an online vulnerability scanner. It tests whether Windows is leaking information about you to the Web, whether your firewall is actually protecting you, and what websites see about you when you visit them.
I suggest that you click on each of the top row of tests, see what happens, and read what it says about the results. If it says you have passed entirely, feel good; if you get any other result, you should call me and I will come over and fix things up so that you will pass.
Thursday, March 06, 2008
Quick tips for your PC
To stop XP from loading any programs in the Startup folder, hold down Shift while the computer is starting up.
To see what programs are loading when Windows starts up (and why it seems to take forever), got to the Start button, click Run, and type 'msconfig.' On the far right-hand side, there is a tab that says Startup. Click that and you will see all of the things that are turning on once the Windows desktop has turned on.
To obtain more information about a listing in Msconfig, expand the width of the Command column and you'll see the startup command and its location. To find out what program the listing is, type the program name into Google (or your favorite search engine).
Microsoft recommends that you defragment your hard drive when your free disk space reaches 15%.
To see what programs are loading when Windows starts up (and why it seems to take forever), got to the Start button, click Run, and type 'msconfig.' On the far right-hand side, there is a tab that says Startup. Click that and you will see all of the things that are turning on once the Windows desktop has turned on.
To obtain more information about a listing in Msconfig, expand the width of the Command column and you'll see the startup command and its location. To find out what program the listing is, type the program name into Google (or your favorite search engine).
Microsoft recommends that you defragment your hard drive when your free disk space reaches 15%.
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