How to Build Your Own Computer ?
When you have all component parts, you are ready to assemble the computer system. If you are a beginnner, assembling the entire system might be a little tricky. Some things you will want near you while doing this job is plenty of light, computer screws, all the manuals that came with the hardware you purchased, a screw driver and of course, a bottle of icy cold drink to keep yourself cool.
A word of caution is about static electricity. Make sure you de-static yourself (by touching your computer's power supply or wearing a very expensive anti static bracelet), and it would be a good idea to work in a non-static area, such as on a table, or a kitchen counter, and away from carpet. Whatever you do, be very careful not to zap your components.
Configuring the motherboard jumpers.
Configuring the jumpers is the first thing that needs to be done. What you will want to do is consult your motherboard manual on how to set everything correctly. There are just to many motherboards out there that I can cover in this article. Most jumpers listed in your motherboards manual are already set up for you. The main ones you will have to configure are:
(a) Power supply type. In the event that you have an AT/ATX motherboard you will need to set this one correctly.
(b) CPU external bus frequency. This is where you specify what bus frequency your CPU is at.
(c) CPU to bus frequency ratio. Look at the little box that contained your CPU, it will show you the exact ratio (should be a number like 2x, 3.0x, 3.5x, etc.)
(d) CPU voltage. It's really important that you get this one right, or else you'll end up with a *really* hot CPU or a non-working board.
This page gives you an overview of the hardware you need and links to step-by-step guides to follow.
I would recommend you to start building a Pentirum 4 /Celeron system in view of its efficient functionality and "cheap cost". This very fast platform is suitable for both home and office usage and the current prices for Pentium 4/Celeron socket 478 CPUs and motherboards are very cheap. Today
this is most common platform where pc systems buiit.
motherboard since all the other computer parts plug into the
motherboard.
Here is a standard socket 478 motherboard:
CPU socket 478. This is where you plug in your pentium 4/celeron CPU. Step-by-step here.
SDRAM slots. This is where you plug in your PC 133 memory. This board can have from 1 to 3 RAM chips installed. Step-by-step computer here.
IDE cable plugs. This is where you plug in the gray IDE cable that links the hard drive, floppy and CD ROM to the motherboard. Step-by-step here.
AGP graphics card slot. This is where you install your graphics card. Step-by-step here.
PCI slots. This is where you install other things into the computer such as modems and sound cards.
External ports. This is where you plug in your monitor and printer.
Mouse, keyboard and USB ports. You know what a mouse is right? USB ports are for things like scanners.
The installation guides on this page are for the type of computer parts I recommend. Remember that I recommend you to get a Pentium 4 computer system like this. You will not only get great performance but if you build your own computer and you will save hundreds of dollars.
