Geek SpeakWhat’s Really Important

By Benjamin DavidsonComputer Technician

Electronic Futures/CompuSmart

Topics Covered• Hardware Overview

– Priority Hardware – Part 1– Secondary Hardware – Part 2

• Software Overview– Applications – Part 1– Security – Part 2

• Buying Intelligently– Priorities – Part 1– Look Out! – Part 2

• All About AMD• Where to Research• Upgrading• Question Period

Priority Hardware• Processor

– Performs most calculations on system– Importance often exaggerated relative

to rest of system• RAM (Memory)

– Temporary storage place for active programs and data – the more RAM you have, the more applications can be easily opened at once (multitasking)

• Hard Drive– Permanent storage – the more space,

the more room for documents– Performance impact not critical

Monitor MouseSpeakers Keyboard

Optical Drive Motherboard Video Card

Secondary Hardware

Applications• Office

– Microsoft Office dominates market– Competitors may have issues with MS Office documents– Different feature sets, terms of use, and price points

• Multimedia– Brighten, enhance, alter, or repair photographs with

Adobe Photoshop or Jasc Paint Shop Pro– Splice together professional video collections with Adobe

Premiere or Ulead VideoStudio• Publishing

– Create universal documents with Adobe Acrobat– Produce your own websites with Microsoft Frontpage

Security• Antivirus

– Norton Antivirus and McAfee VirusScan• Antispyware

– Adaware SE Plus and Webroot Spy Sweeper• Firewall

– Norton Personal Firewall, hardware router• Backup

– CD-R or DVD-R disc– External hard drive

• Warranty– Duration of warranty– Turn-around time of warranty hardware– Issues with “middle-man”

Priorities• Workstation

– Processor, RAM and warranty are priorities. Consider investing in quality keyboard and mouse.

• Server– Warranty duration and turnaround is highest priority.

RAM, followed by motherboard and CPU are priorities.• Gaming System

– Video card highest priority, followed CPU and RAM. Use quality mouse and keyboard.

• Media Centre– Speakers and monitor are priorities, and hard drive

space. Look for a Windows Media Centre Edition PC. Consider wireless keyboard/mouse.

Look Out!• Important

– Onboard video/no AGP slot– Proprietary designs– Specifics of processor (not

just frequency)

• Not important– Designed for Windows XP– Internet ready– Free software– Unproportionally high

amount of RAM

All about AMD• Use a performance rating (PR) system

rather than naming chips by clock speed (GHz)

• Often a better value than Intel, especially in budget systems

• First to offer 64-bit processors for desktops

• Lower power consumption and heat than comparable Intel CPUs except for Intel’s Pentium and Celeron M series, designed for laptops

Where to Research

AnandTech

TomsHardware CompuSmart

CNet

Manufacturer

Upgrading• General

– What is the brand and model number of your computer? What operating system does it us?

• Processor– What socket or slot does your motherboard use? What

is the maximum front side bus speed it supports?• RAM

– What type of RAM does your system use? What is the speed of your current RAM? What is your processor’s FSB?

• Hard Drive– Does your computer support SATA? Does it support

larger hard drive capacities (32GB+)?

Thank You!

If you have any questions or comments,please feel free to contact me at

Electronic Futures/CompuSmartbend@compusmart-terrace.ca

Phone: (250) 635-7767Fax: (250) 635-7174