Crash Course in Computer Hardware.

It comes to my attention a lot how clueless people are when it comes to even the basic construction of a PC or desktop computer. I know generally people thinks it’s a good idea to leave it alone because they are worried they might break or ruin something. Believe it or not computers are very sturdy and stable objects the only real thing you need to watch out for is static discharge. There are a few simple things you can do to ensure you will not zap your components.

1. Where an anti static wrist strap if possible. If it’s not possible plug the computer in but don’t turn the power one and firmly place the palm of your hand flat against any metal surface on the case then unplug the computer. Periodically ground yourself on the case.
2. When cleaning components, never wipe them, or point vacuum cleaners near them, as these can induce ESD. The best and safest way to clean components is to use clean canned compressed air and a soft bristle brush.


3. Dust is another factor that can affect ESD. Dust build up allows charge to accumulate more quickly and leads to greater levels of charge. If you keep your PC clean and the dust to a minimum will not only improve air circulation, but also reduce the potential for electrostatic damage.


4. Once you’re done cleaning or upgrading, make sure that all contacts and connections are done up firmly before switching the system on. And keep the antistatic bags away from your computer as the surfaces of these bags are conductive.

 

I am going to give a brief overview of the various parts in a computer (very general) and how you can identify them. (Read More for the rest.)

If you live in the Calgary area and were interested in learning how to put a computer together or building a customer computer system I am offering help. I will help you build the computer you want, from ordering the correct compatible parts to putting it together and explaining what each piece does and how it communicates with the computer in general.

Contact Us: Here and we can arrange something.

Simple Overview Of Main Computer Parts:

Motherboard:

The motherboard is the most important part in a computer its is how all the other devices communicate with each other.

A motherboard consists of 5 main structures.

The Northbridge:

This device handles communication between the CPU and the main system memory or RAM.

The CPU is much much faster than the ram so there has to be an interface between them so they can inter-operate properly. This is what the Northbridge is for.

 

The Southbridge:

Many devices connect to your computer to enhance its functionality or provide other features. Some examples include USB, Parallel Port, COM, and FireWire devices,

As well as PCI, PCI-e, AGP, and ISA expansion cards. (These are expansion slots that new adapter cards can be inserted, more below).

The Memory Interface:

Generally there will be a number of slots for chips on the main board itself (shown in picture above). RAM comes in little physical chips called Memory Modules (see picture below). There are several different kinds and various speeds. Ram is very high speed memory for the computer to store and retrieve information.

 

 

The CPU Interface:

There are quite a few ways the CPU can physically connect to the mainboard. Older mother boards used a SLOT interface (much like a game cartridge). CPU slots are single-edged connectors similar to expansion slots, into which a PCB holding a processor is inserted. Slotted CPU packages offered two advantages: L2 cache memory size could be packaged with the CPU rather than the motherboard and processor insertion and removal was often easier. However, they proved to have performance limitations and once it was possible to place larger cache memory directly on the CPU die the industry reverted back to sockets.

 

Another connection type is called a ZIF (Zero Insertion force) / PGA (Pin Grid Array) . These types of processors have hundreds of pins on the back of them and slide easily into an interface on the motherboard that has hundred of holes. Generally these types will have a little lever you use to lock the CPU in.

 

As of 2007^[update], land grid array (LGA) packages have started to replace PGA with most modern CPU designs using this scheme. The term LGA "socket" is actually a bit of a misnomer. With LGA sockets, the socket contains pins that make contact with pads or lands on the bottom of the processor package. While not popular for many years, LGAs are not new, microprocessors since the mid-1990's have used them. But have become increasingly more prevalent as they lower the risk of damaging the CPU during installation. (Pictured Below).

CPU:

You will notice the little "pads" on the bottom of the second picture below, these are where the contacts on the CPU interface articulate with the mother board.

The Bus Interface:

With all the different types of devices in the computer they need a way to reliably communicate and pass information to each other. This is where a Bus comes in.

The Computer Dictionary defines a Bus as:

"A collection of paths through which information or instructions are transported from one part of a computer to another."

Think of a bus as a highway on which data travels within a computer. When used in reference to personal computers, the term bus usually refers to internal bus. This is a bus that connects all the internal computer components to the CPU and main memory. There's also an expansion bus that enables expansion boards to access the CPU and memory.

All buses consist of two parts -- an address bus and a data bus. The data bus transfers actual data whereas the address bus transfers information about where the data should go.

The size of a bus, known as its width, is important because it determines how much data can be transmitted at one time. For example, a 16-bit bus can transmit 16 bits of data, whereas a 32-bit bus can transmit 32 bits of data.

Every bus has a clock speed measured in MHz. A fast bus allows data to be transferred faster, which makes applications run faster. On PCs, the old ISA bus is being replaced by faster buses such as PCI.

Nearly all PCs made today include a local bus for data that requires especially fast transfer speeds, such as video data. The local bus is a high-speed pathway that connects directly to the processor. Several different types of buses are used on Apple Macintosh computers. Older Macs use a bus called NuBus, but newer ones use PCI.

You can identify the internal bus physically on the motherboard by a large number of parallel tracks (like wires but flat against the PCB of the motherbaord)

 

 

SATA:

Drive:

You will notice the small flat connectors on the back of this drive these are SATA connectors and use a small flat ribbon cable shown below.

Cable:

 

IDE:

Drive:

Cable:

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