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Computer Basics 2 - the belly of the beast! by Scott Boyd Following on from my previous article, Computer Basics 1 - what is a system?, this article will explain a little bit about the insides of a computer so you are a bit better informed when you head out to buy one.
You know how it is - you look at the spec (short for specification) provided by whoever is trying to sell you a PC and although it looks quite impressive, you don't have a clue what it means! So consider this a basic guide to some of the abbreviations.
Processor - MHz or GHz (MegaHertz and GigaHertz) From my last article you saw that the heart of any system is the process. This is the same for a computer - the processor is the heart.
Hertz is the unit of frequency (physics and maths stuff!) so with regards any computer, the figure given with MHz or GHz is how fast the computer will process data. Just for reference 1GHz = 1000MHz.
Like any system, the process is reliant on the initial input and with a computer, the process is also reliant on other internal components. So, there is no point in having a really fast processor without the rest of your system being up to scratch.
An analogy could be having the mail service with a really great sorting office that can sort 1,000,000 letters an hour. Why have it you have only got one mail van collecting mail from all the post boxes in the country? The input can't meet the capacity of the process.
Hard drive - Mb or Gb (Megabyte or Gigabyte) Your hard drive is where your computer stores all the information you put on it. So, when buying a PC it is good to take into account the future usage of it.
A basic admin officer PC won't need a 50Gb hard drive, but a graphic designer may need more than that (graphics files tend to take up a lot more space than word processing documents for example).
You don't want to have too little, but there is also no point in paying for space you will never use. Keep in mind the salesmen in PC stores will try and sell you the best deal!
Different types of hard drive (ie different brands) have varying speeds at which they access information. But it's not really a deciding factor when purchasing a PC as most are pretty similar.
RAM (Random Access Memory) - Mb or Gb Your RAM is the tea boy of your PC - it does all the running about!
Whenever your processor needs information from your hard drive, it asks your RAM to go and get it. Your RAM gets the information and sends it back to the process.
The unit by which RAM is measured is how much data it can send at any one time. So, the more RAM you have, the faster your processor will get the information. But like your processor, it should really be in line with the rest of your system. There's no point having RAM able to give the processor more information than it can handle (in reality this isn't an issue - having not enough RAM is more of a problem).
In the post office analogy we made earlier, we had too little RAM (not enough letters were being delivered to the sorting office to match it's capacity). If we had too much RAM (ie 1,000,000 post vans picking up mail) and not enough processing power (ie, one guy in the sorting office on his own), you can see the problem.
So, again your PC should have a nice balance.
By today's standards (Jan, 2004) I would say that 256Mb of RAM would be good for basic office use (maybe less). 512Mb would be the bare minimum for good performance with graphic intense programmes (such as computer games). More RAM would be recommended for intense use (ie for graphic designers, or for people who use multiple applications at once).
If you have ever noticed your PC running slow then usually the problem is not enough RAM (or more seriously, too many programmes running at once - possibly spy ware or a virus).
Summary There are other internal components of a PC not covered here (graphics cards, sound cards, etc), but they aren't really important to learn the basics of PC use.
When choosing a PC, then you should look at your needs first. Do you really need that all-singing, all-dancing machine (it would be nice, I know!)? Or would the mid-range package suit you.
How about printer, scanner, software? Again, nice to have, but really necessary? Remember, all this stuff is cheap and only chucked in to add selling points to the package. Don't buy it if you don't need it!
Regards Scott Boyd - Webmaster and Founder - Jobseekers Advice
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