Solved Is it hard to build a computer?

[alphanumeric]

Writes to an Solid State Drive are purposely spread out over the entire drive to prevent continuously writing to the same cells over and over. As the drive ages all the cells will have approximately the same number of write cycles. Access time is independent of where the cell is on the drive so fragmentation isn't an issue. On a spinner drive, data is rewritten to the same portion of the drive over and over again, if its free. Certain areas of the platter will never get written to until the drive becomes full. This is done to improve access time and reduce fragmentation.

 

[alphanumeric]

Having a secondary standard HDD is not about relieving pressure on the SSD, it's for storage.

yeah thanks for clearing that up.

I'm probably going to get 120GB SSD and a 2TB HHD.

I'm getting close to buying an SSD for my desktop PC, it will likely be a 240 GB drive. The 1 TB spinner that's in it will be used for storage. I have a 120 GB and a 240 GB SSD in my laptop. It has dual drive bays. There are extra benefits to using an SSD in a laptop than just the extra speed. SSD's draw less power and generate less heat so that will improve battery life. Less heat in a laptop is always a good thing. Less weight too. And less prone to damage from the occasional bump.

 

[Chuck38]

yeah thanks for clearing that up.

I'm probably going to get 120GB SSD and a 2TB HHD.

I'm getting close to buying an SSD for my desktop PC, it will likely be a 240 GB drive. The 1 TB spinner that's in it will be used for storage. I have a 120 GB and a 240 GB SSD in my laptop. It has dual drive bays. There are extra benefits to using an SSD in a laptop than just the extra speed. SSD's draw less power and generate less heat so that will improve battery life. Less heat in a laptop is always a good thing. Less weight too. And less prone to damage from the occasional bump.

When I'm in that market for a laptop I will have to remember that. Thank-you for the information.

 

[Chuck38]

I'm looking at a AMD A10-5800K 3.8GHz Quad-Core Processor now, all the research I've done says that it's a good CPU, but I would like to know what all of y'all think of it.

 

[alphanumeric]

I'm AMD all the way, some might say I'm biased.
My laptop has an AMD A10-4600M 2.3 GHZ Quad Core AMD Trinity,
My main desktop has an AMD Phenom II X4 980 Black Edition Deneb 3.7GHz
and my other desktop PC has an AMD Athlon II X4 620 2.6GHz

The A-10 is an APU which has a CPU and VPU on the same die. If your going to be installing a dedicated video card the VPU part of it won't get used. In that case an FX might be a better choice.

 

[Chuck38]

Good to know! Now I'm really looking forward to building this computer! All I need now is money...

 

[dukethedj]

PC Building is fairly easy once you know what goes where. I build my first PC from spare parts when I was 11. If you need a tutorial Paul from Newegg made an excellent video on that topic.

 

[alphanumeric]

Some might say it was easier years ago. Some will remember when there was just ISA, and RAM modules were SIMMS. Your mouse plugged into a serial port and your keyboard plugged into a big 5 pin DIN connector. VGA was all there was for video. Now You have PCI, PCIe x1 x4 x8 and x16 slots. DDR, DDR2 DDR3. Crossfire and SLI. VGA, DVI, HDMI, Display Port. The list goes on. Interesting times these are.

I've built about a half dozen or so desktop PC's over the years.

 

[Chuck38]

PC Building is fairly easy once you know what goes where. I build my first PC from spare parts when I was 11. If you need a tutorial Paul from Newegg made an excellent video on that topic.

That tutorial is what got me interested!

 

[alphanumeric]

One big thing to watch out for is static discharge. One little zap can really spoil all your fun.

 

[Chuck38]

Here's the links to all three parts of that tutorial, if anyone is interested.
Part 1- Newegg TV: How To Build a Computer - Part 1 - Choosing Your Components - YouTube
Part 2- Newegg TV: How To Build a Computer - Part 2 - The Build - YouTube
Part 3- Newegg TV: How To Build a Computer - Part 3 - Installing Windows & Finishing Touches - YouTube

 

[Chuck38]

One big thing to watch out for is static discharge. One little zap can really spoil all your fun.

Paul, suggested touching the medal computer case every now and then to release all the static.

 

[alphanumeric]

One big thing to watch out for is static discharge. One little zap can really spoil all your fun.

Paul, suggested touching the medal computer case every now and then to release all the static.

That will work. My point was don't do stuff like walking across a shag carpet with only socks on while installing your components. The more precautions you take the less chance of an accidental discharge happening. I'm an electronic technician by trade so its stuff that was drilled into me early in my career. Its second nature now to ground myself before touching any components. Not everybody thinks about it or realizes it could be an issue. I didn't want your fist build to be bummer because of something that could be avoided and prevented.

 

[Chuck38]

Should I ware rubber-heeled shoes put together the build?

 

[alphanumeric]

An anti-static wrist strap would be a good investment. Newegg.ca - anti static wrist strap It's what I use on a new build. I just clip the alligator clip to the metal PC case. Rubber soled shoes or sneakers wouldn't hurt.

 

[Chuck38]

An anti-static wrist strap would be a good investment. Newegg.ca - anti static wrist strap It's what I use on a new build. I just clip the alligator clip to the metal PC case. Rubber soled shoes or sneakers wouldn't hurt.

Interesting, how dangerous could a static discharge be?

 

[alphanumeric]

An anti-static wrist strap would be a good investment. Newegg.ca - anti static wrist strap It's what I use on a new build. I just clip the alligator clip to the metal PC case. Rubber soled shoes or sneakers wouldn't hurt.

Interesting, how dangerous could a static discharge be?

It's not dangerous to you if that's what your asking. You might not even feel it. Electronic components don't like it much, that's all. It can damage them. Your components like motherboard and video card will come shipped in anti-static bags. Use a wooden table or desk if you can and avoid carpeted floors that's all. Touching the metal PC case will discharge any static buildup on you, its just remembering to do it every so often. Using a static wrist band eliminates the forgetting part.

 

[Chuck38]

Oh, so it's more of a danger to the computer than me. You had me scared there for a minute! I'll have to get one of those static wrist bands.

 

[alphanumeric]

Oh, so it's more of a danger to the computer than me. You had me scared there for a minute! I'll have to get one of those static wrist bands.

Yes, it won't hurt you but it can damage your PC gear. You know that tingle and crackle when you take a wool sweater off, that's static buildup. The zap you get when you then touch something is the static discharge. It's high voltage but very low current and a very short duration. If you have say a video card in your hand and go to plug it into the motherboard the discharge can go though the video card and damage it. Touching your hand to the PC case puts you at the same potential as the case and prevents a discharge. Using the wristband and attaching the clip to your case is like always having your hand on the case.

 

[alphanumeric]

Well I'm calling it night, I'll be back online in the morning.