Helping you save money and learn a skill...for free!
Message Boards
YouCanBuildAPC.com Definitions
A
B
D
F
H
I
J
L
M
N
O
P
R
S
U
V
W
Z
A
This is a slot on the motherboard specially designed to be used for the video card. Video cards used to go in the PCI slots but as technology advanced the computer manufacturers found that video quality could be increased with a special slot specifically for the video card.
B
BIOS stands for basic input/output system and is located on the motherboard . (INSERT PICTURE OF BIOS CHIP) It is usually a chip that contains the most basic operating and setup instructions for a computer. It can be used to configure how the computer starts up, and is what you see when you first start your computer up and all the drives are being detected.
Broadband internet connections are rapidly becoming popular as the primary choice of internet connections at home and in the office. Where most people used phone lines and a modem to connect to the internet, many are switching to this higher form of internet connection. To put it in perspective, the measure of how fast an internet connection is in terms of bandwidth. The more bandwidth the faster the connection. To use an analogy, pumping water through a garden hose is to phone line modems as to pumping water through a sewer pipe is to high speed "broadband" internet connections.
However, this doesn't rule out using phone lines for high speed internet connections. Something called DSL (Digital Subscriber Line) uses existing phone lines to transfer information at high speeds. This is much different from the old method of using phone lines for internet connections and enables a much higher rate of transfer.
These are the two most popular forms of broadband connections and are getting better and more secure every day.
D
This is the older method that is used to access the internet using phone lines and a standard dial-up modem. The computer's modem dials a remote server through the phone lines which then allows you to surf the internet, through the modem and through that remote server. If you are still using this method of internet access and find it too slow, you should definitely check out other broadband options for a faster experience.
Drivers are the little chunks of information stored on your computer that make the individual components of the computer function with everything else. Drivers are installed any time a new piece of hardware is detected in the computer. Drivers used to be very difficult to install compared with now. If Windows 98 couldn't find your driver it meant that a lengthy process was ahead of you. With Windows XP things are very easy to do. If you install a new piece of hardware, Windows will detect it and automatically load the appropriate driver. If there are any more steps to take place, Windows XP will let you know exactly what to do.
On a rare occasion, Windows XP will not be able to find a driver and you may need to download the latest driver from the hardware manufacturer's website. This is made very easy though by most manufacturers as it's a common necessity among people using their products. Just go to the manufacturer's website and find their driver download page. Make sure you know the type and model number of the product so you can find it's specific driver.
F
The firewall is the protection between your computer and the outside world. It prevents hackers, viruses, and worms from making their way to your computer. A good firewall will block any intruders and help keep most viruses from making it to your computer. A great firewall software package is ZoneAlarm Pro 4 by Zonelabs.com . If you don't plan on purchasing any of this protective software, at least activate the Windows built in firewall protection. Follow the instructions on Step 14 (Finishing Up) of building your computer to find out how to activate this feature.
This is the next step up from a USB port. It's similar looking to a USB plug but is many times faster. Right now Firewire is mainly used to transfer video from a source, such as a camcorder, to your computer. Where the USB port replaced the serial port , Firewire will most likely replace USB in time.
This typically refers to completely erasing the information off a disk, whether it's a floppy disk, hard disk, or CD. If your computer asks if you want to format something, make absolutely sure you are not going to lose any important information.
H
Hackers come in all forms. Some do it just for fun to see how well they can break into a system. Others do it for financial gain or to get information that could lead to financial gain. The best way to protect yourself from hackers is to get a firewall. Windows has a decent firewall built into Windows XP, but if you really want to protect your computer, we suggest downloading ZoneAlarm Pro 4 . This software allows you to block hackers as well as monitor what they are doing on your computer. (LIST OTHER FEATURES)
This could mean a lot of things, some harmful, some harmless. Hacking can range simply from obtaining information, to customizing one's own computer, to causing harm to other's computers or stealing from them. If a computer whiz does something with their own operating system or software that makes it perform a little differently, that could be considered hacking, and harmless. If someone hacks into a credit card company's database and takes information from them, that is a very harmful and illegal form of hacking.
INSERT DEFINITION
When referring to a computer in a wireless network, the computer that is directly connected to the router by a network cable, not through the air.
This part of your computer is usually on the processor and is absolutely necessary to reduce the temperature of the processor. Since all the information going through your computer travels through the processor in the form of electricity at one time or another, this generates a lot of heat. A heatsink is usually made of some sort of metal and has a series of spikes and valleys. The heat from the processor travels to these spikes, which are then cooled down by a fan. This is an absolutely essential part of your computer and may be enhanced by using heatsink compound described below.
When you connect a heatsink to the processor, there is no absolutely perfect connection between the two. You're bound to have little gaps here and there which means the processor will not be able to dissipate heat as well. Heatsink compound is a gooey substance that creates a much better contact surface between the processor and heatsink, thus making the processor cooler and more stable. This can even translate to having a faster computer.
I
This cable is what connects the motherboard with the other drives such as the hard drive or CD drive. A total of 2 devices can be connected to the motherboard using one of these cables. Most motherboards have two sockets where these IDE cables can be plugged into for a total of 4 devices.
J
Iomega's most popular drive is the ZIP drive. Second in line, and geared towards people who use very large files such as graphic design artists, is the JAZ drive. (LOOK UP AND EXPLAIN BETTER)
L
The screws that are used in building computers usually come either with large threads or small threads . Large threads are used to secure the cards and are also used on the outside of the case or for the power supply. Some internal components such as the hard drive or floppy drive may use large or small threads depending on the manufacturer and model of the component. The best way to find out whether to use large or small threads is to first test either one in each component before you install it in the computer. If you find yourself having to force it in, try the other type of thread until one can be securely screwed in.
Linux is another operating system that is becoming more and more popular due to the fact that it's absolutely free, and is open source , which means that anyone can go in and change it. This makes it a dynamic operating system with many different versions that people can download and try out. Since Linux is still not as popular as Windows, it limits the number of programs that can be run on it. Many internet servers however use it to store websites since it is a more stable operating system.
M
When installing a CD/DVD drive, hard drive , or zip drive , the drive must be set to either master, slave , or stand alone on hard drives. Master means that priority is set for that component. If you have a DVD drive and a hard drive on one IDE cable then you will want to set the hard drive to master because it has all the information that you will be using to run the operating system and other programs. If the hard drive is the only drive on an IDE cable, then it can be set to stand alone, specifying that it is the only drive connected.
These are small devices that plug into any USB port and allow you to use them as separate drives that can be plugged into any computer. They range in size currently between 32MB and 256MB. Advancing technology will soon introduce even larger sizes allowing people to transfer very large files with ease.
The motherboard, sometimes called the main board, is the main part of the computer where everything comes together. The processor plugs into it, as well as all the cards and drives. The motherboard can be thought of the body of a human, with all it's internal components (processor, hard drive, etc.) making it able to function.
N
Network cards are beginning to take all sorts of shapes and types. What once used to be a simple card that looked like it had an oversized telephone plug has evolved into wireless cards as well as USB cards. The network card's function is to connect a computer to either a network or directly to an internet connection. The most common household use of a network card is to connect to a router which disperses an internet connection among many computers.
There are two main types of formats that Windows uses for the hard drives installed, FAT32 and NTFS. (LOOKUP THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE TWO)
O
A partition can be thought of as a piece of pie. Partitions occur on hard drives and are sometimes used to turn one hard drive into two or several. When you partition a hard drive, you are making one hard drive appear as more than one to the computer. This can be useful if you want to use two different types of operating systems on one hard drive. Each partition represents a piece of a pie, and the sum of the pieces will equal the whole drive.
An operating system is what you see when you first start up your computer. It has your desktop, all your folders, and allows you to run programs. It's basically the mother of all programs and is always running. The most common operating system is of course Windows , developed by Microsoft.
P
A partition can be thought of as a piece of pie. Partitions occur on hard drives and are sometimes used to turn one hard drive into two or several. When you partition a hard drive, you are making one hard drive appear as more than one to the computer. This can be useful if you want to use two different types of operating systems on one hard drive. Each partition represents a piece of a pie, and the sum of the pieces will equal the whole drive.
PCI slots are located on the motherboard and are where different types of cards plug into. (CONTINUE LATER)
This has become a more well known term now that people have figured out how to download music for free. Any downloading of music used to be thought of as pirating, but now that there are pay sites that support the musicians whose music you download, there is a fine line between pirated music and legitimate music; it's all in the method of acquiring it. Pirating can therefore be applied to not only music, but software as well. Basically, any intangible item that can be obtained through the computer can be pirated (obtained illegally). Downloading a piece of software without owning it is pirating. Pirating is illegal and is punishable by law.
If you wish to download music without running the risk of pirating it, check out the links below.
(INSERT MUSIC DOWNLOAD LINKS)
(INSERT DEFINITION)
This is the brain of the computer. Much like a human brain where all the commands and information travel through it before action is taken, the processor is where all the information of a computer passes through. This makes it's job a very important one. Since all your information will be passing through it you want to make sure you get one that can handle your workload.
There are almost always two PS/2 ports on any given computer. This is where the keyboard and mouse are plugged into. On most of the new motherboards they are color coded for easy connections. Purple is where the keyboard goes, and green is where the mouse goes. (INSERT PICTURE ILLUSTRATING) Even though USB keyboards and mice are becoming popular, the PS/2 ports are still the preferred method of connecting the keyboard and mouse. Windows XP has a very funny way of freezing up on installation when a USB mouse is connected. Some bugs need to be worked out before the PS/2 ports become obsolete.
R
There are two primary types of memory in most home-based computers, the Hard Drive memory, and the RAM (Random Access Memory).
These two different types of memory can be simplified by thinking of the RAM as the short-term memory of the computer, and the hard drive as the long-term memory.
The hard drive stores all your files, programs, and anything that you access on your computer. Your RAM is what gives your computer room to work. RAM is what your computer uses to run the programs stored on your hard drive. This memory is different from the hard drive because it is erased every time the computer is turned off since it isn't used to store anything important, while the hard drive keeps everything when the power is off. It's a more volatile type of memory, meaning it is used to write to and read from very quickly. The true speed of a computer is not measured solely in the speed of the processor, but is measured by the combination of the amount of RAM and the speed of the processor in MHz. To make it easier, you can think of the RAM as the short-term memory, and the hard drive as the long-term memory.
S
The serial port is to the USB port what the USB port is to the Firewire port now. The serial port is basically an older technology that was used to connect extra devices such as digital cameras (very old digital cameras) and some joysticks. Most motherboards these days don't even have serial ports on them. Since the USB port has pretty much replaced these, there is no need to buy anything that uses a serial port.
When installing a CD/DVD drive, hard drive, or zip drive, the drive must be set to either master, slave, or stand alone on hard drives. Slave is used when you want another drive on that IDE cable to have priority over it. If you have a DVD drive and a hard drive on one IDE cable then you will want to set the hard drive to master because it has all the information that you will be using to run the operating system and other programs. The DVD drive can be set to slave since the information coming and going from it is secondary.
The screws that are used in building computers usually come either with large threads or small threads. Most CD/DVD drives use small threads but some internal components such as CD/DVD drive, hard drive, or floppy drive may use large or small threads depending on the manufacturer and model of the component. The best way to find out whether to use large or small threads is to first test either one in each component before you install it in the computer. If you find yourself having to force it in, try the other type of thread until one can be securely screwed in.
If your motherboard doesn't have built in sound, you'll need to buy a sound card in order to hear music and any other sound that is created by your computer (except of course for the BIOS beeps that go through the basic speaker in your computer case). The company Creative has led the computing sound industry with their Soundblaster Live! cards and have never let me down with the quality of sound produced by those cards.
(INSERT LINK TO Creative Soundblaster Live)
U
USB is the port on the back (and sometimes front) of your computer that is rectangular in shape and allows you to hook up things such as digital cameras, scanners, printers, etc. The USB port has replaced the serial port and will be replaced by the Firewire port once the computing industry starts making more components that use Firewire rather than USB. The USB is a fast method of transferring data from the component using it to the computer, but Firewire is much faster and is currently used mostly for transferring video from a camcorder to the computer.
V
The video card is very important because the better the card, the higher the resolution, which means less eye strain. Video cards have become more abundant recently and mostly because they have to tailor to the ever advancing games that hardcore gamers play. This won't apply to you and you should keep in mind that a solid basic card with enough MB of memory will play some basic games and have a great display for whatever you choose to use your computer for.
(INSERT LINK FOR VIDEO CARDS)
While virus was the big buzzword a few years ago, worm is the new virus. A virus can do a multitude of things to your computer; take it over, slow it down, make it stop running, etc. A worm can (CONTINUE LATER)
W
This was Microsoft's big step up from their previous operating system Windows 95. While this operating system prevailed for many years, it wasn't until Windows XP that Microsoft finally shut up its critics and released a very stable and well received operating system.
We've all made mistakes in our lives, and this was Microsoft's biggest mistake. I don't know if they were trying to tie in with the whole Millennium theme that was making the country crazy, but Windows ME (Millennium Edition) should not have ever been released. It's nothing but a nightmare for anyone that uses it and drivers are nearly impossible to load without running into a length process. If you or someone you know is still using Windows ME, please, advise them on how important it is to upgrade to Windows XP.
This is hands down the best operating system that Microsoft has ever released. Loading drivers is very simple and often requires no effort on the users part. People who thought Windows 98 was stable were very pleased to find that XP is even more stable than it's predecessor. Users of XP are going to be wary about switching when Microsoft releases its newest operating system Longhorn (CHECK IF THIS IS THE NAME) in (CHECK HOW MANY YEARS) .
A wireless network consists of a wireless router and one or more other computers that are connected either through networking cables or through the air with wireless cards. These have become very common in sharing a broadband internet connection. Where as only one computer used to be able to be connected to a broadband connection, now several can share that one connection without paying the internet service provider anything extra. Since these types of networks are very common now, many households have them. This could pose a problem if you're not careful. Please check the newsletter archives and Newsletter #2 to see what I mean.
Z
This kind of drive, manufactured by Iomega (INSERT LINK) works just like a floppy drive but can hold 100MB instead of the 1.4MB that a floppy drive can hold. These drives are very useful for people who have to transfer large files between two computers on a regular basis. Graphic design artists find these drives very useful.