Sunday, February 13, 2011

(S3) Do it yourself


This weeks student blog challenges you to discuss how you would go about building your own computer.  (Buying a stock package or going to Best Buy is not an option here!)

1. How do you decide what system you want and where do you start?  List websites you'd use.

2. What 10 parts will you buy? The parts should personally meet your needs (ie gaming, portability, cost)  Justify some of your choices.

3. How long do you think it will take you to build your custom machine?

4. What are the benefits or disadvantages to building your own system?

12 comments:

  1. 1) As I prefer the Mac OS interface best I would probably choose that system and I would start by researching the best components for the cheapest cost. For websites I would use Newegg or Amazon.

    2) ASUS M4A89GTD PRO Motherboard, 6GB DDR3 RAM, MSI GeForce GTX 460 (Fermi) N460GTX Hawk Video Card, Intel Core i7-950 3.06GHz LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core Processor, Linkwood ATX Mid Tower, Sony IDE DVD-ROM drive, Western Digital AV-GP SATA AV Hard Drive, ASUS Express Wireless Adapter, Hanns·G 23.6" Widescreen LCD Monitor Built-in Speakers, Keyboard, mouse.

    3) It wouldn't take that long to actually build, perhaps a week. The longest part would be earning the money to buy the parts and ordering them.

    4) Building your own computer allows you to customize it to fit your personal needs and allows you to experiment with building a working machine but it opens up the possibility of damaged hardware or other user created mistakes.

    ReplyDelete
  2. 1) I would much rather use a computer similar to a Mac. I would look at sites like Amazon ebay and even craigs list.

    2) I would buy a wireless adapter, brand new built in speakers, keyboard, mouse, hard drive, head phones, power cord, joey stick.

    3) If i have the time most likely in a week.

    4) The advantages are that u can have whatever u want on them. the disadvantages are that if u dont put it together correctly then it wont work like that.

    ReplyDelete
  3. 1) It's always much cheaper to build your own computer, you know your specs and you know exactly how to fix it if something breaks. The only you need is Newegg.com

    running out of time, I'll answer the other parts later

    ReplyDelete
  4. 1. If you want to be able to just surf the web, you can build a cheep $300 computer, but if you would like to have a good gaming computer with minimal lag/etc you can decide what parts you want. I use Newegg.com

    2. Basic List
    Case
    CPU
    GPU
    Mobo
    PSU
    Memory
    HDD
    Mouse
    Keyboard
    Monitor


    3. I built my Gaming computer in Physical aspect in about an hour to make it good looking. Pricing out and having the right parts I want, I took about 2 months.

    4. Can put exactly what I want in the computer the first time and not have to pay for labor or any extra charges

    ReplyDelete
  5. 1. I like my pc best out of all the computers in my house (including dare I say my mac). Some websites I looked at were:
    http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows-vista/Parts-of-a-computer
    http://www.soft-computer-tech.com/computer-parts-worksheet.html

    2. A motherboard of course, I want a running computer. I also want a good efficient CPU so that I can run all of my many programs. With a good RAM processor. An upgraded video card to play games on because, after all, with a really good one you only have to replace it every few months. (Im not that serious though)The rest is an optical drive, good mouse, keyboard, graphics card, case, and a microphone!

    3. Well I'd have to learn some stuff (LIKE A LOT) and then make sure I don't break anything and it doesn't blow up so leanr some MORE. So about 6 months!

    4. Benefits: Make it exactly how you want it so youre money goes to good use.
    bad stuff: I could mess something up and since im not a professional I wouldn't recognize my mistake.

    ReplyDelete
  6. 1. I'd decide what operating system to use based off of personal experience. I've used PC's all my life and in the past few years have just started to use Macs. If I were to build my own computer I would without a doubt use Windows operating system tough. If I for some reason needed help deciding what site to use I'd probably look at windows.microsoft.com and apple.com

    2.I'd buy

    A motherboard
    Hard drive
    Case
    Mouse
    Keyboard
    Graphics Card
    CD Drive
    Speakers
    Power Cords
    Processor

    3.Probably a few weeks of dedicated work. It would take the most time getting all the parts I need and once I had the proper instructions I don't think assembling the machine would take too long.

    4. You know the exact specs of your machine and can customize them as you see fit. You'll know if you can play a high frame rate game without crashing your computer or how fast it will take to start up.

    ReplyDelete
  7. 1. I would make a windows PC. Some of the websites I would use are newegg.com and
    http://www.build-gaming-computers.com

    2. Parts:
    EVGA P55 FTW 200 Motherboard
    Intel Core i5 750
    Corsair XMS3 4GB Dual Channel DDR3 RAM
    XFX HD585XZAFC Radeon HD 5850
    Creative Labs Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeGamer
    Western Digital Caviar Black 500 GB
    Asus DRW-24B1ST DVD Burner
    Cooler Master HAF 922M ATX Mid Tower Case
    Cooler Master GX Series 650W
    ACER X223WDbd 22" Widescreen LCD

    3. About a week, like others said the most time would be spent getting money.

    4. It is cheap, and you can customize it to do what ever you want it to do.

    ReplyDelete
  8. 1. I would choose the OS based on the most important feature to me. Mac OS is awesome with it's "almost no viruses" thing going on. I would probably have to go with Windows though, as I am more of a gamer, therefore more could run.

    2. The 10 basic parts would be:
    Keyboard
    Monitor (around 21 inches)
    A lazer-guided mouse
    Speakers
    Roughly 6gb of ram
    A fancy looking case
    Motherboard
    Enough memory(500gb)
    Processor
    Strong video card

    3. I think that if I was really diligent, I would be able to build it in roughly a week. That is strictly building though, for getting the money itself would be much harder, and would take much longer.

    4. The benefits are that you know exactly how it will run, and it can be customized exactly how you want. The disadvantages are possibly building it wrong, which could cause it to crash.

    ReplyDelete
  9. 1&2) I have built many computers in the past, but that was always a "rebuild."
    I dont really know much about building "from the ground up" but I would like to learn. Every computer i have repaired has been on a trial and error basis, If it didn't work i would always make the effort to try and figure it out on my own before turning to more experienced persons.

    3)there needs to be a time frame? shoot, i like to take it apart as many times a i can without breaking it. I just like the "hands on" aspect of building computers, im not a programer, but i can hold my own.

    4)just like bikes, computers have there own "personalities." The user over time learns the "glitches" of said machine and adapt to them, or fix them. one particular advantage of building your own computer is that you know that "quarks" of the machine right off the bat.

    ReplyDelete
  10. 1. The Operating system that i would use would be Windows 7 Pro. I would use something like tiger direct or frys electronics online.

    2. Nice Graphics Card
    2TB HD
    55" monitor
    CD/DVD Player/Writer and DVD Blueray Player
    8 GB Ram DDR3
    4 300 Wat Speakers with 2 15 inch Subs
    Dual Quad Core Processor (Theoretical Multitasking)
    Wireless Keyboard/Mouse

    3. It would probably take about a week to acquire parts. And an hour to assemble it but it would take a long time to get the finances to buy everything.

    4. The Benefit of building your own computer would be to have precise specifications to work at the level that you want it to. The downfall is if you dont know what you're doing some things may not be entirely compatable.

    ReplyDelete
  11. I do not have any need at all to build my own computer. I HAVE built many, but never for myself. I just don't need it. I have no interest in gaming, and if I'm getting a desktop, I don't need it to be portable in the slightest. It seems like a waste of time for me. I totally understand why people do and I totally support it and I'll help it I'm asked to, but for my uses, its completely unnecessary.

    ReplyDelete
  12. 1. Windows7. Newegg.com. Possibly Amazon, if it's cheaper.

    2. Current Computer:
    - Asus P543GT-M Pro
    - Pentium Dual-Core E5200 OC'd to 3.5Ghz
    - 2x2GB Crucial DDR3-1333
    - Radeon HD 4830
    - 2x 1,5TB WD Green Storage + 2x 160GB WD Blue System
    - 19" Acer 1680x1050px
    - Lifetime Pro 650W
    - 22x DVD-RW
    - Sigma Case
    - Harmon Kardon Soundsticks
    - Wacom Bamboo Tablet
    + A few fans, cables, etc.

    3. Took me a day to put together.

    4. Cheap (cost me $600ish dollars total, using parts I already had). Simple, and you get what you want and nothing more.

    ReplyDelete

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