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Starting the computer build

Let The Party Begin

Start by taking inventory of your parts. Lay each part out on the table and look them over carefully. Make sure you have all manuals and printed material to hand. If you have a second computer in the household with internet access you should locate the web sites of each of the manufacturers of the parts and bookmark them. You could also download the latest copies of the relevant BIOS and drivers. PC911 has a great reference area if you need help finding some of these web sites. Basically, as a bare minimum, this is what you should have:

• A case suitable for the system board you will be using. The case is comprised of several parts.
  • A steel chassis with a power supply in the inside back which should be rated at (at least) 250 Watts. The power supply will have a cooling fan. The power cord plugs into this power supply in the back of the cases.
  • A case cover, usually metal, sometimes comprised of several panels, which will allow you to close the case once your work is done. There will be several screws which secure the cover(s) in place. Make sure they fit properly and that you understand how it goes together. It should assemble only one way and you should not have to bend or force it in place. The screw holes should line up so that you have no difficulty seating the screws. There may be several different sizes of screws. determine which are the correct ones for this purpose and set them aside.
  • There should be a small bag of hardware with plastic parts, screws and some small (often brass) bolts which will act as supports for the system board. Review the contents of this bag of hardware.
  • You will need a second and third case fan (often not included with a new case). The fan in the power supply will usually blow air out of the cases. Common practice is to have a second fan in the front of the cases sucking fresh, cool air into the case, and a third fan in the back right behind the CPU to blow warm air out of the case. Opinions differ on this last point but one thing is certain, your computer generates heat and you must provide a means to get it out of the box. For more information on cooling, check out the PC911 cooling tutorial.
• A system board, often called a "Mother board." Currently, the most common type of system board is an ATX Form Factor board, however, regardless of what you have, make sure that it will fit into the case and that the holes in the board line up with the screw holes in the base plate of the case.
  • You must have a manual for the system board. If you do not have the correct manual for your specific model system board, STOP. You cannot assemble the computer without this manual.
  • You should have a small bag with two or more ribbon type cables in it. These are:
    1. An IDE ribbon cable.
    2. A floppy drive ribbon cable.
  • There may be a CD or floppy disk with drivers (software which "drives" the hardware).
• A CPU suitable for the system board you will be using. If you are unsure if the system board supports the particular CPU you have, read the manual. It will have a chart indicating which CPUs are supported and how the board should be set (jumpered) to accommodate your specific CPU. The CPU will require its own fan, usually sold separately.
• One or more RAM sticks of the correct type for your system board. Again, refer to the manual for the system board for details.
• A hard drive disk. Make sure you have enough space to grow. Generally you can expect about three to five years life from a hard drive so consider your possible computing needs well into the future.
• A 3½" floppy disk drive.
• A CD-ROM drive. Choose a 24x drive or better. Optionally, you could go with a good CD-R (CD recorder).
• A video adapter card. There are several types available these days. Make sure that the card you have will plug into one of the plugs (slots) in the system board. You will notice perhaps several different slots in the system board, but the video adapter will only plug into one, or one type of slot.
• A mouse with a suitable connector for your system board. Most common is a PS2 mouse which has a small round barrel jack. Refer to the manual for the location of the appropriate jack for the mouse.
• A keyboard, also with a suitable connector for the system board. Try plugging the keyboard and mouse into the system board to make sure you have compatible components.
• A monitor.

These are the basic minimum essentials you must have in order to build a computer. However, there are many more items you may wish to use. Some of the optional items are:

• A sound card. There is a huge assortment of cards available. If you decide to get a sound card you will also need shielded, computer speakers.
• A modem or ADSL card. We must surf!
• A Network Interface card (NIC) if you intend to set up a local area network (LAN). Also, for those of us lucky enough to have cable access to the internet this is a must.

Techno-junky geeks could add hardware until the box bursts. We leave it to you to lust after the gizmo of your choice.

Page 1: Building your PC
Page 2: Starting to build your PC - let the party begin
Page 3: Assembly - The Motherboard
Page 4: Installing Drives