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Responsibilities
of a Computer Motherboard
by my-tech-guide.com
Computers
are a part of everyday life. We use them at home, in school
and in the office. We rely on them in many ways. Some of
us even have some endearing feelings towards them, but do
we know what the driving force behind our precious little
desktop or laptop is? It is aptly named the Motherboard and
it is in control of all of your computer functions.
The
Motherboard is the most important part on your computer. If
you are going to be computer savvy, you need to know a
great deal about it. It is a large circuit that holds the
CPU, memory board and peripheral cards. By itself the Motherboard
is basically useless but it’s true, no computer can function
without one. The Motherboard is the meeting place for everything
that you have plugged into your computer.
The
Motherboard is responsible for storage. The two
most common type of storage are ATA/100 and ATA/133. One
performs about as well as the other so you don’t need to
spend too much time investigating them.
Your
Motherboard is where all PCI slots are located. The
more you have, the more gadgets you can plug into your
PC. If you buy a peripheral card to improve sound or graphics,
it will be plugged into a PCI slot. Most Motherboards have
4 or 5 PCI slots. AGP slots are essential and ISA or CNR
slots may also be included, if necessary.
For
the most part, sound and graphics are a
given these days. Almost all Motherboards support both. But
if you have a dinosaur, it may not. If you are a big gamer
you will want a Motherboard with an AGP slot.
The Central
Processing Unit determines the speed and ability
of your PC. There are three basic classes that range from
older, slower noncomplex models, to newer, faster complex
ones that perform a number of high tech operations. Price
and age tend to determine how much juice your CPU has.
Hard
drives are controlled by the Motherboard. This
is where you store data that operates your system. Hard
drives hold and organize bits of information using magnetic
storage techniques.
Any additional
external plug-ins that you use in conjunction
with your computer will have to be approved by your Motherboard.
If you go out and buy a graphics card, it will have to
be connected through one of the PCI slots in the Motherboard.
If you want to upgrade, you will basically need to get
permission from your Motherboard.
RAM
is stored in the Motherboard. Most systems use
DDR SDRAM but some higher class computers use Rambus memory.
Memory comes in different speeds and the higher, the better.
If you are going to upgrade the memory on your computer
you will have to turn to the Motherboard. It is important
to find out how much RAM a Motherboard can handle before
you purchase a PC. If you purchase more memory, you must
make sure that it is compatible with your system.
The form
factor of the Motherboard, case, and power supply
usually match one another. There are several types of form
factors. The most common type used today is ATX. This integrates
all of the connectors in the Motherboard.
Motherboards
can have a number of PCI slots, ports and interfaces. Most
will have four or five. The more PCI slots the better because
you can connect more gadgets. And more gadgets allow you
to use more applications.
The
Chipset inside of the Motherboard serves as a sort of brain. The
Chipset controls what hardware your computer can support.
It carries information from the hard drive to memory to
the CPU. You will want to know what type of CPU, rate of
the IDE controller and if sound and video are included
for future reference. Most of us get new toys from time
to time. If you know these important facts about your chipset
you can make sure they are compatible with new items.
It
is good to know your Motherboard well. In the future, when
you want to make changes to your computer, or purchase a
new one, your Motherboard will be a big determining factor.
You will want to know as much as possible about the Motherboard
of any computer you buy, already own or build.
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SolveYourProblem.com : 2007
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