1. A CPU is a square chip with a lot of small golden pin (microscopic transistors) embedded in it. :
   
   
   

2. The silicon chip sits in a special socket located on the main circuit board (motherboard or mainboard) inside the Chasey (PC)

• referring to the graphics chips
• only 2 brands, Nvidia & AMD
• also referred as graphics chipset/co-processor
• have 2 types, integrated GPUs (cannot be replaced) and discrete GPUs (replacable)

• many individual computing units in the GPU that do the gaphics computations and calculations.
• generally, more cores will deliver more performance

• same as the regular RAM, called VRAM
• stores graphics data temporarily to be processed by the GPU
• GDDR5, GDDR6
• in general higher GDDR version, perform better

• measured in GB
• the bigger, more space to store graphical information, the better
• VRAM cannot be changed like RAM, built in

• need to make sure that the graphics card you purchase is compatible with the motherboard
• interface examples : PCIe

• power required to generate the highest amount of heat that the cooling system can handle
• measured in watts
• if power rating high, recommended to have PC case with good ventilation for max heat dissipation

Large storage capacity

Cheap

more electricity required

low reading speed and writing speed (125MBps)

Noisy while operating

short lifespan (3-5 years)

• Graphics card have become so power-intensive, so require more power
• modern graphics card have power connectors that allow them to draw additional power directly
  from the power supply unit.
• either six-pin or eight-pin connectors

• software that send instruct the graphics card to process graphical information
• DirectX, OpenGL, Vulkan

Socket compatibility is a primary concern when it comes to buying a processor.

Many of today’s processors have integrated graphics processing units

• gigaflop/teraflop is unit to measure theoretical performance of a processing unit (GPU or CPU)
• floatig point operations per second (how many floating-point operations it can do in a second)
• one of the best ways to compare processing unit performance

Looks like a smaller version of computer motherboard - has processor, RAM, etc

Western Digital, Seagate, Toshiba, Hitachi, Sandisk

Around RM110-RM400 depends on storage capacity and brands

1. Turn off PC and unplug from wall

   
   

2. Open the PC case’s sidde panel.

   
   

3. Locate PCI-E x16 slot closest to the heat sink

   
   

4. Firmly insert the card into the slot, then push down the plastic lock on the end of th PCI-E slot to hold it in place.

   
   

5. Use a screw to secure the graphics card metal retention bracket to the PC’s case

   
   

6. Connect PCI-E power cables to the PSU

   
   

7. Plug the display cable into the new graphics card

   
   

8. Turn on PC

   
   

9. Install the driver for the graphics card in the GPU company’s website

• indicates the number of computations the cores does every second, measured in Mhz
• higher clock frequency, more heat and heavily depend on thermal conditions, make sure there is
  ample cooling

RAM frequency or clock speed is the maximum number of commands it can handle per second, measured in the unit of Megahertz (MHz) or MT/s.

The rate at which a RAM can read or write data to/from the processor and vice versa is termed as the Memory Bandwidth. The memory bandwidth is determined by the memory bus width, the clock speed and transfers per cycle.

Column Address Strobe (CAS) Latency or CL is the amount of time between sending a READ command to the RAM and the time when the data is available. It is measured in absolute time in nano-seconds (ns) as well has clock cycles.

The memory channels are the link between the RAM and the CPU. It is the electrical path for data to move back and forth.
Most modern consumer-grade or high-end motherboards employ two or four rows of memory channel configuration to take advantage of multi-channel memory technology

Step 1: Locate the CPU Socket

Step 2: Open the CPU Socket

RGB is a fancy addon to the aesthetics of the RAM sticks. If you like the the glowing LEDs then go ahead and select RAMs with inbuilt RGB.

G-SKILL

KINGSTON(HYPER X)

CROSAIR

CRUCIAL

PATRIOT

Step 3: To put in your new RAM sticks, match the
notches with the gaps in the motherboard and push firmly and evenly until you hear a ‘click’. The tabs on the outside should secure the RAM sticks.

Pro tip: if it doesn’t click into place the first time, you should take the RAM stick out and double check to make sure it’s in the right way. If you try to force a RAM stick into the slot incorrectly, it could harm the motherboard.

Step 2: Take out the side panel. take out the RAM sticks by pressing on the tabs holding them in. Remove the sticks carefully.

Step 4: After you’ve installed the new RAM kit, close your computer. Restart everything and reboot. Then, enjoy your upgrades in performance.

Step 1: Remove power cable and unplug any other cables so you can turn your computer on its side.

Multi-core processors have become more popular as their availability has become increasingly common and software has been designed to utilize multi-core technology.

If the software is only able to utilize three of the eight cores, then five cores are going to be unused

Cache is a small amount of very fast memory that is used for temporary storage

Allows a computer to retrieve the files that are in the processor’s cache quickly

The larger a processor’s cache, the more files it will be able to store for that quick retrieval

The frequency of a CPU, measured in hertz (Hz), is the speed at which it operates

Processors generate heat

If a motherboard has already been acquired, make sure that the processor installed is compatible with the motherboard’s socket

In the past, faster frequency equaled better performance

It is important to look at a CPU’s “instructions per clock” in addition to the frequency of the CPU

frequency is still a good indication of how quickly a processor can perform, it is no longer the only factor that impacts the actual speed of a processor.

Thermal design power specification assigned to a CPU explains how much heat the processor is going to give off

Will directly affect the type of cooling device needed for a CPU

Overheating is a primary danger to a computer’s componentry

Designed to perform the calculations related to graphics

If the computer will be used for graphics-intensive software and programs, then a CPU with an integrated GPU will likely not perform as needed

Tells a computer how to carry out program instructions

Carry our arithmetic and logical operations