Building a Simple Computer

            This instructable is design to give you an overview on how to build your own personal computer with Microsoft Windows 7 in mind. The project is split into 3 different Steps; A layout and diagrams of the parts needed, two video guides (which is divided into steps) on how to put the machine together and how to begin installation of your operating system.

Step 1: Layout of Basic Computer Components

Building a personal computer all comes down to personal preference; hence why it is called a personal computer in the first place right? Instead of using this instructable to analyze what kind of specifications each person needs to run a computer for themselves, It’s built around as more of a guideline to point you towards a direction for building your own personal computer; and exactly what key parts you need to do so with. Now with every computer, you need some key parts;

·         A Computer Case

·         Power Supply

·         Memory

·         Hard Drive

·         Motherboard

·         Processor with Heatsink (so the chip won’t overheat.)

·         A Graphics card (On-board or a separate card)

·         DVD/CD-ROM Drive

·         Operating system software (in this case Microsoft’s Windows 7 32-bit Software)

                Keeping in mind in this computer build will be running Windows 7, the parts used here are more than sufficient to run the operating system. Windows 7 requires;

·         One Gigahertz (GHz) Processor

·         One Gigabyte (GB) Ram (32-bit software) or two GB RAM (64-bit software)

·         16 GB available hard drive space for 32-bit software or 20 GB for 64-bit software

·         DirectX 9 Graphics device with WDDM 1.0 Higher driver.

Now before going on with each additional step and watching the video tutorials, I have included diagrams of each individual part being used in this particular build. Doing this will give you a little more insight on what is going on in the videos and hopefully give you a little more understanding on how everything on a computer works together. The Video’s are broken down into steps, and I have included what parts each step will require to complete the tasks.

Step 2: Video Instructions Parts 1 Through 4

Parts and Tools for each Step

(Note: all screws came with the case and Motherboard)

A.      Part One; The Motherboard

i.                     Tools needed

-          Phillips Screwdriver

ii.                   Parts needed

-          The Case, 6x Grounding Screws, 6x Motherboard Screws, Motherboard with Panel.

B.      Part Two; Processor and Heatsink

i.                     Tools needed

-          Flathead Screwdriver

ii.                   Parts needed

-          Processor, Thermal paste (located on the heatsink in this case) and the Heatsink.

C.      Part Three; Memory and Graphics Card.

i.                     Tools needed

-          Phillips Screwdriver

ii.                   Parts needed

-          1x Board Screw, 4x DIMM System Memory, Graphics card

D.      Part Four; Case to Board

i.                     Tools needed

-          None

ii.                   Parts needed

-          Connectors from the case

Step 3: Video Instructions Parts 5 Through 9

A.      Part Five; Installing Bay Components

i.                     Tools needed

-          Phillips Screwdriver

ii.                   Parts needed

-          DVD/CD-ROM Drive, Hard Drive, Hard drive Bay Connector, Power Supply,               4X Board Screws.

B.      Part Six; Power Hookup

i.                     Tools needed

-          None

ii.                   Parts needed

-          From the power supply; 24-Pin ATX power connector, 8-Pin Processor connector, PCI-E 4-Pin connector, Molex connector for DVD/CD-ROM Drive, SATA power connector for Hard drive

C.      Part Seven; Connecting drives

i.                     Tools needed

-          None

ii.                   Parts needed

-          SATA Cord, IDE Cord

D.      Part Eight; Finishing Build

i.                     Tools needed

-          None

ii.                   Parts needed

-          Molex connectors from power supply to case fans.

E.       Part Nine, Windows Installation

i.                     Tools needed

-          None

ii.                   Parts needed

-          Power cord, Monitor with DVI Cable, PS/2 Keyboard, USB Mouse, Windows 7 Home Premium Operating System Software.