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About an hour later, I had finished. Hooking up the monitor and keyboard, it all turned on just fine. And then I realised.
I didn't buy a DVD drive! How on earth was I supposed to install my copy of Windows without one? My progress was put on hold as I made another trip to Aria:
DVD Drive: "Samsung DVD Writer" £12.53
The DVD drive arrived the next Tuesday, and I excitedly wired it up to my machine. Like before, plugging in all the cables was a snap, but another problem arose: it was just a few millimetres too big to fit into the computer case. This was less of an issue; once Windows was installed and my computer was up and running, I disconnected the DVD drive, and everything still ran smoothly.
The final step was to buy a graphics card. Without one, playing any recent games on my computer would be a huge struggle for the motherboard's weedy integrated graphics - definitely not what I'd want. The high-end Graphics Cards are incredibly expensive, the biggest and best going for almost £300 a pop and are as large as a DS Lite. That was definitely not the kind of money I was looking to spend, so I turned to second-hand sales. It didn't take me long to find an American selling his old PC parts:
Graphics Card: "BFG Tech GeForce 7950GT" £42
The card arrived faster than expected, but there was one final issue. Computer monitors can use multiple types of connection plugs, the two common ones being the blue VGA, and the white DVI. The graphics card had a DVI socket, but my monitor had a VGA cable. Fortunately, this problem was both simple and inexpensive to fix – there are adaptors that can convert a plug from VGA to DVI. Currys was threatening to charge me £21 for this relatively simple lump of metal and plastic, but checking out an independent computer hardware store, Advance Computer Systems, I was able to get an adaptor for just £4.
Fitting in the graphics card and using the new monitor connection was the final step, and a huge relief. The computer seached for and installed the correct drivers with minimal fuss, and a little tinkering and testing to make sure everything was working the way it should, my £460-odd project was complete. The specifications were undemanding – not a patch on the really high-end gaming machines, but the ability to run Borderlands without the slowdown and choppy frame rate my laptop offered made me sigh with satisfaction. Mission complete.
Want to build your own PC? Here are a few hints:
- Don't be put off by the technobabble. While all of the numbers and codes will be useful to some people, try and focus on the basics. If it's RAM or a Hard Drive, what's the memory size? Are the case and motherboard size compatible? Is your processor designed for your motherboard? All this information should be easy to find.
- Look everywhere! I purchased most of my parts from big retailers, but looking on eBay, trading websites, or even asking your friends for the old PC they keep in their attic might yield useful bits and pieces.
- Be Prepared to Build! While the actual building phase can be straightforward if you're good at following instructions, having a second pair of hands will make referring to instructions and getting the pieces ready easier. Don't be a loner! It's also a good idea to have your own screwdrivers and cable ties to hand; the parts don't always come with them.
- Measure, measure, measure! While most computer parts are built to a standard size, and should fit perfectly into your case, there's still a chance something might be built to an odd size. Double check the measurements just in case something might not fit snugly. You can make alterations by yourself if need be, but not recommended. If something snaps in half, don't say I didn't warn you.
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