What is RAM?

A typical newspaper advert for a computer looks something like this:

Before looking at the advert in detail, let’s explain some of the jargon.

Processor

This is the brain of your computer, and it controls the speed of the entire system. It is wise to buy the best processor you can afford.

The performance of processors is measured in GHz, the faster the better. 3.6GHz is faster than 2.8GHz, for example. Intel Pentium 4 and AMD Athlon XP processors are standard today, with Intel Core 2 Duo being the fastest presently available.

Memory (RAM)

RAM (Random Access Memory) is the main memory in your computer. This is where the computer stores the data it needs when you are using a program. Too little memory will slow down your computer when you are using powerful programs.

256Mb (megabytes) is the minimum you should look for with Windows XP. If your motherboard has an onboard graphics card (see below) then it might be wise to go for a bit more memory (at least 256Mb), due to the fact that your graphics card will be using some of your main memory. 512Mb is an ideal size for most uses.

Hard drive

This device is where you will store most of your programs and data. A hard drive can be referred to as a hard disk, HDD, HD or storage.

With programs becoming ever more complex, it is best to go for one of at least 40Gb (gigabytes). Most systems available today will have a much larger drive than this.

Graphics card

This is the card that controls the quality of the graphics (pictures) displayed on your monitor. If you intend to use your computer for powerful graphics applications such as graphical games or computer aided design, you need to have a good graphics card. The standard now is an AGP or PCI express (types of connection) graphics card with around 128Mb of onboard RAM.

Some graphics cards have TV outputs, allowing you to connect your computer to your TV. This is useful if your computer comes with a DVD player.

Sound card

This controls the sound in your computer. If you want to use your computer for musical purposes, or if you want to use a DVD player with it, then you should choose a good sound card with surround sound.

Modem

This is the device that connects to the telephone line and controls your connection to the internet. Normally the average 56K modem will suffice. If you are going to use broadband a modem will not be necessary, but it may be useful for setting this up.

CD Rom Drive

These devices access CDs for loading programs or playing music.

CD rewriter

This is used to make CDs to backup (copy) your work/files for safe keeping or sharing with others. A CD writer will can be used to copy both music and program CDs, but you need to be aware of copyright laws.

CD writers come in various speeds. The speed tells you how fast they can burn (write) CDs. For instance, an 18x will write a CD 18 times faster than normal - a 74 minute CD in just over 4 minutes - the faster the speed, the better.

Standard CDs can only be written to once, but you can also get rewritable CDs which can be used more than once. These are used with CD rewriters.

You will often see CD writers advertised as 18x-6x-40x. This means that they will burn information at 18x, rewrite (over an already used rewritable CD) at 6x, and read at 40x. The speeds you should expect these days are around 52x-32x-52x.

DVD Rom

This device can be used to watch DVDs on your computer. If you combine it with a graphics card that has a TV output, you can link your computer to your TV and watch DVDs on a big screen!

DVD rewriter

DVD Writers do the same as CD writers, but DVDs can store more information than CDs, giving you the capacity to store film. DVD Writers will also write to CDs.

Network card

This device is used to link two or more computers together. The average home computer will not require one, although some broadband internet connections require a network card to connect to your broadband modem. Do check with your internet provider, as they normally supply this modem.

Monitor

TFT (flat) screens are the norm with monitors these days. 17 inch is the standard size - although 15 inch is available - the bigger the better, especially if you are going to use your monitor for watching films.

Motherboard

This is the main circuit board of a computer, and everything else plugs into it. It is rarely mentioned in an advert, but it is available with various extras built in (onboard), such as sound cards, modems and graphics cards.

Onboard sound cards - these are fine unless you want extra inputs or outputs such as surround sound.

Onboard graphics cards - these are fine unless you want to use the computer for powerful graphics applications such as graphical games or computer aided design. Onboard cards use the computer’s memory, so they can slow things down if your computer does not have enough RAM.

Operating system

The Operating system is the program which controls everything on your computer. A new computer will come with a version of Microsoft Windows, often referred to as MS Windows, the most recent being Windows XP. There are two versions of XP – home and professional. Home has all the features you will need if you are intending to use your computer at home. Professional adds in a few security and networking features, useful for office computers.