Building a PC For Dummies (Building a PC for Dummies)

Features

• Cover Type: Paperback with 360 pages
• Published by: For Dummies
• Edition: 5th Edition November 7, 2005
• Written in: English
• ISBN 10 Number: 0471767727
• ISBN 13 Number: 978-0471767725
• Book Dimensions: 9.1 x 7.4 x 1 inches
• Weighs: 1.2 pounds

Product Review
By buying components and assembling them yourself, you can save a little money and gain a lifetime of free technical support. Building a PC for Dummies removes the intimidation factor from building your own Intel-based personal computer, explains what you need, and shows you how to put everything together. It's a fine place to start if you've never assembled your own machine before and want to give the process a try.

Author Mark L. Chambers describes what to look for when shopping for components, but he refrains from recommending any specific models or manufacturers. Building a PC for Dummies would be stronger if he had made such recommendations, the way Tom's Hardware Guide does. Even without a specific shopping list, this book makes it possible for a novice computer builder to make informed decisions about motherboards, processors, storage devices, expansion cards, and input devices.

Chambers presents the assembly process logically, explaining how to install a component or two at a time while performing incremental testing. He includes troubleshooting information in each component's section, but it's odd that he puts his discussion of operating systems in an appendix--most system builders will want to see their creations run as soon as possible. --David Wall

Topics covered: Buying and building a PC; selecting motherboards, processors, storage devices, expansion cards, and input devices. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Book Description

• Shows tech hobbyists how to build the perfect PC, whether they want to create the ultimate gaming machine or combine new and recycled parts to construct an inexpensive computer for a child
• The do-it-yourself craze is sweeping through the tech community, and this guide is now significantly revised and updated to cover the wide array of new hardware and accessories available
• Step-by-step instructions and dozens of photographs walk first-time computer builders through the entire process, from building the foundation, and adding a processor and RAM, to installing a video card, configuring a hard drive, hooking up CD and DVD drives, adding a modem, and troubleshooting problems

Reader Reviews
This review is from: Building a PC for Dummies (Paperback) PC hardware and software changes rapidly, and this book desperately needs updating. No discussions of Pentium 4 class systems and related current memory and operating system updates. Save your $. If you are ready to build, cuy the OReilly "PC Hardware in a Nutshell" book instead. Comment (1) | | (Report this)