Reflection On Project On Building A Computer
This project was very exciting since everything nowadays is reliant on computers. Building a computer compared to buying a premade computer normally saves the person about 10-15% of the sale value. This project was very educational and put my knowledge to the test to see if I could build a computer within a budget. Unfortunately I did not stay within my budget but I got close to my goal. At first thinking about this project was a little intimidating at first to think about all the parts and making sure all the parts are compatible but I took it one step at a time.
When building a computer the first thing I looked at was ensuring the motherboard had the ability to be upgradeable. For my motherboard I chose the ASRock H97 because I personally like Intel more than AMD processors. This motherboard is able to use Icore 7, 5, pentium, or celeron. For my system I chose the Icore 5 since I do not play any video games that are too strenuous onto the CPU. From there I was able to pick a CPU cooler that would fit with the 1150 socket of my motherboard. Since my computer was going to be a gaming computer most of my money went towards the video card. Originally I had a more expensive video card picked out but based on reviews I went with a cheaper PNY graphics card that will play most of my video games on a medium high setting. Once I had those parts decided I had to pick a case that would be able to hold my motherboard as well as fit my video card in.
Based off those parameters also wanted a case that was easy to access audio jacks, well ventilated, and USB ports in the front of the case. From there everything else was picking out parts that I needed. Such as a keyboard, mouse, speakers, and optical drive. I chose Windows 10 as my operating system because I am more comfortable with Windows as my OS and I did not like Windows 8 and I wanted to have a OS that will be still current within the next 5 years. I also chose as my software Microsoft Office home and student since I am still going to school I still need programs like Word, Excel, and Powerpoint.
Overall, this was a fun experience and puts the parts into perspective for me. For me I noticed the most expensive parts were the CPU and video card. As I stated before I tried to stay as close as I could within my budget. However I did not want to reduce my pricing any more than 1163 dollars and going over by only 163 dollars does not seem so bad. In the end I am pleased with what I have built since it will run med-high graphic based games and still has the ability to have parts upgraded.
