A computer’s power supply is both one of the simplest and most delicate component. This is due to one simple reason. If your power supply goes haywire, it could fry some, or even all of your precious components with it. Don’t worry, this doesn’t happen very often - just be sure you buy from a decent make, not a low-budget eastern-webshop-gadget without a manufactu

Screw the metal standoffs into the case in the corresponding holes (the same ones the motherboard ends up using) so that the motherboard won't be directly touching the side of the case. Place the motherboard on top of the standoffs and screw it in. Make sure that you also have the I/O panel (the back panel where you connect everything) pressed into the back of the panel before screwing in the motherboard. You want the female connectors to be visible and accessible through the holes in the I/O pa

In Windows 10 you might come across error messages that affect MOV and MP4 files. But with the right tool you can fix the 0xc00d36e5 or the 0xc00d36c4 error. It's typically accompanied with the message "Item is unplayable, please reacquire the conte

M4V files are purchased from the Apple TV app, and previously iTunes. So if you have used this service to buy video files and they won't open in your regular software, use Apple's media player softw

In this guide, I wanted to focus primarily on familiarizing you with the different computer components, and getting to look at them from a gamer’s perspective. We won’t be telling you in detail how to put your system toget

Also, back up your data. This is a guide about installing a solid state hard drive. Even if nothing goes wrong, that new drive will be blank, and you’ll have to install a fresh version of your operating system on it or clone an existing drive to

Slide the SSD into its bracket, lining up the screw holes in the SSD or the 3.5" adapter with the holes in the drive bay. Make sure to install the drive so that its SATA power and data connectors are facing the motherbo

In this guide, you will learn how to build a gaming PC and familiarize yourself with all the different computer components, from a gamer’s point of view. Instead of telling you what to buy, we’ll teach you how to weigh and judge these individual compone

Installing a new cooling fan is often the best way to decrease heat. It also can be a good way to reduce noise (if the replacement fan is quieter, of course). Adding a fan is one of the easier upgrades a user can perf

My advice would be to stay below 4GB until 64bit systems are more stable - especially concerning games. However, you should certainly have a good 2-3GB at your disposal. The times that we were talking ‘MegaBytes’ have long since passed. By the way, with most new motherboards having up to four RAM slots, you can just expand your RAM in the fut

Disconnect your PC from all power and peripheral cords and move it to a flat, level surface with good lighting. Once settled, open it open. A standard tower PC will usually open on the left side (as viewed from the front). The panel will be secured by screws on the back. Not every case is like this, however. You may need to refer to your computer’s man

Once you have a fan of the correct size you need to open your case and line up the fan with the mounting area. It will have four screw holes, as will the fan, so you just need to line up the screw holes on e

This has been a dream of mine for years, but I've always avoided the project because of the costs I assumed were involved. However, writing for MakeUseOf often forces me to think a bit outside the box. How would I accomplish a home security system inexpensively or f

AMD FD6300WMHKBOX FX-6300 6-Core Processor Black Edition : If you're a computer shopper on a budget, it's definitely advisable to go with an AMD processor. Although Intel processors generally offer more performance in a CPU , Pcbuildinsight.com AMD processors have more bang for the buck . With a budget of just $500, we really need to thread carefully so that there's still enough money to spend on the other vital component -- the graphics c

If you’re not certain, you shouldn’t. It’s that simple. You don’t want to go breaking all that pretty stuff you just bought. MakeUseOf has written a guide in the past about building your own system, and will almost literally hold your hand during the proc

The CPU, central processing unit, or simply processor, is the most central part of every computer. It’s the communicating agent between all your different computer components. When one part of your system tries to send data to the other side, it always passes by the Central Processing Unit – this is why having a decent CPU is of the innermost essence. A slow CPU can and will make sure that not all of your components are used to their full ext

There’s nothing else to note about installing drivers. They install like any other software. Just pop in the CD or run the executable and follow the installation wizard’s instructions. You may need to reboot after installation is compl