Computer Assembly - How To Assemble A PC
Driver Installation
Every hardware component has a software driver associated with it. Windows XP and Windows Vista have general purpose drivers built in that let most hardware components function to some sufficient degree, although usually not efficiently and probably not completely. That's why the computer is sluggish at the moment. So far a lot of hardware has been installed, but really nothing in the way of drivers. The next thing to do is install the drivers.
Getting Drivers To The New Computer
There are a number of ways to get the drivers that are needed over to the new computer.
A first way is to simply use the drivers that are provided on CD with the corresponding hardware. This is nice and easy, but it has a downside. It's a certainty that the drivers that are on the CD are older than the latest ones available as a download from the component maker's web-site. You may even run into a driver CD that does not include a compatible driver for the operating system being used, such as Windows Vista, even though the operating system has been available for some time. But one of the superior qualities of building your own computer is knowing that it has the latest drivers for everything. So as much as possible, I prefer to go to the manufacturer's web-site to retrieve the latest copy.
A second way to get drivers is to download the drivers directly to the computer. In this case, the next order of business is to get the online hardware working, either the built-in LAN support of the motherboard or installing a modem. Even so, you may need to use the first option to install the driver for the modem itself.
A third way is to download them on another computer, burn them to a CD on that computer, bring the CD over to the new computer and then copy them onto the new computer. This works well if you have access to another computer where you can download drivers and burn CD's.
Or instead of burning the drivers to a CD, use a portable mass media device, such as a USB thumb drive like the one shown on the left, or an IDE hard drive placed inside an external hard drive enclosure that connects to the computer using either IEEE 1394 FireWire or USB, like the one shown on the right. Either will be recognized and function properly at this point in the PC assembly.
Back to My Super PC - Home Page
How To Build A Computer. Step By Step Instructions To Assemble. Skip To Any Assembly Step.
Back to My Super PC - Home Page
© 2001-2010, Rob Williams, all rights reserved.
|
|
