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Tech: Processor explanation Please....
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Subject: Tech: Processor explanation Please.... From: wilbyhillbilly Date: 03 Dec 14 - 10:10 AM My son has asked me a question that I cannot find the answer to anywhere, so looking for the mudcat genius that I know is lurking nearby. He just wants to know what size his PC processor is, which I thought would be simple enough to find, so I looked in his PC and came up with this: Intel(R)Pentium(R) D CPU 2.80GHz, 2793Mhz, 2 Core(s), 2 Logical Processor(s) So, can someone please explain, is this just a 2.80 processor or does the 2 core bit mean that it is doubled up to handle twice that, or am I completely barking up the wrong tree. Just want to know what to tell him. Any advice is gratefully received. John |
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Subject: RE: Tech: Processor explanation Please.... From: Stilly River Sage Date: 03 Dec 14 - 10:49 AM 2.8GHz is the speed, and with 2 cores it is like having two computers processing the work (vs. back in the day when all computers were only single core). When you have more cores you can have a lower processor speed because the work is shared between the cores. As you can imagine, the higher the speed, the higher the price. Quad core and higher is a typical configuration these days. Is your son wanting to update his computer? Comparing 2 core vs 4 core processors (PC Magazine) Multi-core processors (Wikipedia) SRS |
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Subject: RE: Tech: Processor explanation Please.... From: wilbyhillbilly Date: 03 Dec 14 - 10:57 AM I think that is the general idea he has, but being only 13 it's more of a hint I think |
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Subject: RE: Tech: Processor explanation Please.... From: EBarnacle Date: 03 Dec 14 - 02:08 PM If he wants to speed things up, he might add more RAM unless the machine is maxed out. Considering his age, he probably has a nearly full hard drive. Consider getting him an external hard drive of a terabyte or two and telling him to transfer most of what is on his machine to that. All by itself that will probably speed up the machine. He should also run a good cleaner on the machine. Personally, I run Malware bytes and Glary Utilities on a regular basis. Both are freeware. |
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Subject: RE: Tech: Processor explanation Please.... From: GUEST,Joe G Date: 03 Dec 14 - 05:59 PM CCleaner is good for getting rid of junk files too. It will clean up the registry too which may help to speed things up. And make sure its defragmented regularly unless its a solid state drive which I gather don't like being defragmented |
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Subject: RE: Tech: Processor explanation Please.... From: GUEST,.gargoyle Date: 03 Dec 14 - 07:31 PM The child is requesting. A ..."New gaming system" Be a good Santa and fulfill his awkward request. Sincerely, Gargoyle Become "the beatest" of ALL... and listen to the child's insight, Listen and learn. |
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Subject: RE: Tech: Processor explanation Please.... From: Stilly River Sage Date: 03 Dec 14 - 09:29 PM He's not too young to learn how to work on his computer himself. Look at the state of the hard drive(s) - if the C: is in the red zone, you need to clear out some space. Ideally, keeping just programs on C: and data on another drive is a good practice. External drives are good for parking a lot of stuff, and memory is cheap. Putting in more RAM does help, but put in the right kind. Check with your computer manufacturer and they will tell you what the upper limits are for that machine. SRS |
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Subject: RE: Tech: Processor explanation Please.... From: Stanron Date: 03 Dec 14 - 11:05 PM Dump Windo$e check out Linux. |
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Subject: RE: Tech: Processor explanation Please.... From: GUEST,Rahere Date: 04 Dec 14 - 12:51 PM If I put some Carbide RAM in with my EWES, what do i get? A set o'lean lambs? |
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Subject: RE: Tech: Processor explanation Please.... From: Mr Red Date: 04 Dec 14 - 06:04 PM I added 4Gb RAM to my Lenovo laptop (now at 8Gb) and did not notice that much improvement in speed. Mind you the HDD is SSD so maybe there is less of an advantage % wise. Photoshop 7 still takes its time deciding (on fonts - mostly). And my humungous Excel sorting 400 mp3 stories didn't speed up, but again the size of that is increasing daily. FWIW there is a maximum RAM that XP will take advantage of. Wiki will tell you. Hopefully it won't fall over if you exceed it. Win7 (not the most basic version) and 2 core should take up to 8. I did check once and Win 7 Prof can take somewhat like 196 Gb RAM. My external HDD is eSataP (think USB 3 speeds before USB 3 was available) and that is a real boon speed wise. Maybe if junior can fit a USB 3 card and use a USB 3 HDD you will get a performace gain in real terms. |
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Subject: RE: Tech: Processor explanation Please.... From: Stilly River Sage Date: 04 Dec 14 - 06:38 PM I'll be switching my HD to SDD one of these days soon, and that is where the biggest bump up in speed will come. SRS |
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Subject: RE: Tech: Processor explanation Please.... From: GUEST,Jon Date: 04 Dec 14 - 07:42 PM A bit of history... Back in the old days of PCs, you could find examples with 2 processors for different tasks. One was essential but the Intel 8087 was an optional special co processor to handle floating point maths. I believe this later became integrated into the main CPU. I don't know whether they still exist but there at least were PC motherboards designed to take more than one main CPU. As far as I understand it, a multi core processor could be considered to be doing the same thing but having both (or more) processors on 1 chip. Again as far as I understand it, it (together with the operating system) provides a way of handling more tasks at once. One core or processor can carry out one instruction while anther does something else. |
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Subject: RE: Tech: Processor explanation Please.... From: GUEST,Rahere Date: 04 Dec 14 - 08:04 PM It was called transputing and created the logical infrastructure used by the modern multiprocessing systems - whether 2 on one chip or 200 on separate processors or even PCs, it depends on the software designer breaking his program down into asynchronous or semi-synchronous chunks which can be farmed out to the most appropriate processor - and that can include video card processors, which are sometimes bigger than the PC! Basically a processor can do just one thing at a time but very quickly, so it can do it, then drop back a level to discover what to do next, do that, and so on and on - except that the subtasks can be farmed out to other processors to do on a multiprocessor system. Each then reports back with the answer, and on and on it goes. |
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Subject: RE: Tech: Processor explanation Please.... From: GUEST,Jon Date: 04 Dec 14 - 08:20 PM Thanks, Rahere. For gpu, CUDA seems to come to mind. At least in the sense of it being something I've heard of... |
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Subject: RE: Tech: Processor explanation Please.... From: GUEST Date: 05 Dec 14 - 04:44 AM Some great info folks, thank you. I got him this PC which was supposed to be a "gaming" PC, but I think the games he is wanting now are getting quite massive. I have done a Crucial Scan and we can increase the RAM from 3 to 4Gb safely. What I would like to know now is, where can I find what size the graphic card is and could I just get a larger one and swop them. Thanks |
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Subject: RE: Tech: Processor explanation Please.... From: wilbyhillbilly Date: 05 Dec 14 - 04:48 AM Oops!, that's me above, site logged me out since yesterday. Don't know why. |
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Subject: RE: Tech: Processor explanation Please.... From: Rob Naylor Date: 05 Dec 14 - 05:30 AM I think even 4Gb these days is a bit low for the kind of gaming teenagers will probably want to do. My work maching has 16Gb RAM whilst our home machine has 8Gb. The odd games I've tried on the work machine run noticably faster and/or more smoothly than they do on the 8Gb machine. The other thing to look at is the graphics card....most games will benefit a lot from a high-spec graphics card. |
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Subject: RE: Tech: Processor explanation Please.... From: GUEST,Jon Date: 05 Dec 14 - 05:56 AM I've just looked up Pentium D. If the identification is correct and Wikipedias info is correct. The last D 2.8ghz was released in 2006. I'm also wondering whether 4Gb is the max memory for you. What is the motherboard? ---- As perhaps a side issue, one note on 4Gb. This is often given as the limit a 32bit operating system can handle. This is not entirely true for the PC. See see PAE. Note the Microsoft Windows variations in 32 bit memory support. (And note the Linux "for free" support). |
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Subject: RE: Tech: Processor explanation Please.... From: Thompson Date: 05 Dec 14 - 06:21 AM If he's gaming, he'll also need a fancy-dancy video card. Here's the basic bits of a computer: The motherboard - the mammy; lets everything else talk to each other, and passes news from one to another. (Mac people call this a logic board.) it has ports sticking out through the case into which you plug speakers, USBs, etc. Into this is plugged: The CPU or central processing unit - the brains of the computer Video card: connects to the screen and shows the pixtures Sound card: connects to the speakers and plays the soundses RAM: known as 'memory', which it isn't really - when you start up your computer, the RAM loads the operating system (Windows, MacOS, Linus, whatever) into itself, and then loads up all the programs you ask it to use. As you do tasks, it keeps them in mind, and also saves what you want to the Hard drive: this is like a bunch of CDs or records stacked one on top of another, which record everything that's saved. It's a good idea to tidy this up every now and again by running a 'defragmenting' program (defragging); this makes things happen faster. Think of a teenager's room with everything thrown everywhere. When the teen (or the mammy) tidies up, it's faster to find stuff. Same with the hard drive. You should back this up to an external hard drive every week so you have an exact copy to replace your stuff if your hard drive breaks. If your computer starts saying "rrr, rrr, rrr", it's about to break. (MacBook Airs don't have a hard drive like this but a solid state drive. This works by magic, and generally much faster.) A buncha fans to keep everything cool. All this sits in a case, and the monitor (which shows the pixtures), the keyboard (your connection to the mammy and her babies) and any other bits and pieces plug into it. I've probably left something out. Oh, and 3GB of RAM? For gaming? Are you bleedin' joking? Even my writing-only computer has 8GB. |
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Subject: RE: Tech: Processor explanation Please.... From: GUEST Date: 05 Dec 14 - 09:46 AM Is there a simple way to find out what size graphics card is in his PC? |
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Subject: RE: Tech: Processor explanation Please.... From: GUEST,highlandman at work Date: 05 Dec 14 - 11:08 AM Guest, usually if you right click on an empty place on the desktop, the resulting pop-up menu will have an entry that calls up the graphics controls (in my case, "NVIDIA Control Panel"). There you should be able to see something that identifies the hardware. BTW, "gaming system" is geek-speak for the coolest, newest, fastest (e.g. expensivest) system you can get. Just sayin'. -Glenn |
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Subject: RE: Tech: Processor explanation Please.... From: wilbyhillbilly Date: 06 Dec 14 - 06:06 AM Thanks Glen, I tend to agree John |
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Subject: RE: Tech: Processor explanation Please.... From: Mr Red Date: 06 Dec 14 - 07:03 AM Wiki Win XP Physical memory limits 4Gb for most 32 bit Processor &/or OS and 128Gb for Prof 64bit Processor+OS. Vista same. Wiki Win 7 Physical memory limits 4Gb for most 32 bit Processor OS and 192Gb for Prof 64bit OS. Most Win 7 installations would be 64 bit processors. Multicore are anyway as I understand it. |
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Subject: RE: Tech: Processor explanation Please.... From: GUEST,DaveRo Date: 06 Dec 14 - 09:08 AM There were dual-core 32bit processors, but the Pentium D is 64bit. The motherboard may limit the amount of memory (RAM) that it will take. We'd need to know the make/model of the machine to tell. Gamers often upgrade their graphics cards to the latest and fastest so you can pick up the not-the lastest at places like CeX. Any competent 13-year old should be able to swap one. |
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Subject: RE: Tech: Processor explanation Please.... From: Stilly River Sage Date: 06 Dec 14 - 12:08 PM Best SSD of 2014. SRS |
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Subject: RE: Tech: Processor explanation Please.... From: Thompson Date: 06 Dec 14 - 06:28 PM I taught a bunch of local kids how to build computer - bought the parts from dabs.com and a cool lit-up case, gave them basic instructions and then stood around saying (truthfully enough) "Feck, I have no idea!" while they worked it out for themselves. It's really the best way for a kid to get to know about computers, and while not particularly cheaper, it's possible to build up a really good computer gradually by starting with a good motherboard and CPU and improving the parts from there. Also provides excellent cool points among their friends. |
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Subject: RE: Tech: Processor explanation Please.... From: EBarnacle Date: 07 Dec 14 - 08:49 AM It also gives them an understanding that most computers are just a bunch of generic components which can be upgraded as needed. |
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Subject: RE: Tech: Processor explanation Please.... From: GUEST Date: 07 Dec 14 - 12:23 PM "Subject: RE: Tech: Processor explanation Please.... From: Stanron Date: 03 Dec 14 - 11:05 PM Dump Windo$e check out Linux." With Linux it's just as important to transfer files out to an external drive. I do quite a lot of videos for You Tube and I only keep those I currently am working on or have recently worked on on the computer's internal HDD. The rest are on a 1 Tb usb external drive. I periodically transfer finished videos to the external drive and delete them from the internal drive to ensure sufficient working space. When the 1Tb drive is full, I'll just get another. |
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Subject: RE: Tech: Processor explanation Please.... From: Mr Red Date: 07 Dec 14 - 01:03 PM The motherboard may limit the amount of memory (RAM) that it will take good point. My Lenovo has two slots but a limit of 8Gb. So Using 2 X 8Gb Sims is not going to work. May have something to do with the actual connections on the connector, some not being connected to the bus. |
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Subject: RE: Tech: Processor explanation Please.... From: Stilly River Sage Date: 08 Dec 14 - 12:46 PM http://www.raspberrypi.org/ Something I came across for the first time recently. SRS |
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Subject: RE: Tech: Processor explanation Please.... From: wilbyhillbilly Date: 30 Apr 15 - 05:58 AM Further to all the above, I took the advice and got him a new system (at great expense), which has been great so far, UNTIL NOW!. He just finished downloading the latest GTA for PC edition, which took him (with our rubbish broadband signal) 12 days to complete. (59GB), having checked all the system requirements first to make sure we didn't get any problems with size etc. So, apparently when he started playing it was fine apart from some of the graphics were showing grey pieces. Having gone to the game settings screen, I just saw that the "graphics" setting in the menu is VIDEO MEMORY 964/768mb and has a long red line to the right of it. Not knowing much about these things, I don't know what this means, but suspect that the red line means it maybe needs this amount to function. If so I am now totally confused, as I have tried various blogs etc to find out how to find the video memory for this PC and ended up with the APPROX TOTAL MEMORY 4095mb, which surely should be enough to supply the above. Hence I need some brilliant expert which I am sure is here somewhere, to help me try solve this before he comes home from school so I can cheer him up and get rid of his total disappointment. Any help in simple language, would be really appreciated. John |
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Subject: RE: Tech: Processor explanation Please.... From: GUEST,DaveRo Date: 30 Apr 15 - 06:50 AM There are two (main) types of memory - Random Access Memory (RAM) which is used for most things and video or graphics memory. On budget machines the latter may be part of the former - but in that case it's limited. Or it can be on a dedicated video 'card' (which might not be a separate plug-in card at all, it might be on the computer's main board or motherboard). A gaming machine would normally need a separate video card to render 3D graphics quickly enough. The video card will have a dedicated processor, too - the Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) which is different from the CPU which was the original subject of this thread. |
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Subject: RE: Tech: Processor explanation Please.... From: GUEST,.gargoyle Date: 30 Apr 15 - 08:10 PM There are many outstanding advantages to your son's machine. It flies below the hackers radar It is a sputtering - bi-winged-aircraft .... on a world of F-18s. Sincerely, Gargoyle |
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