The Motherboard, Processor, and Memory - The Processor
(Page 5 of 18 )
Continuing with the biological metaphor, the brain of your PC is the main processor, or CPU. Although other processors are included in the system for video acceleration, audio-digital signal processing, and other processes, the CPU does the vast majority of the grunt work, crunching calculations with enormous speed and efficiency.
In fact, the power of the CPU is often considered to be the main identifying factor in a computer. When someone is asked what type of system she has, her first words describe the processor (“I have a Pentium 4, 1500 megahertz…”). Indeed, for a hardcore gaming machine, the processor and the motherboard on which it resides are the most important components, with the memory and graphics card both close behind.
The CPU is the pivotal unit that executes the vast majority of calculations in the computer. In games, it processes important things like artificial intelligence, weapons and damage calculations, and other goings on. With older 3-D graphics cards, the CPU processes part of the graphics pipeline. (See Chapter 4.)
Motherboards, the main circuit boards of computers, are built around processors. As faster processors are released, or as processors’ form factors change, new motherboards are built to accommodate them.
For years, Intel has dominated the processor market. The first PCs, manufactured by IBM in 1981, contained a 4.77MHz Intel processor called the 8088. It wasn’t the first computer system, but it effectively defined personal computing for a long tine to come.
CPUs have come a long way since then. Nowadays, PC processors run at more than 3000MHz, and many other improvements have been made. IBM is no longer the only company building PCs, but all PCs are called “IBM compatible” or “clones” because with the original PC, IBM defined the standards that are still in effect today.
What the Processor Does The processor performs most of the major calculations that trickle through your PC. The processor thinks in 0’s or 1’s (bits) and uses a vast number of transistors to receive, store, and return data. To give you an idea of the vastness of a processor’s internal capacity, an Athlon XP has more than 37 million transistors within its tiny core. The CPUs we’re concentrating on run the x86 instruction set. They also have enhancements, such as MMX (Multimedia Extensions), SSE (Streaming SIMD (Single Instruction, Multiple Data) Extensions), and 3DNow!, which are special instruction sets that programmers use to enhance their software and make it run more quickly and smoothly on a PC.
The CPU is often defined by the speed at which it operates. It can also be identified by its width and other important factors that are often ignored. We’ll start by explaining exactly what processor “speed” is.
 This chapter is from Build Your Own High Performance Gamers' Mod PC, by Chen and Durham (McGraw-Hill/Osborne, 2004, ISBN: 0072229012). Check it out at your favorite bookstore today. Buy this book now. |
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