By Leroy McLean, Contributor

In our last article we talked about the different types of CPUs that you will be hearing about for new computers.

Today I will spend some time to discuss the other important components that might be of great interest to you. Buying a computer should be viewed as an investment and not a quick visit to your nearest computer store. You will have to spend time with the sales person and make some important decisions before you swipe that debit or credit card.

The other components that you need to pay special attention to will be the memory, hard drive, video card, soundcard and expansion cards.

As it relates to the memory, you will find that DDR2 is a memory architecture that enables systems to improve performance and reduce power consumption. The amount of RAM you have determines how many programmes can be executed at one time and how much data can be readily available to a programme. It also determines how quickly your applications perform and how many applications you can easily toggle between at one time. Simply put, the more RAM you have, the more programmes you can run smoothly and simultaneously.

Now for your hard drive, the common standard is now the Serial ATA Hard Drive, which comes in various sizes ranging from 80 - 500GB and running at different RPM speed.

If you are planning to get Windows Vista later this month, then you need to ensure that the right video card is installed inside your new computer. The two most popular brands are ATI or nVIDIA, and these come equipped with memory capabilities of different sizes such as 128MB to 1GB. Note that more is always better in the computer world. I know that some persons might have the cash, and if you do, then a dual monitor is the ideal way to go.

Sound is everything to me, since I enjoy listening to great music. If this is your case, then you would want to purchase a computer with excellent sound options, such as a Sound Blaster X-FiTM XtremeMusic with Dolby 5.1 or if you cannot afford to, then settle for an Integrated 7.1 Channel Audio.

Finally, most computers are now coming with PCI Express technology, this is a step-up over the standard PCI bus. You will also find that IEEE fire wire and several USB ports will be on your computer. Another thing that I will be on the look-out for would be the memory card reader, which can be a 13-in-1 reader that will allow for SD, MiniSD, and Sony Memory stick along with many others.

Well we spent most of our time discussing the internal components of your next computer, you might also want to invest some time in the external such a LCD monitor, Printer and scanner.

Send your comments or suggestions to thestartech@yahoo.com. You can also write to StarTech c/o The Gleaner Company, 7 North Street, Kingston.