2. HCI – Human-Interface Device
The most popular device and more suited for gaming is the
Keyboard and Mouse combo, the keyboard giving the user a
huge amount of keys to assign to certain tasks in a game as well
as having a mouse for superior aiming and movement across the
screen. WASD for FPS on the right and a MOBA layout on the
left. These are the most popular genres of games on PC and
therefore the most used layouts. http://goo.gl/vHYVDy
3. HCI – Continued
The next pair of devices I am going to talk about is going to be
the widely used Xbox 360 Controller and the Dualshock 3
controller which is used on their respective consoles and can be
used on PC. The controllers are very similar apart from the
placement of the dual analogue sticks which is the main
differences between the two controllers. Both controllers fit
around the hand nicely as well as having easy to press buttons
and comfortable analogue sticks. The Xbox Controller on the left
has been criticized for being too big and the Dualshock 3,
Playstation 3 controller has been known for being uncomfortable
to use after long periods.
4. CPU – Core Processing Unit
A CPU carries out instructions and tasks set by other programs and hardware,
the speed and amount of tasks they can accomplish depends on their specs.
There are a huge amount of CPU types which usually come from Intel or AMD
who are the leading companies in CPU manufacturing. There are many core
factors to take into account when looking at a CPU, this includes;
• Clock Speed: The speed of each core is one of the main factors of whether
a CPU is good or not. Currently measured in Mhz or Ghz.
• Core Amount: The amount of cores is second important factor when
looking at a CPU, depending on what your using the amount that will be
useful will vary as some old games will not use all available cores, both
logical and physical.
• CPU Cache: The cache is faster memory used so the CPU can access data
quicker. This greatly reduces the time to access certain parts of memory
which increases the rate in which the CPU carries out processes.
5. GPU – Graphics Processing Unit
The GPU controls all 3D and 2D graphical functions on a computer and became a popular
term only after Nvidia marketed their new Geforce 256 “the world's first 'GPU’” capable of
processing a minimum of 10 million polygons per second.
There are two main types of GPU; An integrated GPU and a Dedicated GPU.
- Integrated GPU are built into the motherboard and use a portion of the system ram for
the GPU. These GPU’s are usually low powered and aren't very powerful compared to
their dedicated counterpart.
- Dedicated GPU’s are usually high powered and highly powerful GPU’s that slot into PCI-
E ports, usually equipped with a built in fan are the fastest possible GPU’s.
NURBS: Non-Uniform Rational Basis Spline, is a mathematical model used to generate and
represent curves and surfaces in a 3D environment.
In the 1990’s 2D graphics where compatible with all major graphics chips at the time
supporting the popular 2D API, DirectDraw. Only later on OpenGL tried to create a popular
3D API but failed and Glide API took over due to OpenGL’s performance issues. The start of
the still popular DirectX started after Windows said they wanted to make all their hardware
work one to one with DirectX only as many GPU’s at the time had their own specific
features.
6. RAM – Random Access Memory
RAM kind of like a hard drive can store data but temporarily with less storage
with the benefit of being able to read and write data at a much faster speed.
RAM is usually used for quick access to data by programs and the processor,
alternatively it is possible to use RAM as a form of storing an entire program or
game temporarily to emulate an SSD.
Types of RAM;
• SRAM – Opposite of DRAM, more expensive but does not need to be power refreshed, therefore it is faster.
• BSRAM – Synched with the system clock as to reduce access waiting time.
• VRAM – Used in GPU’s are used as a buffer between it and the processor.
• FPM DRAM – Uses a row based system reducing access time and power requirements.
• DRAM – Opposite of SRAM, cheaper but discharges when read so needs to be power refreshed.
• RDRAM – VRAM designed by Rambus increases speed between it and the frame buffer..
• NVRAM – Non volatile, keeps its data even when unpowered.
7. Display – Monitors & TV
Displays come in various types some being built into personal computers and
some needing to be bought externally. Types of display currently are put into
two different categories, either a TV or a Computer Monitor. Originally the
only popular monitor was CRT monitors using cathodes to display up to
1024x768 resolution and offered 180 degree viewing angles which compared
to early LCD’s was very good.
“ The dynamic range of early LCD panels was very poor, and although text and other motionless graphics were sharper than on a
CRT, an LCD characteristic known as pixel lag caused moving graphics to appear noticeably smeared and blurry.”
Plasma Televisions boomed in the 1980’s boasting a high contrast ratio and
resolution than anything at the time, these nowadays are replaced by OLED
TV’s that have up to 420 Hertz refresh rate, higher contrast ratio, 1080p and
barely any response time.
The main difference between TV sets and Computer monitors, is the fact that
TV sets usually try and get higher contrast ratio whilst monitors try and strive
for higher resolution, pixel density and refresh times.
8. Sound – Sound Cards
The sound or audio card, true to its name gives the computer the ability to
generate and output audio. Most motherboards have sound cards built in
giving the user basic functions like headphone ports, microphone ports and
line in ports. The user may want to buy a more expensive sound card as to
increase the amount of features they have available to them and maybe
increase the quality of audio depending on the products.
Sampling rates allow for better accurate reproductions of higher audio
frequency.
9. Game Storage Mediums
Video games used to be stored on floppy discs or magnetic tapes and later on
to be released on CD’s and DVD’s to allow for a larger game to made.
Nowadays games are digitally distributed therefore can be virtually any size,
this made internal storage mediums for personal computers need to be larger
and faster. HDD or Hard Disk Drives (Hard Drives) are the most popular and
cheapest of storage reaching up to sizes of 60 Terabytes. These sizes mean
that video games can be larger and larger sizes though this should be
restricted due to a new technology. SSD or Solid State Drives are currently
smaller but much faster than any HDD having nearly 100x faster performance.
But due to this being a new technology the sizes of SSD’s are very small and
very expensive. The largest leap forward being a new 4 Terabyte SSD that will
be predicted to cost more than £10,000.
