Many people like to use their home computer as a home media server. These days, it is possible to hook up your smart television and music devices to a media hub. This setup is beneficial because it allows the user to keep everything in order through one centralised system which can be accessed by different gadgets.

So how do you go about it? The best way to do it for the casual user, is to buy a decent powered PC with a quad core processor. You will need a wireless modem, a router, and a smart television. If your TV does not allow wireless connection, then don’t despair, there are ways around that too, and you can connect through a hard network connection. This is essentially to allow your computer and other gadgets to read each other.

You will need to make sure that you buy a PC that has decent storage capacity. If you don’t want to have all your media files stored on the actual computer, you can always buy a good external hard disk. Another option is to buy an internal hard disk and a cradle which mimics the function on a computer connection.

Once all your gadgets are connected to your computer, you should have a one-stop solution where you can view your photographs, access your music, movies and more. Because everything goes through the one computer, there is no need to load up USB sticks and the like, because the data is transmitted straight from the PC to the other medium. If a music system is connected upstairs, for example, it can play the music that is on your PC by accessing it directly. It can be quite tricky to set up, but there are plenty of tutorials online that can help you do so.

Most people who fall into the main bracket of home computer users, simply want a machine to browse the internet, send a few emails, and use social media. You might not want anything fancy, just an ergonomic machine that is economical on physical space, but will still do the job without becoming overloaded.

As we mentioned in a previous section, many machines nowadays come ready to run out of a box. This is literally, the plug in and play system. While it might be tempting to opt for the cheapest deal in the computer store, you need to make sure that you are going to have enough processing power. If, for example, you are planning on using your machine to have about six programs open at one go, then you are going to have to spend a little more.

Some people get caught in the trap of buying a super cheap machine, only to complain that it runs slowly when there are more than a couple of programs open at any given time. Pushing the computer too far will also cause it to slow down over time, and it will just get even more frustrating for the owner.

The key here is to buy something that lies in the middle price range. These machines often marry a decent processor and a fair amount of storage space that allows for the use of virtual memory in case of overload.

Again, it is important to think ahead. Will you be connecting a printer and scanner, a USB hub or a sound system? Cheap computers are cheap because they have less components, so it is a good idea to see how many USB ports the machine has. You will need a good amount to connect your keyboard, mouse, sound system, and perhaps an external storage device. Even if you are using your PC for the basics, it is always a good idea to buy something that has an HDMI port so you can connect it your television to view photos, videos and more.

Computer games have improved in quality by drastic levels over the past few years. As you would imagine, this leads to strain on regular machines which has given rise to the gaming rig.

Just like cars, gaming rigs are also designed to look good with incredible tower casings that are lit up with led lights and decorated with spray paint. But it is important to look beyond that. The most important thing with a gaming rig is the components that are inside. The first thing that you should pay attention to with a gaming rig is to get a tower with enough empty slots inside to allow you to add to the machine over time. Nothing lasts forever, and you might want to install another hard disk, or a separate on board USB hub or even a separate sound blaster.

Storage is important with gaming rigs. With the incredible games on offer and online communities that create mods to g o with games, you will need a great deal of space to save your save games and addons.

These days, high-end computers are equipped with at least a Terrabyte hard disk. But if you are a gamer, you have to consider that not only will you need storage space for your operating system, you will also need to find space for the software and drivers to run your sound card, graphics card and of course the games themselves. It is a good idea to take the step of buying a rig with two hard disks – one for the operating system and essential software and another to install games, use for save games and of course installing your addons.

Last but not least, it is important to make sure that your rig has enough space in the tower to house a good power supply unit and cooling fans, All that computing power will cause a lot of heat buildup and that needs to be dealt with otherwise you will fry the machine.